Acasa
Scris de DarK Dum Ian 04, 2009 5:17 pmI am alone ...
The streets of the city are dark and cold and everyone clutches their jackets a little closer . They scurry along the sidewalks and glance enviously at the cars in the street as they drive by , knowing those people will be home soon . Not like them ... Not like the walkers who hasten along their way , looking around but only seeing where they want to be . They think they know loneliness ...
They are wrong !
I lean under an awning and see them pass by , instinctively skirting around where I stand , avoiding me , as they rightly should . But perhaps I overreact . They seem to avoid everyone , turning aside to avoid even brushing another’s shoulder . They don’t know how lucky they are , to be close enough to touch another , even a stranger ... What I wouldn’t give to be able to reach out ...
Behind me I hear a sound , a faint echo from the maze of alleys behind me . I turn around and listen again . I sniff the air and can taste the metallic tang . My quarry . The tail of my trench coat whirls out behind me as I stride between the buildings and vanish into the shadows .
Most people don’t realize what lies behind the brightly lit buildings you can see from the street . They can’t see that another world exists in the alleys and hidden ways of the backstreets , waiting to catch the unwary . This is my hunting ground and my pulse quickens with anticipation . I follow the noise ; I carefully track my prey’s scent as it makes its way along the narrow streets . I move carefully , without a sound , even my breathing masked by the wind whipping along the corridor of buildings .
Finally I slow down . The metallic scent is ahead and my quarry has stopped . I creep ahead , slowly , keeping to the shadows . It would not do to alert them of my presence this far in the chase . I approach the corner and peer around .
There she is ! A teenage girl , a young woman really , is turning around in confusion . She is lost , alone , frightened ... The perfect prey !
Anticipation grips me as I watch her eyes , wide with fear . Slowly I reach into the sleeve of my coat to pull out a silver dagger hidden within . I grasp the blade and prepare to launch it ahead . The wait is unbearable ; I can taste the kill .
Wait ... wait ... I tense . The perfect moment is coming ... patience , I council myself . One more second ... now !
I step around the corner , my coat flaring behind me like the wings of an avenging angel . The girl sees me and screams ... Silver gleams in the dim light as I raise my arm , throw it forward , releasing the dagger in one smooth movement . It traces a line of perfection as it arcs through the air .
It takes a moment for the girl to realize she is still alive . She opens her eyes with a startled gasp and cringes from me as I approach . I don’t care about her any longer but instead I lock my eyes on my target . The girl follows my gaze . As she sees my dead quarry , she screams .
The noise is nothing but an irritation to me as I sit on my heels before the beast . My dagger hit it in the stomach as it leapt and it somersaulted as it hit the ground , its head away from me , lying belly up and still . I am grateful it fell in such a way – had it not , I would not have been strong enough to roll over the enormous doglike body to retrieve my dagger , without injuring myself on its spiny protrusions .
Blood gushes from the distended belly as I retrieve my dagger . Not all of it belongs to the creature . It had already gorged itself on blood tonight – that’s why it was so easy to track . Its coppery scent was unmistakable ... to me ...
The hunter !
As I stand I look at the creature once again . Its yellow eyes are already glazed over , its fangs bared in a snarl . The rubbery tongue rolls out of its mouth , still sticky with the blood of its earlier victims . Had I been a little later , the girl would have joined them in death ... and in the creature’s stomach .
Behind me , the girl gags slightly . Another may not have noticed , but I do . I notice everything . I turn to look at her ... My face is hidden in the shadow , my dagger's dripping blood as it hangs loosely in my grip . Wind whistles in the alley and my long coat flaps around my legs .
I look at her ... She runs ...
There is nothing more . No gratitude , no thanks , nothing but the echo of footsteps down an empty street . I saved her life and all she felt ... was fear ! She was afraid of me ...
The hunter ... The desolated shell of what was once a man ...
I turn and walk away , wiping my dagger clean . I leave the creature’s body . It will rot by morning ... Lucky ! It does not linger , alone and unknown .
Not like me ...
The streets of the city are dark and cold and everyone clutches their jackets a little closer . They scurry along the sidewalks and glance enviously at the cars in the street as they drive by , knowing those people will be home soon . Not like them ... Not like the walkers who hasten along their way , looking around but only seeing where they want to be . They think they know loneliness ...
They are wrong !
I lean under an awning and see them pass by , instinctively skirting around where I stand , avoiding me , as they rightly should . But perhaps I overreact . They seem to avoid everyone , turning aside to avoid even brushing another’s shoulder . They don’t know how lucky they are , to be close enough to touch another , even a stranger ... What I wouldn’t give to be able to reach out ...
Behind me I hear a sound , a faint echo from the maze of alleys behind me . I turn around and listen again . I sniff the air and can taste the metallic tang . My quarry . The tail of my trench coat whirls out behind me as I stride between the buildings and vanish into the shadows .
Most people don’t realize what lies behind the brightly lit buildings you can see from the street . They can’t see that another world exists in the alleys and hidden ways of the backstreets , waiting to catch the unwary . This is my hunting ground and my pulse quickens with anticipation . I follow the noise ; I carefully track my prey’s scent as it makes its way along the narrow streets . I move carefully , without a sound , even my breathing masked by the wind whipping along the corridor of buildings .
Finally I slow down . The metallic scent is ahead and my quarry has stopped . I creep ahead , slowly , keeping to the shadows . It would not do to alert them of my presence this far in the chase . I approach the corner and peer around .
There she is ! A teenage girl , a young woman really , is turning around in confusion . She is lost , alone , frightened ... The perfect prey !
Anticipation grips me as I watch her eyes , wide with fear . Slowly I reach into the sleeve of my coat to pull out a silver dagger hidden within . I grasp the blade and prepare to launch it ahead . The wait is unbearable ; I can taste the kill .
Wait ... wait ... I tense . The perfect moment is coming ... patience , I council myself . One more second ... now !
I step around the corner , my coat flaring behind me like the wings of an avenging angel . The girl sees me and screams ... Silver gleams in the dim light as I raise my arm , throw it forward , releasing the dagger in one smooth movement . It traces a line of perfection as it arcs through the air .
It takes a moment for the girl to realize she is still alive . She opens her eyes with a startled gasp and cringes from me as I approach . I don’t care about her any longer but instead I lock my eyes on my target . The girl follows my gaze . As she sees my dead quarry , she screams .
The noise is nothing but an irritation to me as I sit on my heels before the beast . My dagger hit it in the stomach as it leapt and it somersaulted as it hit the ground , its head away from me , lying belly up and still . I am grateful it fell in such a way – had it not , I would not have been strong enough to roll over the enormous doglike body to retrieve my dagger , without injuring myself on its spiny protrusions .
Blood gushes from the distended belly as I retrieve my dagger . Not all of it belongs to the creature . It had already gorged itself on blood tonight – that’s why it was so easy to track . Its coppery scent was unmistakable ... to me ...
The hunter !
As I stand I look at the creature once again . Its yellow eyes are already glazed over , its fangs bared in a snarl . The rubbery tongue rolls out of its mouth , still sticky with the blood of its earlier victims . Had I been a little later , the girl would have joined them in death ... and in the creature’s stomach .
Behind me , the girl gags slightly . Another may not have noticed , but I do . I notice everything . I turn to look at her ... My face is hidden in the shadow , my dagger's dripping blood as it hangs loosely in my grip . Wind whistles in the alley and my long coat flaps around my legs .
I look at her ... She runs ...
There is nothing more . No gratitude , no thanks , nothing but the echo of footsteps down an empty street . I saved her life and all she felt ... was fear ! She was afraid of me ...
The hunter ... The desolated shell of what was once a man ...
I turn and walk away , wiping my dagger clean . I leave the creature’s body . It will rot by morning ... Lucky ! It does not linger , alone and unknown .
Not like me ...
