Death City

Chase

One bumped her. Then another came. Trying to find her way out, Yamie couldn't avoid the turbulent flow of the crowd. Here and there, she would met drunk entity, either vampire or werewolf and if not, surely it was a pheonix, who were too wild on dancing out of the rhythm.

She searched for Gabriel but see none. Even Marys or Delo was out of sight.

Where could they be?What business did Gabriel mentioned?

She stopped walking after sensing someone was following her. No. It wasn't someone. She was followed by more than one!

With that, as adrenaline rushed over her veins, she accelerated away but her chaser who soon followed, alerted that she already knew their presence. Looking back, she was surprised to see them eagerly wanting to caught her. Their gray dagger-like eyes never left her. It was her mistake to let them know she found out that they're following her. Because of that, they even became more braver. Wilder. Eager to caught her.

She turned to the next pillar, trying to confuse them and ducked under the dancing crowds. Maybe, she can escape through this. It was unavoidable to be stepped on by many feets that some were either confused or annoyed by her unusual action.

One werewolf guy, his pair of drank golden eyes identical to Marys that she almost mistook it was her, even offered a hand thinking she fell on the floor. Though she instead glare at it and with no idea at all, the guy ran away from her,looking scared. She was too occupied to think why with her chasers still might be around.

After a several minutes or so, she then decided to check whether they're gone now. Yet, as she stood up from where she is, her eyes widen when it directly spotted a vampire along three meters away from her. Its eyes were frighteningly emotionless. Turning back to sprint for her life, she desisted finding out she'd been surrounded. At her back! At either sides, she got no way out!

"What should I do?"she racked over the place around her, trying to find a way out. Then, she spotted a large window opened towards the street. Again, she looked at her chaser who seemed so confident but when she ducked again on the crowd, they panicked. That made her lips curled in a grin.

Walking in circles first to confuse the vampires, Yamie found her way out to the window she saw a moment ago. It leads her to the crowdy street as she expected.

"A newly made garments from (werewolf land)! No cold will penetrate unless it was on Mt. Zue!" loudly advertised the old vendor she passed by. She noticed nothing seems special about it besides the thick fur that was atleast six inches.

"Who would want to wear this type of cloth? It was too thick," she didn't realised saying that the old man heard.

He approached her. "Are you buying, My lady?"he seemed annoyed which Yamie couldn't blame for. It was her who criticised his product first after all.

" No,"she immediately let go of the warm furry cloth she'd been caressing for a minute." I'm sorry, Mister. " Then she turned her back, a bit embarrassed. After all, he's an elder.

As she wandered along the street, regret overwhelmed her thinking it was much fun in her than sitting at the corner of that chaotic party. If she'd been here, maybe she won't be chase by those vampires. But why were they chasing her? It's not that she had a debt to pay to them. She even just arrived in this strange place not a couple of hours ago!

How come she had an enemy?!

The street wasn't too dark as she expected. Though it was dim mostly on the hidden lanes, the main street was illuminated by hanged laterns over the sky. For a woman like her who came from a modernised world, this kind of scenes amazed her. Especially that she delved herself into her work that she lost all the time for leisures.

Speaking of work, what was her work before?

The thought of it made her head spin. She couldn't remember it!

Before she started to get panic again, a cold hand pulled her arm. "Miss, do you want to have some lucky charm?"

When she glanced at it, a wierd looking lady was smiling at her. Though she can't decided whether her smile was friendly or frightened.

"I have something for you here," she told her pulling her now on a stall full with messed products. Mostly were wierd looking accessories that she was sure it's out of her style.

"N-no. I don't need one," she tried to sound as much as polite if possible now that the coldness in the lady's hand on her arm travelled inside her. She somehow felt sick of it.

She didn't mean shuddering in front of her yet, the coldness really was terrible. Her body outside wasn't cold but inside her was almost feeling like an ice! How was that possible? It wasn't even long before she touched her.

Noticing her shuddering, the lady vendor released her arm now. Looking at Yamie with squinting eyes. Her gray iris brushed her entirety until it darted to her mask.

"You aren't the Masked Mistress," she softly said, looking somehow disappointed. Yamie glanced up to her but can't fucos as she hugged herself, trying to warm up her body but with no avail.

"But why do you have too much fire energy? Like..."

"Like w-what?" Yamie' s voice trembled. There was too mystery in this woman and the Masked Mistress she's talking about.

The lady vendor, however ignored her question and returned the bracelet she was about to sell to her on the stall. She returned back to face her, crossing both arms in front .

Her smile was now gone. "If you ever survive this night, come back and retrieve what you own. They're still chasing you," she said pointing at her back.

Yamie need not turn to see what this lady was talking about. She knew for sure that it was those vampires that led her to this street. Even the hairs on her neck rose up with just their presence.

" T-thank you. "

Knowing that she couldn't do anything but run, she fled from her chaser. But with the narrow yet crowded, not only by people but also unorganised products, street she can't help but stumble into some of them.

"Hey! Watch out!" screamed an old woman selling some items she couldn't recognise except for the scattered beads on the ground that almost made her lost balance.

"I'm sorry!" she was out of time to help because when she was about to, the vampires almost caught up with her.

Panting and sweating, she resumed to run as much as she could with her feet's limit. But could she be able to escape from these vampires? Aren't in the movies, vampires were known as fast runners?

The thought of being caught and sucked of blood by this entities made her feet cold. Yet, it only made her determined not to be caught. Deciding to run with all her might, Yamie sprint up yet bumped into a tall sturdy body. She immediately sniffed a mint fragrance but when it entered her nostrils, it brought a feeling of being burnt inside her nose. It stings.

"Can't there be anything ordinary in this place?!" she protested in her mind yet, she doesn't have much time left to think more of it when she felt herself losing balance.

However a hot, hotter than Marys' or the mint scent that burned her nostrils, arms cooped her waist as they both turned around to prevent them both from losing balance. Yamie knew this kind of physics but what she couldn't perceive was this very hot hand that was burning her skin.

"There she is!" she heard from a distance and that made herself realise that she's still on a run.

"Damn."

She wasn't like this. Cursing foul words like those gangsters on the street she always passed by during her high school days and yet, it was only now that she understood why. Cursing somehow felt good when you can't solve your problems.

"Woman!" called the man she bumped into who's face she didn't even get the chance to look at. Maybe if she could survive this, she'll find that man who's scent burned her nostril and who's hand burned her skin. It still hurt in her waist line. She bet it might really be a pink burned flesh right now. Swearing, she definitely would make that guy pay!

As the woman ran away from his arm, Fenriz followed her tracks being chased by several vampires with his eyes .

"Won't you help her?" he heard Sabrina asked who's leaning on a food stall. A toasted meat in her mouth as she watched the whole scene that was the most interesting thing she ever witnessed this night. It's really hard for something to interest her and that miserable woman just had the privilege to do so. Now, maybe she won't regret going here in this place with her cousin.

Fenriz' gleaming golden eyes watched the woman bumping into everyone that caused chaos in the whole street. Apples, lemons, cloths and even seeds were thrown everywhere that in a distance, it looked like they were flying.

He then side glanced at Sabrina who were also following that woman's track though still met his eyes. He shook his head. "Haven't you seen who was chasing her?"

Sabrina,immediately got curious, looking back to see the woman's chasers but they were out of sight now. She only saw the busy street of Deaths City Underground. Her brows furrowed. Eyes squinting. "Who?"

The corner of his lips twisted in a grin as he stare at the piece of the woman's dress he sneakily ripped off when he was holding her tiny waist. Sniffing it like a dog, the oleander scent of it devoured in his nose.

"Deadly," he breathed still sniffing the piece of cloth as he smirk. Wondering why that woman smelled like the killer-fragrance oleander flower. Who might she be? "A dangerous beauty."

"What?!" irritatedly asked Sabrina who was thinking he was now crazy. Her always plain face was strangely painted with annoyance for the first time.

That brought Fenriz back to his reverie and stuffed the cloth in his pocket. Still both hands inside it, he turned to look at Sabrina who's already impatient.

"Rina, are your skill getting duller or you're just stupid?"his words made the lady sneered but it was already out of his business.Ignoring her deadly glares, he walked towards her side and also leaned over the stall since the street was again back to its normal lively flow that was disrupted with the woman's arrival . " Those vampires were wearing a red cloak, black stone earings and also, didn't you see the weapon they're hiding under their sleeves?" he shifted his position, now intently staring at Sabrina's eyes. Though the later was more vigorous . "Rina, it's one of most invincible weapon in the entire Death City. The Crimson Blade."

"What?!" she exclaimed, standing up in surprise though her head hit the ledge of the stall. She cursed though it was the least of her interest now, only tapping the swelling part of her head now. "You mean the one chasing that woman are the Blood Hunters?!"

Fenriz nodded his head. The rays of the lantern reflected in his eyes making it looked like glowing red lights. Though in fact, his eyes glow in gold in the darkness.

"Then we must help her!" blurted Sabrina that surprised him. It was the first time that his cousin who were known as being too uninterested in the world's matter paid much attention and interest to someone. More even that it was a stranger.

He immediately grabbed her arm when she was about to run after the woman. "Woah! Held in there, Rina. Why should we involve in their businesses?"

Those words slowly sink in her mind until she gave up resisting from Fenriz who were stopping her to meddle. He was right. Why would she care?

With that, she went back to leaning over the stall and furiously exhaled all her irritation. Her hands gripping tightly at the pillar of the stall that in anytime, Fenriz wondered when will it break.

From staring at the ground over a period of time, she glanced at him who was standing beside the street , hands on the pocket, and watching the crowds buying here and there. It was too loud that some words were unable to be heard of, though he still weren't bothered by it. His mind was drifting off at another matter.

"Fenriz."

"Uh?"he mumbled nonchalantly .

"I thought you're interested on that woman?"

That question made him statued for a while before he turned to her, grinning. "What made you think so?"

This time, Sabrina matched her grinning face though hers was more genuine, witnessing the regret registering over his face. "You almost undress her. And also," she paused to chuckle her happiness off. Walking near him, she leaned her arm over his shoulder though he was too tall for her to reach so she gave up. Instead she just simply stood in front of him with both hands over her chest."...you were always interested in every woman, Fenriz. Beauty or ugly, you never pardoned them."

It made Fenriz grinned with her words, knowing she really knew him. He wrapped his arm over his shoulder, pulling her closer, as they both watch the crowds. "You really are my little Rina, lady. " For a moment their minds wandered in the moments of their childhood. In fact, it was Fenriz who adopted his cousin,Sabrina and watched her grow up under his care. He was almost a father to this lady.

"Riz," suddenly uttered her.

"What?"

"What if she'll die tonight?"

Her frank and always unreluctant question made him again statued which also speak up what's inside his mind.

"She's just a weak woman, you know? She can't survive alone those blood-thirst hunters."

It made Fenriz smiled and shook his head. Sabrina looked at him intently, waiting to speak. Though his mind was too occupied by the thought of the woman.

No. It's too impossible for that woman. She indeed have a very hot energy but...no.He needed to be sure of it.

"She isn't a weak woman," he finally spoke. His lips were lifting in one side. "She'll surely survive this and I'll definitely find her,"his hand clunching the crisp cloth inside hus pocket," Own her."