Retrieving Sanity
Chapter 1
So maybe I don’t have the best ideas ever, but everything has to start at a point. Step 1 – research. But how? I’ve found myself asking the same question repeatedly over the last decade. I’ve come to a few small conclusions, but nothing’s set in stone. The thing is, I know nothing about modern day life. Pre-war times I can deal with, but everything’s changes. Everything always has and always will do – there’s no way to stop it. The only two things that I haven’t invested in are a computer, and a television. They’re the two things I desperately need. Research is the key to preventing freakish amounts of ‘murders’; to prevent innocent humans from being sent down; to do this properly. And technology is the key to helpful research. Step one, stage one – shoplifting, from inner-city stores.
***
I stood there, outside the electrical shop, inhumanly still. All my extended life I had stole to survive, but this time it was different. This time I was in the centre of a vast city - a city that never sleeps. I was afraid. Afraid of myself. Afraid that I would slip into my role as a monster that I had tried so hard to enclose within myself for the past one hundred years. No. Negative thoughts aside. I was going to do this, and in this I would succeed. I began to think about how I would go about this. However, I decided to put all the strategic plans behind me and just go for it.
Shards of glass scattered across the floor. Alarms rang loudly. I sprinted inside the shop and grabbed what I could - a lot. In the distance I could hear the calls of security guards along with the stomp of their boots as they ran up the aisles, searching for the thief. Searching for me. But they will never find me; I’m to fast for even the CCTV cameras to catch a glimpse of me. This was going to be a very bizarre mystery for the police to solve, if they ever do. I made my way back through the broken glass and out of sight.
A desolate alley invited me to enter. I was well out of sight; they didn’t have prayer of finding me. Even if they did, I’d quite literally rip them to shreds. Though something me that I was out of everybody’s sight, something told me that I had company. My hunch was correct.
“Oy, what you doing down our alley?” A leader from a gang of youths was looking strait at my silhouetted figure. He spoke again. “Come on then, who are you? What you doing down our alley?”
I did not reply, all I did was appear right in front of his face. The smell of his blood made its way up my nostrils. My instinct was to attack, but I could resist, for now. The gang leader had a slightly shocked and intimidated look on his face.
“All right then, no need to go all psycho on me,” He stepped back; one of his friends took his place centre stage.
“Look, he didn’t mean to come across like that. I’m Jay.” He held out his hand, I did not take it. However this time I decided to answer.
“Hello Jay, I’m Scarlett.” My face was expressionless as I fought the want to kill.
“That’s a really pretty name.”
The leader interrupted. “No chance mate, no way are you getting her. If anyone is it’s gonna be me, init sexy?” His arrogance was really beginning to annoy me; I didn’t know how long I could retaliate against my senses. I glared at him constantly, never blinking, not even once. He continued. “You really are psycho, aren’t you? Get out of here, we don’t want you ‘round here.”
“Hey, go easy on her, she does have feelings” I was starting to take a liking to this Jay. He was a lot nicer and more polite than the others.
“Incidentally not, now if she’s not leaving, we are, come on.” The leader ordered.
“No. I’m not leaving. Kirk, you can go, but I’m staying.”
“Suit yourself. Give psycho some psychology therapy or whatever, it might make her partially
normal.” And with that Kirk and the rest of the gang walked away.
“Are you okay?” Jay asked sympathetically.
I nodded, “You didn’t have to do that. In fact, you shouldn’t have endangered yourself like that.”
“Don’t worry,” he touched my hand and looked into my eye; “I know what you are.”
With that touch I knew what he was. “And I know what you are.”
“Say the word.”
“Werewolf.”
“Vampire.” He answered immediately after.
***
I stood there, outside the electrical shop, inhumanly still. All my extended life I had stole to survive, but this time it was different. This time I was in the centre of a vast city - a city that never sleeps. I was afraid. Afraid of myself. Afraid that I would slip into my role as a monster that I had tried so hard to enclose within myself for the past one hundred years. No. Negative thoughts aside. I was going to do this, and in this I would succeed. I began to think about how I would go about this. However, I decided to put all the strategic plans behind me and just go for it.
Shards of glass scattered across the floor. Alarms rang loudly. I sprinted inside the shop and grabbed what I could - a lot. In the distance I could hear the calls of security guards along with the stomp of their boots as they ran up the aisles, searching for the thief. Searching for me. But they will never find me; I’m to fast for even the CCTV cameras to catch a glimpse of me. This was going to be a very bizarre mystery for the police to solve, if they ever do. I made my way back through the broken glass and out of sight.
A desolate alley invited me to enter. I was well out of sight; they didn’t have prayer of finding me. Even if they did, I’d quite literally rip them to shreds. Though something me that I was out of everybody’s sight, something told me that I had company. My hunch was correct.
“Oy, what you doing down our alley?” A leader from a gang of youths was looking strait at my silhouetted figure. He spoke again. “Come on then, who are you? What you doing down our alley?”
I did not reply, all I did was appear right in front of his face. The smell of his blood made its way up my nostrils. My instinct was to attack, but I could resist, for now. The gang leader had a slightly shocked and intimidated look on his face.
“All right then, no need to go all psycho on me,” He stepped back; one of his friends took his place centre stage.
“Look, he didn’t mean to come across like that. I’m Jay.” He held out his hand, I did not take it. However this time I decided to answer.
“Hello Jay, I’m Scarlett.” My face was expressionless as I fought the want to kill.
“That’s a really pretty name.”
The leader interrupted. “No chance mate, no way are you getting her. If anyone is it’s gonna be me, init sexy?” His arrogance was really beginning to annoy me; I didn’t know how long I could retaliate against my senses. I glared at him constantly, never blinking, not even once. He continued. “You really are psycho, aren’t you? Get out of here, we don’t want you ‘round here.”
“Hey, go easy on her, she does have feelings” I was starting to take a liking to this Jay. He was a lot nicer and more polite than the others.
“Incidentally not, now if she’s not leaving, we are, come on.” The leader ordered.
“No. I’m not leaving. Kirk, you can go, but I’m staying.”
“Suit yourself. Give psycho some psychology therapy or whatever, it might make her partially
normal.” And with that Kirk and the rest of the gang walked away.
“Are you okay?” Jay asked sympathetically.
I nodded, “You didn’t have to do that. In fact, you shouldn’t have endangered yourself like that.”
“Don’t worry,” he touched my hand and looked into my eye; “I know what you are.”
With that touch I knew what he was. “And I know what you are.”
“Say the word.”
“Werewolf.”
“Vampire.” He answered immediately after.