The Events At Northwood City
Maybe someone ran out of water? No, that doesn't make sense. But really, why gasoline and how?
You shake your head. It's probably nonsense.
After cleaning the puddle up, you throw the paper towels out in a nearby garbage can. There's something red in there, and for a moment you think they're hairs. But when you blink, the 'hairs' turn into a soda can buried beneath some newspapers. You frown. Who throws out newspapers? You take them out and a headline catches your eye.
'Man's Bloody Body Found'.
You quickly scan the article. Mr. Lythe's body was…slashed through by an unknown person or thing. He was found lying on the road, dead, with cuts all over him. The security cameras showed footage of him driving his wife to the subway station but then they glitch out and show the husband alone and dead on the ground. No wife. No car. This information makes you pale. It's already been a week since this newspaper was published, and Mrs. Lythe was just saying last night how her husband was staying up all night making noise…the gasoline puddle…it's all adding up…
"Whatcha reading?"
You gasp, dropping the newspaper. Mrs. Lythe grins back.
"Hello, Dear. Ah, reading about Fredrick now, aren't you? Clever kiddo. I see that you figured it out, huh?" She doesn't wait for you to respond and pins you against the wall of your apartment. She starts monologuing about how smart you are and what she was doing, but you ignore her and instead look at her appearance.
Her usually neat red and white hair is now messy and tangled, and there seems to be less of it. Her teeth are shiny as usual, but they're sharper. Her skin is still dry and chapped, but she's paler than before. Her usual calm blue eyes are wild with excitement and insanity and her lips are drawn back in a snarl.
The red hairs you've seen everywhere…that must've been her. But…
"What were you doing in my house?" you ask, your heart rate speeding up. "Wh-What are you?" You don't mean to stutter, but your nerves are slowly consuming you. Mrs. Lythe howls with laughter.
"A dear guest came to me last night. I could tell he was like no other." Her eyes gleam and she purrs in delight just thinking about the encounter. "He told me humans were stupid, and I couldn't help but agree." She closes her eyes. "And then the best thing happened." Her eyes flash open. "He bit me."
Your jaw drops, and your eyes immediately dart to her neck. How could you have missed it before? As clear as day, two red marks are on her pale neck.
"B-But I thought vampires were–"
"Dead?" Mrs. Lythe cackles. "Yes and no, Dear. You see, he was a half-vampire and a half-werewolf. Vampires are obsessed with turning humans, as you know, but werewolves? They want to destroy humanity. I was told to kill off humans, and you looked like such an easy target I couldn't resist teasing you. You were my practice, my training. I wanted to surprise you and I was testing my abilities. Vampire-werewolf hybrids are the strongest creatures, Dear. The transformation hurts at first, but I got used to it quickly enough. So you see, I have no choice now." Her eyes flash with pain for a moment before returning to their insane look. "I have to kill you."
With that, she uses her claws to slash you to bits.
You shake your head. It's probably nonsense.
After cleaning the puddle up, you throw the paper towels out in a nearby garbage can. There's something red in there, and for a moment you think they're hairs. But when you blink, the 'hairs' turn into a soda can buried beneath some newspapers. You frown. Who throws out newspapers? You take them out and a headline catches your eye.
'Man's Bloody Body Found'.
You quickly scan the article. Mr. Lythe's body was…slashed through by an unknown person or thing. He was found lying on the road, dead, with cuts all over him. The security cameras showed footage of him driving his wife to the subway station but then they glitch out and show the husband alone and dead on the ground. No wife. No car. This information makes you pale. It's already been a week since this newspaper was published, and Mrs. Lythe was just saying last night how her husband was staying up all night making noise…the gasoline puddle…it's all adding up…
"Whatcha reading?"
You gasp, dropping the newspaper. Mrs. Lythe grins back.
"Hello, Dear. Ah, reading about Fredrick now, aren't you? Clever kiddo. I see that you figured it out, huh?" She doesn't wait for you to respond and pins you against the wall of your apartment. She starts monologuing about how smart you are and what she was doing, but you ignore her and instead look at her appearance.
Her usually neat red and white hair is now messy and tangled, and there seems to be less of it. Her teeth are shiny as usual, but they're sharper. Her skin is still dry and chapped, but she's paler than before. Her usual calm blue eyes are wild with excitement and insanity and her lips are drawn back in a snarl.
The red hairs you've seen everywhere…that must've been her. But…
"What were you doing in my house?" you ask, your heart rate speeding up. "Wh-What are you?" You don't mean to stutter, but your nerves are slowly consuming you. Mrs. Lythe howls with laughter.
"A dear guest came to me last night. I could tell he was like no other." Her eyes gleam and she purrs in delight just thinking about the encounter. "He told me humans were stupid, and I couldn't help but agree." She closes her eyes. "And then the best thing happened." Her eyes flash open. "He bit me."
Your jaw drops, and your eyes immediately dart to her neck. How could you have missed it before? As clear as day, two red marks are on her pale neck.
"B-But I thought vampires were–"
"Dead?" Mrs. Lythe cackles. "Yes and no, Dear. You see, he was a half-vampire and a half-werewolf. Vampires are obsessed with turning humans, as you know, but werewolves? They want to destroy humanity. I was told to kill off humans, and you looked like such an easy target I couldn't resist teasing you. You were my practice, my training. I wanted to surprise you and I was testing my abilities. Vampire-werewolf hybrids are the strongest creatures, Dear. The transformation hurts at first, but I got used to it quickly enough. So you see, I have no choice now." Her eyes flash with pain for a moment before returning to their insane look. "I have to kill you."
With that, she uses her claws to slash you to bits.
