The streets of the Bronx are seriously dangerous at this hour.
They're crawling with the worst scum humanity has to offer.
Homeless people who are always drunk or high, muggers, drug dealers.
Basically, outcasts who've probably been forgotten even by their own mothers.
In other words, the perfect place for a snack.
After a quiet walk in the moonlight, I reach Mott Haven, my favorite hunting ground.
At the end of the alley sits a run-down apartment complex occupied by squatters.
A drug den for the local gangs or something like that.
I make my way through without any real trouble.
Just a few suspicious looks from the apartments' broken windows, nothing more.
By now, I know these streets like the back of my hand, so I know exactly how to get around.
Once I'm through, I turn into another alley and come across a partially eaten corpse.
Its stomach has been ripped open, and most of its insides are gone.
I keep going and come across another corpse in the exact same condition.
Business as usual around here.
A little farther ahead, I see a figure emerge from the darkness.
He's walking down the alley in the opposite direction.
Thanks to the night vision every vampire has, I recognize him instantly.
It's Lars Nightclaw, the pretty boy from Westchester Crown's popular crowd.
His clothes are soaked in blood, and more of it is still dripping from his mouth.
As we pass each other, Lars shoots me a quick sideways glance.
"Enjoy your meal, Darko."
"I hope I do."
"Don't worry. Your dinner's already following you."
"I know."
With that, we both keep walking without breaking stride.
By that, Lars is definitely referring to the three guys keeping their distance behind me.
They've been following me ever since I left the area with those big run-down apartment blocks.
The farther I go, the darker the alley gets.
Most of the streetlights are dead, leaving the pale moonlight as the only source of light.
That's when I hear the three guys behind me pick up the pace.
Their footsteps draw closer and closer until—
"Make a sound and I'll kill you, kid!" one of them growls.
At the same time, the other two grab me by the arms and slam me against the wall.
The guy who threatened me pulls out a gun and presses it against my stomach.
Wow. Who could've seen that coming?
I'm absolutely shocked...
"Didn't your mommy teach you to stay away from places like this at night? Hand over everything you've got and walk away without causing any trouble!"
The other two snicker under their breath, throwing a few more pathetic threats my way.
"Yeah, she did. But apparently yours never taught you anything. You should be careful too. These streets get really dangerous after dark."
"Are you threatening us, kid?!"
BANG!
A gunshot tears through the silence of the night.
My little provocation was enough to make the guy with the gun lose his patience.
First comes the cold shock of the bullet punching straight through my stomach.
Then the warmth of blood spilling from the wound and soaking into my clothes.
Fuck... that burns like hell!
"W-What the fuck is this...?" the guy with the gun stammers.
The other two immediately let go of me and stumble backward.
I'm not sure what terrifies them more — the hole in my stomach closing almost instantly, or my eyes.
Normally blue as the ocean.
Now red as blood.
The guy with the gun panics and fires two more shots.
One bullet hits me square in the shoulder.
The other hits me point-blank in the jaw.
Once again, both wounds close almost instantly.
Normally, a vampire's wounds don't heal this fast. Not without drinking blood first, at least.
But I'm not like other vampires.
His two buddies pull out knives and wave them in front of me.
Stubborn little idiots, huh?
Do they seriously think they can scare me?
Not that running would do them any good.
Their fate was sealed the moment they decided to follow me this far.
A young guy walking alone through Mott Haven always makes the perfect bait.
I'd love to keep playing with them a little longer, but I'm way too hungry.
A deep cut opens across my palm, and the blood pouring from it hardens into a sword.
A moment later, even that wound is gone.
All three of them scream in pure terror, but only for an instant.
In the blink of an eye, their heads are already rolling across the ground as their bodies hit the pavement with a heavy thud.
I pick up one of the severed heads and start drinking the blood straight from its neck stump.
God, that's disgusting...
I'll never get used to the revolting taste of blood from scum like this.
All the alcohol and drugs in their systems make their blood taste like vomit.
But hey, it's better than nothing.
After draining every last drop of blood from the first head, I move on to the other two.
As much as I hate rushing through a meal, I don't have a choice.
I can't risk a Monster Hunter catching me in the act.