“More fun than you’ve ever had.” Kody snickered aodd to a dark er of the parking lot, just within the small plot of pirees in an attempt to be unseen. Kody had just turodd’s head so the man’s jugur was exposed when their HUD armed. Trag the two shadow creatures, Kody tucked Todd uheir arm a backwards and within the somersault nded oop of Todd’s trubsp; Kody heard the whimpering from Todd and the pn to take a few seds of blood ged. Eleic trag pulsed e ahe estimated time for the Shadewraiths to be all over Kistered less than five seds. Within Kody’s active mind two things happened simultaneously. Metal gears ed and small thin streams of steam shot up and out from the vampire's normally unused pores. Metal banding yered itself across Kody’s arms, legs and the upper part of their chest and turned in on itself at the base of their head.
Kody barely listeo their CPU expining that their skin and muscles had been successfully blended and began its quick t to full capacity. ‘Three seds for total version, blood level critical.’ Kody’s half-metal hand grabbed Todd and they leapt clear across the lot and nded on aruck, their feet nding with the grace of a dove. ‘Enemy objeot engaging. Estimated time to loss of trol, fifteen seds.’ More than happy to indulge the monotone cpu voice, Kody tore into Todd’s neck as though they’d been denied a drug. When the CPU fshed the ten-sed warning, Kody silehe failsafe and drank until Todd’s ashes flew away in the wind. ‘Estimated blood level sixty pert. Cyberiversion plete, and all systems are online and funing. Query?’
I oing all the blood they needed, Kody and their HUD reacted at the identical time, creating an echo in Kody’s mind. ‘Attackers not pursuing.’
-They aren’t leaving the trees.-
After Kody darted to the trud unceremoniously jerked Karen through the roof of the truck, the vampire didn’t bother charming the frightened girl and simply took what they needed and patted their metal hands-free of the ash as their sed victim blew away. ‘Blood level plete. Estimated use time, two hours at current alert status.’
It was the blood-curdling screams from Karen that brought a small group from the inside of the station to iigate. Kody quickly turned and saw a couple of people beginning to press buttons on their phones. ‘Emergency calling has been temporarily interrupted.’
Kody’s eyes flickered as though a puter were going through a menu of ands. A few seds ter Kody outstretched their hand in the dire of the main building and the few power poles that had transformers attached. A half sed ter all of the lights in the buildi out, the cellur tower seemed to stop humming and all of the lights on the power poles went dead as far as the eye could see. ‘Electrical ption zero.’ Kody’s CPU firmed.
-Now then, being in the dark should drive them to run inside before I get more hungry.-
It was like they had a glimpse into the future, and watched the small group of people hurry baside. Although all of them were pining about their mobile deviot w, Kody seemed to gather themself in the knowledge that all of them would be safe. Turning to face their watchers, Kody sent ands to their cyberid information about the area began to stream into their mind. Air quality, air position, issions. Everything man-made had begun to be cataloged for future use.
“Yes, yes...little metal shell just a little closer. We smell your fear already, pitiful humarical devices ’t help you..” The first shadewraith taunted.
“Meat aal…you will be lovely to devour.” The sed one swirled through the tree and flew through the tough bark leaving a bck oily pool as it exited. “I already taste your pain…just a little closer.”
Curling their eyebrows, Kody began going over the litany of information that was still being provided in running lists to the right side of their vision. “If you are so hungry for my fear and … meat, e get me.” Kody taunted right bad got twin hisses for their ent. “It’s one against two, e get your meal, right?”
“Your fear will amplify as the moos and the sun creeps over the horizon. We will wait for your..juicy blood until the st possible moment.” One of the shadewraiths cackled and seemed to spin and bining with its terpart.
Ign the twin shadow creatures, Kody walked about two feet from the edge of the woods as they walked the perimeter. I on annoying the shadewraiths as much as possible Kody spoke to their eleid even had the cpu’s response e through an unseen internal speaker. “position of my two scared shadows.”
Both Shadewraith’s hissed and flew close enough that Kody thought they might actually e after them. After taking a slight step back, Kody smiled and pyed their information. ‘posed of psma and red blood cells, and a substahat humans believe d. Eyes posed of what is cssified as type one and visible fangs posed of hardened nickel and iron.’
Kody stopped and looked at the twin hungry creatures. “So, yhosts.” They held up a finger, “Bloodthirsty ones.” Kody walked away from the two shadewraith’s and kicked the rocks uheir feet, deep in thought. “Made of blood.” Kody looked up, “So why does bloodstone kill you?”
“We’re going to kill you slowly, let your shadewraith e your mind.”
Waving their hand dismissively, Kody kept looking down deep in thought while their HUD sed the tents of the parking lot. A standard list of os trailed in a short list and roperly stored for use.
Kody had no sun to sift through the sheer volume of information that had been stored when Kody’s HUD fshed blue-gray with the name ‘Sylvie’ that scrolled across their eyes.
-Why now?-
Without really knowing why they did it, Kody turheir back to the Shadewraiths and took the call. “Sylvie.” Their voice was ft aionless. “What I do for you?”
