Rise of the Night Stalkers

by Kurtis Eckstein

  Randy sobbed once uncontrollably as he moved to wipe his eyes with his hand, before looking up at me. “And I wanted to thank you for that too.”

  I shrugged, looking past them towards the hospital when I saw movement, tired of being thanked for things as if I had made some huge sacrifice to benefit them.

  I hadn’t.

  It all benefited me in some way.

  Even my decisions to save Savannah from those men had been because I needed to find out if humans could provide points, and I figured then was as good of a time as any. Had I known the isopod would provide so many resources, then I probably wouldn’t have helped at all.

  Unexpectedly, in the corner of my eye, I noticed Harper shift her weight slightly, prompting me to glance down to see a small smile touching her lips.

  Dammit, stupid little mind reader.

  She knew I might be, possibly, just maybe, lying to myself.

  Annoyed, my gaze returned to the Radiation Therapy entrance, seeing that Savannah had just appeared, holding a familiar little boy’s hand tightly. She locked eyes with me right away, considering I was almost a full head taller than the other two men, before looking down to whisper something to the frightened little kid.

  They then began walking over slowly, with the boy limping as they did so, looking as scared as ever. Made sense, considering he had never actually met me.

  I was honestly a little surprised that I could remember his name was Ethan, although now that I thought about it, I didn’t seem to have any trouble recalling that kind of information once I’d heard it. Still, it was interesting to see the behavior of Harper’s brother, who lacked the bravery and decisiveness that his younger sister had, despite the age difference.

  Granted, I was fully aware that Harper’s maturity was almost certainly due to her being a Night Stalker now. Which meant that this boy’s behavior was an accurate representation of what hers had likely been previously. In fact, the boy had probably been the one who was initially brave when they got separated, having to be strong for his little sister, who he needed to take care of and protect.

  And yet, now they couldn’t be any more different in so many ways, including height, with her being a couple of inches taller.

  Had she really grown that much?

  I doubted that I would ever be able to stop perceiving Harper as a little kid, but I had to admit she was far more mature and intelligent than her human-self had likely been. Definitely more like a young teenager now, at the very least.

  Seeing that Ethan was only growing more terrified as they came closer, I decided to just walk away towards the other side of the front of the building where the emergency drop-off was, for ambulances, my bladed tail swaying low to the ground behind me.

  ‘I’m not going far,’ I reassured Harper, to stop her before she started following.

  I was done socializing with them for now anyway, and the last thing I needed was to start feeling aggressive because I made the kid piss himself.

  When I reached the covered entrance, which was of course wide enough underneath for an ambulance to drive through, I leapt over twenty feet into the air, easily landing on the gravel roof. I then sat down on the edge to wait while Harper had her reunion with the family members she didn’t remember.

  There was a lot of crying from her older eleven-year-old brother, and a lot of stupid questions like, ‘Does it hurt?’ regarding her new appearance.

  In the end, it seemed like Harper found Ethan almost just as annoying as I initially found her, which was only confirmed when she glanced in my direction to roll her red eyes at my thought.

  I couldn’t help but smile to myself, a little surprised that I enjoyed teasing her playfully.

  I also found myself confused that the other humans didn’t attempt to talk with her, especially Chris and Tony who were both by the truck again. I mean, it wasn’t like they hadn’t already spoken with us before.

  But instead, all three of them, including the balding guy, were just silent as they listened to the conversation from across the parking lot.

  The discussion didn’t last long though, before John whispered something to Randy and Savannah, prior to walking over my way again. He stopped once he was a good enough distance to speak at a comfortable level.

  “Sorry to bother you, but before you showed up, we were just getting ready to leave. The electricity didn’t come on yesterday or today, so we decided we would check out the powerplant finally,” John explained.

  “I thought you didn’t know where it was,” I commented.

  He nodded in agreement. “We didn’t. But those bastards who attacked us three days ago ended up having both an Atlas and a Business Directory from this area. It’s certainly not the same as being able to look it up on the internet, but between the two of them, we know where it’s at now.”

  I just nodded, more focused on the fact that it had been three days since the attack, not two like I assumed.

  When he didn’t continue right away, I gave him my attention again. “Something you want to say? I have no intention of going along,” I added.

  He abruptly held up his hands. “Oh, no, of course not. In fact, it would be bad if you did. We don’t want to scare shitless whoever is staying there.”

  “Then?” I prompted.

  “Well, we only plan on being gone for a couple of hours at the most. So…” He hesitated. “I was just curious if you would be staying in the area for a while.”

  I sighed. “You want me to protect everyone while you’re gone,” I realized.

  He grimaced. “It’s doubtful those men had more accomplices, but we’ve still been on the lookout. Honestly, we thought the first group was the end of our problems. And between those two incidents, along with Derek getting shot and killed, everyone’s anxious and depressed.”

  I shifted my gaze across the street as I thought about that. “We only came because Harper wanted to see the family she doesn’t remember. So, we’ll stay as long as she wants. No later than sunset though.”

  John paused as he processed my words, slowly realizing that I wasn’t going to agree outright, but that him convincing Harper would achieve his goal of having me stay.

  Apparently, Harper was surprised by that answer too, because she stopped talking midsentence to Savannah and looked over at me. Her expression was shocked, and then tender again.

  Dammit girl, stop looking at me like that! I’m not being nice!

  Her attempt to suppress a warm smile was like a mocking, ‘Uh-huh,’ but then it rapidly disappeared when she saw my reaction to it. Probably because she hadn’t intended it as a mocking gesture, and felt bad I had perceived it that way.

  She looked at me again when I had those thoughts, her crimson eyes apologetic.

  Dammit, just stop.

  ‘You’re fine,’ I reassured her mentally, looking away.

  John glanced over his shoulder in response to my body language, before nodding his head up towards me on my twelve-foot-tall perch. “Well, I’ll leave you alone then. And if there’s anything you need, don’t hesitate to ask. We owe you our lives.”

  I only inclined my chin slightly, keeping my gaze across the street. I had already been plenty friendly enough, so I wasn’t about to wish him goodbye.

  He hesitated for another moment, before taking his leave. It was obvious Randy was torn between going and staying, but he had a job to do. While they didn’t anticipate any trouble with the group from the powerplant, having five men piled up in the truck was intentional. More than likely, they would have two of them attempt contact without being armed, while the other three held their guns to communicate, ‘We’re non-hostile, but we won’t take any shit either.’

  A few more people started trickling out too, finally working up the courage to interact with Harper. She wasn’t particularly interested in speaking with them though, instead being more interested in learning about who she had been. I wasn’t sure if she just wanted confirmation that they were really her family, or if she was genuinel
y curious as to what kind of a person she had been. Probably the latter of the two options, considering I could imagine doing the same.

  Of the humans who were brave enough to make an appearance, one of them was the blonde girl who had been kidnapped with Savannah. She stayed further away from the group than everyone else who had clustered around Harper, and kept looking over in my direction.

  I just ignored her, but it didn’t go unnoticed that Savannah unexpectedly became a lot more tense when she realized the blonde was there. The slightly older woman seemed to notice the reaction, and immediately started walking towards me in response.

  I had no idea what was going on between them, but I wasn’t about to be a part of their melodramatic shit.

  When the blonde got close enough, she began speaking with a trembling tone. “H-Hi,” she said, her voice choking up.

  I didn’t even bother looking at her, never mind actually responding, instead focusing across the street.

  “Umm, my name is Sarah by the way. I just wanted to thank you for what you did the other day. If it weren’t for you, I couldn’t even imagine what would have happened to me.” She finished with her best attempt to smile.

  I scoffed, quickly growing annoyed. “I didn’t do it for you.”

  Sarah abruptly took a step back, her blue eyes widening in shock, before she unexpectedly looked…angry.

  Did she misinterpret my meaning?

  She quickly composed herself though, speaking more confidently. “Well, you really saved my life, and I’m completely in your debt. So, if you ever need anything at all, and I mean anything, I’ll do it.”

  My eyes narrowed, with me still not focusing directly on her. “Anything, huh?” I repeated.

  She grinned widely this time, like someone who had won a trophy. “Yes, absolutely anything at all. Just tell me what and when, and I’ll do whatever you want.”

  I finally looked at her fully with a piercing glare, my tail raising up behind me. “Then I have something for you,” I retorted with as much hostility as I could muster. “Leave me the hell alone before I chop off your head.”

  Sarah’s smug expression instantly vanished behind a mask of terror as a visible tremor wracked her body. Without even responding she began backing up urgently, her eyes panicked, before she flat out turned around and ran back inside.

  The scene certainly turned some heads, causing some of the others to make their way back inside too, probably either to find out what happened or just to play it safe, assuming that Sarah had a good reason to run away in terror.

  The two women remaining, not including Savannah, exchanged a glance before Ethan commented about wanting to know if Harper desired to see her bedroom. Of course, she did out of curiosity, so he boldly grabbed her by the hand and began leading her inside as well. Again, the two women exchanged a glance before hesitantly following them.

  I suspected that after speaking with Harper, she felt familiar enough to them to not be a threat, which was probably why the women didn’t complain, not that they could have stopped her from doing what she wanted anyway.

  But as for me, I wasn’t worried about anything bad happening to Harper at all, so I had no problem with her wanting to investigate her old stuff. For all we knew, maybe seeing or holding something familiar would jog her memory, which would be an interesting phenomenon if it did happen. I didn’t really have any interest in finding out who I had been, but it would be good to know that our memories could return with the right stimulus.

  Of course, my thoughts appeared to make Harper even more determined to see the room that had been hers for the last few months, having realized I might be interested in the result.

  Savannah initially began following them, before saying something to the group, and then heading my way instead.

  Great. I didn’t need any more annoyances right now.

  Unlike Sarah, she walked right up to where I was sitting until she was practically right below me. I glanced down to meet her emerald gaze, uncertain about her reserved expression.

  “I don’t want to annoy you,” she finally said. “So I’ll leave if you would prefer to sit alone.”

  I looked across the street again for a moment as I considered what I wanted.

  Surprisingly, I realized I wouldn’t mind someone being around, so long as they weren’t irritating the hell out of me. I supposed I had grown accustomed to having Harper nearby, and while previously I would have been content being entirely alone, I was now finding myself slightly desiring the company.

  Was it because of my raised Connection stat?

  Maybe a curse that came along with it? An unexpected weakness? An associated debuff?

  Doubtful most people would view it that way, but I couldn’t help but feel like it was a weakness. Just one more thing to worry about.

  Savannah took a step back hesitantly when I didn’t answer, followed by another, her expression looking a little pained. Rejected.

  Dammit, I didn’t need this in my life!

  Huffing out an irritated sigh, I began moving my tail, which prompted her to freeze solid, her eyes going wide in…nervousness? I wouldn’t quite call it fear, but it was borderline.

  Thus, I was slow about extending it until the blade was almost touching the ground.

  She stared at it hesitantly, before looking back up at me again. “W-What do you want me to do?” she asked uncertainly.

  I rolled my eyes, knowing it probably wasn’t obvious, but feeling like it should be. “Put your hip against the flat side of the blade and wrap your arms around my tail.” When she didn’t do it right away, I continued, irritation tainting my tone. “Before I change my mind.”

  She gulped and then moved closer, doing as I asked, wrapping her arms around my appendage tightly. She probably thought I was going to pull her straight up, but that wasn’t my intention since her slipping might result in her getting hurt in a couple different ways. Instead, I began curling the end of my tail, causing her weight to shift to her hip, until she was lying on her side in the air. Then, I began raising her up until she was over the roof, only to straighten the end again. Once her hip began sliding against the side of the midnight blade, she stretched her legs out fully to find purchase in the gravel on the roof.

  “Wow, thanks,” she said quietly, moving to sit by my side.

  I only nodded.

  She draped her legs over the edge like I had and began looking around at everything from her new elevation. “This is nice,” she added after a moment.

  I didn’t respond.

  She looked up at me from the corner of her eye then, before speaking again in a whisper. “If I’m annoying you, please just tell me.”

  I took a deep breath, and then inclined my chin in agreement. Now that I could talk, there really wasn’t any reason for me not to at least make an effort to tell someone to shut the hell up before I got to the point where I wanted to relieve them of their head.

  Savannah relaxed a little, speaking again quietly, as if she was concerned her volume was going to affect my mood. “I’m sorry about Sarah by the way.”

  I scoffed. “Don’t apologize for her.”

  She looked up at me in surprise, her volume normal now. “Oh no, I wasn’t apologizing for her. I’m sorry that you had to deal with her shit is all.”

  Despite myself, I found myself smiling slightly at that.

  Damn, since when did I ever smile?

  I suppose I had been doing it a lot more since I had gained the ability to burn shit with my hands…and since I had raised my Connection stat.

  Savannah sighed heavily then, getting more comfortable on the ledge. “She’s such a bitch,” she whispered. “Like, I had no idea how much of a slutty asshole she was, until…” Her voice trailed off as her eyes unfocused. “Well…until after what happened…” She was quiet for a moment then, her mind seeming elsewhere, before she looked up at me again. “Thanks,” she said almost inaudibly.

  I shrugged, staring across the street.

  She
sighed, her thoughts returning to what she had been about to say. “After what happened, everyone ended up finding out that she’s been sleeping with Tony and Chris both, two-timing them behind their backs. Stupid slut. They almost killed each other when they figured it out. And rather than feeling ashamed of herself, she seemed to love the drama she caused.”

  Huh, I supposed that might explain their arguing when I had arrived. The fight might not have been about this Sarah chick at that moment, but they were still hostile towards each other in general.

  “Or at least she was loving it,” Savannah whispered.

  I finally looked down at her again, debating whether I really cared. Honestly, I didn’t, but it seemed like she needed someone to vent to and…

  Ugh. What in the hell was happening to me?

  I didn’t care, and I didn’t want to care!

  “Just spit it out,” I said in annoyance. “What changed?”

  She looked up at me in shock, before looking ashamed herself, as she dropped her head completely. “It’s because they both like me,” she admitted, taking a deep breath. “And when they finally realized that neither of them knew that the other was involved, they both dumped her and have started competing for me.”

  Ugh. Humans.

  She quickly continued when she saw my reaction. “I want nothing to do with either one of them though,” she said reassuringly. As if I cared. “I mean, I did sort of like Tony…and Chris too…but now I’m not interested in either of them. Certainly not after finding out they were both screwing that slut.”

  I sighed, glancing down at her. “So now she hates you, I’m guessing.”

  Savannah returned her gaze up to mine. “Well…yeah. The whole situation is her own damn fault, but she acts like I’ve ruined her life, when in reality I don’t want any part of it.” She then looked down again, her expression and tone suddenly harsh. “I wish the damn bitch would just die.”

  I scoffed. “Sure, okay. I can do that.”

  Savannah immediately looked up at me in horror. “Oh, no, please don’t. I didn’t really mean that literally.”

  I shrugged. “It might have been a joke.” Although, I wasn’t really sure, because I was a little serious too.