I shielded my eyes from the hateful sun as best I could. My slim fingers feeling utterly inadequate for the task of keeping the terrible thing at bay. With my best, and only, set of sunglasses destroyed I had little to no protection from the damnable thing, even in the darkened confines of the car, hidden behind the almost certainly illegal tint on the windows. I had loved the sun as Ellie... I mean, as a human. Stupid brain and its whispers......
But yes, I had enjoyed it warmth. Now though? I could feel myself growing twitchy, tapping nervously on the door with a finger as my other hand fiddled with one of my fangs. Paranoia and fear creeping closer, the world feeling small with every moment I spent in its light.

Even with the sun low and starting to vanish beyond the hills to the west, any direct contact with its light made me tremble. I was constantly checking the back seats, looking in the mirrors, and generally being a ball of nerves. My mind knew there was nothing there, that the shadows that flickered in the edges of my vision were merely hallucinations, but still expected some monster or nightmare to be lurking everytime I looked.

When Merii had me working during the day it had always been somewhere with lots of shadow, a place where I could hide any exposed skin, and especially my eyes, from the light. But driving into the sunset, even with my visor down, was just a little too much for my mind to handle. Had Merii not been next to me, a rock of calm that I could use to steady myself in the growing sea of panic, I think I would have slunk off into my nest and hissed at any suggestion I go outside until the stupid death laser in the sky was dead and gone.

Unfortunately, this little expedition had been my idea. So I couldn’t stay home, and I didn’t want to, not with Brewer making increasingly threatening comments on my lack of schooling and the need to “hammer” information into my head. So, as usual, my big mouth had gotten me into a poor situation. 

Merii, seeming to detect my growing unease, not that I was hiding it, rested a comforting hand on my shoulder.
“It’ll be down soon enough dear.”

“Yeah, I know.”
I said softly, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath. Letting the feeling of safety her touch bought wash over me, the feeling of discontent fading as it did every time she was with me. Reminding me that I was safe here, that I was protected by the closest thing to family that I could ask for.
“How are you not bothered by it?.... I’m literally jumping at shadows.”

Giving my shoulder a gentle squeeze, she kept her eyes on the road.
“I’m a little distant from our monarch in the blood line. And they’re a step down from our progenitor, so I’m a long way from the source. Drawbacks are weak instincts, but that’s also a bit of a blessing.... also I’m strong on my own and used to it.”

I raised an eyebrow.
“And you have sunglasses.”

“And I have sunglasses.”
That smirk found its way onto her face again.
There was a long pause as we drove on. Our destination was a place the guard had identified yesterday. A burned out car matching the one seen on cameras in the area around the time of the murder having been left in an abandoned lot. They apparently hadn’t been able to find much at the scene and so had left it with a bit of “do not cross” tape as the only real marker.

“You could give the glasses to me you know?”
I turned my head in Merii’s direction but kept my eyes closed, it helped a little with the paranoia. Even if it still felt like the roof was slowly getting lower every time I moved.

“Or you could buy another pair?”

“I did, but thanks to “somebody” not letting me go out because I'm a "danger to myself and society at large", I had to get them by regular mail.”

Merii chuckled.
“Well I did offer you a pair? And Brewer was kind enough to even buy you some.”

“Your ones made me look like a speed dealer, and Brewers were pink with flowers on them!”

She of course laughed at my misfortune.
“Well you can't fault her sense of humour at least.~”

That rather ended our conversation as I sat back and mumbled about how stupid old people were and Merii continued to laugh at my attempt to act childish while still obviously fidgeting. The laughter and conversation  had also helped calm me. Those little “human” gestures soothing my mind, thought not nearly enough for me to be comfortable.

Soon enough though we reached the place marked on the map. An old and rundown mechanics shop, that looked like it hadn’t been touched in at least thirty years. The windows were blocked out with faded newspapers and what once had been an office was boarded up, leaving nothing but the old glass door. With the exception of ubiquitous graffiti that covered the old buildings, the police tape across the door and the rusted old gateway to the back of the lot, nothing here had been disturbed since well before my birth.

Merii drove by slowly so the two of us could get a good look. Her more practiced eyes were no doubt picking out the little details I was missing in my sun-addled state. Not that I had enough time to look  before we drove on and down the road two blocks. A sufficient distance to feel that the car wouldn’t be linked to any suspicious activity back the way we came. She parked in a semi occupied car park, apparently holding the cars of either those in the dilapidated apartments or those working late in the few small businesses that still operated here.

“Same plans as last time?”
I asked, stepping out and stretching. The sun accursed sun was all but gone, and so long as I didn’t look at the glowing corona at the edge of my vision I was mostly good, if a little jumpy.

“Apart from trying to stop bullets with your head?” She raised her eyebrows and took her glasses off, putting them on the dash of the old car. “Same plan as usual, follow me and act casual.”

I muttered several curses under my breath at that.

I wasn’t exactly sure how casual we could be, with her in the usual, eye-catching garb and me back in my totally awesome, if bullet scarred, outfit. But it wasn’t really a problem once we got going, as there was nobody around to act casually for. Apparently the locals didn't fancy an evening stroll through the fields of scrap metal merchants and all but abandoned buildings.

As we moved along Merii nodded to the side at an old fence and I followed her lead, jumping it and several others as we cut across the various lots of heavy machinery, building materials, and scrap. Avoiding several strings of barbed wire, and luckily outrunning one rather loud dog that seemed hyper focused on my arse in particular, we soon reached our goal, dropping from a pile of rusted junk and into the abandoned lot.

The place was what I had expected, boring. A lot of overgrown and dying grass, cracked concrete, several rusted hulks of old town cars, and one burned mess of a car right in the centre. Like the candle on a tetanus filled cake.

Merii approached the wreck while I hung back, the smell of burned rubber and whatever other chemicals there were was singeing my nose.
“Well.” She said, kicking what was once a tire. “I doubt we’ll get anything off this. Still, could be worse.”

“How’s that?”
I asked, covering my nose and getting an amused look from Merii for it.

“We could have been here?”

“I-” I looked at her with the best look of “are you stupid” I could muster.
“Would that have not been way better?”

She shrugged and looked around the scene, her eyes focusing on the edges of the large scorched patch on the concrete that surrounded the wreck.
“Not really? We're kinda flammable, so we don't do well with fire. I would rather avoid whatever insane crap this guy pulled to burn this thing so thoroughly.”

That made me pause, a flurry of thoughts crossing my mind.
“Hang on a gods damned second…. Is that why your lighter made me feel a little scared?!”

She grinned back at me over her shoulder.
“Probably?”

“You let me set a car on fire, knowing full well I’m flammable?!”

“Why do you think I was already running before you lit it?”

Anger flared and I snarled at her, bearing my fangs.
“Merii!”

She simply laughed and waved me down.
“Ok fine, it was a dick move. But I was going to put you out if you did anything too stupid.”

I took a deep, calming breath, my anger fighting me as I pushed it down.
“Are you just trying to get on my nerves?”

“A little~”
A mischievous gleam passed over her eyes.
“Is it working?”

I hung my head. Unfortunately it was, and it was just as endearing as she thought. How could you stay angry with someone who was always so happy?
“I hate you, so very much.”

Merii patted my shoulder as she walked past.
“That you can even think like that only proves that I love you too. Now let's put that nose to work.”

"Since when was I you're sniffer dog?"

"Since you need the training and seem to love you're instincts?"

With another sigh I straightened myself and did as she asked. Not happy, but not willing to argue with a well made point... about my training of course. I wasn't some hooligan who reveled in, and let herself be controlled by, nothing but instinct after all.
It was very difficult to detect anything at first, the ruined car blocked nearly everything else out in one swirling mess of chemical scents. But slowly, and slightly painfully, I started picking up on little things, a hint of petrol, a whiff of rust, and eventually, the smell of blood.

It wasn't strong, not after so long. But I could never mistake that smell, not now. Like a hound scenting the air I sniffed, taking several steps around the scene to try and get a better feel for where it was coming from. My eyes falling to the old workshop off to our right as the scent finally grew the slighted bit in strength.
“Ok… so, I think he went into the building? At least the scent goes that way.”

Merii nodded and led the way, taking a moment to fiddle with the door handle, finding that while it turned it wouldn't open, she simply leaned into it and forced the old wood move. The door groaned as it gave way.

“Now I smell it…. good job.”
She said as she stepped through into the dark and dusty building.

The interior of the building was nothing special. A large open space with several large iron pillars holding up the roof. The old windows were of course covered in newspaper like the rest, heavily limiting what little light there was. Around us were old tables, barrels, various tools I did and didn’t recognise, and a pair of those big lifts for raising the cars for maintenance.
Practically everything there had a thin layer of dust that got closer to a blanket in the corners. The only upside to the dust was that it  made the several sets of footprints leading from the door very easy to see.

I nodded at said footprints
“This our guy? Or guys?”

Merii looked around for a moment before crouching down and examining them.
“No…….. these are all guard issued boots, I recognise the tread.”

The news deflated me a little. I had wanted to actually find something here, some kind of lead that would help us catch the guy. And more importantly stop him doing whatever crazed ritual he was collecting blood for.
“So no luck?”

Merii hummed and tapped her chin.
“I wouldn’t say that. Let’s take a look over there.”
She pointed to an old blue fuse box on the wall.

“Why?” It seemed a little random and slightly like grasping at straws to me.

“Because” she began, walking over to the box. “All the footprints linger at the door and then meander around, this lot goes straight in, to that box, and back out the door. Almost like the person knew where they were going before they arrived.

That- well it was a surprisingly insightful explanation. One of those little bits of wisdom Merii occasionally dropped that reminded me she was actually intelligent. Well for a certain definition of intelligent anyway.
As I went to open the little latch on the side of the box, Merii grabbed my wrist.
“Let me look first?”

I nodded and stepped back, letting her cast a discerning eye over the dust covered metal. To my surprise she took her phone from the pocket of her coat and turned on the light. Even more surprising to me was the several partial fingerprints it revealed. I had thought the dark meant nothing to my vision. Apparently I was wrong.

“How come I didn’t see those?”
I whispered the sudden light giving me the feeling that hushed voices were more appropriate.

“Because there’s no shadows in the dark, shapes are easy but details like this are also easy to miss.”
As she spoke she set about taking several photos of the prints before turning off her phone again. Taking a screwdriver from nearby she pushed down on the latch and let the box open. The inside was the same as the out, if less dusty. The only thing that stood out was an imprint in the dust where someone had clearly taken or moved something in the recent past.

“Secret stash?” I asked, my voice still hushed.

She peered inside the box, looking for any other signs of life.
“More likely the keys to either the first or second car were hidden here, his wallet or back up clothes maybe? Cant see him carrinig ID while committing a murder like that.”

I simply nodded.
“Makes sense.”

Merii stepped back, rubbing the tip of the screw driver over the remnants of those fingerprints, destroying them.
“Ok, we got a good lead. Lets-“

She was cut off by the slamming of a car door just outside the building. I had heard the car stop, we both had, but I assumed it was just traffic or a local. But that slam made me worry. Somebody was here, far too close for comfort.
“Should we?…”

Merii shushed me, holding up her hand as she signalled me to keep still. I did so, listening carefully for several long moments before faint voices cut through the night. They were a little distorted by the building's wall, but it sounded like a group of young men making their way towards us.

“Hide.” Merii’s hissed in my ear before making a beeline for the far side of the building.

For a moment I panicked, not knowing what to do or where to go. When I started moving I still wasn’t sure what I was doing but guided by instinct I sprung upwards. Clawing against the central pillar, closer to the front of the shop, I scrambled madly to get myself into the rafters as the voices neared the front door.

“…yeah and?” A slightly tinny voice said, seemingly annoyed by whatever he was answering.

“Just saying, is this really the best we’ve got?”

Another voice answered from outside the building, the conversation steadily growing more distinct as they approached.
“My guy in the guard said they were treating this as the likely car dump site. Until they start being cool again and letting us Hunters know what’s up, this is all we got.”

“Fucking hate that they got all hush hush. If this is another cult then it would be nice to have a heads up before we have to do something.”
A third voice chimed in, this time accompanied by a brief sound of rattling and shaking of the door as one of the men tried the handle.

“Locked?”

“Locked. You want this one Sammy?”
The one with the tinny voice asked.

There was a short pause as “Sammy” apparently thought about something.
“We worried about going loud?”

“Better if we didn’t? Not on the front door anyway.”

“Ok I’ll take a look, you three watch my back.”

There was a series of affirmative grunts as someone, I assumed Sammy, started playing with the lock. While it was nice to have a solid number on who was coming and a little time to prepare, I was starting to worry if we could actually get cramps. My choice of hiding space having a fatal little flaw. It required me to stretch out, hands pressed against one rafter and feet against another to actually stay in place and not dangle like an idiot. 
Eventually, after around a minute of fumbling there was a thud against the door.

“Things rusted shut. Peter you're up.”

“On it. Push or pull?”
A deeper voice asked, the sound of this new man’s footfall approaching the door.

“Push….. Try not to break the glass on this one ‘ay?”

“Being strong doesn’t mean I’m stupid Sam. Now watch out.”

With that there was a dull thump as someone pressed themselves against the door. Soon it was followed by the strained creaking of wood and the high pitched squeal of stressed metal. Within a moment there was a loud metallic clunk that reverberated through the old building, as the lock gave way. Whoever Peter was having apparently done something to brute force the rusted metal apart.
I wanted very badly to swear, loudly, at what was apparently a troll of a man, judging by the strength that must have taken anyway. But I didn’t get time, as soon as the door was open there was a flurry of footsteps from the front office as the group rushed in. The edges of bright, white light leaking through the doorway from the front office to the main building.

“Clear left”

“Clear right.”

“Ok stack up, Pete cover the rear till we’re clear.”

“On it.”

A second later the men came through the doorway, handguns held out in front of them as they swept the room. The lights, Aprently attached to their guns, throwing bright white beams across the floor. Illuminating the walls and rising to check the edges of the roof. They were all dressed casually, jeans, cargo pants, and t-shirts being the predominant clothing. If not for the holsters on each of their belts and the mix of short swords, hatchets and knives, they could have been any average person on the street. Unfortunately, the presence of those blades rather gave away who these guys were, only proper Hunters bothered carrying anything like that. 

I was in the middle of a mental rant against the injustice of the universe for sending a group of seemingly well trained hunters into my path when I was again interrupted.
Stepping through the door came the fourth member of their team, “Peter”. The man stood at least six foot two, with a shaved head, a bushy beard, and a body bristling with muscle. Even worse was the gleaming axe on his back and large gun in his hands. Sleek and black, a thick barrel mounted on top of a slightly shorter tube with a large grip and a robust stock.

A shotgun, the troll had a shotgun.