Sylvie

Without much forethought, The darkness that resided in Patricia and took on the moniker The Cross-Killer began talking slowly. “Much like a newborn doesn’t know what it is, I don’t know the full answer to that question.”  This darkness recalled itself and its four arms with attached wicked claws, grappling and pulling itself free of the black and nearly boiling pit. “Like a child, I am self-aware and possess a certain amount of chaos and hate within my misty form.”  Patricia stopped and stared off into the distance once more. “These diamond eyes saw that the black muck had tainted the trees and land all around where the pit resided.”  Pausing for a moment, the darkness could once more see its amorphic blob of itself, “Possession and fear are what make me stronger.”  It pinched the meat of Patricia’s arm and felt its claw tear out a chunk of the body. “While I can survive and can cause issues in my mist form, it is…much…more satisfying to take another shell.”

Noah listened the best he could through the burning pain in his arm and leg.  Finally able to piece together a small plan, He took a risk and calmly asked what he considered the most important question. “Can you show me?”

Breaking free of its own birth trance, the Cross-Killer shook its head side to side. “Not a chance.  It took me a few hours to gain control of this shell.  I plan to transfer from this sack of rotting meat in due time.”  It winked one of its empty soulless eyes and stood up. “You little lamb will be  instrumental in getting me another body.”  It let out a pure evil cackle, “Your other champion tracked you down as well.”  Patricia picked up the drill and then continued, “Charles Sheppard, You know…or knew him.”

“Y..yes.”  Noah stammered over his affirming word, “...Wh..what did you d..d..do to him.”  He sputtered as fear and fright sought to consume him once more.

Patricia set the drill on Noah’s back and skipped upstairs. “It was quite inventive, even for me.”  Opening another set of cargo doors, The Cross-Killer exposed another fifteen crosses and one bundled body. “Here we go.  As you can see, you and this sack are just unknown lambs to the slaughter, a number to be reported.  Halloween is such a fun time for your kind.”  She tossed the body over a rail where it landed with a thud on the floor close to Noah.

When Noah jumped at the sound of the body hitting the ground, it once more irritated his new wounds, sending another jolt of white-hot pain through his body.  He grimaced and drooled as he spoke, “W-What d-d-did you do to him.  Oh lord…”  He cried and shook helplessly on the steel table.

Laughing as she made her way back to Noah, the misty darkness that was Patricia answered Noah, “The short answer is exsanguinate.”  She picked up the drill and resumed her work, digging into Noah’s second leg. “I bled the fool dry.  His blood mixed with the black pool of lake water outside.”  She felt the drill get stuck and reversed the auger, making Noah scream once more. “Music to my ears.”  She laughed and managed to affix the burning ring into his leg, “Once I bled the little scientist dry, I used a warm fan and a little mist…You’d call it magic, and dried the corpse out.”  Patricia felt Noah go limp once more and sighed. “You are becoming problematic.”  She stabbed Noah with another injection of adrenaline and waited for him to again open his eyes. “I said you are going to die when I say so.  Right now, I need you to be alive.”

Crying uncontrollably, Noah felt the loss of his friend and the ongoing white flames of pain echoing through his body. “You’ve wrecked everything he and I were working towards.  We were trying to get the vampires of the area gone.  Why?”  He cried and jolted again when the Cross-Killer began working on the undamaged arm.

“Vampires?”  The news washed over the Patricia-mist creature and she paused while the blood flowed from Noah’s arm. “I suppose it makes sense, lamb.  Tell me..”  She pondered the possibilities as she affixed the final burning ring into Noah’s arm, “...How do you know there are vampires?  I assume you mean the creatures of human legend.”  Patricia coughed up part of her stomach, where it was black and green. “Noah…”  The dark creature float-walked in front of the abused man, and held her rotting hand in front of his nose. “Sleeping.  Fine.  I am done with you for the moment anyway.”  She unbuckled Noah from the steel table and chained him to the wall in the same room, television still playing the strange news. “I need more information about vampires.”  She watched the television as the reporter started a story about a grandmother who had just murdered her grandchildren and stuffed them into vacuum-sealed bags. “They don’t know much fear.  So I can’t detect them with that ability.”

Patricia got up and walked to the brackish lake that overlooked the fish factory. “The more I interact, the better a plan I can come up with.”  She looked up at the sun and guessed it was close to two o'clock, “Come on new meat, follow your breadcrumbs.  Come save Noah you predictable bitch.”