ICHOR

Prologue

The cold midnight air howled outside.
The big house was hushed, with the faint hum of appliances and a hint of light from upstairs.
He slowly shut the window he'd climbed through, reaching over the sink to stop the broken latch from rattling. Finding another window out of the kitchen, he unlocked it, and pushed it slightly ajar.
His massive frame strode silently through the house, cautiously making his way down to the basement, slowly taking out a pair of wire cutters as he descended the long, semi-furnished stairwell into the expansive basement.
A stylish rug on the patterned carpet floor was barely visible from the moonlight let in by the three small windows at the far wall.
"Small," He thought. "And too high up. Could've broken a leg or an ankle. Much smarter to have gone through the kitchen."
After his mental pat on the back, he paused.
"Might work to get out. Even though she's on the second floor, it's too risky to go out of the window. If I jump, I'll definitely get hurt, and all that ivy won't support my weight, and I'll fall."
He went and unlocked one window, though he doubted he could use it for a quick escape. Still moving silently, he pulled out a dim flashlight and began searching for the fusebox.
In the corner stood a small antique China cabinet, filled with tiny dishes and other keepsakes, including a pair of fine silver candlesticks, which seemed to have been pushed to the back to collect dust, and had been for a while. They quietly went in his small bag, and he shifted the cabinet enough to squeeze behind it. Sure enough, a large breaker box was hidden there, just as he thought. The box was locked, however, and forcing it open may cause a lot of noise. He would need a key. But given how easy the rest of it had been, it would scarcely be an issue.
A little rummaging around revealed a small silver key hidden under the rug, as well as a few other items of value scattered about. A small Marian statue, an aged gold pocket watch, and small envelope containing a few hundred dollars in cash.
"Old money," He mused, "I guess the girl really does have a taste for the classics."
He swiftly got to work shredding the breakers, eventually getting the main to fail. An audible click reverberated through the house as all the appliances shut off and tried to restart. Finding an outlet near the boiler, he plugged in a small rig and turned on the machine, letting it whir away until it arced and burned out. The odor of ozone and melted plastic filled the room, and he slowly made his way back up the stairs.
Hearing some movement up the stairs he slid across the living room to a desk, next to a house phone.
Pulling out a burner phone, he called her cell. It rang once, twice. Three times, four-
"H-hello?" The girl's voice quivered. "Who is this?"
"No one you're familiar with, yet," He chuckled, dropping his voice slightly to help mask it.
"What do you want?" She asked, her tone shifting strangely.
"Don't hang up." He said, grinning as he pulled a razor-sharp knife out from his bag.
"W- what are you going to do to me?" She quivered again, her voice almost sounding flat.
"Nothing much, if you're cooperative."
A slight giggle, first through the phone, then echoing through the still and empty house.
And she hung up.
He'd been expecting some of this, but not quite so soon. Hopefully she wouldn't fight too hard, otherwise...
He shuffled up the stairs, knife in one hand, bag in the other. She held a bright flashlight, sweeping the beam of light down the hall. Pulling his scarf up over his nose, he moved in, and she shut off the flashlight after trying to shine it in his eyes, but he shrugged it off thanks to his polarized contact lenses.
She was cornered at the end if the hall, but she didn't seem scared. She was almost calm, especially with how she was moving when he'd chased her.
A good sign.
She whipped around, her grin barely visible in the darkness.
"You don't scare me, kid." She laughed, stretching out her arms as clawlike tips appeared on her fingers.
He said nothing, simply lunging at her with the knife as he aimed for her neck.
She continued to knock him away, but he was strong, and got in several cuts, including one deep in the cheek.
Then, as he lunged again, she dodged his attack and sideswipe, gripping his shoulder and head with unnatural strength, pulling them away from each other.
He grunted as the pain screamed though his body, relaxing his muscles so they wouldn't tear.
Reeling her head backwards, she sunk her fangs into his neck, and he could feel the blood draining out of the wound.
He managed to struggle his arm loose, landing a square strike in the middle of her back, and she recoiled in pain, giving him time to back up.
"Y-you bitch! I swear I will kill you right here!"
He only laughed.
"You said you weren't scared of me, right?" He cackled. "Oh, but you should be..."
Her eyes widened as he reached into his small black bag, slowly pulling out of it...
A small wooden stake.