The wind caught Madison’s hair, blowing it back into a black curtain that followed her sure, decisive steps. She tucked her arms inside her jacket to protect them from the chill of early winter. Her breath billowed in front of her in large white clouds that made her look like a smoker. A red started to creep onto her cheeks as the wind beat her face.
She was determined. Everyone she passed could feel that energy and stepped out of her way. A point ahead captivated her attention. Her eyes never wavered from a prey that most certainly would perish by her hand.
A man in front of her walked in hurried steps, anxiously trying to get away from his pursuer. He nervously looked behind him, searching, until he spotted her. A slow, sinister, smile spread upon her lips and he gulped, turning a ghostly pale. His pace increased until he broke out into a run, and she followed suit shortly after, determined not to lose her target.
For a second, she did lose him in the crowd, and had to stop. She closed her eyes, and when they opened again, they were an extraordinary purple. A quick sniff around allowed her latch onto his scent of aftershave and bubblegum; the chase was on. Soon she came upon him in an alley a hundred yards ahead.
She growled, crouching down into a feline position and bounded after him on all fours. A rainbow of colors began to glow from inside her body, enveloping her, tearing her clothes, and morphing her into a demon. Black wings sprouted from her back and her skin became leathery and covered in scales. Her hands transformed into paws with large claws at the end, and a pointed tail erupted from her back. Horns ripped from her head, tearing off her hair and revealing large bat ears. She let out a low, menacing bark.
He looked behind him and screamed, stumbling over a trash bin. This was the perfect opportunity to strike, and she took it. Pouncing on him, she pinned him with her large paws.
Her large maw opened, and she began to speak. “Markus Silver,” she began, her voice a low, menacing growl. “Your soul has been sold.”
Hot saltwater tears poured down his face, and he began to blubber incoherently. Too many times and too many victims had steeled her heart against their pleas of mercy. She no longer cared for it. His cries fell on deaf ears.
“Pray to whatever god you believe in,” she continued, “because you’re about to meet the Devil.”
She grinned, exposing her razor-like fangs. A large pink tongue lolled out of her mouth, and she licked him lengthwise across his forehead. Doing this stripped off the skin to reveal the man’s third eye.
It opened lazily, having been closed for so long to the world, revealing a bright pink iris. She began to pant, working up her saliva glands, and let a small drop of her saliva enter the eye. Like a blooming flower, purple erupted from the pupil, enveloping the eye.
Small screams began to spew from the man as his heart began to glow with a steady fire. His eyes glazed over as unknown horrors were being shown to him. His body convulsed, and white foam began to form around the corners of his mouth.
For a second, his eyes unglazed, and he stared at her with anger so tangible that she almost shook. “Go to Hell!” he screamed before his body erupted into a white hot flame.
Madison jumped back and resumed her human guise before the heat got too intense. The last scraps of clothes that had hung onto her body fell off, leaving her bare. Shivers rocked through her body, a penetrating chill seeping through her bones, despite the fire from his remains.
“Don’t worry,” she whispered, “I’ll see you there.” She stood there, watching the last embers disappear, leaving a pile of smoldering ash and scorch marks. With it over with, she turned and melted into the shadows.
