Maximilium K. McDowell groaned. His body felt like it had been through a blender an then used as a punching bag for UFC fighters. The gentle rocking motion of the vehicle he was in made his entire body feel like jelly.
He opened the eye that wasn't bandaged and looked around. The interior was one of inside a MCS transport, as he was surrounded by boxes of parts. Max spied a pilot sitting not far away.
Max lifted an arm to get his attention. "Hey."
The man came over and removed his helmet that had been obscuring his face.
The 'woman' Max corrected himself, seeing her bouncy black locks and plump red lips. Her skin was a deep brown, along with her eyes.
How was he supposed to know she was female? With that armor, everyone looked the same on the outside.
"Yes?" She asked.
"Where are we?"
She held her helmet under an arm and leaned to peek out a window. The grey urban camouflage dazzled Max's eyes. He couldn't shake the feeling that he had seen her somewhere before.
"43rd and Maple." She said.
What? They were in the rebuilt section of Seattle? What the hell were they doing there? No one lived here except for the poor and those who ran from the law.
She must have seen the confusion on his face, for she then explained.
"We recovered a tip of someone looking like our guy in this part of town."
A chill ran through Max. It was then that he remembered how he got into such a state. He remembered the final moments before he had been put under; he remembered the animal that was the vampire. If he was loose then innocent people would suffer at it's hands.
Max gripped his gurney and hopped upright, ignoring the feint feeling that washed over him. He tore off the bandage over his eye and found he could still see.
"Let's go." Max said, "I'm assuming you didn't being me along just so I could watch."
Her lips drew back into a thin smile, hinting at perfect white teeth.
Now Max recognized her, and he broke into a cold sweat.
-----
Axel quietly shut the door behind him, careful not to wake the others. Sarah was awake already, and was waiting for him on the only couch of the room. He patted the cushion beside her.
Axel obediently sat and waited for the lecture, drawing up a blanket around his dark pajamas.
"Who is he?" She asked, red hair almost black in the darkness.
Axel signed his answer. "An important person."
"I see..." She gazed out the lab windows at the dim lights of the street. "And he is human?"
"No."
He had her interest; she raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh? Then he's a vampire?"
Axel hesitated. "No... he is something else; something new; something dangerous." Axel was signing frantically. If he still had a heart, it would be racing.
"I tasted him," He said, looking seriously into Sarah's eyes. "and felt his pain. We fight the same enemy, Sarah, for much the same reasons."
Sarah had followed his blindingly fast sign and sighed. "As long as you trust him, Axel, then I shall trust him as well."
Her gaze drifted to the person in question, who was asleep on Axel's pile of blankets. She seemed to think on him for a time, then rose.
"Goodnight Axel."
