The ageless beauty of the moon pulled my attention from the target, its luminescent glow held my gaze as if I were in a trance. Another light source, far less inferior, had shone and I turned to see that it was the target’s arrival; exactly what I had been anticipating. He was late, as usual. From the many events I had watched him attend, he was usually fashionably late, making an entrance that would draw any eye away from its focus, to the very godly like face that he so proudly held high. I watched as he threw his keys to the nearby table and made a phone call, barking orders into the receiver. He paced as he shook his head and argued with his speaker, fortunately always stopping between the wooden frames of the windows, throwing opportunities to where I kneeled, my favourite weapon pointed where the absence of his heart was.
I had looked at his file far too many times, even more than I had liked, and mindlessly assessed the photo that was clipped inside along with the useless information about how exactly he became famous. It was almost clique, a far fetched story in other words.
His face was the very image of a Greek God, too beautiful for existence. He’s blue-grey eyes held the glorious painting of a savage sea, waves knocking against battered rocks as the storm slowly reeled in. His smile was one of a proud and arrogant warrior, having faith in himself a little too strongly but nevertheless an awestruck sight. He had ruffled pitch black hair as dark as the result of a solar eclipse, the destruction of light. His teeth were too porcelain white to compare to the falling snowflakes of winter. His fangs were the perfect example proving beauty may be both destructive and evil. But I knew all too well how his beauty and arrogance had gotten my family killed.
I glanced at the file for the final time, convincing myself once again that I have to avenge my family with the spill of his demonic blood.
His name is Lune. Terrance Lune. And he’s my family’s killer.

The smell of the room I chose as my set-up point, disgusted me. The reek of alcohol and urine was unbearable; it often made it hard to focus.
I sighed. I reached into my bag and pulled out a can of deodorant and coated the atmosphere with its content, relieved to inhale something that didn’t make me want to hurl.
I turned my focus on Terrance.
I had set up my weapons and equipment in a building that had run parallel with his apartment, choosing a room on the same level as his apartment, making the job easier and a better chance of his death to arise. I had sat in this god forsaken room since the moment the clock struck five, awaiting his arrival. Meanwhile I had moved all the furniture against the opposite wall, making it easier for me to set up my space-occupying equipment. I decided to take the best of my equipment; A sniper rifle which I hide in a guitar case.
The elongated figure of the rifle gleamed from the moon’s stained light, spilling the moon’s light across the exposed floorboards of the room. If The Beast manages to fail, which I doubt it, I’ll use a simple pistol.
Below me, the usual honk of Manhattan taxi’s destroyed the silence that existed in this room.

Terrance shut the phone and exhaled, combing his hands through his silky black hair. This was it; my time to release the bullet, to end the fury I kept well contained inside. I edged closer to The Beast and closed one eye as I looked through the sniper‘s optic with my other. I could see Terrance closer now with sniper optic, its permanent black circles making it easier for me to aim cleanly.
The imprinted memory of Terrance’s fangs dripping with my father’s life line surged into me; my mother’s eyes stared blankly at nothing as I found her sprawled on the floor, without a single drop of blood flowing in her body. That night I vowed, straight after he slipped through our lounge window to leave me with what he had done, that one day I would find him again and kill him. Fortunately I was being paid for this; apparently there were more people out there who’ve been families of his victims.
I held the trigger at my fingertips and slowly breathed in and out. This was it; the moment I would swipe this very being off the face of the Earth, where I would avenge all the families left with sorrowful memories. This was it.

There was a knock at his door, well more like a pounding noise as I lifted my head to see the whole scene with both eyes and watched as Terrance utterly irritated, opened the door and in came his bodyguard carry a gun with both hands, frantically searching everything in his room; turning it upside down. I could tell Terrance shouted something along the lines of ‘What the hell is wrong with you?’ since it was slightly audible from where I perched. His bodyguard answered him, which in turn made Terrance pale in colour and locked the door whilst looking outside. This was strange behaviour, as if they were both looking for someone, Terrance looking more irritated than his bodyguard’s rough exterior. The ringtone “Numb” radiated in my pocket as someone called me, giving away my set-up as the bodyguard spotted me. ‘There she is!’ his gun released a bullet and I ducked, within seconds a bullet lodged itself in the wall behind me. One after the other bullets were imprinted on the walls and furniture were damaged. I cursed as I crawled to cover, grabbing my pistol and lifting my head to see where my targets were. The bodyguard was still standing by the window firing bullets towards my direction. I ducked and aimed when he had to reload again. Seeing my opportunity as the bodyguard ducked, I tried finding Terrance, but he too had a gun. He aimed at my head and shot, but I took cover before it came into contact. I cursed again.

I realized that if I stayed here I would be dead sooner. So I had run out of the room and kicked the door of the neighbouring room, scaring the people watching T.V.
I shouted, ‘Get out now. There’s a shooting.’ They frantically flew past me, the minute I barged in, not really listening to what I was shouting about. I ran to the window, careful to fully expose myself and fired the bodyguard. He still thought I was in the other room, so his focus was elsewhere, firing at nothing. Blood spilled from his arm as he backed away, clutching to his arm but he held the gun and fired, missing my head by just an inch and another bullet barely grazed the skin off of my neck. I gasped but the pain was bearable, just a burning feeling lodging through my body. I fired again, aiming at his chest. This time he collapsed no sign of him. I cursed as I watched Terrance make a dash for the door and disappeared past the door frame. I rushed down the steps, I had no patience to wait for the elevator to arrive, and burst through the entrance doors. Fleeing through the streets I sprinted my way to his apartment, hopefully catching him near the entrance. I found him running incredibly fast across the street opposite me and headed for an alley. I followed; keeping my senses alert. He had an advantage over me, his strength and fangs but I had revenge painted in my eyes and as I was enveloped by the shadows of the alley I hoped it was enough.
Being alone in a dark alley with a vampire is not much fun if it wants to kill you. But I kept running, pushing back the awful thoughts that grew in my head. My gun was poised aiming at the ground and I held it firmly with both hands. I ran to a dead end, searching every corner for his menacingly handsome face.
‘You think you can kill me?’ a voice came from behind me, too close.
I spun around and thrust the gun on his chest. He smirked at me with a secret he didn’t seem to want to share anytime soon. ‘Shoot me.’
I did. I pulled the trigger and imagined him falling to the floor, dead. But in reality he stood there smirking with a bloody hole in his chest.
‘Foolish girl. You think vampires are as weak as you mortals? It would take more than a lousy bullet to kill a vampire.’
I growled and shot non-stop; shooting at his head, his heart and even his beautiful face, watching as each impact he flinched for just a millisecond, until my bullets had run out. So it does hurt him but not enough to kill. I lowered my gun and saw the holes the bullets had left on him, leaking with dark oozing liquid. He could kill me any minute now. I whacked him in the head with my gun and fled, turning into the light of a lamppost and hiding by a corner. There was no sign of him as the moments passed on, so I rushed to the park, where a security guard would be on duty, lulling himself to sleep. I stopped by the fountain and caught my breath while I surveyed the park.
I was suddenly thrown in the air and came into contact with a bench, where it broke under my force. I cried out as a few wooden splinter dugs deep into my skin, ripping my flesh. I staggered and stood up, pulling the splinters from my legs and arms, with my wounds exposed.
‘You do smell delicious.’ Terrance said, suddenly standing next to me. He pushed me to the ground and covered my mouth as he purposefully bit my wounds slowly and painfully, I screamed in terror as I experienced utter agony; a poison that had surged through my body had invaded every nerve of mine, feeling as if I were on fire. I begged for him to stop but he could not hear me, did not hear me. I sagged to the ground and turned my head to the side, trying to reach for a wooden splinter that lay by my side. With each second that passed, I felt like I was slipping away. I did not, could not let him stay behind. If I was going to the pits of hell, he was going too. With a surge of the last energy that I had, I grabbed the wooden splinter and plunged it into his chest and piercing his neck. Lying on the floor with no more energy, I watched as Terrance’s pupils disappeared and he collapsed on top of my limp body, his mouth filled with my blood. I tried pushing him off of me, but it was no use. My life was slipping through my fingertips and I was not afraid to go anymore. I had done my job; I had gotten rid of an evil that haunted many people. Now I will die among his victims. I was his slayer.
My body could not stop shaking and heaving, the poison had multiplied now. I welcomed that pain though; the pain of dying for a good cause. I looked into the sky and watched birds roamed free through the pink and blue stained clouds. And as the first warm ray of sun rested on my body, I felt at peace.

I walk by night now, more sensitive to the sun than I was before. I feel like an animal too; an aggressive animal, one that held power among inferior species. I don’t know if the killing of Terrance had given me more confidence now, but I feel so less afraid, I needed more adrenaline, more risky rushes.
The night I killed Terrance, was the start of my strange behaviour. I could not understand how I did not die and why, after I had woken up at the hospital, I felt different; more powerful and ravenous. I was starving but hospital food could not satisfy me. The doctors found some unknown bacteria that had taken over my body’s red and white blood cells. I was ruled by Terrance’s poison, which changed me both mentally and physically. Mentally I was unstable. I could not think straight and I was too edgy with every movement. My senses had become better and stronger now. Physically I would emit too much strength or too less.
The night I was temporarily released from the hospital I had come across a drunken man; who had just gotten into a bar fight. He’s face was full of cuts and bruises and on his arms was a gash of fresh blood. Something lured me to him and at that moment I felt at my fullest as I consumed what my body ached for. Blood.
Since then I tirelessly toss bodies drained from blood as I robbed them of their life.
I am Lucy Taillen. And I am a monster.