The night dawned cold and bleak as the soft snow settled in the alley. The few people that were still outside, sped fast, covered in woollens from head to toe.

I threw open the window. The chilly air hit my face, fogging up my glasses. Holding the rope taut in both hands I gave it a tug. Strong and elastic. I tried to attach a grappling hook to the end, my fingers numb from the cold.

Once secure I threw it out of the window and it snagged a branch of the monstrous tree in the backyard. Climbing up on the sill, I looked at the empty streets. A flickering streetlight at the distance was the only source of light. Using the rope as an anchor, I swung from the window and landed on the snow with a soft thud.

Folding the rope, I stuffed it into my oversized coat. I checked my pockets for my weapons and adjusted my glasses before setting off at a jogging pace. My feet made a wet sound as I made my way through it. Maybe I shouldn't have come out at all, but duty is duty.

As soon as I hit the main streets, I took out my amulet, slinging it around my neck. The amethyst glowed with a soft violet hue as it swayed. I felt strength seeping into me as it harvested the dark energy of the universe. I felt the surge of power pouring into my limbs.

Strong.
Stronger.
Strongest...

And soon I was shrouded with the cloak of darkness. Now I straightened up and squared my chest marching through the streets, my footsteps echoing like a big hollow gong.

~-------~

"Please." his voice was raspy.

"Beg." my voice echoed through the empty room. "Beg before me and I might let you go."

He shivered on his bare knees as the cold seeped from the floor. I had dragged him out from his bed.

"Please. I'm innocent."

"Oh hon! Nobody in this world is innocent." I purred bending down and running a long nail down his jawline. That's what I enjoy most. Torturing them...

"But why do you kill people? Why do you want to kill me?" his pleading eyes looked at me.

"I kill people for fun." I hissed, my nails turning to iron fangs as I raked them across his chin, drawing blood. He screamed and thrashed against the ropes that bound him.

I waved my hands and blacl coils shot out from the darkness, suspending him from the ceiling.

"Actually," I added."I don't kill people. I just fry their brains and make them go insane.They wander away and kill themselves - poor things."

"No one can do it. "

"You're testing a Nightshade's abilities?" I crooned, as I would to a pet in pain. I spread out my mind, expanding the radius. His mind was easy to find owing to the proximity and to the lewd thoughts running through his head.

"It's not the best time to think about my cleavage or how beautiful it'd feel to peel apart my dress." I chuckled.

His eyes turned wide. I felt his shield like a glass wall. This one would be a tough nut to crack. I concentrated my mental prowess into that one spot. It was like a perfectly aimed stone. The glass shattered to bits.

He must have felt my presence intruding into his mind. His eyes glazed over.

"Not yet. You still haven't suffered enough." I muttered, withdrawing, as his eyes focused on me again.

"You won't get away with this." there was fear laced in his voice "The police will search for me."

"Why not? You got away with raping that girl yesterday." I spat. "Now the thing is, I'm raping your mind. Just like you left her to die in the cold, I'll leave you with a dead brain."

"You're one of them. A Nightshade. Why did you choose this life? You're a freak. You're abnormal... " he screamed.

I slammed my fist into into his face before he could utter another word. More ropes wrapped around his neck at my beckoning.

He gasped.

"Listen here." I scoffed. "I was a half blind girl with a scarred skin. Still I wanted to explore the world. I was thirteen when one of you beasts raped me and choked me to the point of death."

I could see his eyes widening, his skin was going blue.

"But I wanted to live. Maybe the Nightshades found me with that desire still fluttering inside. Now my vision is clear and so is my beauty. And I'm immortal." I channel my anger into a storm of onyx, frying his brain.

His face slacked, his vision glazed over.

My laugh shattered the stillness of the night as tendrils of darkness flared around me.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤