I never told you what I do for a living…
The alley was dark as rain drizzled down from the night sky. A rumble of thunder rolled over the area, covering the sound of footsteps that echoed off the brick walls. Lightning flashed, illuminating the figure walking between the two tall city buildings.
It was a girl, just a few inches over five feet tall. The hood of her blue jacket was pulled up, casting a shadow over her face, shielding her from the rain. The girl glanced back over her shoulder as she crossed her arms tightly over her chest.
A trashcan nearby toppled over, stopping the girl in her tracks. She stared back into the darkness of the alley before spinning back around and walking faster. Knee-high black boots clapped against the concrete as she sped along.
The girl could see the man now as he stalked about twenty feet behind. He didn't seem to care that she knew he was there, boldly keeping pace with her. He kept growing closer and closer. The girl quickened her pace as she hurried down the city streets. Then she turned a corner, finding herself at a dead end.
Thunder resounded off the high walls. Buildings towered on either side, a tall chain-link fence cutting the rest of the alley in half. To one side was a large, green dumpster filled with trash and stained with filth. To the other, a locked door from which pounding music could be heard—a club, no doubt.
Another flash of lightning lit up the sky, followed by a crack of thunder.
The girl stopped and spun on her heel to face an empty alley. The man who had been following her was nowhere to be seen. Had she lost him? Taking a few steps forward, she glared deeper into the darkness of the path before her. Still, there was no sign of her pursuer.
"Silly girl," a voice hissed. It seemed to echo and come from every direction.
The girl's eyes darted back and forth, searching for the figure. Small fists were clenched at her sides. The rain was beginning to soak through her jacket a little. A cold wind blew, sending a chill down her spine.
"Pretty girl. Looks like you're all out of time," the voice spoke again, though she couldn't tell where it was coming from.
Rain began to fall more heavily, puddles forming on the stone ground. City lights flared in the pools, creating an eerie glow of yellow, green, and blue on the alley. A chain-link shadow reached across the floor into a darkness the light couldn't reach.
Thunder cracked violently, drowning out all sound, seeming to shake the world. A bolt danced across the sky, chasing away the darkness for the briefest of moments.
The girl's head jerked up. Clinging to the walls above her was the man. His arms were bent in strange ways, head twisted unnaturally, a sick grin on his face. He stared unblinking at her with wide, pure white eyes.
The girl took a single step back. At her movement, the man lunged down. He came crashing to the stone with a crack, rain water splashing out in every direction.
He had missed.
The girl dodged, jumping backwards, skidding on the wet pavement. Her hood fell back, revealing long, strawberry blonde hair and a pair of headphones. Standing with confidence in the face of danger, a smirk spread across her face, her sea foam green eyes glaring down at the man.
"Hello, Phantom," she greeted a little too loudly, unable to gauge her voice due to the music blaring through her headphones.
"Who are you?" he practically shouted.
"You don't need to know, just know that I'm a Chaser, and I'm going to kill you," she said with a slight perk in her voice, as if excited at the idea of murder.
Letting out a strange sound, the Phantom lunged once more. The girl leapt into the air, kicking off the creature to flip over it and land safely with it between her and the fence.
"Here, Phantom," the Chaser taunted, tapping her hands lightly against her thighs. "Come here, boy."
Growling, the Phantom's head tilted in a jerking motion, almost like it was listening for her. Just then, two more limbs burst out from its sides. They were sleek black and inhumanly long.
Shoulders dropping, the girl's mouth twisted into a deep frown. "Gross, its a bug!"
When the Phantom charged, she turned and ran. Hands gripped at a low hanging ladder as she climbed up a fire escape. The Phantom jumped against the opposite wall before going at the Chaser. She threw herself over the side of the railing, avoiding a blow as it crashed through a window.
Pulling herself back up the railing, the Chaser ran the rest of the way up the fire escape, the Phantom crawling after her. The top of the building was flat and wide. This is as good a place as any, she thought.
Turning to face the creature, the girl held her hand out. A strange white glyph appeared glowing behind her. Swiping through the air, the image shattered, as did the world around them. Everything changed. The buildings, the windows, even the sky became bright and unusually colored. The moon peaked out from behind wispy clouds, a pale bluish-gray with a wicked grinning face on it.
Pixelated light surrounded the girl's hands before dispersing to reveal a pair of weapons. Wrapped around her wrists were white cuffs with curved silver blades attached to them.
The creature looked taken aback by the weapons, almost worried. Then seemingly shaking it off, the Phantom darted forward. Leaping clear into the air, the girl punched down with her weapons, sending gaping cracks along the roof.
The Phantom went flying across the top of the building, tumbling over itself. Rushing forward, the girl swiped with her claws before it could regain its composure. One of its arms went flying off, disappearing in a scattering of small parts, almost like Legos.
Rearing up with sudden speed, the Phantom slammed its foot into her stomach. The Chaser flipped back and skidded to the floor. She brought up her weapons up just in time to block another blow from the Phantom. Then another hit, and the girl went flying into a window of the next building over.
The Chaser groaned as she struggled to get up. The fall had knocked the wind out of her, glass cutting thin lines into her exposed skin. The shards of broken window crunched under the Chaser as she staggered to her feet.
When the Phantom came flying down toward her, the Chaser brought her boot up and kicked it away. Her blades sliced across the creature's midsection. The inky black flesh underneath exploded from the clothes it was wearing, knocking her back. The Chaser looked up just in time to watch the darkness take the form of a smoky humanoid figure with multiple spider legs.
"Oh, come on!" the girl complained.
The Chaser turned and ran through the building, heading down one floor after another. It seemed like the building should be full of people, but the dark walls and doors revealed even darker rooms. There wasn't a single person around.
The Phantom went soaring over the Chaser's head and slammed into the wall, stopping her. Clenching her fists hard enough to turn her knuckles white, the girl rushed forward, dropping to slide between two of the creature's legs. Her blades clipped one of the legs, and it stumbled at the loss of a limb.
Pushing to her feet, the girl quickly rounded on the creature and cut off another of its legs. Then one of the Phantom's black limbs whacked her in the back. With its humanoid arm, the Phantom grabbed the Chaser's ankle and lifted her off the ground.
The Chaser let out a small yelp as her head nearly slammed into the wooden floor. She wriggled around, kicking at the Phantom with her free leg. The two of them went tumbling down a flight of stairs to the lowest level.
The girl smacked into the hard floor and groaned to herself. The Phantom jumped on top of the Chaser, pinning her to the ground with its insect-like limbs. She struggled and fought with the creature. Finally, the Chaser managed to free her arm and thrust her weapon straight up into the Phantom's chest.
With a screech, the creature burst into bits and dust, scattering onto the ground like pixels from a broken image. Taking a few moments to gather herself, the Chaser climbed to her feet and headed out of the building. As she stepped through the door, the world around her returned to normal.
A figure in the distance watched the scene unfold before him, a wicked smirk on his face.