Chapter Ten: Vampire Interlude
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"What was that?"
Donatello shushed Mike and moved silently through the park. He knelt behind some bushes and pushed them apart. He was shocked to see Chi Chu and Bing standing in the clearing. The child-like vampires were standing over the body of a human. No doubt they had attacked him and he was now dead and drained of all blood.
Michaelangelo jumped from their hiding place to confront them. Donatello would have been perfectly happy to just sit there and think about what a stupid thing that was to do, but he knew Mike would get killed if he did.
Chi Chu laughed, causing Don and Mike to cover their ears. Bing grabbed her arm. "We must leave," he insisted.
"No!" Chi Chu cried. "They must pay for the death of Vam Mi." She glared at the two turtles and jumped. She landed a swift kick to Michaelangelo's chest and sent him flying into a nearby tree.
Donatello pulled out his bo and swung at the small vampire. She ducked and crawled between his legs. Don turned to face her and Bing made his move. He swung his long braid like a whip and hit the back of Don's knees. Don fell back on his shell. He felt his elbow hit something soft. He looked over and quickly pulled his arm away from the dead body with a cry of disgust.
Chi Chu stood over him, laughing. More laughter blended in. Softer, deeper, and less child-like.
Chi Chu stopped laughing. She stared wide-eyed at Bing, who was looking around for the source of the laughter. Mist curled around the edge of the trees. Mikey quickly crawled over and hid behind Donnie. The mist began to shape itself into a dozen or so human-shaped pillars. One stood closer than the others.
It solidified into a slender feminine form. Thin tendrils of smoke fell down from blood red hair, over pale white shoulders, and disappeared at her black, sharp-toed boots. Her hair was an interesting cut, longer in the front than the back, except for a long thin braid. She looked at Chi Chu and Bing, and then her gaze fell on the turtles. Her eyes were a gold color that would be impossible on a human being.
The woman smiled, revealing pearl white fangs.
"I think we're in trouble," Mike whispered. Don could only nod.
"I am Scarlet," she said. She looked down at the body and clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. "Sloppy work." She narrowed her eyes and the corpse suddenly burst into flames. Donatello pulled Mike farther away from the fire. Mike stared in disbelief. Don looked back towards the red-haired vampire. She kept her gold eyes on the kids.
"You aren't from around here, are you?" she asked. Her voice had a sharp edge to it. Don involuntarily shivered at its coldness.
Chi Chu lifted her chin. "No. We are of China."
"It shows," Scarlet said, tilting her head forward a bit. "But you're in America now, and we have different ways of dealing with things."
The fire died down and it reminded Don of a spontaneous human combustion victim. Scarlet waved her hand and wind picked up and played in the ashes.
"First, no more killing humans. We don't need the publicity."
"That's absurd!" Bing cried. "How can we survive?"
The woman chuckled. "You can find many willing victims in the underground clubs of this city. It may be hard for you two to get in, though."
Chi Chu shifted her feet. "Who are you to command us?"
"I'm the one who's trying to help you survive."
"We do not need your help!" Chi Chu screeched. She jumped towards Scarlet. Scarlet raised her hand, and with a loud smack, Chi Chu was backhanded across the face. The small vampire fell and hit the ground hard, rolling and coming to a stop at Bing's feet. Bing shrank back. Chi Chu wiped the blood from her mouth.
"Didn't your mother ever tell you to respect your elders?" Her voice held a touch of amusement. "I'm giving you one chance. This is not some Chinese backwood!" Her voice rose in an effort to intimidate the young vampires she was addressing. "This is New York! We can't afford having humans finding out about us. If you're going to live here, you will live like we do, or die."
She waited for them to respond, and when they didn't, she continued. "I'm sure you've taken blood from banks before, and one of our kind runs a butcher shop not far from here."
"A butcher?" Bing nearly choked on the words. "You cannot really expect that of us."
The woman inspected her dark fingernails. "If you cannot live by our rules, you will have to leave. I will not have a city of humans hounding me again."
Again? Donatello thought. He gulped. She said they drank animal blood. Did that include mutant turtle blood?
As if she'd heard his thoughts, Scarlet turned to him. "Do not worry, we do not feed on unwilling sentient beings anymore. That's what led to our last population drop." She turned back to Chi Chu and Bing. "The humans became suspicious and began to hunt us down. We were nearly wiped out in some areas."
Donatello was now sure she'd read his mind. Vampires were supposed to be able to do that, after all. A business card appeared in Scarlet's hand and she tossed it to Bing. He caught it and bowed.
"Contact me if you wish to stay, I don't want to hear from you if you decide to leave." She raised a hand and she and her troops became mist once again. Don looked back to Chu Chi and Bing, but they were gone as well. They were alone with the charred remains of the body.
Mike was shaking. "Let's go home Donnie, okay? I don't want the pizza anymore."
Don nodded and helped his little brother up.
***
Chi Chu kicked a bucket across the room. "What arrogance! That harlot had no right to speak to us that way." She felt her sore cheek again and knew that a bruise was forming. Although it would heal quickly, it would still be an ugly purple for several hours.
"She is older than us," Bing replied quietly. "She has more experience than us. Perhaps we should take her up on the offer."
Chi Chu glared daggers at her companion. After a moment, her face softened. "I miss China."
Bing lowered his head. "As do I. We should return home. There is no threat there now, with the Shinobi here."
Chi Chu smiled. "And we will not have to deal with that Scarlet woman. I hate to let Vam Mi's death go unanswered, but if we must... It's agreed, we leave. The sooner, the better."
***