Chapter 173: Night’s Hunt IV
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"No killing unless necessary," he reminded them.
The twins nodded.
Bat Bat nodded too, but her nod looked like she was nodding for show.
Sekhmet moved first. He did not rush like a hero. He slid through the shadows, using rocks and uneven ground to break line of sight. The twins followed, silent.
Bat Bat followed, less silent, but trying.
They closed the distance.
The men were near a broken stone marker, probably using it as a meeting point. They did not expect trouble because they were outside the city wall where guards did not bother. Because they are paid to ignore all the shady people and crimes.
That was why criminals loved it. That was also why human / predators hunted here.
Sekhmet waited until they were close enough. Then he spoke. His voice was calm.
"Leave the cage," he said.
The men froze. One spun, hand going to a knife.
Another stepped back. The one holding the sack stared.
"Who the fuck—" the knife man started.
Sekhmet’s eyes glowed faintly. He activated Blood Eye. He did not need full readings. He only needed basic information.
[Ding! Chaos rank one Shady traders X3
Overall Battle power: 14000
Overall Battle power: 15000
Overall Battle power: 13000]
[Ding! Chaos ranks one Shady trader leader
Overall Battle power: 18000]
All four of them had the same smell in their chaos energy. It was greed. It was violence.
The kind that justified itself.
The knife man sneered.
"Go away," he snapped. "This is none of your business."
Vera took one step forward. Her eyes were deep red in the moonlight.
"You are right, but I have a reason," she repeated softly. "It’s hunger."
Vela’s lips curled faintly.
"It smells like fear," she said.
The men noticed the twins then. Their expressions shifted. Not in fear. But in lust. The stupid kind that got men killed.
One of them laughed. "Hey, hey, hey," he said, "pretty girls outside the wall at night are a blessing. Come to me... I will show you something big..."
Bat Bat’s eyes narrowed.
Bat Bat stepped forward proudly, wings flaring slightly.
Bat Bat pointed at him.
"Bat Bat is not a pretty girl," she declared angrily. "Bat Bat is the Blood girl."
The man blinked.
"What the—" he started, confused. "A tiny girl with wings. You will fetch a good price."
Sekhmet sighed internally. "Stupid guy."
Bat Bat had the subtlety of a hammer.
Sekhmet’s voice stayed calm.
"Last warning," he said. "Leave the cage and come here."
The knife man raised his weapon. He took a step forward. "Or what," he snarled. "I will kill you and play with the pretty girls tonight."
Sekhmet did not answer with words. He answered with blood.
Blood threads snapped out, fast. They wrapped the knife man’s wrist. He tried to pull back.
The thread tightened. The knife fell to the ground with a Clink. The man’s eyes widened.
Vera moved like a shadow.
She stepped in, grabbed the man by the collar, and slammed him into the ground.
Not to kill. But to stop. A sound was heard, Thud!
The man gasped in pain.
Vela moved next, she was faster. She swept behind another man, her blood needle flicking out.
She pierced his shoulder. Not deep enough to kill. But deep enough to paralyze the arm with pain.
The man screamed. "Ahhhh ahhhh"
Bat Bat giggled quietly, then remembered she was supposed to be serious, so she made her face fierce instead.
The third man tried to run, seeing two of them were taken out so easily.
Sekhmet flicked his hand. A blood chain formed and snapped around the man’s ankle.
He fell on the ground too.
The fourth man, still holding the cage, panicked and swung it like a weapon.
"Don’t come near me. I am warning you. Don’t you dare come."
The cage hit a rock.
Something inside cried out.
Vera’s eyes went cold.
"Master," Vera said softly, "permission."
Sekhmet’s gaze sharpened. That question mattered. He could feel hunger rising in the twins now, not because the criminals were delicious, but because violence and blood awakened instincts.
Sekhmet stepped closer. He looked at the man holding the cage.
The man’s face was pale. He shook.
"Please," he stammered. "We can talk—"
Sekhmet’s voice was flat.
"Drop it," he ordered.
The man dropped the cage. It hit the ground gently enough this time.
Sekhmet’s blood threads lifted it immediately and pulled it back toward him. He stepped between the criminals and the cage.
Then he looked at the twins.
"Remember I said don’t feed on innocence," he reminded them.
The twins nodded.
Sekhmet looked at the men.
"These are not innocents," he said.
Vera’s eyes sharpened. Vela’s pupils tightened. Bat Bat’s grin returned.
Sekhmet spoke one more rule.
"You feed on them," he said. "But you stop when I say stop."
The twins’ voices were quiet but absolute.
"Yes, master."
Bat Bat also nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes master," Bat Bat repeated, then whispered, "Bat Bat also fed on bad people."
Sekhmet ignored Bat Bat’s commentary and watched the twins.
Vera stepped forward first. She did not pounce like an animal on meat. She moved like a disciplined predator.
She grabbed the knife man, lifted him slightly, and turned his neck sideways. Her fangs slid out smoothly.
The man’s eyes widened. He tried to struggle. "What... what are you?"
Vera held him firmly, not cruel, not gentle, just controlled. Then she bit. The sound was small. A wet puncture.
The man’s body jerked once.
Vera drank. Her eyes closed briefly. Not in pleasure. But in focus.
Vela moved to the man with the pierced shoulder.
He was still screaming in pain.
Vela slammed him into the ground, pinned him, and bit him on the neck.
His scream turned into a choking gasp.
Bat Bat bounced on her feet.
"Master," Bat Bat whispered urgently, "Bat Bat turn now."
Sekhmet glanced at her.
"Choose one from the remaining two," he said.
Bat Bat’s eyes darted around like a child choosing candy. Bat Bat pointed at the man trying to crawl away.
"That one," Bat Bat declared. "It looks funny like worm trying hide underground."
Sekhmet’s blood chain tightened, dragging the crawling man back to Bat Bat.
Bat Bat pounced.
Bat Bat bit aggressively, like she was trying to prove she was a senior of the twins.
The man screamed louder than before.
Bat Bat drank with a happy face.
Sekhmet watched them carefully.
The twins were feeding cleanly and controlled.
Bat Bat was feeding like a disaster, but at least she was feeding on the right kind of target.