Chapter 2 - The Past

She arrived at her apartment in the slums just as dark was falling across the city. Although Sheiba had no fear of the darkness, others that lived around her did, and people were quick to use their weapons and ask questions later. She could have easily gotten in through the fire escape, which led to her apartment window, but she saved that route for emergencies only. After closing the battered door, she looked around. Home sweet home, she thought cynically, eying the small, one-bedroom apartment with loathing. At least it was neat and clean, something Sheiba would ensure no matter where she lived. But the spacing was so cramped, what little furniture she did have took up almost all the room! A couch and small coffee table with a small TV completed the living room area in one corner. Next the kitchenette took up the other corner and at the end of the counter was a petite dinette set, with only 2 chairs (as if she’d ever have anyone over to fill the other chair). Her bed completed the room with a large chest at the foot, set in the back by the window, so she could look out at night and see a glimpse of the stars winking down. In between the bed and the couch was a small end table, with a small glass lamp, her only source of light. She walked over to her bed, and sat on it with a sigh, glancing out the window. Oh, how she missed being able to look up at the night without having to look through a dirty pane of glass and a smog-filled sky. [br]
Sheiba thought back to her younger years, when she was still with her parents out in the country, far away from the filth of the city. He father had been a successful agriculturist, growing many unusual varieties of plants that the government had used for testing. Her mother had been a sweet and loving soul, dedicated to her daughter. They never wanted for anything; her father would go to the ends of the earth to bring whatever was needed. But, in the end, there had been nothing that either of them could do to help her. They could not even help themselves…… Sheiba shook herself out of the morbid memories, not wanting to relive those agonizing last days. One day, she promised herself, I will return and avenge them. [br]
Rolling her head to try and relieve the tension that had built up in her shoulders, she sat quietly and listened to the sounds of life around her in the apartment building. Next door, she could hear the TV going, sounded like the kids were playing video games, with the mother yelling at them to finish their homework. Down below, the sounds of a baby crying were accompanied by a man and woman arguing, probably over whose turn it was to change the diaper. Above, she could hear classical music, softly playing. Sheiba was pretty sure whoever lived up there played the violin, because sometimes, late at night, she could hear the haunting strains of music floating through the night air to tickle her ears. Pulling the envelopes out of her shirt, she opened the trunk at the foot of the bed and placed them inside, under the clothing. Rent was due, and she would be able to make it on time this month.[br]
Sheiba flicked on the light beside her bed, and walked over to the sink. She needed to clean the caked blood off of her hands, and she didn’t feel like going down the hall to the bathroom, just in case anyone happened to see her. Thankfully, the dark clothing helped to disguise the smudges, but she didn’t want to take any chances. It would just be easier to clean up in here. As she washed, she thought again about the name that Marcocio had given her. He couldn’t have known the significance of that person in her life, she was sure. Since coming to this city, there was only one person that Sheiba had ever been able to trust, and she kept that relationship an absolute secret. She removed her clothes, wrinkling her nose in distaste at the metallic smell of old blood. She did not make friends easily, and had only happened to stumble across this guy while tracking a blood-mad werewolf. After dispatching the rabid beast, she found out that this guy was the head of a local Research and Development lab, and she almost killed him herself. But something had caught her and held her back. Sighing, Sheiba stuffed the old clothing into a bag to be washed, dressed in a long T-shirt and a pair of bike shorts, went to the small refrigerator, and found some left-over Chinese and a soda. What could Marcocio be up to, she mused, forking some rice into her mouth. She walked over to the bed and set her dinner and drink on the end table while she pulled out the envelope with the name on it. “Trevor Montclaire” it read, plain as day. The address was the same, too, so it had to be the same person. Grabbing another forkful of food, she considered calling Trevor, but decided against it for now. She was due to see him in a couple of nights, and she was always very careful to keep their meetings covert. [br]
Sheiba considered what she knew of him. Trevor lived alone in a very nice apartment uptown. Although it was not a penthouse suite, it was quite spacious nonetheless. His parents had died when he was young (something they both had in common), and he had managed to get on as a researcher with the R&D company that he currently headed up. Trevor was not only smart, but also inventive, and had risen in the ranks quickly. Lately, he had been working on some clinical trials of a plant-based formula that would enhance a person’s senses. Well, that was top-secret, but Trevor had told her about it, partly because he felt guilty about what had happened to her parents. [br]
Although he had not been involved directly, her parents had been the unwitting participants in one of these trials, where the researches had blended animal and plant DNA in an effort to enhance physical aspects and sensory perception of the subjects. Her parents had turned into horrendous creatures filled with blood-lust, and no one could tell her what went wrong. The worst part of it was when the creature that had been her mother had bitten her, the beast backed off with such a human look of horror in it’s eyes, Sheiba was sure that her mother was still there somewhere. Before she could do anything, they disappeared, and reports began surfacing in the area of beasts in the night that would attack humans, sometimes killing in the process. Her parents’ bodies were found months later, up in the mountains. No one could be sure what had killed them, but by then, Sheiba discovered that something in their saliva had changed her. Her eyesight and hearing had grown sharper, her sense of smell was more sensitive, and she found that her strength and endurance had increased almost ten times! Some of the people who had been bitten by them were discovering these same attributes, while others turned into the raving, blood-mad beasts her parents had become. When someone was bitten by one of these beasts, there was a fifty fifty chance of either becoming like her, or becoming a monster that must be killed. [br]
The one bad thing, though, was like any other curse. Once a month, she did become a raving beast, and although Sheiba had learned to recognize the signs of the upcoming change and lock herself up, she would come out of it to see the destruction she had wrought around her. Since she had met Trevor, he had been helping her by locking her in a room near the R&D facility, where she could go through her change, and not worry about destroying anything or hurting anybody if they happened to come upon her. And in between times, if she became very angry, she would go through a mini change, her teeth and nails would sharpen to become fangs and claws, her ears would lengthen and sprout little tufts of hair on the tips, and hair would sprout along her forearms. It was enough to scare the heebie jeebies out of anyone who made her that angry![br]
After finishing her food, Sheiba laid her dish in the sink, turned off the light, and laid back on the bed, staring out at the heavens. She would talk to Trevor and find out why Marcocio wanted her to stalk him so badly. What did Marcocio want with Trevor?? The formula? But that was secret, and he shouldn’t have any information about it, unless he had a spy on the inside. As she lay musing, her ears caught a whisper of sound that would have gone unheard by ordinary hearing. Someone was at her door, and they were trying to open it without her knowing. Oh, man, she groaned to herself. Was she going to have to deal with another idiot? Why didn’t these people do their research before trying to surprise her? She slowly crept to the door, easily seeing in the darkened room with her vision, and waited as the intruder quietly slipped inside.[br]
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