CH74:PAST MY FEEDING TIME

[Earlier!!]

Cherry and Chris ad been walking for a while aimlessly in the busy city streets, and the girl started to grow really anxious and exhausted. Her bloodlust levels were starting to increase due to her excessive feeding hence increasing her dependency on it and she hadn't slept in a long time. "So, when are we going to see this guy of yours?" She sighed. "I've been walking for hours and my feet are starting to hurt."

"I'm pretty sure he's around the corner," Chris replied. "I swear, his place used to be right here. Right here." The two stood in front of a small kiosk that was brightly lit with vibrant music playing in the background but instead of some 'guy' that was going to help them find Ace, they found an old woman who turned the kiosk into a flower shop.

As Chris was about to ask the lady for directions, he and Cherry witnessed hundreds of people moving in an organized manner into the tunnels. Cherry looked to see what they were running from and saw the dust storm steadily heading there way.

"Excuse me boy and girl," The old lady in the kiosk spoke with a gentle smile on her face. "Can you help me close up and head with me to the tunnels so we can wait out the storm?"

"Storm?" Chris wondered. "It's just a simple dust storm. We can just wait it out."

The old lady giggled slightly as she replied saying, "Those aren't like the ones in movies dearie. Follow me." The two quickly helped the woman close down the shop and followed her into the one of the three tunnels.

As they were moving, they heard one of the Hunters shouting at some random person hiding in the buildings.

"Hey Cherry, maybe we should go and help out." Chris suggested.

"As much as I care," She replied sarcastically. "That's not my problem. Let's just—head into these tunnels. Maybe we'll find your guy from there."

A few minutes passed and the makeshift doors to the tunnels were sealed shut, meaning that everyone was in. All across the tunnel, instructions were given to the people telling them what to do and what to avoid. After that, those who were exhausted rested for the night while others lined up for an evening meal.

"Are you hungry?" Chris asked. "I can go and get us something to eat."

"No thank you," Cherry replied. "Please, just lead me to the guy who can help me find Ace."

"Hold on, Cherry," Chris nervously smiled. "If you don't want to eat, I'll leave you here while I go get something. I've been flying for a long time so I have to restore my energy."

As Chris left to join the line of those waiting for food, Cherry got up and moved further down into the tunnels. Since she was a blood mutant, she needed to feed on blood in order to satisfy her hunger and right now, she was far beyond famished.

'The only place I'm guaranteed to find some food here is at a makeshift hospital.' She said to herself while seeing a white tent with a red cross not so far from her. As she got closer to the tent, the smell of blood grew stronger, making her stomach grumble even more.

The girl was now only a few feet away but then, two hunters stood in front of her and blocked her path, one being male and the other being female. Like the one Ace encountered, these two Hunters also wore leather jackets, boots, and hats, and they had different crystal weapons, each designed to suit their fighting or hunting styles. The woman had a metallic whip with a green, pointed tip and as for the man, he had two large gauntlets large enough to fit two toddlers in.

"Say, little girl," The woman spoke with a smug smile on her face. "What city do you come from? Are you a Hunter as well?" At first, Cherry was confused and didn't understand what the woman was talking about, so she pointed to the red daggers on her side while also pointing to her whip and her colleague's gauntlets.

"Well," The lady spoke. "Aren't you gonna say something?"

"Do I have to?" Cherry asked with a scowl slowly forming on her face.

"Oi," The man quickly interjected. "You learn to respect your elders, young lady. Do you have any idea who we are?"

"Two people standing in my way." Cherry frowned while starring deeply at the now frowning man. "I didn't come looking for trouble with you, alright? I have somewhere to be."

"You know, little girl," The woman smirked while pulling out a pair of hand cuffs. "Around these parts, we're the police here, alright? Your refusal to cooperate shows us that you could be a threat. Hand over that sword and come with me."

The man quickly grabbed Cherry by the neck and used his other hand to forcefully take her daggers while the woman cuffed the girl's hands. As all of this happened, Cherry did not show any signs of struggle but rather starred at the tent without blinking.

"Now move!!" The man pushed her so hard that she fell to the ground and bruised herself a little.

"Easy now," The woman giggled while admiring the girl's red daggers. "Don't want her breaking so easily. She's just a little girl. Take her in with the others."

Cherry was forcefully pulled from the ground and dragged to the 'cell' which was behind the tent. As she was passing by the tent, she saw many people lined up on beds receiving blood transfusions with nurses and doctors caring for them. Among them was Sky, who was currently hand cuffed to a bed while receiving treatment, but Cherry didn't know who she was…yet.

"Move it, missy." The man kicked Cherry once more. The girl got fed-up of his shenanigans so once they got to a part of the tunnel without people in it, she stopped in the middle of her steps, faced the man and hung her head, making her look like she was facing the floor.

"What's the matter?" The man questioned. "Did I say you could move? Huh, WELL KEEP MOVING!!"

Cherry's eyes glowed a bright red color as she raised her arms above her head. The hand cuffs fell to the ground as the girl starred straight into the man's face with a menacing grin.

"Being able to remove cuffs isn't worth something to be smiling about." The Hunter screamed as he swooped in for a punch. However, as he got closer to Cherry, the girl quickly leaped over his head as her hands partially transformed into large, red claws.

"It's way past my feeding time." Cherry laughed with a great multitude in her voice.