//------------------------------//
// VI. Rebirth 
// Story: Love the Costume, Vinyl! 
// by SkyLovesPie 
//------------------------------//

	Hurricane and I burst through the double doors of the Manehatten Medical Center. Moonlight was still on my back, a trail of blood dripping down his leg and staining the white carpet in the lounge.
"Oh my!" said a nursemare, gasping at the sight of him. Moonlight was growing paler by the second. Hurricane, who was on my right, picked up his injured hoof to try and stop the blood. On the way here, she had managed to clean up her mouth, which had been bright red with his blood. I could feel Moonlight starting to sweat, probably going into shock. The next couple of minutes was a blur. Hurricane said something to the nursepony at the main desk, while other ponies stared at the injured stallion flung upon my back. From a hallway somewhere, a trio of doctors and some other nurseponies came with one of those wheeled stretchers. I laid Moonlight on it, and they dashed back down the hallway. I galloped after them, Hurricane on my hocks. Our hoofsteps echoed frantically in the white hall, mirroring our movements. We were passing several doors at a time now- one for common illnesses, one for surgery, even a biohazard ward. I didn't have time to stop and admire the scenery. 
I didn't see the team that had collected Moonlight, and as I remembered his pallor and the bleeding, I subconsciously sped up to far faster than a normal pony. After a few seconds of that, we found them. They were still moving quite fast, grabbing a blood bag and hooking it up, attaching an IV, taking blood pressure, heart rate, and other things I didn't quite comprehend. They had put some sort of bandage on his wound, which was still dripping a little bit. They had picked him up, and with a few grunts, maneuvered him onto a bed. He was placed next to a large window with a nice view of flowerbeds, a slight breeze picking up as I watched. Moonlight was still sweating, but his colour was returning now, which made me feel a little better. 



It had been a few days, and every day, Hurricane and I had gone to see Moonlight. He was recovering rapidly, which was a good sign, but the doctors wanted to keep him for a few more days. For 'Observation'. I still wasn't sure if I had sucked all the venom out, because he seemed to be using up blood bags quite rapidly, even though his wound was gone.
"Do you think I turned him?" Hurricane whispered to me sadly as we walked the empty streets for the third time that night. Somewhere off in the distance, an owl hooted.
"I doubt the venom would have had enough time to fully turn him, but he might be a little... different." It was then silent once again. "Are you getting thirsty?" A nod.
"Do you want to hunt?" Another nod. "Then we shall."
We trotted to the park, trying to appear nonchalant. I'm not sure if we succeeded. A couple of ponies were there, one was a small unicorn filly with a lovely lavender coat. As we trotted by, a buff green stallion was sitting on a bench, dressed in a fine suit, looking through a briefcase. A pegasus couple waved hello as we moved past them. In the night air, the smell of blood wasn't a potent as it was in the hospital. 
After a while, I found my target-- an orange earth pony. She flicked her bright red mane with her hoof, and started walking away. Her flank bore a bowl of fruit, oddly enough.
"Can you go somewhere else?" I whispered to Hurricane, nudging my head in the mare's direction. She nodded, and went to find her own meal. Once Hurricane was gone, I turned to the mare.
"You really should be more careful, wandering alone out here in the dark. Cities aren't safe." She turned, startled by my voice. She stared at me uncomprehendingly. I smiled widely, showing off my fangs. She backed away, ears pinned. She would be an easy bite. I cackled, and ran towards her with vampiric speed, my hooves barely touching the ground. I circled her, and she turned in every direction to try and keep pace with my kiting. Finally, I leaped in the circle when her back was turned, and wrestled her to the cobbled path. She was strong, but not enough to fight me off. When I had her down, I opened my mouth and bit down hard on her neck, right where her jugular was. As I felt the warmth of the blood rushing down my throat, I drank faster, determined to have every last drop. While she still struggled to get me off, she weakened with each mouthful. I wouldn't be creating another vampire today. Eventually, the mare fell slack, and I pulled away. I wiped my mouth with my hoof, turned her over and set her on a nearby bench. 
Prodding her with my hoof, I let myself droop as I realized what I had done. I had stolen the life of another pony, but instead of condemning her, I had killed her. I was a monster in pony form, a killer. The worst part was I had enjoyed every second of it. Every last drop was the most delicious thing I had ever tasted. I felt rather sloshy, now that I thought about it. Cantering away, I rushed to find Hurricane.
The blue pegasus was still where I had left her, but now there was no one but her and her dead victim. On the ground, blood still dripping out of his neck, was a yellow stallion with a pale purple mane. His face was frozen in a silent scream.