Evelyn was going to have a lot of explaining to do when she got home. But in all honesty, this time wandering around in the dark really wasn't her idea. After work she had headed to her apartment to get her mail and sort through a few of the belongings she still had stored there. Then she called a cab before it got too dark and was ready to head back to the mansion. But the vehicle had gotten no further than a block away when it sputtered, died, and stalled on the side of the road.

The sun had already set, and she could hear the foreboding background music kick ing...

The cab driver just said he ran out of gas, and in his rather stereotypical choppy accent declared he'd go get some fuel and come right back. This left the blond haired woman stuck in the dark in the middle of the city, alone with in the dark... She figured she'd give him a few minutes before calling for a different cab. It was only by then she realized she had no cell phone service where she was.

Of all the luck.

Deciding waiting in the dark vehicle was no less desirable, Evelyn pushed open the door and started down the sidewalk, phone up in a feeble attempt to get a signal. The tiny bars wavered and struggled to find their way to the cell phone tower, while Evelyn let the echoes keep watch. It was just silly bad luck. There was nothing to worry about, right?

She walked a little faster and hoped the cell phone would get it's crap together.

The heavy breathing sounded in the darkness. The Beast's large silhouette extended down the alley as he saw the White-haired one move from her Cab. He hadn't been watching her too long, just from the moment the cab stuttered and the driver left the scene. He would of moved on but she left the cab and began to walk. White hair was an unusual trait and he felt like it was some rare game that he must hunt and collect the pelt of. He watched as she held her phone is the air, most likely looking for signal.

The Beast hid in the darkness, awaiting his prey to come closer to her demise. She wouldn't know what hit her. When he gets close enough, he was going to reach out and grab her by the throat, lift and push her into the wall. He wanted to make eye-contact with her. He hoped she was a screamer, perhaps she was a crier. He liked the criers and screamers the most, not that there wasn't pleasure in making someone for terrified they're silent but hearing their terror brought a new dimension to it. His rad eyes glowed slightly in the darkness watching the girls every movement, how she walked, how she sped up her movement. She was already frightened.

Perfect.

The echoes flickered a warning before Evelyn heard a sound, and she felt a cold sensation of fear welling up at their chiming. She tried keeping her eyes on the phone and debated what she should do. She could sense the other figure, their movement so light it would have been nearly impossible without her powers, save for the glowing red eyes off to the side.

She debated running. Running seemed like a very good option at this point...

The little bars on her phone refused to connect. She tucked it in her pocket; it wasn't going to be much good at this point. Then she tried to calm her pulse, and made her choice.

She scrambled back for the cab as fast as she could go, and shot one glance back to look at what the echoes had heard.

Even in the darkness she could make out the intimidating silhouette, and she wished she hadn't turned, but if nothing else, it made her run faster.

His target made a dash for the cab and his eyes focused. Going into tunnel-vision he moved out of the shadow within the darkness, his purple-skinned body clenching up as he got low and sprinted down the alley towards the White-haired girl. No-one could escape him in his mind and she wasn't any different. The Beast was looking forward to this kill especially. It seemed like those with unusual traits had a strange attraction about them. He wanted to kill them and investigate their deaths. Did it feel different? That's what he was interested in.

He closed in quickly on her however instead of attacking straight away, he dodged passed her and turned to face her. He let out a sharp roar and sent his arms towards the girl. He wanted to watch her lose breath. Slowly.

Evelyn didn't expect to make it to the cab in time. The echoes could hear the pursuit, and they knew she wasn't fast enough. She waited, trying to pick the right moment to duck, then the figure passed her, and she got a full look at the dark silhouette.

She screamed. Memories raced through her mind of another monster that chased her, the crystal clear images bringing pain of the long gone injury and the vivid terror back to the surface. This couldn't happen. It couldn't!

The roar echoes through her mind as her feet skid on the pavement, and she jerked backwards, feeling her feet go out from under her. Training kicked in at the last second and she tucked her body into a roll, somersaulting slightly in a sloppy dodge and barely keeping her feet under her. She tried to keep away from the claws, but the force of her own memories was crippling. She could barely breathe.

And he wasn't even choking her yet.

Sylar had been traversing the concrete jungle as usual in his nightly search for food. He was unaware however, that his pallet would be sated instead with violence. As he skimmed along the rooftops, letting his senses search for any signs of a meal, he caught onto a different sort of lure. A scream in the distance, but one he recognized. Feminine, high pitched, afraid. This was Evelyn's scream, a sound Sylar never wanted to hear. A primal part of him awoke, mixing with the human part of him, creating a feeling he hadn't felt pretty much ever. He felt the need to protect.

Sylar dashed towards her, his form racing along the rooftops like a blur, easily hitting thirty miles per hour with his monstrous strides. He honed in immediately on the scream, Evelyn was on the ground, meaning Sylar had to hurry down to her level if he wanted to understand what had awoken his concerned side. He picked up on another creature, powerful breathes, the scent of anger and death, the pungent pheromones of a man. He lept from the building, his body easily breaking thirty Mph as he let the fall carry him faster than his limbs could. His body acted before his mind could even begin to think. His body slammed into the pavement, cracking it as he turned, his tail softly bashing against Evelyn to knock her to safety, she'd feel pain, but at least this was done to protect her, not to murder her.

Sylar's spin turned him to face the Beast, a moment he hadn't expected to happen. This was something all predator's tried to avoid, this was confrontation, a fight that could be lost. This was a match between monsters. Sylar glared up at Beast, obsidian eyes meeting a blood red gaze. His lungs filled with air, flushing it out in a horrifying hiss. "Keep away from her you freak!" His tail, recovering from saving Evelyn quickly raised up behind him, assuming a scorpion like posture, ready to impale his foe. His claws flashed out, ready to brawl. It was time to fight, to spill blood, to unleash the Predator.

Beast attempted to catch the girl but she was just slightly more acrobatic than he first expected but he didn't mind, a true predator must change otherwise they die. The Beast was about to grab her when her body was slammed by another figure, she was out of his grasp now and he was presented with someone new. His eyes scanned them. black hands with claws, not unlike his own hands other than the colour. Except it seemed this predator was on built on agility more than strength. This Monster however turned to face him and his tail lifted, clearly intended on stabbing him at some point. Perhaps it contained some form of poison, he'd been to take out that possibility.

However all that escaped Beast was a mocking chuckle at his opponent. "You call me a freak? But are we so different? Clearly you are a born predator, a perfect being to hunt as I do. The Humans and the mutants who look like them will never understand us. I am merely a starving Beast looking for a meal." Sure he didn't mean a literal meal. He meant a more metaphorical meal but he wouldn't let him know that. This was a strange time when Beast wouldn't attack first but this creature before him was obviously built to hunt the humans much like he does. It'd be a shame to kill such a promising monster.

Evelyn expected to feel pain but the blow that knocked her sideways did not feel like it was meant to injure. Her skin still stung as she hit the ground further away, but her dazed mind was startled by the words she heard and the echoes identification to them.

Her sewer monster friend was defending her.

If she had air left in her lungs she would have yelled at him to be careful or something equally unhelpful, but instead she crawled further away, hugging her sides and trying to breathe. The fear traveled through her and made the struggle that much more difficult.

Sylar was a dark breed of monster, it's form alien and different than a man's. The Beast before him though, was a massive creature, a mockery of the normal shape of a human being, bulked out with enough muscle to snap a man in two. Sylar wasn't intimidated by his form, and Sylar's own strength was surprising for his frame. He had to hope Beast wasn't strong enough to just snap him like a twig and fight it out. However, Beast spoke instead of striking, a surprising move between two monsters.

Sylar kept his snarl, his fangs glaring in the night at his opposite. The creature before him spoke as if they had some camaraderie, or a similar interest. Sylar was a freak, a monster, and an animal, but there was still enough human in him to fight off the dark thoughts. He'd tried to eat Evelyn once, he would make up for that mistake tonight. "I'm as freaky as they come,but..." Sylar responded, his posture dropping a bit lower, his tail shining in the pale light, and his claws flexing once more. "But I'm still human enough to know you go hungry tonight Beast." Sylar didn't have the luxury of turning to check on Evelyn, but if she was breathing, if she was moving, then he'd done the right thing jumping in. He wasn't a hero, and barely half a man, but if he could save one more person before he lost himself to the hunt, then he could at least feel good about his time as a human being.

Sylar knew the hunger that came with being a predator, the urge to look at normal people and feel nothing but bloodlust. Maybe he'd met a rare mutant with a similar mutation to his own, only already past the point of no return. But he had no interest in being friends, in being mentored in murder. For now, all he had to do was stand between Evelyn and the Darkness, before he too dwelled there.