Daniel's mood was somber as he walked towards his bike, his mind heavy with worry and mostly anger.
"Who the heck would be so bold as to recklessly hunt in a city without worrying about the consequences." He cursed to himself, anger slightly visible on his face. " The last thing I want right now is for Hunters to start poking their annoying noses here".
Daniel's mood was slowly morphing into one of anger as he reached his bike, causing a palpable and fierce aura to surround him sending anyone in his path scurrying off instinctively out of fear. He either didn't notice or cared little to bother to retract his aura.
He was about leaving when his nose twitched as he perceived a particular scent, a faint scent of a fellow shifter. His eyes turned fierce as he whipped his head around trying to pick up the direction of the scent.
Daniel, like most wolves of his kind, boasted all-round heightened senses, his sense of smell a particularly fearsome one. Despite the myriad of dense scents nearly overwhelming his senses, he still managed to grasp, if only a faint wisp, of the shifter but it was also for the same reason he was unable to narrow its location.
His eyes narrowed as he tried focusing on the scent, hoping to pinpoint the origin. It proved a tall task even for him as the air was thick with various human scents and sweat. He could have easily found the shifter if he switched to his wolf vision but there were several reasons why that was a bad idea, the foremost being he was surrounded by people who wouldn't take their eyes off him.
"Eh, it's gone." He said, a measure of surprise in his tone. The scent disappeared almost as soon as it came.
"Was I only picking up on his residue scent or its hiding it now?," He said with furrowed brows, hopelessly trying to gleam with his eyes anything weird in the crowd. "either way, this makes it more troublesome."
Letting out a soft sigh, his fingers raised to massage his temples. " I guess I'll have to find it later, I'll head home for now." He said as he got on his bike. " The scent was definitely one of a rat, that I'm sure of."
Daniel started to formulate a plan in his mind as he drove off. Within the crowd, a pair of inquisitive eyes trailed him till he was out of sight.
The Wayne Mansion was a large building located in a secluded area on the outskirts of the city. His father purchased the surrounding land within a 300-meter radius because he could and some bogus excuse about valuing privacy.
Daniel personally preferred the arrangement, having no strong enthusiasm for socializing with humans in the first place or anyone for that matter. His father, in the world of humans, was a rich businessman that dealt mainly with the importing and exporting of exotic and ancient artifacts, which were mostly just junk found in the ruins of some monsters' abode or whatever useless stuff the family hoarded over the centuries - time turned anything priceless.
Daniel pulled up in front of the house, rubber tires grinding against the soft earth. Rufus, doubling as a pet and guardian, was upon him the moment he got off. Pinning him to the floor and showering him with slime and affection.
Laughing lightly, he ruffled its fur for a moment before lightly shoving the fully grown Siberian husky aside. It's black-white fur smoothed with a shake, its furiously wagging tail and deep blue eyes conveying its excitement at having its master home.
"Alright alright, calm down Rufus," He squatted, giving the dog a good rub. "Sheesh you've gotten heavier and you've got slime on my jacket."
He slowly stood up and patted his clothes to relieve some of the slime and dirt to no avail. In the distance his caretaker, butler, and friend, Thomas, was waiting with a napkin in hand as if already anticipating such a scene. He chuckled to himself as he quickly covered the distance to the front porch, Rufus trailing excitedly beside him.
"Welcome back Master Wayne, I hope you had a nice day." Thomas said with a slight smile on his face. He had a slightly lean figure and a face that radiated warmth, appearing middle-aged with only a scant few of white hair mixed in his beard. He had a reserved and gentle aura compared to Daniel's more fierce and erratic aura. Even though looks were largely deceiving with most wolves, Thomas was really a nice person,to family…others not so much.
"Afternoon Thomas, School was fine." He said accepting the napkin and entering the house.
"I already had Zoe prepare the shower for you, and there's some leftover deer in the fridge if you're feeling peckish." Thomas said, slightly shifting his feet to let the husky pass.
"Thanks Thomas, I've had my fill of deer," Daniel let out an imperceptible shudder. "I'll take a shower first." Daniel said, heading up the stairs. Halfway up, he suddenly turned around. " Did you know about the murders in the city?"
"Murders?" Thomas said with a slightly raised eyebrow. "No sir, I rarely pay attention to things that happen outside the mansion and things that don't involve you."
"I have reasons to believe a shifter is behind it." Daniel slowly said.
"I see, do you want me to deal with it sir." Thomas said, his gaze hardening.
"Don't worry yourself about it, I'll deal with it. I needed some exercise anyway" He said as he walked up the stairs.
"Very well sir." Thomas said with a thoughtful expression on his face. 'I thought I told those rats to behave themselves.' He said internally with a shake of his head. "They can only blame themselves now".
*******
Daniel stood nearly 50feet off the ground, his weight held by a lone branch. His eyes reflecting the fading evening light. The clouds drifted slowly, the shapes collapsing into a mosaic of colours and shapes to his eyes, the sight left him deeply mesmerized and strangely content and peaceful.
There he remained long after light had faded from the heavens and darkness stretched over the horizon. His eyes - blank and lost - slowly regained clarity, intent burning in his eyes. Determined to make some progress tonight, he tore his gaze from the darkened sky to the glowing city in the darkness.
Stretching his shoulders, he stepped over the branch and relinquished his hold on the tree. Wind whipped his face as he plummeted, the ground expanding quickly in his vision. The ground quaked from his landing, his bones grinding from the impact but nevertheless he was unarmed.
Shrugging off the jump, he leisurely strolled toward the blinding lights in the distance, his black outfit fitting into the darkness of the forest. Nearly an hour later he was within the thick of the city, amidst dozens of people awakening to the night life. His eyes, only mildly curious, glanced around but his other senses were heightened to the limit.
Sounds and scents far beyond where his eyes could see drifted into his ears and tickled his nose. The influx of sensations was strong enough to make him dizzy but he only took a moment to orient himself, filtering out useless noise to pick up anything of interest.
The city, vibrant and full of life despite the time made for quite a sight. Neon signs shone with bright colour, aromas drifted from several restaurants and raucous laughter drifted from bars.
A muffled shriek drifted through the air, one Daniel would have missed if his attention wasn't so focused. Noting the terror in the voice, he grasped onto the drifting sound and began tracing through the innumerable sources of noise bombarding his ears.
His nose tickled with a faint scent of blood, uniquely distinct in all he was picking up for it was human in nature.
"It still dared hunt again," He said, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "hunters are definitely going to see a pattern if they haven't already."
Picking up his pace he meandered his way through several blocks, the scent of blood thickening. Several minutes of careful trailing later, he entered a run down alley in a relatively secluded part of the city.
He came to a slow stop and his eyes adjusted to the darkness to witness the form of a large furry creature feasting on the entrails of a young woman, probably a high school teen from what he could see, well at least what remained of her.
His eyes, once brown and placid, now burned a fiery yellow, his anger evident.
"I found you."