She sat shivering in the dark. The wind was howling around her, sending clouds racing across the sky. She looked up and saw the full moon briefly come into view and cast an eerie light over the discarded boxes that littered the alley, before being plunged into darkness again. She was alone and afraid. Shocco absently squeezed the handle of her dagger in her right hand, as if to reassure herself it was still there.

Her pursuers had lost her for now, but it wouldn’t be long before they found her again. And she dreaded to think what they would do to her if they caught her. She heard a shout to the left, distant, but clear in its’ intent. They were back on her trail again. But she was tired of running, weary of being the hunted. Her body tattoos were not much protection against the cold and wet, she had to fight back, end this her way.

Shocco willed her nanobots to work, using the power her profession had given her. The nanobots increased in activity, giving off a faint buzzing sound. She willed herself into the shadows, became a part of the night, as still as a statue. Her heartbeat slowed, her sense of hearing magnified. Everything around her came sharply into focus, bright and detailed.

The nanobots were swarming around her now, flowing down her arms into the daggers she was holding. They became a part of her, an extension of her body which she could use as adeptly as her bare hands. She was almost invisible now, her attackers were close. She could smell their sweat as it drifted in the air.

Her pursuers had slowed now, sensing something was not right, realising they had walked into a trap. The sweat became a smell of fear, as it dawned on them the hunted had become the hunter. They glanced around nervously, but she knew all they could see was pitch black.

Shocco lifted her blade and struck, powerfully quick and silent. They didn’t have a chance.

It was a lightening fast strike, anything less would have been suicide. Shocco took out both of her opponents in less than a second, a quick stab in the back for one, and a cut to the throat for the other. They both dropped silently in a heap, not even a scream had been heard.

She wiped the blood off her blades and slowly let her body get back to normal. The nanobot activity slowed down and she became her ordinary self again. She collapsed on the ground exhausted but relieved. It was over now, no more running, no more being scared.