Ambiance: You Can't Save Everybody
Inside the Church...
Amalia draws her laspistol and braces herself at the doorway, standing at the bottom of the stairs. The black rift roils, a mass of tentacles and two clawed limbs gripping the edge and pulling through, a slurping noise and 'pop' as it emerges, as if breaking free of its otherworldly prison. A rubbery black tentacle shoots outward towards
Shadrach, slashing like a serrated whip. He dodges backwards, but the tip of one grazes his naked chest, drawing a trickle of red blood
(-1). The creature's growl rumbles in satisfaction, tucking the oozing stump of its other long tentacle underneath its bulk.
Partially covered by the doorway to the stairs,
Amalia fires her laspistol at the monstrosity, her shot going wide.
Shadrach backs across the room away from the lashing tentacle, interposing himself at the doorway between the beast and the ordained sister. Gunshots echo faintly from the street above.
"This is not looking good, Sister. If this thing takes me, run upstairs. Hide from whoever's shooting if you have to. The Mother Church still has need of you."
The shadowhound leaps at the otherworldly monstrosity from the flank. The tentacle monster recoils slightly and the hound's bite goes wide, the hound landing and turning to snarl at its quarry. The monster lets out an eerie keening of its rage, trying to grasp the ephemeral hound with its clawed limbs. Grim dodges, growling protectively as it continues to face the beast.
Braaaaap! another hail of bullets from Shadrach cascades across the room, tearing through the distracted monster
(-5).
Dawn on the Main Street...
Outside the church,
Anja halts in surprise as she comes face to face with the angry mob, the fear on her face clearly not being in regard to them.
"Sheriff Skender! I need the Sheriff!" she yells.
"I bet she does!" sneers a
bearded and balding farmer. Gunshots erupt behind them on the steps of the Sheriff's Office.
"HELP!" screams Anja as the mob breaks loose like racing hounds released by the sound of gunshots, surging forward to harm her and light-up the church.
Emile starts for the church, his sunshooter at the ready.
"Hold it there, Anja,", he commands.
"And you too, missy,", aimed at the handmaiden.
"We don't need no more violence, we need answers. What happened at that church?" The serene Handmaiden smiles placidly, still walking away calmly, heading towards the boarding house despite the six shooter aimed at her head.
Braaaap! the muffled but unmistakable sound of bust-fire from a combat rifle comes from within the church, causing enough confusion to give the mob just a moment's pause.
Anja's voice quavers as she answers Emile,
"I... I was just trying to help Teo. I... didn't mean to..." Another burst of combat rifle fire within. An otherworldly keening noise. Looks of horror, revulsion, and revelation spread across the faces of the mob.
"She DID it! She unleashed HELL! She's in it with Teo!" different voices exclaim.
"Burn it! Burn it down! Quick!" Petrol cans splash upon the clapboard siding, torches trying to touch it off, the mob moving to burn the church while Emile holds Anja at gunpoint.
...
Mirko jolts as two bullets rip through his torso, splattering the exterior of the saloon next to him. His shotgun slips from his fingers and he falls forward to his knees.
"Sonofabitch!" yells an enraged Sheriff across the street, racking the action on his rifle to chamber another round.
Circumventing the crowd with some effort,
Taavi reaches the shell-shocked
Lira Bunt in front of the Saloon, only about five yards from where
Mirko kneels, bleeding. One look tells him she's not okay.
"I can't." she looks up at him, her eyes haunted and far away.
"I can't fix this." She acquiesces to grip his arm and follow.
"Come, Judge Bunt." He rushes over to the bartender
Mirko lying in the street. He takes his already blood handkerchief from his pocket and tries to staunch the blood flowing from one gunshot wound, but it keeps pulsing through his fingers, dripping onto the dry dust of the road, the life running out of the dying man.
"Lira, give me your handkerchief, a piece of your shirt, whatever cloth you have." She fumbles for a kerchief in her pockets, her non-functional high-tech communicator held absently in the other hand.
Hansel looks at Talina.
"Did he say werewolves? I think he said werewolves.... I take ONE night off..." He quickly surveys the scene. Taking a deep, steadying breath, he speaks to Talina again
"Why don't you grab the judge and follow me to the saloon. I -- erm, I mean the judge could use a drink, I think." Hoping she follows along, He sets off at a brisk pace towards the door to the saloon, where Mirko is.
Hansel reaches Mirko and bends down to grab the shotgun. With Taavi's efforts to stem the bleeding, the pair of them grab Mirko by the armpits and pull him down the alley to the Saloon's kitchen side door. Talina is left to bring the shell-shocked Judge Lira along behind.
The mob here pivots, turning their full attention on the Sheriff. A farmer wielding a pitchfork charges the porch and takes a rifle blast full in the face, pitching over backwards as
Sheriff Skender makes his stand. A volley of fire erupts from the mob - this time with more accuracy. Sheriff Skender's body jolts as four bullets tear through his chest.
"Damn..." he says in a pained tone, his last breath escaping him before he drops face first onto the porch. The mob surges forward over his body and into the Office in a wave of outrage.
Ping! a light comes on and a noise emits on Lira Bunt's communicator. She blinks at it blankly, unsurprised.
Inside the Saloon...
Báleygr Gangleri eases over to peek out the corner of a window to view the street. Upon seeing the carnage and chaos, he scurries back to his table to collect his belongings. He heads for the back door where Mirko went.
The saloon remains eerily quiet inside. Báleygr slips into the kitchen, spotting a wide-eyed and terrified
Zoe standing by the fireplace, afraid to move as gunshots sound outside. A side door leads from the kitchen to the narrow alley that runs between the side of the saloon and the side of Doctor Volokh's office and residence. Peeking through the door, he sees Mirko collapsed on his knees at the mouth of the alley.
Taavi and
Hansel grab the dying barkeep and drag him forcefully towards the kitchen door, entering where
Báleygr stands.
As Hansel enters, he shouts at the top of his voice
"Zoe! Ma'am! Are you here?! Your employer needs aid!"
"Oui?" replies
Zoe as she is called, then exclaiming as she sees Mirko,
"Mon Dieu! No! What can I do?" she exclaims, panicking.
"I know nothing of this! Someone wake Monsieur Volokh... But there is no time! Save him, please!" She rushes forward, kneeling on the floor of the kitchen and weeping ineffectually next to Mirko's bleeding body.
Mirko moans. He is pale as death. The blood still pulses, weaker, from his wound. He will be dead in moments.
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