The Plight of Lantern Light [Closed]

[tane5naoki]

The door was closed when the Sheriff got to it. He could hear the wind swirling and blowing inside, things being knocked around and a faint scratching..and a sniffing sound? He reached out, slowly, and took the door handle. With a quick glance to the men behind him, he counted down.


1...Shi Jun could hear the sounds too, and he cocked the hammer back on his gun.


2...A bead of sweat fell from Brumback's brow, tracing a line through the dust on his face.


3...Sheriff Brumback wrenched the door open and pushed with his shoulder, forcing the door against the wind and sand filling the room. He pointed his gun at the bed, where he could see something moving on top of it, and froze, not wanting to believe what his eyes saw.


"Mrs. Stockmen?" He said incredulously as the old woman tearing the mattress on the bed apart looked up in surprise at the intruders. It sniffed, and then released a hideous shriek at the Sheriff and launched itself at him. The strength of the woman surprised him, and the air was knocked out of him as the pair went flying back into the hallway.


Shi Jun, who had been right behind the Sheriff, found himself knocked aside as well, the blinding hot pain of his wrist nearly making him throw up the water he had just drank. He rolled over, and sat up, seeing the Sheriff on the ground, under the old woman, with blood flying everywhere as she tore into his chest with razor sharp claws. With his left hand he points his pistol at the beast and fires, hitting her square in her back. The monster recoiled and screamed, she twisted herself around and stared right at Shi Jun, her eyes, he noticed for the first time, were discolored and disgusting, like that of a corpse.


As if she had realized that she was outnumbered, the creature, quick as a whip, lept out the broken window back into the storm. The Sheriff's breathing came in ragged gasps, as his torn chest heaved up and down. 

 

[Interstellar Bun]

It was a blur. As soon as the two men in front of him were out of the way Lawrence fired, the sound of his gunshot ringing in his ears. He wasn't sure if he hit the woman, or if it was Shi Jun's bullet that saved them, but some stroke of luck sent the creature leaping back out into the storm. Woman. he wasn't even sure if he could call that creature that. His stomach churned, the smell of death, gunpowder, and blood making him feel sick. Had he not suffered through it before, he might very well have lost his breakfast. Moving forward, he stepped past the sheriff and into his daughter's room, gun still raised as he looked out of the broken window, watching as wind beat against him from the window.


Darlene wasn't so unwavering. She took a breath, trying to steady herself as she half leaned on the wall she'd been peering from. Finally, she cleared the last step and eased forward. It felt like a dream, a nightmare, as she made her way towards the man on the ground.


Blood. That didn't scare her. She'd been hurt before, had helped other people, other animals when accidents happened. But this? This was something different. And yet, she seemed rather calm in the way that she knelt by the Sheriff, examining the wounds to see if there was anything they could do to keep him alive until the doctor could be dragged out there, or worse, just keep him comfortable until death came knocking instead.


What sort of a medical kit they had was down stairs, something she didn't exactly have time to go run and grab. Instead, she pealed off her shirt and balled it, pressing it on the wounds carefully enough to not injure anymore but firmly enough to try and stop the bleeding. She wasn't sure at this point if it would do much good, but she had to try.


"Sheriff. Sheriff can you hear me?"

 

[tane5naoki]

The Sheriff coughed, his breath coming in ragged gasps as he clung to his life, desperately trying to suck in enough air to fill his punctured lungs. He had enured wounds before, in the war and in his service to the town, but nothing like this had ever happened before. He reached out and took Darlene by the shoulder, smearing blood on her. "Mrs. Stockmen...Mrs. Stockmen!" He called out frantically, trying to get the younger girl to understand what he was saying. His voice was rough, difficult to comprehend, and as he spoke, his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he passed out from the pain, his chest still moving up and down.


Shi Jun stood up as quickly as he could manage and with one arm flipped over the bed in the room, spilling the ruined mattress on the floor. With a groan he stepped around Lawrence and shoved the frame against the open window, sweating from exertion. "Help me with the dresser," He said, looking around at the other pieces of furniture in the room. "We need to make sure it can't get back in!"

 

[Interstellar Bun]

She didn't understand. The panic would come later, everything she was supposed to be feeling would come after reality set in to her bones, after she realized what had happened. Right then, however, she was too focused. He was passed out, but still alive, though Darlene wasn't sure that would last much longer. If she had the mind for it, she might have prayed, instead, she just yelled for William, the only older sibling. As soon as he appeared on the steps she sent him back away, yelling for him to get the doctor bag down stairs.


William's doubt in her was palpable as he dropped the brown bag next to her, filled with basic medical supplies for various wounds that happened on a fairly regular basis out there. She was thankful he didn't voice the doubts and fear that grew in both of their thoughts. 


Once Lawrence was sure nothing was about to burst through the window again, he propped his gun on the wall and gave a single nod of his head.


"Do you know what in the good name of God that thing was?" He grunted the question from between his teeth as he moved the heavy wooden dresser, his shoulder pressed firmly against it to use his large stature to help with the process.

 

[tane5naoki]

"No Clue," Shi Jun grunted as he helped Lawrence push the dresser into place. "I'm just glad it didn't decide to use those claws on me." He pulled out his revolver again, and hissed as he held the weapon in his right hand. He quickly used the ejector pen to push out the spent rounds and reload the weapon. He walked out to the hallway, and saw that Darlene was trying to minister to the sheriff. One look and Shi Jun knew, Brumback was a dead man, unless Lawrence was a doctor.


"What should we do about him, Mr. Harlow?" He asked in a flat voice.


Outside, the creature, obscured by the storm, fled to the edge of the ranch, beyond the buildings and took another shape, of the great black hound. It needed to feed, and now it had a target. It would have to wait until the others went to sleep to retrieve it's next meal.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

"I can save him."


It was Darlene who responded. Her hands were stained, blood smeared on her clothes and shoulder. Lawrence hesitated before reaching forward. He saw what Shi Jun dead. He saw a dead man. Had seen to many men like that to hold much hope that any of them would be able to help.


"Darling."


She didn't stop trying.


"Darling." He said the term of endearment more firmly, pulling her shoulder back. "He's gone."


The hands that had been attempting to stop the bleeding faltered and stilled. Slowly, she pulled back from the Sheriff. She stared, not really feeling herself as Lawrence helped her up to her feet, legs numb. The hopeful sparkle that had always glimmered on her kind features was gone, replaced with something dark and almost hollow. Lawrence eased her over to William, who took her arm to make sure she wouldn't collapse. By then everything had hit, and she was visibly trembling like a leaf in a wind storm desperately trying to hang on to a branch.


"Go help get her cleaned up, and keep everyone downstairs." Lawrence instructed. Watching them vanish, he took a breath before looking to Shi Jun. "I'll be honest with you, I'm not sure what I want to do about this. We can't bury him. No way we can take him to the town now either, not in this weather. Leaving him outside? Well that'd just be wrong now wouldn't it."

 

[tane5naoki]

Shi Jun had little in the way of feelings towards the subject, but he knew that folk like Lawrence and Darlene would care. "Wouldn't make much sense to take him outside, not after your boys just boarded up the doors and windows. Perhaps we could wrap him up and keep him in this room here," He pointed to the destroyed room behind them, "No one needs to go in there anyways." 


As he spoke he bent down and loosened the gun belt the Sheriff had been wearing. It was a nice piece, with a buckle of solid brass decorated with an eagle. Shi Jun tried not to think of what it would be worth as he removed the spare bullets from the belt, popping them out one by one. "We may have a need for these before the day is through." He explained to Lawrence, hoping the man didn't think him to be too savage.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Eyes narrowing, Lawrence watched Shi Jun take the Sheriff's gun and bullets. Part of it bothered him, but he kept that feeling to himself. He'd said it, after all, that now was not the time to be getting at anyone's throats now that there was a bigger threat. Besides, Shi Jun was right, there was a chance they'd need those later.


"Good idea." Heading into Viola's room, he pulled the torn sheets off the ground and moved towards the body. He was frowning, the kind look in his eyes having vanished, giving way to something more serious. Tossing the sheet on the ground he moved, rolling the body on to the sheet so he could cover the man. A quiet grunt escaped him as he moved the dead weight. "Think we ought to also block off the upper floor for the night, it'll be easier to keep things under control if all we have to worry about is the bottom floor. Less windows down there, less of a chance to get surprised."


Less of a chance for anyone else to end up like the Sheriff.


He let out a soft sigh.


"Figure all we gotta do right now is just make it to sunrise."

 

[tane5naoki]

"Or till the storm ends," Shi Jun said, counting out the shots the Sheriff had. Another 30 rounds, on top of the 18 he still had, and whatever Mr. Harlow kept around, they would be pretty well set to deal with one...thing? "How do you want to block off the stairs? More boards? Funiture?" He silently checked the Sheriff's weapon, ensuring it was loaded and held it out to Lawrence, offering it to the man handle first.


This wasn't his first time trapped somewhere with something waiting for him just outside. He knew all they had to do was wait for the storm to abate, and then they could have a fair fight. With him and the Harlow Boys, as well as the farm hand, they could hunt down this creature and kill it, or at least run it off. "It's tougher than I thought." He said to himself in a low voice, wondering what the damn thing was.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

"Storm probably wont end until late, and by then it'll be too dark to see a hand in front of your face." Lawrence spoke as he accepted the sheriff's gun. He turned it in his hand, inspecting it for a moment as he got a feel for the weight. It was a fine weapon, and it was a shame something so terrible had to happen for him to get a chance to look at it. He moved to leave the room, both guns in hand when he heard Shi Jun's last thought.


"Odd somethin' like this might happen soon as you show up. We've had trouble in the past, but at least then we knew what we were dealing with." He didn't sound accusitory per se, but there was something cold in his words that lingered in the air for a moment.


He started down the stairs, finally answering Shi Jun's original question.


"We should have enough wood left to block it off, but after that we'll be out of supplies in that regard."

 

[tane5naoki]

A jolt went up Shi Jun's spine as the accusatory statement was delivered. No matter how it was said, he knew he was overstaying his welcome with the Harlows. If things had been different, he might have been a welcomed hand for a few days, but his instincts were screaming for him to leave. Once the situation was dealt with, he would have to leave the next second, or else he might be kept from leaving. Suspicions always landed on him when odd things happened, whether it was him or not.


He followed after Mr. Harlow, keeping his head down and focusing instead on his wrist. Luckily he didn't think it was broken, he could still move his fingers, and the pain was receding, making him believe it was just a sprain, which meant he could still use it in a fight. He was relieved at that. With what was to come next, he wanted to be at his full strength and capability. He went downstairs and began helping with blocking off the stairs, as quiet as he could be, as to not draw unwanted attention to himself. His goal was to just survive and leave.


Out in the storm, the monster pulled the bullets from its wounds, hissing in pain as it tossed them away. It needed to get back into the house, but the guns were too much, and it needed to feed to regain strength. Staggering through the storm, it realized that it could smell, though the wind and sand, fear. Following the scent, the monster found a large herd of cattle, huddled together to protect each other from the storm. The creature smiled, an idea forming in its wicked mind.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Red. No matter how much she had scrubbed the red hadn't gone away. She could still see it in the grooves of her palms, her fingers. It caught between her flesh and her nail-bed, and it wouldn't go away. She wondered how much water it would take to wash her hands clean or, if maybe, she'd turn the sea red before the blood finally went away. Her brother had to drag her from the sink, easing her back into the main room where she sat. Having removed her heavy outer shirt, the one the Sheriff had grasped in his last moments, Darlene sat perfectly clean just staring at her hands.


The sound of footsteps made her head jolt up. She heard her father speak but the words seemed muffled. William and Daniel moved, going to help block off the upper floor as Darlene, James, Viola, and her mother sat quietly. No one asked her what had happened up there. She wasn't sure she'd be able to answer if they had.


It was once things seemed to settle down that she found her voice again. Shi Jun had seemed quiet, almost blending in to the walls as the men worked. It struck her as odd, in a way. But she had watched him, had remembered the way he had seemed tender with his wrist. The thought was enough to pull her out of the heavy silence that had swallowed her whole.


"How's your wrist doing?" The question was simple, soft, though the voice didn't quite sound like hers. Her eyes were still rimmed red and puffy, pale skin splotchy though she didn't remember crying.

 

[tane5naoki]

Shi Jun seemed taken aback by the question. He had been so intent on his work, fighting through the pain of his wrist, that when asked such a simple question, he became flustered and defensive. "Oh...Don't you worry about me, Miss Darlene." He said, making a show of flexing his hand. "How are you feeling?" He wasn't used to anyone caring about his well-being, especially not an employer.


The wind outside howled and swirled. The entire house shook as it was buffeted by the sands, and the windows rattled in their panes. He didn't like feeling trapped, by the storm, by the monster. Shi Jun wanted nothing more than to run. To just saddle up Shu and blow past town on his way east.


The animals were restless already, the creature could sense their fear and apprehension, first from the storm, then as she drew nearer to them. They could smell her and the blood on her claws and wanted to be away from her. She crawled near them, urging them onward, attempting to get the beasts to flee from her. One of the great big bulls turned and flashed his horns in her direction, blinded by the sand and wind.


Her talons flashed out, and a line across the great steer's neck opened up and blood poured out onto the ground, mixing with the sand and dust as the beast collapsed. The fresh scent of blood stirred the herd into a frenzy. There was something in the storm killing them! They turned and began to trot away, trying to get away in the storm. Not quite a stampede, but it was a start.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

There was something sad in her eyes, something that didn't belong there on such a normally happy individual. His reaction was a little stilted, and she watched the way his hand flexed. There was a brief moment in which she looked unconvinced, but it was his question that stopped her from making him sit down so she could really check it. It was her turn to hesitate, grey eyes flicking to her hands for a brief moment before she looked back to him.


"I'm fine. I didn't get hurt." It was her turn to sound slightly untruthful, but she kept talking. Her gaze went to the stairs, the door that was now hidden behind planks of wood. "I just...wish I could have done something more for Brumback."


Then, she hesitated. Something seemed to click in her thoughts and her brows furrowed slightly, making the space between them wrinkle. She had tried not to think about it, but now that she had said his name again, now that the memory played back in her mind with such clarity her hands nearly started to tremble, she realized something.


"Mrs. Stockman. Did you hear him say that?" She could still feel the man's hand on her shoulder, where he had grasped her as he tried to tell her something with his final breaths. She remembered barely arriving in time to see the monster, and that was enough to make her blood run cold again. "You don't think-" She stopped herself there, her voice much softer and more conspiratorial than it had been before, as though she didn't want anyone else but Shi Jun to hear her.

 

[tane5naoki]

Shi Jun hadn't heard anything the sheriff had said before he had been killed, not that it would have made any difference. "No, I didn't hear. That name mean something to you?" He ensured the board he was nailing in place was secure before reaching out to grab another one.


Outside in the storm the monster followed after the herd, whipping them up into a frenzy as they darted back and forth within the confines of the fence. Her cunning was shortsighted as she tried to direct them towards the boundaries of their grazing areas, and had to keep running back and forth in order to get them to go the direction she wanted them to. It was exhausting, and she soon realized that her "idea" wasn't working.