Patreon LogoYour support makes Blue Moon possible (Patreon)

Enter the Badlands (messeduprp x Skeith Takahata II)

Sybil shook her head quickly. "Absolutely not. I will not allow you to forego your own wages for my sake. I know the risks of my trade. These things can happen. You just moved here and need that money to find your footing."
 
Rosaline shook her head and put a hand on Sybil's shoulder. I can handle not having one night's pay. " She smiled, "Besides... I didn't say it was optional." She chuckled and smiled down at Sybil. From the door outside, they could hear the debauchery going on downstairs. Happy music plahig as they laughed until it suddenly stopped... All sound dissapeared.
 
Sybil was about to return Rosaline's smile despite the pain she was in, until the room once more fell silent. She looked back to the door before clutching tightly to Rosaline's hand on her shoulder. "R-Rosaline..." She looked up at her frightened her voice shaking. "Th-this can't be happening... This isn't real..." She desperately reached for the false bible, pulling the single shot pistol from inside.
 
Rosaline looked around andnfrew one of her guns, pulling back the hammer and setting it into single action. "Let Me see... You stay right here with that gun okay?" She gingerly left her place beside Sybil and walked to the door, waiting it open and jumping back to admit the familiar sight of the engulfing darkness. "Sybil... Hand me a lantern, I'm going to get to the bottom of this."
 
Sybil watched nervously as Rosaline moved away from the bed. She clutched tightly to the small pistol as she watched her go. What was it about when the two of them were alone in this room that brought this phenomena? She moved from the bed slowly, limping with her injured leg as she went to her lamp. She lit the oil lantern before handing it Rosaline. "P-please... Please be careful." She pleaded, looking at the woman with wide terrified eyes. Tears threatened to spill from the corners of her eyes.
 
Rosaline took the lantern and gave a soft kiss to Sybil. "I'll be fine... Just stay here and be safe okay?" As she steppes out I to the darkness, she could only see a few feet in front of her. The darkness engulfing the light past it. She held up her gun, looking around the darkness and gingerly calling out. "Hello?"

Nothing came back as an answer, except for the familiar scratching noise from the left hallway. She looked down into the room and closed the door, "Don't open this until I get back Sybil." She closed the door and slowly walked towards the noise.
 
Sybil returned to the bed, watching Rosaline leave. As she closed the door she became much more frightened. Her hands shaking as she sat, pointing the pistol at the door in fear. A couple tears of fear slipped from her eyes as she waited and listened for anything. Only that damned scratching...
 
Rosaline walked down the hall slowly. The scratching growing louder with each step. Her hands were shaking as she tried to tighten her muscles and steady her shooting hand. "Why the hell did I go out here. Why did I leave Sybil..."

The hallway seemed to stretch on and on in the darkness, engulfing everything around it. The scratching was deafening now. As she took another step, then saw what was causing it.

There was man laying on the ground, a figure crouched over him. In tattered shirt and trousers with long white hair. It's skin was gray, and it's fingers were like sharp claws as they scraped against the floor. It's teeth latched onto the man as it bit and chewed on his flesh.

It looked up, eyes red lie the blood ringing it's mouth and hissed. Hopping up and charging Rosaline, her instinct kicked in. Her years of ginslinging forced her to draw her gun, aim, and fire.

The bullet rang clear and shot between the creature's eyes. It reared back with a shriek before springing back to it's feet and running past her. Rosaline gasped and turned quickly. Dropping the lantern and sprinting into the darkness, Sybil was defenseless.

She ran as fast as she could, running until she burst into the familiar door and looked around, her gun out and ready. She waved it around the room, "Where is it! Where did it go!" She shouted in fear. Her eyes rested on Sybil's shocked face and she went to her. Puling her into a hug and choking back sobs as best she could.

Behind her, the light had returned as had the noise. But she was too preoccupied to notice, "Oh thank God you're okay Sybil. Thank god you're safe."
 
Sybil's fear got the best of her when Rosaline burst back into the room. She let the pistol slip from her fingers when Rosaline ran over to her. She leaned against her, letting herself cry when she was pulled into a hug. "What was it? Why does this keep happening? What did I do?"
 
Rosaline shook her head, "No no... No you didn't do anything. You've fine, it's fine just calm down Sybil. Take a deep breath and calm down. As she watched Sybil can down. Rosaline felt herself calming down as well. "It was..." She wasn't sure if she wanted to tell Sybil what she saw or not, worried that it would scare the poor girl too much.

She helped Sybil to her feet and walked her toward the door, "come on... Let's head downstairs and get you a drink. The bar should be emptying out soon and we can go to bed okay?"
 
Sybil closed her eyes, trying to relax as Rosaline spoke. She nodded her head slowly as she took in a few deep breaths. She looked up at her, still fearful when she chose not to tell her what she saw. Slowly, she rose to her feet. She leaned against her some as her leg throbbed painfully. "I... I think I would enjoy a drink." She followed her down towards the bar, offering a faint smile to the patrons who were still present. "Good evening, gentlemen." She greeted, adopting her usual working persona. "Terribly sorry, but I'm not working this evening." She slid into a stool taking a deep breath. She was still shaking some from her fear, but she did her best to appear confident and normal.
 
Rosaline slid behind the counter and quickly pouted her lover a drink, giving her a shot for her to drink. "Don't worry about nothing Sybil, this was probably just some freak incident... I can even buy a room at the inn for us to sleep in for tonight if you want. It might make you feel better."
 
Sybil looked up when she was offered the shot. She smiled nervously at Rosaline before nodding softly. "Th-thank you." She brought the glass to her lips, throwing it into the back of her throat. She set the glass down, looking up at Rosaline. "buying a room? I guess we could do that. Maybe it would make me feel better to sleep in a different bed."
 
Rosaline took Sybil's hand and gave it a squeeze. "I'll pay... You can stay there for as long as you want and I'll cover it... I'll need to find better work though." She looked away, pouring herself a glass of whiskey.
 
Sybil looked up alarmed. "Absolutely not!" She insisted, shaking her head. "I... I have a room already and I'll make it work. I will not let you put yourself out even further for me." She said quite sternly. As scary as it all was, she thought they were discussing a room for a night or so, not a new room that would cause new employment to need to happen. "I can just lock the door. I'll be fine." She looked down at the shot glass, sliding it away finally. "My demons are my own. I brought this on myself." She stood up from the bar, looking back to Jasper and Rosaline. "Th-thanks for the drink, but I think I'm going to lay down." She looked back to Rosaline for a moment before turning to head back to her room.
 
Rosaline cursed softly and walked out from behind the bar. "I'm sorry Jasper, but I'm not sure how I'll be at this job." She followed Sybil and grabbed her at the top of the stairs.Practically dragging her back down and across to a different inn. "Damned stubborn girl... One night first. But I'm not letting you stay in there for another night. Not after what I saw." Rosaline mumbled.
 
As she was tugged along, Sybil began to find Rosaline's care for her to be more angering than endearing. She grit her teeth as she tried to pull her arm free. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?" She grew increasingly frustrated as they moved out into the road. "Damn it, Rosaline. You are not my mother!" She looked at her sternly as she planted her feet, as painful as the action was with her injury. "What's gotten in to you? My care is not your responsibility. I'm scared too, but it isn't right for you to keep putting yourself out like this." She looked down at the ground frustrated. "I only work through Jasper's tavern. It's safe there, for the most part. Part of my pay covers my room and helps Jasper out. Staying somewhere else, hurts everybody. Me, Jasper, my normal clients..."
 
Rosaline turned on Sybil and practically shouted, they were standing in the road just outside of the bar. "It also keeps you closer to the creature I saw eating another person's flesh!" She was fuming, why wouldn't Sybil just realize she was trying to keep her safe. She only had one real friend in the whole town and she wasn't ready to lose that.

Something unexpected happened, a figure sprinted out from an alley, charging the two of them. Rosaline pushes Sybil away and drew on the figure. Before she could fire, it pounced on her. Pinning her to the dirt, as they struggled she recognized the blood on it's tattered shirt, the sunken features, the wild white hair. It was the same beast that had attacked her in the hallway.

It tried to push in and bite at her throat but she held it back, when she raised her gun, it slapped it away, skittering it across the ground. Rosaline reached for it without success. "Sybil! Sybil kick me the gun!"
 
Sybil was about to counter when Rosaline pushed her out of the way. With her weak leg she toppled to the ground immediately. She let out a pained shout before seeing the creature pounce her. She looked down at the gun and then back up at the creature, staring in silent shock for a few seconds. When Rosaline shouted or her to kick the gun, she snapped to attention, reaching for the weapon. She pulled the hammer back, pointing it at the creature from where she was laying in the dirt. She squeezed the trigger firing at the creature.

It toppled momentarily before turning it's attention on it's attack. "R-Rosaline..." As it drew closer before leaping at her, she gave a louder shout. "Rosaline!"
 
Rosaline scrabbled to her feet, scooping up the gun and tackling the beast. She pushed it down and rammed the gun's muzzle into it's mouth. Shooting it through the head. She stood up and shot it four more times u too she ran out of bullets.

After riddling it with bullet holes. Rosaline went down next to Sybil, holding her gently, "Sybil please tell me you're okay."
 
Sybil couldn't suppress her fear. She was staring at the corpse in shock, so consumed by what had happened that she didn't register Rosaline at her side right away. At first she panicked, trying to push her away with a shout of fear. When she held her close she began to sob. "W-why is this happening? What did I do?" She asked desperately, clinging tightly to Rosaline in the middle of the road.
 
Rosaline shook her head, "no sh sh sh it wasn't you Sybil. It's just a coincidence. You didn't do anything wrong." She held her friend close and stood up, "let's just go to that other inn and we'll stay there tonight okay? I'll play for it until we figure this out. You can call your clients there okay?"
 
Having been attacked out in the open, Sybil wasn't sure there was any reason to move to the other inn. "But, why? If it attacked us here..." Wouldn't the creatures be able to find her there as well? For the time being, she was too shaken to argue. She just clung tightly to Rosaline, limping as she was lead to the other inn.
 
Rosaline sent Sybil inside, having her wait in the lobby with the old man running the desk who offered the shaken girl a drink at the behest of Rosaline. Meanwhile, the ex-gunslinger want out to check the body. To see what it really was that was attacking them, but she found only a mark of blood. And a trail leading out of town and into the supposedly haunted hills.

Rosaline stood there, dumbfounded as she stared at the scene. She shot it in the head. She unloaded her gun into it, how did it get up and walk away. "This town is hiding something... And I get the feeling I'm getting roped into finding out."

As Rosaline pondered what she had seen. She re-entered the inn and stood Sybil up, "come on. I'll take you upstairs and get you to bed. It'll all be okay."
 
Sybil gave a small word of thanks, slowly sipping from the drink that was offered to her. She was still in shock, having difficulty processing any of what she had seen. She looked back when Rosaline entered again. She could tell that something was bothering her, but she didn't push it. She accepted her help standing up and getting up the stairs. "I hope so." Was all she could say in response. She slowly opened the bedroom door, walking inside. It looked very different compared to Jasper's tavern. It almost felt like a betrayal to stay here. She certainly wouldn't be willing to bring her clients here. That would mean sharing her profits with this inn keeper instead of Jasper. She owed it to Jasper. He was practically family. She sat on the edge of the bed, looking up at Rosaline. "So, what do we do? I can't just hide forever."
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom