2020.05.20-Doomslaying Aint Easy
The empty beach is broken in the Shadowlands. It is as if the air is made of paper and something from behind it rips it open. The tear brings with it a howl of scream and nightmare, winds more torrentous than a hurricane bubble and spill out across the beach blowing up sand-dust, water and debris. Two beings emerge from the rip, strolling through as if it was like walking through the front door of a storefront.
One is average. Average features and build. Average clothes. He looks balefully average. Save for his eyes. Something, is off about them. "Keep watch here. I will be back." Says the man, as he leaves climbing up the beach.
The beast he spoke to, is a large mammoth of a being. A startling eightfeet of liquid darkness. Muscular, claws on it's fingers and a mouth of razored dagger-like teeth. No eyes or nose. It simply purrs in response to the ghost, turning it's head this way and that and looking up as if 'hunting' for prey, or food, or both.
Adeline is again a small, dark figure down by the shoreline. Her red head is drooped like a snowdrop, and she seems to be gazing down at shells, and intermittently out to the opaque and unfathomable sea. Opaque and unfathomable, too, is her expression. But that pensive mien RAPIDLY changes at the fucking astonishing thing she just witnesses. "Jesus CHRIST?" she whimpers, although at least HE probably isn't about to show up as well, though who can say, really, at this stage, with the totally fucking insane things going on, and she gets a grip with difficulty. She pauses, down by the water, and just /stares/.
The spectral Shade seems to stare right back at Adeline. It looms, like a tower, even if it isn't trying to. Oppressive and menacing, heartless and violent. It approaches Adeline with eager intent, it's hands curl into fists with dark ichor beginning to drip from it's hands of how it's digging claws into it's own flesh. It's only when it KEEPS walking past Adeline, to look toward the shoreline and the tempest beyond that it doesn't seem to notice her.
Of course. That is also until something ELSE happens. "Hey you!" The Shade quickly turns and lets out a beastial howl, saliva of plasm spilling from it's maw until a chunk of scrap-metal gets embedded into the Shade's face. It's scream gutterl, as if touching some intimate horror in everyone's heart. But the man in the vietnam uniform with a smith's hammer in his left hand, looks scared...but doesn't move. He doesn't say anything. No quippy one-liners for Floyd. Not now. Not with IT. He lets out a huff, gives a stiff upper lip and grips his smith's hammer as the Shade rips the scrap free and tosses it aside. Black wings like a demon burst from it's back like a tumor spouting growth and dashes.
Adeline staggers backwards in terror as the horror approaches, falling back to the sand, ignoring the wet, scrambling, eyes wide and fearful. When it walks past her she sags with relief, but is still huddled and taut on the sand, staring after it in terror. And .then/ she sees - the man. The man daring to .fight/ it, with a hammer and calmness despite his clear fear, and she just - gazes. Horrified.
The wraith isn't there for long. With a pull of his hand that howling tempest wind wraps around him like a cloak that vanishes him from sight. The shade lunges, it's claws bared but slashes at nothing. It looks, slightly confused, then an ominous CRACK echoes across the beach, stygian steel hitting the Shade in the head and knocking it back - wings keeping it upright. It's head snaps to a direction and it's claws lash out, hitting purchase as plasm bursts around it's claws. It lifts nothing up, shrieks, and slams his hand down with someone giving an agonizing "OMF!"
A gleen. The -sound- of sharpness, and one of the shade's legs is cut clean in half. It stumbles, howling in pain as it falls as the tempest wind of Argos diffuses leaving Floyd stumbling up to his feet with claw-wounds in his corpus. "AHHHHH" He cries, one-handed haymaking the Shade square in the chest. His other arm? An elongated blade slick with the dark ichor of shade. That crack sound emerges again when the hammer strikes the Shade's chest, the black-steel hammer seeming to glint raw malice in whatever illumination the Shadowlands has to offer.
Adeline cries aloud, she can't help it. And she scrambles to her knees her black silk shift dress soaked with sand and water, staggers to her feet. She cannot enter that space, she can only see it, but she /has/ to do /something/ and she cannot think what. All she can do is witness and pray. She shakes, watching, her gloved hands clasped in front of her. Appalled at the monster, but amazed at the soldier's valliance -- and devastated at his injury.
The Shade cries, CRIES, like a banshee. Floyd covers his ears as his very body seems to shudder under the strain of the shout. Putting distance between them the Shade emerges to it's feet once more and the fight continues. Another clawed strike gashes Floyd in the shoulder, ripping jacket and corpus both as he cries in pain. He lunges his right arm, the long blade puncturing the Shade in the chest. It simply grabs that blade and pulls it forward, leaning toward Floyd and BITES. HARD. Into his shoulder. More pain, Gritting teeth. The tangled ghost and shade fighting amongst people who talk about what they had for lunch. What plans they have with that boy they like, as if nothing is happening. Floyd pushes the Shade away and with another strike of his hammer crushes the Shade square in the jaw. That CRACK once again happens, the Shade spinning as the world seems to recognize something. Arms, legions of them, rip through the underworld like a mob trying to break free. The Shade, terrified, howls not in malice or spite, but of fear. The arms grab him, pulling him down to them one at a time until the Shade is immersed in arms and hands. As soon as he disappears...the spectacle is gone, as if there was no rip at all. Floyd simply falls back on his ass. "...Owwie..." He says, rubbing his chest. ..."You be quiet!"... He says, to not one, but does knock himself upside the head though.
You lose one Pathos You lose one Pathos You lose one Pathos You lose one Corpus You lose one Corpus You lose one Corpus You lose one Corpus You lose one Corpus You lose one Corpus
