This day had started out quite promising for Theodore, yet it seemed to be blind misfortune that brought this seemingly good day to the point it had reached. He had gone exploring, seeking out everything that was exciting and new in a land that was both alien and mysterious in nature, he had marvelled at the creatures here. They had been interesting for the fact they had been both familiar, yet unknown at the same time to him. He had wandered the beaten pathways that winded through this fantastic new land, and he had found trouble. It seemed no matter where he went, that he couldn't avoid trouble. Some thought it was a curse that he possessed, that had him forever getting himself into trouble, others thought that it was that he was simply trigger happy and didn't know when to stop. Maybe it was a little of both, maybe it was neither. It certainly seemed like a curse at this point, however.
Had it not been for the 'journey of discovery' that he had embarked upon, he would have written this day off as a complete failure, yet there was at least one or two things that he could proudly say he had learned today. One of those things was sadly, that he never did seem to learn his lesson. It was amazing that this land could be so green and fertile, so lush and peaceful looking, yet at the same time it was filled with dangers. Hide bound monstrosities seemed to step out from behind trees and attack him, as if they wished to feast upon his flesh every time he thought that things would quieten down again. Predatory beings would attack him whenever he strayed too close to their territory. Strange animals would chase him in packs when he tried using one of their number for target practice.
The third one was his fault entirely and he knew it, but it felt good to mentally complain to himself about it, as if somehow, the fact he had a hand in that incident wasn't his fault in the slightest. The words he echoed in his mind where the only ones he dared use at this moment, as he could still hear the heavy footfalls of the last thing he had ran into. It was close. Much too close for his liking.
The scientists had told him that this place was a strange yet wonderful land, other people who had been there had looked at him with an expression that told him they had been there, done that, that he was a tiresome youngster who needed to learn that this wasn't just a walk in the park. Now he thought of it, he should have shot them, too. That nagging doubt he had been left with wouldn't have been haunting him then and wouldn't come back to him now. He was in over his head, he wasn't so confident now of his skills being enough to protect him. He had always thought himself quite able to look after himself, having been part of a rough group who had sparred with each other for the sheer sake of passing time on quite days.
His fingers itched. He needed to pull the trigger again, just one more time. He needed to feel the recoil of his pistols in his hands as they screamed in thunderous ecstasy.
It had felt good to spill blood on this strange lands soils, to watch the dumbstruck expression of the native creatures as the last thing that went through their minds had been a well aimed bullet. He had gunned down several scavengers for the sake of learning more about them from their remains, that had usually been little more than him prodding their remains with a stick and deciding that them being dead was evidence enough that he was top of the food chain here. He didn't care to see if he could actually eat those things however, as there was no telling what they'd last eaten.
One of the biggest shocks had been when he had stumbled across what he had assumed to be a person, singing in the most beautiful manner he had ever heard, how captivating their tone of voice had been, how hard it was to suppress that urge to reach down for the pistols that whispered to him now that he could easily put an end to this things sorry existence. He'd be doing it a favour, he was certain, but he didn't want to yet, not while that thing had continued to sing in such a beautiful manner.
The singing had stopped eventually, leaving only the urge to kill this thing and watch its blood seep into the soil. Each step he had taken towards this thing had that urge deepening, the urge becoming a need, a gnawing need that he could feel eating at him, deep inside. This thing had obviously heard his approach as it turned to look at him. Had it been a picture of beauty, he would have faltered once more, yet this thing was nowhere close to as beautiful in looks as it had been in voice. The skirmish with this thing had been a quick series of blows exchanging, his pistol after some seconds connecting with its head, sending it toppling to the ground. It had tried to scamper away from him, tried to make its way towards the friends it no doubt had lurking nearby for protection. He couldn't allow that, no, he couldn't possibly allow this freak of nature to tell its friends in whatever manner of communication it used, that it needed help dealing with him. He snickered, picturing it using primitive means to tell them, grunting and clicking like a Neanderthal while his one arm wrapped about its neck. As he pulled this thing close to him, he could feel it shivering, the hard barrel of his pistol pressing to its back. The thing was terrified, and rightfully so. He had the power to take its life from it, he had that intoxicating feeling of power, he had that urge to make his beloved pistol scream. The scent of this things fear mingled with its earthy aroma, causing him to wrinkle his nose. The faintest hint of a whimper had him tighten his grip on its neck into a strangle hold, warning it to remain silent as his lips twisted into something of a sadistic smile. "Bitch, be cool." he muttered, looking around as he made certain that the coast was at least clear enough to do this without some angry cat pouncing him because he had awoken it.
Several gunshots rang out in the still of the air, followed by the sound of the things body slumping to the ground as he released his grip on it, the blood red mist left in the wake of his callous act filling the air with the scent of blood, that scent that he had craved so desperately. Yet this thing quivered, whimpering as it started to curl up in agony, his one bloodied hand still gripped one of his beloved pair of pistols, scarlet tears falling from her barrel as he levelled her once more with the thing as it looked up at him with fearful eyes. His shadow flickered and twisted behind him as he was illuminated by the flash of each round escaping, the kick of his beloved in his hand telling him he was alive, as this thing had once been, then finally, silence. He breathed in slowly as he inhaled the scent of blood and damp air, one sleeve wiping his face clean, before he carried on, along his way, leaving his victim's body where it lay and its terrified brethren watching the departure of this pale demon.
With his attention snapping back to the present as he tried to ignore the recent past, for the fact that he couldn't afford to be caught up in such pleasant memories when he was in danger, he almost sighed. Almost. He couldn't afford to make a sound, with the footsteps getting closer, each footfall seeming almost thunderous in his ears while his back pressed firmly to the ruins of a stone wall. He could hear the breathing of this thing that he had somehow angered, he could smell the blood that he had already spilled. He could feel the dull ache of his ribs where it had struck him, no doubt fracturing one or two with a blow that hadn't just winded him, but left him seeing stars.
He could feel the call once more of his beloved girls, telling him that it was okay for him to rise to his feet, to unleash their fury upon this thing that had so wrongfully fought back. The hiss of its angered breathing behind him had him snap back to attention. No, these guns where nothing more than pistols, good pistols that had served him well. Good pistols, who had seen him through many encounters, but nothing more than pistols. Their whispering continued, as he shut his eyes and tried to think of something, anything, just as long as it wasn't thoughts of their siren call.
Theo focused on his pain, on the ache of his ribs as he considered how best to deal with that pain, without alerting the thing nearby. He knew that he had pills that could release nanobots into his body, ones that would hopefully be potent enough to repair the damage he had taken so far. He had to be careful however, as he was certain if he made the slightest sound, that this thing would hear him and things would get ugly again. If he could just wait a little longer, maybe it would turn away, maybe it would start to wander down the beaten path behind it, and he could get a good shot between its shoulder blades. That was, if that thing indeed had a weak point there, that he could exploit. His fingers carefully worked the blister pack free of his backpack, though numb as he realised they where, he could feel his fingers slipping. One hand gripped one of his beloved, the other was slipping as it tried to keep hold of something that could well be his salvation.
He couldn't bring himself to put his beloved down, to be without the sensation of either of the pair who whispered those sweet lies to him against his flesh, to steady the hand that was numbed from his earlier injury.
The grunt of the thing filled the air as he heard weighty feet twist on gravel, the skittering blister pack tumbling over loose stones as it slipped from his grasp having given him away. Stone was scattered as the dark form of the brute smashed the small wall he had been hiding behind, kicking it aside as he scrambled to his feet hurriedly. He could feel the pain of that injury screaming at him to stop, to take a moment to see to this injury so that he could go on. His beloved sang once more as she illuminated the dark for a split second, causing the ogre like being that chased him to flinch as another hole was punched in the carapace that concealed its chest. Blood trickled from this hole, telling him that he had dealt little more than another flesh wound, that this thing was going to be as angry as an Anun that had been trapped in a small box and shaken violently when it caught him. His beloved screamed in fury as heat rippled through her delicate form, the repeated sound of armour cracking as he staggered onward, desperate to escape this thing as to prevent it taking his beloved girls from him as a trophy.
It was gaining on him, and this realisation had him foolishly try to move faster than his already unsteady stumbling permitted, causing him to trip and stagger, yet fortunately he didn't fall. Unfortunately, this was all the thing needed to close the gap between them. The weighty club that the thing wielded struck another blow against him as the brute sent him tumbling to the ground, coughing as he fought to breathe after that violent blow had broken more of his ribs. The thing stood over him, a wicked smile no doubt masked beneath that helmet as it leaned close enough to him for his reflection to show. He could see his pained expression, the beads of sweat forming and running down his cheeks as he fought to breathe. "Any last words, before i take your head as a trophy?" the thing spat its words, the stench of its blood foul as he caught the first scent of it. He counted himself fortunate that there had been enough of a breeze to carry it away while he had been hiding, now.
"Yes... One..." he gasped, feeling his fingers clenching the firm form of his salvation, his one of his deceitful angels, one of a pair of furious Succubi. "Smile.." he grinned, despite the pain that he could feel lancing through his chest, as he brought the barrel of the pistol up to this ogre like beings body, pulling the trigger over and over again as he watched the thing body jerk with every round that tore into it, and finally, darkness overtook him as he felt the things foul form collapse atop him.
He drifted in the darkness, free for the time being of the whispers of his two girls, the pair of pistols that he was so obsessed with. The lonely darkness that he alone dwelled in at this point, drifting upon a midnight sea, with ebony skies. That was at least, until a voice echoed in the darkness. "Are you okay?" came the voice, ringing out in the inky blackness, before he felt a pressure on his chest that was there for a moment and then lessened, hands upon his shoulders shaking him. "Wow, you're in bad shape. Let me see what i can do about that, I'm a doctor, you know." the voice continued, while one of his eyes opened, the world for a moment seeming too bright, over exposed. After a few seconds, he groaned, looking at the woman nearby, who had moved the body of the brute, but also made one mistake. She had taken his pistols from him and placed them down nearby. Despite how it ached for him to do so, he leaned over, taking one pistol in each hand as he inwardly cursed the red headed midget who had the nerve to touch his beloved girls. "Hey, you're hurt badly, you should lie down and let me fix you up." came her voice once more, a voice that already grated upon his nerves. This was something he wasn't going to stand for, doctor or not, he had a few words he wanted to share with her.
"Bitch, be cool."
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