Blue Alert - 11

“Carl”

-x-

IT was only a matter of time before someone finally figured it out. Of course, to say they really did figure it out was an overestimation. They didn’t really figure anything out. It took them several days, and all they did was find the body and a mess. Daring to sit upon the sill of the window, I read the words scribbled on the sheet draped over my leg. This town was of the habit of spreading word by script rather than mouth, and I had gotten into the habit of following with their strange rituals.

A good thing I did, too. It was rather easy to keep track of the information buzzing around the streets this way. Granted, it wasn’t a foolproof system, but it was quite reliable nevertheless. It told me what the rest of the town knew, and just how much. Only I knew the full truth of what happened, and the reasoning behind my actions.

The rest of the town remained oblivious, as they often did, to the evils that walked upon this land. They smiled to each other, ignorant to the ill intentions of those they converse with. It amazed me how obviously two-faced a person could be, yet no one paid attention. It was almost as if they willing chose to ignore the hints and signs.

Was it fun to turn a blind eye? Was ignorance bliss? I supposed to some extent these people were happier not knowing that their realities were nothing but lies. They didn’t have to face the horrors that truly surrounded them. But I didn’t believe in living in such a fake world. I didn’t believe in giving those evils a chance to thrive.

I made that mistake once and once was too much. I wouldn’t be here, I wouldn’t be where I was now if not for that one incident.

I could still remember it. A fresh memory in my head. If I wanted to, I could easily call it up. The catalyst of my torture. I swore to hunt him down. If he was not the first, he would certainly be the last, and I would be sure to torture him slowly. All others could be exterminated simply and quickly. They were all pawns, of course. But him... he was just as terrible, if not more so, than the witch. He was the demon that ruined everything.

Looking up, I stared out at the sky. I had been so distracted lately, I hadn’t gotten a good chance at going through the witch’s list of contacts and locating them. There were far too many to take on at a single time. There were only so few hours I could function, and simply locating my targets took up a lot of time. I didn’t trust the carriages, so oftentimes I traveled by foot. If only animals were more common in this place, then I could utilize them.

Alas, I was restricted to one or two targets at a time. And so far, I recognized none of them. I knew not their habits nor their involvement with the witch, be they truly pawns or future victims (if she had still been alive to make them as such). I could only rely on my own memory to call up the faces of those who played a direct part in making my life the way it was. At least with them, I could strike down justice. The rest I could only assume were innocent. Hopefully.

The idea of them not being innocent and possibly letting them slip right under my nose irked me. I itched with the need to erase the evil of this town. However, without a way to mark them as evil, I did not have reason to hunt them down. Only if they chose to chose their true colors either upon another person or myself did I have reason to attack.

Like that poor fool who lost his life a few days ago. He was bewitched and didn’t even know it. He hadn’t been obvious, and at this point his actions were little to fuss over, but I knew what it could turn into. I took initiative and nipped evil in the bud before it took a turn for the worse. It was a shame he had to go without truly understanding the weight of his sin. It was his own fault for calling out to me that night on my way back to base. He opened himself wide open.

Tossing aside the paper, I removed myself from the window and changed into my usual hunting gear. Darkness was slowly creeping over the land and once again it would be time to scout out the private abodes of one of the people from the witch’s list. I secured myself something to eat from the icebox while I waited for night to truly fall before sneaking out.

My destination was on the other side of town. It would take me a long time to get there, I knew, so I had to be quick. Regardless if I was tired or not, I had to at least locate this one person. I would be that much closer to narrowing down the number of people. That much closer to finding the one I hated most.

Tonight it seemed there were more carriages than normal. I didn’t know if there was a special event to be held during these hours, but it made me wary. I couldn’t be stupid and allow myself to be caught by the wrong person. With caution I avoided the busier roads, looking about for an easier, quicker way to cross them.

Eventually I spotted a carriage of sorts, though it wasn’t like the ones with four wheels. It had two, and it seemed to be manually powered. I knew its mechanics, though the name of the device eluded me. Seeing it abandoned gave me thought to take it. I looked around to make sure no one had possession of it before sitting upon it. I would have to remember where this was so that I might repay the person who owned it later.

After a moment of imbalance, I pushed myself into motion. With my mask in place, I picked up speed, determined to cross the distance shortly. I was not a fan of utilizing carriages or any other similar device, but I could not deny their convenience. This one especially was good to have. It made no noise, I could control it effortlessly, and it was slim and light. I could easily maneuver it in midst of pursuit or escape if necessary.

I covered significant distance in a small amount of time, zipping through the town on manmade wings. As I neared my destination, I slowed down and took stock of my surroundings. I stopped at the corner and pulled out a sheet upon which I had previously scribbled the location of my target. Checking the name and number, I shoved it away and moved into the darkness.

I had to abandon the two-wheeled carriage by a tree before making my way towards the home. The structure was similar to the witch’s lair, but so were many of these abodes. I looked around, ascertaining that no other eyes would catch sight of me. Once I was sure there was no one about, I moved closer.

I took care to skirt the light that shone from the windows. Outside, under the blanket of darkness, dressed in black garbs, I would be hard to notice from within. Yet if I stepped in the light, they would be able to see my shadow. I had to thank whoever it is who decided it was a good idea to open the drapery to allow me better view inside.

Moving around the perimeter, I paused only when I came upon a wooden barrier. I studied the lock before climbing my way over it. Before continuing on, I opened the door from within and pushed it open slightly. Then, on quiet feet, I made my way deeper. Pausing by another window, I carefully looked inside, adjusting my mask in case someone caught sight of me.

There were faint sounds within, and as I peered around the corner, I saw a woman sitting down and staring at an animated box. She was not who I was looking for, lest her name be Brian. I doubted it. Moving on, I shifted to the next window to see what I could find. It was a sacrificial room, but there were no carcasses to be wary off. Rather, it was carcass-less. Clean. Empty.

Glancing aside, I saw a door that might lead its way inside. I debated the possibility of it being unlocked and knew my chances were slim. This Brian and whoever he lived with seemed normal. There were no obvious signs of evil being plotted. Perhaps this Brian was not a minion but a possible victim. Or to-be victim, if the witch had not placed her taint upon him yet. It did not seem that she had, which was relieving.

Moving away from the window, I slowly made my way around the other side, just to make sure. I passed by the door carefully, denying myself the temptation to open it, and moved on to the next window. Perhaps I shouldn’t have moved that way at all because no sooner than I had reached the window were there sounds coming from the door I had just passed by.

Frozen, I recognized it as frantic barking and growling. A beast. Peeking inside the window, I saw the woman on the couch turn in her seat. She spoke something towards something I couldn’t see, then got up. I watched her move around to a blindspot and kneel. The barking grew more insistent, charged. I cursed silently. I couldn’t afford to get caught here.

I debated the idea of going back the way I came, but knew that my chances of being seen were large. Glancing in the window once more, I saw the woman let loose a beast on all fours. It was not nearly as large as the one the witch had possessed, but it was still big enough to cover my chest. It charged toward the door, cutting off my path of exit.

I would’ve forgone any anxiety if I truly believed myself to be safe, but just then I noticed something peculiar about the door. It was not whole. There was an opening toward the bottom. How I had missed it before eluded me, but I knew that it would do me no favors to stay still at this point.

Turning heel, I ran for the other side. I could hear the beast crash through the door behind me just as I turned a corner. The wooden barrier would stall the beast, but I had to get out of there as soon as possible. I couldn’t get caught here. Jumping up, I pushed myself over the top of the barrier, practically tumbling over the other side in a graceless heap. I was fatigued, yet charged with emotion and purpose, knowing my life was at risk. Pushing to my feet, I kept moving, darting across the greenery.

The beast was stalled by the barrier, which gave me hope and relief. I slowed down a little to catch my breath, the sounds of the beast’s howls echoing in the night. I would’ve dared to walk my way back to the carriage if I could afford to, but only an idiot would do such a thing. Jogging, I made my way across the foliage, passing another person’s property as I did so, out onto the cobble. I almost made it back to the carriage when I heard the beast’s snarls grow louder.

Looking over my shoulder, I saw it come after me on fast feet, snarling madly. When had it come out? How? It was then I remembered the gate that I had left open. I had dug my own grave...

I dashed to the carriage in efforts to make my escape before it caught up with me. I was about to saddle it when something sharp sank into my leg. Biting back a cry, I whirled around to see the beast with its teeth sunken in me. I kicked out to shake it off me, pulling out my blade from its sheath. The beast snarled at me; when it lunged for me, I swiped at its face. It yelped and jumped back, shaking its head. I knew by the way it stood again that I had barely grazed it.
Cursing under my breath, I moved back quickly. I had thought to end its life but I didn’t have the energy to fight. I had to flee. Reaching for the carriage once more, I rolled it into motion. The beast came at me again, catching my wounded leg once more as if to pay me back for wounding it. I swiped the blade across its face again, catching its eye this time. It let go of me immediately and cried in pain.

Hissing my displeasure, I shoved my blade back into place and pushed my feet to move the carriage forward. It pained me to move my leg, my body screaming its protest at the continual movement, but I couldn’t afford to stop. Picking up speed, I fled the area, hoping that there would be no way the beast could track me down after having a taste of my blood.

I didn’t stop until I came to a vacant area. I abandoned the carriage by a large metal bin, partially hiding it amongst bags and crates and other things. If I could disguise that it belonged there, then no one would know any better. From here I continued on foot, weaving amongst buildings with no particular aim except to ensure my scent was untraceable.

I would be foolish to underestimate the tracking ability of animals. If I did not mask my scent to toss it away in different directions to confuse them, I would soon find my safety and life compromised. I could not return to base without first doing all that I could to halt any pursuers.

Looking about as I walked, I found little to do the job. My leg screamed its pain, but I had to ignore it for the time being. When a forest came into view, I took refuge amongst the foliage. It irritated me how big of a blunder I had made. Was I not better than this? Was it because I was that tired? It was hard to control when and for how long I could move about. Perhaps I underestimated the level of influence the witch’s poison had on me. Perhaps I ought to have taken greater care to exert dominance.

Spotting a small pond during my trek through the forest, I headed for it. I knelt by the side to dip my hand. It was cold, and by the moonlight it looked a little cloudy, but it was ideal for masking my presence. I stepped into the water experimentally with one foot, then another, testing the ground. Once it seemed safe, I dove in, submerging myself.

The thick film that covered me was suffocating; I could hardly stand to stay under for long. Breaking the surface, I gasped for air and ran my hand over my face. It was disgusting. I stayed there a while, letting it soak into me and wash away my scent before finally climbing out. I shook out the excess and wrung the edges of my garbs, conscious of the way it dragged and made noise as I moved. Taking off my tunic, I wrung it out before putting it back on and making my way back to base.

It was no easy trip since I had taken a wild detour during my flight. Irritated, wet and cold from the night chill, I trudged a lost path back to where I was supposed to be. I was exhausted long before I managed to make it. I had to rest more than once to catch my breath and regain my balance. That beast had done damage upon my leg, and I had nothing to heal it.

When I came to the tree, I struggled to climb it. Twice I fell, doing more harm to myself than good. Defeated, I found refuge in the corner, out of view, and huddled there to sleep. Darkness swept over me easily, but I couldn’t help shake off the anxiety that gripped me, wariness and concern for my safety crashing over my nerves. I could only hope that when I woke again, I would still be safe and sound.