The next few moments were a bit of a blur to Lozen. She remembered sitting there until she saw Iscariot disappear behind the rows of tents, but everything after that was a rush of noise and light she didn't bother recalling. This wasn't how it worked. She couldn't find them so soon. She needed time and a plan, but he was right over there! What if he found out!? What if this was just one big trap for them!? He did say something about acquaintances!? Son of a whore, did he know about Judas?!
Questions and fear rushed through her mind and she pushed her way back through the crowd until she found herself darting down the way she had come from. Once she found herself back at her tent, she tore her boot off and ripped out the collection of wanted posters in a vain attempt to prove herself wrong. She had heard of this before, where someone meet an old acquaintance of an outlaw and then parades themselves around as said outlaw. That had to be it. There was no way that old foul could actually be Iscariot.
Her hands haphazardly tossed around posters in her panic until she found the largest bounty she had ever set her sights on. Gregor Iscariot. She had memorized practically every detail about the posture and yet still her eyes needed to take one more look at the actual picture. It wasn't much, just a print out of an old photograph with a man who looked about as conspicuous as could be. His dark hair was slicked back and a long mustache wove its way over his lips and up to his ears. It must have been taken years ago, but there was something else to it. His eyes seemed so full and determined, like there was still life left to lose. She doubted it was the same person, even if the poster was out of date. There had been numerou stories of people claiming to be the famous or infamous figures filling these lands. This one could have just hired Florentine and used the fact that he had been in the same gang as Iscariot to build a reputation. Though that idea didn't quite sir well with her. This man resembled no facet of the wanted poster, but it seemed just as implausible that such a man would go through all this just for repetuar. He didn't seem like the fame and glory man. Though there was one simple way to confirm her theories. She had someone who had seen Iscariot in person. He could tell her They needed time to gather intelligence and come up with a proper plan, not jump into another assault.
She quickly shoved the posters down into her boot and started dashing back towards Judas only to duck back into her tent as she heard a voice come echoing down the rows of tents. "Is there a problem?" She heard Isacriot say, but was unable to tell where exactly it was coming from. Still, she crouched herself down near the entrance of the tent and drew her weapon, keeping her eyes peeled at the crack the whole time. "The men have spotted three hooded figures making their way towards the village. All of them are wearing old native clothes."
"Old?"
"They were described as looking like they were recently unearthed."
Men? Plural? Her blood ran cold as she heard that.
"Is that so? And how far away are they?"
"Close. Five minutes, at the minimum."
"Hmmm. A little sooner than expected, but we can work with this. Is....." He paused for a moment and Lorenzo said "Is there something wrong, sir?"
"No. Just enjoying the music."
"We will have to assemble the perimeter ahead of time and the horses will have to be prepped."
"I know, I know. Go gather the others and tell them to wait until the figures enter the village. Then, wait for my signal."
"I would recommend we terminate the townsfolk while we still have the chance. It will only make matters more difficu lt if we have to worry about the battle capable ones interfering."
"No. There's no time. Besides....the men will want to enjoy that part. Best not have their enthusiasm interfere in our business. Now go inform the others. I'll be waiting with the inhabitants."
"Sir, if you're found?"
"Then let the men have their fun. I've heard being burned on a pyre is considered a very honorable burial in some cultures. Besides...look at me, Florentine. Nobody would recognize me anymore."
"Very well, sir."
By the time she heard their footsteps start kneading the dirt under them, Lozen could feel her heart trying to break free from her ribs. Not a single word of what she heard put her at ease and a small shake had started to clutch her body. Memories started to rise back up as she listened in on their conversation as the red and black creeped into her field of vision. Her lungs and heart started to race as she practically smelled the smoke drifting between the tents. This wasn't supposed to happen. Things were different. She could plan them out and avoid the calamities, but now she was stuck again in the middle of it.
However, she managed to remind herself of the obvious before the alarm consuming her made her do something stupid. Panicking never helped. Think. They're not here for you so they don't know that you or Judas were here. You still had the elements of surprise. Use it. No. First confirm. Lorenzo was easy to identify with all those marks on his body, but Isacriot could still just be some guy hitching a ride on the name. Hell, he didn't even look like that much of a killer. She needed to find Judas. The man claiming to be Iscariot would be alone for now and in that time, they may be able to identify and kill him before all of this went down. Then...cross that bridge when you get there, Lozen.
She kept her weapon drawn and at her side as she slipped out of the tent and started rushing back towtqards the gathering, making sure to keep her footsteps as light as possible. The ramble grew louder until she came tip toeing back into the hearth light with Judas still dancing around in his makeshift stage. Though, she was fairly certain he was just shouting out random words and coming up with a story before they started sounding insane. "And so I had to stick my own hand down there, but the bastard wasn't giving!! So I had to grab some butter, a number two pencil, and the meanest bulldog I could find!!" He cried out as she started gently circling around the entire crowd and kept her eyes scanning over the area for any sign of Iscariot.
Judas's voice echoed right in her ears as she approached behind him and as soon as she arrived, she slapped a hand down onto his shoulder. "Judas, we need to go." She whispered in his ear, not caring about the looks she drew from the crowd for disrupting their entertainment. Judas wiggled under his grip for a moment before saying "Excuse me, folks! I'll be back in a moment!" Some of the child whined as Lozen pulled Judas away from his makeshift stage only to hear him say "Can't this...wait, you're alive?"
"Yes, I'm alive. Now shut up. We have a problem."
"Good to see you too, Licorish-"
"Lorenzo is here."
Judas froze for an instant and jolted back as if he had been hit by a bullet before saying "Ahem.....pardon?"
Lozen rolled her eyes, swung him around until he was in front of her and started pushing him down the nearest corridor as she answered "Lorenzo is here and I'm fairly certain he's been here for a while. He's traveling with a man claiming to be Iscariot-"
"ISCARIOT!!!" Judas barked out before Lozen slapped a hand over his mouth. "No. Claiming to be Iscariot."
"Does he have a greedy, dead, condescending look in his eyes and has some back hair cut more desperate to be intimidating than a peacock dressed up as Frankenstein."
"No, but I need you to tell me if this is actually him."
"Can it wait?"
"Would you rather Iscariot be left skulking around in the darkness, knives drawn, and unblinking eyes constantly staring back at him from the shadows?"
She felt a shiver rush down Judas's spine before he replied "Do I have to?"
"Just stay quiet and follow me." Lozen said as she walked around the deadman and started weaving them back around the gathering. The maze of tents was unfamiliar to her, but also uncomplicated and relatively easy to navigate so long as she knew the general location of where she heard Iscariot. "Please, really, you don't understand. That guy is terrifying. Can't we just go back and....what do you call it?"
"Strategizing and no. I think they're planning something and if that man is Isacriot, we might have a chance to stop it."
"Since when do you-"
She drove her thumb into the joints between his wrist and caused a quick yelp to burst from the deadman. "What did I say about talking?" Lozen spat into his ear before the deadman finally shut up and they could make their way through the tents as quietly as they could have. Most of the rows were empty save for a few children Lozen had to shoo away and the handful of animals that scurried in from the forest. The sound of the festivities made for a decent landmark all things considered and allowed Lozen to approach where she heard Lorenzo with prior warning.
However, as they patrolled around the area, they found less and less signs that there was anyone still there. Even the tents seemed to be empty for the moment, a fact that started to make Lozen's stomach sink. She didn't really notice it until he was gone, but a part of her was hoping she could have found Lorenzo before he went out to warn the brutes out in the woods. It may not have helped if they were the kind of men she was worried about, but it was the one thing she could do. If those monsters started riding in.....she could stop it this time. She had to.
"Uhhh...is this the whole plan?" Judas asked after a while of searching, snapping Lozen out of a sort of trace and causing her heart to resume racing. The thought of being able to stop yet another massacre was so tempting, but wandering around aimlessly wasn't going to get her anywhere. Think. Where would Iscariot be?
"No. Follow me and stay out of sight." She said as she started making her way back towards the center of the light and sound before coming to another entrance into the crowd square. Despite Judas's absence, the people seemed to still be enjoying themselves, but Lozen still pushed Lozen behind a tent so as to keep him out of sight. She didn't need so many eyes staring at her. It was difficult to try and find a single face around the area, especially since the uniformed rows that had accumulated around Judas's performance collapsed. She couldn't find Iscariot's face around the perimeter of the crowd and it was impossible to discern anything within them. Her heart started to race again for a moment and she was losing control of breathing as she started seeing the black rising up to block out the stars and the red crawling over the tents with ash in its wake. There was still time for something however, but she didn't like to prospect.
"Judas." She said as she snuck back towards the spot she had stashed Judas away. "Shut up and listen to me."
"Gee, what a shock."
"The man claiming to be Iscariot is planning an ambush on three people approaching the town. He has a battalion of men surrounding the village as we speak and are ready to tear this place to the ground at a moment's notice. I need you to find whoever runs this place, get them to quietly organize a defense party, and prepare for attack."
"Huh...." Judas said before freezing up.
"Something wrong?" Lozen asked to which the deadman replied "No, no. That's just a lot to process. Give me a second......okay, I'm good. Quick question. Who runs this place?"
"What? I thought you would know. You've been doing your little act for the better half of a day. Did no one bring you to the leader to tell you what you were and weren't allowed to do or something?"
Judas paused again before tilting his head and saying "Maybe?"
Lozen herself froze up for a moment, blind sided by that stupidity before saying in a bewildered voice "Maybe? What do you mean maybe?"
"Well, a lot happened while you were taking a nap."
"I passed out. And what happened."
"Like I said, a lot. I ate some food, don't ask how that works by the way, chatted up a few of the locals, hunted a deer, and then recounted my elegant tales for all to hear."
"And in all of that time, did no one approach you and talk about what the flamboyant masked stranger with the half dead companion was doing at the edge of nowhere?"
"Like I said, maybe."
"Goddamnit." Lozen muttered to herself.
"Why don't we just yell for people to run to the hills?"
"And alert all those murder happy colonist surrounding the place that the people they're excited to kill are not only aware of them, but running for the hills like scared cattle!!"
"Okay, okay! Christ! What's gotten into you?"
Lozen could feel her rage start bubbling over at that point and was about to scream in the deadman's face, but just before she did, the sound of a single gunshot came bursting from the crowd. Her nerves and memories flared up in an instant and she drew her weapon again as she rushed back towards the gathering. Not again. Never again. No more blood, fire, and smoke. He could stop this. She just needed to get him back in the line light.
A hand whipped around and pulled Judas in front of her as she stepped back into the hearth light, expecting to find Iscariot, Lorenzo, or some meat head with a pension for murder. However, the second she caught sight of the crowd again, she saw a few people rushing down the pathways leading away from the gathering, but most of them were down on their knees and looking at the one who had fired the weapon. Lozen ducked behind another tent the second she saw the azure light, trying to figure out if she saw what she thought she did. There was blue light, a dark mineral below, and a weapon glowing with the same lunar light.
"Is this where I step in?" Judas asked before Lozen waved from him to shut up and then peaked around the corner to have her worst fears confirmed. Standing right in front of the bonfire at the center of the gathering was a man covered from neck to toe in a long, ragged cloth with pieces of dirt and mud stains covering its entirety. He had a hand raised up over his head, one that resembled a bare skeleton covered by an azure light that resembled a human hand. His face was the same and the mere sight of him was enough to cause a choir of gasps and screams to rise up from the crowd.
"Everybody, on your-" The undead tried to cry out right before about a dozen men and women stood up from the crowd, aimed their respective weapons, and fired right at him. Lozen flinched as she saw the bullets riddle the man and forced him closer towards the bonfire, but didn't see a single one put him down. Then, the air exploded with hundreds of bullets giving off a bright blue light as they criss crossed through the air, causing Lozen to duct down instinctively. She knew those bullets, but as far as she knew, the other Chinuxu was being fired upon. How was he still shooting?
The screaming started again as soon as the last of the round were fired off only for a voice to say "SHUT UP!!! ALL OF YOU SHUT UP OR ELSE WE'LL PUT A BULLET IN THE REST OF YOU!!!" Lozen kept herself low to the ground and pulled Judas down with her before he could do something stupid. Millions of questions rushed through her mind and if it wasn't for her survival instincts overriding everything else, she would have started panicking again. She peaked out around the tent and found her gaze being pulled away from the deadman standing in front of the fire and towards the two that she had failed to notice behind him. They were standing near the edges of the perimeter, each of them wearing the same ratty clothes as the first, but this time appeared to have a similar wrap to Judas covering their faces. The only indication of their true nature were the weapons they held in their hands. One of them wielded two small, ancient looking single shot pistols and the other a long hunting rifle, both of which were constructed entirely from ghostly light.
Her heart skipped a beat as she saw them and felt some many pieces fall into place. There were three of them out there. Three dead men and that man had been looking for three coming into the town. No. No, no, no!! Not here! Why the hell did it have to be here!!
"Holy crap! Hey-" Judas started exclaiming before Lozen slapped a hand over his mouth and shot him a venomous look she hoped got the urgency of her silent plea across. They couldn't do this here. Excluding her questioning as to how there were more deadmen around here, this was not good. Those people in the forests, no matter how many there were, were going to unload every bullet they had into those things in a vain attempt to kill them. Bullets that were going to go right through them and hit whoever was standing behind them. Then they'd panic and throw everything else they had at these things and then....like that man said. It'd be quite a bountiful pyre crawling over the homes and through the fields.
No. This couldn't happen again. It was all occurring too quickly! If she could just have some time to think then-No. There wasn't any time to think. One step at a time. Problem, there were dead men out there who wouldn't die no matter how many bullets or torches were thrown at them. But she might have something that would. Lozen slid her pistol back into it's holster and pulled out the weapon she had kept from Cane's manor. It may not have hurt Judas, but it was the only thing she had that could put down one of those things for good. But it wouldn't matter. The men in the forest were going to rush in and if all these people were going to survive, someone needed to protect them. Someone who could kill them faster than they did.
"Alright," She whispered with a deep breath. "Here's the plan. We're going to wait."
"No! I'm not waiting here! The actions going to be out there!" Judas spat back, though fortunately in a hushed tone of voice.
"Exactly! And here's what we're going to do-"
"NOW, ALL OF YOU GODDAMN SAVAGES BETTER LISTEN UP OR ELSE WE'RE GONNA KILL EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU REDSKINS!!!" The new Chinuxu cut her off, making Lozen swear to herself. "ONE OF YOUR LITTLE GUESTS IS AN OLD FRIEND OF OURS!!!! GREGOR ISCARIOT!! THE OLD FUCKING BASTARD WHO CAME HERE NOT TO LONG AGO!! WE KNOW HE'S HERE!! HEAR THAT!! WE KNOW YOU'RE OUT THERE, PISS ANT!!"
That fucking buffoon. Why now? Lozen bit down on her lip, praying that idiot would just shut up so she could tell Judas the plan. Hell, with all this racket, the man pretending to be Iscariot wouldn't have to give a single! They could be coming down from the hills right now! In panic, she grabbed Judas by the collar and pulled him in close before mouthing to him "Stay. Put. Do. Not. Talk."
"SO HERE IS WHAT YOU LOT ARE GOING TO DO!!! YOU ARE GOING TO FIND THIS MAN AND PRESENT HIM TO US BEFORE ME AND MY COMPATRIOTS MERCY RUNS OUT!!! IS THAT CLEAR!!?"
A few whimpers rose from the crowd, but there was enough relative silence for Lozen to snap over at Judas "I can lure them away or at least weaken them long enough to give you time to get all of these people out of here. There are going to be armed men coming in from the forest and you need to make sure they all die before they even look at the people here."
"What? Why? If Iscariot's here, I'm going after him!"
"Iscariot's dead! He was tracking three men, he just didn't count on them being Chinuxu! He'll spring his trap far too late and then be mowed down by one of those three!"
"Exactly! I need to find him before these a-holes get the chance! I've spent a very long time waiting for the chance to put a round in that bastard's head and I'm not giving it to some amateurs!!"
"And how will that look for you? Hell's Horseman, the one who left an entire village to die!"
"I don't care! It's a ducking revenge story!"
Lozen's tongue froze as she heard that and felt a quick flare of anger rise up in the back of her mind. Didn't care! Of course he did! That's why he was going to her village! What the hell was so different this time!? Three assholes with less combined brain cells then a tree!!?
She didn't get to voice any of her concerns however, because before she could, something cut her short. It wasn't those idiots voices that came roaring up from the crowd, not even anything sound based. It was a scent that barely even drifted under her nose, but one that she recognized no matter how diluted. Smoke.
A chill raced down her spine and her entire body tensed up in preparation to run, fight, hide, or all three at once if need be. Her eyes flung up to the tree illuminated by the fireplace, trying to figure out where the scent was coming from and yet dreading seeing that familiar trickle of smoke rising up into the tree line. However, she found herself feeling the source before she ever saw it.
At first she just thought it was just herself shuffling on the ground, but before long, she was certain of it. The ground was shaking and not in the way she had hoped. There was uniformity to this tremor. A rhythmic thumping that came in four quick beats. "No." She unintentionally muttered to herself as her heart jumped into her throat. "Not yet."
"Hey, do you smell-"
"Shut it!" She snapped at him and looked back around the edge of the tent, hoping to find wherever that smell was coming from. However, what she saw only caused her gut to sink further and further. It appeared the three deadmen smelled the same ashen aroma as their heads were tilted upward and eyes racing around trying to find the source. The smoke and shaking wasn't strong enough to indicate something was close yet, but still, against her assumptions, something still came from the tents. It wasn't a gunshot, but a silent projectile that came racing out of the darkness and struck with perfect precision right into the hand of the deadman screaming their demands. The sound of cracking bones rang out as the object sliced right into his palm and caused his grip around his weapon to vanish moments before the gun itself followed suit. It vanished into thin air as the deadman grabbed his wrist in pain and doubled over, letting out a scream as the object that struck him fell to the ground.
Lozen managed to get a good look at the blade as it fell. It was small, presumably light, and easy to throw. A throwing knife. Not yet. Please not yet. "What the hell!?" The deadman cried out as they reconstructed their weapon and aimed it at the opening the knife had come from, but his attacker was faster. Lozen couldn't quite see him as he raced through the crowd, but she knew where he was going and what he was going to have to do in order to make it far. A woman screamed as she was ripped off the ground and pushed in front of Lorenzo as he rushed towards the deadman. Her cries didn't last for long as the other deadman started opening fire and filled her dead body with more glistening bullets then she thought possible.
He didn't hesitate as he charged or even to use that poor woman as a shield, meaning he must have known it would work. He was prepared and good with a knife. Lozen would have sworn to herself if she was petrified at the sight of that man not even being phased by the sight of deadmen walking. She was hoping, no, praying for them to at least be shocked when they saw the Chinuxu, but this....this was bad. They were prepared to fight Chinuxu and Lorenzo, the only one she was worried about, was now rushing them head first.
The only thing that brought her comfort was that there were three of them. As dangerous as Lozen may have been, those were still undead. But they could still feel pain and it looked like Lorenzo knew that. Once he and his human shield arrived right in front of the loudmouthed individuals, he seemed to toss her body right into the man, throwing him off balance as Lorenzo seemingly pulled more knives out of nowhere. Whether they were concealed or she had just failed to notice them before, they were brought down by their owner right into the deadman collars bones. It wouldn't put the bastard back in the ground, but it was enough to cause him to scream in pain. Lorenzo wasn't stopping there and twisted himself around, putting the dead man's body between him and the other right before they started firing. Against Lozen's expectations, the bullets stopped as soon as they hit the glowing body and gave him what he needed to draw more of his weapons.
He ripped a blade out of the deadman's shoulder only to smash it back down into the back of the corpse's neck, giving him the leverage to hold his new shield in place. Then, he slipped a hand into his vest and drew from the underside a small blade curved in a rather peculiar manner. Lozen didn't recognize the knife mold, but the effects spoke for itself. Florentine tossed the dagger into the air, sending it spinning around in the air like a buzzsaw that landed right in the wrist of the Chinuxu wielding the hunting rifle. The deadman yelled and dropped his spectral weapon, causing it to dissolve into nothing as he grabbed his hand. The last one didn't have a much different outcome since all Lorenzo needed to do was dress a few more daggers and caused her to drop her weapons as well,
They staggered for only a moment, but that must have been all Lorenzo needed. He slammed a kick right into the one he had been hiding behind, sending the deadman right into the bonfire in front of him. The Chinux crashed through the burning wood and was engulfed in the massive flames, causing him to start thrashing about and screams as fire swallowed him whole. There were a few times where he tried crawling his way out, but the pain must have been too great because every attempt resulted in him crashing down onto the burning embers.
And all Lozen could think to do was stare in shock as she saw her one good idea vaporize itself in front of her. Judas was her one shot to stop all of this and this Lorenzo bastard didn't seem to be phased in the slightest when dealing with the other deadmen. He overwhelmed their senses with pain so they didn't have the composure to do anything dangerous and used human flesh in order to block their bullets. He knew what he was doing and worst of all, he wasn't afraid to use the natives to his advantage. There were too many of them and if Judas went out there now, more of them would just end up getting hurt.
"What...what the fuck?" Judas muttered, his weaker voice dripping in utter fear, a fact that deepened Lozen's shock. If even that idiot could figure out how bad this was, what could she do? As far as she was concerned, the only luxury they had was that Lorenzo seemed to have bigger problems on his hands. The two Chinuxu not burning alive were starting to pull out the knives embedded in their wrists and drawing their weapons again, but Lorenzo didn't seem all too worried. Instead, he simply crouched down slightly with his scared head turning to look down the path he had raced out from. At first Lozen though this might be a miracle and prayed she would get to see this bastard littered with those ghostly bullets.
However, there was just enough of her rational mind left to wonder why. The answer came from the ground and Lozen instantly regretted not seeing before. Beneath her feet, the ground was shaking even more and the smell of smoke was getting stronger, yet over the screams she could barely hear the most obvious sign of all. The ground was shaking harder than ever. "The cloaked one's!!!" A voice cried out right before a barrage of bullets came racing out from the mouth of the tunnel, all aimed at the two standing Chinuxu. Their bodies shuddered and stumbled across the crowd as they were filled with ammunition with dozens of people around them having the same treatment. Lozen slapped a hand over her mouth to stifle the exclamation that came as she saw the invisible red start conducting the symphony of screams once again. Again and again they sang and now she had somehow found herself in the middle of it again. Watching.
That was all the rest of the natives needed before they started running. Danger closing in and their captors taken care of, Lozen couldn't blame them, but she didn't move a muscle. Her eyes were transfixed by the red she could see soaking into the ground and the smoke she smelled creeping ever closer to her. Whatever last shred of her mind could suffer seeing red and black coming down the hills crumbled away as she saw those bodies hit the dirt. Time drifted away from her and she felt herself following it, back to a village that once hid in the trees. It wasn't there anymore. Nowhere ever lasted long. Grow, burn, run, and rot. Why did she have to learn that all over again?
"So....what do we do?" Judas's partially shaky voice asked as rivers upon rivers of natives rushed past them only for the sound of more gunshots to come bursting up all around them. Screams joined the chorus of gunfire and assaulted her ears even more, beating her more and more into the ground and causing a tremor to start clutching her hands. The inner mechanisms started clanking together as the steel was affected by the quaking, but the rest of her was frozen solid. Her thoughts ground to a halt and the hairs on the back of her head stood on end, ready to hear what she feared above all else.
But her attention was pulled back to the soft in front of her before long. The armed men that came rushing out of the pathway were loud above all, but they still did their job with efficiency. Some of them remarked at what they must have assumed was a man burning to death in front of Florentine and grabbed the other deadman before they had a chance to recover. Either because they couldn't see it under those robes or they already knew of their true nature, but regardless they all restrained and forced the Chinuxu to their knees. A small crowd of barking idiots filled the space around the bonfire, some wielding torches, all of them armed to the teeth. Strangely enough, not one of them had resumed firing once the Chinuxu had been restrained. The reason why came strolling out behind them as they had the three men under control and Florentine called out "They're ready!"
Crawling out with his shoulder dipping as if they were being weighed down by something dragging itself behind Iscariot. His dower expression didn't seem to change as he stepped into the opening and his eyes seemed, if anything, bored. No. That wasn't it. Remorseful, but content. As if grieving the fact nothing could be done anymore. His rusted pistol was drawn and hanging from his hand as he trudged down the crowd full of eager eyes and crooked smiles. Even as he looked over the man burning alive, that somber, burdened look never left his expression.
"You sick fuck!!!" One of the Chinuxu cried out as the man approached. "You gonna keep hiding behind your goons here or are you gonna face us like a man!!!?" The man pulled back the hammer of his weapon and said as he stopped right in front of the newly screaming Chinuxu "Quite a pointless question. Either way, you're not making it out of here alive."
"Then I'll drag you down with me!!!"
Isacriot seemed to roll his head before he pointed that ancient firearm right at the Chinuxu's head. "Do you remember this weapon?" He asked.
"Fuck you!! I'm not scared of some pea shooter!!? Do you know who I am!?! I crawled out of the grave!! You think a bullet can put me back."
"It did the job fine the first time." Iscariot said before firing a shot dead into the Chinuxu's head, causing her head to fling back from the impact. Lozen didn't know what she expected when that creature was struck, but half thought that it might result in it somehow breaking out of its bonds. However, the deadman's entire body froze up as the weapon dealt it's damage and then, as if nothing had held it together in the first place, the body hidden under clothes crumbled away. Every inch of it collapsed into a crumbled pile of what had to be bones as dust came exploding out from every crevice in the robes. By the end of the implosion, the only thing that remained of the creature was a bundle of cloth and what could only have been the outlines of human bones.
For a single, solitary moment, Lozen felt her mind collapse again at the sight of the Chinuxu vanishing. Her eyes widened and jaw dropped in horror to swallow the grin realizations that came with such an occurrence. They weren't just prepared. No. He knew how to kill them. No, no, no, no!!! He couldn't know that!! Maybe it was just a fluke!! Yes! It had to be! Why did it work here?! Why did this man and some ancient weapon manage to put a creature that escaped death back in the ground!? How could he do that!!? How could Cane do that?!?! How-It hit her like a ton of bricks and knocked the wind dead out of her.
Her eyes drifted down to the ornate weapon in her own hands as a new train of thoughts started to weave through her brain. Cane had been a paranoid fanatic, always obsessed with control and using the fear of retribution to do so. Fear of himself. He had personally killed the ones who stepped out of line with this very weapon. And what Iscariot had said before. It did the job fine the first time. He had a history with these people. All of them were trying to track him down. For revenge. Revenge against the man who murdered them with a weapon so worn from use and time it was only good for killing the dead. They were out in the ground once by these weapons and now, they were put back in the ground because of them.
"Lozen...." Judas started, his own voice trembling after seeing the Chinuxu vanish. "What is...what is that?"
"Did he use the same weapon?" Lozen muttered, half entranced in her own thoughts.
"What?"
"Iscariot! Did he ever use more than one weapon?!"
"No. He just used the same six shooter over and over.....again." The cold shiver in his voice made his own realization apparent.
"Judas, what gun was used to kill you the first time?"
Judas merely stared out at the scene before him, the cloth binding his face twitching as the deadman started muttering to himself without end. All the answer Lozen needed.
No. This couldn't be how it turned out. They had a plan. They had him! She had Judas! Hell's Horseman! He couldn't die! He had to help these people!! Who else would!!? Who else could!? This wasn't how it was supposed to play out! They had the plans, they were the smarter, and she could survive these lunatics! She had to. Both of them had to. There were people waiting for them just over the horizon, but now...she glanced back over at Iscariot and the weapon in his hand. Something so small and old it was barely even a firearm anymore. All it was good for now was putting the dead back in their graves anymore with a man ready to do just that, surrounded by lunatics and being followed closely by hungry flames. She.....she didn't know what to do.
Her breathing was the first to give way. The smoke wrapped itself around her head and pulled free thoughts fermented by the vulnerability that had come back to put her in its clutches again. She shrunk down into the ground, her breaths becoming short and erratic to a point where it felt like she couldn't breath. Then her gut started contorting, trying to force up what little food she had actually eaten only to be stopped when she twisted her fingers into her stomach. Her mind gave way at the last second and let every rational thought slip away, leaving behind the little girl who watched. She didn't know what to do. She had to. No one was coming for her, but that wasn't fair. She didn't know. She just didn't know! Why was she so afraid?! Why was it so scary! She just wanted for it to all stop and let her go back home with her mother and father! Where were they!? Why did they leave her!? Why did they all leave!!? Why wasn't there anyone!? Why wasn't somebody coming for her!? Help! Please, somebody, help!
SHUT UP!! She screamed at herself internally as she froze a fist right into her check. Pull yourself together! No one was coming! Who cared!? You're not some frightened little girl, so don't start acting like it!! Think, damnit, think! What were you missing?! How were you going to make it out of this?
With her lungs screaming for clean air, Lozen held her breath, forcing her erratic breaths to come to a stop and hopefully slow her panic. Think. You still had Judas. He wasn't immortal anymore...and no it was just you and the uncaring flames-She had to strike herself in the gut that time. Think, you child!! Think!! His gun!! Judas still had his weapon and it could kill anything with a single shot!! All he had to do was get one good round right into that old fools chest and the one person who could kill him would go down! Even if someone else picked it up, he could just kill while they were doing so!! So long as he put down Iscariot, this could work! They had the element of surprise and something those other Chinuxu didn't! They knew what to fear and therefore, what to target! This could work. If he killed Iscariot and she killed Florentine while their backs were turned, it'd just be a couple ruffians left! Then they could bring the natives somewhere safe and this whole nightmare would be over!
"Judas, here's the....." She started as she turned back to face the deadman only to find herself coming face to face with thin air. Every inch of her froze up for a second as the creeping fear ensnaring her mind was given stimulation only to cause her to snap her head around, trying to find any sign of Judas. But he was gone. Not even a scrap of clothing was left. It was as if he had never existed. Except for a tiny trail of footprints leading away from where he had been sitting and down into the direction the villagers ran. Away from the perpetrators of this sprouting carnage.
"Plan." She muttered, slack jawed and with her gut twisting itself to the breaking point. He was gone. Where did he go? Why did he just leave her here? Was this a plan or was-a grim realization in the enemy could kill him. Iscariot could kill him. The deadman had been running from his grave for years. What else would he do when it came strolling into town, flames and maniacs at it's tale? So many pieces fell into place while many others came tumbling down. Her hands fell limp at her sides, letting her body start twisting and tumbling over itself, organs mashing together as her eyes burned with childish, forgotten fear.
It was just her. That was all she could think as she found herself accompanied only by the smell of spreading fire and the only sound that could still find her down here. Once again, there was no one to save the day. Once again, she was all alone, the scared little girl cowering behind a tent. Once again, a village burned with the howling, hellish laughter of men who did not care sang them to their final slumber.