Yay! Finally some action! Woo for blood and guts.
x04: Finesse Is Overrated
For all her insistence that she was okay, Erica slept restlessly that night. Her dreams were fragmented, the only part of which she would clearly remember was the pianos falling as she ran through a narrow street, trying to escape the same fate that had befallen her mother. She tossed in her bed, mumbling and grumbling, and as one of the imaginary pianos finally landed on her, she woke with a start, breathing heavily and staring ahead with wide eyes.
Two beady black eyes stared back. It was standing on her chest, roughly a half a foot high and covered in a rough dark skin that she couldn’t quite place the colour of. It’s belly was round, and it’s body almost as big, it had short arms with slight claws, and from the prickling on her chest she guessed the feet were much the same. She tried not to breathe, unsure of what would happen, should she disturb the creature.
Slowly Erica became aware of other things in the room. The open window, the slight breeze. The prickling across her legs that felt oh-so similar to the prickling of the first creature’s feet. Cautiously, she turned her head to the side a little, just enough to see past the imp blocking her view.
There were thousands of them. Crawling about her bed, on her bed and on her. She jumped before she could think of a more appropriate reaction, throwing herself off the bed and dislodging those that were crawling across her. Searching the immediate space for a weapon, all she found was her bedside lamp. Tearing the power cord out of the wall, she brandished it wildly, kicking at the imps around her feet. They began to scatter, instead launching themselves from the bed to cling to her hair and pyjamas, she tried to hit them back before they landed but they were coming thick and fast. Stopping to wrench them off only gave more the opportunity to attach themselves to her, and she was fast seeing no way to win. Whatever had inspired this dream, it was horrible.
They were sensing her weakness, and had started gathering around her feet again, with the braver ones attempting to climb her leg. She stomped angrily, cringing at the sickening crunch as she got one straight on the head. It mewled pathetically, and she ground her foot in to be sure. It didn’t move when she lifted her foot, which was now covered in a sticky grey goop – and Erica was sure she didn’t want to know what that was. There was no time to get girly now though, and she brought her foot down on another of the imps, trying to block out the sound of the crunching and the feel of the claws as they pierced the bottom of her foot, trying to escape. Two down, two thousand to go.
Erica employed both feet now, stomping madly and thrashing wildly with the lamp as more opted to find high ground and attack from above. A lucky swing had one flying out the window, and it finally seemed that she had the upper hand. The imps were retreating fast, but that wasn’t enough – she ignored the pain in her heels and continued to squash, chasing them back towards the window they had come from.
Behind her, the bedroom door opened. She stopped squashing imps, and turned to face her new attackers – a pale woman in a red dress and a scruffy looking man who probably hadn’t shaved since 1974.
‘Stay right where you are.’ She warned, threatening them with the lamp. Perhaps they weren’t six inches tall, but she would take them all the same! The woman held up her hands, the man shaking his head. The imps were getting brave again, inching forward and away from the window sill while Erica’s attention was taken away.
‘We’re here to help you.’ Said the woman.
‘We’re friends of your mother’s.’ Said the man, and both lunged forward to help against the imps. Their attack methods were far different from Erica’s, the man on all fours down with the creatures, ripping them apart with his teeth of all things. The woman lifted them one by one, twisting their necks and tossing them out the window. Standing by the window, Erica stopped fighting – only kicking away the braver ones as they came near, watching as the two strangers cleared the room. This was all well and good, but she wondered what would happen when they ran out of imps, and there was only herself left in the room.
With the last imp destroyed, the man stood. The woman groaned, pointing to the floor – which was now littered in torn flesh and the same grey goop that covered Erica’s feet.
‘Must you always make such a mess?’ she sighed, reaching into her handbag and finding a pouch. The man shrugged, wiping at his jaw with the sleeve of his shirt. There were bits of imp still caught in his beard, Erica was tempted to say something – but the teeth that lurked behind that bushy face looked fearsome, and she held back.
‘We can’t all have your finesse, Ilse.’ He shrugged as the woman pulled out a pouch. He took it, opened it, and scattered the contents across the floor. Where it touched the bodies of the imps it shimmered, blue, pink and green before disappearing – taking the mess with it. He tossed the bag back towards Ilse, nodding to Erica. ‘You aren’t safe here. The imps are just a warning. I don’t even wanna know what they’re going to send after you next.’
‘Don’t scare the poor girl.’ Ilse snapped, putting her arm around Erica’s shoulder and guiding her out of the bedroom and into the kitchen. ‘But Fade is quite right, I’m afraid. They weren’t fond of your mother; chances are they’re going to be looking out for you too. Pack your bag, Erica. We’ll find you somewhere safe to stay for the time being.
Segment Count: 1,002
Wordcount: 3,057