Kill Joy (Book One in the Spree trilogy)

Clown and Fish

My slumber was cut short by the sound of gunshot firing though out my cramped dwelling. I knew not what was happening, nor why, but I decided that the best thing I could do was force myself off the mattress and reach for the metal, battery-charged lamp to my left. It was a different metal normally used for lamps. Either that or, the room had heated up over night and chilled in the morning, leaving the lamp to cool slower than the rest. I was leaning towards the first option.

I heard foot steps coming from the kitchen. The kitchen I was sure about because it was the only room in the apartment North-West from where I was standing. They were too close to be out in the hallway. Plus that was the only room that had a plastic flooring.

I walked through the opened door to the lounge. It consisted of only a thread bare rug, a black and white television and and colourless sofa that belonged in my old house. It was only thing I had left.

I heard a tap being turned on. The gushing came on at full pelt. I clenched the lamp tighter in my left hand. Mumbled voices came from the kitchen and I could hardly make out what they were saying.

"Are you ready?" Was the one thing I made out from it. The sense of audio had always been my weak point. I think I heard a muttered "Yes" as well but I wasn't so sure.

The door gradually swung open to reveal a man wearing a clown mask, with a gun he had obviously used to push the door open. He wasn't a partially scary; Clowns aren't supposed to be, and I knew that he wouldn't shoot me straight away. In fact he lowered it, glaring at me with an unexplainable hatred in his covered eyes.

The fact that the person was wearing a mask that struck me. If they were going to kill me, there was no point in using one, as I would be dead and no one would know who did it... The neighbours would probably be glad I was gone.
I couldn't identify what the other one was wearing, as he was facing away at an approximate 107 degrees away from me. The lamp was held closer than before. It was obvious I wasn't going to make it. The water in the sink started overflowing, barely dripping.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The silence was surrounding us as we stared each other down, trying to be the alpha male. He pulled the gun up with a shrug. The sink, now overflowing, resembled Niagara Falls, but still thinned out as it reached the bottom. The other turned to expose himself modeling a puffer fish mask. Strangely it looked higher quality than the other one; well fitted, thicker. The reason anyone would wear one puzzled me. The man himself, was skinnier than Clown, a tall, buff being.

I dived to my left, customary of someone left handed, just as a bullet was shot by Clown. I pierced a hole in the lamp shade as the object went flying, and landed just behind my back. I had missed the first bullet.

The second shot came from Clown again, but I rolled out the way and was in the presses of standing up, lamp back in its position in my hand. The water in the kitchen was about half a centimeter off the sunken floor now, a mere puddle, surrounding Fishes leather-worn feet. The other was a step out of the kitchen.

"Let him have it," Fish growled from behind. My eyes shot up to him, wide with shock, trying to work out what was happening. I took a step back and glanced to my right; the wall was about a meter away. I smirked knowingly and dived for the right this time just as he pulled the trigger. Even if I had been there, it would have hit too high, and a little to the left.

Puffer took a step out of the kitchen at the same time as Clown, who used his to follow me and lurch forward. I backed closer to the corner, but not against it. I think they must have knew I was plotting something; Fish then stood and tried to shoot. His gun was smaller, but had a better shot. I think anyway; I was never much of a gun person myself.