Angel of War

Chapter 8: Monster

[warning: animal gore]

She felt feverish, manic and... hungry.

There were trees everywhere. Everything looked too detailed and every noise hurt. She flapped the wings on her back until she managed to land unceremoniously on a wooden roof. She slipped and caught herself with an uttered groan. As if in response, chilling howls echoed from the woods behind her. A creak of wood came from below. There were many more roofs past the trees in front of her. To her right, imposing spires that seemed taller than the mountains behind it. The sun was going down.

There was a voice and then a bang. Her leg crumpled under her and she shrieked out. She flapped her wings desperately before she could fall off the edge. There was a man holding a shotgun with frightened eyes below her. His hands shook as he reloaded. She flew as fast as she could till the next shot hit the trees far behind her. Crows squawked at the disturbance. She spotted a bell tower on one of the approaching roofs and considered trying to hide there, but there were shapes of people in the dirt street surrounding it. The woman screamed as she was about to land and she panicked. She turned away from the villagers, but made sure to avoid where she had come from. "Forget not from whence you came." She cried at the memory and the sound erupted as a ghastly moan that even scared her. There was a field ahead with posts and a scarecrow guarding it. There was a large house past it. Maybe she could hide there. It seemed to be the last house on this side of the town. A goat bleat shook her from her path and the hunger returned, demanding and brutal. It came from the fence below. Without a second thought, she descended upon the beast, limbs outstretched like a bird of prey. The goat screamed before it was cut off, quite literally, and its throat was torn out. She ripped at it with claws she never remembered having, drank the flowing red blood and ate the torn flesh. The primal desire felt satiated for now. There was approaching sounds of voices. She fled towards the walls surrounding the large house, staying near the tree line before dropping to the corners of the roof. She could hide here. There was a balcony with a carved railing further down and she peeked out to be sure she wouldn't be seen before she crawled to it. The voices were quite muffled now to her satisfaction. She would be safe here for now. The smoke of chimneys obscured the view of distant windmills and beyond that, familiar smokestacks. The factory. She needed to get there. A knocking came from the gate below. She heard a door open below her. No! They would find her here. She turned to find a window on the outfaced wall. A woman was walking towards the gate to answer it. She took the opportunity to climb through the window and ducked in time to hear the voices clearly. A man's voice told this Luiza that a monster had been sighted and to keep a lookout. Already killed a goat. Thankfully nobody was harmed by the monster yet. The gate shut again and there was a conversation below her. She peeked out the window. A man with a rifle was heading out the gate. The woman shut it again and now it was safe to hide here once again. There was rustling and creaking in the house below her, but none close by.

She looked down at the black goo coming from her leg. That man had shot her. She was the monster. She killed that goat.

The wooden room around her felt like a hallucination. How did this all happen? Her thoughts mixed through everything she could remember. But how long had it been? When would it end? It couldn't end because it would end with Miranda killing her. "I won't let them even-"

Another knock at the wooden gate shook her from her distracted thoughts. The gate creaked open and this time there was a voice she knew.

It was him.
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The woman Luiza: Miranda trusted her to be a mediator between the lords and the village. She was good at keeping the belief stronger than the fear in the village. Heisenberg had interacted with her a few times before. Enough to recognize her when she opened the gate.

"Lord Heisenberg!" She bowed her head in reverence, surprised by the visit. He nodded, hoping she'd stop doing that.

"I'm looking for a monster. Seen one lately?"

She shook her head.

"Unfortunately, I've only just heard about it."

"The villagers seem to think it headed towards your house. It would be a shame if that goat wasn't the only victim it claimed." He adjusted his glove.

"I understand." She opened the gate more. "You are more than welcome to search the house and the premises for such a beast." Her face showed the wisdom that many villagers lacked. It was refreshing. He tipped his hat to her and stepped past the gate.

"Thank you."

He looked over the front of the house and his eyes landed on the open window above the railing.

"Have you noticed anything off?" He saw a smear of red at the corner of the windowsill.

"No, but I have yet to check the rest of the rooms." She gestured to the door inviting him in. He nodded.

He'd been in here before, knew there was a garage and a decent truck in it. She'd made some good food too.

He whispered the next words once she closed the door.

"Woman, I assume you've seen monsters before in your life?"

"I have."

"Well, there's one in your house and I need your cooperation moving forward."

Her face steeled in grim understanding.

"What can I do to help?"