Desert Rain

The Confrontation

The town of Little Whisky lay in ruins, the buildings all ablaze. In the middle of the town lay the bodies of all the townsfolk, fifty five corpses all piled on top of one another. Blood trickled onto the ground from the dead bodies of the townsfolk, discolouring the puddles of water and soaking into the mud. It was a slaughter and one that had happened so fast. Beside the corpse pile stood a tall man dressed in black, with a white collar. His hair was jet black and his eye’s were as black as the clothes he wore. He had a smile about him and he stretched out his arms, leaning his head back and feeling the droplets of rain come down on his face. This type of rain had a warm feeling to it and he liked it.

“Desert rain,” he said to himself.

He looked ahead and saw rider on a horse making its way into town. He knew who it was. As a matter of fact, he had been expecting this visitor.

“At long last, we finally meet!” shouted the young man, lowering his arms and watching as the rider on the horse dismounted
The horse looked decayed as skin and flesh was hanging off it’s body. The rider wore a dark leather coat and a hat to match. His face was like that of horse he rode, old and decaying.

“Welcome Kaine,” he said to the rider. He gestured to all the burning buildings and the corpses of the townsfolk. “You like what I done with the place?” he asked the stranger.

The tall dark rider did not reply. He just carried on making his way towards the young man. His face was partially covered by the shadow cast by his hat and the young man could sense the fiery determination of the rider. He found it quite amusing.

“All the powers of Hell wasted on a mortal,” the young man said. His tone becoming more serious. “Is this seriously the best they can throw at me, a rotting corpse of a man who has is living on borrowed time. I was expecting something along the lines of a fire breathing hell spawn or a large and powerful demon. But this definitely scrapes the bottom of the barrel”.

“Preacher!” the rider said, looking up at the young man. “Dead or alive, you are coming with me!”

The young man seemed slightly surprised by this, but his look indicated that he found the comment quite amusing. “Oh really now. What you going to do? Shoot me?”. He raised both his arms to his side as if presenting himself as a target. “Go right ahead. I’m not running anymore. Shoot me dead in cold blood. Kill this unarmed man. And then what? You going to take me to Hell and get your little ticket out of the hole? Tell me one thing though, do you really believe the word of Lucifer? That he would really let you go? You are too valuable to him Kaine”

The rider pulled his coat back to reveal two guns in their holster. Both his hands were clenched as if he was ready to draw. “Your reign of terror ends tonight,” said Kaine.

“Ooohh scary,” laughed the Preacher. “Look around you Kaine. This is only the beginning of what I intend to do. You think you can stop me? I was an archangel before the fall, one of the few who escaped the imprisonment of the pit. What I offer this world is the promise of a new Edan. But for that to pass, a few must be sacrificed. I need the collective energy of their souls to bring about the destruction of both Heaven and Hell. Just think Kaine, a world without good and evil, right or wrong, a world without pain and suffering. A paradise for all you mortals…”.

“And you as their new God,” finished Kaine. “Everyone like cattle following you”.

The Preacher smiled at this. His eye’s changed from a dark black to normal eye’s that were a bright blue. “Their love and devotion to me is all I ask for”. He offered his hand out to Kaine. “I can restore your body, give your soul new life. You can be with the woman you loved, Elizabeth. She loved you too despite your past, and she mourned your passing. But I can change all that. I have the power to create the life you always wanted. All you have to do is drop your weapons, your rage and fury and take my hand”.