The Orb And The Onslaught {COMPLETE}

Actions And Consequences

 
    Florence didn't want to explain to Quentin or Skyrah what was coming for them. She knew it would scare them stiff and they needed to be moving. The locked gate didn't take much to get through, luckily Quentin knew how to bypass it and moments later they were running through the streets of Greydale. Florence told them, in rushed tones, that they needed to put as much distance as they could between them and the skeleton-things. 

     They knew even without turning to check, the things were still chasing after them- screams sounded as passersby were getting their own glimpses of the creatures. Florence held tightly to Skyrah's arm, each scream made her wince, likely a reminder she didn't need.

     They followed Quentin through the streets, despite how long he'd been gone he still knew his way around. He led them with a purposeful step. For once, the cats stayed at the back and Florence could only tell they were there by the shadows they produced whenever the sun was to their backs.

     They twisted and turned down decorative streets, with well trimmed hedges or beautifully decorated walls. Shops with expensive wares on fancy displays whizzed by; their clientele unaware of the horror that was coming their way. Several minutes later they stopped near a picturesque park to catch their breath.

   The open space allowed them to see quite a distance in all directions. 

"H-have... we... lost them?" Quentin panted, leaning over with his hands on his knees. 

"I... don't know," Florence replied. 

    There was no sign of their pursuers and they couldn't hear any screaming, for the moment.

"I... can't... breathe." Skyrah panted out with great difficulty. It sounded like she was hyperventilating and she was teetering where she stood. 

   Florence moved her to a stone bench nearby and told Quentin to get a paper bag from the nearest shop. He seemed reluctant to leave them but he did as she requested and a moment later reappeared with the bag. 

    "Breathe into this, slow and steady." Florence instructed Skyrah firmly but not unkind, watching her carefully as she did so. 

The cats were stood on guard around them, appearing to watch every direction all at once.

"We can't keep running like this... and we can't let them catch us." Florence mused aloud.

    "Mrs James... you seem to know more about these things than you said... Would you like to let us in on it?" Quentin and Skyrah were both giving her a similar look, she knew she had to tell them no matter how they might react. 

"Okay but I'm not certain they are what I think they are. When I tell you, you may think I'm crazy or you may be too scared to function." 

     "I think it's a bit late for either of those," Quentin half smiled, trying to lighten the mood. He shook his head, "Seriously though, we need to know."

Florence looked to Skyrah who nodded and pulled the bag away, her breathing had improved enough for her to speak. "We should know." 

    "Alright but you may regret it... what I think those creatures might be, are part of a tale told to me as a scary story when I was a little girl. A tale of frightening monsters combined with magik, those creatures are a result of that. They're called Tomb Walkers, they're the stuff of nightmares, undead puppets raised with magik to do their master's bidding. Their touch can lead to any number of diseases with varying levels of seriousness- it just depends how decomposed they are. They don't eat, sleep or stop until their master is done with them." 

    "I had hoped I was wrong about what they are, my mother always told me they were just stories meant to scare the gullible. But as with everything that comes out of a story, there's clearly some truth to them. And of course they'd come and find me the moment I arrived in Othon, I really do hate this place."