The Wizard Killer - Season Two

Episode 4 - Part 1

Leaning against the doorframe, sweat drips off my forehead. Bowing my head for a second, I recall someone warning me that the orb could suck the life out of you, but wow, I wasn't ready for this. I feel like I've got the flu of the century.

I stroke the silver streak of the orb. It pulses once, and it's done. I stuff it back in my pocket.

Alright, now I've got to get out of here.

Pulling the door open fully, I take in the gruesome scene. There are pieces of bodies everywhere.

Across the street, I see terrified people huddled together on the second-floor balcony. If this was a Scourge Patrol, they wouldn't be safe up there, and I've known Scourge Patrols to be brutal but never to rip people apart like what I'm seeing.

I'm not taking any chances. I step out of the building, closing the door behind me. Glancing each way, I don't see any fighting going on.

I give the orb a squeeze and toss it into the air. It falls, like a lump, to the ground.

I shuffle over and scoop it up. "Come on, you're supposed to go." Tossing it again, I glare angrily as it lands without dignity on the brown, dusty, main street.

Picking it up and shaking my head, I notice the sheriff's body, one of his arms missing. A thought slips out from my foggy memories and I look around. "Whatever they're doing that's causing the red haze, there's not enough mana in the air to activate the magic for the orb." I glare at the ground. "What was I supposed to do?"

As if replying, the sheriff gives me the answer. "It needs more from me."

Just then I catch sight of a blur in the wind, then two more. This isn't what I needed.

I reach down and snatch one of sheriff's long-barreled pistols. Spinning the chamber with the back of my hand, I see its got three hopes of me living loaded. It's not much, but it might be enough to get me to more.

Scanning about, I notice that only the door to the general store is closed. Maybe people are holed up in there, or maybe it's a front for something. Either way, it strikes me as a good place to go.

I make a dash for it, the clicking bone on bone sound erupting from everywhere. The people on the balcony start screaming and crying. They've probably watched and heard this play out a dozen times already; now they're waiting for my torturous end. I hope to disappoint them.

Peeking over my shoulder, everything's deformed and distorted, like I'm looking through warped glass.

"The wind spiders are all around you!" yells a woman from the balcony.

I've never heard of wind spiders.

Sliding to a stop in front of the general store, I turn and accidentally shoot blindly. Yig, down to two.

Holding the orb tightly up to my chest, I wait, my heart pounding. It feels like each thought of mine is fighting through a raging river to get heard, and the river's growing.

My eyes dart about, waiting for the inevitable. Everything's quiet.

I scream as something slashes my leg. Falling to the ground, I drop my pistol and put a hand over the bleeding wound. It's like someone's put warped mirrors all around me, making the whole world look weird.

I rub my blood hand on the orb. "That's got to count for something," I mutter.

The orb pulses twice as I get slashed again, this time from the left and right.

I feebly lob the orb into the air. My heart sinks as nothing happens, as it falls towards the ground. But then it turns, arcing up, and vanishes.

With renewed vigor, I grab the pistol and scramble backwards to the general store's door. I bang on the door with one hand, and fire at a warped area. Nothing on either front.

I crane my head, looking up at the door, and bang hard again. Then I gasp, as something pierces my chest, pinning me to the door.

All I can get are short, shallow breaths. There's blood seeping out of me.

Glancing about, I see there's a slight purple in the air. Then I see it, in all its terrifying glory: the wind spider. It smells of death, and radiates sweaty heat.

I plunge the pistol into where I figure its mouth is and pull the trigger.

Yellow goo goes everywhere, and the other blurry images back off, at least for a moment.

The pistol tumbles out of my hand as it goes numb. I can't breathe. My head hurts.

I close my eyes, waiting for the inevitable.