Chican Pirend Uliratha
Chaos breeds conquest
- Scythe/Black Faction creed
Later that evening…
On the north edge of Blackway, the cheerful colors, sights, and sounds of the idyllic town proper began to fade. The Blackway refinery sat in the center of this section of town like a misshapen metallic pagan god.
The sun was rapidly starting to set. A few lights began to click on in the buildings surrounding the refinery, bathing the area in a mixture of orange and yellow light.
The Gardel subdivision was a row of disheveled and dilapidated rental homes. These pitiable structures clustered closely together in a loose half-circle on either side of the refinery, as if clinging to it in a desperate attempt to stay warm and safe.
As the sun continued its gradual descent, the shrouded figure of Staslek Gaff * could just be seen carelessly walking down the middle of the street.
The poor and disadvantaged families living in Gardel homes paid no attention to him. At this point, it was almost too dark to see him, and they were all preoccupied with their own cares and concerns.
Staslek continued to walk slowly down the street, humming an eerie discordant tune, stretching his hands out in either direction.
The adults barely noticed or completely ignored it altogether. However, the young adults and teenagers started poking their heads out the windows to listen to the strange tune and get a better look at the source of the sound.
As the tune continued, each person began to hear different words that matched the strange melody.
“I’ll get you out of here… I’ll help you get friends, money, dates, girls, respect, acceptance, revenge. I’ll make you famous, powerful, come with me, come to me, come and see, come and see, come and see…”
Reese Crow poked his head out of the window and watched the retreating figure suspiciously. He’d heard the word revenge over and over. He had to know who was saying this and why.
Reese shoved the wobbly screen door open and run after Staslek, shouting,
“Hey shrimp, wait for me! What did you say?”
Lee and Roy** stumbled out of the house next to Reese and joined him as he trailed after Staslek.
Staslek looked behind him briefly. A murderous smirk played across his features then disappeared.
He continued down the street, slowly bearing to the left. The abandoned husk of the old Blackway Gallant Theater loomed like a crippled giant in front of him.
Staslek paused briefly in front of the boarded up theater. He looked behind him once more then grabbed two of the boards and wrenched them off the door like they were matchsticks.
He beckoned to the group of teenagers behind him (a few others had joined the three boys as they walked) and then walked into the pitch blackness of the empty building without looking back.
One by one, they all followed him into the darkness.
* An unsavory character from Chapter 15.
** Reese’s goons from way back in Chapter 1.