Grim Occupation.P2

START OF THIS SCENARIO: https://wjr5oakley.blogspot.com/2022/10/grim-occupationp1.html

Essie Vance [Whitney], Peter Graves [Jordan], Phillip Vance [Aaron]

Recap: They arrived in Cauzerte only to find the entrance barred and it a ghost town, its streets empty. Except for the barbed-wire enclosure of military-style tents and cots. Scrapping and flapping sounds set an eerie portent that reminded Essie of those Migo. But then they encountered a strange 7+ ft tall Brownshirt who talked to ghosts while acting so peaceful despite the submachinegun strapped on his back. And that green-pus wound on his neck. At least he directed them to Marina’s house. Where her family hides while she scrounges for food.

Monday, 20 Feb 1922, Beaumont house: Pierre tore open the rations Peter handed out, “Marina and the other few survivors have ransacked the town stores. And scoured the other houses of the families we know missing. I think she headed toward the southern barricade. A jumble of deserted cars when people fleeing were captured.” Still concerned about the flying thing, they exited out the back, thru the trampled garden, to get to the church and southern gate.

“PING!” Phillip barely stepped into the street, when the shot rang out and the bullet ricocheted off the stone road. They dove for cover behind the last house; Essie scrapped her knee. 2 more shots rang out when they leaned out to find the shooter. “Glint from a scope in the church bell tower!” Essie called out in French, “Please don’t shoot. We’ve come to help. We’re looking for Marina. Look, we have food.” Essie held out a piece of bread… [rifle shot: 01] “Ow!” Essie pulled back her bloody right hand with missing tip of her pinky finger. The men quickly applied pressure and tried to treat her wound as she fought off shock. Gritted her teeth and screamed louder when they cauterized the end of her pinky.

Peter now pissed, “Cover me. I’m going to get that son-of-a-bitch!” Essie stayed in cover and blindly shot her rifle just for the noise. Phillip went inside the house and took up aim from the bottom left corner of the front window. His shot answered with another bullet ping off the top right corner of the window. But he also heard another shot aimed elsewhere… toward the central housing. Peter had dashed across the street from east house to the central area, staying behind the houses. He thought he was stealthy but a shot toward him hit in the central garden area, far away.

Peter loudly kicked in the backdoor of a house and entered to then lit a cigar. While holding its butt end, he exposed the lit end out a house window. Nothing. Realization the shooter couldn’t angle down to see him unless he leaned out the tower opening. And that is exactly what Phillip saw, “Duck! He’s leaning out.” Phillip took a shot and managed to scare the man back into cover. Peter blindly fired his pistol upwards as he bolted out the door and across the road to gain cover next to the church. Peter found a side-door unlocked but moved toward the eastern frontside of the church hoping to make the shooter expose himself to the others.

Essie edged to the side of the house and used her compact mirror to spot the tower without exposing herself. She saw movement in the tower as if the man moving from side to side trying to spot whomever below. “Watch out Peter, he’s leaning out, trying to shoot you!” Meanwhile, Phillip lined up his shot at his exposed target. [Rifle: 00] His Enfield jammed! And that’s when Peter heard a “Thump, clatter, clatter” from above. He rushed around the church just in time to avoid the grenade detonation where he had stood.

Peter found another door on the southside and entered the church. He cautiously moved between the empty pews toward the front. Looking from the church seating area into the foyer, he saw the stairs to the side but also noticed a rope dangling at the center of the foyer before the double-door church entrance. He launched himself to the rope and began to tug while looking up. He saw a trapdoor start to open and dove for cover back inside the seating area.

The bell began to peal, “Dong, DONG, DONG!” That’s all Peter could hear. He used the moment to climb the stairs hoping to surprise his attacker. The others heard a scream coming from a man who launched himself out of the bell tower. “Splat!” Essie and Phillip came forward to confirm the man dressed in brown dead. Green pus leaked from his neck puncture wound. Essie’s call to Peter was answered from the tower. Where Peter found the sniper’s setup and gear: a Karabiner98 sniper rifle with scope, ammo can with only 8 rounds remaining, rations, bolt cutter, 3 grenades.

And that’s when they all heard a woman scream. Peter high enough to see it all unfold. Phillip outside near the northeast corner of the church to see a glimpse. Essie over the body and unable to see. Until she heard the others gasp, “Oh my God. There are 2 of them!” She had to look!  Peter saw a winged form rise from the jumble of cars at the southern gate. Its claws carried a twisting, fighting woman screaming for her life. As the beast struggled to fly on its leather wings north, another beast joined it from the castle keep to help carry their prize. Phillip recognized the voice. The others easily guessed, “It’s Marina!”

[Sanity check. While the men lost a few points, Essie failed miserably. 7 points and full comprehension of what she saw. Bout-Of-Madness: paranoia.] Essie cowered at the church door, banging to get inside, “NO, no, no. God help us! Open up. I need to pray!” But they had no time to lose. Peter grabbed her by her collar and drug her along, “We need to rescue the poor girl before she becomes another one of those!” Essie kicked and screamed in defiance. Hyperventilating. Fought Peter trying to pour vodka down her throat. He plugged her nose. She had to gulp. Resistance turned to acceptance as she grabbed for the bottle. Peter withheld it, “Later, after we rescue the mother.”

They cautiously approached the keep’s tall iron gate and found it chained and padlocked. Until Peter pulled out the bolt-cutters. With weapons raised (Peter with pistol, Essie with bow and arrow, Phillip with his 1911 pistol), they inched (thru the overgrown courtyard that once a beautiful flower garden) toward the steps leading up to the keep’s double-doors. Peter easily saw the talon claw marks on the steps and railings. Deep gouges just like they saw on the statue in the town square. “Rattle, clatter.” [Dodge: Essie and Phillip failed; Peter- extreme] Peter pushed the others to the side as he looked upwards at the terra-cotta shingle falling their way. It crashed just behind him. They heard the scrap of claws somewhere up on the roof. “Quick, inside.”

A feeling of immense dread. Essie’s paranoia almost took hold as they all felt the extreme drop in temperature inside the keep. They stood in the wide foyer and gazed upon an ancient tapestry hung between 2 grand archways to the west. The scene:  a moonless night eclipse hung over a faceless mob storming the keep courtyard. A grotesque face leered out of the large bay window of the upper keep room. Peter could not read the French placard and thus only starred at the tapestry. He flinched when he thought the moon winked at him.

The others read aloud the story of the midnight disfigured visitor who offered the castle Lord vile means to overthrow the tyrannical monarchy of France. But the citizens learned of the plot and stormed the castle and slaughtered the Lord. The visitor’s vile book destroyed.

They moved thru an archway into the adjoining banquet hall. Staircases to the west: one up, the other down. Side doors opened unto either bathrooms or the kitchen. Tall metal candelabras and wall sconces were covered in wax from candles burnt out long ago. They began to climb the stairs when…

Another experiment stood at the top of the stairs! Phillip fired his pistol while Peter readied his sawed-off shotgun for a closer shot. Essie twanged an arrow but missed. The monstrosity ambled down the stairs even thou obviously wounded by Phillip. In range, Peter blasted with his shotgun, yet the thing still stood. Till Phillip cleaved it with his hatchet.

They remembered Marina’s letter dated new-years eve. They realized the Brownshirts had been in town almost 2 months. Two months of experimentations! What other vile creatures awaited them?!

CONCLUSION: https://wjr5oakley.blogspot.com/2022/10/grim-occupationp3-conclusion.html