You were torn, you couldn't read a figure you couldn't see well enough to determine if it harboured ill will towards you, nor could you positively identify it if it was humanoid in form. Anything that appeared humanoid could be a person, could be an innocent caught up in things, lost and afraid. Your hand hovered near your weapon, thumb holding the fabric of your top up enough to ensure that you could draw your weapon swiftly and cleanly should the need arise.
You hoped, you prayed that such wouldn't be the case, though the stink of the rivers water filled your nostrils. The river's water smelled foul enough that you could swear it could be used to mask the stench of an abomination, and you'd smelled how foul they were inside when that one was shot before you initially.
"Would you step into the light please, Ma'am?" You called, keeping your tone calm and respectful, knowing that if you were facing a thing that it wouldn't sense fear in your voice, that if you were dealing with an innocent, that they wouldn't feel threatened. "The night is dangerous, so you must understand my caution in requesting that you join me beneath the lamp light." You added, watching as the figure shuffled forward, the sound of sobbing continuing as one arm rose, wiping clumbsily at the figures face as they pushed that long and clearly damp hair back.
You could hear laboured breathing as they stumbled forwards, bare feet falling against the stone with a slap, as they shuffled toward you, inching into the light as your gunhand twitched, as you almost opened fire on them the instant you saw the figure that stood before you.
What stood there, looked like it was little more than a waterlogged corpse, with seaweed tangled in its hair and wrapped around its feet. Dead eyes turned to you, focusing on you as it watched, as it waited. You couldn't read its expression as its features were too bloated from the riverwater to show any emotion had it been capable of it, though you didn't feel threatened. At least not at the moment you didn't. It was moving slowly, it was looking at you expectantly.
It probably wasn't even aware that it was already dead.
At least you assumed that this thing was, that it was a person who had fallen or been dragged into the river and rendered this way by some unspeakable horror. "Are you... In need of assistance, Ma'am?" you asked, struggling to find words that didn't bring into question its state of health. You didn't want to risk highlighting the fact that this thing was what it appeared to be, if it was not aware of such itself. What remained of a potentially fragile human mind could snap with such a realisation.
It was cruel in a way to leave it perpetuating this state, a twinge of pity playing on you as you compared it to your imprisonment in a sense. It was imprisoned within a body of cold flesh, a mind that was clinging to whatever remenants of life it had once known, and its only escape would be the destruction of its body or mind.
"So... Cold..." came the things whisper, almost croaking as tortured vocal chords and a swollen tongue struggled to mouth those words. You frowned, uncertain if you should offer comfort, or some other token guesture to get by without issue. A deep sigh escaped your lips as you weighed up what seemed like a foolish option, you could barely believe you considered this to be a good idea, but... If this thing believed itself to still be alive, it was worth a shot. "The only warmth I am able to offer Ma'am, is that of a sympathetic embrace."
The shivering figure started to spread her arms, her facial features twitching, contorting briefly as she started to spread her arms, pain briefly etched on her features as she shuffled towards you. You couldn't believe it. You were about to offer a walking corpse comfort for the sake of avoiding conflict. You were walking toward her, one arm outstretched as you held your hand near your gun still, knowing that you could fire faster than this thing could move if it was playing you for an easy target, when a distant howl had the figure freeze, pushing you aside as it lurched forward, clumbsily running onward as it sobbed, its fading words reaching you as it vanished into the night.
"No! Banshees! I must find my daughter before they do!"
That familiar twinge of pity played on you once more as you stared off into the night, as the womans figure disappeared around a corner. She was likely a lost soul who was going to wander the city streets eternally until she found her demise or her daughter. You could only hope that she found her daughter and the solitude that it would bring, before she was found by somebody with the power to destroy her, forcing her to leave this world unfulfilled.
The rest of the trip towards the docks was punctuated by the distant howling of dogs and banshee's, though nothing else troubled you as you reached that group of workers that participated in the fights, two of them already at it as you arrived. You could see them dance around each other as they traded blows in the flickering firelight, one of them grabbing the other as they overestimated their reach, before pinning them down as they put them in an arm lock. You could hear cries of "I yield!" as you walked past them, giving a friendly guesture to William and Oak as they nodded in your direction.
"Eurochkoles, m'friend!" Came Oak's words as he stood, reaching out to give you a friendly jab on the arm. "We were worried that ye'd 'ave trouble gettin'ere with 'ow there's a lot o'things roamin' th'streets t'night." He continued, settling down as he patted the bench beside himself.
"So, what're ye'ere fer?" He asked, rubbing his bearded chin. "Ye fancy a rematch, a fight with some'un ye ain't yet fought, or feelin' lucky enough t'bet on some'o th'people 'ere?"
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Topic: They told me I could be anything... (Read 79200 times)