Thread: 8,496 Goodbyes

The young man holding the gun to Aribellas head hesitates. The pistol rattles in his shaky hand. Thatd be enough to make anyone nervous, but Ari notices that the forlorn pot on the stove is rattling to the same rhythm. In fact so are the few portraits hung on the walls of the small flat. The young woman wraps the child tighter in her arms as the vibration increases precipitously. The man staggers into the doorframe, but miraculously doesnt shoot Aribella accidentally. He motions towards the stairs with the handgun. Take your rifle and go. Ill give you to the count of five and if I dont see your ass down those stairs were gonna take our chances with those monsters out there. It isnt exactly the bargain Aribella was looking for, but at least she isnt shot. Five . . . four . . . the mans counting is barely audible over the rhythmic rumbling that is causing the walls of the small 2-story building to rattle if it isnt an earthquake then something large is headed their way. Ava and guest can feel it too, though neither of the two can see the source of the vibration as they elbow each other to get a view through the doors peep hole. A small snow globe is rattled from the sales counter in Avas little clothing shop and shatters on the floor, though neither Ava nor her guest can hear the loud shattering of glass over the pounding that must be nearly on top of them. Clearly, a better view was going to require exiting the small shop the shop that seemed to be rattling apart at the seams anyway. While the source of the rumbling and tremor is a mystery to the rest, Adrian is busy scrambling for a secure place to hold on as the enormous dusty gray behemoth charges down Main Street towards the small row of buildings. The beasts four massive legs leave gashes in the uneven pavement as it slides forward in an attempt to arrest its mad dash. One of the four spider-like legs, as thick around as a telephone pole, catches the edge of the sidewalk and the creature pitches to its right. Adiran watches in horror as the beast lurches forward into the front of his building with a deafening crash. The two-story lurches and the corner closest to the beast drops precipitously as the building begins to crumble. Adrian watches in horror as the gravel on the roof begins to slide towards the collapsed corner of the roof, taking him along towards the . . . face of the behemoth. At least, Adrian assumes it is the face from the huge gaping chasm of razor spikes that pants in exhaustion. The beast lies stunned with the building crumbling on top of it. As the rumbling of the behemoth dies, the sound of wailing guitar feedback and a screaming diesel engine replace them. An enormous extended cab pickup roars through the intersection in what could only be pursuit of the behemoth. The man standing in the back of the truck falls over as the driver applies the breaks suddenly. The trucks back axle fish-tails as the tires shriek leaving behind a twin trail of noxiously smoking rubber across the shredded asphalt. Still, none of the vehicles noise is enough to completely drown out the ear-drum-shreddingly-loud . . . music? Would anyone even call that music?! The noise piping from the massive stacks secured to the trucks bed.