Marvel Alternate
Book I "Night of Fallen Stars"
Part 1 "The Pale Horse Affair"
Prologue
November 4th 1894
It seems fate has me to travel south rather sooner than I wanted. Last night marked the 5th murder in as many months. This murder appears to have involved a saber of unique origin, which has unfortunately slipped the grasp of local law authorities. This weapon has gone the same way that the previous three weapons have. The unique murder weapon that doesn't have anything in common hasn't been found but it's suspected that the victim was strangled, not the same method used on the others. Before I head south to deal with this problem I'll have to put all of the facts together.
Fact 1: all of the victims had a relative in a confederate Calvary unit, and each of those soldiers were in the same unit. In each case the victim was a direct relative, no in-laws appear to have become victims, yet.
Fact 2: With exception to the fourth murder each victim was left for display with the weapon on the victim or nearby depending on the method used.
Fact 3: Same said weapons have a habit of disappearing despite constant surveillance. When the weapon disappears there is a pile strange ashes left behind roughly the same mass as the weapon that vanished.
Fact 4: In all cases a very pale horse has been spotted on or near the premises of the victim's home. This horse runs if approached and doesn't seem violent however in one of the murders the horse was reportedly seen in a narrow hallway on the second floor of a victim's home.
Now on to the victims:
Victim 1: Victor Helms Age: 43 Victim was found in the parlor of his home with several gunshot wounds inflicted over most of his body. Ten shots in total (Nine pistol shots one shotgun type shot), however not one bullet was found in or near where the attack occurred or in the body of the victim. A LeMats Revolver was found at the victim's feet, this same pistol vanished from it's holding area less than 24 hours after being discovered.
Victim 2: Andrea Bright Age 23 Victim was found in a tree just outside her room hanging from likely the very belt that was used to murder her. The belt itself was likely to have been similar in themed to the revolver and likely have been used by a Calvary officer of the confederate states. The important note about this victim is that the weapon was reported to have vanished in the middle of the investigation. The body was found early morning before dawn, as the Officers were waiting for a ladder to bring the body down, the body simply fell and the belt that held it up wasn't found, however the same ashes that was found in the first murder weapon's stead was found covering the victim's neck and shoulders.
Victim 3: Job Bright Age 19 This is truly the most puzzling death I have heard of and it is where the Pale horse equation finally was noticed. The horse was seen in a hallway by a maid cleaning up for the night, she swears the horse charged her but vanished as she fell backward into an empty guestroom. The victim was found moments later trampled to death, with two horse shoes nearby. These horseshoes vanished upon transportation that morning, again piles of ashes were the murder weapons once were.
Victim 4: Silas Wayne Age 36 Unknown murder weapon likely was strangled however no gloves or items that could have been used to strangle him was found near the body. Of all the murders this one wasn't as dramatic as the others, it could have simply been a crime of passion however all of the other parts fit in, his brother claimed he saw a pale horse wandering near their home, and he had a relative in the same Calvary unit.
Victim 5: Arianna Thompson Age 18 Victim was found pinned to the pantry door by a Calvary sword. Tragic really I meet her once when her uncle brought her up to Chicago, she was a pretty girl. The sword like the murder weapons before has vanished leaving behind only ashes
With the information I have I hope to solve this before it begins to interrupt my business. My security business won't count for much if I fail to come up with the murderer, already the authorities have started up a man- hunt. I doubt they will find him first, likely someone else will take the rope from a tree for this.
~Abram Stanford
Chicago, Illinois USA
June 14th, 1923
THUNK
Abram looked up from his journal to see an older volume on the floor it's pages open and taunting him to read. He sat there for several moments staring at the journal remembering some of the times when he was writing in that volume, It was some of the happiest and scariest times he had ever remembered. With a glance to several pictures on the side of the desk his mind slipped back momentarily to the moment he had meet his wife Silve. It had been one of the worst and one of the few murder investigations he had ever been on in which they never really caught the murderer. All he had from that investigation was the message that stated "It's over."
He sighed at not having completed that particular problem that had entered his life but even so he and Silve walked away from it with their lives, and so many good things happened since then. The Birth of their children, his business booming, it had been a rather happy and fulfilling life. He was about to turn his mind back to his work when he thought about his journal again and all of the weird things that happened during that affair way back when.
He stood up steadying himself for a moment before he made his way over to where the journal rested still open and looking up at him. A chill went up his body as he noticed it was from the same date in which he left for Georgia. He bent down slowly to pick it up and to reread that same account. He thought he knew It all when he left that day. That all he had to do was simply follow the clues to find out who was murdering the people and that would be it, that he could easily do what the law officers could not.
Old fingers traced over the names of the people who died before he even arrived. So many people would pass away during that affair, so many people died without any reason. That was what most murderers were about he thought to himself, senseless death. As he made his way back to his death he wondered if it was a message. During that affair he had received several which pointed him to the second murderer who had killed his own brother in hopes to appease the creature that really was murdering people.
The stories of a murdering crusader brought even more shivers up his spine. He was nicknamed the Apocalypse by the soldiers who fought with him. A murderer the likes he hoped the world would never see again, even the stories of that Transylvanian prince seemed tamed next to Apocalypse. Myths had it, that he possessed a sword and knives which could cut through almost anything, and that hundreds hunted him down when he tried to assassinate the pope. Very few survived this hunt, and the weapons were lost somewhere in Egypt. Like his mystery myth and legend had it that his body was never found, that Satan himself saved the murderer to return later on in the final days.
So much seemed familiar when he looked over his notes, he wondered for several moments about just what the message could be.
"Hun dinner is ready"
Abram looked up from his work, he hadn't heard Silve open the door. "Be there in a moment, I just need to put a few things away." He turned his attention to his old journal again before making his way to the bookshelf to return the book to it's place. He never felt the pinprick on his fingers until he drew his hand back and saw tiny drops of blood on his fingertips. "Where did I get tha." The last thoughts entered his mind as he felt like he was burning up inside, unable to draw the breath he needed. In those last few moments, the only things on his mind was his wife and children.
***
Silve looked up at the clock as it's 9'o clock chime brought her out of her book. She looked over to the table where her husband's dinner still waited and she berated herself for getting so involved in her book that she forgot to remind him that dinner was ready. She knew that she shouldn't have had to, but lately he had been getting rather forgetful about things.
She placed her book on the table taking the time to walk into the dinning room and pour out the tea filled with melted ice and pour another glass. For a moment while she poured all she could think of was the day they had first meet. She had the same horrible feeling, and couldn't stop herself from rushing to his office. She opened the door expecting the worse, to find it. He looked as if he were sleeping on the floor next to his bookshelf, as if he had simply passed out, but she knew better, he was gone. After those days and nights of horror, after all of those years that followed, she had finally lost him.
Book I "Night of Fallen Stars"
Part 1 "The Pale Horse Affair"
Prologue
November 4th 1894
It seems fate has me to travel south rather sooner than I wanted. Last night marked the 5th murder in as many months. This murder appears to have involved a saber of unique origin, which has unfortunately slipped the grasp of local law authorities. This weapon has gone the same way that the previous three weapons have. The unique murder weapon that doesn't have anything in common hasn't been found but it's suspected that the victim was strangled, not the same method used on the others. Before I head south to deal with this problem I'll have to put all of the facts together.
Fact 1: all of the victims had a relative in a confederate Calvary unit, and each of those soldiers were in the same unit. In each case the victim was a direct relative, no in-laws appear to have become victims, yet.
Fact 2: With exception to the fourth murder each victim was left for display with the weapon on the victim or nearby depending on the method used.
Fact 3: Same said weapons have a habit of disappearing despite constant surveillance. When the weapon disappears there is a pile strange ashes left behind roughly the same mass as the weapon that vanished.
Fact 4: In all cases a very pale horse has been spotted on or near the premises of the victim's home. This horse runs if approached and doesn't seem violent however in one of the murders the horse was reportedly seen in a narrow hallway on the second floor of a victim's home.
Now on to the victims:
Victim 1: Victor Helms Age: 43 Victim was found in the parlor of his home with several gunshot wounds inflicted over most of his body. Ten shots in total (Nine pistol shots one shotgun type shot), however not one bullet was found in or near where the attack occurred or in the body of the victim. A LeMats Revolver was found at the victim's feet, this same pistol vanished from it's holding area less than 24 hours after being discovered.
Victim 2: Andrea Bright Age 23 Victim was found in a tree just outside her room hanging from likely the very belt that was used to murder her. The belt itself was likely to have been similar in themed to the revolver and likely have been used by a Calvary officer of the confederate states. The important note about this victim is that the weapon was reported to have vanished in the middle of the investigation. The body was found early morning before dawn, as the Officers were waiting for a ladder to bring the body down, the body simply fell and the belt that held it up wasn't found, however the same ashes that was found in the first murder weapon's stead was found covering the victim's neck and shoulders.
Victim 3: Job Bright Age 19 This is truly the most puzzling death I have heard of and it is where the Pale horse equation finally was noticed. The horse was seen in a hallway by a maid cleaning up for the night, she swears the horse charged her but vanished as she fell backward into an empty guestroom. The victim was found moments later trampled to death, with two horse shoes nearby. These horseshoes vanished upon transportation that morning, again piles of ashes were the murder weapons once were.
Victim 4: Silas Wayne Age 36 Unknown murder weapon likely was strangled however no gloves or items that could have been used to strangle him was found near the body. Of all the murders this one wasn't as dramatic as the others, it could have simply been a crime of passion however all of the other parts fit in, his brother claimed he saw a pale horse wandering near their home, and he had a relative in the same Calvary unit.
Victim 5: Arianna Thompson Age 18 Victim was found pinned to the pantry door by a Calvary sword. Tragic really I meet her once when her uncle brought her up to Chicago, she was a pretty girl. The sword like the murder weapons before has vanished leaving behind only ashes
With the information I have I hope to solve this before it begins to interrupt my business. My security business won't count for much if I fail to come up with the murderer, already the authorities have started up a man- hunt. I doubt they will find him first, likely someone else will take the rope from a tree for this.
~Abram Stanford
Chicago, Illinois USA
June 14th, 1923
THUNK
Abram looked up from his journal to see an older volume on the floor it's pages open and taunting him to read. He sat there for several moments staring at the journal remembering some of the times when he was writing in that volume, It was some of the happiest and scariest times he had ever remembered. With a glance to several pictures on the side of the desk his mind slipped back momentarily to the moment he had meet his wife Silve. It had been one of the worst and one of the few murder investigations he had ever been on in which they never really caught the murderer. All he had from that investigation was the message that stated "It's over."
He sighed at not having completed that particular problem that had entered his life but even so he and Silve walked away from it with their lives, and so many good things happened since then. The Birth of their children, his business booming, it had been a rather happy and fulfilling life. He was about to turn his mind back to his work when he thought about his journal again and all of the weird things that happened during that affair way back when.
He stood up steadying himself for a moment before he made his way over to where the journal rested still open and looking up at him. A chill went up his body as he noticed it was from the same date in which he left for Georgia. He bent down slowly to pick it up and to reread that same account. He thought he knew It all when he left that day. That all he had to do was simply follow the clues to find out who was murdering the people and that would be it, that he could easily do what the law officers could not.
Old fingers traced over the names of the people who died before he even arrived. So many people would pass away during that affair, so many people died without any reason. That was what most murderers were about he thought to himself, senseless death. As he made his way back to his death he wondered if it was a message. During that affair he had received several which pointed him to the second murderer who had killed his own brother in hopes to appease the creature that really was murdering people.
The stories of a murdering crusader brought even more shivers up his spine. He was nicknamed the Apocalypse by the soldiers who fought with him. A murderer the likes he hoped the world would never see again, even the stories of that Transylvanian prince seemed tamed next to Apocalypse. Myths had it, that he possessed a sword and knives which could cut through almost anything, and that hundreds hunted him down when he tried to assassinate the pope. Very few survived this hunt, and the weapons were lost somewhere in Egypt. Like his mystery myth and legend had it that his body was never found, that Satan himself saved the murderer to return later on in the final days.
So much seemed familiar when he looked over his notes, he wondered for several moments about just what the message could be.
"Hun dinner is ready"
Abram looked up from his work, he hadn't heard Silve open the door. "Be there in a moment, I just need to put a few things away." He turned his attention to his old journal again before making his way to the bookshelf to return the book to it's place. He never felt the pinprick on his fingers until he drew his hand back and saw tiny drops of blood on his fingertips. "Where did I get tha." The last thoughts entered his mind as he felt like he was burning up inside, unable to draw the breath he needed. In those last few moments, the only things on his mind was his wife and children.
***
Silve looked up at the clock as it's 9'o clock chime brought her out of her book. She looked over to the table where her husband's dinner still waited and she berated herself for getting so involved in her book that she forgot to remind him that dinner was ready. She knew that she shouldn't have had to, but lately he had been getting rather forgetful about things.
She placed her book on the table taking the time to walk into the dinning room and pour out the tea filled with melted ice and pour another glass. For a moment while she poured all she could think of was the day they had first meet. She had the same horrible feeling, and couldn't stop herself from rushing to his office. She opened the door expecting the worse, to find it. He looked as if he were sleeping on the floor next to his bookshelf, as if he had simply passed out, but she knew better, he was gone. After those days and nights of horror, after all of those years that followed, she had finally lost him.