"Oh my God! That's total bullshit!", Sam cried as Onak performed another string of combos on her character, Kukri. Letting out a heavy sigh she set aside her controller, knowing the match was already over. END HER, the soundbar boomed out the final words of the game's narrator as the prick Sam was playing with decided to t-bag her character before executing the inevitable kill. She didn't even bother watching. As unbelievable as it may seem, someone getting their intestines cut out and their brain blown to chunks gets old a lot quicker than one would think.
"Onak wins, Murder!" The game's announcer proudly declared as the in game images of a blood covered mercenary stood proudly over a fresh kill. Instead of hitting rematch Sam opted to quit out of the game with what little dignity she had left after being bodied so thoroughly.
With that, Sam got up from the futon and decided to grab something to drink and take a break. She got up from the seat and stretched a bit; these late night sessions were hard work after all. Walking over to the fridge, she rummaged inside for a bit. Popping a coke open, she hopped on the bed taking in the safe haven that was her small apartment. Posters of various video games and movies covered the walls along with her favorite piece, a macabre painting one of her closest friends had done of a skeleton lounging on the front porch of a rain soaked house. It hung directly over her bed. The flat screen took most of the left wall where the young woman had her Xbone, PS4 and PC setup. Her bed and art desk took the back of the room right next to the window. She would spend many an hour in the night trying to work something out at that desk. There always seemed to be some new inspiration that would begin the cycle. She would start work on a piece only to grow dissatisfied and abandon it later. Sam didn't mind though, she loved just working on her art. In a perfect world, that's all she would be doing.
All in all, this apartment was a little piece of heaven for the twenty-year old. She rarely left this personal haven save for the late night trips to the gym. When there, Sam would make sure to avoid talking to other people unless she really had to. It wasn't that Sam was shy, but more to do with the bad experiences she had endured in High school. This left the young woman in her own insecure and apethetic world. This apartment was her escape from all the woes of the outside. She had sometimes regrettably brought a few guys back to the apartment with her. Sam didn't like to think about those times though. They often ended in awkward silences, missed opportunities, and all around feelings of dejection.
Sam got up from her bed and decided to use the shower. Walking over to the restroom, she caught a glance of herself reflected in the mirror. Letting out a sigh, she wasn't too happy with what she saw. "Looking shit as usual Sam...", she said to her reflection appraising it. Her blue eyes moved up and down, judging her own body. Those eyes were the only thing she liked about herself. She couldn't stand her full hips, she always thought they were much bigger than they needed to be. Her gaze moved up to her breasts, or what she thought was a lack thereof. They were an average size and nothing to be ashamed of, but the girl always harshly judged herself. Sam was currently donning a black wife beater that wasn't very form accentuating, hanging almost to her knees and a pair of baggy grey sweat pants. Not very flattering, huh? Her long black hair was in a messy bun. She noted a stray tresse going down her forehead. Trying in vain to blow it off her forehead she quickly moved it back into place with her hand. Looking at herself just a bit longer in the mirror, Sam finally remembered why she came.
After taking care of her business, Sam paced around her apartment. There was something about tonight that was causing her to be on edge. Normally she would just play whatever game crossed her fancy and then perhaps try and at least start some piece of art. Tonight though, Sam felt like doing absolutely nothing. She threw herself back on the futon and sighed in boredom. Another night alone, she thought to herself, Another night of nothing.
Sometimes Sam would stay up and wonder what exactly she was doing with her life. She'd lay back and simply stare at the ceiling as if waiting to see something in it, waiting for something, anything to happen. That was just what she was doing now, contemplating her lot in life. Sam supposed for a moment she didn't have it that bad. Her dad would pay for everything she could need. She rarely worried for anything materiel. That wasn't the problem though. Sam and her mother had barely spoken for a couple years now. Her dad wasn't any better, only actually interacting with his daughter every now and again. Perhaps this wouldn't have been so bad if she had more of a social life. As of now that consisted of only three people that she considered friends. She hadn't had a boyfriend in many years, not since the beginning of high school.
Sam continued to stare up waiting for some kind of inspiration to come when she felt a strange pulse shoot over her body. She quickly shot up looking around scared, trying to figure out what had just happened. That's when something pulled her attention to her desk. The box her dad had sent her was doing something peculiar. Sam could almost swear it would randomly shake, making a slight rattling noise. The mystery of what exactly was causing the box to do that was drawing her over to the table. She decided to go along with her curiosity. It had been a few days since her father had sent the trinket and she still hadn't opened it yet. She usually didn't want anything to do with the lame things her father would send her from expeditions, but she was drawn to this one. Her hand shaking, she slowly grabbed hold of the small box to examine it. The letters "KMDG" were marked on the top. Sam had no idea what that meant and didn't really care. She really wanted to know what was inside this thing. Unlatching the locks on both sides, Sam finally opened it up. It wasn't anywhere near what she was expecting.
It was placed on a delicate cloth holder. She traced her fingers on it first. There were five sharp looking points made out of a peculiar black metal. Within, three radiantly red gems, one large, and two smaller, were placed. They shone with an exceptional brilliance. Sam had never seen something so expensive looking. She had to wonder what it was. It wasn't a necklace, nor was it a brooch. She wasn't sure what kind of accessory it could be. It was beautiful in a macabre sense though. The deep black and glinting red mixed in a rather fitting way with the almost devil like horns at the top. The points at the end of each gem seemed rather sharp but Sam was taken aback by how much she wanted to pick it up. It was simply fascinating.
Carefully she was able to remove the jeweled enigma from the box and placed it on her desk. She turned on another lamp to look at the detail of it; the craftsmanship was insane. The smooth onyx metal contrasted perfectly with the red. The jewels themselves were cut masterfully. To someone like Sam, with an artistic inclination, this thing, whatever it was, was marvelous. What was she supposed to do with it though? She picked it up again to examine the bottom. No difference from the front was visible.
Sam's curiosity began to get the better of her. She moved her finger around one of the sharp looking points to see how fine it actually was. She let out an audible gasp, the edge was sharp enough to break skin. The shock of it was enough to make Sam drop the jeweled enigma. A small amount of blood began to pool around the cut on her index finger. Sam acted quickly, sucking on it.You idiot Sam! She thought while mending her digit. Luckily it was not deep at all and she quickly stopped the bleeding. .No harm, No foul I suppose.
That's when she noticed the drop of blood on the onyx like surface of the thing. Sam watched bewildered as the drop flowed down the black metal surface towards the large center jewel. The little crimson drop moved slower and slower as it neared its destination. Sam was starting to get pretty freaked out. The droplet began to seep into the finely carved ruby until there was no sight of it any more. Sam leaned over to make sure she was seeing this right when the large jewel became unbearably bright. She recoiled with a hand in front of her face, shielding her from the rays. What the fuck did dad send me? She stood there with her hand still in front of her eyes, but the light only seemed to get more intense. The heat of the room began to rise as well. Suddenly Sam felt herself beginning to become weightless. Her feet lifted off the ground until she began moving in a circular pattern. Things around her room began to be swept up in the whirlwind as well. At the center of the chaos was the gem.
Sam finally began to scream her lungs out as the speed at which she was being thrown around became staggering. Her vision became blurred, all she could see now was the bright red light emanating from the artifact. To her surprise, she was getting closer to it with each rotation. She tried desperately to grab hold of something, anything to keep her away from that cursed thing. But it was no use. When a single part of her touched the gem she heard an explosion that instantly cut Sam's hearing out for a while. That didn't seem to matter though, her eyes were assaulted with horrific forms in the mist she couldn't bear to look at. The red mist engulfed her and her whole existence became crimson. Every part of her being was panicking. She felt warm tears roll down her cheeks only to be sent flying off in the turbulent gale. Sam spinned like a ragdoll until she finally lost consciousness.
Her father would eventually get news of her sudden and violent disappearance. He would also eventually see the completely destroyed state of the apartment. If only he hadn't sent her that strange artifact. Its true power was beyond his knowledge. He couldn't have known the outcome. He simply saw it as something to give his daughter in the hopes that maybe, just maybe she would be cheered up by it. When he finally saw the state of the ransacked room, books and papers and video games and everything else strewn everywhere, Sam's father became incredibly distraught. What he did not notice though, was the peculiar disappearance of the artifact. Even if the man did happen to notice it, nothing would change. It was already too late.
…
Sam's eyes slid open, slowly, scared that the blinding crimson light would still be around her. To her relief, she saw that was not the case. Her mind was not completely at ease now though. She pushed herself off the ground and tried to get her bearings. Her hearing started to come back, it was immediately filled with the bustle of people everywhere. A cacophony of voices, not all in languages she could understand, was all around her. She rubbed her eyes once more to gain clear vision. She was in an alleyway. The architecture of the buildings around her was strange. They were both built out of beige bricks, they didn't look anywhere near modern either. Sam racked her brain for any ideas whatsoever of possible locations, but she couldn't think of a single one that looked like this. Not in the modern world anyway. One thing was for sure. She sure as hell wasn't in home anymore.
Sam stood up and gave herself a once over. Just a few scrapes and bruises, but she honestly didn't feel too bad. She was still in the wifebeater, sweatpants and slippers that she was wearing when, whatever the hell happened earlier, happened. Since she was suitably in one piece, Sam decided it was high time to figure out where she was..
Leaving the alley way, her senses were assaulted in a completely different, but equally as shocking way as earlier. There was no way Sam was home anymore, she was somewhere completely alien. Wherever the place was, she found herself in the middle of a market square. Everything was loud, the laughing, the haggling, and especially the arguing. The smells ranged from downright stomach churning to delicious depending if you were standing next to a food stall or not. And then there were the people, some human, like her and others strange and almost terrifying to look at. Everyone had some kind of task they were setting out to complete. Strange and fantastical beasts were mixed in every so often, some used as transportation while others used simply as beasts of burden.
All in all, Sam was left with a sense of awe that was beginning to overshadow her fears by this point. Sticking out completely, the young woman walked into the market, overtaken once more by her curiosity. This place was like something out of fantasy. There was no way it could be real, but the sights, the sounds, the smells all convinced Sam that it was real beyond a doubt. She had forgotten all the woe of before because she was swept up in the strange allure of this new place. Of course, something had to remind her that nothing was ever as good as it looked.
"What have we hear boys?" Sam turned around, startled by the man's voice. It was quickly apparent it wasn't a man that had spoken up though. A grossly misshapen brow sat above beady yellow eyes, but the thing's mouth was the scariest part. The maw was covered in a row of large, jagged, serrated teeth. Sam felt his eyes look up and down her body for an uncomfortable amount of time before he spoke once more. "You lost little girl? You don't look like you're from around here."
Sam gave a fake, and very nervous looking, half smile, looked towards the ground and continued to walk forward, hoping that the thing would simply leave her be. A larger brutish creature blocked her way. He appeared to just be a large version of the other toothy horror.
"I asked you a question. You look lost. Maybe me and my friends here can help you."
Nervously, Sam spoke up against her better judgement. "Thanks...but... I...I don't need any help. I'm just looking around."
The creature licked his absence of lips in a rather perverse manner before answering her. "Nonsense. A pretty thing like you could use some...protection in a place like this. You have to be careful around certain people."
Sam gulped a bit. "Well, all the same I...I think I'll be fi…" In a flash, Sam was grabbed by one of the thugs she hadn't noticed and was now struggling in vain to escape his grasp. Her arms were held to her side as the assailant's grasp tightened around them. Sam let out a scream before the creature holding her covered her mouth. Sam was panicking in her mind. This had been the worst twenty four hours of her life. What do they want with me!
The apparent leader of the group walked closer to her with a sick, toothy grin. "I told you, you should be more careful little girl. There's a whole bunch of sickos out there." He cupped her chin with his hand all while looking longingly at her. "Don't worry, I'll protect you. It's gonna cost you though. That sound fair little girl?" Sam was struggling to get out of the creature's arms and fight back tears simultaneously. The leader inched even closer until he was startled by a voice out of the blue.
"Back away from the girl tarkatan. No need for things to get out of hand." Sam had seen a plethora of strange sights already, but the man who had intervened just now was perhaps the most peculiar thing she had see. The man made slow steps forward, taking long strides. The bandoliers strapped full of ammunition swayed and clinked with every step. He came closer until finally stopping about ten feet away from where Sam was. Shadow casted behind him, cape billowing in the light breeze, and with the trademark hat, this man was straight out of some western. Just like those in the movies, the man had two heavy revolvers holstered on each hip. Sam was at a loss for words. What the fuck is happening to me today? This place is insane. The only thing she could worry about now was how her assailants were going to react to the gunslinger's threats. For her sake, she hoped everything would be handled in a non violent fashion. This would be Sam's first lesson of many that things rarely ended that way in Outworld.
"Who the fuck do you think you are?" The Tarkatan leader was furious that someone would dare interrupt him. He noticeably slobbered in his anger induced roars, sending whole streams of globules to soak into the earth.
The Gunslinger was unphased by the Tarkatan's wild yelling. He also didn't seem to notice the crowd of onlookers who were quietly amassing, excited for the assured violence to come. Looking at the Gunslinger's face, Sam finally noticed the mask he was wearing, almost muzzle like. It not only gave him a terrifying visage but amplified the intensity of his steel blue eyes. It was clear to Sam that all the gunslinger cared about now was what the leader was going to do. A solitary and cold, dispassionate stare, unflinching and unyielding, Sam couldn't look away from him, taken aback by the intensity. The tarkatan leader's face began to twitch. He was becoming very discomfited with those steely blues.
"I...I asked you...asked...who the hell do you...you think you are?" He was stammering, obviously scared. The Gunslinger hadn't moved a muscle, Sam could've sworn that he didn't even so much as blink. The Tarkatan broke the silence again, "well...answer me!"
The gunslinger finally spoke up, still giving his cold stare. "I really need to answer that? Pretty sure you already know."
"You're... there's no way...I heard you died not far out of Makeba ." The tarkatan obviously didn't want to believe this was happening. Sam was convinced he was just as scared as her now. She could swear he was sweating.
"Heard wrong friend. In fact, let me prove it to you." The gunslinger finally began to move; he unsheathed a blade from his back and held it up for the group to see. The edge was incredibly fine and glinted from the sun beating down on them. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary with it until Sam noticed the hilt. Just under it, a skeletal hand was petrified in place. That's when she noticed the hilt was an arm bone. Sam wasn't sure what to make of it, but the tarkatan leader had a look of absolute shock on his already twisted features. The Gunslinger was proudly presenting the weapon and added, "I'm sure you know what this is. Parting gift from one of your kind. Maybe a friend of yours?" There was a sick satisfaction to the gunslinger's tone; he was enjoying making the tarkatan squirm. "Wanna know how I got it? Not much of story. The only good part is how I had to keep the poor bastard awake while I, acquired the blade. Wouldn't want it to retract, would I?" The tarkatan was noticeably unsettled by all this. Serves the asshole right. Sam also got a weird sense of satisfaction from seeing the leader being the one terrorized.
The tarkatan couldn't help but blurt out, "You... you're sick!"
"Heh, funny, coming from you." The Gunslinger finally returned the blade to the sheath on his back. "Here's the thing, you know why I'm here. Make this easy, and it'll all be over quick. I'm only here for you." The Gunslinger pointed at the lead tarkatan, emphasizing what he had said.
"And my men?"
"Couldn't care less, they don't have prices on their heads."
The Tarkatan looked frantically at each of his men, then to the gunslinger and finally on Sam. He appeared to have a plan. No one mentioned anything about it being a particularly good one though. "Black!" The gunslinger's eyes lit up, he was glad to see the Tarkatan actually knew who he was. "Black, I swear on the elder gods, I'll kill this little bitch if you try anything!"
Sam was reminded once more of her place in this horrible situation, she was mere moments away from death at any second. She frantically peered at the gunslinger, trying to give him her most pleading look. The look in his cold eyes was complete apathy, and yet, they stayed focused on her for a few moments more. Sam knew somehow she had gotten through to him. Or I'm crazy and I'm gonna die here.
The Gunslinger chuckled a brief moment, "I don't even know the girlie. There's no playing on my soft heart. All I care about is getting your head." Sam was sure this was the moment. Any second now, this horrible nightmare would be over.
The Tarkatan didn't know what to say. "You…I'm gonna do it you cold bastard!" Pointing to the tarkatan holding Sam, the leader ordered, "You! Kill the bitch!"
The Tarkatan holding Sam suddenly collapsed bringing her down with it. It took her a few moments to figure out what the piercing noise was, then she felt the warm drops drip down her cheek. I'm alive, what the hell is going on! Sam looked over to the Gunslinger, smoke was wafting out of a revolver barrel. She looked back at the Tarkatan that was holding her and saw the top right of his head completely gone, leaking a thick crimson. He really was a gunslinger. Sam didn't even have a moment to flinch before the thug was dead. Unfortunately, it still wasn't over yet.
"Rarghhh! You fucker! You killed him! Now I'm gonna kill your bitch." The lead Tarkatan's arm blades finally extended out as he charged at Sam, who was still sitting on the ground.
He was right on top of her about to slash down with the right blade, when another shot rang out. It was dead on. The Tarkatan's blade began to shoot blood profusely where it was broken, staining the ground. The leader screamed out in agony, the Gunslinger didn't give him a chance to recuperate. With a quick motion he shot the left blade off as well and it too began to spew an unreasonable amount of crimson. The wounded creature sank to his knees, still losing copious amounts of blood, the earth around him started to become saturated with crimson. He looked over to the other two still alive. The smaller one bolted as fast as he could but the large one kept his ground, staying loyal to the mortally wounded leader. "You, charge that bastard! Don't let him get away with this!"
The large Tarkatan charged full speed towards the Gunslinger, but the Gunslinger wasn't drawing. Instead he unsheathed the sword just as quick as he did the pistols, and in one swift motion, dodged out of the way of the charging juggernaut. He had barely nicked the warrior but was staring straight at the leader.
The big oaf wondering what had just happened noticed the measly cut on his right arm. The big lummox couldn't help but guffaw at how foolish the gunslinger had been. "Look boss, just a scratch! Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha…" He continued his laughing fit while Black still had his eyes fixed on the leader. The Gunslinger sheathed his sword. The laughing of the large Tarkatan suddenly became strained. Sam noticed the small wound on his arm had already become a putrid color. The right side of the brute's body began to convulse in a sick way, his eyes became bloodshot and finally, a disgusting pulpy red foam seeped through his front teeth. He stood for a few more seconds until hitting the ground face first with a great thud.
The Gunslinger walked slowly towards the leader for a final time. The Tarkatan was simply on his knees, he had lost too much blood to even think about moving. With tired eyes he looked up into the steel gaze of the Gunslinger. No words were spoken, his eyes told the whole story. It was a fear Sam had never seen in anyone or anything before. Black slowly un-holstered a revolver and held it directly to the dying Tarkatan's throat, his eyes never leaving his target. The hammer was primed slowly until it all ended with one final bang. The blast was powerful enough to leave the head hanging on by skin only. The Gunslinger quickly went to work removing and wrapping the head up for payment.
When he was done he looked over at Sam one last time. There was still splatter on her face. He threw her a rag to clean herself. "Stay out of trouble now," was all he had to say to her. He tipped his hat to her and walked down the market, as onlookers began to either go back to their business or scavenge whatever they could off the dead Tarkatans.
Sam was left with one of two options. Try and survive by herself or follow the Gunslinger. She wasn't sure which would be more dangerous.