Chapter Two: Beached
Rinoa got out of her buggy. She park just outside of the evergrowing coastal city of Balamb
to avoid the ever growing traffic. It had grown much over the past couple of years and she
was sure it was just to get bigger. The sun glared in hatred with its ultraviolet rays upon
her face. A crowd was gathered at the beach, and she was pretty sure that she knew why. She
licked her lips and sighed, pulling back her raven hair as she headed for the beach.
There were cops everywhere, taking notes, investigating, pulling caution tape and draping it
over nearly every object within sight. There were some surfers and a few beachgoers being
questioned, and just massive amounts of people everywhere. The beach at been closed for the day,
so some were just there to complain while others gawked. But this wasn't what she was looking for.
She was looking for bodies. Viscera. Heads. Cold hard evidence that something otherworldly had
occured.
Then she found them. Cops were trying to keep people away, but she used her skills to sneak around
the gaurds unnoticed. It was an ugly sight. Four or five bodies all arranged in some sort of pattern,
stripped naked with their heads smashed in. It was so horrible, so evil. She had to keep the vomit
from rising in her throat.
"AAAAAGH!" She screamed.
"Ma'am, Im gonna have to ask you to leave." A cop had put his hand on her shoulder and frightened her.
"Oh, yes. Im so... SO sorry." She put her hands over her chest and gasped. She walked around the cop and
to the beach. She came to a young man, who couldn't be more then a year or so younger then her. He looked
stricken, like he just saw someone viciously murdered in front of him, which was possible, being the murders
happened somewhere around here. She walked over to the wide eyed, curly haired blonde boy and placed a hand on
his knee.
"Hey, Umm... I just noticed you looked so distracted. Umm, do you need to talk about something? I mean, did you know
one of those people or something?" She said calmly but sweetly, trying not to scare the man. He rapidly shook his head
no and then got up. He spoke, but never once looked at Rinoa.
"Those things... They were so horrible."He said, a calm but terrified tone in his voice. This caught Rinoa's attention.
"Things? What things? Did you see something???" She asked frantically. He shook his head no again, then finally turned to
her.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." He smiled. "You're being awful nice, yet I don't know your name."
Rinoa shook her head and smiled. She shook his hand. "Im Rinoa. Just call me Rinoa. And trust me, Ive seen a great deal
of weird things in my time. Now, you wanna tell me about what was so horrible?"
He started to walk along the beach and motioned for Rinoa to come.
"I was just there, in the middle of the ocean, fishing. The waves were alittle more rocky then usual, but I paid no attention
to it. All the sudden my boat flipped!!! I didn't know what happened, and I frantically tried to get back above water, but I got
stuck on something. I looked around, and all of the sudden, I saw this huge fish!!! It was ten times bigger then any great white.
Bigger then any one I've seen, anyway. It had brown scales, huge fins, and get this.... Arms and Legs!" He was very frightened, yet
enthused at the same time. It didn't surprise Rinoa as much as it would've anyone else, and got her to thinking. Could these be demons?
Or maybe just a new marine creature that had never been seen before.
"You don't seem shocked." He interrupted her thought process.
"Oh, Im sorry. I am, its just, I believe you, thats why Im not as shocked as I could be." She said thoughtfully. Then she came to a complete
stop. There were one of every shark, whale, and fish beached on the sand, viscera spilling on the sand, each with a different archaic symbol
carved on them.
"Can we just hold that thought for a second? I'll be right back." She smiled and walked a couple of feet away. She pulled out her cell phone and
dialed Merrick.
"Yo old man!" She said playfully.
'Oh hello, Rinoa. What have you found out so far?' He questioned, as every good watcher should.
"Well, let's just say our demon involvement just went from a lil' maybe to a big oh yeah. You need to get down here before the animal rights activists
come with their 'save the whales' posters. There are a bunch of sea animals beached here, and they got those funky things on them that usually spell
'come hearken the apocolypse' and stuff." She heard a gasp and a grunt of agreement from her watcher, then casually said 'bye.' She then walked back over
to the young man she met on the beach.
"Say, what was your name again? Didn't seem to catch it the first time, silly me." She giggled.
"Eli... Just call me Eli."
Rinoa got out of her buggy. She park just outside of the evergrowing coastal city of Balamb
to avoid the ever growing traffic. It had grown much over the past couple of years and she
was sure it was just to get bigger. The sun glared in hatred with its ultraviolet rays upon
her face. A crowd was gathered at the beach, and she was pretty sure that she knew why. She
licked her lips and sighed, pulling back her raven hair as she headed for the beach.
There were cops everywhere, taking notes, investigating, pulling caution tape and draping it
over nearly every object within sight. There were some surfers and a few beachgoers being
questioned, and just massive amounts of people everywhere. The beach at been closed for the day,
so some were just there to complain while others gawked. But this wasn't what she was looking for.
She was looking for bodies. Viscera. Heads. Cold hard evidence that something otherworldly had
occured.
Then she found them. Cops were trying to keep people away, but she used her skills to sneak around
the gaurds unnoticed. It was an ugly sight. Four or five bodies all arranged in some sort of pattern,
stripped naked with their heads smashed in. It was so horrible, so evil. She had to keep the vomit
from rising in her throat.
"AAAAAGH!" She screamed.
"Ma'am, Im gonna have to ask you to leave." A cop had put his hand on her shoulder and frightened her.
"Oh, yes. Im so... SO sorry." She put her hands over her chest and gasped. She walked around the cop and
to the beach. She came to a young man, who couldn't be more then a year or so younger then her. He looked
stricken, like he just saw someone viciously murdered in front of him, which was possible, being the murders
happened somewhere around here. She walked over to the wide eyed, curly haired blonde boy and placed a hand on
his knee.
"Hey, Umm... I just noticed you looked so distracted. Umm, do you need to talk about something? I mean, did you know
one of those people or something?" She said calmly but sweetly, trying not to scare the man. He rapidly shook his head
no and then got up. He spoke, but never once looked at Rinoa.
"Those things... They were so horrible."He said, a calm but terrified tone in his voice. This caught Rinoa's attention.
"Things? What things? Did you see something???" She asked frantically. He shook his head no again, then finally turned to
her.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." He smiled. "You're being awful nice, yet I don't know your name."
Rinoa shook her head and smiled. She shook his hand. "Im Rinoa. Just call me Rinoa. And trust me, Ive seen a great deal
of weird things in my time. Now, you wanna tell me about what was so horrible?"
He started to walk along the beach and motioned for Rinoa to come.
"I was just there, in the middle of the ocean, fishing. The waves were alittle more rocky then usual, but I paid no attention
to it. All the sudden my boat flipped!!! I didn't know what happened, and I frantically tried to get back above water, but I got
stuck on something. I looked around, and all of the sudden, I saw this huge fish!!! It was ten times bigger then any great white.
Bigger then any one I've seen, anyway. It had brown scales, huge fins, and get this.... Arms and Legs!" He was very frightened, yet
enthused at the same time. It didn't surprise Rinoa as much as it would've anyone else, and got her to thinking. Could these be demons?
Or maybe just a new marine creature that had never been seen before.
"You don't seem shocked." He interrupted her thought process.
"Oh, Im sorry. I am, its just, I believe you, thats why Im not as shocked as I could be." She said thoughtfully. Then she came to a complete
stop. There were one of every shark, whale, and fish beached on the sand, viscera spilling on the sand, each with a different archaic symbol
carved on them.
"Can we just hold that thought for a second? I'll be right back." She smiled and walked a couple of feet away. She pulled out her cell phone and
dialed Merrick.
"Yo old man!" She said playfully.
'Oh hello, Rinoa. What have you found out so far?' He questioned, as every good watcher should.
"Well, let's just say our demon involvement just went from a lil' maybe to a big oh yeah. You need to get down here before the animal rights activists
come with their 'save the whales' posters. There are a bunch of sea animals beached here, and they got those funky things on them that usually spell
'come hearken the apocolypse' and stuff." She heard a gasp and a grunt of agreement from her watcher, then casually said 'bye.' She then walked back over
to the young man she met on the beach.
"Say, what was your name again? Didn't seem to catch it the first time, silly me." She giggled.
"Eli... Just call me Eli."