Chapter 3: Decisions

The survivors decide they can't stay where they are and must brave the fog.

“Where am I?” Fallon asked.  No matter how weird this place seemed Fallon didn’t feel threatened.  It was as if the very stones emanated an aura of safety.

“Good question there lad, I’m not sure of the answer myself.” The other people began to wake to the man’s deep baritone rumble.  “Plenty of time for questions.  I guess we can start with names. I’m Ian, this one here is Rose.” Ian said helping up the sleepy looking redhead.  “And this here is Sara, not the morning person this one.” He said patting awake the still sleeping blond woman.  “Now, what should I call you?”

“Fallon  … You can call me Fallon.” Way to project confidence.  Jeeze. “So … umm I take it this isn’t San Francisco?” Wherever this is its cold.  Fallon looked out past the stones. Maybe up in Washington?  It sure is green enough for there but too flat.  A flat green field shimmered with a light coat of frost with wisps of steam rising and blending with a thin morning mist.  Beyond the field boiled a frothing black curtain of fog.  Fallon shivered remembering the things that lived in it.

“And your friends, what do they go by?” Ian asked motioning towards the young woman and the little girl that were just getting up and moving closer to the fire.  The woman froze when she noticed that they were looking at her.  She looked to where she was holding the little girl’s hand for a moment before standing up strait and squaring her shoulders.

She took a deep breath before saying. “My names Fae Danvers.  I don’t know this one’s name.  I found you both in that fog.  You were bleeding and she was hurt as well.  I didn’t know what to do so I went for help and we ended up here.”  She said in a rush.  “Anyway … you’re welcome.  Now if you don’t mind we’ll be going. I need to get home before my mum kills me.” She looked out toward the fog and the determined glare gave way to to an expression of such loss that Fallon felt his hart clench in shared pain.  “I don’t want to back into that fog …” She whispered before sitting back down next to the fire.  The pale sun wasn’t strong enough for the stones to cast shadows.  Everything was soft edged and faded with the mist draining the color from the very air.

“Well that’s the rub now isn’t it.  We can’t stay here can we?  We have no food, no shelter, and that was the last of the wood so it gonna get right cold soon.  I think we need to agree that we’ve all fallen down the rabbit hole so I vote we go find Alice and give her a piece of our minds.” Ian said. The last of the fires flames flittered out leaving only woodsmoke and embers to keep the cold at bay.

“Are we dead? What if we’re lost in the spirit world.” Rose interrupted. “You did magic last night Ian when you healed them and those … things in the mist … maybe they’re demons.  Oh! We were in a car crash and didn’t survive that.  Things went all wonkie while you were driving.  You killed me! B*****d!”  She cried swatting Ian on the head.

“Rose! Your not helping” Ian said grabbing Rose’s hands and pulling her into his lap. “We don’t know what’s happened.  Alive, dead, insane doesn’t really matter.  Either we stay here and give up or we move forward and figure out what’s going on.” Ian said taking charge of the conversation again.  Rose snuggled closer to Ian’s warmth clearly used to this seating arrangement.

Fallon didn’t know what to think.  He’d been shot in the chest and had the blood stains to prove it.  This temple, and thats what this place appeared to be, felt magical.  The very air seemed to be charged.  Ian was right denying what was right in front of him wouldn’t help. They were going to have to roll with it and try and survive.

“I’m hungry … I want my mom.” The little girl’s cries interrupted Fallon’s thoughts.

“Oh! You poor little thing.” Sara said sitting down next to Fae and the little girl. “We are just getting ready to go find some breakfast. What’s your name?”

“Molly. Will you take me home?”

“Shh, its Ok. We’ll find your mom I promise.”  Fae said pulling Molly into her lap and burying her nose in Molly’s hair as she hugged her close.

“Right.” Ian said. “So we need a plan.”

“Food and a shower wouldn’t hurt.” Fallon interrupted.  “Lets work on the basics like better shelter until we get rescued.”

“Yes basics first.” Ian agree. “Let’s assume this really is Stonehenge.  There should be a village close by”

“Winterborne Stoke” Rose said wiggling free of Ian’s hold and standing up. Brushing out the wrinkles  in her dress she said “Good pub. Just down the A303.” She pointed off over Fallon’s shoulder towards the west.  Rose moved over towards where their bedding laid and started folding their blanket.

“Right. So we go there and find out what they know while we get warm and fed.” Ian said. Standing as well.  Holding the shoulder straps of his overhauls, Ian stretched out his large girth and yawned.

“But, what if it’s not there?  I mean I’m from Dublin and Fallon is from even further.” Fae said looking at Fallon. “I mean, how did we all get here together? There’s no way we all just walked here. Why should we believe if we go back into that stuff we won’t end up in China or even get split up?” Fae demanded glaring at Ian.  Fallon thought she looked cute with her thin red eyebrows bunched together into a scowl.  She definitely looked hard to handle not that Fallon didn’t want to try, handling her that is.

“Doesn’t matter.  What we do know is we can’t stay here.  I agree with Ian we have to take our chances.  We head to that village and if it isn’t there we stick together and keep going.  Pick a direction and just keep going strait so we don’t end up going in circles.” Fallon responded meeting Fae’s glare with a grin.  Fae was an interesting contradiction; a hard charging tom boy to the world but soft and gentle with Molly.  I bet she’s the older sibling, Fallon thought.

“So we in agreement then?  You lot stick with us and we go find someplace better?” Ian said grabbing his leather bag and swinging it over his shoulder.

“Next stop, the Mad Hatter’s” Fallon quipped grinning.  There was no way Fallon was going to show his nerves to this audience.  There was no way he was going to be out machoed by a tom boy no matter hot hot she was.

***

Fae didn’t know what to think.  She didn’t want to go back into the fog but she also didn’t want to be left behind.  If Danny was here he’d say that we were all fucked so we might as well lay back and enjoy it.  Molly was a warm bundle in her arms.  The rest of them could bugger off for all she cared.  She was going to get Molly back home. She’d stick with the others until she could snag some transportation then split.  Ian seemed to be one of those I know what’s best for you so do as I say prigs so sooner she was gone the better.

“Ok. Lets do this then.” She said standing up and propping Molly on her hip. Molly’s weight immediately started to cause her chain mail shirt to dig into her skin. Of all days to get stuck wearing her clubbing kit.  “We’re wasting daylight and I don’t want to be stuck in that stuff after dark.”  She said stifling a shiver. If some brainiac like Fallon could buck up and be professional then so could she.  She tossed them all her best kicking-a*s-and-taking-names face.

Without further comment Fae found herself following behind - and what a behind it was - Fallon as they entered the fog. Following along almost on auto pilot Fae thought about everything that happened yesterday.  Was it real or just a dream.  If it was a dream then how could they all seem to share the same one? The weight of Molly shifting uncomfortably on her hip was a raw ache that drew her away from her thoughts. Molly was shivering from the cold and Fae wished she could wrap Molly in her Jacket except that would only show everyone just how see-through her shirt was. Fae didn’t know how long they had been walking but they were now deep in the fog.  They were surrounded by a trackless forrest that disappeared into the fog in all directions.  Fae stopped to shift Molly onto her other hip bringing their group to a halt.

“Give me the child dear.  Let’s bundle her up in this blanket.” Sara said taking Molly from Fae’s arms and wrapping her in the thin felt blanket.  “How’s that dear? Warmer now?” Molly nodded and shifted deeper into the blanket.  “I’ll hold her for a bit if you don’t mind.  Give your arms a rest.”

Molly looked content where she was so Fae decided not to press the issue. “Sure.  Let me know when you get tired and I’ll hold her again.” They began to move on and Fae focused on their surroundings.  The trees were warped and bare of leaves. Devoid of life like a skeletal graveyard.  The sound of their passage was muted as if the oppressive silence was draining the very sounds of life from the air.  Time seemed to be a flexible thing and Fae wasn’t sure if it was a minute or an hour that had passed when they stopped again.

“Well bugger me.” Ian said looking around.  “This should of been where we left the van. I swear that this was the spot but where is the road?”  Ian began to circle and pace looking into the mist.

“If I was to make the list of strange things that happened since this s**t started, trees wouldn’t even make the top 10.” Fallon said watching Ian pace back and forth. “I believe the quote ‘Fasten your seatbelt Dorothy, because Kansas has gone bye-bye’ applies best to our situation.”

Fae thought Fallon had made a good point. “Right, standing round here bitching about what should be here isn’t helping.  Lets move on and find some food and drink.  I really don’t want to be stuck in here after dark.”  Now that they weren't moving the air’s chill was seeping into Fae’s skin making it tingle as if thousands of ants were crawling under her skin.  “Come on already. Lets keep going.”

“What was that?” Rose interrupted pointing behind them.  “Did you hear that?”

Fae turned where Rose pointed and listened.  Molly was whimpering quietly in Sara’s arms and there was a faint chorus of beating drums around them.  As Fae listened the beating became louder as the pace quickened.  Thump thump, thump thump.  Fae swung around looking for the source.  Everyone was pointing now and yelling; their voices lost to the thundering beat. Thump thump thump, thump thump thump. Pounding louder and louder keeping time with her heart.  She wanted taste the blood coursing in time with the beat.
Oh. My. God.  It was their heartbeats. Fae could hear their heartbeats calling to her hunger.  She wanted to feel their flesh under her claws and fangs as she ripped and tore.  To feel the warm meat in her mouth as the blood gushed in time to the beat.  To feel their life blood wash over her jaws.

A bright flash of light broke Fae out of the bloodlust.  Fallon had raised his hand and a burst of light had flown from his hand and struck - something.  Some nightmare of course brown fur, massive clawed paws on limbs the width of tree trunks, lost within wriggling tentacles covered in toothy suckers dripping with blood and gore.  A nightmare cross between a bear and octopus that was a big an elephant.

Another burst of light flew from Fallon’s hand and hit the beast burning and melting across its massive chest before the beast was upon him.  Fae didn’t think so much as react.  She leaped into the mass of tentacles.  Her black fur covered paws ripping and tearing.  The warm feel of the beast’s flesh filled her jaws as her weight slammed into the beast. Down they went into a ball of snarling jaws and claws ripping into each other.

Reviews

[Michael Schiebel]

11/15/09
I've updated the chapter. This still is at a stage that I normally wouldn't share. I usually start a chapter laying out the dialog flow with notes on action. I then go back and describe the action that takes place. Third pass adds the descriptive detail to show movement and pacing. Fourth pass changes up the description to ensure it is from the point of view of the character. I try to have the description match the characters inner landscape. Sweeping detail for calm and collected, brief and scattered for tense, etc. I am attempting to have the description conflict as the points of view shift between Fae and Fallon to reflect their inner bias. As always my wants for my writing doesn't match my capability as a writer to deliver.

[Jenny Nelson]

So far so good. Still got my undivided attention.