Scott blinked as the girl put more effort into the song's opening than in the last one. It was as though she actually felt something. She slid her hands down her chest then further down along her stomach. "You can even take my bo-dy..." she sang out in a discordant sound that seemed to come from two voices at once.
Flames exploded on both sides of her just as her eyes snapped open and the music stopped altogether. "But don't call me zombie!" cried out Brittani. The musical score returned, this time in a sudden surge of pulse pounding guitar and synthesizer sounds that made the ghouls start to thrash around wildly.
[System Warning!]
The ghouls have become overly stimulated. Their stats will increase by small increments each turn until the source of the stimulation ends.
[--]
"Of course," said Scott with a sigh. He knew it.
Brittani sang out. "We are the people of the grave, won't ever be your slave, always standing proud and ready...."
The ghouls roared out their approval then turned toward Scott. He had at least twenty of the bastards still left to fight.
"Our bodies may be rotten, but our homeland's not for-gotten..." sang Brittani in a heartfelt series of notes.
The closest ghoul trotted three steps toward Scott. That alone caused his eyes to widen. He had to get this party started hard. Burning soul was activated as soon as his turn came around.
Brittani leaned forward and poured her heart into the strange lyrics. "Who needs a beating heart or working veins to be some-body...?"
Scott tore into the closest ghoul with a hard strike to its solar plexus. It tried to slide sideways, but it was not yet fast enough to dodge the strikes of its more agile opponent. It did not go down with the first strike, but the follow up attack that connected with its shoulder bit down hard and tore through its rotting clavicle. It was a coordinated attack that generated seventy-six points of damage.
"We'll bear our fangs, and use our claws to tear down all that stands before us.... Yeeaah!" sang the girl as she put every bit of herself into the words. It was obvious that they meant something to her.
Scott managed to defeat two of the ghouls before his turn ended. No more appeared like they had done earlier, but the ones still in the area had grown much stronger already.
Two ghouls rushed up to him from four steps away. Only one was able to strike, however. Scott tried to counter the hard diagonal strike that the fat ghoul launched his way, but he was not fast enough to do so completely. He ended up partially deflecting it with his bush axe. The beast's claws tore into his shoulder ripping through his coat and tearing several shallow cuts in his flesh for minor hit point damage.
Brittani swayed her hips from side-to-side rhythmically while she reached out the crowd. "Always we roam," Brittani took a breath then sang out sweetly, "But never a-lone..."
The ghouls in the crowd all sang out in one eerie voice. "The eternal horde is now our home."
Scott would have taken an involuntary step back if it was his turn. As it was, he was only able to take a half-step, while the rest of the mini-horde made their moves. Once again, someone was able to move when they were supposed to be frozen. The thought that he actually took that half-step, rattled around in Scott's head for a brief moment while he waited for the horde to come to him.
The undead songstress started to clap her hands and stomp her feet. "We are... We a-rrre... the children of the grave."
The ghouls on the battlefield began to clap their hands and stomp their feet in time with the music, much to Scott's growing discomfort. Brittani sang out again. "No matter what... Our future, we will save..."
The ghouls started to pant heavily. A few began to growl. Scott gripped his bush axe tight then went back to the business of killing. The fat ghoul slipped away from his first strike, a hard lunge toward his neck, but Scott twisted his weapon in his head and cut a hard sideways swipe that cut deeply into the monster's rotting neck fat and cleaved through its windpipe.
Black blood sputtered weakly from the wound while the monster staggered back. Scott finished him off with a hard overhead strike that tore open the ghoul's skull.
He did not stop there, he immediately moved one step toward his other opponent and activated Flame Strike before utilizing Power Cleave to further boost the destructive potential of his next attack. The ghoul tried to avoid the blade wrapped in blazing blue flame, but Scott sheared through its shoulder and continued downward to cleave through her thigh. The ghoul fell sideways as a high damage number, minus one hundred sixty-seven, appeared above the dying beast.
Brittani continued to sing, and Scott continued to try his best to survive. With each turn that the ghouls took, they grew a little stronger and moved a little faster. Soon they were all easily equal in level to Scott when it came to speed, and movement.
He was forced to become inventive to do as much damage during his attack phase as possible before pulling back. He used burning soul to give himself a chance. It lasted three turns and was his most economical power.
The most creative thing that he learned to do was launch a feint attack to force a ghoul off guard. He would then reverse his movements while executing a Power Cleave that delivered an attack that they were ill-suited to dodge due to their previous dodging movement putting them off-balance.
Unfortunately, that also meant that his stamina plummeted like a rock after a few turns. He was forced to start walking away as much as he dared during his turns in order to rebuild a little stamina. Soon, the ghouls were strong enough that they could all move four or five steps per turn, however, and that made his tactic far more difficult to pull off without getting hemmed up by one ghoul or another.
It became a battle of wills and placement strategy. Scott had to survive until the end of the song. If he did, the ghouls would supposedly lose the incredible power boost they currently received. His movements were not perfect. He took several glancing strikes that did terrible damage to his body. Soon, he sported nearly a dozen new heavy scratches that bled profusely. His hit points were close to zero, and his stamina fared little better.
"Seriously, how long is this song?" panted Scott while he staggered six steps away from the ghouls chasing him. He had stopped attacking altogether a while back. There were at least a dozen ghouls left and he was not certain he could withstand any more attacks. His blood stained the ground wherever he was forced to a stop after each turn.
"You can hate me..." sang out Brittani softly. Scott hopped back to avoid the swipe of a ghoul's claws.
She continued the wind down of her song, "You can kill me..." while Scott whirled his blade to the left to block the next strike from his opponent. He finished his counter with a hard upward cleave that split open the chest of his foe. "You can even take my bo-dy..."
The ghoul fell backward and hit the ground just as the songstress finished her song. "But don't call me zombie..." The word zombie echoed several times while Scott dodged a few strikes from yet another ghoul. Once the trailing echoes finally ended, so too did the attacks.
Scott found himself unable to move much once more, but it did not matter. The ghouls had stopped their attacks and turned to Brittani.
"Thank you all for coming out," she said in a sweet, sad, tone. "I'll see you again soon, my little ghouls."
"We love you Brittani!" cried the ghouls energetically.
She smiled at them then turned to glance at Scott. A shy smile crossed her lips then she nodded. "Everyone stay safe out there! Good night!"
He did not know why he said it, but for some reason it seemed important to say something. "Good night Brittani."
The ghoul superstar's eyes widened a little, and so did her smile. "A first name basis, huh?" She curled her hands into fists then punched one of them up into the air. "Yes! I finally talked to a boy!"
"I'm a boy!" shouted one of the male ghouls.
Brittani laughed at her rotting fan. "That's true, but I meant that I talked to a living boy..."
"Way to go girl!" cried o
ut one of the female ghouls.
Scott looked around at the strange group of ghouls and wondered what would happen next. Could the day get any weirder?
The popstar canted her hips to the side then raised a finger to her lips. "I'm out people, play nice with humans!"
"We will," answered the ghouls in unison via a sing-song style of voice.
She glanced back at Scott. "And... As for you Mr. Badass...Maybe we could like get coffee, or share a brain, or something sometime?"
"As long as it's not my brain," said Scott without thinking. At this point he was still glad to be standing.
Brittani laughed a little then placed her index and middle fingers to her lips. She then cocked her head to the side, closed one eye and made a finger gun. "Bang! Right to the heart."
For a moment Scott expected to get shot, but as it happened the strange undead popstar was just being cute. "Bullets. My one weakness. How did you know?" asked Scott just before his vision became fuzzy. Blood loss and low-stamina were a hell of a combination. Though, one would think that he was used to it by now.
Brittani laughed then blew him a kiss before sauntering off into the darkness. The moment she left several agonized shrieks erupted from the ghouls left behind. A rapid fire series of numbers erupted into the air followed by nearly twenty ghouls falling to the earth simultaneously.
The light of battle faded and all that was left behind was one badly injured man, and the corpses of the fallen. At least, that was what was originally left. Not long after the battle ended, six columns of light rose up. Five came from corpses. The sixth was much larger and arose from a point just in front of the door to the barn.
Scott snatched up the loot from the corpses then glanced back toward where the girl had been hiding around the corner of a pile of logs. He saw her peeking out at him, and he smiled. He waved her over. Timidly, she stepped out then looked around wide-eyed.
He repeated his waving gesture more emphatically. He did not want to call out to her. The fight had made enough noise as it was no doubt. The last thing he wanted to deal with was another wave of ghouls while he healed up from the concert from hell. The battlefield deadened sound somewhat, but that didn't mean it was muted altogether.
While she ran over as best she could with her pathetic stats, Scott moved to the door to the barn and collected the small golden treasure chest that floated there. He suspected that it was his rewards for the quest.
The girl caught up and she started knocking on the door. She called out for her family and Scott closed his eyes tight. She was so damned noisy. He doubted that he had made so much noise even during his fight.
“Anna?!” called a frightened female voice.
“Mama! Open up! We have Daisy’s inhaler!” called out Anna, loudly.
Scott hissed, balled his hand into a fist, and place a knuckle to his forehead. “Quieter!”
Anna looked at him, her eyes wide once more. “Oh! Sorry!” she said, still a little too loudly.
The barn door opened and Scott was greeted to the sight of a pretty older woman, and a young boy. The boy was holding a pitch fork that was twice his size.
“Come on,” said Anna to Scott.
The one called mama looked at Scott then glanced to the pile of corpses behind him. Her eyes grew frightened. “N-no. Stay back.”
“What? Mama, he saved me! He saved all of us,” said Anna.
“No! Don’t.” The pretty woman’s eyes were wide in fright and she waved her hands around in a warding gesture.
Scott glanced back at the corpses, noted the gore covering his own body, and recalled the terrible wounds on his body. He sighed a little then said, “No, I get it.”
She was a little unhinged by recent events, but he had to get through to her. “Look, you can’t stay here. These things will come after you again.”
“No, don’t,” she said.
Scott sighed then reached into his pocket. He pulled out the mission letter that he had received. “Was this you? Please God don’t let them in. Please. Don’t let them get my babies?”
The frightened woman acquired a strange expression then she started to cry. “You… Who?”
“Just a guy answering an earnest prayer,” said Scott. It was true enough, it seemed. Whatever the hell that weird concert had been about, it was still just a precursor to making it to this barn.
“Oh! God… Oh…” She started to babble.
“Ma’am, the longer we stay out here with the door open, the more likely it will be that more of these things come,” said Scott.
“Of- of course.” She moved aside and they went inside. Scott shut and barred the barn door.
“Where’s Daisy?” asked Anna.
“Daisy? Oh, yes. She’s up in the hay loft,” said Mama.
Anna ran off to administer the inhaler to her little sister. Scott was left alone with the babbling pretty woman, and the young boy who still actively pointed a pitchfork at him.
“What’s your names?” asked Scott.
“Names? Oh, uhm…” she stammered softly.
“It’s OK, I’m not going to bite you, or anything. I just want to know your situation better,” said Scott. What he really wanted to do was check his loot and run back to his house. But he had gotten involved so he felt a slight hint of responsibility for the situation. Not enough to care that much, but enough to at least see what these people were all about.
“Tammi, Tammi Rhoades. This is my son, Wayne. You’ve met Anna,” she said, finally.
“Your other daughter is Daisy then? Is there anyone else here?” asked Scott.
“Yes, Daisy.” She nodded, but then sighed. “No, no one else is here. My husband was called in to deal with the rioting. He’s a deputy.”
Scott nodded. In other words, it was very likely that he was dead. He hoped not, for the sake of these people.
“My name is Scott. Look, you can’t stay here. Nowhere is safe, but my place is slightly safer than this. Your family is welcome to come stay at my place for now,” said Scott.
She shook her head. “I-I have to find my husband.”
Scott looked at her. He knew that she knew the truth. Her husband was probably dead, or walking around trying to kill other people. “What about your children?”
She winced. The little boy spoke up then. “What about us? Who do you think you are?”
“The guy who just saved you,” stated Scott simply.
Wayne snorted and poked his pitchfork forward. “We aren’t going with you!”
Scott glanced at the little kid. “That’s your mother’s decision. I’m not going to force anyone to do anything. Though, I doubt any more prayer requests will be getting answered.”
Tammi hissed then placed her hand to her mouth. Her perpetually wide eyes began to tear up. “We’re being so rude. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. It’s not like any of this makes sense,” he said. “Look, while you make up your mind. Is there a window in the hayloft? I need to see if any more of those things are coming right now.”
“Yes.” She made a sniffling sound then bit her lip. “Do- Do you think more will come?”
“Definitely. It’s only a matter of time. I’m leaving soon, either way. You have till then to make up your mind.” Scott had no problem with helping people, but he would not force anyone to do something against their will. He did not owe these people anything, and he did not own them either. Everyone had to make their own way in the world now.
“You would just leave us here?” she asked desperately.
“I made an offer. If you say no, what right do I have to force the situation? You’re the one choosing to stay here,” he asked.
“How far? You know, to your house?” she asked quickly.
“We aren’t going!” snapped Wayne. “We have to wait for dad.”
“Wayne...” she said carefully.
“No!” snapped the mouthy little brat.
“I’m sorry…” she said to Scott.
Scott quirked an eyebr
ow. “Who’s the parent here? Are you really going to let your kid kill your entire family?”
“Kill us?” she asked, confused.
“You stay here. You die. That is not open for debate. Those things nearly clawed through that door by the time I got here. By tomorrow, you’ll be shambling around looking for dinner,” said Scott.
“We aren’t going!” snapped Wayne. He thrust his pitchfork toward Scott.
Scott easily dodge the attack and grabbed the handle. “Kid. Shut your damned mouth before you get your whole family killed.”
“Let go. We have to wait for dad,” cried the little boy in a loud and obnoxious manner.
“Your dad’s dead,” said Scott calmly.
The little kid glared hatefully at him. His face turned bright red and he shouted, “No he’s not.”
Scott was not particularly good with kids. “You keep acting like that and everyone you care about is going to be dead, too. Now shut your damned mouth before you bring every hungry thing in town down on us.”
“Fuck you,” said Wayne. It was obvious that the kid had a major chip on his shoulder, as the saying goes.
“Wayne Delilah Rhoades! What did you just say?!” Tammi spoke heatedly.
“Delilah?” asked Scott incredulously. He’d have had a chip on his shoulder too if his middle name was Delilah.
“Mom! This guy just wants to fuck you! Just like that guy you leave with at night,” snapped Wayne.
Tammi’s hand snaked out and slapped her son hard across the face. Scott tried to determine whether that was justified, or child abuse. Either way, this nice and happy family had its problems.
“You don’t talk to me like that,” said Tammi.
Wayne glared at his mother then huffed loudly and looked down at the ground. “It’s what dad says…”
Tammi snorted. “Your dad says a lot of things that people shouldn’t say.”
“But…” began Wayne, before allowing his rebuttal to trail off into the air.
Scott sighed loudly. He already hated himself for what he was about to say next. “Look. If it will keep you two from slapping each other stupid, I’ll go look for your husband Mrs. Rhoades.”
Earth Tactics Advance: Volume 1 Page 11