Erica
Shiny Browncoat
Unbeknownst to humans, the modern world is full of supernatural beings. Werewolves? Demons? Dragons? Faeries? Gnomes? Warlocks? Check, check, check, check, check, and check. Name a myth: there is some form of supernatural creature to support it in existence. However, they generally stay hidden from mortals. After all, so many of them rely upon humans for sustenance of one form or another, and it’s not nice to play with your food. Those who do not directly feed on humans recognize the wisdom of maintaining the public’s ignorance: no one benefits when mortals start hunting.
Among these supernatural creatures are gods, or rather, the remnants of gods. Their power is proportional to the faith/worship of their followers. When that faith disappears, their powers dwindle accordingly. Those with limited worshipers are left immortal with supernatural abilities, but only a shadow of what they once were. They walk among humans; some passing as mortal while others use their limited power for their own purposes.
Elder Gods exist as well - ones once feared and worshiped by primitive man, before they were cast out into the abyss. While relics from that time remain and there are a few insane humans who attempt the old rituals (luckily with no success so far), they are a memory best suppressed.
Each type of supernatural creature has its own strengths and weaknesses. Because they largely each keep to their own domains and territories, many are ignorant of the details about other supernatural creatures’ powers. They can sense the presence of another supernatural creature, but discerning which kind of supernatural requires touch and knowledge of the sensations that particular type of creature triggers.
The story begins...
Forty miles from North Creek and well into the back woods and green hills of northeastern Tennessee, a black Audi TT kicked up a cloud of dust in its wake as it raced along a dirt road toward the mountains. A tall redhead sat behind the steering wheel, occasionally glancing in her rearview mirror. It had been twenty minutes since the woman currently known as Sarah Rosewood had seen the black sedan behind her, and another ten beyond that since she had run for her life.
Admittedly, the Audi had stood out parked in front of Bob’s Bar and Grill in North Creek. Maybe that had been part of her error, although she didn’t think so. Sarah Rosewood had met prospective clients in stranger places, and this job had come by way of a trusted recommendation. So she had taken precautions and gone anyway. As it turned out, the precautions had been wise.
Sarah hated towns like North Creek, where residents wore their ignorance like a badge of honor as they waved the one minor notable fact about their city about like a cheerleader shakes pom-poms: in your face and with a lot of useless noise. In North Creek's case, it claimed to offer "the world's best BBQ": a claim as false as Internet troll posturing. On the plus side, it was beautiful if remote country, perched on the edge of a national forest, and the drive here had been peaceful.
Part of her had expected her contact to arrive at Bob’s in bib overalls with missing teeth. Instead, a smooth-talking suit that fit the location of the meet less than she did had tried to lie to her - her, of all people. When she refused the job and left, a group of five men had grabbed her and tried to haul her to one of two waiting black sedans. The poor local boy out front who tried to help her had received the shock of his life - literally - when one of the men pressed a medallion to his chest and chanted under his breath, causing the artifact to light up with electricity.
The gravity of the situation suddenly crystal clear, Sarah had chosen to enact her last-resort security measure before one of them opted to use a similar device on her. Her fail-safe left a magical signature behind for those able to detect and read it, but that risk was worth it to avoid being kidnapped for gods knew what purpose.
One of the two sedans attempted to follow her. They even did a fair job keeping pace with the Audi. When she crossed into the national forest, however, her pursuers slowed down and eventually disappeared from her rear view. She had a suspicion why they had stopped: this was someone's territory. Someone scarier than she was. Her initial research implied as much, but she had not planned to cross the border into someone else’s turf. Faced with poor options, she had chosen to put more distance between them before stopping to regroup. Once on the back roads through the beautiful if secluded woods, she hesitated to pull over.
She couldn’t delay any longer. It would be a miracle if she could get reception, and it wasn’t likely to get any better if she ventured further into the forest. So now the Audi finally slowed to a stop, pulling to the side of the road. Putting the vehicle in park, she checked her phone. “Perfect,” she muttered under her breath as she saw the “no service” indicator on the face of her phone. Waiting for the cloud of dust to clear the car, she opened the door and stepped outside, holding the phone toward the sky as if the satellites would suddenly benefit from a foot of gained proximity.
Unbelievably, it seemed to help. Or maybe it was just timing. Seeing a single bar on the phone, Sarah speed-dialed one of her contacts and hoped it would connect.
Among these supernatural creatures are gods, or rather, the remnants of gods. Their power is proportional to the faith/worship of their followers. When that faith disappears, their powers dwindle accordingly. Those with limited worshipers are left immortal with supernatural abilities, but only a shadow of what they once were. They walk among humans; some passing as mortal while others use their limited power for their own purposes.
Elder Gods exist as well - ones once feared and worshiped by primitive man, before they were cast out into the abyss. While relics from that time remain and there are a few insane humans who attempt the old rituals (luckily with no success so far), they are a memory best suppressed.
Each type of supernatural creature has its own strengths and weaknesses. Because they largely each keep to their own domains and territories, many are ignorant of the details about other supernatural creatures’ powers. They can sense the presence of another supernatural creature, but discerning which kind of supernatural requires touch and knowledge of the sensations that particular type of creature triggers.
The story begins...
Forty miles from North Creek and well into the back woods and green hills of northeastern Tennessee, a black Audi TT kicked up a cloud of dust in its wake as it raced along a dirt road toward the mountains. A tall redhead sat behind the steering wheel, occasionally glancing in her rearview mirror. It had been twenty minutes since the woman currently known as Sarah Rosewood had seen the black sedan behind her, and another ten beyond that since she had run for her life.
Admittedly, the Audi had stood out parked in front of Bob’s Bar and Grill in North Creek. Maybe that had been part of her error, although she didn’t think so. Sarah Rosewood had met prospective clients in stranger places, and this job had come by way of a trusted recommendation. So she had taken precautions and gone anyway. As it turned out, the precautions had been wise.
Sarah hated towns like North Creek, where residents wore their ignorance like a badge of honor as they waved the one minor notable fact about their city about like a cheerleader shakes pom-poms: in your face and with a lot of useless noise. In North Creek's case, it claimed to offer "the world's best BBQ": a claim as false as Internet troll posturing. On the plus side, it was beautiful if remote country, perched on the edge of a national forest, and the drive here had been peaceful.
Part of her had expected her contact to arrive at Bob’s in bib overalls with missing teeth. Instead, a smooth-talking suit that fit the location of the meet less than she did had tried to lie to her - her, of all people. When she refused the job and left, a group of five men had grabbed her and tried to haul her to one of two waiting black sedans. The poor local boy out front who tried to help her had received the shock of his life - literally - when one of the men pressed a medallion to his chest and chanted under his breath, causing the artifact to light up with electricity.
The gravity of the situation suddenly crystal clear, Sarah had chosen to enact her last-resort security measure before one of them opted to use a similar device on her. Her fail-safe left a magical signature behind for those able to detect and read it, but that risk was worth it to avoid being kidnapped for gods knew what purpose.
One of the two sedans attempted to follow her. They even did a fair job keeping pace with the Audi. When she crossed into the national forest, however, her pursuers slowed down and eventually disappeared from her rear view. She had a suspicion why they had stopped: this was someone's territory. Someone scarier than she was. Her initial research implied as much, but she had not planned to cross the border into someone else’s turf. Faced with poor options, she had chosen to put more distance between them before stopping to regroup. Once on the back roads through the beautiful if secluded woods, she hesitated to pull over.
She couldn’t delay any longer. It would be a miracle if she could get reception, and it wasn’t likely to get any better if she ventured further into the forest. So now the Audi finally slowed to a stop, pulling to the side of the road. Putting the vehicle in park, she checked her phone. “Perfect,” she muttered under her breath as she saw the “no service” indicator on the face of her phone. Waiting for the cloud of dust to clear the car, she opened the door and stepped outside, holding the phone toward the sky as if the satellites would suddenly benefit from a foot of gained proximity.
Unbelievably, it seemed to help. Or maybe it was just timing. Seeing a single bar on the phone, Sarah speed-dialed one of her contacts and hoped it would connect.
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