|
Prologue
*Roles unassigned --- all players may appear within narration at any time. The story has no bearing on factions.
OngBonga's mouth felt particularly dry upon removing the worn saddle from his steed's backside and tying "Colt" to one of the available makeshift fence posts outside the saloon.
It had been a long day for him and the rest of his friends... some he had known for years and others were new arrivals in Gold Rush.
Upon pushing open the doors and taking in the familiar, aged atmosphere of his favorite watering hole, he was greeted by baudib and Keith, who had both come from behind the bar to greet the man who had single-handedly knocked off two bottles of whiskey during a recent binge-filled afternoon.
"So there's another body," asked Keith. "Yes," replied Ong coldly. "That makes three in as many nights."
"If we don't catch the person or people responsible for this, we'll lose our business here in town.," offered baudib.
Ong was chewing over the words... trying to think of the most appropriate way to reply when an attractive female approached him.
"I reckon you could use a lil' cleanin' up," said the female voice. It was SweetClaireRose, who had been responsible for running the saloon's brothel operations ever since Keith had rented out the annex years ago. The decision had been a profitable one, yet with the recent nighttime killings in Gold Rush, something had to be done... and quick-like! Otherwise, the typically rowdy bar room and lounge would be a ghost town before long.
"I'll be up yonder in a minute," twanged Ong. "Any of the gals up for a good time?"
"Flo's out sick but there's always Clementine and her daughter, Clementine Jr," SweetClaireRose noted with a mischievous smile. "I'm sure they can tidy ya' up just fine. I'll go upstairs and tell the girls to draw your bathwater in the meantime."
"Any brown ladies available," inquired Ong as he handed over a miniature leather pouch containing several silver coins.
bikes, who had stood up from his piano bench moments earlier chuckled, "We could always grease a cat's ass for ya!"
Ong rolled his eyes but greeted his friend with a firm handshake and provided a solemn nod... letting the musician know that yet another body had been discovered just on the outskirts of town. The body had been mutilated and its heart, for some reason, had been removed.
"Lord save us," exclaimed GatorJH, who had taken a break from the wood stove area where a large kettle of stew was being prepared for the nighttime customers. "What the hell are we gonna do?"
"We'll find him, or her, or them," stated gabe matter-of-factly. "The afternoon poker game is drying up because people have been staying indoors," added the lanky 6'4" character who was impeccably dressed.
With that, the crowd of buddies dispersed. Ong grabbed a half-filled bottle from the bar and strolled up toward a changing room, noticing that an attractive woman in her mid-40s was lifting a large washtub of water and placing it in one of the wood stoves, assisted by young Clementine Jr.
"I'll worry about villains tomorrow," Ong thought to himself. "Tonight is all about a good time."
-----
Meanwhile, across town, there was a commotion inside the General Store, where its manager a500lbgorilla was attempting to keep the peace during a heated argument.
Several townsfolk had gathered to share opinions on what should be done about the recent carnage in Gold Rush.
"I've about had enough of this shit," hollered GrayFoxxxx across the room. "Yeah, we've barely settled in here in Gold Rush and we learn that people are getting their hearts torn out," screamed Keybored.
"I say we start asking around and being very thorough in our investigation," said wufwugy, who subconsciously placed his right hand on top of his holstered six-shooter. "I've got plenty of guns, and a500lbgorilla here has plenty of rope," wufwugy added.
bigred, who seemed more interested in a triangular, wood-carved novelty with pegs sitting on the shelf allowed himself to be distracted. "I'm all for anything that gets us back to enjoying ourselves," he sighed.
"So we're really going to start hanging people we may have known all our lives," asked the town's physician, rong. "I've got enough on my hands without having to fill out any more death certificates."
"I'm sure you'll figure it out, Doc," came a voice from longtime rancher lolzzz_321. "It seems like the only way to root out whatever evil has invaded our beloved town."
"Well I reckon that settles it," chimed in Credsfan03, who had just arrived in Gold Rush a few months back in hopes of acquiring a nice tract of homestead land for his family.
"Time to let everyone else know," said lolzzz_321 with an air of finality.
The crowd exited the General Store one-by-one, and headed to the saloon to inform the others.
____________________
Narrator's Note: The introductory night phase will begin shortly. Factional-based Roles will be assigned at that time, and a running count of remaining villagers, angels, seers, vigilantes, and wolves will be published then.
Once the thread is unlocked Friday, all participants are welcome to post. However, Night #0 will be the only night-cycle in which players may post in this thread.
|