Murder In The Red Barn

The night air is cold in Greenville, Kentucky. But you can't feel in from the warmth of your bed, safe under the roof of the farm that's been in your family for generations. You sleep in the same master bedroom your grandfather died in. Spooky, maybe, but not unheard of for these parts of the country. The night is peaceful, usually. Nothing but crickets - maybe the occasional wandering critter. But tonight is different - something is stirring, out in the darkness. It sounds restless. //Angry.// In every man's life, there comes a time when he hits a fork in the road. [[Will you go out and investigate?->Out into the night]] [[Or ignore it, and go back to sleep. ->Sleep Is The Cousin Of Death]]

You stumble out of bed, look at the alarm clock beside your bed. (text-colour:red)[(text-style:"sway")[3:00 A.M.]] You're still a little drunk from earlier. Just like every night. You throw on something warm and cuss to yourself. That noise out there.... It's getting louder. A low, dark moan that rides the wind towards your house from somewhere in the brush. [[Still, it could be nothing....->Back to sleep]] [[But what if it's something?->Leave your room]]

You roll back over. Stay in the comfort of your warm bed, in your big house, safe in the knowledge that you //most likely// locked your doors and your windows. Besides, bad things don't happen in Greenville, do they? A wise man once said that sleep is the cousin of death. You'll never know which one you get to meet until the morning comes... But as you shut your eyes, the noise gets louder. Closer. Something in the dark is //hungry.// [[Return to beginning->The Beginning]]

You walk out into the hallway. The hall is long, the walls decorated with peeling paint and family portraits - long dead ancestors frozen in dead-eyed stares as they watch you move through your home. The floorboards (text-style:"expand","sway")[//creeeeeaaaaaak//] under your feet as you walk. The noise outside is still there. You can - [[Go grab your gun->The Gun Room ]] [[Go outside to investigate->Stumbling in the dark]] [[Check the window and see if you notice anything->Nothing... what now?]]

Besides, bad things don't happen in Greenville, do they? A wise man once said that sleep is the cousin of death. You'll never know which one you get to meet until the morning comes... But as you shut your eyes, the noise gets louder. Closer. Something in the dark is //hungry.// [[Back to beginning->The Beginning]]

You head down to the gun room. Rifles, shotguns, and pistols galore.You settle on a shotgun and pull it out of it's case. It was your father's gun - his initials are still carved into the hilt. [[Keep the safety on and move out->Beast outside (safety on)]] [[Flick the saftey off and move out->Beast outside (safety off)]]

You step out into the cold night air. The noise gets clearer, and when your eyes adjust, you can see the trees take form in the moonlight. The noise is some kind of voice, or howl. Vaguely human but... not quite. [[It seems to be coming from the barn->The beast in the barn ]]

You go to check the window. The night is calm and your yard is clear. Nothing stirs out in the murky blackness of Kentucky evening. Still... that sound... It's out there somewhere... [[Grab your gun->Gun room (not enough time)]] [[Go out and investigate further->Killed outside]]

You hear the door open, just as (text-style:"condense")[softly] and (text-style:"condense")[gently] as if it had been opened by a man. You cock your shotgun. (text-colour:red)[The Beast ] seems to hesitate for a moment, before continuing into your home. [[Set an ambush->Killed 6]] [[Confront him->Killed 5]]

You make your way down to the barn, and find the light is on inside. Odd... you never leave the light at night. The sound is coming from inside. A deep, pitiful, part-man part-animal (text-style:"expand","buoy")[moan] is eminating from within the barn. Through the doors, you catch a glimpse of what's making it. A hulking and terrifying figure, covered in dark matted hair, is hunched over the corpse of a cow. It stands like a man but eats like a wolf, and the sound of flesh tearing from bone soon accompanies it's gutteral laments. [[Go back to the house->Back to the house (beast follows)]] [[Confront it->Killed 2]]

You head down to the gun room. Rifles, shotguns, and pistols galore.You settle on a shotgun and pull it out of it's case. It was your father's gun - his initials are still carved into the hilt. [[Keep the safety on and move out->Beast in the house (safety on)]] [[Flick the saftey off and move out->Beast in the house (safety off)]]

You step out into the night, and realize your mistake quickly. //The sound has gotten closer.// You don't have enough time to react when (bg:red)[The Beast] strikes. You see the glint of a claw in the moonlight. A big, dark arm swing through the air. A hulking monstrosity rushes through the shadows towards you, with gnashing teeth and matted hair. The sound is gone, replaced with a dark and vengeful growling and the beast pursues you. You run, foot after foot through the grass. The Beast runs faster. [[The Beginning->The Beginning]]

You make your way down to the barn, and find the light is on inside. Odd... you never leave the light at night. The sound is coming from inside. A deep, pitiful, part-man part-animal (text-style:"expand","buoy")[moan] is eminating from within the barn. Through the doors, you catch a glimpse of what's making it. A hulking and terrifying figure, covered in dark matted hair, is hunched over the corpse of a cow. It stands like a man but eats like a wolf, and the sound of flesh tearing from bone soon accompanies it's gutteral laments. [[Confront it->Victory 2]] [[Ambush->Partial victory 2]]

You make your way back to the house as quietly as you can, but you can't shake the fear of what happens if that.... that //thing// should happen to follow. You don't have a lot of options. You could try and call the Sheriff, but even if they pick up this time of night, they'll never take you seriously. No, it's better to handle this yourself. [[Hide and wait it out->Killed 3]] [[Head to the gun room ->Gun room (not enough time)]]

You try to get the jump on the beast, but foolishly, you let your guard down enough that you disturb some tools that had been left on the ground with your foot. (text-colour:red)[The Beast] turns. It's eyes burn red like the coals of hell. A struggle breaks out and you both fight, but he fights stronger and harder. Soon, you find yourself dead, your eyes locked in dreamless slumber with the rotting cow, as (bg:red)[The Beast] prepares for his next meal.

You hide in your closet like a child after a nightmare, acutely aware of how the noise in the dark grows ever closer. You hope and pray for it to get tired and leave, but.... Part of you knows that it won't. The front door opens - as quietly and delicately as if it was a human turning the handle. The snarl that rings out into the night is anything //but// charming and delicate. Soon, the sound of growls and low, haunting moans gets louder and louder, until it's right outside of the closet door. The door opens... [[Death follows->The Beginning]]

You wait until (text-colour:red)[The Beast] is about to be right on you. Just where you want him. You jump out from the shadows, the barrell of your gun inches from his face. You pull the trigger. The safety is on. (text-colour:red)[The Beast] knocks your gun away with a swing of his hand. [[Death follows.->The Beginning]]

You step out into the hallway and see him. (text-colour:red)[The Beast ]. A hulking, giant, bastard of a thing. It's eyes look like they belong to the Devil himself. He stands eight feet tall, and his teeth... his teeth glow in the moonlight. In a snap, he charges you. Faster than anything you've ever seen before. You go to pull the trigger on your gun- You left the safety on. Your thumb moves to flick it off, but it's too late. He's already on you. [[The last thing you see are those pale, sharp teeth. ->The Beginning]]

You wait until (text-colour:red)[The Beast] is about to be right on you. Just where you want him. You jump out from the shadows, the barrell of your gun inches from his face. You pull the trigger. A blast of hot, fiery buckshot explodes from the end of the gun, and The Beast howls and clutches it's face as molten lead embeds itself into the creature. Whatever didn't hit The Beast butchers the hallway wall behind it. (text-colour:red)[The Beast] stumbles, roars, and then falls to the ground. [[God have mercy, imagine what it could have done if it got a hold of you.->The Beginning]]

You step out from the shadows and levy your gun at (text-colour:red)[The Beast]. It sees you and charges forward, and you pull the trigger as it does. Fire spits from the end of your gun with a bang so loud it leaves your (text-style:"rumble")[ears ringing. ] You hit The Beast in the chest, and it howls in pain with a voice so hellish, so terrible, it shakes you to the very core. You go to cock the gun again, but the beast charges once more. This time, back out into the night air. Hopefully, it'll bleed to death somewhere out in the wilderness... Or, it'll come back another night..... And this time, it'll be [[//a personal visit.//->The Beginning]]

You try to get the jump on the beast, but when you pull the trigger, the safety is on. Terror grips your heart, and you fumble with the safety of your gun, but adrenaline has frozen your hands. (text-colour:red)[The Beast] turns. It's eyes burn red like the coals of hell. A struggle breaks out and you both fight, but he fights stronger and harder. Soon, you find yourself dead, your eyes locked in dreamless slumber with the rotting cow, as (bg:red)[The Beast] prepares for his next meal. [[The Beginning->The Beginning]]

You try to get the jump on the beast, and wait for him to exit the barn before you pull the trigger. You realize too late that the safety is still on. You try to fumble with it and turn it off, but it's no use. Fear has seized your heart, and you feel frozen from the adrenaline. (text-colour:red)[The Beast] turns. It's eyes burn red like the coals of hell. A struggle breaks out and you both fight, but he fights stronger and harder. Soon, you find yourself dead, your eyes locked in dreamless slumber with the rotting cow, as (bg:red)[The Beast] prepares for his next meal. [[The Beginning->The Beginning]]

You step forward into the barn, gun cocked and ready to go. The Beast sees you and turn, giving you a snarl before he lurches forward, claws outstretched and jaws gnashing. You pull the trigger and the gun (text-colour:orange)[(text-style:"expand","rumble")[explodes]] in your hand. You hit The Beast dead center, and he goes flying back into the wall of the barn. He lets out a choked, gargled moan as blood seeps into the hay underneath him. [[You cock the gun and eject a shell.->The Beginning]]

You set up in the brush outside the barn, lying prone with your gun cocked and ready. The Beast steps out into the cold night air, his snout towards the stars as he sniffs at the wind. He pauses. //He knows.// You fire the gun and it explodes in your hand. You hit him, and he howls, but he doesn't go down. Instead, he runs off into the night, clutching his side and trying to stem the torrent of blood rushing down his body. You live, for now. [[But he'll be back.->The Beginning]]