{"sf1_id":618399,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Guns of Legend: Chapter Thirteen","author":"ThisAdamGuy","words":981,"posted_at":"2013-11-26T13:47:00.000Z","tags":["Cowboys","Fantasy","Guns","Indians","Magic","Shotguns","Western","pistols","rifles"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/618399-guns-of-legend-chapter-thirteen","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/618399","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=618399\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"","content":"\nChapter Thirteen\n \nKulgan clawed at his door, which had\nseveral long gouges in it already. He'd\nscratched at them so much that his claws were beginning to chip and bleed. It didn't matter, though. Pain was meaningless. The food that had been given to him earlier\nlay in the corner, a long colorful streak staining the wall where he'd thrown\nthe plate. Hunger didn't exist right\nnow. His clothes hung in tatters from\nhis body, torn apart in his insane agitation.\nThat didn't matter either.\nNothing mattered. Nothing except\nhis pendant.\n\"GIVE ME BACK MY PENDANT!\" he\nwailed, slamming his head against the door.\nWhy wouldn't it come down? It was\nin between him and his pendant. Why did\nit have to be so mean?\nWith a pitiful sob, Kulgan backed\nup two steps and then threw himself at the door. His body struck it with enough force to\nrattle his teeth, but apart from making a loud noise, it did nothing. He backed up and prepared to do it\nagain. Thinking better of it, he backed\nup another couple of steps so he could gain more speed. He charged at the door-\nAnd it opened just in time to smack\nhim in the face.\nKulgan stumbled backwards, grabbing\nhis nose. Blood began to leak out of it\nbetween his fingers, and he leaned against the far wall, moaning in pain, his\nassault on the door momentarily stalled.\n\"Someone get him a rag,\" a voice he\nhadn't heard before ordered. He looked\nup and saw a kashni standing in his doorway, wearing the blue robes of a\npriest. A zik hurried in and held out a\nsmall piece of cloth to him, which he took and pressed against his nose. The acolyte hurried away, as if eager to put\ndistance between himself and Kulgan.\nThe priest closed the door behind\nhim, and the familiar click told\nKulgan that he'd locked it again. Taking\na couple of steps further into the room, he looked around at the damage that he'd\ndone with no small amount of distaste.\nThe walls, like the door, were covered in long, bloody scratches. What had been the small desk was now a pile\nof splinters. Kulgan had tried to ram\ndown the door with it. The painting of\nthe old fuaro lay in the corner, its frame broken in half.\n\"You've been making quite a bit of\nnoise in here,\" the kashni said at last.\n\"Are you not grateful for our hospitality?\"\nKulgan the bounty hunter would have\nprobably shot a sarcastic remark at the priest, but Kulgan the desperate\nTwister could only get on his knees and beg.\n\"My pendant,\" he said, his voice strained\nwith need. \"Can I have it? Where is it?\"\n\"Ah, yes,\" the priest said, nodding\nhis head. \"About this pendant you keep\nscreaming about. What is the\nsignificance of it?\"\n\"I need it,\" Kulgan said, plainly.\n\"Well, that much is obvious, but why do you need it?\"\nKulgan stared at the kashni in\ndisbelief. Couldn't he see how important\nthat pendant was? How much he needed\nit? What was wrong with him?\n\"Please,\" he said again, \"give it\nback. I'll do anything!\"\nThe priest folded his arms, \"I want\nto know more about this pendant. Why is\nit so important that you have it?\"\n\"Because it makes me whole,\" Kulgan\nanswered with complete sincerity. \"I'm\nnot me without it. I need it. I need it!\nI NEED IT!\"\nWith that, he sank his claws into\nthe wood floor and began trying to pull them up. When that didn't work, he dropped to the\nground and rolled back and forth, howling miserably. When he finally stopped to catch his breath,\nlaying on his back, the priest came to stand over him. For a few tense moments, he was silent, and\nthen he finally asked the question he'd come to ask.\n\"Are you a Twister?\"\n\"Yes!\" Kulgan answered without a\nmoment's hesitation. Maybe now he would\nlet him have his pendant back.\nWithout warning, the kashni kicked\nKulgan, sending him rolling into the wall.\n\"Filthy beast!\" he roared. \"Enemy of Embin!\"\nKulgan didn't respond or make any\neffort to move. The kick had hurt, but\nhe was grateful for it. It gave him\nsomething to think about besides his pendant- a painful, yet welcome, reprieve.\n\"How dare you come into my church\nand accept my hospitality?\" the priest ranted.\n\"As if you were some sort of decent person?\"\nHearing the insults, a small part\nof the old Kulgan awoke inside of himself.\nStill looking up at the priest from the floor, he managed to make a wry\nsmile.\n\"Last I heard, I was brought here,\"\nhe chuckled.\nThe kashni's eyes narrowed dangerously,\n\"You dare to mock me, Twister? You are\nnot in any position to be making jokes.\nI will go to tell my brothers what you are, and you will be put on\ntrial.\" He paused for a moment in\nconsideration, \"It is late tonight, but first thing tomorrow morning, you will\nbe tried for your crimes against Nature.\nAnd make no mistake, you will\nbe convicted, and you will be\nexecuted!\"\nWith that, the priest began to back\ntowards the door. He knocked on it\ntwice, and it unlocked. Seeing him go,\nKulgan felt the desperate need rise up in him again, and he scrambled to his\nfeet, running at the retreating priest.\n\"Wait!\" he shouted. \"What about my pendant? I need my pendant!\"\nHe was too slow, though, and the\ndoor shut and locked itself before he could reach it.\n\"PLEASE!\" he screamed, beating on\nthe door again. \"PLEASE, I NEED IT! DON'T LEAVE ME HERE WITHOUT IT!\"\nThe last thing he heard of the\npriest was a derisive snort as he walked away, \"I do not have it, Twister. Nor would I give it to you if I did.\""}