A Farm Somewhere in Maryland, Monday Afternoon

[firstofitskind]

Liam's days tended to have a certain rhythm to them, especially Mondays, with that weekly therapy appointment off-island, and his and Verity's tradition of doing something sweaty and physical (no, not like that) afterward.

Usually though that just meant going for a run around the island or hitting up a mainland gym for a sparring session. All that flew out the proverbial window when Liam stepped back into the lobby of the therapist's office to find Verity waiting for him (as usual) with a tense expression on her face (not so usual).

Turns out there had been a string of mysterious livestock deaths at a farm in the Maryland countryside, and from the descriptions it sounded a lot like werewolves. So a quick pit stop back to the island to top up the weapons they had on-hand with those that would be most useful against lycanthropes, and then a portal dropping them just outside the farm in question.

"So, if not werewolves, what else could it be?" Liam asked, as they approached the barn, weapons ready.

[ooc: nfb for distance, and for the wife.]

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[firstofitskind]

Liam wasn’t even going to say ‘maybe they’re not werewolves!’ because that was not how their luck was going today.

“Sha’brah,” he hissed instead. You knew it was bad when he broke out the Eunoia. Still, with the door between them and the werewolf that was actively trying to kill them, he had a second to reload his weapon, at least.

[arboreal_priestess]

Verity had already slammed a new magazine of silver bullets into her gun. "So, they're not yet..."

She didn't finish the sentence. Because she respected the art of dramatic irony and it didn't need the help right now.

[firstofitskind]

"Not yet," Liam ground out with a sharp nod.

Was that a growl coming from somewhere in the midst of that herd of sheep?

Liam didn't really want to know, but had the feeling they were about to find out anyway. In the meantime, he was planting a charge right by the door. Blowing up the barn was a little noisier than he would've liked, but it would hopefully get rid of the one confirmed werewolf.

"Keep running," he said, once the explosive was in place.

[arboreal_priestess]

Liam didn't have to tell her twice. Verity took off, veering off to the left towards the too-still farmhouse. She kept her eyes on the flock, trying to see where the growling came from, though the constant milling of the sheep made it difficult to focus.

[firstofitskind]

So, on the plus side, even something has hardy as a werewolf wouldn't have been able to survive the explosion that flattened the barn.

On the minus side, it hit with enough force that anything on two legs in the vicinity was in danger of losing their footing.

Oh, and probably it also confused and upset whatever werewolves were hiding in that flock of otherwise innocent sheep. To put it lightly.

[arboreal_priestess]

In the center, a giant, hulking creature staggered up to its feet. The sheep around it scattered with panicked noises. One was too slow and ended up trapped in its large jaws. Several other howls suggested that was not the only werewolf among the flock.

"Take it out while it's distracted?" Verity suggested.

[firstofitskind]

Liam nodded, firing several rounds at the head of the werewolf that was currently snacking on its former fellow herd member. It snarled, dropping the mangled remains of the sheep, and collapsed to the ground, twitching.

Liam had a few more explosives, but while it looked like they were going to end up euthanizing the entire flock, he would prefer that they stick to bullets.

[arboreal_priestess]

Yeah, Verity had no desire to spend the rest of the afternoon picking sheep chunks out of her hair, thanks. There were more humane reasons, too, but she was firmly in banter-mode, thank you.

"Pretty sure wolf pelt plus sheep fleece is just unfair," she said, adding her own bullets into the creature's skull. Or, trying to anyway. "I hate to say it, but it might be easier to go by process of elimination..."

Literally.

[firstofitskind]

“Do we have enough silver bullets for that?” Liam asked. It seemed a shame to waste them on the non-infected sheep when regular bullets would do, but speed was kind of a factor here, and switching weapons took time.

[arboreal_priestess]

"Doubtful, especially if it takes more than one to kill them," Verity said brusquely. "We might need to go on manual." She gave him a sidelong glance. "This isn't going to get you eating meat again anytime soon, is it?"

[firstofitskind]

Liam, at least, had the grace to look somewhat (sigh) sheepish. It's not that he didn't think Verity had noticed, but she hadn't mentioned it, so he was content to not dwell on the issue more than he absolutely had to.

"Um," he stuttered out. "It's not looking super-appealing at the moment, no. You okay with that?" he asked, quietly. He'd kind of become responsible for most of the cooking, after all.

[arboreal_priestess]

"So long as you don't complain if I make a burger sometimes or order steak when we go to restaurants, or make a side of bacon for myself for breakfast," Verity said.

Though lamb probably wasn't going to be making a comeback for awhile for her, either.

[firstofitskind]

The smell of cooking meat still elicited a pretty visceral reaction on Liam’s part, but, “Just give me some warning when you do?” So he could avoid the kitchen for a bit, or at least prepare himself for the smell.

[arboreal_priestess]

Verity shot at another sheep that was rising up in the middle of the flock with a roar. "That sounds like something we should talk about," she noted.

[firstofitskind]

“What, now?” Liam retorted, following suit. And noting with dismay how some of the non-infected sheep were now making a run for it. Chasing them all down was going to be a process.

[arboreal_priestess]

Presumably non-infected. There was a latency period, after all.

"What, you can't shoot and talk?" Verity asked, standing her ground as the werewolf came bounding towards her, mouth open wide.

Thankfully, that made a good - and hairless - target.

[firstofitskind]

“Of course I can!” Liam retorted, demonstrating just that as he whirled around to also shoot at the one charging for Verity and- oh no, was that a tiny, fluffy little lamb that was starting to growl and move towards him?

Okay, okay, shoot first, feelings about it later.

[arboreal_priestess]

The bigger sheep hit the dirt, tumbling forward and tearing up the ground in a shallow trench that went about ten feet before it slid to a stop. "So talk," she said, taking a potshot at Liam's lamb. "Reloading!"

[firstofitskind]

"It's the smell," he ground out, aiming another shot at the lamb, the bleat-growl that it was making in protest getting cut off abruptly.

... At least it took fewer bullets than the larger sheep?

[arboreal_priestess]

"The smell?" Verity asked, stepping forward with her gun at the ready, a new magazine firmly in place. "Reload," she added, nodding at him.

[firstofitskind]

He nodded, reloading his own weapon as he did so. "Reminds me of Wildemount."

[arboreal_priestess]

"When you were with Beau," Verity said softly, drawing a bead on another growling sheep.

[firstofitskind]

Another nod. "Lorenzo. The one who was in charge of the group that kidnapped Fjord and the others. He had very particular... tastes." A beat, and another shot at a growling sheep. "I'm talking human babies. Roasted." Bile rose in his throat at the memory, and he swallowed, forcing it down and focusing on the matter at hand.

That there were cryptid species out there that preyed on humans and other sapient species for food was not new to him, of course, but for most of them, it was a natural part of their diet (even if, like in the case of the ghouls, the switch to active predation was somewhat new). But Lorenzo... he'd done it because it amused him.

[arboreal_priestess]

"Jesus!" Verity yelped, her shot going wide.

First time she'd missed a shot in...a ridiculously long time.

[firstofitskind]

“Yeah,” Liam said flatly, mouth a grim line as he fired off a shot of his own.