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A Grimm Night in the Forest

By Ming Drake

The snow fell with massive force outside the burning coal clouds of the city as Grimm stood huddled against a large tree. The lights of the town he had just left burned below in the gloom of the evening, their brilliance lighting up the underside of the great clouds of ash that perpetually hung in the skies above. The blackened snow that he had found on the city streets had turned to an off white as he made his way away from the city.

Grimm watched, feeling wretched in the cold, as a lone figure made its way towards him along the path from the city, the deep green of the figures cloak being slowly obscured by the snow as it fell.

‘How did I find myself in this?’ Grimm thought as the figure of Lady Wessex drew closer with every passing minute. ‘When have I ever let someone live after they have seen me for who I am, I must be going soft of late. And what is with her enthusiasm for leaving the city? Daddy’s money can’t be that much of a burden’ he grumbled to himself as he took stock of his new traveling companion. She was a figure of indulgent beauty, her clock blowing back to reveal a well-toned figure in a fitted jacket and flowing skirts, all of a golden hue. A bejewel breathing mask sat on her face and her piercing green eyes studied Grimm as she approached. Leather holsters draped from her hips and held highly augmented pistols, pistols that Grimm had seen her use to good effect when they faced the deranged Aberrent only an hour before. That job had gone bad for Grimm the moment Lady Wessex had shown up. Now he was stuck with her if he didn’t want to kill her and that meant fleeing the city that he had lived in for all his life, hunting the same Aberrents that came from the slums that he himself did.

“Was the trip worth it Lady Wessex?” Grimm asked with a sneer that barely covered his shiver as the Lady came to stand just outside the covering shelter of the tree Grimm stood under.

“Most certainly Mr. Grimm. As I told you when I decided to go back, the necessities that I had left at home would be invaluable as we made our way through the wilderness.” She replied, her tone and stance showing a strength that was only barely marred by her continual glances towards Grimm’s chest where his shirt hung in tatters and the fading light of the day glinted off his skin beneath, skin that seemed infused with the sheen of metal. “Shall we be on our way then?” she asked, tearing her eyes away and moving quickly off the road and into the trackless forest that surrounded the city.

As the lady moved past Grimm, he noticed a large pack strapped to her back and a long package attached to the side of the pack. From the looks of the item, Grimm surmised that the Lady Wessex had taken another toy with her as she left her family estates.