'Life' as a Ghost Drabbles: Worst Day of His Life
Summary: Maybe another chapter that plays like a horror story from the perspective of a mafia member that enters the forest? I kind of want to see how scary Hat Kid would be.
As a child Terry had been frightened of the dark, the thing itself as well as what might be lurking within it. He’d long since grown out of it, gaining instead a healthy wariness when not able to see one’s surroundings. Something about the way the darkness lay over the Subcon Forest though brought that fear back.
Mere minutes ago it had been broad daylight, the sun high and bright overhead. Stepping into the treeline had changed that, plunging the world into night. If Terry were to backtrack out, would he step back into daytime? … Assuming he was allowed to step out at all? If he turned back to test it though, he likely wouldn’t be able to convince himself to return. Boss would be mad, possibly enough to demote him back down to a lowly servant. He’d worked too hard for that and if he succeed here he’d gain favor. And so, he ignored his inner child, trembling in fear of what lay unseen, and continued onward down the path.
The darkness was preternatural, feeling almost like a living, thinking thing. It writhed around Terry’s meager light, pressing in closer than it should’ve been able to, eager to devour him. That was just fear talking… probably. There were things lurking in it though, dangerous things. That was a known fact. Terry was here for the sole purpose of trying to catch one. Whether the specialized vacuum he’d been provided with to complete that task would work or not, he was no longer sure. It had felt so big and powerful out there. Now though, it felt like just a normal vacuum strapped to his back.
What if he was bait? Being sent in alone to aid in being stealthy had made sense at the time but if any part of the darkness was alive, there was no such thing as stealth regardless of their numbers. And there were certainly watchers. He had no way of knowing where they might be hidden or even what form they took. They’d be watching the path though, right? So he should get off it.
Pausing, he cast the light to the left. A tall dark bush blocked the way. Brambly thorns covered it and the trees were thick and dense beyond it. An impenetrable wall of vegetation. Casting the light to the other side of the path revealed the same sight. Had the tress and bushes always been like that or had they closed in as he proceeded further in? … What if they’d read his mind and intent to leave the path somehow and wanted to stop him? In which case he should turn around and run… assuming he could.
But no, he wasn’t a coward to flee from some creepy plants. He continued going forward, casting the light back and forth. As soon as a gap appeared on either side, he’d…
Something clicked under his next footstep, the sound disconcertingly loud in the silence of the haunted woods. A moment later his feet were forced out from under him as he was scooped up by a huge something. He screamed and thrashed as it closed in on him, seemingly lifting him up and into the air. The darkness was alive and it had eaten him!
He screamed and thrashed some more. The darkness around him swayed as if laughing at his plight. His light was gone, lost or destroyed within the darkness’ maw. “Mercy! Please, mercy, I’ll do anything. Just please don’t…”
Ghostly laughter interrupted him, freezing him in place. “I haven’t even said anything yet and you’re already trying to bargain. How cute?” … That was the ghost child Terry had been sent here to capture, wasn’t it?
It wasn’t darkness incarnate encasing him but just cloth. He’d been captured in a trap. Not good but far better than the plight he’d initially thought himself to be in.
“I’m not really in a bargaining mood today though. You came here to capture me and I’m really, really not in the mood right now.” She was mad. During Boss’ prior dealings with her she’d been playful. A big enough nuisance to be worth going after, especially considering how she’d humiliated him when they’d both been still alive, but not angry or vengeful. Something had clearly changed.
“I’m sorry. I’ll just leave if you let me go.” He’d gladly go back to doing dishes in the Boss’ kitchen if it meant living to see tomorrow.
“Do you know where the Empress is?”
Terry didn’t know of any empresses let alone which specific one she might be asking about. Would it be better to lie and say he did or be honest? … If he lied, she’d likely come back for vengeance upon discovering the truth, right? On the other hand, the truth might prompt her to decide to just kill him right here, right now. There was a third option though… maybe. “I could find her for you. You’d… you’d have to let me live me though… obviously.”
The silence held long, tense, and horrible before a reply finally came. “Could you now? Willing to bet your soul on it?”
No. He was just a lowly Mafia goon with almost no ties to anyone who would even know where to begin looking for royalty if they weren’t part of the Mafia too. But if it prolonged his life… “Yes.”
“All right then. I’ll write up a contract but first…”
A coldness crept into Terry’s veins as something was pulled out of him, leaving a hollow emptiness where it had once been. His soul. She’d pulled out his soul. It wasn’t fair. Nothing ever was though, was it?
“I’ll be back in a moment. I wanna make sure I do this right if I’m gonna hire you as my hunting dog, you know?” And with those words she left. How Terry could tell she was gone, he couldn’t pinpoint but it was probably something to do with his soul being in her hands. The soul that he’d agreed to sign away in hopes of living just a little bit longer. Those kinds of deals totally always went well, no problems whatsoever, this was perfectly fine. … This was the worst day of his life.
