Jason knew if he just pulled himself together and talked to the man, it would undoubtedly be better than this. Watching from the shadows, utilizing all of the skills he had been trained for to not be noticed, to blend into the shadows and to disappear before you're even perceived.
Instead of using it to spy on gang leaders, disrupting purse thieves or even just gathering intel. Right now, the feared crime lord, the man who had carved his name forcefully into the walls of Crime Alley and become a force to recon with even against the Dark Knight himself.
He was using it to spy on his dad.
Not that it was hard to figure out, even the basic media knew where the celebrity would be today. The damn near city wide holiday of June 26, the night that the legacy of Wayne changed forever.
There were very few people who were Gotham's children that didn't rely on the Wayne foundation in some way or the other, either the apartment they lived in was made by them, the schools their kids went to were sponsored by them, if they were less fortunate the soup kitchens they go to are funded by them. Most of the people's insurance was Wayne.
It was only right that the entire city would mourn them on this day. Even major events tried to avoid this specific day.
The one time a particularly nosy reporter had tried to sneak into the manor grounds to catch a photo of the family graves and possibly of Bruce after his big return to society. It took barely a week before they were completely thrown out of the city, having suffered ruthlessly from other citizens' judgement, losing their job and even being threatened by major gang leaders.
Jason also knew he would be having better luck getting a look at the man if he went to the manor, but he also knew that Bruce had a habit of visiting the specific alley where it happened. Leaving two roses and giving the empty air what almost sounded like a field report about what has been going on the last year. The whole thing didn't take more than 45 minutes.
45 minutes was more than enough, to savor the image of the man instead of the suit.
Speaking of, the man was late.
The child crime lord had taken to setting up in the apartments opposite the alley, perfect view to the opening of the alley, and with the wall of windows it was also hard to spot when looking up at the building. It would have been perfect if the man actually showed up, it was already almost 10 minutes after the time reported on the report file in the cave. The time he would usually be here, the very same minute.
Maybe he was too busy with all the new members of the family to make it. Damian's appearance threw the entire family into mayhem, and it seems Jason's own dislike for his replacement only enhanced the demon brat's hate for him as well. Last he had heard, the brat had even tried to kill him to establish his place in the family. The old man must have a lot on his hands right about no-
The sharp ringing of his phone almost made him fall off his chair as it broke the silent buzzing of the room.
"What-!"
"Ahki! You have to return at once! Father he, he-"
"Slow down. I don't understan-"
"Return at once! Imbeciles disgracing the legacy of grandfather and grandmother-"
"The fuck?"
"Bastards desecrated their remembrance!"
"Damian! I can't understand what you mean if you don't explain it." Even if it was simply a misunderstanding, the pure panic in Damian's voice couldn't be ignored. He didn't even sound like this the first time he saw Talia be dipped into the lazarus pits half dead after a fight with the living corpse- Ra's. He needed to move, needed to get to the manor. Fuck it, if Bruce sees him.
"Some bastard sent sculptured decaying heads of Grandmother and Grandfather to the manor, slathered in pigs blood!"
"What the hell?!"
"Return at once Ahki! We can't let this stan-"
"Where is Bruce?" Had he seen it? Was he the one to open the door? Had Alfred seen it? What was the motive for this? Revenge? Simply to make him suffer?
The wind whipped past and the rain made it almost impossible to hear anything, he just needed to make it to his bike and he could be home there in under 700 seconds.
"Father is currently... incapacitated in the manor. He, he is.." A hiccup interrupted, quickly muffled but followed by the sound of a loud sniffle. Fuck! Damian is crying.
"I'm 500 seconds out, I'm coming little ahki, soon." The line cut, even in times like this the little brat tried to save face. "Fuck!"
His hand slammed heavy on the main door, he was pushed back almost a full minute when having to push past the damn media. Someone had published a photo of the heads and it was spreading quickly, the media pounced, even if it was basically taboo, the idea that someone had disgraced the memory of the Wayne family in this way, it was insane. It was a death wish. It was a scoop.
"Damn it! Open up!" When he was about to expect the hard surface of the door, it opened.
"Leave right thi-! Master Jason." The shotgun that was instantly pointed to his head, was almost as quickly pulled back again. It wasn't the first time he had seen him, but it was certainly the first time when he wasn't in full RedHood gear. He'd broken into the cave once or twice, even met face to face with this same shotgun.
There was no doubt in Jason's mind that Alfred knew exactly who he was, the entire time. Which also meant that there wasn't any doubt that Bruce knew who he was, even if there hadn't been any direct confrontation. "I'm back, Alfred."
It was probably only an extreme level of mental force that made him not flinch when he got embraced. "My dear boy." A sigh wrecked through the older's body, his arms wrapped so tightly around the younger like he would disappear once again if he didn't keep a firm enough grip. A very valid fear.
"I heard what happened." His words dripped with so much venom he was absolutely sure his eyes had an obvious tint of Lazarus green.
Alfred straightened, now without the anger towards the media to harden them, his eyes were horribly bloodshot. His entire body looked frail, a tenseness to his shoulders but with shaking hands. His eyes sought away and a deep frown edged its way across his face. "Yes."
"Who did this."
A new air encompassed them, a hardness only their type of life could bring. "As of now, we do not know," He swiftly turned his back, taking a step over the threshold, into the mausoleum manor. "and Master Bruce does not want to pursue the offender."
"What." He felt his shoe slide ever so slightly, instinct kept him steady. Looking down, a bloody boot print formed. Just beside it, another print, this one continuing into the mansion, a splatter, more footsteps leading up the stairs, but the undeniable source of the puddle left behind. They weren't Alfred's polished oxford dress shoes, the size couldn't be Damian's. Fucking fuck fuck. Bruce's fit perfectly.
Alfred's eyes followed his, landing on the puddle, no doubt still wet. It would stain if left alone. Alfred turned away again, moving towards the stairs, careful to avoid the steps of a not far past. "He has decided not to pursue it." By the sneer in his voice, he was alone in that decision.
"Why?" Anger bled into his voice again. He didn't even meet the couple, but he knew what good they had done, what good Bruce had done in their memory. The only place streetkids could get warm without going into the system was Wayne memorial library, where the nice librarians would turn a blind eye when the sneaks from the staff rooms would disappear. The only place families could go besides Leslie's clinic was the Wayne Hospital, where almost the entire bill would be taken care of, or if it was because of crime or domestic violence, they would offer safe lines.
Bruce would really just let someone trample all over that memory? WHY?
"He said it was most likely people let down by the system," by them, by him.
"So what? He thinks he deserves this?" Of course he does, the fucker can't go one day without trying to take on the burden of the entire world. Jason had seen the files, the ones he kept on the computer in the cave, detailing every single mistake, every single lost life even when he could do nothing about it, it had multiple notes all over, how he could have done better, why he should have seen the signs before it happened. A copy of Jason's file was in there too. 'late'. "Where is he?"
Alfred's steps stopped, the answer came from further down the hall. A loud wailing cry, interrupted by coughing or hiccupping, echoed along the walls. "Master Damian helped me get him to his room, he has been sedated."
"What the hell do you mean 'sedated'?" He wanted to rush past, he wanted to slam the door open and stop the wails, the small calls for his father as he no doubt looked like hell. Covered in pig blood and with tears streaming down his face even in his sleep.
He wanted to run away, find the bastard that had done this to his family, desecrated the name, forsaken all they had done for this city. Spit on all Bruce had tried to do, even when he felt like he would never live up to the legacy. He worked day and night for this fucking city, just to have it be returned in fake corpses and pig blood.
The butler had remained frozen, eyes piercing and settled on the half closed door. "When he discovered it... He did not react well."
"Of course he didn't." Who would?
"It's been some years now, but he has never once forgotten that day, Master Jason. That anniversary is not far off either."
It felt like the floor shifted underneath his feet, like a tectonic place had flipped on its back under specifically this manor.
The last corpse Bruce had held in his arms had been his, covered in blood, burnt clothes on burnt skin. And just when he had finally gotten him back, the son he had thought he had lost, he was once again reminded of the murder he always thought he caused, and the slaughter he couldn't prevent.
If he wasn't already pressed up against the wall, trying to peer into the door, trying to dissect the words from the sobs, he no doubt would have collapsed too. "It's the first time he has reacted this badly. Sedation was the only choice, so he did not harm himself..." Alfred concluded.
Harm himself? Not the bastards who did this? Not sedated because he was going to go on a hunting spree looking for the fuckers who would- wait. "The first time." Alfred's eyes shifted to his own, a sadness so profound it wasn't hard to imagine he would break down the second he was out of view from Damian. "Has this shit happened before?"
The butler's eyes fell to the floor, like he was looking for the bloody stains even here, even when they had already passed the abandoned slippers a few steps back, their bottoms covered in the sticky substance. "Yes, similar instances have occurred a number of times."
"What.. the hell." Boiling, that was the only thing he could describe this amount of pure rage as. It was like his blood was boiling underneath his skin, the beating of his heart almost as loud as the ticking of the grandfather clock lined against the wall.
The click of the door brought him out of his thoughts, the wailing had subsided but still fought valiantly to be heard through the thick door. "It was well before any of you children's time." Jason didn't comment on how he didn't exactly count as a child anymore. "Master Bruce wouldn't have mentioned it unless specifically inquired about it"
Jason ground his teeth together so hard it would no doubt cramp his jaw if he cared. "Now I'm specifically inquiring you about it."
"It started not long after their unfortunate passing." Alfred moved further down the halls, away from the chaos. Jason followed silently. "Their graves were vandalized the week before their 2nd anniversary, nothing was taken luckily, but the manor was fortified. It happened some other times as well, usually with the leading up of crimes happening around the memorial buildings first. Master Bruce has been too busy recently to note it." Too busy with RedHood wrecking havoc. "In all, it has happened around six times. The last time it was right after his return to society. The presence of children seems to have calmed it somewhat, so the culprits have some courtesy at least, not wanting the kids to find it." Most likely because every single person knew exactly how an 8 year old Dick Grayson had entered the family, with the murder of the Graysons in front of his very eyes. It was fine to traumatize Bruce when he was 10 though.
They entered the sitting room, an offset of the main library. The one spot Bruce could be found in if he wasn't in the cave or the office. After particularly rough missions, he would sit in here and listen to records and reading, or simply sit in the dark silence while staring out into space.
The large family picture on the wall was most likely also a reason. Martha and Thomas Wayne with little Bruce Wayne standing in front. Their eyes were loving, as they kept a hand on each of his small shoulders, a shy smile on his face.
The mantel it was placed above was littered with smaller photo frames of the family that now walked these halls. First school days, outings, medals, graduations, or simply half blurry photos that had caught their fancy and needed a spot to commemorate the happy days.
Alfred picked up a small flashlight from a table on the far end of the room, while Jason followed his every movement. When the lights shut off, the darkness was soon filled with the small stream of light from the flashlight, pointing directly towards the giant painting. Their eyes glimmered in the darkness, reflecting ice blue shimmers across the entire room. "No way..."
"It was something he had chosen when he returned to Gotham after his training. Making sure that no one could do anything to what remained." Turning ash to jewellery, keeping them as close as possible in the manor. Looking not at the painting, but at the very corpses in their eyes.
It only fueled the rage under his skin. Just because they couldn't get ahold of the real ones, they tried to make crude fakes just to traumatize the man once more. "Why won't he do anything about it?" his hands clenched so tightly the leather was creaking under his grip, he knew if he actually had anything in his hands by now, it would no doubt be crushed by now.
By the long pained expression in Alfred's eyes, gaze fixed upon the painting even when the gems in their eyes stopped shining and he had turned on the usual lights, he knew he wanted to know the answer to that himself. "Presumably, because he believes he deserves it."
"If he won't do it, I will." Before he could get any retort, any urging for him to stop, he quickly turned to storm out. To begin the hunt.
He didn't need to go out on the balcony, it would actually be easier simply to break into the cave and take one of the bikes there. But he had to see. Had to get a glance.
Even weighing easily 4 times as much as the last time he had done this, the footsteps fell silently on the stone when he jumped from one railing to the next.
Inside the dim room, it wasn't hard to make out who was who. Damian was standing completely straight beside the bed, he would have assumed it was a shadow if it wasn't for the deep tremors that shuddered through his entire body. His crying had flickered out of hiccups and loud sniffling, his eyes never moving from the limb form on the bed.
Bruce looked... wrecked.
His eyes were red rimmed with deep eyebags underneath. The sharp lines running down his cheeks matched the thickness of his own nails. His hands were lined with blood, the same with the front of his white dress shirt and the bottom of his suit pants. He must have just gotten home when he found it. Alfred had probably wiped off the blood on his face from his hands to treat the scratching. That was most likely also what had distressed Damian so much, to watch his father go mad with grief, the only solution being sedation to avoid self inflicted harm.
Damian's eyes met his. The sadness and fear quickly being replaced by desperation and then anger.
He stormed around the bed, slamming the balcony doors open. "Ahki! Good, with you here we can enact revenge upon-"
"Stay here Damian." Before the kid could turn around, no doubt to change into his suit to go out and wreck havoc on the streets, slashing down anyone who had even the slightest idea about what was going on.
"I will not! This is-"
"He will want you by his side when he wakes up." Jason felt the jump in his small shoulders, his eyes quickly searching towards the bed, confirming the rise and fall of his chest. He wanted to. The deep need to simply go to his father and make sure he was safe in the manor, making sure he was safe from himself, battling fiercely with the want to go out and wringing the necks of the people responsible for this. "I'll handle this."
He would slaughter every single one of the people who had brought this pain upon his family.
Damian trusted this too. Reluctantly he nodded, returning to his father's side. Standing just a step short of touching the bedding. His hands fiddling by his side, wanting to reach out, but not wanting to find out if the touch was unwanted.
Jason shut the doors, and left.
Blood rained on the city that day. Now not being stopped even by Batman. It rained down ruthlessly. It rained down on every single person that knew someone involved in this.
The news soon changed headlines. From lines of corpses once again being disturbed, to the new crime lord slaughtering civilians indiscriminately.
Heads rolled, and they would continue to do so until he had found every single last one of the people who would even dare think about this.
The message firmly set when all the dots connected. 'Bruce Wayne is under the protection of the Crime Lord Red Hood'
Continuation
~~~~
Based on this anon ask Thank you for the idea! Hope it lived up to your expectation <3
It's on Ao3 too
I listened to dean lewis 'how do I say goodbye' while writing this, so blame that on the depression that's oozing out of this
I made it not the real ones, because it has already happened before, so Bruce would likely dig them up for safety reasons.
Got to chapter 37.3. Many thoughts. Many thoughts.
I think that Tanaka is right, that there is no Nounuki just desperate people beheading and quartering others to appease a bad climate cycle . However, it wouldn't surprise me if stuffing the holes with human sacrifices is part of what allowed the holes to continue to grow larger, kind of like a CLAMP manga where the power of belief can create all sorts of situations if you believe in it enough.
Whatever "Hikaru" is, I would think it's possible that he functioned on a more intense level of what we saw from him in earlier chapters where he doesn't understand humans and so if they offered him severed heads he'd eat them because why not? It's why he reanimated Hichi's head. How was he supposed to know she needed a body? How was he supposed to know it'd be technically bad? I think he honestly just saw the head and went "Yeah. Sure, I'll bring her back to life," and didn't grasp why he got a bad reputation from it. It does make me curious about Hichi's other body parts. They must have gone to the other villages to plug up the other holes.
I'm really curious how large the holes are in the abandoned places, if that's why they were abandoned or if it was other things like the mini ice age or something. I'm also curious if you went in one hole if you could find you way out another hole or if they're all small pockets of different dimensions rather than an over all hell dimension. Although maybe the hell dimension can be so confusing and vast that you would never be sure where a hole might lead
Anyway, lots of questions. Looking forward to the answers. What a delightfully freaky little manga.
Content warning: Gore, body horror, graphic onscreen death, corpse desecration
It was a shame the girl wasn't blonde.
Sal adjusted the glasses on her face, carefully positioning them so they both looked straight and wouldnât fall off.
Sure she looked the part well enough; pretty, brunette hair in pigtails, big blue eyes. But there was no substitute for how nuts people went for a blood splattered blonde barbie.
Oh well; lemons, lemonade.
He did one final tug at the rope to check before stepping back to see how she looked. Lifting the electric lantern to make sure he didnât miss anything.
She swayed from the porch rafter, hanging by her neck. Not really though, heâd found some cloth about the same color as her shirt and used it to make a discreet harness. So while it appeared she was hanging by the neck, there was actually no pressure on her neck at all.
Of course it wouldnât make a difference to her, seeing as she was already dead.
When the cops and forensics found her and saw the hanging harness theyâd speculate six ways to Sunday about what it meant. Some would probably say that it was because the perpâs mother didnât love him enough, or that deep down he wanted to be caught.
The reality was Sal just didnât want her face to be too bloated in the crime scene photos.
But hey, more speculation wasnât a bad thing.
He gave her one more once over, tweaked her glasses just a bit more, and decided to call it good.
Time to see how the others were doing.Â
Stepping down from the porch, he saw Laurie over next to the barn. She had dragged the redhead over and propped him up in a sitting position on the stack of hay bales and pumpkins, gaping hole in his neck on full display, and now she was sitting on the ground with a pumpkin in her lap, carving at it with her butcher knife.
âHey,â he called out, picking up the lantern and walking over to her.
She glanced up âHey,â
âWhatâs going on over here?â he gestured to the pumpkin in her hands.
âGonna carve a face into it and cut out the bottom and put it over hisââ she pointed at red head with her knife âHead,â
âWouldnât it be easier just to cut off his head and put a jack o lantern on top of his neck? I mean youâre already halfway there since Jess slit his throat and all,â
Laurie shook her head âNo way, you have any idea how hard it is to hack through that much bone, not to mention how messy it would be? Trust me, this is easier,â
Sal wasnât sure about that, but he wasnât about to volunteer to saw the kidâs head off himself so better just to leave Laurie to it âSounds good,â
Laurie gave him a thumbs up as he walked off.
Moving on, Sal walked around to the front of the barn, more electric lanterns scattered around the place, spotting the scrawny boy facedown in a full basin with apples floating around his head. That one had been easy, Sid had already drowned him there. Just toss some apples in and bam, a bobbing for apples gag.Â
A little closer, propped against the side of the barn, the aisan girl lay sprawled out on top of a pile of plastic skeletons. He couldnât help but wince, compared to the other ones she was really mangled, her entire upper body covered in deep, ugly looking gashes, smearing blood onto every surface she touched.Â
Machetes really did some nasty damage.Â
One of her arms had flopped out of the pile, Sal reached down to correct itâ
âDonât,â Allen called out from behind him âSheâs practically falling apart, I could barely get her on there in one piece,â
Sal raised both hands in surrender and turned around âHey if you wanted to pose her more you shouldnât have hacked her up so bad. Besides, I thought the goal was to kill them without turning them into hamburger?â
Allen scowled at him from where he and Jess were dragging the blonde boyâs body on a tarp. At the far corner of the barn he saw Sid sitting on the ground drawing something on a piece of cardboard.
âHey the others turned out ok enough, we can afford to have one get a little messy,â
âYeah donât apologize,â Sid called out, not taking his eyes off the cardboard âShe was the one who stomped on my crotch,â
Jess straightened and raised an eyebrow âI thought you were wearing a cup?â
âYeah but I still felt it,â
âI told you guys weâd need it,â Laurie walked up to them smirking.
Sal raised both hands in a placating gesture âHey, I admit it, you were right. Gearing up with kevlar vests, helmets, and athletic cups was was not overkill; but it was hard finding helmets that would fit under the masks,â
It had taken over a month to find helmets that were small enough and masks that were big enough. Sure theyâd found them in the end, but the fit was not comfortable, at all. Which was why theyâd all ditched both helmets and clown masks in the bed of Jessâs truck as soon as they were finished.
Well, finished with the killing, there was still the set up they had to do.
Sid glowered but Laurie smirked.
âHey you guys mind giving us a hand?â Jess called out.
Sal turned towards her, Laurie parroting the action, and noticed that Allen was gone âHey whereâd Allen go?â
âHeâs grabbing the candy, now will you help me or not?â
Sal and Laurie stepped over to her âWhat do you need?â
âI need him,â she pointed down at the blonde boy leaking blood onto the tarp âUp there,â her finger moved up to a long wooden table in front of the barn âIâll grab the head, Laurie get the middle, Sal you grab the feet,â
They moved into position âOne two three, Lift.â
They hoisted him up, with the three of them the weight wasnât an issue, but there were a lot of limbs flopping all over the place, and a good amount of blood dripping from his chest and head. With a grunt Jess dropped his shoulders on the table, Sal and Laurie following suit, grimacing when she pulled her gloved hand away covered in blood.
âSo,â she leaned against the table, wiping her leather glove on the wood âHow long do you think it will be before you can get Fier to roll over?â
âSix months tops,â
âIâm betting on three,â Laurie said with a smirk âDid you see how weepy he got when his Fourth of July parade got canceled? One look at thisââ she gestured to the bloody boy laid out on the table âAnd heâll fold on the spot, heck he might even fall dead from a heart attack,â
Sal frowned âHey donât jinx us, if Fier keels over he canât give you your property,â he leveled his gaze at all of them, including Allen walking up with several large bags âAny of you, and he canât give me the farm,âÂ
âYeah the old man canât kick the bucket until my name is on the deed to my bar,â Sid said, looking up from his cardboard for the first time âOh and Sal, donât forget to do theââ
âOn it,â Sal pulled the camcorder from his pocket and pressed the on button.
Allen glowered at him as he dropped the bags on the ground by the table, reaching over and tilting blondieâs head âYouâre giving me crap about mangling mine when you wrecked this oneâs face?â
âJust half his face,â Sal confirmed that the blinking red light was present on the screen before looking it up âYour girl looks like she was put through a woodchipper,â
Allenâs face darkened, opening his mouth to shout a retort at him, but before he could get a word out Jess cut him off âOh my god you guys can measure your dicks after weâre finished,â she reached into the bag at Allenâs feet âLetâs just get this done, I want to get out of here before midnight,â
Still smoldering, Allen nonetheless helped Jess heap various Halloween candy on and around blondie on the table, Sal recording the whole thing. Once the bag was nearly empty, Jess pulled out a caramel apple, opened blondieâs jaw, wincing at the cracking of bone as she did, and stuck the caramel to his teeth.Â
She wiped her hands together and looked around âI think weâre done here,â
âAwesome,â Sal peeked at her from behind the camera âI just have to get shots of everything, make sure everythingâs all cleaned up, fingerprints are wiped, then we should be out of here pronto,â
Jess nodded at him just before he turned around, stepping around the side of the barn with lantern and camera in hand to get close up shots of hanging girl and pumpkin boy, now with jack o lantern in place over his head. Once he was satisfied with the shots of those two, Sal came back around to the front, zooming in on Sid sitting on the ground.
âHere we have Sid Prescott,â he panned the camera over to apple boy facedown in the basin and back again âThat your handiwork there? The old bobbing for apples gag?â
âYep,â Sid only spared him the briefest of unimpressed glances before looking back down at the cardboard âWas up all night thinking of that one,â
He moved the camera over the where Laurie was packing up her crossbow âAnd here we have Laurie Strode, owner of Arcadiaâs top rated bed and breakfast and the best damn shot with a crossbow Iâve ever seen,â
Laurie smiled at the camera, brandishing her crossbow a little âDonât forget, I also got that girl you strung up on the porch,â
âCanât forget that,â
Sal stepped over until Allenâs sullen face was on screen âOver hereâs Allen Hardy,â he swiveled around until the camera was facing skeleton girl âYou think he may have gone a little overboard with the machete here?â
âGet bent Sal,â
Ignoring him, Sal turned to face Jess âLast but not least we have Jess Bradford, tell us what you did Jess?â
She smirked at the camera âI took out the pumpkin king over there, with one swing of this,â she held up the short scythe, shining and wiped clean of blood.
âYou sure did,â Sal swiveled the camcorder around again, making sure to get good plenty of good shots of candy boy and skeleton girl as he did, noticing something in his pan âHey there should be six of them, so whereâsââ
âWay ahead of you,â Sid got to his feet, cardboard in hand âFollow me,â
He headed towards the main entrance, Sal on his heels. As they got close, Sal saw the final girl sitting propped up in a chair, the original scarecrow tossed off to the side. Still smiling Sid flipped the cardboard in his hands around towards the camera. The most noticeable thing wasnât that Sid had spelled âFierâ wrong, but that heâd written the sign in human blood.
No wonder heâd been sitting so close to skeleton girl.
Sal walked around to follow Sid as he propped the sign up in the girlâs limp hands, zooming in to get a good view. The girl took up the entire screen of the camcorder. A straw hat had been shoved over her afro, her dead eyes looked blankly at the camera, seeing nothing, a trickle of blood running out of the corner of her mouth, gashes and bruises dotting her exposed skin, and a cardboard sign in her lap reading
âWelcome to the Fear Fall Fairâ
In sloppy red letters.
Once he was satisfied with the shots heâd gotten of sign girl, Sal walked back over to the others.
Back in front of the barn Allen was still scowling âDonât forget to get your own face to,â
Oh brother not this again.
âWhy donât you do it,â Sal held out to camcorder towards Allen, forcing his voice to not come out sarcastic âI can never get the angle right when Iâm doing it on myself,â
Itâs not like they were buddies or anything but Allen had been busting his balls this whole time.Â
Allen narrowed his eyes but took the camera without complaint, Sal getting a glimpse of his own sandy blonde hair in the screen for a brief instant.
âHey,â he gave a little wave at the camera âSal Hardesty here, property manager of one Samuel Fier, â he pointed over at candy boy âThat one over thereâs my doing,â
He turned back to face Allen and the camera dead on âAbout a year ago Fier told me that he planned to give all his properties to his tenants once he retired, but knowing him that wouldnât happen for another decade or two. So I got in touch with some other like minded individuals,â he gestured around him, from the corners of his eyes he saw Sid and Jess waving at the camera âTo try and speed things along,â
âYeah some of us have loans to pay,â Laurie piped up âAnd canât afford to keep paying rent while that old fart dicks around for another ten years,â
âRight you are Laurie,â Sal took a seat on a hay bale âFier gets so invested in all the parties and carnivals he does for the town, we figured that if one of them went horribly wrongâŠwell he sure as hell wouldnât feel like working anymore. So when he bought this old farm last March for his Fall festival, we started planning on how to make it turn out really ugly,â
âAnd what exactly do you get out of this?â Allen shouted at him from behind the camera.
It took all of Salâs willpower to keep his smile in place.
What an asshole.
âWell you see, Fier also promised me that when he retired, heâd give me all his tenant-less properties,â he stretched his arms out wide âWhich includes this one. Before tonight it may have just been an old dusty farm, but once this hits the front pageâŠâ
Sal his grin spreading wider over his face, turning from forced to genuine âThatâs when I strike gold. Sure Iâll have to wait a bit before it isnât in poor taste, but then the real money will start coming in. Iâm talking journalists, true crime writers, even ghost hunters and those serial killer groupie freaks; all of them willing to pay top dollar just to spend an hour here,â
âAnd thatâs the truth,â Sid came up from behind him, clapping a hand on his shoulder âA little teamwork, we get our businesses all to ourselves, and Sal here gets a brand new one,â
âYep,â Sal flashed another smile towards the camera, just because he knew it would piss Allen off âWe all chipped in and we all get the benefits,â
There, that should keep Allen off his ass.Â
Of course sharing the benefits also meant sharing the risks.
More specifically, what would happen if they got caught.
That was the whole reason behind the video. After the job was done, they shot a video with the bodies, all their faces, and their MO; then theyâd get straight in Jessâs truck and head to her place where theyâd make copies for each of them.Â
This way if the cops came sniffing around none of them could try to cut any kind of deals by claiming they were âcoercedâ and throwing the others under the bus.
If one of them tried to fold theyâd all go down, hard.
He looked around at the others âYou guys think weâre done here?â
âYeah,â Jess called out âWe took care of everything we came to,â
âNo we didnât,â Allen, ever the contrarian âTwo of them got away,â
âNope just one,â Sal cut in âI got that last boy in the stomach, plus Laurie crossbowed him, so odds are pretty good heâs dead by now,â
Somehow Allenâs already surly expression got even darker âThat still leaves that girl,â
âSo? We agreed that it would still work if a few got away, thatâs why we wore the masks,â
And besides, having a sole survivor wasnât all bad, that meant plenty of journalists and news crews hanging around town to try and interview her. And while they were here they just might be interested in seeing where it all went down, and be willing to pay Sal for the privilege.
Of course it may be the case that sheâd be too âtraumatizedâ to talk to anyone. Which was too bad for her, but omelet eggs and all that.
When heâd first thought of this whole scheme Sal had never planned on killing anyone, but then the pieces started to fall so perfectly in place, the idea growing on him more and more as their plan took shape.
After all, teenagers got murdered every single day across the country, why not benefit from some of it?
When the time came he hadnât exactly enjoyed stabbing that boy in the gut, or bashing the other oneâs head in, or dragging that girl down to let Allen machete her, but he hadnât hesitated either.
Allen just glared at him, knowing he had no rebuttal to give but refusing to admit Sal was right.
Patience at its end, Sal held out his hand âNow can I have my camera back? I donât trust you to find the off switch with your clumsy gorilla fingers,â
His stare turned murderous, but Allen handed the camera back without complaint.
Flipping it around again Sal fumbled to find theâ
Wait, what was that?
He squinted at the camcorderâs screen. Over by the barn, right next to skeleton girl there was some kind of shadow movâ
His heartbeat stuttered. That wasnât a shadow.
Tearing his gaze away from the digital image and towards the actual barn, Sal saw the last girl, the one whoâd fled into the woods with the dying boy over an hour ago, kneeling over the dead girl on the ground.
Shit.
Shit shit shit.
âHey!â Sal shouted, stomping to his feet and striding rapidly towards the girl.
The others jerked at his yell, quickly noticed the girl, and then followed on his heels, weapons in hand and cursing under their breath.
It was one thing to leave the runaways, but for her to come back and get this close this kid had to have seen all of their faces.
The video was fine, that was just a safety net, Sal was confident that none of the others would roll over, he sure as hell wouldnât, and theyâd planned this too well for anyone to trace it back to them.
But a live witness whoâd seen their facesâ
That could send everything crashing down.
And Sal had come too far to trip up now.
He marched over to her, knife in hand, ready to bring it down andâ
âThatâs why you killed them?â she spoke up suddenly, stopping Sal in his tracks a few feet away, the rest of them closing in around her âYou murdered all my friends, desecrated them, used their bodies like props, just to save a couple of bucks!?â
Laurie scowled down at her âIâm not going to be lectured by some spoiled princess who never worked a day in her life,â
The girl didnât react to this, or the fact that they had her completely surrounded. She just stayed there kneeling on the ground facing away from them, cupping the dead girlâs face.
âI thought you guys were complete monsters,â her voice was soft but ice cold âJust killing for the sick thrill of it, but youâre even worse than that. Youâre lower than scum, youâre not worth the dirt youâre standing on, all of you are selfish, empty maggots,â
Laurieâs face darkened even further, a sentiment that she was far from alone in. Time for Sal to step in so they could end this quick and go home without having to clean up another big mess.
âOk fine, weâre murderers,â he took several steps closer, the back of the girlâs head less than a foot away now âYou want to know what I did? I bashed blondieâs head over there open with a fire poker,â he gestured over his shoulder with his thumb âAnd your boyfriend, that was your boyfriend right? I stabbed him in the gut, and herââ he pointed down at the dead girl on the ground âI didnât do that, Allen did, but I helped him pull her back into the basement, and I stood there and watched while he hacked her up. I did all of that and Iâm not sorry, and Iâd do it again in a heartbeat,â
Sal got ready for her to charge him in a blind fury, heâd taken his mask and helmet off but, his kevlar vest was still on, so he was fairly confident he could take anything the girl could dish out. He braced himself, butcher knife held at the ready, but she didnât move, just stayed there kneeling on the ground, the fingers of her free hand digging claws into the dirt.Â
âSo youâre not sorry? Fine then, you will be.â
Sal glared at the back of her head.
Fuck this.
This girl had clearly lost it, watching all the other kids die must have caused her to go completely cuckoo.
Looks like there wouldnât be a sole survivor after all.
He raised his knife, a few good stabs to the back of the neck should finish her off for goâ
A series of sharp cracks echoed from behind him, Sal and the others all whipping around at the sudden sound.
That had to have just been a tree falling, but it sounded like it came from the front gate, but there werenât any trees overâ
He snapped back around, only to see that the girl was gone.Â
âShit,â
The others turned and noticed her absence, letting out swears of their own, looking wildly around for any trace of her.
âI see her,â Jess growled, stomping off around the side of the barn. Running over, Sal saw her heading with scythe in hand towards the hay bales stacked with pumpkins, where the girl who was now crouched down by pumpkin boy.
Jess raised the scythe high over her, ready to tie up their last loose end with a single swingâ
Something moved, nearly faster than Sal could track, getting between Jess and the girl and halting the arm holding the scythe in midair.
Sal blinked, not believing what his eyes were seeing.
A massive figure held Jessâs scythe arm gripped tightly in his hand, dangling her off the ground, cobalt skin and ivory horns sprouting from his head, standing at well over six feet tall.
What the fuck kind of costume was this guy wearing?
The blue figure glared at the scythe in Jessâs grip, then moved his gaze down towards her, lips pulling back into a fanged snarl.
âIt was you.â his voice was low and gravely, far closer to a growl than anything a human voicebox should have been capable of.
Sal was so caught up in the inexplicable sight in front of him, hearing another series of cracks took him completely off guard. He whipped his head from side to side. Those were a lot closer than the last ones, what the hell was thaâ
Jess foundered in the big guyâs grip âWhaâ whoââ
The guy snarled at her, grip on her arm tightening even further, Jess floundering in his grip, face going pale with pain.
Meanwhile the girl got to her feet and walked away at a leisurely pace, seemingly unbothered by the scene unfolding behind her. Nonchalantly stepping up the porch to stroke hanging girlâs cheek.
She hadnât even turned to face them once.
âHim!â the big blue guy stabbed a finger down at pumpkin boy âToby Domzalski! One of the best people I know!â
A sickening crack echoed in the dark farm. Jess let out a sharp wail, arm now hanging from big blueâs grip at a painful looking angle.
âCertainly worth more than you,â he spat.
Sal was so stunned that for a second he couldnât move. Then the girl started walking away from the farmhouse, right alongside them, hair hanging in her face.
Something about seeing her acting so nonchalant at all this craziness pushed his buttons in all the worst ways. Sal snarled and took two steps towards her before he noticed something else. Something that stopped him completely in his tracks.
The basin apple boy had been lying in was now empty, save for a few apples bobbing quietly in the water.
He was faintly aware of his jaw dropping open.
What the fuck?
Before he could finish processing that another series of cracks came from behind him. A lot closer this time.
Sal whipped around to see just where that sound was coming froâ
His mouth went dry, stomach dropping down into the pit of his gut.
Skeleton girl twitched on her pile.
Sal couldnât move, a dull roaring sound in his ears. From around him he heard the others gasp in shock, save for Jess who was still mewling in the big guyâs grip.
How could she be moving? She couldnât possibly be alive, not after taking that much damage, not after losing that much blood. She didnât even look alive, twitching like a broken marionette with a drunk puppeteer. So how was sheâ
A powerful spasm shook her, a loud crack emanating as her spine twisted back. Limbs jerking and contorting randomly, releasing more creaks as her joints were stretched to their limits.
Sal watched her writhing on top of the plastic bones, too stunned to react, and noticed something else.
With each twist of her body, the slashes and gouges started to disappear. Not healing, not quite, more like they were just vanishing. Like water on a hot sidewalk.
Soon all the wounds were gone, but the spams didnât stop, if anything they became more powerful, but there was less randomness to them now.
Not a puppet being pulled by strings, fighting against them.
She pitched forward, propped upright on the ground with badly twitching hands. Shaking on her knees with her palms pressed against the dirt. A sharp keening sound escaped her throat, a powerful spasm rocking her spine. Flopping forward on her hands and knees as wave after wave of convulsions hit her. Then an ear splitting crack, louder than any of the others, echoed through the air. Fabric of her shirt ripping as something tore its way out of her back.Â
The girl shakily got to her feet, a slight trembling all that was left of the spasms that had nearly broken her, the new limbs on her back fluttering weakly, glittering red in the lantern light.
Sal was speechless, he had no explanation for what heâd just seen. Couldnât even believe it even though he was staring right at it. How could a dead girl just get up anâ anâ and sprout wings of all. This kind of stuff only happened in movies, fairy tales, not in real liâ
More cracking sounds echoed ahead.
He whipped his head over to see pumpkin boy spasming on the ground, the same way skeleton girl had been just a few moments ago, letting out a low moan as the gaping hole in his neck evaporated away into nothing. And with a matching sickening crack, wings tore their way out of his back to.
But it didnât stop there.
He pushed himself up on all fours, jack o lantern tumbling to the ground. Shirt bursting apart at the seams as his limbs grew longer, thicker, bones crackling in protest. Fingers twisting into claws, toes into talons. Skin vanishing beneath red-gold fur sprouting along his arms, legs, and chest just as quickly as it was exposed.
His wing flared out, feathered not insect shiny, his groaning turning deep and raspy.
He snapped his gaze over to them, Sal taking an involuntary step back. Green eyes with razor thin pupils glared at them, a leonine snarl rumbling outâ
More cracking and a loud snap.Â
Sal spun around again, heartbeat booming in his ears.
Hanging girl had dropped from her harness and was flopping around on the porch. Her legs stretching and twisting in a symphony of sickening crackles, longer and longer and longer until they couldnât even be called legs any more. Sleek green bloomed on her exposed skin, mangled legs shifting into a rich emerald, a minty cast to her face and arms, hair darkening to a deep jade. Golden eyes no longer bloodshot flashed behind her glasses, her long serpentine tail thrashing against the wooden steps.
Sal couldnât move, feet rooted to the ground, whipping his head in every direction as the dead bodies around him turned into very not dead monsters.
Thatâs when he caught sight of the girl again, seemingly unbothered by the hellish scene unfolding around them. Now standing in front of candy boyâs table.
âWhaâ what the hell is all this!?â Sid stammered out.
âI told you youâd be sorry,â the girl cupped candy boyâs face, rubbing away some of the blood on his cheekâ
WaitâŠthat wasnât blood, and she wasnât wiping it away, she was smearing it on him, and what was wrong with her haâ
The strange red substance sank into candy boyâs skin and vanished. Then, just seconds after it disappeared, candy boyâs arm jerked.
Sal could only watch in horror as he ripped back to life, warping into something inhuman as he did. The girl stepped back, making room for his wildly flailing limbs as he twitched and writhed on the table, sending candy spilling out over the edges. Bones shrieked in protest as his limbs lengthened and thickened, doubling him in size. Shouldes popped as he arked off the table. Candy apple tumbled to the ground as his jawbone shot out, teeth sprouting into sharp points, face shifting and elongating to accommodate it. Golden fur sprouting from his stretched, straining skin.
Then what had been a cold corpse just a seconds ago was now a hulking beast. Taller and broader than the horned monster, wolf like in its ears and muzzle. Covered from head to toe in shaggy yellow fur, paws for hands and feet and claws for nails.Â
The beast snapped its gaze over to them, eyes narrowing in recognition, letting out a deep, rumbling growl.
That sound triggered something instinctive deep in the back of Salâs brain and snapped him out of his paralysis.
This was bad, this was wrong.
This wasnât supposed to be happening but it was, a nightmare coming to life before his very eyes.
He needed to get out of here now.
Sal turned and bolted; lantern in hand and Laurie, Allen, and Sid hot on his heels, Jess still trapped in the giant strangerâs grip.
I got that last boy in the stomach, plus Laurie crossbowed him, so odds are pretty good heâs dead by now.
They sprinted and made to turn past the barn, only to stop dead at the sight of glowing red eyes. Sal watched in horror as a gangly creature the color of ink crept out of the darkness on all fours. Ears flicking back as it hissed in malice.
In the light of the lantern he recognized apple boyâs shirt, soaking wet and pasted to its body.
âWhat the fuck?â Allen whispered.
A blur of fur and feathers rushed past them, knocking Sid to the ground with a cry. The thing that had been pumpkin boy pinning him to the dirt, sharp claws digging into Sidâs shoulder.
He snapped his head up, glowing green eyes with slitted pupils glared at them, lips pulled back to reveal fangs as he snarled at them.
Recovering from their shock; Sal, Laurie, and Allen sidestepped around Sid and booked it. Ducking around the haunted house, stopping there, panting, constantly looking over their backs and shoulders.
âWeâ we gotta get to the truck,â Sal gasped âWhere did Jess park it?â
âSâ south side of the property,â Allen panted.
Sal and Laurie cringed. That was literally the opposite end of the farm where they were. With god only knows what between them and it.
They crept along the side of the house, darting towards the smaller shacks. Keeping their backs to the walls and constantly keeping an eye on their surroundings.Â
As the south side of the property got closer and closer Sal dared to let himself feel a glimmer of hope.
They were going to make it, they were going to get to Jessâs truck and get out ofâ
Light burned to life from around the corner of the shack ahead of them, but not the cool white light of an electric lantern, somethingâŠwarmer. The three of them halted in their tracks, the light getting brighter as the source rounded the corner.
Skeleton girl stepped out in front of them. Wings flared out to their full size on either side of her, each nearly as big as her whole body, radiating ruby light.Â
It wasâŠbeautiful.
The closest thing Sal could think to compare it to was Dorothyâs ruby slippers in the old Wizard of Oz movie, but even that didnât come close.
So richâŠso sparklingâŠhe couldnât look away. Heâd been so full of panic just moments ago but now for the life of him he couldnât remember why.
It was so bright, his eyes were burning but he didnât want to blink and miss a second of it.
Thatâs when he heard it, the rustle of something sliding against the dry grass.
The sound cracked the bubble the light created in his mind. Reminding him of the world outside of the light.
Of the danger that surrounded them.
Salâs vision blurred as his head spun, he knew he needed to get away, keep moving, but he couldnât look away.
Move.
Rose colored light seared into his retinas, but now the illusion had been broken. He could see skeleton girl staring daggers into him with eyes that were just a little too big, fingers that were just a little too long balling into fists.Â
What heâd thought was human at first wasnât even close. So unnaturally, horrifically lovely he couldnât bear to look away even as it hurt, even while he knew he was in danger.
Something slithered on the ground just out of sight.
Move.
From the corner of his eye Sal saw an absolutely massive reptilian tail wrap around Allenâs legs, sending him toppling to the ground. From the darkness a pair of honey colored eyes glared murderously from behind glasses Sal himself had placed over them not an hour ago.
From somewhere close behind them, far too close, Sal heard the howl of a wolf.
Move!
He slapped a hand over his eyes, radiant light vanishing and leaving his world cold and dark.Â
Part of him was desperate to take that hand away and sink back into that beautiful light. But now the spell was broken and the terror all came rushing back in at once.Â
Sal charged forward blindly, from behind him he heard a shout and a scuffle but didnât dare turn around.
He had no idea how long he ran like that, hand clapped over his eyes, stumbling over countless unseen obstacles, it felt like forever. But he didnât dare slow down, or take his hand off his eyes.
Then one of his stumbles turned into a full on wipe out, crashing into the ground, his hands instinctively going from his eyes down to break his fall.
The world was dark, he was out of the farm and in the woods, Laurie staggering around just a few feet away with her own hand clapped over her eyes. Heâd lost the lantern somewhere in his mad dash.
But that beautiful, terrible light was gone.
âLaurie itâs safe, theyâre gone,â
Laurie jerked her hand away, whipping around to gauge their surroundings.
âYou have any idea where the truck is?â
Without taking her eyes off the woods around them, Laurie pulled a fob out of her pocket and clicked it twice. Salâs heart leapt when he heard the honk of the truckâs horn echo in the distance.
He stuck out his hand âGive me the keys,â
Laurieâs expression curdled in an ugly look âFuck no, no way am I handing you theââ
âCan you drive stick? No? Didnât think so. Just cut the BS, save both of us some time, and hand them over. You donât want to get left behind, then donât fall behind,â
Her mouth puckered, but Laurie nevertheless held out the keys towards him. Sal clicked it again hearing the honk of the horn. Both of them headed in the direction of the sound, not running, too risky in the dark woods, but hauling ass all the same.
Sal glanced around wildly as they went. Keeping his eyes peeled for that terrible light, any trace of feathers or scales fliting between the trees or glowing eyes peering out of the dark, ears trained to catch the sound of footsteps.
Or the howling of a wolf.Â
Elation shot through him as he spotted the flash of moonlight on the truckâs windows. They were almost there, they just had to get inside they truck and then theyâd be homefreeâ
A rattling sound echoed out from the woods.Â
Close.
Both Sal and Laurie halted in their tracks. Something moved in the corner of Salâs vision, but when he turned towards it it vanished into the trees. The suggestion of it flickering in the corner of his vision. He spun again, seeing nothing but another shadow in the corner of his eye, blending into the dark woods the second he turned his head.
He whirled around, heart beat thrashing, nearly spinning in a circle, trying to spot the strange shadow stalking him, only for it to vanish any time he turned towards it. Always remaining just out of sight.
âYou see that to?â Laurie hissed frantically.
Sal couldnât respond, mind cycling through the possibilities. It was probably just a fox, it had to be, it couldnât be any of the monsters. Even in the dark woods none of them were stealthy enough to sneak around unseen like that, all of them either too large or too bright orâ
His breath hitched.
Heâd seen six monsters rising from the dead, but thereâd been seven corpses.
Where was sign girl?
Panic spiking, he whirled towards Laurie, mouth open to ask if sheâd seen what sign girl turned intâ
He stopped cold, mouth dropping open.
Immediately behind Laurie a dark figure loomed. Deep brown skin twisted with bark-like ridges and knots, tangles of fern leaves piled on top of its head in the unmistakable shape of an afro.
Black eyes staring at him unblinking.Â
Sal couldnât speak, tongue frozen in his mouth, those black eyes piercing into him from over Laurieâs shoulder.
Laurie frowned at him, oblivious to the specter just inches behind her âWhat are yââ
The figure soundlessly put a hand on Laurieâs shoulder, Sal had just enough time to see Laurieâs eyes widen and her mouth drop open to let out a screamâ
Then they were both gone in a blur of shadow, Laurieâs shriek fading rapidly into the night.
Adrenaline surging, Sal booked it, reaching the truck and tearing the driverâs door open. He struggled to get the key into the ignition with badly shaking hands, he finally managed, the engine immediately roaring to life. Relief shot through him but not enough to overshadow the panic.Â
He wasnât out of the woods yet.
Sal put the truck in gear and punched it. Tires spitting up dirt and truck surging forward, racing past the dark trees, not even daring to turn the headlights on.
He just had to make it to the road, Jessâs truck was a beast, none of those monsters would be able to get to him while he was surrounded by seven thousand pounds of military grade aluminum alloy, much less outrun it on the open road. Sal just had to make it to the road and then heâd be in the cleâ
The truck jerked to a stop, Sal slamming against the steering wheel.
Scrambling back, a sharp ache in his chest, Sal frantically pressed on the gas pedal.Â
The engine revved, but the truck didnât move.
Heart in his throat, Sal pressed the gas pedal all the way down to the floor âCâmon câmon câmonâŠâ
The tires whined in protest, but the truck didnât move an inch.
In a fit of desperation Sal flicked on the headlightsâ
Thick black vines encircled the truck, sprouting wickedly sharp, curved thorns and sickly monkshood blossoms.
And through the black thorns and violet petals he spotted her, illuminated by the truckâs high beams.
The vines and the flowers prevented Sal from seeing her face clearly, but he knew who it was.
The girl.Â
The sole survivor and the first to return.
And somehow brought the others back with her.
Sal slammed on the gas again and again, engine roaring and tires squealing, but the vines held fast. The girl slowly walking around to the side of the truck.
He gritted his teeth, mainly to stop them from chattering together, keeping the gas pedal pressed against the floor despite the engineâs protests, heartbeat booming in his ears.
Just had to keep at it, those were just vines and this was a big-ass truck. If he just pushed it enough heâd break free eventually. And the doors were all locked so there was no way she was getting to him in heâ
The girl ripped the locked door of the truck off its hinges and threw it into the dark forest beyond. Sal was so stunned that for a moment he couldnât move. Then the girl grabbed him by the collar and dragged him out of the truck, throwing him hard against the ground.
He hit the ground with a grunt, turning around as the girl stepped closer, getting a glimpse of her face for the firstâ
A scream ripped out of his throat, scrambling back on the ground.
Her eyes, oh dear god her eyesâ
The girl held out a hand, the skin on her forearms was black, fingers tapered into sharp claws, dark veins shooting up her arm. All of a sudden he found himself pulled up to his knees by an invisible force, purple mist encircling whim, his chest surrounded by crushing pressure.
âHow many of you are there?â
Sal stammered âWhaââ
She clenched her fingers and the mist swirled, pressure around his chest constricting even tighter.Â
âHow many. Of you. Are there?â
Sal felt a warm trickle down his lip as blood gushed from his nose. The pressure around him unbearable, he couldnât speak if he wanted to, but somehow found the words squeezed out of him.
âFâ five,â
The girl dropped her hand, purple mist and crushing pressure vanishing, leaving Sal gasping on his knees for breath.
He looked up at her; at those hideous, horrible eyes glaring down at him, her lips twisted in a sneer as she raised a dark fist.
Then a blinding pain erupted against the side of his skull and everything went dark.
---
Claire ran through the woods. Sprinting between the trees with a speed and precision that would have been impossible an hour ago.
She was alone now, for the first time since Jim had died in her arms.
Take them to the clearing, Jim will show you the way, make sure they donât leave the stone circle, but donât step in it yourselves, ever.
Sheâd known that it was a group of killers that had attacked them, hoped that thereâd be at least eight of them. But of course it couldnât be that perfect.
Five. More than sheâd had when sheâd started, more than half that she needed.
But not enough.
On this night while the veil is thin all souls may exist on this plane, but if you do not bring me the eight before the sun rises the souls of your companions will be pulled back to the otherworld.
Claireâs chest tightened in a way that had nothing to do with her mad dash through the forest.
Her friends were all back. Impossibly, miraculously. But if they were going to be here to stay she needed to make sure the balance was kept.
Eight for eight.
Five down, three to go.
She caught the faint sounds of peopleâs voices in the distance, pivoting and making a beeline for the noise.
As the voices got louder Claire spotted a steadily growing glow through the trees, stopping just short of where the light penetrated the shadows.
A large bonfire blazed in a clearing in front of her, smaller than the farm but larger than Cromâs stone circle. A group of what looked like around twenty college students milled around it, holding red solo cups chatting and laughing, the air tinged with the faint but unmistakable burn of alcohol.Â
It would be easy enough to drag three of them off into the night.
Never to be seen again.
Claireâs feet stayed rooted to the ground, she knew what she had to do. Gone over it again and again as she raced through the woods, but now that she was actually hereâŠ.
Four girls in matching glittery tutus played beer pong on a camping table as a crowd cheered them on, hugging and laughing with delight each time they scored a point.
A guy in a denim jacket and a devil horn headband sitting by the fire and making out with another boy with dreadlocks and plastic angel wings on his back.
Someone wearing harlequin makeup posing and taking a selfie with the bonfire and everyone else in the group behind them.
The scene was so achingly familiar it nearly brought Claire to her knees.
They were just regular people, just having fun and living their lives. None of them deserved to die, to have everything cut short. She should go look somewhere else, find three people more deserving.
But how could she possibly decide who was deserving? It wasnât like people just went around wearing nametags that said âI deserve to dieâ, and she only had until sunrise to choose. How could she possibly make a choice like that? She was better off sticking to what was available.
Claire shook her head to banish the thought.
These were people. People with family and friends and lives of their own. She shouldnât think of them as available or not.Â
She shouldnât just condemn three random people to death.
But thatâs exactly what those five bastards had done to her friends. She didnât feel guilty in the slightest for what she was going to do to them. Theyâd hunted her friends down and slaughtered them all just to save a little cash. And if Claire didnât get the eight lives that she needed tonight, when the sun came up theyâd go back to being dead.
But none of the people in front of her deserved to die. They were just out having a good time with their friends, they were no different than them.
But the seven of them didnât deserve to die either.
Claire was paralyzed, chest clenching, standing at the crossroads of the decision she had to make.
Three innocent strangers.
Or her seven friends.
Who would live, and who would die.
Claire shut her eyes, leaned back against the tree, and pulled in a deep breath.
And made her choice.
Creeping forward, Claire stalked around the bonfire, keeping to the shadows and scoping out potential targets.
Theyâre people not targets donât just think of them like targets.
Off in a tucked away glen, just outside the bonfireâs light, a couple sat on a blanket giggling and passing a flask back and forth, the stench of alcohol hanging heavy over them.
Sheâd start with those two, they were already pretty drunk, so chances are they wouldnât even feel it.
Claire forced herself not to think about what âitâ would entail.
She snuck close, keeping to the shadows, only stepping out of the trees when she was practically on top of them.The couple was so tipsy that they didnât even notice. Knowing that if she hesitated sheâd never go through with it, Claire charged forward, knocked each of them out with a punch to the back of the head in quick succession.
In just seconds it was over.Â
She stood there panting, their unconscious bodies sprawled out on the ground in front of her, heartbeat booming in her ears.
Which was why she didnât hear until it was nearly too late.
âFran? Jason?â a much more sober voice cut in behind her âWhat are you guysââ
Claire didnât think, she just acted, storm inside her roaring. She whirled around with her hands glowing purple, catching a glimpse of a pale face, long brown hair, and eyes widening in surprise before she blasted the intruder with a wave of violet energy.
They slammed into a tree, head cracking into the bark with a dull thunk, before crumpling silently to the ground.
Claire stood there frozen for a few seconds, hands outstretched and fingertips glowing. The sounds of merriment coming from the bonfire continued uninterrupted, telling her that her crime went undetected.
She let out the breath sheâd been holding, standing up straight and willing the jitters to leave her arms and legs.
Three people lay unconscious on the ground around her.
Three more souls to keep up her end of the bargain.
Three lives to consign to the flame.
Two she chose because theyâd been drunk and distracted, and one because she was stupid enough to be worried about her friends.
Just like me.
Fresh burning surged up behind her eyes.
Three or seven, you made your choice, donât go crying about it now.
Claire shook her head, swallowed back her tears, and bent down to sling the first one over her shoulder.
Sheâd make sure they were all well and truly unconscious before âitâ started to happen. Claire might be throwing them under the bus so she could pull her friends out from under it, but she wouldnât let them suffer, not if she could help it.
---
Orange and black flickered in Salâs vision, the sight poking at a dull pain throbbing in the back of his skull.
A low moan escaped him.
Orange and black, Halloween colorsâŠ.
âHeâs awake,â a voice muttered, who Sal had no idea.
A hand shook his shoulder, and not gently âSal you gotta wake up,â Laurieâs voice hissed âWeâre in deep shit,â
All of a sudden it came rushing back to him; the bodies, the monstersâ
Those horrible eyes.
Sal pushed himself upright, an icepick of pain stabbing into his skull. He blinked at the orange and black, trying to clear his vision. The vague shapes of colors clarified into flickering flames against the dark night air. Dull glow of the fire illuminating the shapes of rocks and trees.Â
He slowly turned around, Sal saw that he, Laurie, Sid, Allen, and Jess were here. Jess cradling her broken arm and Allen sporting a nasty looking gash over one eye. Sid sat on the ground hugging his knees rocking back and forth. And here looked like a clearing in the woods, large rocks set up around the border where the ring of fire burned.
âWhat happened? Where are we?â
Laurie bit her lip âSomewhere in the woodsâŠthey dragged us out here,âÂ
Confused, Sal followed her gaze and was about to ask who âtheyâ wereâ
As it turned out he got the answer to that question pretty quick.
Half hidden by trees, the towering figure of a beast loomed just beyond the edge of the clearing. Standing on its two hind legs, nearly eight feet tall, covered from head to toe in shaggy golden fur and the shredded remains of a pair of jeans.
A single lip pulled up in the beginnings of a snarl, exposing a row of gleaming fangs.Â
A caramel apple falling to the ground as the jaw bone cracked and stretched beyond its limits.
Shaking, Sal slowly turned around, scanning the edge of the clearing. Lead ball sinking deeper and deeper into his belly when he saw that the monster wolf was not alone, catching the snap of twigs, flickers of red and green and blue as they moved between the trees.
They were surrounded and not just by the fire.
âThey threw us in here,â Laurie whispered âBut it seems like they donât want to step in themselves,â
Sal drew himself to his feet âWe need to try and make a break for it,â
âCanât,â Allen said bluntly âI tried, didnât even get a foot away from the edge before they knocked me back, plus I got this to show for my troubles,â he pointed to the gash on his face.
Sal winced.
âIt feels almost like theyâreâŠ.waiting for somethingâŠ.â Jess said softly.
âWe shouldnât have done this guys,â Sid blubbered âWe never should have gone after those kids, and now weâre paying for itââ
âChrist would you shut the hell up!â Allen bellowed, face red.
Twigs snapped just beyond the clearing, branches rustled as the monsters surrounding them stood at attention, paying close attention to the commotion.
The five of them went dead quiet, none of them even daring to breathe. After a few tense moments, Laurie stepped up to Sal.Â
âI counted and thereâs only seven surrounding us, that means one is missing and I think sheâs the one theyâre waiting for,â coming in close, Laurie discreetly slipped a large rock into Salâs hand âHereâs the plan, when she gets back and steps inside we take her hostage and force the others to let us go,â
Sal looked over at the wolfman towering above them, then down at the rock in his hand â....I donât think thatâs going to work,â
âWhat!?â Laurie hissed
âLook, I meanâ thereâs only five of us, and seven of them, and theyâre all hugeââ
âIf you have a better idea please share with the rest of us,â she snarled.
âI think we all need to make a break for it at once, running in different directions,â Sal knew he was babbling but couldnât stop himself âIf weâre fast then maybe we canââ
âSo you can screw the rest of us over and get away?â Jess snarled âNo way,â
âWell whatâs your brilliant solution huh!?â
âOh fuck offââ
âWe shouldnât have done this, we never should have done this, we killed those kids and now godâs punishing usââ
âWould you shut the fuck upââ
The flames surrounding the clearing surged, rising six feet high and causing all of them to fall silent. Just as quickly as they rose the flames sunk back down, one small patch going out entirely.Â
Before he could think about that meant a figure, one that was all too familiar, stepped into the ring, the flames sealing shut behind them,Â
Salâs breath caught in his throat, taking an involuntary step back.
It was the girl.
Donât look at her eyes, for the love of god donât look into her eyes.
She was bringing in three people with her. One hanging from each arm, and another slung over her shoulder. All dangling limply, possibly unconscious, or dead.
Walking deeper into the clearing, unbothered by the fact they outnumbered her five to one. The girl came to a halt just in front of the fire pit, letting the three people drop to the ground, one of them letting out a moan and confirming that they were in fact unconscious and not dead.
Laurie rushed her, medium size log in hand and ready to use. Sal forced himself to jump into action alongside her. Charging forward with the rock raised high, aiming it to bring it down hard on her templeâ
He hit a wall, staggering, the girl catching his forearm in an iron grip, simultaneously snagging Laurieâs log in her other hand, an unimpressed look on her terrible faceâ
Her eyes oh god those eyes
Laurie dropped the log and pulled a knife from her belt, moving to bury it in the girlâs gutâ
Faster than the eye could see the girl dropped the log and caught her by the wrist, trapping both her and Sal with ease, her apathetic face slowly morphing into a snarl.
Then she tossed them back as easily as chucking two apple cores, Sal hitting the ground with bruising force, knocking the air from his lungs. From the side he heard Laurie grunt as she landed a few feet away.
Scrambling back upright, he saw that the girl was still scowling down at them, but then she moved her gaze towards the fire pit. She shut her eyes and pulled in a deep breath through her nose.
âCome forthâŠCrom Cruach,â
A concussive wave boomed through the clearing, leaving Sal reeling. He scrambled to his feet, struggling to regain his bearings, when he saw a redness spreading out from the pit. Everything it touched withered, rusty flakes peeling off and drifting up towards the sky.
Sal felt his jaw fall open as the redness rushed underneath him, racing to the edge of the pit and filling the air with a rust colored blizzard. Blood rushed in his ears, guts curdling in on themselves.
What the fuck was going on!? First those dead kids turned into monsters, that girl turned into a freak of nature, now reality was coming apart at the seaâ
A wet cracking sound echoed from the center of the clearing.
Sal spun around, a massive hand was sticking out of the now pitch black fire pit, pulling an equally massive arm along with it. Him and the others scrambled back as someâŠsomeâŠthing crawled out of the pit with more horrible cracking.
Meanwhile the girl hadnât budged an inch, standing directly in front of the pit with shoulders square and feet firmly rooted to the ground.
The thing from the pit rose to its full height, head level with the tree tops and knuckles nearly dragging on the ground. Wet, red flesh shimmered in the fire light. A flayed, skeletal abomination. No mouth, no nose.
Just glowing silver eyes.
The thing ignored them completely and looked down at the girl in front of it. She held the thingâs gaze without flinching âI kept my end of the bargain,â she stretched out her arms âEight for eight,â
A hisping rasping sound came from the thing âSo you have,â its silvery eyes raked the clearing, seeming to notice them for the first time, Sal flinching when its gaze rolled over him.
âNow begins my feast,â
Sal felt his blood run cold.
âŠ..feast?
The thing raised both hands to its face, one from above one from below, digging its fingers into where its mouth should have been, and pulled. A cracking sound emerged from the thing as it pulled, a small crevice forming between its fingers.Â
Sal felt himself start to tremble, chill racing across his entire body. As the thing pulled its face even open even wider, tearing open a mouth where none had been before. The crevice becoming a chasm.
More cracks echoed in the clearing as the thing pulled its jaw open impossibly wide, far wider than any proper jaw, wider than any living creature should have been capable of, opening up along its entire body.
Task complete the thing dropped down on all fours. Its mouth taking up nearly its entire body, a gut on four legs. Glimpsing inside, Sal saw rings of jagged, transparent teeth, like shards of broken glass, lining the thingâs gullet in perfect circles, row after row of them leading as far down into its stomach as Sal could see.
Reaching out a long arm, the thing picked up one of the unconscious people at the girlâs feet, a slight flutter of their eyelids the only sign of life.
It lifted them headfirst into its horrible mouth, sealing shut over them with a wet crunch. Slurping them down whole like a snake swallowing a mouse. The snap of bone and rip of tearing flesh echoing out as the thing ground them with its teeth as it sucked them down into its gut.
Sal couldnât move if he wanted to, those awful sounds echoing in his ears, ice cold terror spiking through him and pinning him to the ground; heart threatening to beat out of his chest, so loud he imagined this thing could hear it.
This couldnât be happening this couldnât possibly be real. There was no way this was actually happeningâ
The thing swallowed, shoes vanishing into its mouth with a wet pop, blood dribbling down its chin.
Then it turned and reached for another.
Around him he heard Allen, Laurie and Jess scream while Sid started sobbing. Getting his bearings, Allen turned and made a mad dash to the edge of the clearing. In a blur of motion the girl caught him by the collar of his shirt, halting him in his tracks, and drove her foot into his knee with a sickening crack.
Jess and Laurie tried to make a break in the opposite direction, only for the girl to catch them and down them with identical kicks.
Hearing those cracks of bone snapped Sal back to reality, turning and sprinting for the edge of the clearing. Head empty except for a burning desire to get awayâ
From behind he heard Sidâs wails cut off, his cries replaced with the crack of bones and the squelch of fang meeting flesh, driving Sal to run even faster.
Fuck the fire, fuck the monsters, heâd rather deal with them than that thing, anything was better than thaâ
Something snagged him by the neck and threw him against the ground hard. His vision cleared to reveal the girl standing over him, sneering down at him with those horrible eyes.
From somewhere behind him he heard more wet crunching and Jess screeching in agony.
âLâ look kid Iâm sorry ok,â Sal managed to stammer out, the girlâs eyes still boring into him âI never should have messed with you or your friends, wâ we can work this out, I can get you moneyâ a lot of money, justââ
She stomped on his calf hard.
Sal howled as blinding pain shot up his leg, rolling around on the ground and trying to pull his knees to his chest. Underneath his jeans his calf bent at a sharp angle, blood soaking into the denim, stabbing him over and over again with a fresh wave of agony with each beat of his heart. He could feel jagged shards of bone grinding against each other every time his leg so much as twitched.
She shattered the bone, this little bitch shattered the boneâ
âYou.â the girl loomed over him, glaring down at him with those awful eyes of hers âHave nothing that I want.â
Something moved in the corner of Salâs vision, he snapped his head around to see the thing crouching on all fours at his feet. Its mouth open wide and broken glass teeth wet and dripping with red.
Salâs heart leapt into his throat, nerves screaming with pure fear, he tried to scramble away, but he could barely move, the pain in his leg pinning him to the ground.
This couldnât be happening, not to him, not like this. This couldnât possibly be happâÂ
The thing grasped his feet, Sal howling as fresh pain surged up his leg, raising his legs to its mouth.
âIâllâ Iâll get you more people!â Sal didnât know if he was trying to convince the girl or the thing âTen twenty one hundred as many as you want! Just let meââ
The thingâs teeth crunched down on his feet, slicing through muscle and crunching straight down to the marrow. Salâs throat burned as a screech tore its way out of his throat. The agony of his shattered shin bone blending with the fresh, white hot pain of teeth shredding into his feet until everything below the knees was an inferno of agony.
This canât be happening this canât be happening.
Sal thrashed and clawed at the ground, fingers tearing gouges into the dirt, frantically looking for a wayâ any way to escape.
A pair of black sneakers filled his vision, Sal glanced up to see the girl looming over him, fire blazing behind her, illuminating her like some terrible fury of vengeance, fixing him with her merciless, piercing stare, those terrible eyesâŠ.
Black veins, looking almost like cracks, radiated out from them. Her sclera were ink black, completely matte; no shine, no light escaping them, dark and bottomless as the pit that thing crawled out of. In contrast her irises practically throbbed with color, twin pools of molten violet unmarred by pupils, glowing with unearthly light. Glaring down at him down at him from above, those purple eyes seemed to peel away at every layer of him, staring straight down into the depths of his soul.
For a moment he stared into those horrible eyes, transfixed, until a fresh wave of molten pain on his legs drew him back.
Another scream ripped out of him, the creatureâs teeth chewing into his thighs. Whipping around exchanging purple eyes for silver, no less terrible. Two pits of molten metal, like staring straight into the bottom Hell itself.
Sal could only scream and scream and scream as the thing chewed its way up his body, its teeth up to his torso now, shredding apart muscle and sinew and crushing bone as it went leaving nothing but white hot pain in its wake. He lifted his head to stare up at the night sky, red blizzard obscuring the stars, a flicker of burning silver and liquid purple flashing behind his eyes, before his world was consumed in agony.
---
âOk, ready, push!â
Claire watched as Jim and Steve shoved the truck over the edge of the embankment, landing in the hollow below with a crash. The hollow wasnât really that deep, only about ten feet, but it was in the thick of the forest, far away from any roads or trails, tightly surrounded by trees on all sides.
No one would ever find it here.
Reaching down, Claire picked up a garbage bag at her feet, a weight that would have staggered her yesterday barely registering now, and chucked it in.
She knew they had to get rid of the fireplace grate and the poker, and to avoid standing out they threw the rest of the fireplace tools in the bag to.
Beyond her she saw Toby and Shannon toss in bags of their own.
Both of them full of concrete that was still sticky with Darciâs blood.
From the side she saw Mary tossing in another bag with a sneer. A garbage bag that Claire herself had helped pack up with a camcorder, an electrical cord, a machete, a crossbow, and at least half a dozen bolts.
More bags followed, containing every trace of evidence of the events of this night. Gloves and knives, rope and pumpkins and candy all sticky with blood, cell phones with batteries removed and SIM cards smashed, towels, boots, helmets.
And five clown masks.
There had been a fake deer to, it had been too big to bag so theyâd just left it in the truck bed. None of them were sure what the deer was for, but Claire had a sinking feeling it had something to do with Coachâs absence.
She swallowed back the sudden lump in her throat âLetâs pile some branches and leaves on. Just for good measure,â
No one questioned her, all wordlessly gathering loose branches and leaves from the ground and heaping them into the hollow on top of the truck. Darci, Steve, and Jim even reaching up and snapping some particularly bushy branches off the trees to toss in.
With no more effort than it would take to pluck an apple.
After a while Eli stood up straight, red eyes blinking down at the hollow âI think thatâs good, it's pretty much covered, and no oneâs going to find it, not unless they already know where it is,â
Claire threw down the last few leaves in her hands and then stopped, not even questioning how Eli could see so well in the pitch black woods.
After everything theyâd been through tonight, sudden night vision wasnât that surprising.
Tossing in what was left in their hands, they all slowly stopped, standing there in uncomfortable silence. In the distance an owl hooted.
âWeâŠcanât go home,â Jim said at last, raising a hand and staring at it âNot like this,âÂ
Claire bit her lip, theyâd been so busy cleaning up before, and she didnât want to get their hopes up and have it turn out to be nothing, but nowâŠ
âFollow me guys,â
They all looked around at her and each other, confused, but nevertheless followed as she headed off into the dark woods, hoping against hope she was right.
About five minutes into their trek in the woods Eli broke the silence
âUh Claire, where are we going?â
âWhen Crâ when he touched me, he didnât just give me powers. He showed me things, memories of other people whoâd bargained with him,â
Shannon slithered up until she was right beside her âOk, but what does that have to do withâŠâ she gestured to her waist, everything below the ribs a long serpentine tail.
âSomeone else in Arcadia bargained with it a long time ago, and they hid something out here, and if Iâm right it should still beââ Claire spotted the large twisted tree from her visions and bolted straight towards it, the others right on her heels.
She slid to the ground, shoving a hand into the hollow she knew was beneath it as the others gathered around.
Please be there, please be there, please be thâ
Her fingers closed around a thin piece of wood, heart leaping.
Claire pulled out her prize and held it up for them all to see.
âAâŠwooden mask? Howâs that going to help withâŠ.â Mary looked back, her wings fluttering behind her.
Figuring it was easier just to show them, Claire imagined herself from earlier today; happy, naive, carefree, and raised the mask to her face.
A brief flash enveloped her and the others gasped. Claire knew what she must look like to them now. The way sheâd been, brown eyes, soft rounded fingers, skin on her forearms a warm brown, not a trace of the black veins marring her face and hands.
She grimaced âNot quite,â she pulled more of the masks out from underneath the tree and started handing them out âI look normal, but itâs only an illusion, skin deep, underneath Iâm stillâŠâ she pulled the mask off, revealing her cracked countenance.Â
The mood dropped, but not all the way, all of them practicing trying on the masks and settling into the illusions while Claire took stock of what was under the tree. Ten masks in total, one for each of them plus two extra, some deceptively unassuming potions in glass bottles, dusty bundles of roots and herbs, more than a few books that she did not want to get intoâ
Claire leaned back onto her knees and surveyed the hollow beneath the tree, teeth digging into her lip. Even though this stuff hadnât been found in the hundred years it had been here, she didnât feel right just leaving it out here knowing how dangerous it was. If only there was some way to lock it upâ
The woman smeared in red waving a hand, the apple tree before her bathed in shimmering ruby light.
Claire raised a hand and summoned the sensation, palm tingling with power, then a wave of her hand and purple light washed over the hollow, surging bright before fading away.
Toby crept closer, pawpads silent against the forest floor but wings rustling against branches, eyes wide with wonder âWhat was that?â
âAnother thing that he put in my head, all the spells his past priests and priestesses knew,â Claire got to her feet âI just made it so no one else can get under there, thereâs only two extra masks so we all need to be careful with them,â
Jim forced out an almost painful sounding chuckle âHey, Iâm just glad I can go out in broad daylighââ
Claire staggered, leaning against the tree, images flashing behind her eyes.
Horned bestial figures wailing in agony as the first light of dawn struck them, sunlight burning their skin to a dead grey as they collapsed into cold, lifeless gravel.
âYouâŠcanât,â
âWhat?â
Claire pushed herself off the tree and took a step closer to him âWhatâŠwhat you are nowâ itâs not a vampire, but like, it has the same rules about the sun, if sunlight touches you it will burn you until you die,â
Jim blinked at her, mouth hanging open âThenâŠwhat do I do?â
âThe mask should cover your face, besides thatâŠlong sleeves and pants, a hoodie to cover your head, gloves, pants tucked into your socksâŠâ
His gaze dropped, staring down at the mask in stunned silence.
âWhaâ wait! What about the rest of us!?â Steve said in a panic.
Claire looked around at them, different images flashing in her mind faster than she could see, but none of them had the same burning under the sun.
âYou guys should be ok in the sun,â
âBut what about everything else!?â
âIâŠdonât know,â
âHow can you not know?â Mary threw her hands up âDidnât that thing download all this stuff directly into your head!?â
âHe did butâŠâ Claire raised a hand to her temple âThereâs just so much up here I need time to sort through it all, I get flashes of things when theyâre brought up, like what Jim said about the sun, but when I go lookingâŠitâs like a needle in a haystack,â
They all murmured among themselves before Darciâs voice cut sharply above the others.
âWhy did he bring us back like this!â she held out her arms, bark like skin covered in creeping tendrils of vines âWhy didnât he bring us back asâŠus,â her voice cracked a little at the end.
Claire winced, stomach twisting at the deep pain in Darciâs expression âHeâŠcouldnât,â
âMr. Crooked literally raised the dead!â Toby threw his paws out, wings flaring in exasperation âBut bringing people back to life as, you know, themselves, is too much!?â
She let out a deep breath and took a seat on a log âHe told meâŠthat heâs not all powerful, and that dying always takes a toll. He said your human lives had ended, so to come back you couldnât be human any more. And heâŠheâs a lot of things, but I donât think heâs capable of lying,â
They all mulled over her words, the woods buzzing as they muttered amongst themselves.
âIs that why he needed the eight people to?â Eli asked quietly âTo bring us back he needed others to die?â
âGuess itâs a good thing there were eight killers,â Steve mumbled.
Claire flinched before she was able to stop herself, hugging her elbows and looking away, hoping no one had noticed.
Unfortunately Mary had.
âTheyâŠwere all the clowns that killed usâŠâ she took half a step towards Claire âRight?â
Claireâs throat tightened.
They were going to learn the truth eventually, one way or another, no point in dragging it out now.
âNo.â
Everyone stopped and stared at her.
âThe first five were, but the last threeâŠthey were just college students at a party,â
Shannonâs now golden eyes went huge âButâŠwhy them?â
âCrâ He said I needed to give him eight people before dawn, they were the first people I found, and I didnât know if Iâd have time to find anyone else, so I just killed them because they were the first people I could grab,â
She choked, burning in her throat choking her and rising up behind her eyes.
Could she even cry anymore with her eyes like this?
Dead silence between the eight of them, the atmosphere strained and tacky until Steve forcibly cleared his throat âWell uhâŠ.thatâs notâŠgoodâŠbut at least weâre done dealing with Mr. Crooked Man,â
Claire bit her lip so hard she tasted blood, black, claw-like finger tips piercing through her arms and stabbing into her flesh as she hugged herself âYeahâŠâ
âWhat arenât you telling us?â Darci said bluntly.
Claire jerked upright âWhat? Iâm notââ
âClaire Iâve known you since we were in kindergarten, I can tell when youâre holding something back, now what arenât you saying?â
Claireâs stomach rolled, hands shaking, she dropped her gaze down low, unable to look any of them in the eye.Â
This was the part she knew was the point of no return. More than being a murder, the thing that made her a real monster, the reason that there would truly be no going back for her.
Once they others learned the truth theyâd be disgusted with her, and they wouldnât be wrong for feeling that way.
âThe eight people I gave him tonight were just what he needed to keep the balance, for payment he wanted something elseâŠâ
---
 âThen whatâs the payment?â
âMy price is the same as the toll that is needed. One soul renewed, and seven returned. Eight for eight,â
âWait, I thought the eight people was just what you needed to keep the balance?â
âThis is true for the eight you give me this night, but my price is eight for eight,â he leaned down towards her in a series of jerking, sickening cracks âEight lives on the night the veil is thin, continued for eight seasons,â
Claireâs breath caught in her chest, heartbeat stuttering, the meaning behind his words slowly sinking in âYou meanâŠI need to give you eight people this Halloween, and eight more every Halloween for seven more years?â
Cromâs gaze burned into her, as searing and merciless as the depths of a furnace âYes,â
âThatâs sixty four peopleâŠâ she reeled back âI canâtâŠâ
He rose to his full height again âThe choice is yours. You stand at the crossroads, banish me and I will vanish from this plane,â he gestured towards Jim âAnd your loved ones will remain cold corpses, their deaths unpunished,â
Claireâs stomach churned, shaking hands balled into fists at her sides. Sixty four livesâŠsheâd been starting to accept giving him eight, that should be about the number of killers thereâd been, but sixty four? So many peopleâŠ
âOrâŠâ He turned back towards her âAccept my price, have those you cherish returned, and gain the power to punish those responsible for taking them from youâŠâ
---
All seven of them stared at her with their jaws hanging open, Steveâs wolf muzzle practically dragging on the forest floor.
âSo thatâs it,â Claire mumbled, staring at the ground unable to face them âNot only did I kill three innocent people tonight. I have to give him eight more people to eat next Halloween, and for six more years after that,â
No one spoke, shock and horror practically oozing off of them in waves.
Claire set her jaw and turned away. She knew this was coming, she was a murderess, a killer just like they had been. And any moment now one of them would open their mouths and let her know how monstrous she really waâ
âIâ I need to say something,â Toby stepped forward, wings fluttering and lion tail thrashing âMyâ my grandpa died when my dad was eighteen, Nana keeps his picture on him on the mantle and takes it down to hug it every year on his birthday,â
Claire turned back around towards him, eyebrows crinkling in confusion âToby whaââ
He held up a handâ paw to silence her âMy parents died when I was two, and every year on the anniversary of their deaths Nana takes their photo off the mantle and cries for an hour, she thinks I donât notice but I do. Now Iâm the only family she has left,â
Toby came even closer, green eyes burning but not with disgust âClaire if it wasnât for you all Nana would have left is pictures on a shelf. If it wasnât for you sheâŠshe would have had to see what they did to my body. I know killing those three people wasâŠbad, itâs messed up, thereâs no way around that, and Iâm not saying that it isnât, butâŠIâm glad you brought all of us back,â
She staggered back, stunned âToby, IâŠâ
âMaybe thatâs not the right way to feel, maybe that makes me a terrible person,â Toby crossed the distance between the two of them, only inches apart now âBut you know what, itâs the truth, you kept my Nana from losing the last bit of family she had, and Iâm glad you did,â
Claire couldnât speak, emotion sealing her throat shut.
âTobyâs right,â Mary came forward in a flutter of red wings âIt was game over for us, but you brought us all back, killing those peopleâŠwasnât ok, none of it is, this whole thing is at least fifty different shades of fucked up, but Iâm really really glad to be alive again, and saying anything different would be a lie,â
Mary put both hands on Claireâs shoulders and stared her dead on âAnd Iâm going to help you get the people for next year,â
Claire felt the air get knocked out of her âBut Mareââ
âBut nothing, when we were all getting butchered you wouldnât leave anyone behind, so Iâm not leaving you behind,â
âMe either,â Toby squared his shoulders âCount me in to,â
âGuys, Iâ I canât ask you to help me choose people to kill,â she swiveled around at everyone gathering in around her âThis was my choice, my decision, Iâm the only one who has to deal with the consequences,â
âYouâre not asking,â Darci stepped forward âWeâre telling you, and besides, youâre allowed to make the ultimate deal with the devil to help us but we canât return the favor? Now way. Plus we have a whole year, we can find eight people at a puppy kicking convention or something,â
âPlus I think I have mind control powers now so itâs not like you can stop me,â Mary added.
Steve stepped forward âCount me in to,âÂ
âMe three,â Eli piped up.
âIâm in to,â Shannon slithered up to join them âAnd Iâm not just being nice. Itâs not that Iâm not grateful you brought me back, because I am, I justâŠâ
Her voice dropped low, gaze falling to the ground âI donât want to find out what happens to us if you miss a payment,â
Claire had to force the words out past a thick knot of emotion âGâ guys, no. I made my choice, I chose to kill those people. Iâm already a murder, thereâs no reason for the rest of you to go down with me,â
A soft touch on her shoulder startled her. Claire jerked around, and came face to face with Jim.
âSo what, weâre just supposed to ditch you? Leave you to deal with this all on your own? No. No one gets left behind, and that includes you,â
Jim leaned down to look her directly in the eyes âYou did this for us, now let us do this for you,â
He smiled at her, so full of tenderness, and suddenly past the blue skin new angular features and fangs, there was just so much of the same familiar Jim in his expression that it broke her.
Claire felt tears spilling out onto her cheeks, a sob choking out of her; Mary and Darci surged forward and wrapped her in a bear hug while Jim kept a comforting hand on her back. The rest hung back at a respectful distance, as all the horror, everything that had happened, the things she did and the things she was going to do, all tumbled out at once. Claire falling to pieces while the others waited to put her back together again.
---
They all sat waiting by the gate, the same place Coach Lawrence had left them all those hours ago. It was pitch black out, the only light came from the occasional glow of their phone screens, which also let them know it was getting close to midnight.
Every trace of blood and gore from the last few hours had been scrubbed away and thrown down a hole deep in the forest. They all wore their masks, human illusions fixed firmly in place.
No one spoke, too exhausted and burnt out for that, just stayed sitting silently in the dark. Claire, Darci, and Mary all snug shoulder to shoulder on a single bale, Claire tucked in the middle. Toby and Jim sat on the bale beside them, leaning into each other, even Steve, Shannon, and Eli all clustered together on the ground by the barn.
All just sitting and waiting in the dark, quiet night.
Then, just after midnight, sounds of a car came from up the road. All of them sitting up at attention as the flicker of headlights flashed through the trees.
Claire leaned forward, all of them did, heart pounding as a minivan pulled to a stop in front of them.
Were their masks working? Did they miss something in their clean up? Did whoever it was in the car notice how something was clearly very very wrong?
Mr. Strickler stepped out of the car, raised a hand over his eyes as he looked over at them, relief washing over him in a tangible wave âOh thank goodness youâre all ok,â
Claire let herself relax a fraction, even as she had to hold back a bubble of bitter laughter.
He stepped aside and gestured towards the van âCome on letâs get you all home,â
They all wordlessly filed into the minivan. With the eight of them plus Strickler it was a tight squeeze, but they made it work. Once doors were shut and seatbelts buckled, Mr. Strickler turned back to look at them âIâm so sorry you were all left out here alone for so long. Lawrence was in a bad car accident- but donât worry heâs alright, heâs awake now, and he feels absolutely terrible for stranding you all,â
âIs no his fault,â Steve mumbled.
Mr. Strickler made a three point turn and started heading back up the road âIâm sorry you children had such a miserable holiday. Mr. Fier is to, in fact heâs offered to let you all come to the Fair next year free of charge,âÂ
He turned back briefly from the driverâs seat, flashing them a warm smile, and hopefully missing the way theyâd all simultaneously stiffened in their seats.
âSo this year might have been a disaster, but your next Halloween should be much better,â
Claire turned towards the window, watching the dark forest rush by them, her guts twisting in on themselves âYeah, I hope soâŠâ
General James Amos- Unlawful Command Influence Causes Overturned Conviction
The Marines in a now notorious video posted in 2012 were all punished for peeing on Taliban fighters in the corpse desecration case. A military appeals court overturned the conviction of Marine Staff Sgt Joseph W. Chamblin two days ago due to âUnlawful Command Influenceâ by former Marine Commandant James Amos. Funker530 noted, The court of appeals has stated that now-retired General AmosâŠ
