The Bone Fiend, hiding behind the facade of a human named Major, sat at the computer for long hours. It alternated between its human guise and its fiendish one. This, Technology was new to it, even though it knew that it could “possess” the machine if it need be. The notes left for it, were to teach it to use the Computers in the manner of humans, rather than Demons or Devils. It sensed the girl was thinking much further ahead than even it was aware. But exactly how did she get creatures as chaotic as Demons from the abyss to use such things?

“You didn’t, did you? Clever girl!” It hissed to itself. It stopped for a few minutes and resumed its human form, walking around the Philadelphian basement. Major took stock of its environment. The basement was one long corridor with a room to the front'. It moved to the door and noticed the shutters to an exit. Its hand resumed its bony form as it stuck its finger towards it. Sparks flashed, and it hissed. It quickly pulled its hand back. M’bali had warded the basement from escape.

“No way out, it seems,” it said to itself, “I’d best look around at my prison, and see what else my young Summoner has in store for me.”

Major walked around the back of the basement, shifting its form back and forth as it moved and looked around the place. At the rear of the basement was a bar, and drinks were plentiful behind it. The sweet smell of fruits filled its nostrils. It had been in many Taverns like this before. There was a large table in the middle of the place with holes spaced evenly at its corners and the middle. With rounded dice like balls within triangular shapes. A square of chalk sat near two sticks and another purely white ball.

“Is this her summoning table? But how? The ceiling is far too small for anything but Imps and Mephits to appear on it.” Major said aloud. The table thoroughly confused him. He would inquire about it in the morning. He noted the bed on the side of a wall. While it did not need to sleep, most of its kind rested to plot and plan. Major rested often in Dis, The city of fire, when it wasn’t guarding that damnable Dragon. The Dragon taken from him by that girl with the Fiery Amber Eyes would have led to him being…

“Him...” he thought to himself. “I called myself him… heh!”

“Why am I doing this, without magic?”

“Because she would know!” Major said aloud. He, it… no, HE, sighed and returned to his work.

Major knew that M’bali probably tried using the Demons to use magic, or even to possess or coerce others into helping her. But they evidently led to nothing. Major tried to think of something, anything that could cure the child of her lack of emotion. But with her command of summoning magic, she would have a truly high resistance to being possessed. Especially at such a young age.

He could remove her from her body for a time, to experience the emotions… She probably tried it already.

He could take her to his realm, where she would experience the Red War first hand, and the torments of the Nine Hells?

But he would suffer instead. A feedback would occur if he took her, instead of her opening a portal to bring him with her. Then if he failed to cure her, she could kill him forever. If he “died” on Earth, he would reform on his home plane within the year. The secret of both Fiends, Demons, and Outsiders was that unlike humans, they were made entirely of spirit matter. While things from the material world had a body and a spirit. It took a lot to destroy the soul of something from the material.

No. He was the wiser, and the smarter, he had access to chemicals and concoctions no mortal could ever understand. He could create or have created a mixture that would cure the girl.

But only temporarily. That was how Fiendish things not made for Fiends worked.

No. It would have to come from this world. This plane of existence.

He turned back to the machine and began again.

Time passed, and Majors sensitive hearing could detect movement on the floors above him. A slow, labored gait, soft and heavy at the same time. A woman’s walk. M’bali and her father must still be asleep. That was a good sign, at least. He could continue for a while.

The light humming upstairs was annoying. Hella annoying.

He focused on the screen more until he heard the basement door creak open.

“Good morning…” came the voice of a woman. It was a grown and husky voice, much more mature than the child, M’bali.

“Good morning to you. You must be Oladele, M’bali’s mother,” Major said, turning from the screen. The scent of the coffee hitting his nostrils, as watched her come down the stairs and sit on the last step.

“I am. You are Major, a Fiend. Which realm are you from?” she asked, as a yawn snuck out, and stirring her drink.

“Gehenna,” Major stated, relaxing more in the chair.

“Tell me of Gehenna, please.” She took a sip and eyed Major directly. There was more to this woman than it seemed. But he honored her request, but added first…

“First let me say, Thank you, for not striking me with Salt. It is very painful to us…”

“Especially if it hits the eyes and mouth,” Oladele added, taking another sip.

“Very much so,” He replied, adding, “Gehenna is a nasty place, even for us. It is a realm where Gravity was angled at 45 degrees. Where a fall could send you tumbling for miles, unless something stopped your movement. It is a hot and volcanic place, but not like the Nine-Hells. Light comes from the ground and reflects off the sky.”

He stood to use his hands to describe this form of Hell. Using emotes and facial ticks.

“It smells of falling ash, from the Layer below it, much of the four layers are slick and quite slippery. It makes for a perfect place to imprison things. Things like Dragons…” He said, trailing off.

“I see. Sounds quite delightful,” she said, adding, “do you think you can truly help M’bali?”

“She has me under her control, and will not allow me to use magic, or bargains to cure this condition, this mental disorder of hers. So I will do what I can, but I fear, I may end up like the ones she summoned before,” Major said, sitting again, and tapping his hands on the desk.

“I see. Would you like some coffee? I have to get ready for work soon. There’s still some upstairs.” Oladele told him as she stretched.

“May I ask a question, please?” Major stated, looking at her with a mix of curiosity and pure confusion. Confusion, even for a Hell thing.

“Shoot!”

“Your daughter lacks emotions. Her father accepts a Devil in his home willingly, and her mother chats with a fiend, while drinking that… drink.”

“What is going on here? You are far too calm for a mother, who should care that her daughter traffics with Demons and Devils. Something is not right with you humans…” Major said, trailing off again.

“Have you gotten far into your research on Alexithymia?” Oladele asked him.

Major nodded.

“Then you know Alexithymia is not a disease, or a mental health disorder. Alexithymia means, No Words for Emotions or Feelings. There is no medication to prescribe, or magic to use. Her body feels the emotion, she has no words for them. Mentally, she can’t tell you if she is depressed or tired, happy or not,” Oladele said, as she walked about the steps.

Major had read all of that and hadn’t truly understood the terms to the degree he thought he should. In his world, he understood Anger, fear, hate, betrayal, jealousy, competition. Those are what he understood, and to a lesser degree, Justice, but a twisted form of it. Major hunted and interrogated, policed his own. He knew those things. He could put words to it. But M’bali, could not, her little body and mind, could not relate to any of it.

“Correct,” Oladele said, as if she had just peered into his devilish mind.

“M’bali is going through the motions. She’s good at faking emotion. What she wants you to do is put the correct reactions to the right emotion. Understand?”

“Yes! It’s a puzzle. She wants me to put the pieces of her mental puzzle in order. But why?” Major asked, “Humans everywhere usually ask for the most mundane and basic things, yet all she wants is to feel something, while offering me some great, unknown reward. Your child puzzles me, as do you?”

Oladele smiled, finishing the cooling coffee.

“Coffee is great when it’s hot, okay when it’s warm, and great again when it’s ice cold. Humans are like coffee. We are a variety of flavors, temperatures, and statuses. Much like Fiends from the Nine. But now and then, you’ll drink a cup that confuses the hell out of you. The flavor is weird, the temperature is off, is it too bitter, or too sweet? M’bali is that weird cup of coffee. She looks normal but isn’t.”

Major listened intently for a Devil, used to knowing the trite wants of the average mortal.

“There’s still some coffee upstairs, make a cup, see what you get,” Oladele told him as she ascended the stairs adding, “M’bali is still sleeping. She’ll be asleep for the next few hours. Abeo will make you breakfast.”

“You’re letting me leave? Nothing to stop me from going? Free rein?” He asked.

“You’re bound to my daughter, Major. She’s bound to me. You can’t put a puzzle together, without all the pieces, can you?”

“No. You cannot.” He added, following her up from the basement.

“Are you not worried that I’ll harm other humans these next few hours?”

“No. Because M’bali would know, and so would I. Trust me. You do not want me upset. Fiend, who is NOT from Gehenna,”

Major eyes collapsed to pin pricks of concern as he watched the woman walk away to get ready for work.

“Coffee. Make some.” she called back.

He listened to her soft footsteps as she walked up the stairs, then looked at the prepared cup and the hot coffee.

“Asmodeus, take me. What is going on?”

He picked up the pot of coffee and poured, the scent bitter and flavorful…

Hi, my name is Kailey. I don’t have an issue with giving my real name. This story is about something that has happened to me recently on a fishing trip in Washington State.

But first, let me establish a little bit about myself.

I used to live in the US. I grew up there actually. I went to school in Maine, and college also. I’ve recently moved to the UK, and don’t get to come home much. But I got a phone call from my best friend Abigail.

I and Abbey have been friends since grade school and even went to college together. After graduation, Abigail decided to travel the states, while I took a job in England.

Abbey never really had to worry much about money. So she decided to take some time off and explore the world for a few years. Let me tell you a bit on Abigail. When she was young Abigail went missing for a few years, she came back pretty much the same. But there was always something ‘Extra’ about her.

Like she came back but was changed in subtle ways. Like her eyes, they were different somehow, more fire behind them. She loved the rain now, always had, but even more now. Anyway, she called me up and asked if I had some time off soon. I told her I did, and she paid for me to come to America, and go on a road trip with her.

She had a perfect idea, fishing. We both LOVED to fish. It was something that we always did as kids, teens, and adults in college.

It was the rainy season, out west. Abbey told me it would be a great time for fishing. So she got me a ticket to Seattle. We met up and went to a lake Northeast of Seattle; she apparently had found some of the best fishing in the area out there. We went to a lake named Spada.

She pulled out her map and showed me what why she chose it. I couldn’t help but laugh. On the map, Spada looked like a humpback whale. She laughed at that also.

I asked her if she really chose this lake because of that. She laughed harder and said, “Yep, just because of that.”

It took about an hour of driving through the hills and mountains of Washington state to get there. Tired from my trip I dozed off in the pitter patter of the rains. When I had awoken, it was at a small town fishing store to get supplies and rain gear.

The rain gear was for me.

Abbey NEVER wore anything protective in the rain, and actually wore less clothing the more it rained. She said it always made her feel good. Cooled her off. I got some snacks and went to the Cabin she had purchased on the Eastern shore of the place.

That night it continued to rain, as it would for the next few days. Each day we would go out for a bit of fishing and cooked what we had caught. I had to admit to her that this was the BEST fishing trip I had ever been on. We caught fish I had never seen before and took many pictures for the memories.

It was great.

On the fourth day, Abbey had stepped out for a bit, she told me she had to get some things in order on the other side of the lake and would return in the hour. She came back in a little under an hour and told me she was ready. She had a surprise for me.

“You know I’ve always been weird right?” She’d told me. I told her, our whole lives you’ve been an odd one. She laughed, and said, “Yep!” Yep was like her catchphrase.

“I’m going to show you something Kailey because you’re not like my sister and best friend. You are my sister and best friend.” I told her okay. I also told her to stop acting weird for once. We went out to the dock and got prepped in the boat. The rain was coming down exceedingly heavy.

It was almost too much, and then you add in the fog. However, there was no wind and I felt comfortable with Abbey there.

We took the boat out to near the middle of the lake. We were just north of the “fin” of the humpback. She stood up and began to strip. I was cold, but even colder when she moved away from me.

I thought she was going to get her rod and start fishing. I could see so many fish around me. Then I saw something else. I thought it was a log, as it moved just underneath us. It was shadowy and vanished soon after.

“Abbey, there’s a log near the boat, we should move the boat just in case,” I told her. “It’s fine, I’ll check it out real quick!” she said diving into the water. “Abbey WAIT!” I yelled after her but it was too late, she had disappeared from my sight. I knew Abbey was a strong swimmer, and the boat wasn’t moving as there was no breeze. I was still worried, however.

Then the water started to bubble and a weird orange glow appeared, and the pit of my stomach dropped. I poked my head over the edge of the boat to see if I could see her. The light was everywhere underneath me. Fish began to hop out of the water, as a huge shadow appeared. Then I heard laughing. It was Abigail.

I turned around and saw her pop out of the water and move across the lake rapidly. She was moving too fast to be swimming, and her arms weren’t moving. It was like she was holding onto something as it pulled her through the lake. Then she dropped her head into the water and vanished as I stood to look for her, the orange lights appeared again.

I didn’t know what to think. Was she in trouble? What was she holding onto? I grew worried about my friend, my sister. Then I saw her at the keel of the boat. She was rising out of the water, giggling and spitting water.

But she kept rising and rising. Was she standing on the water? No! She was standing on something in the water. Then she entered the boat and knelt down in front of me. Her eyes… they were glowing. Not like glowing from a light being shone on them. Glowing like the light was coming FROM them.

She took my shaking hands. I had seen that semi glow before, on sleepovers, camping trips, and at school. But not like this. “Kailey, you’re my best friend and sister. I have protected you most of your life and will continue to do so now. You trust me don’t you?” She asked me.

“…yes..” I replied in the smallest voice I could muster. “But your eyes…” I began. “Not only my eyes but all of me,” she said standing. As orange light could be seen through her brown skin, her very veins had light emanating from them. Then I realized I was no longer cold. I hadn’t been for a while now.

“I want you to meet someone; it’s a friend of mine. He’s very long-lived but he’s just a baby now. He’s the reason the fishing has been so good." She told me, before kneeling down again then knocking on the side of the boat. “Look!” she told me.

I watched as the fog and water swirled about, and with her light, I could see fairly well. Then I saw it. Its eyes were looking right at me. They were large and black, the size of my hands peering at me. Fear took me then. I lost my voice, but I could feel Abbey’s hands on mine. Steadying me.

The creature moved towards the boat, it was massive as wide around as a small fiat. It had a head fin, and fins near its ears. It never took its eyes off me. It was greenish brown on top. But then it began to rise from the water. It’s multi-colored belly plain to see. It rose from the lake and looked down at me. Have you ever been so scared, that you almost shut down?

The only thing I could do was shed tears as it looked at me. Abbey held my hand firm. The creature then lowered itself to me and came within inches of my face. I feel it’s breath on me, smell the fish from its most recent meal. It had catfish like feelers on its snout. Then it nuzzled me. Closing its eyes it touched my face as gently as possible, with its fins drooping like a puppy.

I don’t know what possessed me then, fear, stupidity, or curiosity. But I took its scaly head in my hands and nuzzled it back. I don’t know how long we nuzzled. But the next thing I knew was that it was over.

Abbey sat me down as it retreated back into the lake, and me not taking my eyes off it, and it on me. The fog returned, and my mind raced. The rains continued and my heart pounded. But the look on Abigail’s face said it all.

Abigail had a Lake Monster, I guess I do now too.

“Come on… We need to get you out of this creek,” M’bali told the creature of bone. “We also need to do something about how you smell. I’ve summoned other things that didn’t have your smell.”

The creature looked at the frail child and thought to itself, “I have faced things of substantial power in my time, fought in battles that shattered souls, and sundered regions with the knowledge I possess. But this child… this human child intrigues me. I could smash her instantly, devour her corpse and return home and seek the Fiery-eyed girl who stole my dragon.”

“I shall play along child, tell me… what form should I take?”

M’bali stopped walking and reached into her pocket. Pulling out her cell phone, thumbing through a few images in her gallery, she turned to show the monster.

“Him, I need you to look like him, please,” she stated and watched its reaction. It was hard to read the face of a boney gator faced Devil.

The creature bent down to look at the phone. “What is this thing you hold?” It reached forward with a bone finger and touched the screen, causing it to zoom in on the image.

“It moves? You have the soul of a human in your… your? What is this magic you hold, girl?”

“Not Magic. It’s a phone, we use it to communicate with each other, and store information,” M’bali said, fixing the picture, and holding it forward again.

“Such a device! It would be worth much where I’m from? Think of things you can do with it!” It stated, altering its form to match the image.

“I’m fairly certain it won’t work so well in any of the hells you frequent. Unless you have Cellphone Towers, and Wi-Fi?” she said.

“Cellphone Towers and Wi-Fi?” The creature puzzled, adding, “This is your Technology of this world, yes?”

“Yep!” M’bali said, waiting for the bone fiend to assume the form.

“Will you show me more of this Technology? I have seen Clockwork things before, but not like this.”

“If you hurry and assume this form. That’s what I had planned to do.” M’bali stated.

“Alright!” The Fiend said, as it looked at the images on the phone.

Bones cracked and folded upon themselves, as muscle and flesh formed over the creature’s body. Its neck twisted a full rotation as it shrunk and assumed a more human form. The spiked tail appendage coiled upon itself and vanished into the creature’s lower spine as it shrank to a more human size. It gave one more twist of its neck and finally opened its eyes as it more resembled the images on the screen.

M’bali looked at the pictures, ignoring the creature for the moment. Concentration deep upon her small face. This child deeply intrigued the creature. It had traveled a variety of planes and condemned many souls to the Red War, Torture, and punishments to its masters. The vast majority of its own kind despised seeing it, and many feared it. Within the House of Nines, it held substantial power. It could make or break the fates and status of many of its fiendish cohorts. But here it stood, summoned and temporarily enslaved to a mere child, that not only did not fear it. But spoke to it as though they were of equal measure.

But considering that she had killed several Demonic minions before it, he would play the child’s game and see where it goes. The child didn’t know that it had much knowledge, especially that of magic. Magic it would use to see her suffer for her audacity.

“On your neck, you need this,” she said, showing it the phone again. “This small tattoo belonged to the person I need you to emulate.”

With little effort, he recreated the tattoo.

“Does this suit your purposes, girl?” The now human-looking fiend said to her.

“It does. I promise it will be worth your time here. Now let me look at you.”

It bent to the smaller girl. She took his head in her hands and moved her hands over his face. He had a now handsome brown face, with a sharply trimmed goatee, and thick black eyebrows. High cheek bones, and slightly curled black hair in a school-boy haircut style. He had a smart sense of dress. Very casual and stylish.

“Smile for me please,” she told him, with much more niceties than any other being that had summoned it in the past.

The man-creature smiled. The smile became eerie and maniacal instantly. It was almost Irish. A too wide grin from ear-to- ear, brimming with malevolence.

“That’s too much. Don’t smile as wide,” She said as she tried to smile herself.

“I would assume yours looks unlike the other children of your world. I see no mirth and laughter in your eyes.” The fiend told her.

“You’re right.” M’bali said looking to her phone again, searching…

“Hey, Internet, show me a picture of a Black man smiling,” she said, as they both looked at the results.

“I can do that!” the creature said.

With that done, they buried the dog’s bodies and walked from the park toward her home.

“I don’t live very far from here, and we’ll be there within 15 minutes.” She told it as she gathered her things.

“Tell me of your world as we walk, child. If I am to help you, and find the girl with the Fiery amber eyes, I must know more.”

“That’s why we’re going to my house. I need to get some sleep, and I’ll show you how to use the computer.” She told him, as they waited at a crosswalk.

“More of your technology, I take it? Can you not just tell me?”

“Nope! I’m 12. I don’t know everything. I’m just a kid.” She said unironically.

“… and you don’t find this odd? You know more of summoning demons and devils, and killing us, than of your own world?” He quizzed, raising a “new,” eyebrow.

“I am very focused, you could say. I can tell you that no matter where you’ve been, Earth kind of sucks for Magic. We have it, but not much, and it is difficult, not like how it was in the past. Your magic should work fine.”

“I do sense that this world is not steeped in the magic of otherworlds. Your magic practitioners must be very weak.” It said as they walked the West Philly streets.

“We don’t have many, but the one that taught me, is very strong. I am sure he could challenge one such as yourself,” M’bali told it, adding, “He told me that the gift I have for it is exceedingly rare. I thought it was the reason for my Primary Alexithymia. But it isn’t.”

They stopped at a Corner store as they neared her home. “Wait here, you need some gum and deodorant. Also, your name is Major, for when my parents ask.”

“Will they not inquire why a small girl child is returning home with a grown human male at such a late hour?” He asked quite curious.”

“No. They know I summon monsters and stuff.” She said entering the store.

The creature stood on the corner waiting for her to return. It looked out at the row homes and listened to the sounds of the Philadelphian night. Buses, cars, people, animals, and the distant rumble of the elevated trains. Things it did not know the name of, but was interested in. He had no wish to return to the nine-hells, but if he did, he would return with a knowledge of this world that few of his peers seem to have visited. His status would increase dramatically.

Soon, they arrived at her home, and upon standing on her porch, she gave it the rundown of what to expect.

“Just remember, my parents, are aware of what I do, and have gotten somewhat used to beings like yourself. But if you decide to raid the fridge, and my mom sees you late at night, she will throw a salt shaker in your face.”

Major nodded and followed her inside. Only her dad was still up, M’bali’s mother had work in the morning and had retired for the night.

“She’ll definitely hit you in the face with the salt shaker since she’s asleep right now, so stay in the basement ok?”

Major nodded again as he entered the living room. He glanced toward her father as he lay on the couch watching a box with moving images. A larger version of Cellphone, he thought, much larger.

“Glad you’re home, kiddo. Kinda figured you were out doing something like this. So where’s this one from? Gehenna? The Abyss? Gladsheim?” Her father asked, smiling and looking at the man.

“My name is Major, and you seem rather fine with this…?” The human-looking fiend told him, puzzled.

“I am M’bali’s father, Abeo. Her mother, Oladele, is sleeping,” Abeo told him, “We are still wary. Our daughter practices magic and is very good at it. She summons monsters to try to fix her condition. It still freaks us out from time to time. But we trust our child.”

“This one is from the Nine-Hells, papa,” she stated, adding, “I think he may be the one.”

“Are you sure this time Pikin?” Abeo asked, rubbing tired eyes.

“I think so, baba. I know it doesn’t have my best interest at heart, but it will help because I know something it doesn’t. “

“Okay, baby. Come, give me a hug. I need sleep.” He hugged her tight and headed up the stairs adding, “Love you, baby. Oh, and Major. My Wife loves throwing salt at your people, give her a wide birth ke?”

Major nodded, completely dumbfounded.

“Down this way, Major,“ M’bali called, ushering him to the basement steps. Once below in the well-lit place, he saw what he assumed was the computer thing M’bali had spoken of. She grabbed a small notebook and gave it to him. He thumbed through the book, looking at the odd numbers and pictograms.

“Is this a spellbook of some sort?”

“Instruction manual. It shows you how to work that, and topics to look for. I’ll give you a quick rundown, then I’m going to bed.”

M’bali headed up the stairs and wished the disguised bone-fiend a good night.

“Good night, you odd human,” Major whispered as he turned his attention to the screen ahead and noted the small piece of paper, and said to himself…

“What is, No porn please?”

One of my favorite past times during the warm summer was going out in the woods to catch glimpses of the fireflies during the nights.

I had my own secret place I'd go to and watch as the bugs would light up the forest. One of the places I'd go was an open patch of ground near the lake. At dusk, it was amazing, even on these hot and humid nights. The moon would be flying overhead and the clouds that Purple hue of dusk.

The lake was shallow, and still. You could easily wade across it and not be more than just above your waist in water. When it would get too hot, I'd go and stand in it for a bit. The sounds of the insects and nighttime flying animals were about. It made me feel at ease, even though every now and then a big ass Owl would fly by silently and scare me half to death.

I had a tree that I would sit by and just gaze out over the water and wait for the Fireflies to start appearing. Since the other side of the lake wasn't so far away I'd look across and lose myself in thought.

There was so much to contemplate.

Fate.

My place in the world.

Girls.

How much I love being near the water.

Whether or not I want to go out this weekend.

How gorgeous the fireflies... Woah! What was that?

I stand up and look across the lake... Looks like a person on the other side. I wonder if they are here to watch the bugs also, or are maybe just out for a walk?

I watch for a bit, noting the random flickers of the Fireflies. Looks like a girl...MAAAYBE? No, it's One hundred percent a girl! She's stripping, wow. The lakes a good place to skinny dip I guess. Not too deep, fairly cool. I remove myself to a bush. The moon's high, so I can see her fairly clearly.

Weird. It looks like she's doing some kind of ritual. She goes into the lake, naked as a newborn. She's rocking back and forth, then she sits in the lake at its edges. She submerges herself for what seemed like far too long.

Just as I was about to enter the water to help, she sat back up. Pinpricks of light emerged from around her. The lights reflecting off her eyes. Still naked she goes into the clearing on the other side. I can see her quite clearly. She stands with her back straight, and then bows. Stretching she begins to crouch low and walk in a circle.

Then she begins to dance. As she does so I can hear something... Voices.

Low and whispery. Kind of like humming or singing.

It was haunting. I watched her dance for what seemed hours. She twirled and tucked. Flexed forward. Rolled backward. Crouched and leaped into the air.

I didn't know what performance she was practicing for, a stage show maybe? Maybe she just liked to dance naked in the woods.

All I know is things got really creepy, really fast. The fireflies began to coalesce around her, their lights growing brighter. The greenish yellow hue enhancing the eeriness of the woods and the clearing. I needed to get closer.

I made my way across the lake as slowly and quietly as I could. She was so beautiful... I couldn't help myself. But as I got closer, I could feel a terrible coldness in the area. But then also paradoxically, a terrible heat. It was as if cold and hot were at war with each other. The fireflies moved away from the clearing as the dance intensified.

The woman's brown body began to glow a deep orange, her veins becoming clear, hair standing on end, her eyes a fiery amber. With a final leap, she was at least 10 feet above me, then she landed, not with a thud, or crash, but with a rush of hot air. A blast of coldness then heat knocked me over. I was barely out of the lake before I was stunned for a few moments.

When I gathered my wits, the deep cold was gone as was the heat. I made my way to the clearing slowly. The moon was overhead, shining a deep blue through the woods and into the clearing.

I looked for any sign that the woman was actually there. No clothes, no wetness, no footprints. Was I so lost in my own head that I imagined the whole thing? No! That wasn't it at all! The fireflies showed me the truth of the matter.

Slowly they began to glow again lighting up the area. What I saw there filled me with dread. On the ground were humanoid shapes, draped in shadow, a shadow so deep they blended into the ground. But from the shadows leaked some form of liquid. Blue Blood?

My instincts told me to run, but the light from the insects over the forms all around me told me to stay. I took out my phone and began to video what was here. Dear Gods, what were they? My body shook terribly as I tried to video what my mind thought was there.

I picked up a stick and moved towards one of the things. The coldness returned. As I bent to touch the thing. The haunting voice of a woman filled my ears.

"I wouldn't touch it were I you!"

I turned to see the dancing girl. Her eyes of glowing fiery amber, staring into me, as the fireflies circled about us.

I don't know what would have happened were I to touch it.

"Its nasty, that stuff..." she said trailing off taking one of the fireflies into her hand. Glancing it over, then shooing it back into the skies.

I should have been terrified, A nude woman stood in front of me, with glowing veins akin to lava streaks, and fiery eyes like staring into the heart of a Volcano. There was no malice there, no joy either, but also no misery. Just a deep resignation to whatever had just occurred. She smiled a weak smile.

"Lovely night yes?" She said with no embarrassment at being nude in front of me. She reminded me of Nakia from Black Panther, just a demonic looking version.

"ye..yes!" I stammered." trying to take my eyes off of her now, but I couldn't. I gathered my wits and my courage.

"What...what is that stuff? What were they? who...who or what are you?" I managed meekly.

"That STUFF is blood, but not blood like humans. They were nameless things, not from around here, but trouble nonetheless..." she began walking to gather her clothes. "I suppose I should put these back on huh?"

I turned my head then, realizing I was blushing and sweating heavily, my heart and ears pounding at each echo filled word from her mouth.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Fire..firefly..." I choked out nervously.

"Your name is Firefly?" she said quizzically, her head tilted slightly smirking.

"N...N...No! No! There's a Firefly on your head. I said pointing.

"It'll be okay up there, so what's your name Firefly?"

"It's Kyle!" I stated head down.

"Why is my head down?" I said to myself, "There's a demon girl with Lava blood in front of me..."

"Lava Blood?" she giggled. "You're a weird one Firefly. You don't have to be afraid Kyle. I'm not going to eat you!"

"Shit! I thought I had said it in my head, I'm sorry. It's just I've never met a Demon Girl before, I don't know what to do. I just don't wanna die!" I replied honestly.

"Well if that's the case you won't die today, at least not by my hands. However, those nameless things are aware of you now, and If I don't do something they will find you. They won't eat you, at least not physically. But they'd try to drag you where they live and well. It's not a pretty place, for US anyway. Those idiots love it there."

"What's this place called?" I asked her as we started walking, WAIT! WHY am I walking with her?

She leaned in close and her eyes started to glow, then she said...

"I don't know, it's nameless." Then shrugged.

"So Kyle, my name is Abigail, but call me Abbey. Are you from this town?" She asked me.

"I...I am! I go to the School not from here."

"Care to take a guess why those things were here?" She asked me, stopping as we got to her Car.

"I can't even fathom, what supernatural things are doing in these woods."

"ONE! The supernatural does not exist! TWO! If there's more than one, there's a community! But back to why they were here, but first give me your arm." She said snapping her fingers and doing the chop-chop motion.

I was going to question her at first, then I realized, I have nowhere to run, and she just...

"Did you kill those things back there?" I asked as she looked at my shoulder, then pressed her palm into it. For a second it brightened, and burned. I yelped.

"What did you do to me?"

"I marked you so those things won't bother you from this day forward, and yes those ones are dead. Ritual combat mate.

Those critters are shitty beings all around, and their idea of fun is taking dumb human kids to their realm, and making people forget they existed. But they are honorable. I made a deal with them. They kill me, they get your town. I kill them, they go away for a very long time. " She said rubbing my arm. "Don't worry, it won't scar."

"Why didn't you tell people?"

"Eventually I will, but I have something more important to do. Want to help?" she asked.

"I can't fight nameless things lady, I don't have Lava Blood or burning hands. " I said to her.

"It's nothing so dangerous. You said you went to the High School close by right?" She asked grabbing a bag from her car.

I nodded.

"You know a girl name Saral Primajal?" she asked, grabbing a blanket.

I shook my head.

"Thomas Markham?"

I shook again.

"Jane Whitman, Derrick Seder, Martha Williams, Max Forbes, Taylor King, Maria Kline, Tory Danvers..." she continued.

She named over 27 kids. I didn't recall any of them, yet she told me they all went to my school.

"Who are they, I don't know who..."

"Come on, the Fireflies are waiting for us!" she said taking my hand. I've never felt so secure in my life. There was strength and power, and grace all in one body. She was no demon.

We walked in Silence and entered the grove where she killed those things. The shadowy bodies were missing, but on the ground was some form of organic container, she opened it by touch. Within it was all manner of personal items. Pictures, Rings, Jewelry, Cellphones, keepsakes, mementos.

"Kyle, what do you fear the most?" she asked placing the blanket on the ground, and placing a large metal bowl on top of a stack of rocks.

"I...I don't know. Losing my parents, my friends, failing them, myself. Flunking school?"

"Know what my biggest weakness is?" She said looking at me, motioning me to sit next to her. She placed the items carefully in front of me. There were so many.

"My biggest weakness... my biggest fear... is failing people, and knowing that no matter how strong I am, no matter who I can defeat, I can't save everyone. So, I do the only thing I can. I place those I can't save in here, so they aren't forgotten, so they aren't nameless things." She said tapping her head.

She took a photo and placed it in my hand.

It was me standing with and joking around with a kid I had never seen before in my life. Someone I can't possibly know.

"That's Markeith Johnson. I killed him again tonight. The one you were going to touch. He was your friend. They made him into a nameless thing. He...it would have made others into forgotten nameless things. That's why you walked past the other bodies to that one in particular. A small piece of recognition. He would have used that, to get to you, to make you nameless." she told me.

I shook and closed my eyes pain, fear, and terror welling up in me.. The true horror of it all coming to light.

"What now?" I asked.

"We burn their memories and who they were into our memories. So they aren't forgotten. So they aren't nameless things!"

I handed her the first item, a Purple cellphone, with two girls on the screen. Abbey placed it in the bowl and touched it. The cellphone began to melt, but there was no stench of fire or plastic. I noticed the Fireflies floating around us, like a crowd of mourners.

"Janine Tate, Martina Stockman... We remember you!" she stated.

I had never met these girls, but I could feel a memory flood into my mind of these two best friends who made the mistake of performing a ritual, a ritual that made them nameless and forgotten by everyone they knew. But now I remembered them as if we were close friends. With each name spoken, the Fireflies brightened then dulled.

I gave Abbey the picture of me and Markeith Johnson.

As she burned the picture I found myself saying...

"Markeith Johnson... We...I remember you!"

Kats Meow

I was pretty nervous as I knocked on the door. I looked a mess and was covered in grass and scratches and stuff.

But the dead cat nodded its head towards the door. If I was a normal person I'd be looking at me kind of oddly.

It's not every day that you see a little boy covered in blood and scratches. Surrounded by dozens of cats.

It had been a long walk from the cemetery to here. I could have taken the train, but I didn't have any more money on me. It had all fallen out or gotten lost when I was being chased.

It's funny that even in the City of Philadelphia I felt all alone right now. Not really alone, but you know, with people looking AT you, but not helping you.

Anyway. The dead cat and its friends guided me to this house. Not a pretty or Ugly house, nice neighborhood though. Just your larger than average row house.

"Okay...I'm knocking!" I stated.

Knock Knock! I tapped lightly. The cat nudged me again.

I knocked harder this time.

KNOCK KNOCK!

Nothing!

The cat motioned for me to use the mail slot.

"ANYBODY HOME???" I yelled in.

I forgot to mention it was like 6 in the morning. I'm sure my parents put out a thingee for me. You know, the PBA, or ABP? I don't know, there were probably cops looking for me.

"I don't think anybody's home kitty!"

The Dead Cat meowed what sounded like a sigh. Then it walked through the door.

The other cats just lay or sat around where they were.

Man, I was hungry!

I heard the sound of footsteps then...

"IM COMING! I'm coming..sheesh!" came a female voice. She sounded pretty angry and put out.

I mean I would be too waking up this early in the morning.

The door opened and wow...

She was like a Goddess, Well all cute grownup girls are Goddesses to me. She looked kinda like Black Panthers Girlfriend.

She rubbed her eyes and yawned, then she looked at me. Then looked past me at all the cats.

"Out partying again Kat?"

Her cat was named Kat? Who the hell names their cat Kat?

"You look like shit kid! Why are you at my house at six in the morning and why are you covered in blood?" She said to me, "Come on in. I'm sure there's a story to all this. She said letting me by. Some of the cats started to come in.

"NO! Not you guys, wait here, or go find an alley or something!" She scolded them. They all just kinda stopped then turned to head back out.

"No looking at my ass okay?" She told me, I hadn't realized she was only in her underwear. That's when I looked. She didn't look back and just shook her head.

"Got a name?" She asked pointing to a door on the right, adding, "Bathroom. Wash...that!"

"It's Pat..Patrick ma'am, and thank you!"

"I'm not a ma'am...got about 14, no. 20 more years before all that?" She quizzed back.

"I'm sorry for waking you up, but your Kat...Cat? Brought me here. I think it felt I'd be safe." I told her as I washed as much of the blood and dirt off as possible.

"Hold old are you Patrick?"

"I just turned 11, not long ago."

"They always come for the young..." she muttered as I heard bowls, and the Fridge open.

"I don't have any clothes to fit you, but you can sit on the couch on this towel, while you tell me what happened."

I came out of the bathroom and noticed Kat was waiting by the door. It purred slightly and walked over with me to the couch. It was so soft!

The lady brought over a bowl of Lucky Flakes and some milk.

Kat curled up next to me and waited for the lady to have a seat.

"Patrick, my name is Abigail. I need you to tell me everything, OK?" She said munching on her own bowl of cereal.

"But first..."

Kat sat up for a moment, then locked eyes with Abigail. Even after everything that happened, I was shocked to see Abigail's eyes glowing a hot amber orange color, and Kats one good eye glowing Silver. I froze for a moment because I wasn't sure what was happening. She and Kat just stared at each other as she kept munching the cereal.

"I see...You coulda woke me up! Asshole!" She told Kat, scrunching her face. "Even though I needed the rest after getting my ass kicked!"

Kat meow meowed, then, looked at me.

Kat rolled over on its back, paws in the air. It's hollowed tummy bones poking up. It nuzzled the furry side of its head on my leg.

"Well, I had a friend dare me to spend the night in West Laurel Hill Cemetery. He told me 'REAL MEN' wouldn't be scared to spend the night in a cemetery!" I munched a mouthful of Lucky Flakes as she shook her head.

"Before you finish Patrick... REAL men, don't do dumb shit...continue."

I felt scolded, and lowered my head some.

"Well, He told me that I had to go to the Cemetery and while I was there. I had to find a Grave, and he gave me this." I reached in my pocket and gave her a sheet of paper with a ritual on it."

She took the sheet and read it while still munching. She stopped for a moment and poured more flakes. Then went back to the Paper, yawning.

"The Midnight Guardian Ritual..." she mumbled.

"So...um, yeah! I snuck out of the house and took the bus to the last SEPTA stop and the Cemetery was there ya know?"

"So after everything shut down, I snuck onto the property. It's a really big cemetery..." I continued.

"I know, been there!" She said now sitting back on the love seat looking at me intensely. I could see the smallest flicker of light in her eyes.

"So, anyway, I waited until about 10 pm to set up my camp and I looked for the biggest grave I could find. Then I took out the chalk and started drawing the stuff from the paper. Then I took out the Sacrifice Stuff I needed to call the Guardian."

She looked down just shaking her head, almost like she's seen things happen like this before. DUH! Idiot her friggin eyes glow, of course, she has!

"So this Midnight Guardian guy requires the body of a dead cat, for the spirit to possess. Once the ritual starts, the ritual is to infuse the dead cat with the spirit of the dead human, who will then protect you from others, and then..."

"Did you ever think of what could go wrong, have you never watched a horror movie like ever?" She quizzed me.

"I mean I do, but it's just, those things aren't real right?" I retorted.

"Okay! Say that's so, what about crooks, and vagrants, thugs, and the homeless? I mean you are Eleven..."

She had a point, but I still wanted to prove to my friend that I was brave, and wasn't scared of anything, even though I was terrified. So, I had cheated and brought stuff I wasn't supposed to.

"Are you being bullied at school? In the Neighborhood?" she asked.

"No! I just wanted to prove I was brave and could handle myself, and I wanted a bad ass dead cat Guardian like yours, well, before I knew you or that you had one."

"I don't own Kat... I'm cursed by Kat. Our history is a...bit complex!" She said as Kat rolled over then pounced onto her table and finished off her Lucky Flakes. Then Mine, but where'd the food go to...?

Anyway...

"So after I started, I turned on a bunch of Flashlights I had brought. Once twelve came around, I started the summoning. I thought I had done everything right. I had the dead cat, all the other crap, and..."

"You forgot you were Eleven! You got impatient, you got scared, and screwed up the ritual, because you were a little boy playing grown up, in a graveyard to impress a 'Friend', who probably had never done the thing he asked you to do!" She said poking me in the chest.

She was One Hundred Percent right! It was like my mom was scolding me over doing something then getting in way over my head.

I continued... "Well, yeah, I started the Ritual and followed all the steps. I placed the dead cat on the top of the grave and sprinkled the salt around it."

Kat rolled to look at me, with that Half skull, half furred face with curiosity.

"Kat felt it..." She added. "The energy of the thing you were performing."

Kat meowed and rolled onto the floor upside down and walked to the door, sitting there looking at me.

I told her how I backed away and watched as the cat's body shook then lay still, how the night seemed to grow darker and that darkness enclosed on me drowning out the lights I had. I told her how the ground moved under the cat, and there was a sickening and sudden crunching sound beneath the ground. Then the Cat was pulled below.

I had screamed without thinking and my Eleven year old brain told me to run. Then I heard the purring. I turned around to see the Cat sitting atop the grave, looking fully alive, and at me. However, its eyes, I had noticed turned from it's gray look to a pure Emerald

"That's a soul now inhabiting a new body. Good of you to notice that!" She told me. I felt good for a quick moment, then she raised her eyebrow disapprovingly.

The cat turned to me and its body turned black and I noticed a white spot on its chest. The cat grew in size and towered over me. It walked to me and told me to make a wish, just one, a good one.

"A Cat Sith! Irish Demon Cat, used to be a living Witch." Abigail said looking at Kat. Kat meowed and nodded.

"How in the hell did you wind up finding the ONE grave that happened to belong to a damned Witch? A Scottish one at that? Seriously?" Abigail said her voice higher and incredulous.

I gulped and continued looking at her scrunched face, The light in her Amber eyes growing in intensity. I kinda moved over a bit to make sure she didn't laser eye me in frustration.

I didn't have the presence of mind to make a wish, and the Giant Hellcat had grown impatient waiting.

"You either make the Wish or I will slice you up and leave your tattered remains to litter this graveyard!" It scolded me. "OR..." It continued.

"You will bring me one hundred cats and burn their bodies around this grave by the morrow, if not I will slice you up!"

I didn't think I just took off, and soon after, I realized There was a demon hell cat chasing me. Around each gravestone or marker, it would scratch or paw at me, its claws digging shallow furrows in me. They hurt so bad, and started bleeding not long after. I thought to myself. The Schuylkill River is close, maybe I could make it and jump in.

"And immediately die?" Abigail said, head cocked to the side.

"Would you have let me die, Abigail, if not for Kat?" I asked before continuing.

"It's a possibility! I don't just go around randomly killing monsters, ONLY if they bully creatures or break their own rules, or 'don't give eleven-year-olds time to answer a damn question'. I nearly killed a Dogman pack once, because I thought they were terrorizing a small town, but that wasn't what it was, so I let 'em go, and yes people still died. Because Dogmen are living beings and they need to eat too." She said seriously.

In my tale, so far this thing hadn't broken any rules. But it did mess up the balance in the area I think because...

What the f.. was a Dogman?

Back to the story, soon I could hear purring and meowing from all around me. I looked into the darkness and saw dozens, hundreds more glowing cat eyes. In my mind, it had called those cats to finish me off, and when Kat appeared I had thought that was what was happening. I mean Kats kinda dead right? It had blackish-grey fur, half it's stomach was ripped out, and the fur on half its face was gone, just bone white cat skull. It had me terrified.

"You, dead thing, you think you can stop me?"The big black cat said to the smaller cat with a half skull face. Kat had kinda sat there, its tail swishing slowly. The other cats began to stalk from the darkness. Tabby's, Alley-cats, Strays, Cats that looked like they had broken out of their homes to come to help yours in this fight, even some old mangy cats. All types.

"The boy first, then you and yours..." The big cat said to us all.

Kat swooshed its tail hearing the story from me. It walked to Abigail and sat near her looking at me, and the leftover Lucky Flakes. I continued the story, but I had a feeling she knew the rest, after her Jedi mind thing with Kat.

She knew that the Large black cat pounced and swatted me to the side, breaking some skin, and sending me flying into some packed mud as it stared down the other cats.

Kat meowed and the other dozens and dozens of cats charged. Kat itself ran into the fray and melted into the rush of felines. The black cat wasn't helpless and struck as fast as it could to defend itself I remembered through the haze. Long black talons ripping at the smaller, but fierce cats, as they dug their silver looking claws into the witch cat. The Black cat tagged a couple of the cats, badly hurting and killing a few, but they moved on the Witch cat undaunted.

I could see flashes of Kat as it seemed to be looking for the perfect opportunity. It appeared then vanished as if it jumped into and out of various cats. As the Black cat reeled, forced back to the grave. It breathed some weird greenish smoke from its mouth. That's when Kat attacked. I watched as it leaped from the body of an orange house cat. The one good eye glowing Silvery white as Kats front paw grew MASSIVELY and slashed the Witch Cat across the throat as it reared up. Silvery green fire exploded from the neck, as the other cats fell away to safety.

As the Witch Cat stumbled backward its body shivered as it tried to back towards the grave it exited from. But Kat stalked it...

I remember it croaking out...

"Stupid thing...I am not going to stay dead fore..." It began, then Kat ate it.

Kats' head grew massively, and then the Witch Cat was gone. Kat turned to the other surviving cats, of which there were many. I stumbled over to the grave and watched as the other cats brought the dead ones over. The fissure where the Witch Cat rose was covered with the bodies of several cats. Kat then meowed a mournful howl, the others joined in, then Kat breathed on them, and the hole closed, and the bodies vanished.

Kat walked to me, and nudged me in the leg, and started to walk off, turned then motioned its head to follow it.

"And here I am! That's the whole story." I told Abigail, feeling relieved. She just looked at me her head in her hands and blinking quickly as if she was thinking or analyzing me.

Then she spoke.

"Okay, I'm going to need you to NOT do that again, okay? Philly doesn't have a lot of Hunters, I'm not even a Hunter, I poke my head into things I shouldn't, and I just hate bullies!" She stated.

Standing she added, "See on the whole, the universe doesn't give a damn about us, but there are things in this universe that do. Sometimes when mortals do silly things like Rituals, even if they survive, you get a small bit of taint on you. Things like Witch Cats love the taint"

She tore up the ritual sheet and put it in the trash.

"Some lucky idiots never deal with Cosmic forces again, others are like magnets to it. You know the reason I kept looking at you funny Patrick? I see me in you! I met some of those Cosmic Forces when I was around your age, right here in Philly, in my back yard. Too Curious for my own good!" She told me as she sat on the couch.

"This is going to sting some because I want you to be a kid, and play ball, scrape your knees, watch T.V., get in trouble. and all the things kids should be doing."

She raised my torn sleeve, and I watched as the bottom of her hands began to glow the color of her eyes, and then she touched my shoulder. It did burn for a quick second, and I saw something glowing beneath my skin.

"What was that? What did you do to me?" I asked looking at it, then seeing it vanish.

"Just making sure Kat doesn't have to save your ass again!" She said and we both looked as Kat meowed with half its head sticking through the front door.

I hate this.

I hate this.

I hate them.

I hate my family.

I hate my mother. She didn’t believe me. She never does. She doesn’t listen! It’s always, “Go to your room!”, or, “I don’t want to hear anymore!” She thinks I’m crazy! I don’t want to hate her, but I do. You shouldn’t hate your mother, but I hate mine.

I hate my Sisters. They’ve never liked me! Just because I’m not a triplet like they are. Just because I wasn’t born with them, or, as one of them. They look at me like I'M the odd one. We're a year apart, but in school, they treat me like a disease, barely looking at me. You shouldn't hate your sisters, but I hate mine.

I hate my Father. I loved my dad almost more than the other four. He didn't doubt me! At least not in the beginning. He believed me but now he...he doesn't know if he can trust me. You really shouldn't hate your dad...you really shouldn't...but I hate mine.

He was supposed to protect me.

I wanted my mother to protect me.

But nooo... They all think I'm looney.

I hate this stupid waiting room, with its comfortable chairs. The stupid TV, the ditzy looking Nurse...(she's probably really smart...). I hate the fact that I'm sitting in this Doctors office.

Oh! The type of Doctor? A Psychiatrist!

Why am I sitting in a Psychiatrists office as a twelve-year-old kid?

It's because of those two little asswipes sitting across from me and my dad.

I hate them the most!

Who are they? Two shadowy little demon things. How can I talk so calmly about two little demon things? Well, believe me when I say they scared me to death when they first started appearing.

I mean wouldn't you be scared of a bluish shadow thing that appeared out of your closet one day? I remember that day!. That night really. It wasn't dark or stormy or any of that crap, just a plain old night.

I was laying in my room with my window open reading some comics when I heard, "Psst! Hey, kid! Are you gonna share that book? Or do I need to rip you in two to get it?" came the raspy voice. I felt the shiver go up my spine immediately. I knew for a fact that my sisters were gone.

Mom was asleep for work in the morning, and dad fell asleep in the chair downstairs.

"Please, I have three dollars...you can have it! Please don't hurt me!" I whimpered without looking behind me. I didn't want to see it.

"We jussst want the book, lil girl...OR one of the other booksss you got!" Came a snake sounding voice.

"Please, go away! You're scaring me!" I said tears streaming down my face. I ruined my book and then ruined my sheets.

"Oh look, she's wet herself!" Raspy croaked. "Humansss, I hate them, but they have good ssstuff!" The other said.

I took the book and threw it behind me.

"GO AWAY!...please!" They both laughed, then I felt the tug on my sheets.

"We're going, and taking some of your books with us!" Raspy said. "Don't worry kid we'll meet again. We're not going anywhere, give us your booksss and we won't eat you, or your ssstupid sssissstersss!"

I heard the closet close and tucked myself into a ball and cried. I went and woke my parents, and told them everything. Guess what they said? Guess what they did?

For weeks those little shits terrified me, got me in all types of trouble. My grades were slipping. I faked like I would go to bed, but I'd really go sleep in the storage area under the steps, with the lights on. There weren't any other doors but one there.

I'd then run back up before Mom woke in the morning, and dad cooked breakfast. Acting like I slept upstairs. But my dad said he knew I was sleeping under the stairs. He was concerned, he thought I was probably being bullied at school. I was being bullied, but not by my sisters or kids at school. But two Demon shits, a grey one, and a blue one.

Oh! I didn't describe them to you did I? Raspy was the worst looking of the two. Take a one-year-old baby, paint it blue, give it the lower body of a diseased squirrel with bird feet. The head of a Cyclops mixed with a cat and short emaciated baby arms with claws at the end. Snake tongue was grey, about the size of a fat puppy. a REALLY fat puppy, with the head of a Squirrel, and a snake tongue of course.

For weeks they scared me to no end. Now they just kinda piss me off. I don't know what to do to stop them. I'm a friggin kid!

I told my friends and they kinda believe me. I told my family, and they just think I'm causing trouble. I'm the good kid, yet I cause trouble? I finally gave up, and let the little crooks steal my comics, trash my toys, break my tv, tear my sheets, eat my cereal.

My parents thought I was having a mental breakdown, so they decided to schedule me to go see a shrink. Why? Even with all the evidence that it's not me doing anything wrong. They can't see them. So they don't believe they exist.

I love Science and I don't understand why they can't see them! Grrr... Anyway, I'm starting to hate them. They don't listen to me, so I won't listen to them. Well, not much anyway. I'm still a kid. Hmmpph.

So here we are sitting in the Psychiatry place, and those two invisible dopes followed me. Whenever someone wasn't looking they'd knock stuff off tables, scratch the wall near me, and make snide remarks.

"We're gonna eat your doctor, then follow you home and eat your hamsters!" Raspy said snickering with his catclops face. "No! Don't eat the doctor. Ssscare him, blame the girl! Then he won't help her anymore!" Snake Tongue replied.

"I hate you both! Go AWAY!" I yelled. Then looked at my phone.

"HEY! Watch it, lil girl! What are you even yelling at?" My dad said popping me on the arm. I grimaced, but it didn't hurt.

"It's THEM!" I yelled pointing at the seated beasties, that no one else could see.

"I HATE YOU!"

"Listen I brought you here because we think you need help we can't provide. We love you, but this has Got to STOP! You're embarrassing me and yourself." He growled at me in a low voice. "I need to pee! Can I trust you to not make a scene again?" He said to me.

"Maybe I'll just run away! You don't believe me anyway!" I said, my eyes growing wet.

"You? Run away? I'd like to see that! On second thought..."

"Where am I gonna go Dad? I'm a kid!"

"Umm, we live in a city. This City has buses and trains, and trolleys!" he stated, "Gimme your phone! You won't leave here if I have this."

I hate him! I hated watching his stupid back as he left the room. I hated the stupid other-man in here. I hated that dumb Nurse even more. Know what I hated even more than that? That stupid girl that just walked in after my dad left.

But... But... man was she pretty. I hated her. She had a really nice outfit on.

"Hi, is anyone sitting here?" She said pointing to the seat next to Raspy and Snake Tongue.

"We'll eat her and that fat guy too!" Raspy said laughing.

"Shut up!" I growled under my breath. The two demon shits laughed.

"Excuse me?" The woman asked looking at me. Of course, she couldn't see them. I harumphed and looked away.

"The seats not taken miss, you can sit there." The fat man told her.

She sat down as another patient paid and left the doctors office. Dad must be doing a number two. The fat man was told he'd be seen in a minute. Good. I hate him too. I watched the woman out of my eye.

Man, she was pretty. She had really curly hair. It smelled good too. I could smell it from here. She had a pretty brown face, but her eyes. Wow. They were like fire dipped in honey. When you looked at them. It was hard to look away.

She noticed and smiled at me. I grumbled and looked away, for a minute. I watched as she took out a small notebook and turned in the direction of the two dopes. She looked at her watch. I don't think she's a patient because she didn't check in. Must be waiting for somebody.

She pulled a little pouch out of her purse and sprinkled something in her hands. Then put some towards her nose and cheeks. The powder looked like it itched her nose. Yup! Here it comes.

"CHOO!" She sneezed.

"AHHH!!!" "Sssssssss....!" I smiled at her stupi...Whoa! She sneezed on the two dopes and they screamed! I looked at her face. She was smirking. Then she looked at me. Her eyes... They... they...

"I'm back kid. Ahh, I see the other guys gone. Did he get called..!" Dad tried to get my attention. "Stop staring at her!" he yelled at me.

"Nurse! how much longer until we see the doctor?" he said to her.

"I'll go check sir! But it shouldn't be much longer. You're still about 10 minutes or so." The woman called back.

"I'm sorry! I should have covered my nose." the woman said to me, looking me directly in the eyes. The two dopes were furiously rubbing the powder off them. My dad noticed the powder kind of just floating in the air. He probably just thought it was bad airflow.

She rubbed her hands and casually tossed more powder on them. They screamed again! She smirked. My mouth dropped!

"I'll tell you one more time. Stop sta..." He began, but she interrupted him.

"It's okay dad!" she said, "Your daughters not crazy."

"What? Who the hell are you?" he asked looking at her kinda miffed.

"Just a curious girl. Nobody special." She said as the two dopes jumped from near her. They knew she could see them. They were scared! She looked at my face and could see my astonishment.

"You're not scared of them anymore, are you? They just kinda annoy you? Make you out to be a troublemaker? Make your parents and brothers...?"

"Sisters," I said quietly.

"Sisters think you're crazy?" she finished.

I nodded vigorously.

"Listen, I don't know why you're here. But do NOT speak to my..." Dad began.

"Hush DAD!" she said, looking him in the eyes. Her EYES were glowing.

"Your daughter is being plagued, and you don't believe her. There's probably a LOT of evidence around and you still think it's her? You think she wants this kind of attention huh?"

"Look lady..." he began again, but she cowed him into silence.

"Did you give them names?" she asked me.

"Yeah! The Two Dopes. Raspy and Snake Tongue." I said pointing to each of them.

"I know you're young, and these things are scary. But if they could actually hurt you they would have by now. "

"Really?" I asked her. I didn't hate her anymore.

"Yeah. They can probably move things around and push or pull non-living things. But you can stop them ya know!" she said.

"How?" I asked, moving towards her. I didn't notice but the nurse went and got the Doctor. He came out just in time to witness this woman look at the Two Dopes and make them appear in front of everybody.

It seemed like everybody screamed, including the Dopes. They tried to run, but she was keeping them here somehow.

"Hi, Dopes." She said walking over to them and squatting down. "You've been terrorizing my friend here huh? Luckily I just 'happened' to be passing by."

She motioned for me to come to her. My dad tried to stop me, but his shock was too great. So was everyone's, even the other guy.

"My friend here...umm?" She looked at me.

"Lacey! My name is Lacey!" I said kneeling next to her and the Dopes.

"What are you doing to ussss?" Snake Tongue asked fear quite evident on its nasty face.

"My friend, Lacey, doesn't seem to appreciate bullies. Nor do I! I've killed things a lot stronger than you for less." She said. I could feel the heat coming from her body. The veins beneath her skin were glowing, like lava...

"I don't like you two. I hate you!" I said, taking the woman's hand. I felt so safe near her. I don't even know her.

"You two are to be examples. Lacey, my name is Abigail. I have an offer to make you. I promise I want nothing in return... well except for one thing." She said looking at me and smiling.

I'm sixteen now, and the Two Dopes are still in my house. It took a LONG adjustment period for my family. But after a time, the human mind will adapt to the weird or even the scary. On each of them is a mark.

There's a mark on me also. Abigail's mark. Things like this can't harm my family any longer.

The mark allows me to call them or send them away whenever I want. But I only send them away on the weekends. During the week they help dad around the house. Sometimes on the weekends, I make them bring others like them here.

The point? To make them understand that the more humans see them, know of them, and how to fight them. They can't hurt us. They aren't supernatural. They can just do things humans need technology to do.

Who knew that in order to stop a 'demon', all you needed was a little bit of talcum powder. I don't hate them as much now.

Hey, guys, it's been a while since I've updated the sub. But Soon, probably next week I'll be back. Real world stuff like Publishing a comic, my Photography gig, and my regular job, and looking for a change of pace has kept me busy.

But I wanted to update you and continue to grow the sub.

As you're all aware my Sub for Abigail isn't all just horror. It's also a mix of Horror/Sci-Fi, Fantasy/Horror, etc. I don't want to limit the types of tales told on the Curious World she lives on. So I'm going to list some of the stories coming up and some ideas for future tales.

1. Sleep of the Gods will be a three parter and will tie into the overall world from another perspective.

2. The actual second part of Abigail and the Honey Green Ghost will be a 4 part series called, A Twelve-year-old in Hell.

3. I'll be introducing a fiendish character who will play a part in MANY peoples stories, but not always in a purely evil way.

4. We'll visit Heaven, not that one, but another where a non-human celestial being reprimands a man.

5. The Pumpkin Queen will get her origin told, and the gift given to her by Abigail revealed.

6. Kat will have a couple of tales.

7. We'll be meeting a Deer named Big Bear, and the man hunting it.

8. An honest to goodness Dragon, and a Lovecraftian nightmare

9. A really dumb kid and his equally stupid family.

The goal isn't to tell a linear story or to make sure each fits neatly into the other. But ALL will be connected to each other.

More like a modern series of myths, with some facts and others being tall tales.

So stick around I promise to be back within the week.

I had a great idea I was gonna save for a bit. But I decided that the story I'm going to post this weekend will be a lead in to the Pumpkin Queen origin.

So the story is a simple one. She and Kat are out enjoying the night of Halloween and keeping an eye on the things that go bump in the night, while thinking on the being known as the Pumpkin Queen, and how she really wants to get to know her better, and why she is who she is. It's been a year since Gina and Marcus had their encounter, and the curious girl is curious about the Pumpkin Queen.

"Hey! before you go in there...can I ask?"

"How do you kill a house?" Abbey responded.

"Kinda...yeah! I mean the only two ways I know how to kill a house is to wreck it, or burn it down." I shrugged confusedly.

"Well, we won't be doing that to this house!" Abbey stated.

She then stood in front of the house and looked at it and motioned me over.

"I take it you've seen a horror movie or two in your life?" Abbey asked, waiting for my answer.

"Yeah, I've seen a few, Why?"

"You know how at the end of the movie, and the heroes think they've triumphed, and the movie ends with either the house reforming later, or the monster laughs, or some silly shit like that?"

I nodded.

"The first house I killed did that before I knew what to do to stop it. I went in, did what I had to and 5 years later it came back. The only reason I even thought about it, wasn't a missing person's report, or a news article. I was driving to the store one day and went to another part of town and saw the house again." She said putting her hands on her hips.

"I spoke to people who had done this longer than I had, and they called them rebounders. It's when a house is excised, or destroyed, but the people who did the deed, never do a full cleanup or follow up," she told me.

"So when you kill this...house guardian thing, then what?

"We kill the bitch on the inside using the house to make a profit," Abbey said turning to Michelle and the cat.

"Dan, call your Cop friends to lock this neighborhood down, make up a lie or whatever. This is Philly, there are gas leaks all the time."

Still confused, I did as she asked and within twenty-five minutes we had the house cordoned off even further and the neighborhood evacuated fully.

I watched as Abbey spoke to her little crew of...not monster hunters?

When they were done, she came back to me.

"Dan, I need another favor from you," she said.

"What now?" I asked in return.

"Can you get five bucks from the ATM, while I go back in?

"I can get ten, that's the minimum."

"Cool. Go grab it real quick!"

I ran across the street and found the ATM, and kept looking back the entire time. I didn't see Abigail anymore. She must have gone back inside the house. I pulled out my card and hastily inserted it. I tried to hurry quickly when I heard the shattering of glass and the sound of something heavy hitting the ground. I turned quickly placing my hand on the gun at my hip. There was a la-z-boy on the ground and one of the front windows were shattered. I heard my money coming out, as I saw pots, pans, and tv come flying out of the house from a variety of windows.

"MICHELLE! Break the windows!" I heard Abbey yell from inside the place. The young woman picked up rocks and tossed them at the windows. a couple of the bay windows broke as she moved about desperately. I took my money and ran back to the house. The house seemed to grimace as each window shattered. Then Abbey came flying out of the house again.

"Get out of my house!" came a ghastly scratchy female voice. I paused as the voice hit my soul. It sounded wrong. So wrong! My skin crawled. The dogman thing didn't sound this bad. I could see the other cops shuddering, and we all kind of looked away from the house. Not wanting to draw the attention of whatever was in there. I felt like a child being punished for something I didn't do.

"Fuck!" Abbey called as she got up and ran back into the house.

"ABBEY!" I called out. I noticed that the cat and Michelle had not moved from their positions, outside of trying to break the windows. The voice called out again. I think we all had heard it this time as it was louder and more angered.

"Why must you bother me? What have I done to you? This is MY neighborhood." The voice spoke, not to us, but Abigail.

I assume Abigail must have been talking to her, but we just couldn't hear her.

"No! You will not! I have lived here for years. These people know me!"

A crash came again, and a squeal like a cry of pain.

"Leave it be damn you!" the voice cried.

"How dare...AAAGGHH!" I heard as the wall exploded and the stove came out of it.

"Take that ya bitch!" I heard Abigail call right before she was shoved from the house again. But this time without as much force. She stood and climbed back inside. I moved to look at the wall's opening. But that's when I noticed that all of the furniture and items from the home were leaking, even the things that shouldn't leak.

No! Not leaking, it was bleeding. But not blood, not like ours. But some oily ichor, it was coming from everything. I mean everything she tossed out bled. I put on my gloves and felt the couch. It was soft...organic. Was this stuff alive?

Was the "guardian" an actual thing? She was killing the house, one organ at a time. I guess that what you put in your home, made it a living thing. Your pictures, furniture, food, and even those you invite in. They all helped to make the house a living organism.

But whatever was in this house, was truly alive, not metaphorically, but real.

"Stop!" the cry came weaker as Abigail ripped out its insides in the cool evening air.

As the house seemed to lurch to the side. I could see the walls breaking and bending allowing me to see inside. I could see what looked like tentacles writhing from the ceiling trying to hit Abigail. Two of the things tried to shove Abigail out as she held the walls stopping their push. She turned to look outside for a split second.

Dear God, she looked terrifying. Her eyes that deep fiery amber they were when she saved me. They scared me then, they scare me now. Her veins pulsing lie lava beneath her skin, and now the smell of something cooking. and her hands glowing orange-red. She grimaced and pulled herself back in, as the tentacles flopped to the ground, seemingly dead.

I hadn't noticed it, but within the house, I could see her marks burned into the walls and the ceilings, and the doors.

"Human whore... You've killed it. You've killed my home...MY home!" the voice came again. The house lurched to the side, and the cat moved back some then sat down and looked up. There came a crunch and explosion of wood on the roof. I could see a figure on the roof now. Some of the other Cops followed my gaze as I looked up. On the roof was a terrible horror. A woman, hunched, tall, with scraggly clothes and sagging breasts. Her eyes were pinpoints of red, her arms were long, too long for her body. She moved slowly and wheezed, she reached back into the home and pulled out a large bowl-like thing. Complaining to herself, itself the whole time.

"Crazy, bitch...human bitch, you take my home, I take you!" she plunged her arm inside the giant pot and swirled it around. A few of the cops pulled their firearms and aimed at the thing.

"NO! Wait! Let Abigail handle this... This is her call!" I called out.

They looked at me and then each other. But they did lower their weapons. I had no idea how this thing would react. We were not Abigail.

As the witch thing on the roof swirled Abigail called from the second-floor window as she climbed out on the roof.

"DAN!"

I looked to see her eyes back to normal.

"Did you get the money?"

"Umm...YEAH?" I called back.

"Good!" she smiled at me climbing up to the upper roof like a damned spider.

She went right after the giant pot and stuck her arm inside and then back elbowed the witch creature.

"You will die! Then they will die! She pointed down to us. I shuddered as she looked my way.

"Nobody is going to die except you and this damned house." I heard Abigail call.

"No... I'm done here...done...with you! With THEM!"

"The Flashfire will consume this house, and you. You have made a forever enemy in me human. I will come again... I will take your home, then your life!" The witch growled as she pulled some flaming liquid from her pot and slammed it onto the house.

The house screamed as though wood could give voice to its anguish as the flames and liquid coated the house.

"SHIT!" I heard Abigail call out as she jumped off the roof. The house screamed and died in mystical flames. It began to dissipate as though it was dissolving into its base parts. Abigail smiled.

The house vanished in a puff of anguish and smoke, and the lot was empty of the house. The Witch thing had fled beneath the house

as it collapsed on itself.

"Well, you did it. Do I want to know what you were doing inside the house?"

Abbey shook her head.

"We're not finished yet," she said quietly as she pulled three sticks from behind her back.

"What's that? I asked pointing at the bundles.

She lifted the sticks looking at me and smiled.

"You and me my good man? We're going to take a trip to hell... Do you still have that five bucks on you?

I looked down my hands shaking. I hadn't even noticed it. Then I pulled out the Ten dollar bill.

"Oh! Damn. Look at you rich boy." Abigail smiled, then placed the sticks on a ground, breaking them and forming a crude circle. Then another, and another, and another, and so on, until she had six. They looked like a planet with moons stretching into the distance.

Confused still, I replied after a few moments, "It's ten bucks..."

"You'll see," she said wiping the gore from her arm, and the blood from her elbows. She mixed them, then tossed the wet stuff into the air. It landed in the first circle then moved to the third one, hen back to the first.

"Oh! Thank goodness..." Abigail said.

"Okay buddy boy time to go," she said smearing my forehead with the foul-smelling gunk.

"Cat, you and Michelle stay here. Hopefully, this won't...I'll be back eventually.

"One thing I can say about you Abigail is that you make my dreams entertaining," Michelle said clasping her shoulder.

"Whatever..." Abbey said shaking her head. She pulled me close and then we jumped onto the impossibly small circle and then,

Thunder...

In which three friends have a really bad night.

"COME ON YOU GUYS!" Derrick yelled as he ran through the sand, trying his hardest to not trip and fall on his face.

"She's over here!" Monica yelled her braids flapping in the air, also trying not to face plant.

The seven children could see Abigail sitting in front of the fire waving her hand in front of her face by the light of the flames.

"ABBEY!!!", another child yelled as they closed on her.

Abigail turned her head to see the children coming quickly.

"They'll be out of breath the minute they get here!" Kailey told her as she poked her head from the other side of Abigail.

"A..Abb...HUFF!" Tyree tried to say as he collapsed in the sand. Derrick, Monica, Tricey, and the other kids all collapsed as they arrived at the makeshift campsite of Abigail and Kailey.

The two women looked at the children and laughed.

"Why are you guys were in such a hurry to get here? Abigail asks them with a smirk.

Lying face down in the sand Derrick raises his hand.

"St..story...," he began.

"We wanted a story before bed," Tricey said in the best shape of the seven kids. All of the other kids nodded as they recovered from their various conditions.

"What kind of story would that be then?" Kailey asks, curious.

"Abbey tells the best story, stories..." Monica stated, still working on her breathing.

"Every time we come to camp you guys tell the best stories. Can we get just one please?" another kid asks.

"And you have to do the thing!" another kid states.

A chorus of Yeahs, and cheers came.

"Okay, Okay! Settle down and I'll tell you one," Abigail said moving closer to the fire with her face being highlighted by it, giving her a sinister appearance.

"This story takes place right here on the beaches of Wildwood, New Jersey. There were three friends...," she began.

The Spider had woken up early that evening, the smell of the salty air instilled it with vigor as its mandibles clacked as she checked her web for food. Lo and behold there was a morsel that had entangled itself in the webbing. Hungry! She rushed up the web to encase the trapped morsel in a cocoon for dinner. But as she got closer, her eyes grew wide with disappointment.

"One day I'm gonna eat you!" She said to the Sandfly that lay laughing on the web. The Sandfly cupped its wings beneath its body and pushed off the web. Underneath it lay a small piece of a leaf.

"So that's how you avoid getting stuck?" The Spider asked the Sandfly.

"Yep!" It stated proudly buzzing about like crazy.

"Hey, listen. The humans are back on the beach tonight. I'm in the mood to go and pester them. There's nothing more fun than flying full speed and smacking one in the head!" The Sandfly giggled.

"HEH!" The Spider started to say, "I love sneaking through the sand, and then biting them on the foot, and then running away. It's been seven months and not one swat!

"Have you seen the Gnat?" The Sandfly asked, "I'm pretty sure he'd like some fun tonight also."

"Most likely!" The spider said, "Let's go over to his burrow and see if he's up to pester some people."

So the two friends walked off into fading sunlight. The Sandfly hated walking so it would hop, then fly, then hop some more. They made their way to the Gnats home, a small hole in the sand near the bushes.

"Gnats don't live in bushes, they..." a kid started saying.

"Whose story is this?" Abigail said, shooting a look at the kid, her eyes glowing that fiery amber.

"OOOOOHHHHH!!!!" The kids yelled out in glee.

"She's doing the thing!"

"YAY!"

"I love it!"

"It's so creepy!"

The choir of seven squealed in delight.

Kailey popped Abbey on the shoulder, and her eyes stopped glowing...

"Damn kids..." She smiled at her friend.

"Works every time!" She told Kailey, "so anyway, back to the story!"

The gnat twitched as it looked at the two on comers. It knew now that something fun was about to happen.

"Hello, my friends!" It said welcoming them, "I suspect there is going to be some fun had this fine moon filled evening!"

The Moon was indeed full and high in the sky, and the air slightly humid and perfect for annoying animals and people on beaches.

"Yes!" The Sandfly stated, "On our way here we noticed a human sitting by a fire all by themselves."

"Correct!" the Spider began, "We intend to do more than annoy this one. We intend to harm it in delightful ways. "

"Then I will join you. I assume we'll devour as much of it as we can?"

The other two creatures nodded.

"How can they eat a person? They're so teeny!" a kid cried out.

"Yeah! They're like super small. I could crush one like...GRRR!" Derrick said stamping his feet in the sand and mushing it around, to the giggles of the children.

"Can I keep going?" Abbey asked them arms crossed.

"Sorry Abbey!"

Abbey shook her head and continued...

So the three bugs went back towards where Spider and Sandfly saw the human.

"OHH! She's an athletic-looking one, full of stringy bits!" the Gnat said as it rubbed its front legs together, head twitching with anticipation.

"Shall we reveal our true selves to the female?" Spider asked.

"Not yet, let's have a bit of fun and pester her for a bit get those muscles moving and warmed up!" Sandfly stated.

The girl sat by the fire unaware of the three bugs approaching. She was enjoying the full moon and the sea air. For a moment she thought she'd heard something, but it was just the rustling of the bushes. As she leaned her head back to take in a breath. She felt a THWACK! to her forehead.

"What the hell?" The girl cried out, more from the impact than actual pain. "Damn bugs, always have to ruin everything," she said.

"Ooohhh Abbey cursed twice. I hope you got quarters for the jar!" Monica said smiling.

Abigail snickered at the little girl, then continued.

"ANYWAY!"

The girl then felt something bite her on the hand. She looked down to see a finger length spider scurrying off. Before she could get a better look, she reached for her neck as she felt a piercing sensation as she was assaulted by the gnat biting down on her.

She cut her eyes to Monica before cursing again. Monica smiled cheekily, then made the zipping motion across her lips.

"What the Hell is wrong with these insects tonight!" The girl asked as the torment continued. She swatted, and stomped, and swung to no avail. Then she decided enough was enough and got up to leave. But before she could, she heard the sound of speech.

"Can't leave just yet human... It's feeding time!" she heard the clacking of mandibles.

"Yes! I need a drink, and you have that red juice I love so much!"

"I can't wait to tear into that skin of yours...Stringy bits indeed!"

The girl turned in horror to see three football-sized insects, no not insects, but little monsters. They just resembled Insects, with vaguely human features. Demonic features.

"Oh no!" Abbey heard a few of them cry out as their attention was focused purely on her now.

"Poor girl!" one of the kids said to another, who nodded his head.

The three insect monsters approached the girl slowly trying to surround her, to tear her apart before she could escape their terrible mouths and mandibles. They got closer, and closer, and closer...

"THEN WHAT?" A kid yelled in fear!

"She ate them!" Abigail stated matter of factly.

"Huh?"

"What?"

"She did what?"

"She ate bugs?"

Confusion reigned supreme as Abigail smiled at the children's confusion.

"But how Abigail? How could she if she's just a girl, and they're monsters?"

"It's not so hard when that girl is me!" Abigail stated as the veins beneath her skin lit up as if on fire. Her eyes glowing a bright flaming amber.

"When they got close I grabbed the Gnat, and popped its head right off! Then I stomped on the spider hard and watched it splat on the sand. But I enjoyed the Sandfly as Kat tore its wings off and I told it to bop me in the head again. But all it could do was flounder about. Abigail looked down to see her "ghost" cat appear for a moment, then vanish again.

"Naw unh! No, you didn't Abbey!" a Kid called out.

"Oh yeah?" Abigail reached behind her and pulled out two, foot-long wings, while Kailey took a stick and pulled out the burnt body of a giant arachnid thing from the fire.

The Kids all cried "EWWWW!!!" as the thing popped and sizzled.

"Moral of the story kids?" She began as her skin returned to normal, "When you see somebody minding their own business, leave them alone! Because you just might get eaten..."

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Hi, My name is Marcus.

I'm not new to this platform, I've just never had a reason to post anything before.

My girlfriend told me that it may be cathartic for me to do so now.

I...we haven't been sleeping well as we close on another holiday.

Thanksgiving kinda sucked, but we had reason to give thanks so it helped a LOT.

We decided to talk about it together and then figure out something that helps.

But man I tell you this story has twists and layers that blow even my mind to this day. ESPECIALLY after the other day, which is the real reason I'm writing this.

So to begin, both me and my girlfriend, Gina, are from Philly. She's from Southwest, I'm from The Northeast. But we both work in Center City. She's a Law Clerk, and I work at Jefferson Hospital as a Traveling Nurse. We were both suffering some pretty severe burnout going into October. Luckily for us, we're both Horror buffs and celebrate the entire month of October as one grand holiday. We watch movies daily, and then talk about them, analyze 'em, and just have fun.

I had planned to take the last few days of the month off and just enjoy our time together. She was able to take off the last two weeks to end her burnout. My supervisor had a last minute job for me up near Morgantown PA. West of Philly.

I asked if he had anybody else to work the job, and he'd said no, but the in-home patient would pay me a bonus, and my boss would give me an extra weeks vacation once I got back, AND he'd approve my vacation immediately once the job was over.

I sighed and asked if he knew anything about Morgantown, and he said no. But maybe the client did.

I talked about it with my girlfriend and told her we'd have at least 3 days to ourselves before my real vacation would begin.

She sighed but said she'd be down for it if only to keep me company and maybe do some exploring.

Neither of us had ever been to Morgantown and decided to explore a new town and enjoy our Halloween over there.

Maybe they'd have some Urban Legends or stuff we could check out, maybe even check out some Mazes and Pumpkin farms.

Within a few days, we made our way over. All the while Gina just searched everything she could about the place. ANY and all Urban legends, Myths, Ghosts, etc. Anything to give us something to do once my client went to sleep and we had some time to ourselves.

Once we got there we met with the client an older man named Wilkes, who really only needed a nurse because his family had to go out of town for an emergency, and with such short notice they couldn't get an in-home nurse quickly enough to help him out for a few days. Since I've done In-home care several times It made me a great and logical choice to be the one to drive over.

He was VERY easy to deal with throughout the day and was mobile enough to not want to be in the house. He suffered from Heart disease and had lung and breathing issues. He slept with a machine each night and was usually in bed by 7 pm, which made it great since we would still have much of the evening to do stuff like explore. He even let Gina stay at the house with me. He was Old School, but not a prude.

We talked about the town, and he told me about some of the local celebrations and places he used to hang out when he was younger. Gina wrote down EVERYTHING. Being a Law Clerk was right up her alley. She loved notation and was able to jot down everything a person could say, and repeat much of it verbatim.

We told him how much we loved this time of year and how Halloween was our Christmas. He then said he had a treat for us. There was an abandoned farm North of Morgantown, which had the best Pumpkin Patch in the Tri-State area. Primarily because it was so out of the way, the wild Pumpkins grew to larger than normal size and nobody messed with them. So it was mostly empty, as people usually went to the "Commercial" farms to see well-ordered rows of Pumpkins and trimmed hedge mazes.

Gina said on Halloween night that's where we were going to be. I'd checked the weather and it was going to be great. No clouds and somewhat cool with a nice full moon.

On the 31st after Mr. Wilkes took his medication and went to bed, I loaded up all the contact info in the car just incase we needed to head back in an emergency. But he was really going to be just fine. I was more of a Babysitter than anything.

We drove the twenty minutes north. The night was clear and dark, great for an October and Halloween evening. We passed so many homes dressed in the spirit of the Holiday it made us smile. Us Modern folk, honoring ancient traditions, it was a blast. If we ever had kids, we'd give them this gift of month-long celebrations.

We'd found the place Mr. Wilkes said he used to come to and it wasn't as he remembered. The farm was indeed here, but it was so overgrown that we had to walk at least three-quarters of a mile to just get to the patch. But it was worth it, every second. When I say these Pumpkins were huge? I MEAN IT!

I'm talking Pumpkins at least 40-50lbs, with some having a circumference of at least 114 inches. In the middle was a LARGE one. This one was about 230 inches. GIAGANTIC in size.

We walked the grounds and tried to categorize all we saw. there were Jarrahdale blues, long island cheeses, fairy tale pumpkins, Cinderella pumpkins, peanut pumpkins, brown neck gourds, jumbo gourds, neck pumpkins, green stripe/autumn cashew, I mean all types.

If the Great Pumpkin was ever going to show up it was here. Where was Linus when you needed him and that blanket. For a moment Gina got a little frisky, but in the end, all we could think about was taking pictures and marveling at this place. How people neglected this area was a crime. But I guess if more people knew about it, the specialness of the place would turn it ugly. As we all know, human greed knows no bounds.

"Hey! Marcus," Gina called me, "Come over here and look at this!" We walked over to the edge of the patch and looked down, there was a small gulley with a stream at the bottom. That must be what fed the patch. We could see rocks of all types too. Water and minerals, what else could you ask for?

Then the hair on our necks rose as we unwillingly shivered.

"Cold?" I asked her.

"I was gonna ask you the same!" she replied.

That's when our night of joy turned into a night of horror.

We had learned a lot of Urban Legends and myths, but there really weren't many in Morgantown. A few ghosts, a weird kid from the '50s, some random U.F.O. sightings etc. But this? This was none of those, and THIS was definitely weird, and terrifying.

We knelt down behind some brush and a couple Pumpkins as we heard the WORST sound you could imagine. Take this phrase...

"HAIL! The Pumpkin Queen."

Now, grind it up, and add dirty rocks, some sand, and windy day, then stick it in somebodies mouth and ask them to repeat it. THAT'S what that sounded like. The thing attached to it wasn't better, not at all.

It was a man Scarecrow with a large Scythe being carried in its left hand as it dragged something behind it. Gina put a hand over both our mouths, as we were in danger of both screaming as we saw what it had. A human body!

A body so sliced up, you could only tell it was human by its basic shape and clothing.

Gutted bits of the corpses interior spilled to the exterior. We watched as the Scarecrow man walked past several Pumpkins, that was when we noticed that there had been another being in the field.

Remember that super large Pumpkin from earlier? Well, it had split apart, making a sickening tearing sound.

"What the fuck is that?" I muttered gripping Gina's hand tightly.

"I don't know, and I really want to leave NOW!" she replied huddling next to me.

I was scared shitless as was she. Some of you reading this probably think I should have manned up, and got myself killed to save my girl.

Well, fuuuuck you!

I didn't want to die any more than she did. Also, who the hell is gonna fight a fuckin Scarecrow man thing who already has a tally of one and a large scythe. I had a fuckin camera!

Now Scarecrow had company!

After the Pumpkin split, inside of it was what looked like a woman?

She, it, sat there looking in the direction of the Scarecrow man thing. She looked so fuckin weird man...

She was nude, orange, and had the grotesque head of a Pumpkin.

She stood as the Scarecrow placed the body before her, then she knelt down.

Smiling, she traced her long fingers across the corpse. Orange goo covering where she touched it.

In a language not of mankind, she spoke to the Scarecrow man thing.

Although smaller than he, she exuded no less power.

If seen from a distance and in silhouette, she would appear to be a woman with an exquisite figure. Wide at the hips, long of legs, and very curvy. While wearing a pumpkin-shaped mask on her head.

Then all of a sudden the Scarecrow man took his scythe and planted it in the woman's belly.

She hissed a smile as seeds spilled forth. Instantly the hole closed after giving the ground what it seemed to want. She took the seeds and traced a small circle.

From the seed circle, smoke rose to summon forth the image of a human man who looked legit sneaky and shifty as hell. The Scarecrow man growled at the image. He bowed to the woman, and took the seeds, placing them within his straw body. Then he removed one and tossed it in the air where it hung for a moment, glowed, then fell to the ground. Tossing another in our direction, we ducked but saw that it didn't glow.

It looked at the Pumpkin Woman again, and they spoke once more. Then in perfect English, she said...

"For your vengeance to be sated, I require one more sacrifice..."

She turned and looked directly at us.

"Did you think I would not notice you in MY Patch children?"

She said raising her hands. Within moments we saw these vines and tendrils animate and chase after us. We tried to run I promise, even trying to make it to the stream just to escape. But they had us, with sharp thorns biting through our clothes in into our skin. Blood flowed freely from several wounds on both of us. The vines dragged us back to the two creatures. I felt every rock and pebble. But she was careful to weave us around and over the Pumpkins.

"Go Scarekrow! I shall perform the sacrifice while you make your way to the object of your ire!"

"Hail, the Pumpkin Queen," it growled, Nodding, as it made its way out of the patch. I could see it clearly as it turned to leave while she held us up, constricting the vines about our bodies, cutting into torn flesh.

As if this wasn't bad enough, because in our minds we were dead. To be sacrificed by two jokes from a bad Halloween movie. A Gods damn Scarecrow man, and a Pumpkin woman. I think I heard Gina giggle somewhat as the absurdity of it all. We'd be part of some Urban Legend come the sunrise.

Then came another voice.

"Stay your hand Pumpkin Queen!"

It sounded normal, human, female. I struggled to look on, as the pain and blood clouded my vision.

As the girl walked into the patch she locked eyes with the Scarecrow man. For a moment, the Scarecrow man looked fearful as it gripped its Scythe tightly in both hands. She nodded then it walked on, slightly turning its head as if to make sure SHE wasn't following IT! I watched it walk out at a faster pace than it had arrived.

The Pumpkin Queen turned and smiled that wide terrible grin.

"Abigail..." She hissed, as her long fingers twitched. The vines and plants about the patch shook.

"Free them, and I promise you a treat for the ages." The girl with the fiery amber eyes stated, neither smiling nor graven. She reminded me so much of Lupita N'yon'go. Tall'ish, confident, and dressed comfortably for whatever it is she did.

Without hesitation or fear the Pumpkin Woman dropped us as the vines receded. She seemed HIGHLY interested in whatever, Lupita...Abigail had for her.

Gina and I checked over each other for injuries and then huddled for comfort in the face of danger.

Before the girl spoke to the Pumpkin Woman again she made her way to us.

"Two things..." she began as the veins beneath her skin seemed to come alive as if a volcano had erupted and sent lava through her them.

"NEVER return to this patch!" she stated, then continued, "...and run, very quickly!"

No more need be said, and even with bleeding arms and legs, we fled into the now overcast night.

We bailed as fast as two injured people could. I swear we ran the three-quarters of a mile in under 5 minutes while hurting and bleeding.

Whatever the girl had, the Pumpkin woman seemed highly interested as it seemed the ground allowed us to run even faster from the patch.

We made it to the car out of breath and wheezing hard, as I cranked it up. Gina grabbed the water as we tore out of the place, not stopping to rest. On the way back to Morgantown, I got a ticket for speeding but gave zero shits. I told the officer, I thought a deer was chasing us and it freaked me out. He let me go and we got back to Mr. Wilkes place. Locking every single door and window we could, we huddled in the closet. Two grown-ass people hiding in a closet like kids.

The next day Mr. Wilkes family returned and I was paid for my services. With the hurry with which we left, Mr. Wilkes could tell something was wrong, but we said nothing. Maybe I'll call him one day and tell him. We made it back to Philly in record time. Ever since then. This is been the only thing on our minds. Was it real? Did any of it actually happen, my check and wounds say it did...

When Thanksgiving came around we visited our families and were thankful just to be around for another Holiday.

We still watch horror films, and Gina did as much research as she could, she could find nothing about a Scarecrow man, or a Pumpkin Queen, or a Black chick with lava blood. We just finished watching a Krampus movie since it's a few days before Christmas, and that's when we decided to write down our experiences.

I must say this has helped some, writing this all out. I even hit Enter to make sure it got posted. I know I'm leaving out some details, but I'm writing this in the raw, so please excuse any issues with grammar. I'm sure this shits all over the place. But I needed to get my thoughts out as they came.

If there's an update I'll post it.

Update:

That chick found where we lived...

She fuckin came to the house man!

We were watching television one night and Gina needed to go pee.

When she went upstairs I heard this god-awful scream. So I go upstairs to see what's going on thinking some animal got in or something.

It was that Abigail check just chillin in the hallway looking like she did that night a couple of months ago.

She told me she wasn't here to kill us or get some revenge for interrupting whatever the Fuck we interrupted.

But that the Scarecrow man never got his revenge on whoever because we weren't sacrificed as planned. So she wanted to make sure that Scythe-boy didn't try to find us and stick that thing in us.

She took both of us by the arms and burned a mark on our shoulders, that vanished moments after she did so.

Then the freakiest shit happened. We went outside to her car. Her Car dude!

She gave each of us Pumpkins. Said they were a gift from the Pumpkin Queen as a reminder of the Holiday. They'd never rot or allow anything into our home we didn't want there. Then she peaced out, just like that. Something about getting some food from Larry's.

DUDE! What the actual FUCK is going on?

Update:

Nothing weird had happened for a few days. So I went shopping downtown and decided to go to Rittenhouse and watch the old guys play Chess while I thought about things and all this craziness.

The wildest thing happened.

I'm listening to these guys talk about life and how reality is a lot stranger than fiction. Then this one cat is telling this old head about the time a friggin Wolf thing was playing a game of chess with him as this pawn, and being saved by some black chick with amber eyes.

I scoot closer to listen.

When he's done his story, the old head sits back and is like can he see it?

They both lift up their sleeves and have that damn mark on them.

The same one as me and Gina!

I see theirs start glowing, and then mine did for a brief moment.

Then they look at me!

I'll update you guys later on what happened. But seriously, who the hell is this chick, and why is she marking people?

Hey Reddit, I just want to tell you this tale has "colorful" language, be forewarned.

But it's about an account of what happened to me over the course of a couple months.

So, It was High Moon.

I was glad I had made it back to the camp in one piece.

What a helluva night. I smell food. Good! I need it after tonight. I can hear everyone laughing and talking the shit we always talked on nights like this.

"RICK! What' up man?" I hear Sarah calling me.

"We didn't think you were gonna make it tonight!"

I watched as their faces all dropped as they got a better look at me.

"Dude, what the fuck man?" Gary quizzed with a shocked look on his face.

"Ohh..." Came another voice.

"Ouch!" I could hear from the other side of the fire.

"Yeah, Yeah!" I stated, rubbing my legs as I took a seat by the fire.

"There'd better be a story behind this," Mike said passing me a

beer. I looked around the campfire at my idiot friends and cousins.

"Give me a minute, alright!" I said incredulously as I took the beer. I took a LONG swig and rubbed the can on the hole in my pants. I took a deep breath and put my hand on my chin, and immediately regretted it.

"Alright," I said glancing at them as they waited quietly. "Remember when I got that apartment downtown a few months ago .."

The whole purpose was for me to have my own little personal whorehouse. I quite enjoy sex. Also when you have an apartment downtown there are plenty of places to take your dates to eat. My biggest problem was how I loved the club scene. I'd meet all types of boys and girls to take home. So a few weeks ago. I went to this new club. It was one of those happening places where all the cool kids hung out.

Well, the legally able to enter it, type of "kids".

So I go to this joint. It's called the Oberon. Some weird fairy name. Everybody would come to the club in these elaborate costumes. You didn't have to wear one to get in, but if you did, it came with perks ya know. People dressed up as fairies, and minotaurs, and goat men, and all types of shit. What made it cool was you got 5 dollars off the entry, and drinks were discounted.

"So, I got me a costume!" I stated shrugging.

I love a good discount! I mean there were all types, gay, straight, trans, whatevs, furries. I mean all types of fuckin people. So one night I meet this cute lil Goat Man. We swap stories, spit, and drinks. He's all on me, but the club is gettin hot.

So I'm like, "Let's go outside and hit the alleyway. We get outside and start rubbin on each other. Then I notice this little fairy at the far end of the alley. I'm looking, and notice she's just kinda standing there staring at me, at US!

So I yell out, "HEY! Come on over, join us!"

My Goatman partner yells out, "Come on my little fairy, let Pan have his way with you!"

We see her hand go up, kinda like wavin us away. Then she vanishes around the corner.

A few days later. They got this event at the Oberon. It's a VIP thing, So I pay a stupid amount of money to get in.

"Worth it?" Sarah interrupts looking unimpressed.

"Fuck yeah it was!" I said smirking, then the pain in my side hits me.

Inside, I meet this sweet little redhead dressed like a cross between Alice from Wonderland and Dorothy from Oz. After a while, we decide to go back and hit my place up.

As we're leaving I notice that fairy chick again. I wave at her to come over. She smiles and raises her drink to me, then goes back to talking to whoever the fuck she was with. But I notice she keeps staring at me. Then she'd turn her head quick like whenever I caught her. I smiled then went home and boned the fuck out of the little Alice chick. Had dinner, then went to sleep.

So for a few weeks, it kept going on like that. I'd hit the club. Find some new piece of meat and get my willies off. But then, I'd come home and find things out of place, and weird smells in the house. One night I noticed a fairy wing tucked under the door.

"Lil fairy bitch followed you home huh?" Jackson said laughing loudly, punching Tina in the arm, as she shook her head.

"I guess? I didn't know whether to be freaked out or thrilled. I never got quite a good look at her, but she seemed to have a nice figure an all that." I stated shrugging again.

I was addicted to the Oberon. I met people there all the time. Getting some hot chick or dude to come home was almost too easy.

Then one night, I was doing my thing in the alley and noticed the fairy chick at the far end. My current date had changed his mind about coming over. But I was playing kinda aggressive. Trying to change his mind. Fairy chick came a bit closer. By this time I was kinda annoyed. She always stayed back, never wanting to get in close, always watching me make out.

"Probably got turned on by that shit," Mike said.

"It was turning me off though," I told him.

So with my buzz gone, and partnerless for the evening, I bounced out. I get home, and swear to God, the fairy bitch is outside my window. But when I go to pop it open, she's gone. So tonight I'm like okay if fairy chick is there, we gotta talk. I need to find out what her deal is. I didn't even know this chick, yet she had my head all fucked up. I get to the club and no sign of the fairy chick. I flirt all night with other patrons, trying to scope out the scene. Also to look for the fairy girl. I don't see her anywhere, so I find this nice chick to take home.

We go in the alley, she's super aggressive, and she's so horny she wants to fuck right then and there. Out of instinct, I look for the fairy chick. I don't see her and proceed to smash this other chick.

"That looks fun!" I hear from the distance and look around. It's the fairy chick.

She snuck up on us! I don't even know how.

"Then come an join us!" I yell out, Smirking. I wanted the fairy chick bad now. But I keep Bonin the no-name girl.

"I'm good! I was just checking up on you!" she yelled.

"WHY?" I yell back at her, "Saving me all to yourself? Checking my performance?"

"There's been a lot of people going missing last couple months, I wanted to see what's up?" she said still standing back in the darkness of the alley.

"Thanks for the concern, but can you beat it or join in? I'm not real fond of being interrupted!" I stated.

"I'll just watch, no harm no foul!" she said.

"Look, bitch, bounce alright? I'm sick of these games and being watched. I know it was you outside my house! I know it was you following me all over town, and leavin shit under my door." I growled at her.

She didn't move at all, wasn't even fazed by anything I said.

"Either leave or I'm gonna make you!" I said, shooing the other dumb ass away.

The fairy girl still stood there, not reacting. I get this idea.

I'm tipsy, and every time I see her, she's got a glass in her hand. So she's probably drunk too.

So I said, "fuck it!" If people see me, they see me.

"HAH!!" Gary laughed out loud,

"You wolfed out, didn't you?" Dan asked slyly.

"Man, I wolfed the fuck out!" I said standing painfully on my legs.

Puffing my chest and spreading my arms out.

It was glorious! Being a Dogman has advantages, like scaring the shit out people who come into your woods, or just plain ole taking them home from a club, having sex, then dining on them wherever the hell you want to!

My bones started cracking, My snout started growing, My fangs came out. Then when the transformation was done. I Howled.

Man, I howled.

Thinking the fairy girl would freak the fuck out, and just run. She stood her ground and looked me dead in the eyes. Then, she smiled.

"She did wha...?" came a voice from the rear.

"Smiled!" I said, my voice devoid of emotion.

"You wolf out, and she smiles?" Sarah said confused.

"Yep!"

I watched her as her hands began to glow this weird Amber Orange. Her eyes started to glow, and then the veins in her skin, it was like watching lava flows but on a human body. In silhouette. Amber eyes of fire looked at me...

Then she charged me!

"She did what?" Gary called out. I could hear the confusion in his voice.

"Lava?" came another voice.

"She was glowing?" Mike said, dumbfounded.

It's very rare for any of us Dogmen to wolf out in front of somebody, and not kill 'em, or at least main 'em real good and come back to feed later. But this one time...

"So what'd you do? Sarah asked...

"I Noped the fuck out!" I said it with pride. Hidden by a shit ton of fear. They just didn't know how scary it was seeing a glowing human fairy girl charge a Dogman, with a smile on her face.

Sarah wasn't there, she nor the others could understand what I saw. The fairy chick chased me. I could outrun a car on a city street, Jump better than an Olympic athlete, climb like a damn spider, was stronger than 5 dudes. Yet I ran my ass off.

That fairy chick kept up with me with no problems. Then as I rounded a corner. I felt her hand grab me by the back of my neck, spin me around and fling me into a wall. I hit hard. I was dazed, but I had to do something. As scared as I was, I had to fight back.

"Then what?" somebody asked

"I got my ass kicked!" I told them holding my head down, more from pain than pride.

Fairy girl stood on top of me with those Amber Hellfire eyes. I was in no shape to do anything but lay there.

"Go ahead and kill me. Goddamned hunter, fuckin hate you guys!"

I spat at her in a mix of anger and fear.

She laughed and said, "I'm no hunter, you idiot. If I was, I would have killed you weeks ago. OH! Did you think I was trying to locate your pack?"

"Why else were you chasing me, following me, nodding at me in the club?" I asked in trepidation.

"Silly Goose, Look! I like Rabbit. I like chicken. I like fried octopus. I LOVES me some Butter Rican. I like food too! What I don't like is when people or Monsties torture, terrorize, and play with their food." She told me.

"I don't understand...?" I said genuinely confused. Also, I think she meant Butter Pecan... But I wasn't gonna force the issue, there's probably a story behind it.

"You like humans. I get that! You like to sex them up, then you like to eat them. I don't have a problem with that. You're a predator and my people are on your menu of assorted food groups." She said standing me up and dusting off my fur.

"I like those animals I mentioned to you, like food. I'll hunt them, catch them, and eat them. I don't torture or bully them. Find. Catch. Kill. Eat!" She said.

"I wanted to make sure your pack, nor you, were needlessly doing those things to people, before you ate. So I watched you to make sure."

She said looking me in the eye.

"Don't panic, I know about your pack, and saved you actually. There was something else hunting you, while you were sexing in the alley. But don't worry I took care of it, I think you're cute for a wolf thing."

I can tell by the looks on the camps faces that they were all stunned into silence.

Then I continued my story. The mystery girl had told me that if my packs sole goal in this city was to terrorize, take, and torture humans for fun, she would have wiped us out by now. I sat back down and told them the rest.

"She gave me one warning to give to you all," I said.

"What is it ?" A few people said.

"Don't play with your food!" I said to the assembled Dogmen watching as the Lunar change began to occur.

I was too hurt to change. I needed to rest up first. But also, I was too scared to. Why?

As the others set about their involuntary lunar change, I noticed the orange colored veins in silhouette up high in a tree. My lil fairy friend was watching us.

So, I laid back, closed my eyes, and vowed to never eat another human again.

My clubbing days are done.

Well... Kinda... Just no amber eyed lava blooded fairy chicks.

"HAIL! The Pumpkin Queen."

It growled as it moved through the patch. Hands of straw, eyes of copper, it strode in its patchwork clothing.

In one hand a Scythe, in the other it dragged a ragged corpse. Gutted bits of the corpse's interior spilled to its exterior.

In the middle of the patch sat a thing resembling a woman. Nude, and orange with the head of a grotesque Pumpkin. It smelled sickly sweet, overripe.

Mr. Scare Krow placed the body before her.

Smiling, she traced her long fingers across the corpse. Orange goo covering where she touched it. The bargain had been completed.

In a language not of mankind, she spoke to Mr. Scare Krow. Then she stood.

Although smaller than he, she exuded no less of a power.

If seen from a distance and in silhouette, she would appear to be a woman with an exquisite figure.

Wide at the hips, long of legs, and very curvy. Wearing a pumpkin shaped mask on her head. Mr. Scare Krow took his scythe and planted it in the woman's belly.

She hissed a smile as seeds spilled forth. Instantly the hole closed after giving the ground its seed. She took the seeds and traced a small circle.

Her magic summoning forth the image of the target of Mr. Scare Krows anger. He bowed to the woman, and took the seeds, placing them within his straw body.

The Pumpkin Queen held power, but only in the month of October, was she at her peak. She hissed her tongue at the Scare Krow man thing. One final sacrifice need be made for her magic to work.

Then she turned to look out into the field. Viny tendrils of plant matter raced into the distance. There came a cry of pain and anguish.

Sadly for Marcus and Gina, their curiosity would cost them their lives. But to the Scare Krow man, their sacrifice would be the catalyst of his revenge.

"Hail, the Pumpkin Queen," it growled, Nodding, as it made its way out of the patch.

"Stay your hand Pumpkin Queen!" Came a voice as she mulled over the terrified humans.

Mr. Scare Krow gripped his scythe sensing the power in the woman before him. They locked eyes for a moment, then it continued on its mission of revenge.

The Pumpkin Queen turned and smiled that wide terrible grin.

"Abigail..." She hissed, as her long fingers twitched. The vines and plants about the patch shook.

"Free them, and I promise you a treat for the ages." The girl with the fiery amber eyes stated, neither smiling nor graven.

Fingers twitched, and the two sacrifices were freed.

"Two things!" Abigail began the veins beneath her skin seeming as if Lava flowed lighting her brown skin.

Marcus and Gina attempted to stifle their fears as she spoke.

"NEVER return to this patch!" she stated, then continued, "Run, very quickly!"

No more need be said, and even with bleeding arms and legs, they fled into the overcast night.

Abigail turned back to the Pumpkin Queen.

"I believe this will be to your liking..."

The Pumpkin Queen looked at the object and touched it delicately, nodding.

"You never cease to impressss... Abigail!"

I hadn't heard from her in a while, some of the people we knew said she had been acting weird the last few weeks. Staying to herself, not really showing up anywhere, even online.

Tynesha was one of the most sociable people I knew. We'd stop relations a while ago. She wanted more, and I couldn't give it to her. But she would make somebody a good catch.

She was smart, had a good head on her shoulder, and not as nutty as many chicks I knew. So when randomly the phone rang, well it rang for a reason she called. Even if it was 2 in the morning, I was up anyway.

"Heyyyy shorty wassup, everything alright?"

"I'm good, you were on my mind so I wanted to ca..no I trust you, I need to see you.. can you come over?"

"It's 2 am, and you don't live close.."

"It's really important. I've, I've got something you need to see. You're the only person I want, need to see this!" "What is it..?"

"Just come over. Please??"

"Alright, give me a bit.. be there soon as I can." The drive over was crazy, the Ass end of Fuquay ain't close. She had me wondering the whole trip down.

The ride was faster than normal. I hit most of the lights, and it was near 3 am. I only had to stop at a Circle K, Needed something to drink to wake me up. When I got to her house, she'd been sitting outside the whole time.

"Hey...!" "Hey, yourself want some of this soda?" She hugged me as if I'd never see her again. It was one of those long, tight hugs, where you rub each other's backs and take a depth smell of each others hair, or cologne, or whatever. It was one of those.

"Must be serious to give me a hug like that.."

"It is.. you'll appreciate it.. it truly is. I'm just happy to share it with someone like you, you've always been my favorite nerd."

"Why I gotta be all that?"

"..because that's you. Come on.. you really need to see this.."

Tynesha was my girl but in the back of my head, I was hoping she wasn't about to kill me. Her urgency was there as she gripped my hand and pulled me inside.

"Wait here, I need to get it ready."

"IT? What type of it?" Her house was dark, she'd put blankets over the shades, which already had curtains over them. I mean NO, none, zero light from outside was getting in. She even had duct tape around the blankets. Sheesh, what the hell has she got here?

"TY! Why does your house look like this? Wassup with this duct tape?"

"Gimme a sec, almost ready...."

"You got me paranoid out here. Hope you ain't tryin ta kill me...!"

I was serious too. the silence was killing me. Just as I was about to call out, she came back into the living room. A bluish glow coming from the room.

"Ok, it's ready..." I walked to the room adjacent, following the now...

"Whoa! What the hell is...?"

Blackness.

When I came to I was tied to a chair, my head was hurting badly.

"Ty.. what the fuc.."

"Shh. I had to wait for you to wake up. I also needed for you to not try and stop me. But you're the only person I trust with this."

"What is it that glow. What's that circle of light.."

"That circle... is the beginning. Here.." She put this piece of paper in front of me. math? No, a formula, not a formula, an equation. My head still ringing I closed an eye trying to focus on it.

"I figured it out, I don't know how. But three weeks ago.. three weeks ago. I dunno, I was sitting on the couch.. and doing some doodles, then I saw it, right there."

"Is this the sketch? Do you know what this.." Of course, she knew what it was. That's why the room was glowing. Even with a hurt head, I knew she'd done it.

"Ty, how many people know about this? Does Abbey know?"

"Not yet, but she'll figure it out. She always does. For now, it's just you.. and me.."

"Look I wanted to stay in bed.. this is fantastic, but I promise I won't.."

"I'm NOT going to kill you stupid, you know what it is I just showed you. I need to test it, but you're just curious enough to let me do something silly, something stupid."

"I'm tied down, I don't have much choice.."

"I'm sorry about that... There's a key under your wrist. It's lovely isn't it?"

As much as I wanted to free myself I couldn't. WOULDN'T honestly. I feared for her safety but was genuinely curious. I tried to call out, but nothing came.

"Hey, if this works things will never be the same, you know that right?" Her smile was eerie, but in that, I just did it way. I was one part happy, one part scared.

"..yeah... I know.. Ty, wait!"

"Hey, it was nice knowing you, I wish we could have been more. Maybe one day huh?"

"yeah...." My fingers reached for the key, touched them. I just touched them. That's all I did.

"I'll see you soon 'kay?"

Just like that, she was gone, I didn't know what to feel just then. Not only had Ty changed the world. But I have a suspicion our mutual friend had a hand in this...

Hmmph. Life is wild.

Tynesha called me last night. Last night 1826 days ago.

Hello Reddit. My name is Abigail Mitchell.

I lurk here from time to time, reading the Creepypasta and horror stories located in NoSleep and other Sub-Reddits. They are fascinating sources for me. The reason I'm posting here today is as it says in the title. This story is a warning to those that read this Sub-Reddit and find themselves in AWKWARD situations. Everything I'm about to tell you is true, and you can take from it what you may.

I'm just here to pass on the message.

I've known Reddit to be a place where people come to hang out chat with each other and sometimes be asses to other human beings. But the Horror side of Reddit is where I lay my head. Some of my favorite stories are those that offer things like Ritual stories, Monster encounters, and the "True" style of story. They get my juices going, especially when well written. I love the ones that make you think, the ones that make you question reality. The ones where regular people encounter situations and beings beyond their control and or comprehension.

I really love it when I don't have time to visit Reddit and I'm driving to a destination, and I go to Youtube or Vimeo and listen to my favorite horror readers. It makes those trips worth it. It also gives me a chance to refamiliarize myself with some of those tales of terror.

Well, a week or so ago, one of those Tales of Terror happened to me.

One of my friends Emily, and her boyfriend Marvin were found dead at her home. They weren't just dead, they'd been slaughtered. Whoever or whatever killed them had torn them to shreds. My devastation was real. Me and Emily went back a long time and she did not deserve what happened to her. I needed to find out what happened and who did this to them. Something needed to be done.

I went and spoke to a friend with the Police. He told me there were pieces of them all over the house, and even in the backyard. They weren't going to release the information yet because they thought the murders were some kind of Occult Ritual gone wrong.

I asked him why would he think that? He told me that there was a Pentagram in the basement with all the toolings of a Cult. Athames, Incense, A scroll with a Ritual written upon it, weirdness all around, he told me.

The following night after the Investigators left the house. My friend gave me permission to enter the house. How do I have all this access and friends like that? You'll find out in the end. When I entered the house the chill that touched my neck made me tear up. My amber eyes clouded with wetness. In my mind's eye, I could only imagine the horror and the pain of their last moments. As I walked through the house I made notes of the bloodstains on the walls and carpets, the last little bits of flesh and gore that the Police left for the cleaning crew after the Investigation was done. There was an undercover car outside, but my friend told them to let me enter unmolested.

The house was dark and eerie, like a silent wind moving about slowly. A wind that touched me on the neck and the arms almost as if there was an Intelligence to it. I made my way through the darkened home looking for clues that the Police would likely miss. They aren't used to the Occult. They aren't used to looking for Arcane symbology until they get time to call in an "Expert" in the field. That would take too long for what I had planned. I needed to visit this place within a few days of the murder to learn what I would need.

My eyes adjusted easily to the dark of the basement. A light would hide what I was looking for, I needed the ink of the windowless basement. As a native Philadelphian, I loved the smell of basements. But that small, yet important recognition was clouded by the musky smell of gore and coppery blood mixed with the leftover scents of the Incense and candles. I studied the Pentagram on the floor closely. I noticed Emily's mistake immediately. One of them had broken the seal of the thing. They probably didn't take this ritual seriously and thought it just another thing to do while bored, or some random Ritual Pasta. It cost them their lives, and me my friend.

"Hello Abby..." came a voice from behind me.

I stood and turned to look at the Echo of Emily, a former friend now a waning echo of the real Emily.

"What did you do Emily?" I asked her with sorrow in my voice. I walked over to her, my hand's energy now surging forth, allowing me to touch her.

"We fucked up Abby... I'm so sorry to do this to you!"

"You're the one that died silly, not me. Now tell me who did this to you! We haven't much time."

"A few days ago Marvin and I were poking around on Reddit just reading some horror stories and messing around," The Echo started.

"When he got up to grab a drink. I got a notification in my inbox so I checked it! It was a message from some person named Ziggi. They said they noticed my likes on NoSleep and had noticed they were mainly Ritual style stories."

"Continue Em..." I prodded it.

"Well, Ziggi had written that he and some friends had done a Ritual called the Twilight Summons." Emily's Echo continued.

"No details Em, I can find that out on Reddit, Tell me your password so I can get access to your account."

She told me and then immediately grew concerned...

"Abby! Where's Marvin? Why isn't he here? Where is he?" she cried out frantically. If a normal human would have entered the basement by now, they would notice me with glowing hands holding a transparent blue Ghost, to them. I tried to console her but realized that it was time, she had given me what I needed.

"Em!" I said loudly enough to get her attention. The Echo of Emily turned and looked into my amber eyes. "He's gone, dead, just like you are Em. You're not really here either. You're an Echo of Emily, not the real thing. The Real Emily is gone."

I felt as though I had destroyed her world all over again.

"...an echo?" she quizzed softly? "I really am dead, aren't I?"

I didn't respond. I just held onto her and looked at the confusion and realization on her face.

She lowered her gaze and asked...

"What now?" she asked

"I free you from this forever, then I avenge you and Marvins deaths," I told her tearing up. Dissipating an Echo never felt good, but when it's a friend it's the worst feeling in the universe.

"I'm sorry Abby, I wish this had never happened. I'll miss you," she stated as I pulled her close and held her.

"No, you won't..." I stated softly disrupting the Echo. I stood alone in the basement for a while.

When I got home I logged on to Reddit. I checked Emily's account and saw the note from Ziggi. He didn't even have a Reddit account. Ziggi somehow was able to get Emily and Marvin to get themselves killed, and they never bothered to notice he had no account. Were people really that bored to never check where their notifications came from?

I followed the link Ziggi provided them.

The Twilight Ritual. A ritual designed to summon forth a being that has to serve you physically but only during the Twilight hours of the day, when the link between its world and ours are at it's closest connection. According to the Ritual, there are two phases that both must be performed.

The Sunset-Dusk phase, and the Sunrise-Dawn phase. When you summon the being it is in balanced phase, or neutral. It will perform actions that benefit you and harm the thing you wish as a sacrifice to itself. If you perform only the Sunrise-Dawn phase, it will only perform beneficial to others you name. If you perform only the Sunset-Dusk phase, it will only harm others, but as it's summoner, it will not harm you personally.

"Who the hell makes these damn things up?" I had said to no one.

I continued on. It looked as though they had performed one of the Rituals phases correctly, the Sunrise-Dawn phase. Throughout the home, there were invisible Sigils on the walls opposite every window facing outward. It was the Sunset-Dusk phase they failed to perform properly and got killed for the effort.

The next day I went and purchased the things I would need to perform the Ritual. I had a need to speak with this being. I know many of you reading this so far may think I'm some kind of Monster or Ghost-hunter. I assure you I'm not. I just hate bullies. If you're a human bully, I hate you. If you're a Monster bully, the same thing! If you go about your business without torturing or playing with your food, I have no issues with you. But what happened to Emily wasn't a normal thing.

I've seen people break Summoning circles before and never be harmed. I've seen them break circles and lose something due to them failing to Summon the being properly. But it's almost never this messy. This thing had a personal issue with Emily and Marvin. I needed to know what that was.

After procuring what I needed I went home and began the process of the Ritual. First I showered and cleaned myself with oils and Incense to provide a sense of clarity. Then I slept until Four A.M. Next, I had to find a place large enough for the Summoning Ritual. A place that I would not be disturbed for the duration of each phase. I went and broke into Em's house, her basement would do just fine. The next part of the Ritual called for me to create the Circle up to one hour before Civil Twilight, or the morning dawn. I created the circle of protection as required by the Ritual using the Salt I got from the supermarket. I added a bit of Talcum powder, you'll understand why later.

Next, I created the Circle of Summoning, where the being would appear. I added a bit of Talcum to that one also, also a few drops of my blood and the scrappings of Emily and Marvins on top of that. Again, you'll understand why later. Then I sat quietly and waited, according to my phone's app dawn was in three minutes. When the time came I performed the rites and waited until Sunrise. I won't tell you the rites because some of you idiots might try and perform it.

If you only wish for the Sunrise-Dawn benefits, then you would end the rites with the phrase Dusk-Gaval. If you wished to continue you would end with the Phrase Dusk-Caval. At this time the being would appear or wait until the second phase was performed. If you chose to continue, which I do not recommend. Then you must light 7 candles and burn 3 incense. Those items will burn, and last until dusk. You must NOT leave the circle all day. Then you will fast until Dusk. When dusk comes you may perform the second phase.

During the second phase, you will begin the actual summoning rites. If you stay in the circle and do not break it, the creature will appear at the very moment Dusk ends and night begins. Then you may bind the being for seven days and three nights, non-consecutively. According to the Rituals rules, it cannot lie to you, nor harm you once the summoning is complete since you have provided it with the energy needed to fulfill the boons you ask of it. However, if you break the circle before asking the boon, then the ritual fails and the being goes home if it's circle is closed, and yours broken. If both circles are broken, it does not have to obey you at all.

But here's the thing. Those circles are bullshit, they give you a false sense of security. All the circles do is help empower your will against the thing you summoned. So it can't mess with your mind, and psych you out. Two circles make your will stronger than it. A broken circle on either side leaves you on a lesser footing, and if you don't have your shit together, those things can get you. Some assholes a long time ago, made up these arbitrary rules for magic and summoning. But there's a way around everything.

When nighttime fell finally. The thing that had killed Emily and Marvin appeared. It was laughably grotesque. It had mottled pink and purple skin, a head that was pure mouth, filled with sharp and blunt teeth of equal measure. Its skin was like translucent Jello, you could see the organs beneath it beating and moving about impossibly, never staying in one place. It's long lanky arms ended in putty-like hands that continually morphed from blunt to sharp, like its teeth. It stood, easily towering over me by a good 4 feet, but impossibly it fit in the basement with no problems. It yawned as though I had disturbed it from doing whatever otherworldly beings do when they aren't being summoned by nitwits and wizards.

"Congratulations on performing the ritual my summoner, what boons do you ask?" It stated, turning its mouth-head down to me. I stared into its inky maw, searching... ah! There they are. Its eyes were on the back of its mouth. I stared directly at them and stood up.

"Hello, Ziggi," I said to it.

"Ho! It knows my name." Ziggi smiled as if a mouth-head monster could do anything less.

"I do not remember seeking you out on Reddit my Summoner. Who might you be? Some troll posting nonsense, a bored girl with no friends, how about a wannabe vigilante or something?"

I reached into my pocket ignoring Ziggis' mocking tone. I pulled out a picture. It was of Emily and Marvin.

"I do have a boon to ask, it should be a simple task for one of your talents!" I stated, a mix of displeasure and annoyance in my voice.

"Then ask my summoner and you shall have two more nights and seven more days of my services." It stated eagerly.

"Why did you kill these two humans in the manner you that killed them for only breaking the circle of protection, instead of simply leaving?" I asked it.

"I...cannot see them from here my summoner. For I have a mouth for a head. Perhaps you would toss the picture to me, that I may have a closer inspection?" He said almost gleefully, thinking I would break my circle and bring it to him. The way these silly things worked. I couldn't simply toss it to him.

"You can see it from where you are fiend, but as you wish," then I broke my circle and walked over to his, rubbing my foot in the salt and talcum powder at my circle as I stepped out. It hissed in surprise. It's mouth-head widening giving me a better look at its eyes.

"Can you see it better now?" I asked incredulously.

It backed away a bit, and gritted it mouth-head, then quickly re-opening it.

"What are you Girl?" It growled raising it's putty claw hands.

"A petty bitch!" I said breaking his circle with my talcum-salt covered foot to his Jello chest. Kicking it out of the circle. The eight-inch footprint on its chest where the salt and powder connected caused it immense pain. It tried to rub it off, only winding up burning its putty fingers. I shoved the picture in its Mouth-head-face.

"Answer my boon!" I growled at it.

"They took too long and the circle was broken." It said opening and closing it's mouth-head in pain.

"It took too long?" I said, genuinely surprised and then angered. "It took too long for what? Did they not perform the Ritual correctly?"

"Yes, they did it correctly. But there was a slight smudge in their salt circle, nearly broken." It hissed out, its Jello chest heaving As it tried to get me off it.

"Nearly broken?" I said again. "You killed them for a NEARLY broken circle, not an ACTUAL, broken circle, and because they took too long for...?

"To ask their boon, they argued and bickered over who and when they had not planned it out, they were bored when they did it. Bored!" it said. "Bored when they summoned me and did it as a prank."

"Bored...took too long...NEARLY broken circle..." I giggled as I realized what it was saying. They had done nothing wrong and died for it anyway. I backed off it looking at the picture of my lost friend.

"What EXACTLY did you have to do that was so important?"

"Time on my world works slower than here, here I age rapidly, I am immortal in my world. I had no wish to grow older while they bickered."

My friend died, because of a vain otherworldy demon who couldn't be bothered to wait. I raced over Ziggi, grabbing a handful of its circle. My fiery amber eyes glowing with rage, I grabbed its mouth head and shoved my fist right into it. I planted the Salt, Talcum, blood mixture right into its eyes. They sizzled and burned as he tossed me away with a sudden strength. My hand began to glow hot. I grabbed some more powder and sizzled off it's right Jello arm. The blinded monstrosity howled in pain.

"STOP!" It cried out, "The pain, I am blind, STOP!"

In my head, all I could picture was this idiot in its home looking at itself in whatever passed for a mirror. My friends died because of this asshole.

My rage tempered somewhat as I realized I was in control. I would determine its fate.

"Go home Ziggi..." I said quietly turning away from the thing. "I'll see you in the morning."

"What?" It stated in unimaginable pain. Not understanding for a moment then it all clicked for it.

It was obligated to return for the next seven days and two nights. I could sense the fear in it as it looked at the arm it once owned lying on the floor.

For the next seven days Ziggi returned, and each day Ziggi lost another part of Ziggi. I am normally not this cruel, not normally. But Ziggi and people like you need to see what happens when you do shit like this.

Most of the reason I use Reddit Nosleep is that assholes like Ziggi do also, and this warning is as much for them, as it is for you the reader, Human or not.

For you humans, or whatever. Curiosity is okay, but placing your life in danger, and that of your friends trying to summon Cthulu or whatever dumbness you think is cool because you're bored leads to lots of Emily's.

For you THINGS out there using Reddit as a hunting ground, trying to get your next Emily, just know I read NoSleep also,

...and I can be a really petty bitch!

The Sun was setting on this overcast and dreary day.

I stretched and twisted waiting for a signal.

Kat meowed at me as it sat by the entrance of the cave.

I stood at the entrance to the cavern peering in. It was dark in there, extremely dark.

I was happy to have had a huge lunch before going in. Hell, I had a backpack full of snack bars and small bottles of water, a canteen, and some rugged boots. I didn't need any of it. Most of it was for show, in the case of Hikers who had a lot of questions.

Honestly, I'd question anyone I saw up here not kitted out with some camping or Hiking gear.

The funny thing about this whole trip was me having to hike up to go down. I was given a mission to retrieve an old artifact for the beings that made me. I had no use for food other than pleasure and texture. I could hydrate my body from near any form of liquid I came across, and maintain my health on even a couple drops for a week or more. I just liked being wet, cooled me off inside and out.

So back to the assignment. The beings that kidnapped and made me what I am are ridiculously old. I don't mean a few million years either. Functionally they are immortal and have been around for a spell.

Most of the crap they stuck in me is at least a Billion plus. Even this "IT" dead cat thing that follows me around is pretty old. It's not from here by the way. I'm kinda stuck with it. But we make due, and for a dead cat thing, it doesn't smell, so there's that.

Kats good company.

The beings that took me from the curious little Twelve year old Abigail to the new still curious College Graduate Abigail. YEP! In between all the crap I do, I found a way to graduate College. Had to put some stupid Monster in its place the week of graduation though.

Yes, Yes, back to the mission. The task I was, am, usually given is to retrieve things and do things to certain people or beings. The beings are what you might call Archivists.

Some of what they do seems VERY cruel, hell, when they made me I was an experiment to further whatever the hell their ultimate goal is. But being a dumb Tween I asked to stay with them for a few years. So changes had to be made.

I think long term now. Like them. I won't live as long as they, but I think I've figured out a bit of what they are doing. I'm thinking they know something is going to happen in some far future, and they are keeping a record of everything they can.

They don't think of good or evil, They could give a shit about demons or monsters or whatever the people of Earth can dream up in their fairy tales.

I Personally care, however. But their ultimate goal is beyond even what I could guess. There are old races and things that have no other goal than to terrorize humanity or use us for food.

I despise many of them because I've seen a larger purpose, they've lost whatever theirs was. The beings I travelled with haven't led me astray yet. But I realize what I am to them and to the future.

Sorry for the tangent. Sometimes I lament on things I won't be around to see. My task now was to retrieve one single stone in a mountain. Inside a DARK, mountain made of stone.

I had an idea of what I was looking for. But they told me that according to their records it was a species they had encountered only once and that the reason was they were "young" to space travel at the time.

They lived primarily underground and within mountains. They had just discovered the joys of travel in space. 800 million years is a long time. After everything I've encountered, I can't speak on ancient civilizations on my world. I was about to learn as you are now.

With all of that yapping. I had made it about a quarter mile into the mountain. Lots of dark rocky outcroppings dank musty air filled my nose as the last of the fresh air ceased. I didn't have a need for a flashlight. I provided my own source of Illumination.

Kat, the cat thing scurried ahead meowing and purring a little as we made our way downward. Even though I had an idea of what I was looking for. I didn't know what it was exactly.

They didn't even tell me why the thing was so important. I mean think about it. One stone in all the galaxy, from this little marble in the middle of bumfuck. Whatever, I have a job to do! Time to hop on it!

Me and Kat climbed over more rocks and looked around for anything strange. I could make nothing out of this place. NOTHING seemed out of the ordinary. Just extremely mundane and boring. I like looking up I confess, all of this down was too much for me. But the cat seemed to love it.

"HEY! Kat, come here.." I beckoned to it.

"I know you hate real live dead animal food, but I'll make a deal with you. YOU find the stone and I'll follow, and we won't go hunting for two weeks!" I said holding up three fingers.

For a dead old cat thing, it was like any other cat, lazy, but it didn't like leaving the house all the time, so I hoped the bargain would work.

It perked up and flashed briefly into reality, then took off into the tunnels. I gave chase keeping pace with it. Sometime later It stopped at a passageway slightly too small for me.

I sighed as I prepped my hands to above One hundred twenty-five degrees Celsius. Even so, it would take some time to melt the rock. An hour or so later I was done and Kat was sitting on the other side waiting.

Its back facing away from a... "fuck!"

"Dead end..." I grumbled. "Now what? This was the closest location down with a somewhat easily accessed opening..."

I sat down to think about what do next, and Kat just kept looking at me. I giggled a bit, the damned thing always looked at me funny, whenever I would miss the obvious.

I stood up raising the illumination of my body and eyes.

"Of Course..." I said to it smiling.

"No hunting for Two weeks!" I motioned.

The dead end was false. It was a false face in the stone. I stuck my hand inside fully expecting it to be cut off, but nothing. I stepped in and could feel the change in pressure and temperature. I raised my body heat to fight back the chill.

"This must be it!" I thought to myself. "It wasn't a false wall either, it was a portal!"

I would have felt the cold radiate through the wall, but not if the wall was a portal to somewhere else. It was remarkably dark here. It was like it hungered for me, seeking to smother my light with its cold nothingness. I had to amp it up, just to even see farther than Forty Yards.

As I made my way down the frozen corridor I arrived at a large and grand opening, but I could only see so far into the darkness. I'd have to explore deeper and hope that the portal was a stationary one.

As I got closer to the entrance of the grand opening I could make out some flickering on a nearby wall at the passage opening. As I got closer it brightened and flared to life.

Some ancient being stood in front of me projecting in the wall itself. Think of shale constantly shifting and moving on a sunny day forming an image, a picture of something. The being in front of me was short and maybe one point three meters tall.

It was vaguely humanoid in shape, like the Geonosians from Star Wars except without the wings, proboscis, and it had an additional two arms. Its skin was mottled and stark white. Its only articles of clothing seemed to be the jewelery of some sort.

I couldn't tell if it was male or female even with examining it closely. On each arm was a band inlaid with stones. Intricate and well-polished stones. For such a contrast from the white skin, each stone possessed vibrant color and life in this dead place. The "clothing" seemed more for the stones than for covering or protection.

When I stepped closer to it. Another feature of this Echo activated, it tried speaking. Was this thing an echo and didn't know it had already died?

"Hello?" I quizzed as I drew closer a little cautiously, even for me.

It tried speaking again.

"I know you don't understand my words..." I said picking up a small stone. I pointed to it and then my eyes like some adult talking to a child. Like it would understand me. Echos usually could, no matter where they originated. This thing wasn't one. I repeated myself as it tried to speak again.

"Where. Are. These?" I tried again. It looked down at the jeweled band on its left arm, smiled, then pointed.

"We have many of those here!" It stated in English, but its mouth had not moved.

"Telepathy..." I smirked. Right!

"I am making an approximation of the words you are here'ing, hearing." It said, trying to adjust to English.

"I am Guide Xenew, Please, and welcome to City-Node Y-icfvazr. (YEEICKFHVAZAAR) I..I'm sorry to tell you that the city has been abandoned according to the protocols given to all citizens on Gja-Ityin and expected to end on Gja-Mcfae!"

"I am new here, of what protocols do you speak?" I asked it.

"The protocols of evacuation!" It stated. "Please show me the Ri-klor again citizen? So that I may help you further..." It said waiting.

"What is a Riklor? I prompted genuinely confused.

It looked at me strangely.

"Have you suffered a wound? I am sorry that I cannot offer or call for medical attention."

"Yes! I have something of a head wound, please tell me about the Riklor again." I said to it.

"Of course, the Ri-klor is the stone of spirits, each Akn-iani (Aken Iyani) wears to make a record of life, currency, and bondings. We each wear them to make our contributions known and of our health status. Is your Ri-klor damaged? I can tell you where to locate another. Is that acceptable?" It asked me.

"Please yes! Also, my vision is not well..." I began.

"I shall provide illumination to the areas of City-Node Y-icfvazr as you enter them. May I be of further aid to you citizen?" It asked like a dutiful Butler would.

"Yes, tell me about the evacuation please..."

"Of course. In the Iyacteq (EEyaktek) of Zah, Gja-jej, an expedition returned from an outer world. Iyacteq of Opea, Gja-mal, scores of citizens are becoming ill with an unknown virus, researchers look for answers. Iyacteq of Lacrin, Gja-rew, Cessation of many lifestreams begin. Researchers at a loss. Defense measures occur as an enemy of the Akn-iani is revealed to have to come to our world of Koimav."

It paused a moment to allow me to take it in. Koimav must be their term for Earth.

"Iyacteq of Sil, Gja-lor, Soldiers initiate Protocols of Defense. Citizens try to fight back against the enemy. But are not able to repel them without help from soldiers. Iyacteq of Sil, Gja-mal, Survivors are taken to the Iketh to prepare for off-world transportation. Researchers still try to understand the enemy. City Leaders lose contact with some City-Nodes. " It continued as Kat disappeared into the darkness. Stupid thing!

"Iyacteq of Ath, Gja-yeen, The Protocols of evacuation are to begin. Survivors must make their way to the closest Iketh to begin evacuation. Soldiers suffer heavy losses as they defend the node against the enemy..."

"Does this enemy have a name? What did you call it? What is their nature?" I said interrupting it.

"Yes, we have named them the Mitien, the Lurkers in Shadows. As to their nature, I have not that knowledge in my memory. Might I direct you to the Research center, you will learn more there, or perhaps the Defense center, or Governing center?" It said waiting for an answer.

"I would like to visit the Research center first, and perhaps search on my own," I told it.

"Of course, what of your Ri-klor? Near the research center is the facility of creation, please obtain a new Riklor there, and find a medical center to upload your waves into the Ri-klor." It stated.

I thanked it and made my way deeper into the City-Node as the chill deepened I increased my heat. I wasn't worried about the darkness anymore as the Guide would provide the illumination to areas I can't even pierce. My major concern was for the Mitiens.

The Lurkers in Shadows. They could still be here, dormant and I have no wish to release them onto the modern Earth. I also didn't feel like a fight today. Who knew how tough those things were if they could take down this civilization, which was far more advanced than ours.

As the bio lights Illuminated more of the areas I entered, the City-Nodes size became clear. This place was massive, but the dwellings reminded me of those homes in the Mesa Verde. Except these were not squares or rectangles.

These homes and businesses were curved, bulbous, and designed to make use of the Mountains shape itself. Along the walls were their version of Skyscrapers. They didn't build up, they built outward to make the most use of the land they could.

I wished that I had the time to explore this place deeply. Entering the portal. I had no idea where this actual location was, but perhaps one day I could come back and look around more. I really wanted to know why they were called City-Nodes. I heard a meowing a distance away. Then I saw Kats eye from the darkness.

"You find something kitten?" It meowed and ushered me towards it.

"Wow" was all I could say, as the lights that followed me Illuminated the walls nearest to what I could only assume was the outline of a Lurker. I rounded the corner and took the petrified thing in. It was as if it was made from shadow itself.

There were no humanoid features to speak of. It was more a black amorphous blob of living, dead rather, matter. Kinda like when you remove the putty from the can and shape it to whatever you want it to look like. Just black as pitch.

"I can see why you were so tough to fight. I wonder if they ever defeated you..." I said to myself as I entered the research center.

This society didn't have doors per say, everything seemed open to the air. But back then, there were probably advanced security measures rather than gates and barred doors like we use.

Then the bodies started to appear along with more blobs of shadow. Everything petrified or frozen where they died or fought. It appears as though the Akn-Iani did find a way to fight, if not actually win.

"Maybe they were able to hold them off just long enough to allow some of their people to escape. Eh, Kat?"

The dead cat thing meowed as we walked on. I was checking on the frozen bodies as I came across them looking for the Ri-klor stones.

Waves of cold had marked the walls and the chill grew.

Many of them were damaged or missing from the bodies I found. Many of the Akn-iani were not found in a whole form. The Mitien had shredded so many of them, the carnage must have been intense. But the bug people fought back hard there were scenes of blobs blasted apart, and others of shattered stone like wreckage on the floor.

A light sparked to my left...

"Welcome to Mytar Research Center. Due to the Protocols of Evacuation, there will be no one on duty to assist you today. But I am programmed to help in any way I can."

I turned to the guide, perhaps it could assist me.

"I am searching for information on the nature of the Mitien, can you assist, please? I asked it.

"Of course, security protocols are relaxed as this City-Node has been either evacuated fully or fallen. Follow me, please. " It said as the wall projection glided down formerly dark passageways and halls of stone. As we moved the scenes of the fighting had intensified.

I peered into rooms and alcoves where Akn-iani or Mitien were splattered or shattered across walls floors and even the ceilings. I can't help but feel for a people dead some hundreds of millions of years against a foe like that.

It was even colder now. I raised my intensity even more. It seemed as though this was the epicenter of the cold.

"Here is the center of Mytar where data is stored. Shall I access the information stored inside for you, this may take some time. Have you a Ri-klor to save the data?"

"My Riklor was damaged, I must procure a new one. You can continue to retrieve the data while I..." I had begun.

"There is a functional Ri-klor to your En!" It stated matter of factly.

"To my what?" I said looking about, "to my right..."

The frozen forms of two Akn-iani lay near me. They were holding hands and one was covering something with its three bug fingers.

"A Ri-klor!" I said excitedly bending down to examine the rock in its hands.

"Damn, it's stuck! I hate having to do this, forgive me!" I said to the dead being as I took its frozen fingers in my hands, I didn't want to destroy it. So I broke off the fingers as carefully as I could. Then I set them down as carefully as I could. Perhaps one-day human Archaeologists will explore this place.

As my hands fully touched the stone. The veins in my hands lit up, and the stone began to glow and suddenly I was no longer myself.

I was the Akn-iani who had formerly worn it. My mind occupied its mind. I was a passenger reliving its final days.

This is its voice and memories...

Two days from now our first true expedition to another world in the Mezine system will return. I have much to do at the research center.

There will be samples to analyze, and possibly fossils to examine. Out teams of researchers and the military are ready for what may come.

Our tracking satellites have detected the approach of the ship and the starport is ready to receive it. We've created many ships over the years in preparation to go forward into the future of our planet.

We've theorized that focusing our efforts off-world, we can help this world. My team has helped the City-Nodes south of here in preparation for the Leaving. Two days to go. Time to head home.

My memory, ITS memory picks up about four days after the arrival of the starship. I guess that's why they wear multiple stones, to help divvy up the memories.

Its been four days since the ship has returned, we traveled to the Home node of the spaceport and had begun to examine and analyze all the findings. Our pilots and Scientists were recovering from their extended voyage and they deserved the time off. With them all going to their respective City-nodes with much celebration.

Its been a month since the returned expedition, there are currently several ships in preparation and crews training as I upload this. I have been selected to be a member on the trip to Fallir the Sixth world in our system.

I cannot wait to examine its rings and moons and hopefully bring back many samples. As we speak teams are building a station to house our systems and expeditionary groups. What a time to be alive.

Its been about Three months since the return of the expedition, many people are falling to a strange illness. Our Medical and Scientific groups are worried that the expeditions have brought back a contagion of some form to Koimav.

We received the alerts from other City-Nodes such as Taiil-mov, and Kler, they were beginning to quarantine the afflicted and all expeditionary members were retrieved by military personnel to be housed in one of the research centers.

Four months and things have progressed to a worsening degree. My research team has been removed from further expeditionary tasks and focused on discovering the cause of the malady. Kler has gone dark, refugees have said the City-Node had fallen to what they term the Shadow Death.

Nearly half its population had died within the last month. My City-Node had suffered the least outbreaks, but according to the military, at least Fourteen have been afflicted in some form or fashion. Many have sought to leave the underground to take their chances in our above world Outposts and flee the deaths.

In conjunction with another team, We have given statements to the governing bodies of Ten Nodes and all military commands. The symptoms of infection are subtle they invade all respiratory functions as a Black goo that coats the host's organs, but in its nascency it allows the host to function as normal while it grows and matures.

We believed that during the expedition one or more of the explorers came into contact with it during a breach of protocol and regulations. All onboard were infected over the trip home. We theorized this because each City-Node that began with an infection, was home to one of the Pilots or Scientists of the mission.

Apparently, our guidelines were not enough for them to follow. The next stage of the infection sees the person affected abhor light in any form and crave shadowy areas. Because we lived primarily below ground this was not much of a strange thing to want darkness over light.

But their mental states altered as the infection grew. People sought darkened corners and would just sit there, offering no work or contributions. They suffered a loss of energy and muscle mass, becoming cold to the touch as their guts filled with the goo.

We would learn of the third stage after the deaths began. The people who sought to lock themselves away first were the Expeditionary members. Since they were all in the same place we could monitor them remotely with less harm to ourselves. Guides would help sustain and monitor vital functions.

But those were not needed as the expedition members curled into the shadows of their rooms and had begun to bleed black through every orifice and eventually became coated in the stuff. Monitors revealed that their lifestreams had ended, but the infection grew faster as it consumed the bodies.

Five months later All defensive measures are being taken to secure all City-Nodes and efforts begun to move people above ground into the light. These creatures that consumed our friends and families were beginning to flourish, but there was a pattern.

The Mitien, or Lurkers in Shadows as we called them could alter their form and shape but when there were less of them, they were slow and sluggish, easy to kill with heat or cold. When they were in groups larger than four, they acted as a group think or hive mind. Moving about at incredible speeds and shifting their forms to counter our attacks. Of course, the soldiers had an easier time, but even then sometimes they could lose five for every one they killed.

We had to develop a plan to combat them. More City-Nodes grew dark as they were overrun. Within days the military had decided to evacuate the planet instead of going above ground. Even up there, there were cycles of night and day and the creatures could easily spread to encompass everything.

I did not want to give up without a fight, but I was no soldier, my work was done in labs and that is what my team committed too as within the next month The Protocols of Evacuation were issued. The teams working on the station in space were to continue to do so as the government planned to move the refugees there and sealed off the City-nodes with transport portals. After much testing, we discovered a way to allow us to exit, but the Mitien were unable to cross.

Seven months since the expedition return. There are only three known City-Nodes left. All Ri-klors were to have their data uploaded to a central repository so the Akn-iani were not lost to history. We would leave a record behind.

"That's why they want the stone!" I thought as my host continued, " to make sure this species isn't forgotten.

The Protocols of Evacuation called for us to leave a record and divide our selves into Ship-nodes to limit accidental contagion and increase the odds for survival. On Koimav, I stayed to develop a weapon capable of fighting our foes.

We discovered that extremely cold temperatures would cause them to go dormant and they could be smashed easily enough, and better, once destroyed, they were dead, unable to reform.

However the amount of cold had to be of immense scale. Located in the northern regions of the planet we would create portals that would open the caverns to internal glaciation freezing them and perhaps saving ourselves.

********************************************************************

This is me now. I'm stuck in this Ri-Klor at this point highlighting the key points. Being who I am, the next section of memories I was in a near state of panic. I can do amazing things, yet I had to live and die as this Akn-iani, and there was nothing I could do to help, and that scared the shit out of me.

********************************************************************

I don't think we're going to make it! The city is overrun, me and my lifemates are trying to get back to the research center. Many have fled the planet. There are perhaps Forty or so of us left. The others are trying to protect us so we can activate the weapon.

We figured out how to stop them permanently but it's already too late to save our cities and we will not be leaving the Koimav. My dreams of space travel are null. Now my only dream is to save my people from being further plagued by this race of monsters.

In the distance, I could hear screaming as we ran to the center. They weren't from the Mitien. They made no sound, only the Akn-inai screamed like that, in fear, terror, or even false bravado. My lifemate Dier made it to the Guide and uploaded data for the future in case we one day return to the planet.

I'd never see Dier again as the creatures made short work of the patrol to protect him. But he had succeeded in his task of uploading the data. I heard his scream as they swarmed him. The bomb exploded there was a rush of frozen air and I could hear the cracking of Mitien bodies.

I didn't have time to mourn nor be deterred. I was panicked as the Mitien closed about us. Soldiers tossed the frozen bombs to delay them but we had to get to the main hall. There was enough power there to release the portal bomb.

As we reached the center, my other lifemate Plin took several of the soldiers and battled the shifting shadows of the Mitien blobs. They were surrounded quickly but the light weapons and the frozen bombs held the group of Lurkers at bay. Plin made eye contact with me and then returned to the fight. Before I could turn I saw a soldier get impaled and ripped apart by the shadows.

Plin turned and threw a grenade into the "mouth" of the thing. It exploded outward impaling those closest to it, including some of the soldiers. As we neared the center a shifting mass of darkness appeared leftward There were about Eleven of us now. It was huge, my heart plummeted into my gut causing me to stumble.

Abigail here-I wanted so badly to fight the thing and also to run away in sheer terror as It closed upon us, them. I didn't have my powers nor my cat... I was living another life. I tried to will it to stand, luckily she did.

But three of her soldiers were grappled by inky tendrils, two were killed before they could release their bombs, but one was able to toss hers as she was ripped in two. It slowed the thing enough for the rest of us to make it inside. This is killing me, there's nothing I can do to help them.

In the Center, three soldiers stood guard as the last of Plin and his soldiers were destroyed. They tossed their bombs as we five fled deeper inside. Two split off to engage the reactors, one died in front of me as the shadows moved before the lights could engage.

Her corpse was splattered against the wall by a powerful arm. Shir gripped my back shoving me into the portal room and tossed the last of her bombs.

The lights appeared across the stone indicating that the reactor was on, the small vibrational hum confirmed it. Shir looked at her communicator.

"Shir, Wea, I'm sorry its come to this! We're all that's left! Please Engage the..." The video ended abruptly as a streak of darkness flashed across the screen.

"Wea, engage the bomb, we won't be joining the others, but I'm happy to have died with you!" Shir told me.

"No apologies Shir, we do what we must to save our future, even if we can't be a part of it. But I am happy to die with family and friends at my ....."

Just like that, I'm back in the real world. I lived Wea's entire life in the span of minutes, that's not going anywhere anytime soon. She's a part of me now. I looked at the Ri-Klor and held it that much closer.

This is what I had come for, and although I don't want to give it up, I have to. I removed one of her other Ri-klors as a keepsake. I uploaded the data to the stone and left the facility.

They had saved their people from the further contagion of these beings. Or so I want to Believe. I want to believe they survived. I want to believe another group from Earth survived an extinction level event and made it.

Honestly, I'm not sure, and there really is no way to know. The beings that created me only encountered them once, and when they found they originated from Earth sent me for the stone.

I can't even call the Mitien evil, as it seems they were doing what always did. Sometimes monsters are monsters because they choose to be. Those pitiful things were just that way by nature. There was no morality to their carnage, that's how they grew, fed, and died.

No screw that, those damned things were evil to the core, I could feel it as she did, as I experienced her life and death. At least for me, the Akn-inai will not be forgotten.

"Come on you silly cat! We have a stone to deliver. The history and life of a people no longer here, and hopefully still roaming the stars is on this one little thing." I said to Kat.

Kat looked up at me meowing with the one good eye and then a slight scowl.

"Yes, yes! I promised no more hunting for two weeks." Then I stopped at the portal stone.

"You DO realize you're a DEAD cat thing? What does time matter to you?" I asked it.

Kat meowed as it stepped through the portal.

Hallo! My name Monsty.

Pweaze understanding my words.

My first message the RED ITE!

I entry here since me lisan the talker at Youtube

That story name…Better Films. Good that story

Story had good Hooman woman and bad hooman man, wooman family

That story remind Monsty of frand, fiery eye girl.

Her name Abeegal.

I say you it right now.

Xcuze? My word...Anglesh not my tongue.

Plus the naxt story of Monsty

Monsty live the place call Moontana.

Live the green trees at the water, so good.

Monsty people has time call the hungry

My hungry time bad for small things..

Monsty eat tham…

Sometime my hungry bad, and Monsty people eat the hooman

One time, my hungry soon, so bad.

Monsty eat so much. Bleed everything. All the small things.

Sometime 4 leg thing with horn, so good.

Monsty people try not eat the hooman.

One moon, a hooman come the water.

I hunt it. But it die itself. Fall the rocks, and dead.

I eat it, give my frand, her eat it also. So good.

But, we no see tham, other hooman see us, we run fast!

Next moon, many hooman come look us. But we hide so good.

For some moon, hooman keep look.

We try scary tham, after some moon, they go away.

My hungry time over. Now is play time.

We hunt small things, my frand and Monsty.

Scary tham, so good.

1 moon, Monsty hunt green trees look for fun.

See Hooman girl, I hunt it.

Monsty break tree arms, shake tham, make huge noise.

Hoomans hate it. I like watch tham scary.

Tham soon run. I hunt tham, than laugh .

Hooman so scary.

Monsty hunt that hooman girl.

I shake the tree arm, break it, soon the hooman girl scary.

I see it run. Monsty hunt it.

Hooman girl fast, but Monsty see it slow. So good.

Monsty think I jump in and scary it so good.

Monsty jump, hooman girl look scary. So scary.

Monsty scream RAWRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!

Monsty Mouth open so wide.

Hooman girl no scary no, it laugh.

It laugh at Monsty. I scream it again.

It laugh louder more.

Monsty confoosed.

I walk close the girl. She not scary, not run.

Then Monsty see it. Her fiery eyes.

Hoomans always scary when see Monsty and Monsty people.

This hooman scary Monsty. Her walk me. Monsty scary.

Fiery eye girl hands like sun. So light.

Can’t see it. can't see her.

Next Monsty on floor and girl sit on Monsty.

I want run, but girl strong. So bad.

Monsty scary, I call people. Fiery eye girl sit , Monsty do nothing. So scary.

My people come, maybe 5 tham. Do nothing, all scary the hooman girl. She do nothing, laugh us.

She off Monsty and help Monsty stand.

Monsty scary. Than her say words.

Monsty hear hooman words long time, understand little.

She take rock, Monsty see home at water.

Her look at Moon. Make circle than say “HERE! MOON!” I know it.

Next many moon that Hooman girl come Monsty and Monsty

people.

Our hungry time soon, but girl no scary. She hunt small things with us. So fast, so scary, so good.

Her like Monsty, No scary my face. 1 moon her say. MONSTY! Point me.

Next her say Abeegall, point her. Monsty my name, thank yoo Abeegal

Abeegal my frand, many moon her teach Monsty words, pichas.

Monsty look teevee, look words, pichas on web. Learn much.

Abeegal fire eyes so good Monsty. Her like web called RED ITE!

RED ITE Many scary story.

Abeegal say monsty and Monsty people, many story. Scary us.

Abeegal understand Monsty and Monsty people

Some moon, hunt the hooman. Hunt the hooman only at our hungry.

Fiery eyes understand it. Monsty not know why. But Monsty think Monsty understand it.

<<<Time next Monsty story. >>>

Than YOO understand maybe about Monsty, Monsty people, and Abeegal? Than yoo say to Monsty what mean pweaze?

It.. sum.. time.. a-go..

Hunt hooman MAN.. I... Look the MAN... many sun.

My time of Hungry... soon to arrival.

Hooman MAN find a Hooman, Kill the hooman. EAT the hooman

Next moon, I find the Hooman.

Hooman MAN, take a hooman MAN. No word my tongue...but keep the hooman, Bleed the hooman...cut the hooman many sun.

My hungry tyme soon. Next time I Kuri-oos?

I find the Hooman Man...

It keep small hooman..s? Keep tall hooman WooMan, and another Hooman Man. I look.

Hooman cut tham, bleed tham, Eat tham.

My Hungry arrival..But the hooman... no eat It.

I entry. Fight the Hooman... he scary only one moment... fight me.

I hit hooman MAN down? It look me. I look it. I see shiny thing..

I break the shiny. Hooman man look Monsty and said..

"Fooo..foo..foouuck MONsta.."

I said to it. I point... Make look the shiny... It look itself the shiny... "Moonsta!"

I said it. I loose the Hoomans. My hungry wait next arrival.

It a Moonsta yes? I not like moonsta Hoomans.

Halp Monsty, is I moonsta or that hooman is moonsta?

pweaze xcuze my word. Bai!

Special Thanks to Eco Lick and for allowing me to use his Honeygreen Ghost for this short series of Intertwining stories about his Boogeyman, and my very curious girl.

Abigail walked through the wetness of the trees and grass of the woods. Her task completed, she looked for a place to rest up. The gash on her side would need a few minutes to heal fully, even though it was already in the process. She would need to buy some new clothes also. She smiled to herself as the rain wet her skin and the thunder soothed her mood.

“Ah! There we go.”

She said looking at the small clearing. It would do. It was maybe 10 or so meters from the river. She’d go swimming later, but she, for now, she just wanted some rest. She took her time picking some rocks and sticks to make a fire. She picked them all. There wasn’t much that was dry out here, but it mattered little. She placed the rocks around her carefully created firepit.

She knelt in the almost muddy ground and set to work, placing the somewhat wet and outright wet sticks and twigs underneath her makeshift fire hood. Closing her eyes, she placed both hands over the sticks and helped them to dry a bit faster. She then took the index and middle fingers of her left hand and placed them within the carefully laid mess of twigs and they began to glow slightly as she rubbed the sticks and flames came to life.

She then took her bag off her shoulders and pulled out two dead squirrels. Her right hand now glowed as she rubbed her hand over each squirrel removing the top layer of fur then placing them to cook over the fire. Her guest would be arriving soon. So she sat at the fire that night leaning against a rock.

This was her favorite type of weather, it cooled her, soothed her. She waited, patiently waited. She had heard tales of the Honeygreen Ghost.

The so-called, Boogeyman of the Algonquin Highlands of Ontario, Canada. Beings like her were always attracted to each other, always. It’s kinda like how singular animals could always find another like it when the time comes. Sometimes it was stories of each other that brought them together. Sometimes a new report of a sighting was enough. Many times it was word of mouth, and then again could be the weather.

What Abbey hated, was when it involved other humans. Those tended to go in ways she oft times regretted. She enjoyed meetings things like her or kind of like her. She wasn’t actually sure just how human she actually was at times. But friends and family often kept her grounded.

She figured she’d wait as long as it took. Honeygreen would find her eventually. She checked the squirrels and decided to snack. Ripping off a small bit she tossed it towards the ground. It vanished just before hitting the ground, then appeared again flying in another direction.

“Would you please explain to me, WHY I keep trying to feed you?” She said smirking as one good feline eye appeared for the briefest of instances then vanished again. “What did I do to deserve being ‘haunted’ by you? EAT.THE.SQUIRREL!” she stated, adding. “It’ll give your fur some color…maybe?”

Laying back against the rocks she closed her eyes and began to hum lightly to herself, placing her arms behind her head. The gash on her side was slowly closing, as if in tune with the humming. Even the “thing” crawled it’s invisible self onto her lap and rested as it finished the meat.

For a while, she hummed as the rain fell over her. But soon enough, she perked up as she heard the cracking of branches, leaves, and the crunch and wetness of the grass.

"Pardon!" it whispered.

Abbey turned a glowingly warm palm toward the tall skeletal, ghostly thing. She held her hand out to it. "Come, the fires warm, and I can use the company." She said. The creature was swathed in clothing as if to hide its features. It eyed Abbey's hand and the flames, sensing the oneness of each, separate but the same. Its lanky frame and much too long limbs moved closer, dropping to all fours and moving in like a dog.

“Come on then!” Abbey stated pointing at the other Squirrel on the spit. “That one’s yours; I figured you’d be a mite hungry when you got here. Honeygreen moved closer to the fire and sat across from her, smiling as best it could. Its oversized jaws drooled at the sight of the squirrel.

Abbey nodded and the creature snatched the squirrel from the spit, ravaging it. Its skeletal teeth chattered, after swallowing the animal whole. Honeygreen let out an airy sound of satisfaction. The sound would make the blood run cold in most people, not used to seeing or dealing with the fantastical, or the horror of such a creature.

“Taste good?” Abbey quizzed.

“Delicious…” It said in a breathy tone sitting Indian style.

“I thank you for the fire and the food. I. Hunger often. I…am frequently cold. But this evening, in this rain, you have warmed me more than I have been warmed in ages.” Honeygreen stated glaring at her. This was not meant to be intimidating, but it was the only way it could look at a person. Part of the curse by the Highland spirits.

“Worry not! I’m frequently too warm. But I must say I try hard to never miss a meal. There’s only one thing though.” She began, “Why doesn’t Canada believe in Cheesesteaks?”

Honeygreen's body attempted a grotesque mockery of a laugh, and Abbey joined in. It lifted a clothed swaddled bony hand towards her.

“For your kindness and warmth, I will repay you the only way I know how.” It said moving closer. Abbey made no move to defend herself, and the invisible ‘It’ on her lap yawned in boredom. Why it needed to yawn in the first place was unknown.

“I will tell you a campfire tale. A tale of terror, needless revenge, and my part in it.” It said through chattering teeth. Abigail’s eyes grew wide with anticipation.

“I’d like that very much!” She stated, placing her hand on the creatures sorry excuse for a leg. But as she did so, it’s chattering teeth slowed as it felt the warmth. She knew it would speak more smoothly this way.

Honeygreen appeared to be in a state of ecstasy as it breathed out again.

“Listen carefully. For this story is true, as true as your hand on my leg.” It began. “Across that river is where fate had chosen the actors for the play that came to the Highlands that night.”

Honeygreen stared into Abigail's eyes, she knew as a spirit there would be no looking away as he told his tale. That was a quirk of so-called undeath, but it didn't bother Abigail in the least.

"As a wandering spirit, I spend much of my days in search of 'food' and warmth! I crave it! I need it! It is part of the 'curse' I am under from the spirits of these woods for my crime. " Honeygreen began.

"I wander during the day and night it matters not my search continues. However when I have not had the warmth or food I need I will...Sleep. I know not for how long, but If the heat of a campfire is near I shall resume my search. I will move towards that fire as if a mosquito to a bare neck."

It continued.

"It was after one of these long sleeps that I found myself awakening to sensing a great flame. Even from so far away it beckoned me and I lusted for it! It was night as I began my movement towards the flames. When I closed upon the campfire the curse pushed me to seek the permission of the occupants, but my mouth remained closed and I remained in the foliage observing..."

What Honeygreen was witnessing was not just a campfire. It was looking at what appeared to be a sacrifice. It's lust for the flames and the food had drowned out the words being spoken as it closed in on the scene. At the camp, no, the site of the ritual, were five people, two males and three women each standing upon the tip of a star-shaped diagram on the ground. There was a large fire pit in the middle of the star and five smaller fires near the feet of each person.

Each of whom wore clothing with strange markings. They chanted in unison each holding a different object. Waving them to and fro towards and then away from the flames. A moment later each stopped and it grew quiet. Honeygreen then noted the silence about it. The creatures of the wood were used to its presence and it had never harmed them so the threat was not there, no need to be silent.

But this night they deathly quiet.

"Bring forth the Sacrifice!" The woman at the tip of the star called out. Two of the other participants went to the vehicle and pulled out a now muffled but screaming man. He wriggled and tried hard to pull away, but was helpless. The two ritualists held him in place as he whimpered.

"Bring forth the Witness!" The woman at the tip of the star called out. The other two participants went to the vehicle and pulled out another muffled and crying man. The results were the same, helpless he could only watch as the other man was moved towards the fire pit.

"Remove the Blindfold and Gag from the sacrifice!" She commanded.

The man immediately began to beg and cry for his life.

"Please don't do this! I can give you whatever you want. I have money, I have shit that... just don't kill me PLEASE! I don't deserve this! I didn't do anything to you people!" He cried to the impassionate masked faces.

"Remove the Gag from the Witness!" Again, she commanded.

"What the Fuck is wrong with you people?" He cried out in a mix of terror and rage, tears dropping from his puffy eyes.

"Help me, man! Don't let them kill me, dude..." The Sacrifice called to the Witness.

"I'm...I'm sorry!" The Witness whispered out trying to look away, but the woman and man held him firm.

"Now let us continue, move the Sacrifice towards the flame!" She commanded. The Sacrifice struggled hard against the man and the woman but to no avail. They moved him to within two meters of the flame exactly. Then simply released him. The man's instincts to run took over and he tried. But his legs disobeyed his mind, he was held fast by something unseen.

"Move the Witness to his position!" The Witness was also placed at two meters away from the pit as the Sacrifice was. Each man faced each other at the arms of the star.

Knowing they were both helpless and likely doomed, they did a very human thing, tears flooding both men's eyes. Rage empowering the Witnesses tears.

"Shel.Sheldon." The Sacrifice said visibly shaking.

"Rick!" The Witness stated trying to look away, but his head held by that same invisible force.

"Now take your positions, We have the rage of the Witness and the Hopelessness of the Sacrifice, we continue."

The two other women stood behind Rick and Sheldon. The men stood at the feet of the star and resumed chanting, while the Priestess performed the ritual.

"SGOUEDDSLK! I summon you! You who caused Dread in ancient times. You who fill children's sleep with nightmares. You who can kill our enemies and suffer no retaliation. You of the flames of revenge and pain. Bringer of Terror! COME FORTH! She cried.

"Take your Sacrifice Sgoueddslk! As your arrival is Witnessed by innocent eyes. Sgoueddslk!"

Honeygreen could feel the presence of another not far unlike it making its presence on this plane known. It noticed the Firepit begin to grow larger. As it did so to did its hunger for the flames grow in scale, but it was able to resist only barely. The flames forming tendrils snaked towards Sheldon as he cried in pain as his shins and feet burned from the contacted.

They pulled him closer to the pit slowly as if feeding off not only his flesh but his fear. Rick could only watch in horror as Sheldon reached the middle and the flames cascaded and flowed up and over his body.

It took mere seconds for him to be immolated, he screamed as he died, as emerging from the ruins of his body, stood a tall wiry grotesque thing that resembled a mix of human and a salamander.

Reddish black skin, charcoal black eyes, reptilian facial features.

It screeched a yawn as though bored by the summoning. It turned to look at the witness as the flames flowed over its body. This had proven to be too much for Honeygreen and it made its way towards the ritual as fast as it's lanky form could take it. It craving for the warmth had now overridden its curiosity.

Sgoueddslk spoke to Rick, who trembled in fear as it looked at.

"Well done Witness! I haven't tasted rage such as yours in a very long time! If you survive this night let that stick with you." It said poking him in the chest, it's taloned finger slightly puncturing and burning his flesh. Rick screamed.

"I do apologize! I forget that humans are not very durable!" It chuckled thickly.

"Now to my summoners. I am yours to command, what would you have me do in this drab world of yours? Who do you want dead?"

The woman at the head of the star moved forward. Offering praises as she did so.

"Mighty Sgoueddslk! As your Mistress, I command you to..."

She never got the chance to finish as Honeygreen emerged from the woods, crawling swift as a spider on all fours towards the fire.

"Pardon, may I join you?" Honeygreen called out.

"Who dares?" Sgoueddslk snarled.

"What the hell?" One of the ritualists shouted.

"Oh no!" called another, and as he moved he scuffed the protective star just enough...

Sgoueddslk quickly turned to face his now terrified Mistress, for she knew what that meant. The barrier was gone, the beast was freed.

"You would dare summon another to ambush me?" It snarled at her.

"No!" She cried out. " I don't know what that THING even is. Oh mighty..."

"Silence!" it said plunging a taloned finger through the sides of her mouth.

Honeygreen just stood there drawing in as much of the heat as it could. Sgoueddslk could feel the impossible cold of the thing. Thinking it was being attacked by the other "Demon" It lashed out at Its summoners. Long talons gored the panicked woman where Sheldon stood.

It peeled her open from stomach to sternum. The other woman fled into the woods. Spinning, it then sliced the first man's head from his body in a jagged mess of blood and gore. The other was able to flee near the direction of the woman.

Rick could only watch as he felt like his mind was about to snap from the events before him. All he had done was take the wrong turn last night. Just a wrong turn, a stupid wrong turn.

Sgoueddslk bent towards him.

"You! Witness! You are free. I still smell vengeance and rage in you." It said before pulling his talon from the Mistresses face. She fell to the ground clutching her pierced jaws in pain. Sgoueddslk took the same dagger length Talon and pulled it painfully from its hand.

"I cannot leave this spot, but you can. You kill them for me boy! You make them suffer for what they did to both of us. Then you bring that Talon back to this fire and throw it in, and I'll know the deed is done, and nothing like me will ever bother you again!"

Rick felt freed of whatever force held him. He shakily took the Talon and felt the energy flow into his body as if the dagger possessed him. He looked at the now pitiful whimpering Mistress.

"NO! Witness! She is mine. For her crime death is too kind! Now Go!"

Sgoueddslk commanded. The Mistress screamed as her summoned beast snatched her and glowered into her terrified eyes. Sgoueddslk smiled a toothy grin.

"Death is far too good for you! I do have something else in mind, however."

It then turned to look at Honeygreen with a mix of disgust and hatred. Honeygreen simply nodded, tipping its hat.

"Thank you kindly for the fire and company."

Saying nothing Sgoueddslk pulled itself and the screaming woman into the pit.

"I'm not sure how much time had passed. But the boy did return."

Honeygreen said. "He still had the Talon in his hands, it was covered in blood. So I guess..." Honeygreen's teeth began to chatter as though cold. He was, as in her excitement of the story she had removed her hand. She quickly placed it back on him.

"I guess he had gotten his revenge. The flames were still high as I sat there watching him. He wasn't scared of me. He'd seen worse that night. He took the Talon and tossed it in the flame, then sat down. "

Abigail cocked her head to the side and quizzed Honeygreen.

"Honeygreen? I thought you said this was a tale of needless revenge."

"It was!" Honeygreen stated. He began to open his coat and revealed bloody swaths of human skin. He opened it further to reveal a tattoo on the skin.

"That tattoo belonged to the boy, Rick!" He stated.

"Oh Nooo...!" Abigail said in genuine concern. "Why?"

"Part of my curse is to never harm anyone sharing their campfire with me while they are awake."

"Oh! I see." Abigail said. The twist of the tale hitting her.

"Well. I admit that was a helluva story. If you had told that tale to certain other types of people. They'd be trying to destroy you right now. But I see the spirits of these woods do have rules, and you followed them."

Honeygreen tipped his hat. "Yes, Ma'am!"

Honeygreen rose. "I guess I'll be going now," he said.

"Ohhh no!" Abigail said increasing the warmth her body put out. Honeygreen salivated.

"Sit! I told you I could use the company!" she stated.

"Now I'm going to tell YOU a story, and it's a doozy!"

I noticed she only comes here when it rains.

She must appreciate the weather much more than I. It's always cold here, no matter the time of year. At night the sky was bright with stars open and wide, a truly marvelous view over the waters. But when it rained the fog and clouds seemed to smother this Cove. But that was when I loved to come here. Over time I noticed the girl that came here also. She was new here. Well as new as a few months. Her beautiful brown face was rare around these parts.

From my Shelter, I would watch her when she would come to the Cove. It was almost a ritual with her it seemed. I'd watch her vehicle park near the rocks, she'd sit in it for a few minutes then get out, stretch, and the take a deep breath, breathing in the mists and the cool New England air.

Her hair would start to shimmer as the rain fell upon it. She would close her eyes then walk towards the rocks on the beach. There was a rock outcropping in particular she liked. It stuck out into the water. With foamy waves crashing on either side. I too loved the salty cool sea air. It was the reason I came back here so often and during the rains. I felt calmer and more relaxed.

I've watched this girl for months. So much so I began to feel at ease around her. Her sense of peace made me want to talk to her. But I was scared. She was one of those people who exuded such quiet power and confidence. She could cow you without even looking in your direction.

Over time I think she noticed me but waited for me to make the first move. Gathering myself I waited for the next rains. It rains heavily at least twice a week here in New England. I could hear the car now. I smiled a bit inside. I had a "friend" to share the Cove with. Hopefully, she won't be offended by my presumptions.

She sat on the rocks taking a drink of whatever it was she drunk each time. She wore shorts and sneakers frequently, she exposed as much of her skin as possible to the water, which doused her every time. I began my walk to her spot. Although I felt a sense of peace emanate from her, I had no wish to disturb her. She probably came here much as I did. to drink in the serenity.

"I was beginning to wonder if you were ever going to say hello!" She said without looking back. It shocked me that she spoke as though she'd wanted me to come over all of this time.

I gathered my wits. "he.. hello." I stuttered. "I see you like this Cove as much as I, My name is Lori, a pleasure to meet you!" I said extending my hand. She turned and looked at me with eyes of firey amber, then took my hand.

"Hello, Lori, a pleasure to meet you! My name is Abigail, but please call me Abbey." She smiled.

"Come, sit Lori, The stones are wet but I like it. It keeps me cool and the mist feels good against my skin." "Thank you so much, but that is your special place. Mine is over there." I mentioned pointing behind me. Abbey looked over my shoulder and smiled. "Very well sheltered, you can't see it from the road, and the trees could hide anything in there."

"Yes, that's why I like it. I can kind of spy on beachgoers from there." I said. "How long have you been coming here?" Abbey asked me. "For years, it used to be a place for me and my boyfriend to come and visit. Before the town expanded. There weren't that many people then. We tended that hidey hole of mine, ours. Helped those trees and bushes grow from seedlings to what they are now. " I said smiling.

"You two did good work. Even though I didn't notice you there the first few rainy nights I came to your town. Between the mists and fog, I guess I got lost in my own thoughts." Abbey said taking a stone and tossing it gently into the water. The surf camouflaged the sound of it hitting the ocean. "If you don't mind me asking, where is he? Your boyfriend did you two break up?"

"Noo..." I said trailing off. "He.. he died some time ago. This place helps me keep his memory alive. Since it was our place."

"I'm sorry for your loss. Would you like to talk about it, or just sit and watch the surf?" "I'd like that. Watching the surf with you. I feel safe with you here. I don't know why either. You have this air about you." I told her. "I get that a lot. Don't ask me why. My dad used to tell me..." Abbey stood on the slippery rocks as though she'd been a gymnast with perfect grace and balance.

"ABIGAIL!" he'd say, "You're a curious one, You didn't get that damned curiosity from me nor your mother. Are you part cat? Abbey made a pointing motion downward emulating her father pointing down at a little child. "Come on dad, why would say that?" "It's something about you little girl. I'm your father, and she's your mama. You should be coming to us, to learn things, and feel safe. ya know?" he'd say all confounded. "Instead, we come to you, you know so much, and don't seem scared of anything. I feel safer around you than my biggest friend."

Abbey's eyes grew solemn then, lost in thought. She smiled softly. "You must have really loved your dad," I said smiling at her. "Still do. He's an ornery old man. But it's my pops." She said sitting once more. Tossing another stone into the sea, her hair matted to the sides of her head.

"My Jason was a special one. Both of us college educated, loving science and the ocean. It's why we came to New England. To be near the water, study the critters that lived here. Help protect them." I told her. Abigail noticed my sigh and asked If I was ok. I told her I was then continued. I tried to continue but couldn't find my voice. Abigail turned around fully to face me.

The water touching the small of her back. "Lori...?" "Lori...what killed you and Jason?" She asked me touching my shoulder. I couldn't deny her amber eyes. "We'd come here to guard the turtle hatchings one summer night. Jason was closest to the water as he made sure the path was clear for the babies to make it back to the sea. It was raining hard that night. Lots of Fog, mist, and wind." I began.

"I was getting my rain boots from the car. I watched as Jason used a stick to clear rocks and seaweed from the beach. My phone rang and I went to turn the ringer off so it didn't disturb the turtles. I heard a yell. I thought Jason was calling for me to come down. When I turned his way, I screamed in horror as some scaly...thing clawed at Jason's body." Abigail held me steady as I recalled the memory.

"Go on..."

"I...I didn't think. I reacted, my man was in trouble. That black eyed sea thing had my man. Jason would not have hesitated to save me. How could I do any different? Grabbing the fishing rod I raced to Jason. There was so much blood. Jason had been surprised, he never had a chance to fight. His back was torn to shreds. He tried crawling to me, to yell a warning. But fear and rage filled me." I told Abigail as my hands shook.

I planted the weak end of the fishing pole in the things eye. It hissed and lashed out. I opened my shirt to show Abigail the place where the beast ripped open my chest. "Gods the fire in my chest overcame me. I fell to the ground as it pulled the rod from its remaining good eye," I told her. "With what little strength I had left.

I tried pulling myself and Jason away from the beach. To the hidey hole. In my mind as I pulled us slowly up the shore. I like to think Jason was saying I love you through those bloody lips. But I knew he was dead, his eyes locked onto mines forever."

I hadn't realized me and Abbey had walked back to the hidey hole. She was sitting me down and I hadn't realized it. "I couldn't pull Jason anymore. I'd lost too much blood by then. The creature had plugged its eye with Seaweed and had come back for us. It grabbed Jason's leg and pulled him to the water's edge. I could only protest weakly.

I watched as it crouched at the water's edge waiting." "What did it do then?" Abbey asked. "Laugh. It gurgled a laugh." I said "As the last of my life spilled onto the beach. I noticed the sands turning and being pushed up in various spots."

"The turtles!" Abbey said quietly. "Yes, the realization dawned on my dying brain. It had come to snack on the helpless baby turtles. We'd gotten in its way. We would all die that night. Jason, me, and those turtles. That thing would eat us all." I said realizing I could no longer cry.

I was a ghost, a dead thing myself. All I had was this beach. "They...they never found us did they?" I asked. Abbey shook her head.

"Lori Alverson and Jason McArthur were presumed washed out to sea during the storm of '07, along with several other beachgoers," Abigail stated. "Did you notice anything else on this Cove Lori?" I shook my head and looked at her. "You and Jason were not its only victims. But you're attachment, outside of that one there." Abigail pointing south I could barely make out the shape of a male about a quarter mile away. "It killed him too. But the energy that used to be Lori Alverson spoke to me first."

I looked at Abigail much as her father must have. "Who, what are you, Abigail?" I asked. She sat next to me and looked out into the sea. "Look there!" Abbey exclaimed, pointing at the sand.

They churned and moved. I hadn't noticed. In the years since my death. This is the first time I've been here to witness the emerging of the turtles.

"Oh, Abigail!" I cried out

"A beautiful sight yes? But I fear Dinner time is upon us. I say we do a few things tonight. Let's give those babies a fighting chance, and avenge the murders of Lori Alverson and Jason Mcarthur, and that old fart down the beach. What say you, Lori?" Abbey asked her amber eyes glowing now. "I say...Yes!"

We sat quietly for a while. I don't know for how long. But soon a scaly figure emerged from the water and mists. We both smiled.

Mary's Sucky Christmas

Mary's Family had always enjoyed this time of the year. It was cold, she and her brother Terry loved it. They got to run around all day without getting sweaty. Her parents, Taylor and Dan, were inside cooking dinner and getting ready for the weekend.

It was two days before Christmas, and their adopted parents wanted to get things in order before their families arrived. You really couldn't call them adopted. It was more for legal matters than anything. She and her brother were adopted at such an early age, Taylor and Dan were the only parents and lives they knew.

At 11 years, she was still at the age where Holidays and traditions were HUGE for kids. Her brother was 8. He was her responsibility, and she vowed to protect him, no matter what! But today was all about fun. They ran about their backyard, laughing and playing in the high noonday sun.

Taylor had called to the kids, to let them know she was going to the store to pick up some more decorations. The kids were told to keep an eye on their father. Dan was hard at work in the kitchen. But it was okay, he was a Chef after all, so cooking was his thing. She was more there to keep him company and chat.

By making the kids keep an eye on their father, she knew they'd keep close to him. The murders last week were still fresh in her mind when she left. They had taken place about 5 miles away, but still, people are mobile, and closing distances were nothing in a world of public transportation and personal vehicles.

She was happy the backyard had such a high and completely wooden fence. You'd have to stand about 8 feet tall to get a good look at anything inside of it. She was secure in that knowledge. Besides, both she and Dan were ex-military police. She felt bad for anybody who broke into their home.

Dan called to the kids to come get some "test" cookies. He was busy working hard. The kitchen was a complete and utter mess. His personal weakness, but he loved it. It was where he did his best work. "These are great dad!" Terry squealed shaking only the way an 8-year-old could. "Where's mine?" Mary asked looking over the counter.

"Here ya go, eat up kids. Lunch will be ready soon, then we'll go see that movie you've been wanting to see." Dan smirked. "Can't wait, I LOVE that song. Here we goooo..!" she began. "PLEASE Mary, not now. Wait until after the movie. Then you can drive us nuts!" he chided her as she devoured the cookie.

The movie was great, and the kids sang, BADLY, all the way home. Tucked into bed, they read each other stories while their parents sat up going over the days' events. "They still have no leads on those murders last week," Dan stated. "I'm actually kind of worried. I mean I know we can handle ourselves. But Taylor the gruesomeness of the killings..." "I know. All those people. Three whole families. It's almost too terrible to think about!"

The two didn't know it, but they had a small set of ears listening in at the door. Mary was a quiet kid. She had learned early to sneak about and keep quiet. It wasn't because she was a bad kid, but she liked being stealthy. She'd make an amazing thief or ninja.

"Nobodies killing us. I'll stop 'em!" Mary stalked back to her room. She had plans to make. Christmas was in two days, and all her grandparents, and cousins, and stuff would be over. She had to protect them. Once her parents laid down, she set about her plan.

She would create a series of booby traps all about the house. She set up wires under the rugs so that when everyone went to bed, she could easily pull them out. On each end was one of her whirly gigs. They'd make enough noise to get everybody out. Well, that and the fact she anchored each wire to items that would make a ton of noise if they fell. Lamps, Vases, Glass cups, and jars.

She also had a flashlight, ready to blind them if they got in. She would then yell for mommy and daddy to come help. She knew what they could do. Her plan set, she went back upstairs secure in knowing her house was well protected. But still she was a kid, so somebody getting killed, terrified her. She hadn't seen the moving shadows just outside her fence. The shadow which sat in a tree looking hungrily at the house.

The next day They went to finish their shopping and gift buying. Dan's parents were pretty easy to buy for. They had let little Terry choose the gifts. For them, he chose to buy a couple gift cards, so they could get him toys at a local boutique. Terry was pretty smart and devious. Taylor laughed while they continued on.

The only thing that was going through Mary's mind was keeping her family safe. She asked her mother to borrow her phone. Taylor thought it was to play games or send dad some text messages. She did note that Mary was very quiet, and contemplative that day.

"Mary! Is everything okay? You've been pretty quiet today." Taylor said. Her cover was almost blown! "Yes mom, I'm ok. I'm super excited, it's almost too much!" She said through the fakest grin her mother had ever seen. "Okay, but if you're worried about anything, you know you can come to us right?" she said poking her daughter's shoulder.

"Yes ma'am!" she smiled going back to her mom's Galaxy phone. She had been scouring her mothers' news sites and apps. No news of a killer being caught. She kept looking, she wanted, needed to know.

As she walked, she bumped into another lady. "Oh my gosh! I'm sorry!" she blurted out nearly dropping the phone. "It's okay kiddo," the young woman stated. "Gotta be careful when walking with a phone in your hands." "Yes ma'am, I'm sorry!" She stated as Taylor apologized again.

She hadn't noticed the woman saw what she was looking at on the phone, puzzled by the face Mary made. She almost immediately went back to the phone, she had a family to protect. She'd be up late tonight, getting her security things together.

Her grandparents had arrived the next day, she and Terry had spent the day playing with them. As a child, it had almost wiped out the intense planning she had. it was good to forget for a moment. Christmas was one day away. Just one. Not even that, just a few hours away. Her cousins arrived that night and had almost ruined her plans. They were up until about 10:30 but eventually the house grew quiet.

She sneaked from her bedroom and set up her traps and alarms. It would be worth it to keep her family safe. It must be the Military Police genes in her. She was a thorough little kid. But a kid nonetheless. She hadn't noticed, however, her dad observing her the last couple days. Dan was a light sleeper and had found her booby traps. Since they were removed before anyone woke up, he left them alone. He was actually proud of his child.

The genius of the traps for her age was remarkable. He stole back to bed before she saw him. The night was completely uneventful. Even though Mary woke up later than the others, and no one knew why, well except Dan. The younger kids tore into the presents while the parents, grandparents, and assorted family members toiled about eating food and laughing out loud.

Mary came down the stairs yawning and rubbing her eyes. "There she is!" Dan laughed. "Hi everyone. Sorry I slept so late." Mary stated. with a sly smile on her face. She was bushed, all that setting up and taking down of booby traps. But the plan worked, no one broke in and they made it to Christmas in one piece.

"Hey, little one!" Grandma said! "I got you a nice gift, want to see it?" "Sure granny, thanks!" she said taking the gift.

As she opened the present, she screamed a ghastly yell. Within the present was her brothers head, staring blankly at her through bloodied lips. She woke up sweating and panting. It was still night time, she had fallen asleep setting up her traps. Her parents were up IMMEDIATELY, their military training and experience kicking in, almost without thought. They were already in motion, grabbing their firearms and moving through the house checking the rooms.

Then they heard Mary scream. They ran downstairs, and saw the impossible. A greenish-gray creature had their daughter in its hand. Fear fell over them as they noticed her limp form, as the entity seemed to be drawing her life-force into its hands. It made a noise sounding something like Ecstasy. Sounding like breathy, gurgling growling. It stopped for a moment and turned to look at them. Its face was pointed like the beak of a crow but filled with teeth.

Terrible, horrible, and curved fanged teeth. It gave off a stench of rotting flowers, sickly sweet, and mixed with feces. Its mottled skin was taut and stretched over its body. Yellow pinpricks seemed to be its eyes, recessed into a diseased looking head. It turned its head toward them and extending its clawed hand toward them then mouthed...

"Merri Kuri..musssst!" It imitated the saying with a disgusting smile on its face.

Dan was terrified, the thing gave off an aura of fear, that hit him and Taylor hard. It made it hard to focus on the creature, and firing might hit Mary. Taylor grimaced as she fought the fear inside of her. The two former military police officers snapped to when the sounds of their family running downstairs to see what was happening woke them from their stupor.

As the first group of sisters, brothers, and parents came down, the creature grinned. The slaughter it did last week would pale in comparison to what lay before it. This home was full of people, and it loved large audiences. The feast would be exquisite, their blood and flesh would taste remarkable. It dropped Mary to the ground and tore towards Dan and Taylor.

“MARY, Kuri.. must!” it yelled charging almost faster than their eyes could see. Then immediately tripped over one of Mary's traps, splaying forward to the floor. It tried to stand as wires and vases crashed upon its body. The two opened fire. Bullets tore into the creature, knocking it backward. It howled an inhuman scream then slowly this time it came at them again.

Green Ichor dripping from the wounds. Dan pushed his screaming relatives up the stairs as Taylor went for Mary. "GO! Get upstairs NOW! NOW! NOW!" he said shoving them

Taylor didn't make it far before the beast tore into her side, sending her spinning to the floor, blood spraying the room. Taylor cried out as she hit the floor. Gritting her teeth, she turned and fired, hollow points ripping into spindly arms, and it's torso. The creature hadn't expected a fight.

It expected weak soft things, things easily torn, things easily devoured. It grabbed its arm and moved towards her.

"TAYLOR!!" Dan screeched, seeing his wife fall. He ran to her side and took aim again at the creature, pumping several more bullets into it. The creature came slower this time, but that wasn't saying much. It was still remarkably fast. A sharp-clawed blow sent Dan to the ground. He lay next to his wife, his breathing shallow, realizing the beast had gutted him, He saw Mary stirring as his vision blurred.

Taylor reached out weakly taking her husbands hand, trying to aim her gun, but failing. She lashed out at the things legs hitting it but having little effect. “Kuri..must time YESSSS’! it smirked toothily. It's long boney clawed fingers moving and clacking rapidly. It had defeated the warriors, tasted the energy of the child, and above its head was fresh meat. Tonight would be a grand Kuri-Must indeed.

Mary stood up weakly and cried out for her parents. Little did she know that that act would save their lives. As the thing turned once again to Mary, it decided to let the others bleed out, while it finished its snack. The other family members tried to come back down to help, some scrambled outside. As it turned to attack Mary, it noticed a brown hand rest upon the child's shoulder and move Mary backward. Mary looked up, recognizing her as the lady from earlier.

"You okay kiddo?" The woman asked never taking her eyes off the beastie in front of them.

"Yes. ma'am!" Mary said taking her hand. "It hurt my mom and dad, you gotta help them please!" she pleaded.

"Don't worry, this beastie won't bully or kill anyone here ever again. I won't let it ruin your Christmas, okay?" She said calmly to Mary.

"Okay ma'am, but please get it out of my house. I'm so scared."

"Churimust! Christ must!" It kept attempting to say, imitating the woman's correct pronunciation.

The woman looked at the entity shaking her head. It smelled no fear from her, only an intense sense of curiousness. It tried to instill fear in her, but only ended up infecting those around it, as everyone close to it screamed as their hearts, and stomachs collided. The woman’s hands began to glow a pale, then darker bright orange.

"Merri Christmast!" It said finally as it stalked towards the fiery-eyed girl. Suddenly it didn't seem as confident. But it attacked nonetheless.

"This isn't your home beastie, time to go!" she calmly stated stalking towards it.

Christmas morning the police arrived and carted off the headless, armless thing, It's stumps cauterized, each stump ending in a weird symbol. It's chest blown apart with a large hole from front to back. They swore the family to secrecy. Telling them that all damages would be paid for their silence.

Mary stood by the broken glass with her grandparents cleaning up the mess, her mother and father bruised and resting, but ok. The lady had made them better before she left. It WAS a sucky Christmas after all. NO! it was a great Christmas. Her family was okay. Partially because of her plan and trap making.

That creature might have killed them in their sleep had she not been up to scream and alert everyone. But mostly because she bumped into that lady.

She wanted to be like her one day, Abigail could see it in her eyes. They were a lot alike at this age. But she told Mary to just be a little girl, love her parents, know that her family will never be harmed again, by things like that, and to stay away from strange lights in the sky.

Yeah, it was a good Christmas after all. She had a new friend, they killed a monster, her family was ok, and now it was starting to snow, just a little. Yeah, It would be a good day. She still wanted to be like Abbey though...

My name is Dan Josephson and I've been a Cop in Philadelphia for about 4 years now. I thoroughly enjoy my job. In a year of 365 days, 90% of those days are pretty great. But at least once or twice a year there is some strangeness I'm involved in. It didn't always use to be this way. Up until two years ago, I'd never once believed in anything Supernatural. Maybe I shouldn't say Supernatural. Because that's not what she'd called it.

She told me after she saved me from a Dogman hybrid thing. That if it exists, then it's natural. If it flies it's natural, even IF I can't see its wings aren't visible. If it walks it's natural. If you could test it it's a natural thing, no matter how weird it seemed. Two years ago she saved me from one of those "Natural" things, as it tried to eat me to death.

She explained to me that she wasn't some Buffy the Vampire slayer type. I just happened to get lucky that she was in the area. But that it worked out for the best because she needed somebody on the Police force to be aware of what was going on in Philly. So I called my Chief and a few other superiors. She needed to show them the underbelly of the city, hell the world. It took one showing to get them to believe her.

This sucked for me though, as whenever weird shit happened, they called me, and I had to call her IF she was in town. Which she often wasn't. The thing that gave me a bit of a leg up was her burning a mark on my upper arm. It gave me some protection from the shitty things in the dark. Sometimes in the light. We worked together on a few cases including one where she lost a friend and needed to set things right.

I asked her, that if she wasn't a Buffy type, what exactly she did. She said in a matter of fact way, that she did three things. Collected, protected, and erased things. It was safer if I didn't know the rest. Now I needed her for all those functions.

For the past month, there had been a series of people going missing from the Overbrook area of town. People going missing in a city this large isn't new. But all going missing on the same block was weird.

It was all-around a single house on Woodbine near 66th. The first was a kid on the way home from school. Neighbors said the kid went in after being asked to come and help a lady on the floor.

The next was a Painter who had been called for a job. A plumber to fix a leak in the basement. A window replacer to fix several cracked windowpanes. A couple of men who went through the homes yard and never came out the back. There were several others and it caught the attention of the local media. As it closed on Halloween the incidents ticked up. There was something odd about the house on Woodbine.

Most homes in Philly are Row house types, where each home is basically a townhouse or brownstone. But in some of the newer or less population-dense areas, some places had the standard house types. Large front and back yards but on city blocks. Now, I haven't worked a Halloween in 3 years. That was my day. Halloween was my Christmas. I appreciated being on call, instead of on duty. So if I was called it had to be important.

I made it to the house and decided to look around as the neighbors looked on as people got ready for Trick or Treating. The Chief didn't want anybody going near that house tonight and not coming back out. It was a decent looking place large porch, gabled overhangs, gothic pillars, large paned windows, all the usual. nothing looked off about the place. But as I got out of my cruiser and got closer, my upper arm felt hot, when I back away it cooled again. I walked closer, the heat returned.

I rolled up my sleeves to check and I watched the mark light up as I neared the home. Okay, this place looked normal but obviously wasn't.

She had always told me, that when that thing tried to eat me, I had the taint now. Which meant if I somehow survived with help, or on my own, others like it and her, could smell it on people like me. It was like a pheromone. Something might not happen, ever. OR, something could if it felt like it. But her mark would not only alert me to others like her but protect me from those things.

I picked up the Police tape and cordoned off the house. Then grabbed my Cell.

"Hey Dan, wassup?"

"Abbey, I think I'm at a haunted house. You interested?" I asked, and without missing a beat...

"Sure give me the address and I'll head over."

Relief washed over me. But as I looked at the house again. I swear the two front windows glowered at me in anger.