“So what are you going to do now?” Asked Silver as he hung onto the bottom of the car smoking.
“I don’t know,” Dontarius paused. He stared up at the tubes that ran across the bottom of the train. He listened as humans or some creatures talked in English to his right.
“What kind of world is this? What am I going to see when I roll out from the bottom of the train?”
Silver shimmered. His figure was translucent and faded where it met the sun. He let go of the train and fell slowly to the rocky rail bed. He took in a breath from the cigarette and blew it out.
“The world feeds of the souls of the dead. What are you expecting?”
“I came from the world of the living.”
“Right…” Silver replied, “…and your expectations are that the world is covered in incorporeal beings like me. Translucent spectres that roam the world without purpose. I’ve been dead a while so my memory of life is fading but I recall some of the stories of death. The bright light, they called it. Well, that my friend is the train. The Spirit of the Dead has been running since before the Maker created our existence. The world, is covered in matter and life but the souls are transferred and collected throughout the territories. Many are used up to power the technology. Where they go after that I have no clue.”
Dontarius struggled above the rocks but his thoughts wandered to the mission of finding his wife. He lost her twenty-four hours ago. He saw the spirit of his wife step from her body and walk out the back of the house. Dontarius followed his wife’s spirit to the train. The monstrous engine pushed through the trees behind the house. The light above the engine blurring all sight of his wife. Dontarious followed other spirits appearing beside him into the wooden train car.
“Hey,” Silver shouted jolting Dontarius from the memory.
“You’re not the first one to hop on the train. Human’s like you are still rare around here. Mainly because you are hunted by every creature walking the territories of Serching. To answer your question you are lying in Black Fog Downs. It’s in the territory of King Mor. The Spirit of the Dead covers the three territories of Qiull. Morland, Lau and the Realm of Corpses. Not really all that dark and spooking but the Realm of Corpses holds the prison of Noone. A terrifying place to even mention and I’ve never been there. The population survives off of rumor and superstition. It’s not friendly but it’s home.”
The train began to hiss. The train cars shuffled slightly. “Your search will be short if you don’t figure something out soon.”
Dontarius searched and crawled toward the large ramp that helped the centaur enter the train car. He entered the dark crevice and within moments the ramp was lifted and moved. Dontarius watched as the cars passed in front of him. The ramp then turned revealing a massive line of cars. Some storage and built with wooden planks and others rounded passenger cars.
“If my wife is one of the precious she may be within the passenger cars. I have to get there,” he thought but the ramp turned away from the train and was placed near a small station on the right.
“There is no guarantee of that,” Silver quipped from a corner.
“Guarantee of what?”
“You wife, she may already be dispersed into the atmosphere. Only the precious have a physical presence here.”
Dontarius stared at Silver insulted by the abrupt invasion of his thoughts.
“Your thoughts are loud as obnoxious as a bull minotaur.”
When Dontarius recovered he spat, “she is precious. She has to be. Why would I be allowed to follow her to the train. She will have a physical presence.”
“Well, you’re going to miss your train.”
The engine whistle blew. The operator flickered and the engineer took his seat within his car. The train cars all shifted as the brakes were tested. The remaining ramps were removed and placed next to the one Dontarius lay in.
Dontarious left the ramp and darted forward. He lept from the edge of the station as he heard shouting behind him. He bolted through thick trees and made his way toward the passenger cars. he looked back to see a group of centaur standing at the station but they did not move. The rain above the trees leaked through the thick branches leaving mirror-like puddles between them. Dontarius stepped through them. His shoes dampening but soon the train disappeared into darkness.
Dontarius slowed then stopped after the trees disappeared and the darkness surrounded him.
“Hello!”
A light appeared then others till a hallway appeared.
There is the forest of Narcissus and the prison of Somename I don’t know but what is sitting outside the train. A field of corn? A field of grass… if I look at our world a train sits on a bedrock of stone upon a small hill. Beneath that hill sits civilization.. maybe I should just write this and post it as a blog.. it doesn’t really matter what you write for NaMo just the wordcount. I have to remember this is a writing exercise and not a mandate to write a final product that I can push out on December 1st.
I am having a hard time moving ahead. I don’t really have a world.. Serching is not a name I’m even really happy with. I don’t know here maybe Covington? It’s life after death.
The world of built of the transportation of the dead. Souls from Earth or our realm are picked up by the train and moved to the world of Serching.. I really need a name.. This is becoming irritating.
Ok, here’s my deal.. I’m going to close my eyes and randomly pick seven names for Seventh Sanctum name generator.
WTH kind of names are State of So and so or Devil’s Realm.. I’m looking for something else here.
Tiny Hard Penguins Realm? Seriously.. seriously…lol
Grim Computer City?
Ok, Fantasy Name generator website.. your turn and I have one.
Black Fog Downs
A “down”, singular, is a hill, of variable steepness
Sparrows Woods
Dying Salt Plains
Country of Quill
Empire of Mor
hmm… the Realm of Corpses
Prison of Corpses
The Bunker of People that Fly like Birds
So if I have an Empire of Mor than I need an emperor of Mor.
Emperor Lau – Evil emperor or is that too much.. I don’t know if I can do an evil emperor.
Now there is a war between the flighted humans and the non.. so maybe Emperor Lau can be the leader of the non flyers but humans are rarely seen in the country of Quill. They have been chased from the country so that put a wrinkle into the all powerful emperor.
The flyers which if I follow my word above will be called.. ummm.. I’ll have to pick some more names..
— the Charrya, flying humans, have become quite powerful. They could have a powerful king. King Gothra, first of the flyers, born in Bergum. Bergum is a large city built from the salts of the Dying Salt Plains. It would be unnatural to see a city with the salts of a Plain.. I would think the salt would cause many problems.
So I have something now just by forcing the words to leave my fingers. It’s barely legible but it’s something. Still do I know what Dontarius is looking at?
I think I do.
Meet the Black Fog Downs.. a series of hills wrapped by a darkness or fog.
Dontarious stares upon the Downs from the train track. There is a long drop to a flat piece of land. Followed by the Forest of Narcissus. Once with the forest Dontarious must follow the train to find his wife but reflective ponds delay him by reflecting images back to him.
So map this out Matthew… post the results later then we can move the story ahead.
“Follow me.”
Dontarius followed Silver till a chill stopped him. It froze his legs in place for seconds. He began to recall foriegn memories about a man walking a dog. The atmosphere around the man was peaceful. Above the man Dontarious could see creatures flying. The creatures blotted out a large portion of the sky. They pushed up and down large black wings outside a slender frame. A scream interrupted the peace and people began running. Dontarius could hear the sound of something collapsing around him then the memory left him.
Dontarius was returned to the world and the train car. The apparition, named Silver was gone. Dontarius searched the nearly empty train car for a place to hide. A stack of boxes sat in the corner on the left side of the car. There was a little space behind the boxes but it would have to do. Dontarius squeezed into the space as the door on the car began to open. He watched through small partitions in the boxes as a man stood outside the train.
“Can I get a ramp here?” He shouted. Within minutes someone pushed a wooden ramp up to the train car and the man began to climb up. This man was only half man. The bottom half, below the chest, was from a horse.
“A centaur?” Dontarius said quietly.
“There is nothing in this car…” the centaur shouted, “but a couple stray souls. They are like insects that will not leave you alone.”
The centaur swatted at the air then turned to leave.
“Wait! I smell something familiar.”
The centaur stomped a foot upon the wooden floor then began to walk toward the boxes. Dontarius waited and watched as the centaur approached. The large beast stood over the boxes and looked but something pulled Dontarius. The first tug pushed him against the wooden side of the car but the second pulled him down and under the train. The action was painless, except for the lack of blood flow and the tingle. The wood floor was still intact as Dontarius clung to the bottom of the car. He could hear the tapping of the hooves as the centaur as he moved the boxes above.
“These boxes have been here forever. The food is rotten. Send a crew in here to remove these and throw them to the dogs… and clean up this mess on the floor. I just got back from the farrier with new shoes.”
The centaur tapped hard upon the floor and Dontarius lost his grip. He fell upon the rocks within the railroad track. The apparition, named Silver, turned and smiled. He clung to the bottom of the train but then began to float downward and next to Dontarius.
“Thought I forgot you, did you?”
Silver took another puff of a cigarette.
“You could’ve told me.” Dontarius whispered.
“That’s no fun, now is it?”
Dontarius listened as the centaur stopped stomped down the car ramp. He then rolled over as scooted out from under the train.
The large outward grill of a steam-powered train approached Station One. Outside the train the rain fell from the dark sky pelting the apparitions standing impatiently waiting at the station. The train operator stood behind black iron windows. His face covered in soot, the operator pulled the iron lever to his right and the train began to slow. With his left hand, the operator, pulled a wire attached to the whistle above the engine. The whistle bristled tiny hairs upon the operator’s neck and he suddenly disappeared only to return a second later. The train collected the souls of the living from the mortal world to return them to the second world named Serching. Several precious souls were collected and stored within a steel-walled tender car behind the engine. In the center of the car, painted on both sides, was the name of the train ‘Spirit of the Dead’. Behind the tender car were the engineer quarters. Long thick chains tied the engineer to the train. They lengthened to allow him to maintain the train and to protect its cargo. The engineer’s car was black, windows gray from soot. The engineer spent hours sitting alone upon a single wooden chair inside the empty car that was his. Trapped in a world he did not belong and serving a sentence hundreds of years old. The operator pulled the brake again as they came closer to the wooden station. The engineer stared forward and listened while he held onto his chair as it rocked backward. Air forced from the brakes pushed the thick rain soaked air out of the way as the brakes squealed. The whistle blew and the operator faded away for seconds then reappeared.
Dontarious sat quietly far from the engine, the operator and the engineer. His head throbbed as he blinked awake. He had fallen asleep within moments of slipping onto the train. Still uncertain how he managed to slip onto the train. The car he sat in was dark but for the thin bars of light peeking from the wooden planks. The floor of the train car was slick with ethereal goo. Dontarius turned and laid on his back upon the wooden floor of the car. The thin film from the floor covered his face, arm and shoulders. The darkness within the train car pressed upon him as he stared upward at the thin strips of light from the moon. The car rattled loudly as the train fought to slow the procession of cars. A chill danced from the tips of his fingers to the back of his shoulders. The whisper passing through his ears and he turned his head. A man stood at the other end of the car smoking a cigarette. Dontarius sat up. The smoking man jumped.
“You are not supposed to be here,” said the man in a long, drawn out whisper. The sound made Dontarius wince as it knifed through his ears. The man then faded away and reappeared several feet closer. He paused, sucked in from the cigarette and blew it out.
“You don’t belong here,” he said then disappeared again and appeared closer. The train slowed abruptly but the smoking man stood. He floated above the ethereal goo that rushed forward.
“I’m looking for my wife, Mariann.” Dontarius said.
The smoking man choked on a breath and then laughed.
“Is your wife human like you?”
Dontarius studied the smoking man. He could see the slivers of light piercing through the thin membrane that was the man. The smoking man wore a thick brown sweater vest and blue pants. He had no shoes on the feet that hovered over the floor of the car.
“She is not,” the smoking man said then laughed. “You will not find you wife upon this train young man. There are an eternal number of cars and she can be in anyone one of them.”
“Then help me,” pleaded Dontarius.
The smoking man continued as if he didn’t hear. “Your wife may not show herself. Only a few of us show ourselves. We are called the precious ones and collected at some point by the engineer to feed the train on its way.”
Dontarius stood and wobbled as the train slowed to a creep.
“I need to find her.”
“You need to avoid the engineer. He prowls the cars when the train stops. He will find you and kill you. Your soul will be fed to the train.”
“Hide me.”
The smoking man dropped the cigarette and it disappeared as soon as it left his fingers. Another immediately reappeared.
The train stopped and Dontarius could hear the large car doors opening. The smoking man stood thinking.
“I may have a solution for you but I will let you know it is designed for only me and I am not exactly flesh bound.”
Taken from an article I posted on Helium.com and written on an old blogspot page.
Religion divides people, communities and entire countries. It is an unintentional result of what psychologists call, group think. Members in a group, using group think, minimize conflict and often reach consensus without critically testing, analyzing, and evaluating ideas. Many members of the group avoid promoting viewpoints outside the comfort zone of consensus thinking. I believe many religions, including Evolutionist, make hasty, irrational decisions. Individual doubts and questions that would normally be asked are left unanswered and set aside. This is dangerous but also unavoidable. I propose to remove this group think, for the most part, and hope that members can come to realize that all creation theory’s can hold the same weight.
Both science and religion respond and react to needs. Science responds to a need to understand the meaning of all life. Religion responds to a need for life to have meaning. From these positions, one issue is clearly present in both science and religion. Both, in ways, describe reality. This reality may feel different for a Creationist or an Evolutionist but until we have indisputable proof that one or the other is correct it is that person’s reality. Following is research detailing the similarities between each creation theory. The first story of creation was told many thousands of years ago. It was started from small communities and passed on verbally until it spread around the world. Each community took essential parts of that story and made it their own. The Beginning I will give a short synopsis of several creation stories to show similarities. The Greeks: “In the beginning there was only chaos. Then out of the void appeared Erebus, the unknowable place where death dwells, and Night. All else was empty, silent, endless, darkness. Then somehow Love was born bringing a start of order. From Love came Light and Day. Once there was Light and Day, Gaea, the earth appeared.” (Hunt, J.M.) The Phoenicians: The Phoenician story of the creation came from Taautus, the god of writing. It supposes that all things consist of a Dark Mist of an ethereal nature, the Breath of dark mist, and of a turbid Chaos black as Erebus; that these were boundless, and for many ages remained without a boundary. But when the spirit fell in love with its own principles, and they were interblended, that interweaving was called love; and this love was the creation of all things.” (Azize, Joseph) Apache: In the beginning nothing existed-no earth, no sky, no sun, no moon, only darkness was everywhere. Suddenly from the darkness emerged a thin disc, one side yellow and the other side white, appearing suspended in midair. Within the disc sat a small bearded man, Creator, the One Who Lives Above. As if waking from a long nap, he rubbed his eyes and face with both hands. When he looked into the endless darkness, light appeared above. He looked down and it became a sea of light. To the east, he created yellow streaks of dawn. To the west, tints of many colors appeared everywhere. There were also clouds of different colors. Creator wiped his sweating face and rubbed his hands together, thrusting them downward. Behold! A shining cloud upon which sat a little girl.” Evolution “About 15 billion years ago a tremendous explosion started the expansion of the universe. This explosion is known as the Big Bang. At the point of this event all of the matter and energy of space was contained at one point. What existed prior to this event is completely unknown and is a matter of pure speculation. This occurrence was not a conventional explosion but rather an event filling all of space with all of the particles of the embryonic universe rushing away from each other. The Big Bang actually consisted of an explosion of space within itself unlike an explosion of a bomb were fragments are thrown outward. The galaxies were not all clumped together, but rather the Big Bang lay the foundations for the universe.” “Since the Big Bang, the universe has been continuously expanding and, thus, there has been more and more distance between clusters of galaxies. This phenomenon of galaxies moving farther away from each other is known as the red shift. As light from distant galaxies approach earth there is an increase of space between earth and the galaxy, which leads to wavelengths being stretched. ” (LaRocco, Chris and Rothstein, Blair) In the beginning there was only chaos. Although worded differently within each story these words ring true. There was then life whether created by a heavenly being or through the Big Bang. After some time there was world annihilation both the Ice Age and the end of the dinosaurs, or the Flood. After the annihilation new societies were created. New creatures emerged from the wasted land and flourished. The church and each religion cataloged each event carefully. Taking time to ensure the details were correct for the present period. Science through the same period of time also cataloged each event and ensured the details were correct compared to the knowledge they had gathered at that point. Finally, the church and each religion preach of the end of the world. Science also has theories that dictate the end of the worldi.e. meteoroids, global warming and others. Charles Darwin, the man that wrote The Origin of Species was not a devout Christian at the end of his life but he attended a Church of England school and studied Anglican theology in hopes of becoming a clergyman. Even after that fateful trip on the Beagle to the Galapagos, Darwin still held the belief in Biblical creation. He even wrote, “little world within itself … we seem to be brought near to that great fact – that mystery of mysteries – the first appearance of new beings on this earth”. On returning from the Galapagos, Darwin developed his theory of natural selection fully aware that it conflicted with the predetermined Christian theory. Darwin contemplated the Christian meaning of morality and concluded that the religious instinct evolved with society. Only after the death of his daughter did Darwin’s faith falter and he struggled with life in a Christian civilization. This is only my guess but I believe Darwin struggled to find a median between religion and science. Albert Einstein, one of the world’s greatest minds took several positions on religion and science. Pointed Quote- “After religious teachers accomplish the refining process indicated, they will surely recognize with joy that true religion has been ennobled and made more profound by scientific knowledge.” Albert Einstein grew up in a Jewish family. By his accounts he began to read popular scientific books and soon reached the conclusion that many of the stories in the Bible were false. He was crushed with the realization that he was being deceived by through lies. He began to mistrust authority and became skeptical toward these religious convictions. Einstein states that his attitude never changed but became tempered as he became older. He was never completely comfortable with the choice but he states that he never regretted making the choice. (Einstein, Albert) “It is quite clear to me that the religious paradise of youth, which was thus lost, was a first attempt to free myself from the chains of the “merely personal,” from an existence dominated by wishes, hopes, and primitive feelings. Out yonder there was this huge world, which exists independently of us human beings and which stands before us like a great, eternal riddle, at least partially accessible to our inspection and thinking.” Theories There are several different theories, including creation and evolution. Some combine evolution and creation accepting a portion of it and some don’t . Below is a short definition and short explanation of each. Evolution: “Evolution is the change in a population’s inherited traits from generation to generation.” The Origin of Species was submitted to the Linnaean Society of London on July 1, 1858 by Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace thus starting the raging controversy between creation and evolution. Creationism: The belief that humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe were created in their entirety by a supernatural deity. (God) As I stated earlier there are several stories of Creation. Most starting with darkness and chaos and then developing into the creation of life. Evolutionary Creationism or Theistic Evolution: Some individuals have the opinion that some or all classical religious teachings about God and Creation are compatible with some or all of modern scientific understanding about biological evolution. (Wikipedia) Intelligent Design: The belief that certain processes of the universe and living things are explained by an intelligent cause and are not an indirect process such as natural selection.” (Wikipedia) Progressive Creationism Similar to Intelligent Design but Progressive Creationism accepts mainstream geological and cosmological estimates for the age of the Earth. Progressive Creationism states that the new “kinds” of plants and animals represent instances of God directly intervening to create those new types. Some scientists resist the theory that science ennobles religion, as Einstein believes, but believe religion ennobles science. Dr. Michael J. Behe: A professor of Biochemistry at Lehigh University tries to clarify his views in a book titled Darwin’s Black Box. I did not purchase this book so I was limited to reviews and notes Dr. Behe posted on his site. Instead of taken up the scientific majority Dr. Behe states that intelligence was required to create the complexities of life. Darwin’s theory on random mutations and natural selection cannot be tested and therefore could be incorrect. Dr. Behe states that the theory has to be tested by “observing contemporary change in the wild, in the laboratory or at least reconstruct a detailed pathway that might lead to a certain adaptation.” He states, but for a few exceptions, Darwin’s random mutation and natural selection theory cannot account for all life. At the end of the essays he explains that life maybe beyond scientific explanation and leans toward Intelligent Design. (Behe, Michael, J, 1996) Conclusion According to a CBS news poll 55 percent of respondents did believe in the theory of evolution at all. (Roach, John, 2005) Therefore that puts all their faith in one theory. I believe this is dangerous. Not that it could cause harm to the individual but that it could cause the individual to be unresponsive to new discoveries within that theory. Both the theory of creation and the theory of evolution are valid theories. Both have holes but that is why they are not claimed as fact. Once we start believing one theory over the other we begin to shut down the progressive human tendency to discover things. I believe there is a happy median between evolution and creation. What’s wrong with replacing facts that are unknown with theories that make sense at this particular moment? As long as when facts do come up they can be critiqued and analyzed until it is confirmed by a majority that it is true. I doubt we will ever know the absolute truth about any of these but, of course, we still have the progressive human tendency to discover things. So one day we may find out.
— If I was a gay man would you respect me?
— If I married my male partner would you accept me?
— If I was a black man, a latino man, a jewish man would you understand me?
— If I was a criminal would you hug me?
— If I was a Muslim man would you smile at me?
— If I was Jesus would you love me?
“This used to be New York City,” Steve Summers said to his daughter staring from the wreckage of the
George Washington Bridge. The city was in shambles. The towers of steel and glass that made up the city were mangled. Large black holes spread like a virus over the sky high buildings. There were a few places in the city that still worked. The few buildings that were not struck with curse of war were lit up at night. The lights on the Empire State building still lite up at night and this is where Steve needed to be. These buildings served as stations for the living but swimming in the middle of a sea of death.
The George Washington bridge had be damaged. A large hole near the center prevented any infected from exiting the city. The large bomb toppled one of the tall towers supporting the bridge. The suspension cables laid over the gap making the travel scary but possible. Any car traffic was parted on the South side of the bridge. The rest of the trip would have to be made by foot.
Kali trembled as the suspension cable beneath her swung slightly. Steve noticed.
“Move Kali, we have been through tougher stuff than this,” he said. His tone was harsh but the intent was not.
“We haven’t crossed a bridge Dad. Never have,” Kali replied. “Why are we doing this?”
“Don’t question my intentions,” Steve shot back.
Kali tried to turn around to shout back but the cable moved and she stopped.
“Move, Kali!”
Steve’s wife, Andrea warned Steve to be easier on Kali. Steve grumbled then replied.
“This is not your business, Andrea.”
All three walked across the gap slowly. The weather was warm and the wind only picked up on occasion. When it did it was frightening but the three made it across successfully.
A small shack was built on the other side of the gap. Behind the shack was a tall double wall of razor wire and a small column allowing access to the city.
Steve lead them to the small shack and stepped in. Metal shelves lined the outside walls. The shelves held food and survival gear for the trip into the city. A gruff man, beard sitting upon a glass counter, stood and stared at the family. Other visitors to the city milled around the small shack buying rucksacks and cans of food and water.
“Go with Kali and buy us some food,” he commanded, not looking at Andrea.
Andrea did as she was told and pulled small backpack from Kali’s back. She began to fill it with cans of food and water.
Steve stepped up to the grizzly man and pulled out a worn map of the city.
“Listen to me, old man,” Steve began. “I’m looking for Lord Adam’s residence. Can you help me out? “
The grizzly man never cracked a smile. He opened his mouth to reveal yellow, broken teeth.
“I cannot reveal Lord Adam’s residence to you. Even if I wanted too and I don’t.” The old man turned away from Steve.
“Hey! Don’t turn away from me.” Steve kept the volume low but forceful enough to make the man stop.
Last weekend I was at my brother Max’s home in the city, San Francisco. My husband Teddy and I were there. 15 year old Clara was at her grandparents who live within walking distance from Max.
Note: Halloween is almost here (along with my birthday) so I should be writing some laugh out loud posts. Thank you to everyone who IS writing funny things because I truly appreciate it. Thank goodness for those funny quilt blocks I posted earlier today. Anyway, it has been a long and busy and emotionally draining month… but we managed to take a break. Yes, even Modern Vampires like us need a break. We’re not disgusting blood sucking machines like in the movies. And please forgive any typographical errors or less than wonderful writing. I’m writing…
The horizon raced ahead as Eric drove between the trees of an old country road.
It was midnight on a Sunday. Work would appear early in the morning.
Eric pushed on the gas and the car surged forward. The trees blurred and he gobbled up the road.
Intuition made him slow as he imagined the impact of deer bones upon the small hood of his small Ford.
A shadow on the left caused him to search through the darkness.
Eric focused on the road ahead. The road twisted right then left. Eric allowed the car to wander left then right as he hit the curves faster than he should.
The road was straight and his house waited only a pair of miles ahead. Eric pushed the gas then slowed as something approached again from the left.
Eric searched the trees but saw nothing.
Another hint and he slowed further. He was now growing paranoid and searched both the left and the right.
A shadow on the right alerted him and he pumped the brakes followed by another on the left. Something was out there but he couldn’t make it out.
Deer appeared moments after appearing as a shadow. Eric saw nothing that gave him any clue.
Another shadow and a sudden thump.
Eric freaked and pushed the brake hard. A gigantic, semi-opaque creature stepped from the trees. It was taller than the trees but hard to see in the darkness. Eric could make out the frame of the creature reflected of the dull light of the moon. The creature stepped into the road with a thump. Eric stopped the car a couple feet from the stomp of this creature. He craned his neck backward and up to try to see ‘whatever this was’ through the windshield. He could only make out the hint of a solid form.
Erik watched the large black foot stand upon the ball of it’s feet as it brought in the other foot.
Eric was unable to react fast enough as the second foot wrapped over the hood of his small Ford and crushed it. The metal screamed as the creature pushed it down.
Eric stepped from the car and stared. It was a gigantic shadow of a man. Stood twenty-five foot tall, at least. It’s legs were box-like and so were the arms. It waved the arms forward like it was strolling through the park on the way to someplace important.
Eric watched as the shadow man walked through the trees on the right side of the road. His car wrecked he called his wife and recalled the incident. His wife laughed the story sounded unrealistic. Eric demanded that she drive to him to see and waited.
The church basement was dark but dry. Sean walked through the darkness till he dumped over something but it clattered loudly over the floor.
“What the fuck, man!” Sean’s brother Andrew whispered through clenched teeth. “Are you trying to bring them down here.” He added.
“Dude, we’ve been down here three god-damn days. I’m thirsty and hungry. I thought you had a plan to get us out.”
“You’re going to have to wait for it, Sean. My plan is working.”
“What! Are you kidding me,” Sean replied as he stepped up to Andrew. “Are you waiting till they leave? Is that your fucking plan?”
“No, that ain’t my plan, man. Are you fucking nuts.”
“Then what’s your plan?”
“We wait for an opportunity.”
“Are you serious? That’s no different the no damn plan.”
“Shh.. I think someone’s coming.” The Baker brothers listened as the vampire walked above them. Without the ability to count them they could only rely on a guess of twenty winged monsters but something had them moving around more then usual. The brothers listened as several heavy steps neared the basement door. The door knob squeaked as it turned.
“Did you lock the door like I told you?” Andrew whispered.
“Hell yeah, I locked it.”
Andrew then grabbed Sean by the wrist and pulled him into the darkness of the basement. Andrew stopped under the wooden stairs near a large rectangular closet. He waited till Sean stood next to them then both fell to their knees.
“Who locked this door,” they could hear someone say. “Hell if I know,” replied another voice.
“Sounds like there is someone in the basement.”
“Shut the hell up you always think you hear crap. It’s probably just a raccoon or something.”
“We haven’t eaten in two days. A coon would be a nice snack.”
The doorknob rattled. A thud and someone fell to floor. A fight rumbled above as the vampire soon forgot about the door.
“They are steroid freaks, I swear,” Sean commented quietly.
“What was that.” Sean and Andrew stopped immediately and covered their mouths.
“I’m telling you I heard a human voice in the basement.”
Another thud and a crash. “Listen here, Christopher. Gabriel said he has a plan and we are to wait. No feeding. I don’t care if their are fifty humans down there. No feeding.”
“Get the hell off me. You don’t control me. You are not my seed.”
“Yeah, I’m not your seed but Gabriel left me in charge not you.”
Another thump of several feet approached.
“Get up, you idiots. Gabriel says things are ready in Ransom. We meet on the church peek in ten minutes. Got it?”
Andrew slapped Sean on the shoulder. Sean bit his lip hard trying not to say something.
Twenty minutes later the noise from the vampire was gone.
Sean and Andrew slowly walked up the stairs and to the basement door. Andrew turned the lock and opened the door. The stench hit them first and both men almost staggered back down the stairs.
“What the hell did they do crap everywhere?” Sean asked as he covered his mouth and nose.
The rooms upstairs were lit from the broken roof. It was still dim but both men could see where they were going. They navigated around as much vampire crap as they could and stepped into the front lobby. The front doors were wide open.
Sean suddenly stopped Andrew. “What if they are watching us from above?”
“They are not,” Andrew replied and if they are we will crush them, right? Hunter?”
Sean didn’t reply and followed his brother out into the fresh air.
Matthew R. Stitt // The Writer’s Archive 