It was the perfect cover. A rock band. Sure, it worked. And hell, it was something they had wanted to do for a long time. But still, it was only their cover. This was their duty. Hunt down the evil, and take it out, all while under the cover of a metal band. Brilliant.
Chris slammed the bus doors, sighing softly. They had been in a small community just outside Topeka, Kansas for days, and still they hadn't found a thing. Supposedly, according to Will, there was a troop of black hounds wandering the streets after dark. And it was surprising that Henry Grosbeak, the owner of a local coffee house, was still hiring them every afternoon.
Nikki strolled over to him, and opened the door Chris had just shut. He looked down at her with an annoyed glare.
"Brian needs his EMF." She explained. She was two years older than any of the boys, but she was over 6 inches shorter. Her dirty blonde hair was usually loose, but tonight, it was pulled back, primed for their hunting rituals. Her dark lined eyes shifted to inside the van. Will sat up from his sleeping position on the floor of the back section of the interior. His heavy blue eyes were exhausted.
"Do you mind? It's hard enough to overcome insomnia without you fumbling for the EMF detector." Will cried, squinting his eyes. Nikki shushed him and pulled out a shelf of the tool cabinet. Inside laid several tools for paranormal hunting. She grabbed the five inch EMF detector and slammed the shelf shut, if only to annoy Will further. The boy sighed, and placed his head back down on the throw pillow.
As Nikki left the van, Chris asked her.
"Who's got first shift at command central?"
She shrugged, but was shoved aside by the rampaging Leon, who cried out in frustration.
"Where's my holy water?"
Nikki sighed, digging into her left pocket and withdrawing a small flask. She tossed it to Leon, who nodded in thanks.
"How many times have you lost that thing?" came the voice from inside the van. No doubt Will, still awake.
"Uh… too many." Leon said ashamedly. He blushed slightly. Nikki handed him the EMF detector to bring to Brian, and he ran off into the woods to find Brian.
"He's hopeless." Nikki announced.
The darkness was a curse, if anything. Brian stood there in the forest, the pines around him acting as green sentinels, guarding him from these so called black dogs. He was beginning to doubt it. Six days had gone by, without a sight of them. Things were beginning to sizzle with the team. Even Nikki doubted his perception of leadership. That hurt, having his own girlfriend doubt him.
His meditative thoughts were interrupted by the cracking of a branch. Brian turned, and grabbed the wrist of his assailant, flipping the figure over his head and pinning him to the ground with his Converse.
"I was just bringing you the EMF…" came the weak cry from Leon. Brian seethed, and let his foot off from Leon's throat. Brian outweighed Leon by about 85 lbs or so, being the biggest of all the hunters, and probably the strongest. Leon stood, rubbing the dirt off his tie-dye t-shirt, and handed Brian the EMF.
"Christ on a cracker, dude." Leon grumbled. He was so tired of the drama between everyone. Everything had changed since they went on the hunt. Man, he just wished he had stayed home that week…
"You still with me?" Brian asked, waving a hand in front of Leon's face, blowing his platinum blonde bangs out of his face.
"Huh? Yeah. Sorry."
"You were out of it, bro." Brian explained as he ran a hand down the bark of a nearby tree.
"Sorry."
"Hang on." Brian commanded. He placed his face closer to the tree. He held a hand out, beckoning. "Gimme your flashlight."
Leon obeyed, and handed over his keychain flashlight. Brian flashed it over the tree, revealing odd circular marks in the wood. The two boys made a unanimous grunt.
"Bite marks." Brian muttered.
"Damn." Will grunted. The amp was overdriven. It would die soon enough. His bass amp had a bad habit of cranking out at the worst possible moment, such as in the middle of their cover of 'Animal I Have Become'. Because anyone can tell you, a band is not a band without a bass backing.
Brian ran over, his ACDC shirt clinging to his stomach. He sighed, kicked the amp, and the two heard the crackle of life that electricity brought to the amp. Will sighed.
"I hate this fricking thing."
Brian shrugged nonchalantly. They didn't have enough money for a new one. One thing at a time, he thought.
Nikki was just finishing putting down the wire tape. She didn't actually play in the band. She was more of the tech manager. She made sure everything went according to plan. Of course, most of the time, anything that could go wrong, did.
Leon stood over her, making sure his keyboard's wiring didn't get messed up. Nikki, sensing his presence, sighed.
"Yes?"
"Nothing." Leon replied as he folded his arms.
"Why am I the tech manager if you don't trust me with your fifty dollar keyboard?"
That was a low blow. In the music universe, you don't insult playing skill or their instruments. Leon frowned sharply.
"Just do your work…"
"Hey, guys!"
The voice came from Chris, who was hovering in front of Brian's computer. On the screen was a photo of the bite marks on the tree. The other tab was of local newspaper report from years ago.
The team came rushing over. Will still had his bass strapped to his back, and when he arrived, he smacked Chris in the head with the neck. But he didn't even notice. He was too busy focusing on the screen.
"Check it." He began, pointing to the screen. "Newspaper from approximately twelve years ago yesterday. Apparently, these dogs were seen back then, and disappeared a week later."
"So, what are we dealing with?" Nikki asked.
"Dunno. But it's got a schedule. And so do we." Will concluded.
"One week. Or… well, a day now." Brian finished his idea.
"Hate to interrupt, but…" Leon began. "We're on in ten minutes."
The group sighed and took their places.
Dark forests usually equal bad dogs, but it seems this forest was a dud. This was the last night the dogs were supposed to appear. It was 8:47 and there was no sign of any of them. Brian, Chris and Nikki were patrolling the forest, while Will and Leon took off to town to see if they could find any indication of where the dogs hid.
But here in the woods, it was relatively calm. A few occasional bird calls disrupted the peace, but otherwise, the trees left a dark whisper.
Brian sat loosely on a rock, hands cupped behind his head. The rock was base camp for now. The laptop lay a few inches from Brian, closed but not off. They had two stationary cameras placed around the area. Nikki and Chris had paired off to search the woods. They had been gone for about a half hour. Brian began to grow bored. He rolled onto his side and flicked open the laptop. The program showed the two cameras with no action but a squirrel gnawing at an acorn on the first camera.
"Dang." Brian grumbled. He was getting tired of night after night of no action. His trigger finger was itchy. Both figuratively and literally. The loss of hard steel on his finger had left an odd rash. Brian scratched it without remorse. This left small scratches, which he so despised. They burned without letup.
Things were growing old…
DING DONG
A small concrete building was their first target. The door swung open and a middle aged man stepped through, dressed in a white t-shirt. He raised a furry eyebrow at Leon and Will.
"Yeah?"
"Yes, hello." Will began. Leon preferred to stay quiet. "We're with the local historical society, and we were hoping—"
"What historical society?" the man asked, sounding gruff.
Will was at a loss. Leon stepped in for him.
"The Historical Society of Topeka, sir." He fibbed. The man didn't look too bright, so he'd probably believe Leon's famous lies.
"A'ight." The man nodded. "Whatcha wanna know?"
"Well, sir, we're looking for information on mysterious black dogs in the area." Will took his place as head speaker back from Leon.
"Oh yeah. Those things." The man grumbled. His features darkened, and he sighed. "I'd ask the crazy bitch down the street."
Leon raised an eyebrow. Will remained calm. There was an odd thing about this town. He glanced past the man's thinning hairline, and saw a bronze cross nailed to the wall. This place was die hard Christian.
"Does this crazy bitch have an address?" Will asked as Leon took a notepad out of his coat pocket.
"Yup. Three doors down, on the left."
"Uh, thank you, sir…" Will finished. The man closed the door in his face.
"Bloody Yank…"
Leon didn't let up from the bell. Will had to slap his finger down to stop him. From inside they heard a feminine voice call out 'Hang on.'
The door swung open and there stood a middle aged woman, red haired and aging horribly. Laugh lines burned her features. Leon coughed in surprise, so Will began to break the tension.
"Good evening. We're here with the local historical society." Will announced. Hopefully their too-small suits were good enough disguise.
"We're covering urban lore, and we're wondering if you knew anything about… black dogs?"
The woman took a breath and paused. She opened the screen door.
"Yes, I do. Please, come in."
The boys looked at each other for a second, then entered the home.
The living room was adorned with odd symbols and objects that Leon seemed unfamiliar with. Will knew what they all meant. This woman was no doubt a Wiccan, judging from the pentagrams and herbs lying around. The aging woman welcomed the boys onto the couch next to a large window, and they took their seats.
"Can I offer you boys anything? Tea? Coffee?"
"No thanks." Leon answered immediately. He wasn't one for caffeine.
"I'd love some tea, thanks." Will answered. The woman nodded and took off into the kitchen.
"Nice place." Will stated, looking around at the objects in the room. Leon gave a sour look.
"She seems a bit welcoming. And this stuff. Pentagrams? She Satanistic or something?"
"No. She's a Wicca, you idiot. Did you even pay attention to the training your dad gave us?"
"Dude, I don't even like being on the road, let alone hunting down evil bastards."
"Then why did you come with us?" Will challenged, leaning forward in his chair.
"I don't know, man." Leon sighed. He scrunched down in his chair, frowning.
The red haired woman returned with a small cup of tea. She handed it to Will, who let the smell waft into his nostrils, then sipped it generously.
"Alright." The woman said as she sat in a small blue chair across from the 'historical society agents'. "The black dogs."
"Yes. We'd like to know about them. For the history of the community, mind you." Leon replied. Will was already half done with his tea, and still drinking more.
"Well…" the woman started. "I've seen them a few times. They usually wander about Main Street and the forest near it."
Leon nodded. That was just about where the others were. Good. He would call them after they got done with this lady. But she kept talking.
Will, however, went for his cell. His fingers tapped the keys, slowly forming a text message to Brian.
"—but most people say the dogs are the result of former witchcraft around here. The prejudice continues today, and I, being a Wiccan, am the victim of their intolerance. Isn't that sad?"
Will nodded, but then his fingers froze. His face contracted into a horrible state. His teeth clenched together, and he barely had a second as he turned his head to Brian. He then fell forward out of his chair, slamming his forehead on the coffee table. He lay there, frozen, not moving.
"So the witches are fighting back. And the legend goes…"
Leon, horrified, turned to look at the woman, who smiled back. It was her, no doubt!
"That they can transform…"
They had been wandering for hours. Chris's legs were about to give out, but Nikki kept walking. Amazing how she did it, though. There were rocks all over, as they were next to the creek. The whoosh of the moving water was soothing, almost. But still, it was dark, and Chris's flashlight was about to die. He finally sat down on the rocks with a sigh. Nikki turned ferociously, and stared him down.
"What's the matter? Tired?" she taunted, walking back toward him.
"Quite." Chris answered in a fake English accent. He had studied Will, who was Welsh, for inspiration. It had come about quite well.
"Well, too bad." Nikki said, taking a seat next to him. "Because I've still got energy."
"That's 'because you ate all the granola bars!" Chris cried out. The words echoed out into the forest, sending a few birds skittering out of a nearby pine.
The walkie talkie on Nikki's hip crackled.
"Dude, I even heard that!" came Brian's voice, followed by a laugh.
The three gave a light chuckle, but it became overglossed by a low growl.
"Um?" Chris asked nobody in general. Nikki shrugged, but reached for her holster, laying her palm on the pistol. Chris stood, grabbing a stick. It wasn't the greatest protection, but it would work well enough. He held the stick out in a defensive position, ready for anything.
"Bri? I think we got something here." Nikki spoke into the walkie talkie.
"What camera's the closest to you?"
"One." Chris said in place of Nikki.
There was a crackle, then Brian's voice.
"Okay. The squirrel's gone…"
"What the hell does that mean?" Chris cried into the walkie talkie. The growling grew louder, and Nikki drew the pistol and held it aloft.
"Hang on." She told Brian, placing the electronic in her belt line.
The growling was getting closer. Nikki fired a warning shot into the darkness in front of them. The growls continued.
Suddenly, a figure emerged from the darkness. An older woman, gray haired and wrinkled. She opened her mouth, and Chris, expecting her to be calm, placed the stick down. Instead of a sweet old voice, a growl emerged from her mouth. Chris gasped, and she fell to he knees. Her peachy flesh gave way to small black hairs, growing all over her body. Her hands morphed into claws, and in an instant, there stood a huge black dog.
"Morphers…" Nikki said matter-of-factly.
Brian sighed and spoke into the walkie talkie.
"Yo. What's going on?"
There was no response but static. The hunter scoffed.
"Dude…"
No answer. Something was wrong. He stood and leapt off the rock. But before he moved, he looked back to the laptop. But instead of there being a silver screen, there were two black silhouettes.
"Oh, crud…"
Leon flipped out of his chair and overturned the coffee table, hoping to hit the vengeful witch. Instead, she held a hand out, and the table floated before her. She flicked forward, and Leon ducked. The table smashed to pieces on the wall behind him.
The hunter ran for it, swinging around the corner into the woman's kitchen. He dug through the silverware drawer, and removed a large carving knife for protection. So much for taking the interview job!
The witch followed, floating about 5 inches off the ground. Leon stared at the corner where the kitchen met the living room. The witch gently bobbed around the corner, and Leon charged. She saw him coming, and with a flick of the wrist, flung the knife from Leon's hand. It lodged itself in the woodwork, about an inch or so into the wall. Leon kept charging, and tackled the woman. The two clung to each other by the throat, and stumbled backwards. Rather unfortunate that the basement door was made of such thin wood. The two crashed through and tumbled down the oak stairs.
Leon grabbed fuzzily for something to pull himself up on. He found a solid surface, and lifted his heavy body off the stone floor. Slowly opening his eyes, Leon gasped. Before him lay the witches' ritual area. A large pentacle was written on the ground in white chalk, and several lavender candles were lit and melting. Leon turned to get back to the witch, but found himself staring into her eyes. He yelped and backed up slowly. She fumbled after him, muttering things.
"Christianity condemns us. We're abominations. And so this so called "God"'s children feel the need to chastise us for out beliefs. So, why not show them the possibilities? Show them the pain? And the majesty?"
Leon searched his mind for any odd behavior relating to the black dogs. It hit him.
"The mayor's accident?"
"Precisely. He's the ringleader. Destroy the god, destroy the followers!" she finished, and charged at Leon, hands out in front of her.
Leon flinched, and jabbed the candle out from behind his back. There was an odd sound, a ripping almost. The witch shrieked, and backed up, looking down at her torso, which was now in flames.
"I guess Will was wrong. I do pay attention to my Dad's lectures. Witches burn!"
The woman gasped, and the flames spread. Things were starting to shred and rip; dissolve. She let out a final yell before falling on her face. The flames followed, sending ashes flowing about.
Leon gave a final breath, then collapsed in exhaustion.
Nikki fired, missing the dog. It ran forward, and leapt at her. She yelped, dropping the firearm. Chris, seeing that the dog now had Nikki's arm grasped in its teeth, ran for the gun. He tripped, accidentally hitting the firearm. It span out into the inky blackness.
The dog, noticing this, released Nikki, who fell backward clutching her bleeding arm. The canine lurched for Chris, who rolled, barely avoiding the razor sharp teeth.
A single curse flowed from Brian's lips at the sight of the twin hounds. He backtracked, fumbling through his pockets for something to combat them. Instead, he found his phone, which he noticed had a new text message. He looked to the dogs.
"One sec." he muttered, flicking open his phone.
FROM: Will
Subject: You're there
Yo, man. Ur in da right spot. Da dogs shud b there.
His reading was interrupted by one of the dogs, who snapped his phone in half with its jaws. He cursed and fell backward, lodging a small wood chip in the back of his ankle. The dogs didn't give up the hunt, and jumped right onto his chest. The hunter struggled, tossing one dog off. It flipped awkwardly and fell down a small embankment, and lay silent at the bottom.
The remaining dog snapped at Brian's throat, only centimeters away from taking Brian's head home with it. But Brian wouldn't die so easily. He pivoted, shifting the dog and tossing it off of him. The dog rebounded, landing on its feet. IT ran toward Brian, who turned on his heels and ran for the river, where Nikki and Chris were still dealing with one. Then, Brian noticed something shiny on the ground, lodged between two rocks. The hunter retrieved it while still running and turned, firing the clip into the inky blackness. There was a whimper, then no sound.
Chris and Nikki, meanwhile, were still busy with the last dog. It was on Chris's chest, biting ruthlessly into the boy's forearm. Nikki, using her good arm, was barely holding it back by the skin of its neck. Brian charged over, and tackled, sending the dog and him flying into the weak flow of the river. The dog recovered quickly and ran to Brian, biting the meaty part of his leg. Nikki composed herself, and grabbed Chris's stick, snapping it in half in the process. The jagged end flew off and missed Chris by inches. Clearly the dog wasn't the only threat constantly present.
The girl ran over to the two fighters, and jumped for the dog. It sidestepped, sending Nikki into the ice cold water. Brian took this opportunity to grab the dog by the haunches and toss it down a small waterfall. It landed in the water below, but made its way to shore. Brian went over to Nikki, who waved him off.
"I'm fine! Get the dog!"
Brian nodded and looked over the edge of the waterfall. The dog was nowhere to be seen.
"I can't see it." Brian said, talking over his shoulder to Nikki, who was clutching her bloodied arm close to her chest.
A scream broke the air. Chris was being dragged by the ankle by the dog. They were moving back toward the other edge of the waterfall. The dog was trying to make a kamikaze attack. Kill itself, but also kill Chris.
Brian moved swiftly, running for the dog. But the dog beat him by milliseconds. It tumbled off the cliff, and Chris with him. But Brian reached out and grabbed Chris's wrist. The dangling hunter swore and kicked his leg. The dog held strong to his pantleg. It growled horribly. Brian, angry as all hell, reached around for something. His hand closed around a solid object and he swung it around, tossing the object at the dog. The rock struck it dead in the face and Brian and Chris watched it tumble down onto the sharp rocks in the water below.
Nikki ran over, panting. She grabbed Chris's wrist and helped Brian pull him up onto the rocks. The injured hunter panted heavily, and rolled onto his back with a grunt.
"Hey guys?" Chris mumbled, looking up at the sky.
"Yeah?" Brian and Nikki replied.
"I just want to play guitar."
Chris slammed the van door. It was time to move on. They had done their job, covered themselves appropriately, and made things right.
Leon sat in the front seat with Will. They sighed.
"I still feel kind of bad. They were just trying to live their lives." Leon admitted. Will nodded.
"Well, you know how you had a dead body in a basement?" Will asked, a mischievous grin on his face.
"Oh, god." Leon muttered, knowing he was as crazy as hell…
"Well, I think I served a little justice. I never did like religion."
"What did you do?"
"Oh…planted a little evidence…"
Leon grinned the crazy people would get what was coming to them.
But Brian was a bit more discontent. Three members of his team were injured on the conflict. It took over 8 stitches to close up Nikki's wound. He sighed deeply.
Nikki walked over to the side of the van, where he was sitting. She took a place next to him, and wrapped her arms around him.
"What's the matter?" she asked, pouting her lips.
"Nothing…" Brian muttered, then sighed and gave in. "It's just. Was this whole trip worth it? I mean, we were so unprepared for this. What would have happened if we sent you or Chris with Will? You could both be dead. It's all my fault. I should be a better leader!"
Nikki frowned. She took a breath, and turned Brian's chin toward her.
"You're a great leader. You just need some training. Why don't we head back to Leon's dad's place? He's the veteran hunter."
Brian paused. He DID need some training. Maybe Nikki was right.
"Okay. Let's do it."
His moment of thought was interrupted by Chris, who snatched the keys from his hands.
"I drive."
"Like Hell you are!"