You want to blame someone for this fanfic? Blame Nirvana and their God-fantastic song 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Small notes: I love reviews, but DON'T for the love of God flame me, because I take it personally and will probably lash back at you and start a several week argument. It's happened before.

Part One

It was the perfect night for a drive.

They had picked Ben up in Daytona, where he had allegedly spent the week surfing with his rich city friends after being dropped off in his father's plane. Marisa and Alison had shared a grin at this, but Louise ignored them and marched toward the car with her arm tightly around Ben's toned waist.

'Surfing... sun, sea and screwing more like.' Alison muttered, rolling her eyes as Louise and Ben got into the back of the car and started making out.

'Lets go, Al.' Marisa stretched, took one look at the sunny Daytona landscape and got into the drivers seat.

They had been driving for somewhere close to three hours since their last stop in a roadside diner, and it was lucky for them all that Louise and Ben didn't get tired of making out. Alison didn't have a good temper at the best of times, but when it came to Ben she could just flip at the smallest thing. At that moment, though, they both seemed content - he kissing Louise and she sat with the window open, her booted feet on the dashboard and rock music blasting into her ears.

Marisa glanced to her left at the fields they were passing. Poho County had always seemed so... peaceful... to her, just a couple of sleepy towns and lots and lots of fields. Everyone knew each other and everyone was always happy to help a traveller.

'I'd say about fifteen minutes until we reach Pertwilla.'

She didn't know why she broke the silence, but for some reason she had felt uneasy. She had never driven through Poho at night, and it seemed different to her... unfamiliar and scary. As though the shadows in the crops shielded some monster from view that was watching them, biding it's time.

'Scared, M?'

Alison had turned her music off and was watching Marisa with her usual roguish grin.

'Scared of what?' Aw cripes... wrong thing to say. She just knew that Alison was going to come out with some shit-scary story to creep the hell out of them all about missing people or cannibals.

'Serial killers.' God, that was a new one. 'I'm serious...' Like hell she was, Alison would say anything and everything to try and provoke a reaction out of people. 'There are so many missing people out here you wouldn't believe. It's uncanny, and I'm not bullshitting.'

'Well if I see a serial killer I'll run him over.'

Her voice was calm but Alison had, once again, managed to creep Marisa out. This time it wasn't because Alison had gone into gory and unnecessarily graphic detail about what was hiding in the dark, this time it was because Marisa knew it was true. She had been researching missing people for a school project earlier in the summer, and had found just how many people vanished without a trace every month.

'Dude, check this bozo out.' Ben chuckled, interrupting her thoughts.

The three girls followed the direction he was pointing to a large truck parked at the side of the road up ahead. It was a hideous looking thing; huge and covered in so much filth and rust that they could only hazard a guess as to what colour it was supposed to be. The driver didn't look much better; dressed in a long brown coat and wide-brimmed hat, standing at the back of his truck holding one door open.

'Sweet ride!' Alison yelled, leaning out slightly as they sped past. The wind ruffled her short hair and she sat back in her seat, grinning from ear to ear at the whoops of laughter and applause coming from Ben behind her. She knew that it would drive Louise mad. Marisa realised that was probably the only reason she'd done it - to provoke an argument from someone.

'Dude, he looked like a serial killer.' Ben chuckled. Louise nodded in agreement, scowling at the back of Alison's chair.

Rolling her eyes, Marisa glanced in the wing mirror and did a double take. The truck was following them, and what was worse, was that it was catching up with abominable speed.

'What the-'

It smashed into the back of the Corvette, throwing everyone forward. Marisa's head connected painfully with the steering wheel and she heard several curses from Alison.

'What the fucking hell is he doing!' Ben yelled. 'Stupid mother fucker!'

The truck's horn blared, sounding more like a foghorn. Louise shrieked and grabbed Ben's arm as the vehicle crashed into them again.

'Get out of his way!' She screamed.

'We're not in his way you stupid idiot!' Alison snapped back, swivelling in her seat and leaning out of the window again. 'What the hell is the matter with you!'

The truck's reply was to slow down and ram them once more. Alison was slammed into the dashboard, Louise and Ben seemed to be tumbling around helplessly in the back and Marisa only just managed to save herself from hitting the wheel again.

'This is your fault! You shouldn't have shouted at him!' Ben yelled hysterically. 'He's gonna fucking kill us with that goddamn truck! I can't die; I'm due to inherit my father's company in six months!'

'Oh shutup whining you big girl.'

Alison rolled her eyes at Marisa. 'Men are supposed to stay brave in these situations, aren't they?'

The truck swerved past them and sped up, only slowing when it was on a level with the Corvette. Louise backed away from it and Marisa glanced past Alison at the truck door. The windows were blacked out but she could just see the outline of the driver's wide-brimmed hat through it.

'Asshole!' Louise yelled, leaning back against Ben. 'You shouldn't be allowed on the fucking roads!'

'That's not helping, genius.' Alison snarled. 'Shut the hell up.'

Marisa tore her eyes away from the truck window and concentrated on the road ahead. If the truck was going to ram them off the road, and she had the strong feeling that it was, then all they would hit was a weak fence and some fields. So why bother...?

The driver obviously didn't care about what they were going to hit, because it did ram them. Alison tucked her arms and legs in to avoid them being crushed, Louise shrieked and Marisa tried desperately to keep the car under control. But no matter how much she spun the wheel the car just didn't want to obey her.

'Just drive into the fucking fields!'

That sounded like Ben. Biting her lip and glancing constantly from the road to the truck to see what it was doing, Marisa jerked the wheel to the left. But it wasn't fast enough.

The truck driver, seemingly anticipating her move, did exactly the same thing, and his bumper connected with the side of the Corvette before she could move it. Then, before she knew what was happening, the car tilted sideways and they were rolling.

Louise was screaming, Alison was clutching the seatbelt to avoid being thrown about and all Marisa could do was clamp her eyes tightly shut and hope nothing crushed her. And then it stopped.

The car came to a halt in the field, upside down.

Louise was the first to release her seatbelt, landing with a thud on the metal car ceiling.

'God that hurt.'

Ben dropped next, before the two of them moving to help Marisa onto the floor. Alison let herself down and, with a loud and vehement curse, examined the damage to her music system.

'What a fucking prick.'

'Let's just get out of the car.' Marisa sighed, moving toward the window. It was open and fortunately the frame hadn't collapsed yet - providing them with about a foot of room to squeeze out of. Alison, being thin and athletic, pulled herself out easily. Marisa had a little more trouble but Alison simply walked around the car wreck and dragged her out by the arms.

'Marisa.'

She had been about to help Louise pull Ben out, but Alison had nudged her gently. Marisa turned to find her staring steadily at the road and turned to follow her gaze. The truck was parked at the side and the door was open, revealing an empty drivers seat.

'Where do you think he is?' Louise asked quietly, letting Ben go and joining them. Her boyfriend was now hanging half in, half out of the window, but couldn't seem to complain while looking at their opposing vehicle.

'Fuck knows...'

Something whooshed overhead, creating a small draft and ruffling their hair. Marisa stared at the truck, entranced for a few more moments before noticing what lay on the bench-like seat...

'Oh my god...'

It was the hat, coat and boots they had seen the driver wearing. There was even a pair of dark trousers folded up beside them.

'Think he's walking about in the nude?' Alison seemed to find the situation hysterical.

'This is not funny, Alison!' Louise snapped, turning away from the truck. Her scream almost deafened Marisa. She spun around and had to clamp a hand over her mouth to stop herself shrieking too at what she saw...

The Corvette. Ben.

He wasn't there. The bottom of the car had been torn off by something stronger than a crane and Ben was gone.

'Ben! Ben!' Louise started for the car, screaming madly, but Alison grabbed her arm. 'What the fuck are you doing! Let me go!'

'C'mon.' Alison said decisively, pushing Marisa back toward the road. 'I said come on!'

'Where... oh no... no way, Alison!' Comprehension dawned on Marisa as her friend started pulling Louise toward the open door of the truck. 'Alison, that's theft!'

'You want to stay here! Feel free.'

'Bu... Alison... we...'

Looking around miserably, Marisa finally started jogging after her two friends, hoping to God that whoever had taken Ben was far, far away from them.

Alison stood back to allow them to clamber in before her - apparently she intended to drive.

'Um... I'm not so sure that's such a good idea...' Marisa said, arching an eyebrow. Alison had a reputation for driving rather... recklessly. 'I think you're more likely to kill us than he is.'

'Ben... we can't just leave him.' Louise sobbed. 'He could have just been just behind us. What if he'd screaming for us and we can't hear him...'

Marisa and Alison glanced at each other, before the former climbed up into the truck and reached down to heave Alison up beside her.

'This thing is weird.'

She wasn't lying - the controls on the vehicle were unlike anything Marisa had ever driven. Before she had time to contemplate it a wall of scent hit her and she almost gagged.

'Shit! What the fuck is that!' Alison yelled, covering her nose and mouth with the neck of her shirt. 'Jesus!'

'Look!' Louise shrieked, jabbing her finger past Alison, to the wreck of the Corvette. Marisa turned and her mouth dropped.

Something was stood on top of the car, watching them and holding the crumpled body of Ben in one hand. Marisa ran her eyes over it and tried to figure out what in God's name it could be, but she had never seen anything quite as horrifying. It was humanoid, but its skin looked dark grey and reptilian. Instead of hands and feet it had talon-like claws. A spattering of uneven grey hairs covered its chest and the back of its head, bare with the absence of the hat on the floor in front of Marisa.

Possibly the most disturbing thing about it were the two wings protruding from its back. They were huge - they could easily have wrapped around the Corvette - and bat like; skin stretched over long black spines.

'Drive...' Louise's petrified whisper jolted Marisa back into the real world. 'Drive... Alison... for Christ's sake drive!' She screamed the last word and Alison jumped into action, slamming the door shut and gunning the engine. It roared to life and they skidded onto the road, Louise screaming insanely and clutching Marisa's arm.

Alison was barely able to keep the vehicle under control.

'Look out the back and see if he's following us.' She yelled over the noise of the tremendous engine. Marisa turned around but the back of the truck was dark and the windows in the doors had been blacked out.

'Louise - look out of the window.'

'No fucking way!'

Sighing, Marisa turned to Alison and warned her to keep the truck steady. Then she leaned past Louise and rolled down the window, gasping at the sudden blast of cold air.

'Hurry up!' Alison yelled, grinning innocently when Marisa turned to glare at her.

Marisa placed both hands firmly on the window frame and pulled her upper torso out, turning her head so that she had a good view of the side of the truck. At first she couldn't see anything but the jerking vehicle and the corn fields. Then it swooped into view - flying after them at a speed that made her nauseous.

'Floor it, Alison!' She shrieked, sitting back and rolling the window back up. 'It's flying after us... fast.'

'Fuck!'

Alison pressed her foot down harder and the truck sped up. The fields were now passing them so quickly they were merely a blur, and it hurt Marisa's eyes to try and focus on them. Whatever the thing chasing them was, it had done something major to its ride.

'Nothing this fast can be legal!' Alison muttered, her voice barely heard over the engine. 'How the hell did he do this!'

'I don't care how fast the damned thing goes, it isn't fast enough!' Louise didn't seem to be able to lower her voice below a scream, and Marisa could blame her.

Something slammed ominously onto the truck roof above them, causing the vehicle to shudder worryingly. Louise started sobbing uncontrollably and sank down in the seat, shaking hands covering her face.

'Shit... tell me that wasn't...'

Marisa couldn't even finish her sentence. In a blur of wings and grey skin, whatever was after them was crouching on the bonnet and leering in at them - surprisingly stable for the speed they were going. Louise took one look at it and passed out. Marisa and Alison both seemed unable to move, the latter only pausing to move the truck up a gear.

The creature leaned forward and looked directly into Marisa's eyes, unblinking. Then it inhaled deeply, as though it was smelling her... further proving the theory by opening a smaller 'nostril' on the bridge of its nose and inhaling again. It frowned and moved onto Louise. Marisa couldn't seem to tear her eyes from its face, studying the expression. It looked like it liked the smell of Louise... a lot. So much so that it licked the window and, grinning, slid across to crouch in front of Alison.

'Oh, that's great, just block my view of the pissing road why don't you...'

'It's a straight road, Al; you don't need to see anything.' Marisa trembled. 'Just keep your foot down.'

It was sniffing again. An expression flickered across its face - confusion, perhaps? - and it shifted its position so it was kneeling.

'Tell me it's not making itself comfortable.'

It was. Its wings shot out, barring any of them a view of the road, and a grin spread across its face to reveal lots of razor-pointed teeth. At that moment it dawned on Marisa what it was doing.

'It's challenging us.' She murmured. Alison turned to her, arching an eyebrow.

'It's doing what, sorry?'

'Challenging us. It's blocked our view of the road and it wants to know whether or not we'll keep going with the threat of hitting something.'

Marisa fell silent and waited. She knew that what they did wasn't her decision to make - Alison was sat at the wheel and the creature had carefully placed itself in front of her.

'What do you think it wants us to do?'

'I think... I think its testing us.'

'And if we rise to the bait?'

'Don't know. Could go either way.' Marisa shrugged.

'So what if I stop, send it flying and set off again?'

'It can catch up to us - it'll either do it again or kill us.'

That apparently wasn't what Alison wanted to hear. The monster was still looking directly into her eyes, even though she had relocated her gaze to other areas of the truck several times. 'This bites ass.'

'Hmm.' Marisa bit her lip.

The thunderous blare of another horn hit their ears and the creature's grin widened. Marisa glanced across at Alison, whose face was set determinedly. 'Al?'

'Small car. If they don't get out of the way we'll crush them.'

She had a murderous glint in her eye that Marisa wasn't sure she liked. No-one challenged Alison and got away with it, but Marisa would have thought the situation would have changed when it was a monster that challenged her. Evidently not.

A small car swerved off the road on Marisa's side, the driver screaming profanities and vulgarities at them as they sped on.

'You'd think they'd know to get out of the way when they see a great big...' Alison waved a frustrated hand at the creature. 'Whatever on the hood, wouldn't you?'

Marisa was spared answer by the 'whatever on the hood' shifting position until it was opposite Louise, who still hadn't recovered yet. It drew back a fist and lunged forward, one hand shattering through the glass and taking hold on Louise's neck. Marisa shrieked and went to grab her friend, but it had already yanked her through the window and out onto the bonnet with it.

'Shit! Grab her, Marisa!' Alison shouted.

Marisa was frozen to the spot, eyes glued to the creature. It had buried its face in Louise's stomach and seemed to be intently sniffing her again. 'What the hell is it doing!'

'How the fuck should I know! Here, grab the wheel and keep it steady.' Marisa slid over and took hold of the steering wheel, wincing as Alison vaulted her legs and knelt in front of the creature. She jumped up so she was half-sitting with it on the bonnet and launched her fist.

Marisa couldn't watch, but from what she heard, Alison's fist connected with the creature and threw it off balance, so she could then drag their bloody friend back into the truck. Louise had evidently woken up as her pained screams were slamming at Marisa's eardrums - matched only by the furious roar from the monster.

'Hit the brakes!' Alison snarled. She didn't wait for Marisa to do so and instead almost crushed her foot by doing so herself.

The creature was, yet again, thrown off balance and tumbled over the front of the truck. Marisa didn't need encouragement from Alison this time; she threw the vehicle into gear and floored the accelerator, jerking them over the damned thing.

'Shit.'

Knuckles white and shaking on the wheel, she sat back and blew her fringe out of her eyes. 'Jesus... you okay, Louise?'

'Nope, she isn't.' Alison replied. Marisa turned to look at her friend and gasped audibly. The creature had started to take a bite out of her abdomen, tearing the flesh and causing a significant amount of bleeding. Louise had stopped screaming but she looked like she was going to vomit - her eyes were wide and she was shaking uncontrollably.

'Oh my god... what the hell was it doing!'

'Wild stab in the dark - eat her?' Alison shrugged, coaxing Louise out of her jacket and attempting to stop the bleeding with it. 'Think we killed it?'

'I hope so.'

They continued driving down the highway in silence. Marisa was mildly surprised that Alison didn't drag up the old legend about the two high school kids that went missing on the road - one of whom lost her head, as she normally did, but perhaps she knew how inappropriate it would be. Kenny and Darla... that was their names... Kenny and Darla.

'Thinking about Kenny and Darla?' Marisa glanced across at Alison, who was grinning at her. 'It was written all over your face. And we're about to pass that old church. Remember Darry and Trisha? We were in the diner when they came in, yelling about it. Guess they weren't as mad as we thought...'

'Shutup, Alison.'

'Fine, fine. Reckon he's really got bodies down there?'

Something moved behind them and Marisa almost passed out. 'What the fuck was that?' She whispered in terror. The moving continued, followed by a weak moan. 'Alison!'

'Alright, alright... give me your flashlight.'

'I think I left it in the car... no wait, it's here.' Marisa retrieved the flashlight from the inside of her jacket and handed it to Alison, who shone it over the back of the seat. She was silent for a few seconds before;

'Oh God... that is sick.'

'What is it?' Marisa swivelled in her seat and looked into the circle of light the torch had created. The sight that met her eyes made their current situation a shit lot worse.

Bodies. Lots of them. Some were wrapped in stained white sheets, others just strewn messily about the back of the van. One was even tied to the side.

Blood was everywhere - leaking in streams from the holes or bites in each of the corpses; some of them were even missing arms and legs. Even Alison didn't seem able to take that much gore - she turned back around and stared out of the window, face white.

'So what moved? Do you think one of them is... alive?' Marisa stammered. She knew it was wrong but she hoped to God that one wasn't... hoped that they were all long since dead. 'Al... you're gonna have to have a look.'

'No fucking way!' Alison snapped immediately.

'We can't just leave them to die if one's alive!'

'Bullshit we can't! We'll drive the truck into Pertwilla and the cops can find the live one.'

'What if they are dying in their?' Marisa reasoned. She knew what was coming, but it still sent a bolt of shock through her spine when it did.

'Fine. You look.'

Dropping the flashlight on the seat, Alison slid across and firmly took hold of the wheel. Marisa sat frozen for a minute. 'No? I didn't think so.'

'Fine, I will.'

Alison looked at her, surprised. 'Marisa...'

'There could be someone alive in there, Alison! How would you like it if it were you in there, and someone just left you for dead?' Marisa grabbed the light and swung one leg over the back of the seat, standing on a clear piece of metal.

'But that's the point, it isn't me.' Alison muttered, moving over and slowing the truck down slightly. 'Okay... I'll try to keep it steady.'

'Why?'

'Oh, you want to fall onto a bloody corpse, do you?'

Grimacing, Marisa stepped down and crouched. 'Hey? Is there anyone alive in here? Can you hear me?' Alison snorted but it went ignored. 'If there's anyone alive, just say something and-' something groaned, toward the back of the truck. Typical. Now she had to wade through more bodies. 'Okay... can you move?'

Evidently they could, because one of the bodies wrapped in a sheet shifted.

'Okay, I see you...' Marisa stepped quickly past the other corpses, wincing whenever she unintentionally stepped on one, until she was knelt beside the living one. Setting the flashlight down beside her, she laid a hand on the edge of the sheet and started pulling it back, praying that she wasn't about to see something worse than what she was standing in.

'Found them?' Alison called, glancing back. Marisa didn't reply, she merely pulled back the last layer of sheet over the body's face.

It was a girl, perhaps their age. She was pale and drawn, and her lips were blue, but she still had a glint of life in her brown eye. Eye... Marisa swallowed nauseously. Where her left eye should have been was an empty, and very bloody, socket.

'Jesus...'

'Help... me...' The girl croaked, struggling weakly with the sheet bound around her. 'I can make it... but it hurts...'

'Okay... Alison! Stop the fucking truck and get back here.' Marisa yelled over her shoulder. 'And don't argue!' Closing her mouth again, Alison stopped the vehicle and, muttering under her breath, joined them at the back.

'Fucking hell, that must hurt.' She winced, pulling a face at the sight of the girl's missing eye.

'No... shit...'

Marisa chuckled lightly. This girl had had her eye ripped out and was lying amongst a truck filled with corpses, yet she still managed to retain a sense of humour.

'What's your name?' Marisa asked, fumbling with the ropes binding the girl.

'Lila... Smith... you?'

'I'm Marisa, this is Alison and there's a girl bleeding in the front of the truck called Louise. We were on our way back from picking her boyfriend, Ben, up from Daytona when this thing rammed us off the road.' Marisa explained, freeing the girl and helping her into a sitting position. The creature had removed her clothes but this was hardly the time to be bashful about it. Alison turned around and pulled a long wool coat off a dead woman.

'This should keep you warm enough.' She grinned, handing it to Lila. 'Even if it does have a little blood here and there.'

'Thanks.'

'Go start the engine, Al.' Marisa ordered, placing one of Lila's arms around her shoulders and helping her up. 'So how long ago did-'

'Um... Marisa.'

The two girls looked up to Alison, who was stood by the steering wheel with a dangerously pale face.

'What's up?' Marisa asked, worriedly.

'Louise has gone and there's blood on the bonnet.'