The Rise of Sam
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This one is going to be very dark and a little disturbing, so be warned. It's a short oneshot I have been working on for a while. Just a theory on how I believe Sam became the spirit of Halloween. Hope you like.
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Some stories start off with "Once upon a time", and end with "Happily ever after..." This story started off long ago, long before a 'Once upon a time;' and I am sorry to disappoint you, this story doesn't come with a "Happily ever after..."
This story began long ago, in a place that is now called Ireland. The place was green and grey and full of trees and foliage. Humans lived upon the earth and thrived in their small villages. The winters were cold and harsh. Food was scarce during those times. The years were rough, but the villages were able to pull through the dark times.
Summers faired well with the harvests at the end of the months. Bonfires were lit during cold nights and stories were told. Many stories consisted of the spirits who have been here long before man. Some stories were about the nice spirits and about the ones who had passed away. The more interesting ones were about the evil spirits.
The mischievous spirits could shape shift into anything they wanted, pretending to be humans. They could appear and disappear at will. They could bring the dead to life and wreak havoc on villages. They were the most powerful and terrifying beings. Whenever something happened in the town, whether it be a sickness, a horrific sound or an unexplainable occurrence, the evil spirits were the ones to blame. The people were terrified. In hopes to keep the evil spirits at bay, they began to leave food out for them, believing that if they were nice to the spirits, they would leave them alone.
The evil spirits seemed pleased with the towns and left the towns alone. Afterwards, not a lot happened in the towns. Everything was calm and peaceful.
One day, something different happened. A man from England came into one of their towns. He had traveled many miles, by land and sea. He was around his mid twenties. He had dark ragamuffin hair, olive skin, and was around six feet tall. He tried carrying himself to be confident, but people could see that he was nervous to be in their town. They watched him from their windows and where they stood near their carts full of apples and turnips. The man waved nervously as he walked with his shoulders up close to his ears.
His name was Grint.
Grint wore a black coat and held a bible in his hand. He continued to wave to the villagers nervously. They didnt wave back and continued to watch him walk down the dirt road. Grint worked up the courage to ask who the leader was in the town. The leader was seen talking to the town's butcher. Grint shyly asked him if he could have the townspeople come and listen to what he had to say. The leader granted the strangers request and had everyone meet in the big house.
When everyone was sitting down inside, the leader let the man take the podium and speak his words. Grint nervously walked up and placed the bible down. He ran his fingers through his messy hair and cleared his throat. The townspeople could tell that it was his first time speaking in front of a bunch of people.
"G-good evening ladies and gentlemen. M-my name is Grint..." he paused for a moment. No one uttered a word. Grint averted his eyes from them and stared down at his bible. "I...I am a missionary for the church of Father Crylic..." Another pause. This time someone coughed in the back.
"I...I have come to tell you about the word of..." his voice faltered when he saw something pass by outside one of the windows of the big house.
He looked over and saw a young lady. She was very pale, and had long silvery white hair with thin black streaks in it. Her gown was made of different scraps of fabrics, mainly blacks, grays, whites, off whites, light blues and blue grays. The pattern worked from pure white, and gradually the scraps became darker into the pure midnight blacks. It was an interesting dress, but Grint only cared about the woman.
He watched her, almost mesmerized by her. The way she moved from window to window, was like she was floating. Her head turned and she looked straight at Grint. Grint felt a strange chill go through him. Her eyes were a strange blue. Like a stormy blue. Before Grint could do anything, she flicked her head back and in an instant, she was gone.
After the attempted sermon, Grint asked one of the townspeople who she was.
"That's Beim. She's a bit strange. She lives on her own on the outskirts of town. She comes down once in a while to buy food or ask for weird things. Some people think she's some sort of witch," said the young town girl he was able to ask. Grint swallowed nervously. He had heard of witches before. Father Crylic despised any sort of witchcraft, or any kind of suspicion towards the dark arts. He was well known for the witch burnings from his hometown.
Grint thanked the girl and left the house. As he walked down the road, he couldn't help but to think of Beim. The possible town witch. He wasn't looking where he was going and found himself face to face with Beim herself. The girl was young. Possibly a couple years younger than him. She wore no shoes. The other thing Grint didn't notice about her before were the tattoos on her arms. They were pitch black and curled around her pale arms like snakes. A very unusual thing. She was very strange, but strikingly beautiful.
"Uh...p-pardon me..." Grint started.
"Yes? You are the stranger everyone is talking about," she pointed out. Grint nodded. "Y-yes. I am...I'm a missionary of Father Crylic's church," he said. Beim smiled a small smile. "And I am the witch of this town," she said, doing a small curtsey. Grint stiffened. Beim noticed. "Is something wrong?" She asked.
Grint stared at Beim for a moment before looking away. "I just...you don't look like a witch." he admitted to her. The lady cocked her head to the side a little. "And tell me, what is a witch supposed to look like?" she asked.
He blushed and rubbed the back of his head. "Um...old...ugly," he muttered. Beim gave him a smug look before turning away. Grint placed his hand up. "Wait! I...I didn't mean to upset you miss..." his voice faltered. The white haired witch turned back.
"Who told you what witches look like? Your people?"
Grint swallowed nervously. "I didn't mean any disrespect," he added. Beim looked him over. "What's your name?" she asked. Grint stiffened a little and straightened up where he stood. He held out his hand for her to shake.
"G-Grint..." he replied. Beim didnt make any move to shake his hand. Instead, she raised her eyebrow. "Grint? That's an interesting name." Grint blushed. "My parents left me that name...I don't know what it means...or why they gave it to me..." Beim looked him over before pointing into the woods.
"My house is just over there. You can accompany me if you like," she said. Grint accepted her invitation and the two walked off down the road. They started up an interesting conversation. Asking each other interesting questions.
"I heard your name was Beim. What does it mean?" Grint asked. Beim told him how she was named after one of the most powerful and ancient spirits. As she went on, Grint couldnt help but to compare her wonderful voice to the sound of windchimes during a winter breeze.
When she was done, he came up with another question. "So...do you have a last name?" He asked. Beim shook her head. Grint blinked in surprise.
"You don't have a last name?" he asked. Beim nodded. "You don't seem to have one either, am I right?" she asked, though to Grint, it felt that she already knew. Grint nodded anyway.
"My parents died when I was born. I was taken in by Father Crylic. He didn't considered me his son, and never bothered to give me a last name." Beim gave him a look of pity. Grint stared at her for a minute before asking.
"So, how come you don't have a last name? Or do all witches not have last names?" he asked. His eyes widened for what he said and quickly apologized. Beim just laughed and walked on across the dirt with her porcelain white feet.
"I don't remember. I have no memories of my childhood. I just woke up in the forest one day. A group of hunters found me and took me to their town. I've been here ever since. These people have accepted me in their own way into their town, but I find myself more connected to the forests, and have lived here ever since," Beim said. Grint stared in surprise at the white haired witch.
""These people." You make it sound like you aren't one of them," pointed out Grint. Beim laughed and tossed her hair as she walked off. Grint watched her as she walked off before following after her.
...
The two spent most of their time together and became really good friends. Beim made Grint clothes in shades of grey, with white stitches in some places. Grint loved the new attire, feeling ever closer to Beim.
Pretty soon, Grint forgot all about convincing the people about the word of God, he had a hard time talking in front of people anyway and felt that it wasn't his thing. He felt very happy being with Beim; and was immediately welcomed into the village. They shared their stories with introduced their beliefs and traditions to him.
The months passed and Grint couldn't keep it to himself any longer. He told Beim that he was in love with her. She told him that she loved him as well. Soon after, the two got married. They had a huge party that went on for three days and nights.
After the third night, the newlyweds were able to spend time to themselves. They made their way along the trail to Beim's house and went to bed together. During their time in bed, Beim created a small ritual. Part of the ritual was her swallowing a pumpkin seed.
...
The months passed by fast. The trees were turning gradual shades of muted orange. The smells in the air were cold and crisp. Grint stayed with Beim the whole time, making sure she was allright. Beim just laughed, enjoying Grint's nervous actions. She didnt show any signs of pains or morning sickness. She seemed completely normal. Besides having a huge bump, it was almost as if she didnt realize that she was pregnant. Grint treated her with extra care as they made their way to the town one afternoon.
Grint noticed something different. He saw a banner being hung up above the entrance of the town.
"Samhain festival?" asked Grint as he and his wife walked through the village, getting ready for the night. Beim nodded her head. "Yes. This is the division between winter and summer. This is the time when the spirits are able to come over into this world. This is going to be the first festival in celebration of this night," she explained. Grint looked over to his wife.
"What do the spirits do?" he asked. Beim smiled. "They do whatever they want in the time they are here. We have decided to welcome them by celebrating with a huge feast from our recent harvest, and offering the spirits their share," She pointed over to a group of men carving out gourds of all shapes and sizes.
"We are going to light the way for the good spirits to our festival." Beim looked over to the huge table as women began to place huge platters of five different types of beasts, fruits, nuts drizzled in honey, corn, apples and other sorts of food grown from the fields. The whole village was busy prepping everything for tonight. In another area in the center of town, was a huge pile of firewood, for the huge bonfire.
Beim took one of the masks from the table and placed it over Grint's face. The mask was a small burlap sack that must have used to hold turnips. It had small eye holes under a pair of Buttons for eyes and and a stitched up mouth that curved upward into a long smile. Beim smiled. "It fits you perfectly," she said. Grint smiled under the grinning mask.
It got dark fast, and the festival began. Bonfires were lit. Drinks were poured. Food was eaten. Beim pulled her husband to the area where people were dancing. She was wearing a mask as well. Grint nervously looked around at the masked villagers around him. They were dancing wildly to the music being played. He felt Beim touch the side of his sack mask. He turned to her and saw her stormy eyes within her wooden mask.
"Don't pay attention to the others..." she said. Grint suddenly felt relaxed and seemed to have his eyes glued to her. They danced together. The fires licked the ink black sky. Masked creatures danced around them. Grint kept his eyes on his wife.
Soon, there were more than just masked people. Creatures, spirits, and ghosts of various forms were seen among them. They danced with them. They laughed and ate apples and seeds and drank wine. They hovered near their living relatives, and friends. They noticed Beim's full moon belly and ran their claws or translucent hands lightly across it. They were intrigued.
Beim suddenly stopped and doubled forward. Grint's spell broke and noticed Beim clutching her belly. He called for the villagers to help him. The masked women and men rushed to Beim's aid.
A couple hours later, on the night of the Samhain festival, their child was born. He was wrapped in Beim's dress. Grint gave his coat to his wife and wrapped it around her pale shoulders. Grint stared down at their first born child, smiling proudly.
They named their child Sam. He was a normal healthy boy. Ten fingers and toes. A small button nose. Bits of dark hair like his father's. His eyes opened once to reveal stormy eyes like his mother's. Everyone in the village came up to welcome the child into the world, all dressed in their scary demonic costumes. They congratulated the couple and gently touched the newborn's head. The newborn's eyes stayed closed as he slept.
The night wore on in celebration of the first Samhain festival, and the newborn son of Grint and Beim.
...
The next day, a man from Father Crylic's church came to the town. Grint knew him as he saw him approach the town. Grint greeted the man and welcomed him into the town. "How's it been? How's it going back home?" Grint asked. The man was not smiling or showing any signs of happiness.
"Father Crylic sent me, Grint. He asks of your progress here. You haven't sent any word to him since you arrived here almost a year ago. We were worried that something happened to you," the man said. Grint's smile immediately disappeared. The man continued. "What have you been doing here? Are you making any progress here?" Grint didn't say anything. The man sighed and placed his hand on Grint's shoulder.
"I'll tell him that you need more time. Please come back home soon. You know your place is with the church. You have no idea what these...heathens could do. Father Crylic warned you of their ways... There's also a rumor going around about a witch living near this town...She's said to be dangerous." Grint gritted his teeth but kept his mouth shut. The man stared at Grint for a while before deciding to leave.
"It was nice seeing you again Grint. May the Lord keep watch over you," he added before leaving. Grint took a deep breath and exhaled. He ran his hand through his messy hair anxiously.
...
The days passed into months. Every three months, a man, sometimes two from the church, would come down to the town and ask about Grint. Grint would try to give them some excuse that he needed more time with the town he was in. The men would either give Grint looks of disgust or looks of concern for him. They did not believe a word he said. Beim approached Grint with Sam in her arm as he watched two men leave the town. She placed her hand on his shoulder.
"They aren't going to stop coming. You need to tell them that you've decided to stay here," she said. Grint shook his head. "I can't..." was all he said. His eyes turned away from the entrance of the town and met the eyes of his son. Sam smiled up at his father and reached a small hand up to him. Grint smiled back and held his.
Soon came the second year of Samhain; as well as Sam's first year. Sam loved the festival/his birthday. It was the most special night. He enjoyed the food and the lit bonfires and the music. He wasnt even the least bit frightened when he saw everyone wearing their grotesque masks. Grint took his mask off and allowed his son to wear it. Sam loved it and wore it, laughing and clapping.
Suddenly the winds changed. A strange cold stirred the air. The bonfires quivered and roared. Embers flew through the air. Everyone turned towards the entrance of the town. A dark figure was seen coming
A thin, pale, elder man came into the light of the fires and walked into the town. He was gaunt and had heavy wrinkles all over his long face and hands. His eyes were cold and black as a void. He wore a black coat and pants with black pointy shoes. He stopped just short of their party. He muttered something under his breath before pointing a finger at Grint. Grint instantly recognized him and shivered in fear. It was Father Crylic himself.
He told Grint of all the sins he had committed. Staying in the town and becoming one of them. Accepting their culture and heathen ways He noticed Beim with their child and immediately roared with rage. He pulled out his bible and showed it to Grint; shouting verses and other things from it.
Sam started to cry and wail from Father Crylic's enraged shouting. Beim clutched Sam to her breast and told the Father that he was upsetting their child and that he should leave. Father Crylic pointed his finger at Beim and called her a witch, blaming her for possessing Grint. Grint moved in front of his family, protecting them and telling Father to leave the town.
Beim muttered something under her breath as she glared at the hateful old man. The winds picked up. Father Crylic's bible flew out of his spider like hands and landed right into the bonfire. The bible immediately burst into flames and was turned to ashes in seconds. Everyone gasped in surprise. Father Crylic fumed as he glared at Beim.
"You'll regret doing that, witch!" he screamed. Sam cried louder. Father Crylic stared at Sam for a long moment before finally turning to Grint. "You have angered God for your horrible sins. You shall burn in hell for eternity with your witch wife and bastard child!...And I'll make sure you all get there very soon." He muttered the last part. With that, he turned and left the town.
...
Years passed till it was Sam's sixth birthday; as well as the seventh annual Samhain festival. Sam got out of bed early, dressed in his worn in light colored onesie, covered in yellow patches from all the times he got it snagged on some branches in the forest.
He ran over to one of the wooden drawers and pulled out his father's burlap sack mask and pulled it on. Once he had it on, he began to run all around the house. He ran around the breakfast table before heading to his parents' bedroom to wake them up. He jumped on their bed and roared, raising his hands up and curling them into claws. Beim smiled a sleepy smile at her masked son.
"Good morning my little pumpkin," she said as she kissed Sam's forehead. Sam beamed happily from under the mask. With that, Sam jumped off the bed and hurried out of the room to the breakfast table. Beim turned over in the bed to look at Grint. Grunts eyes were half open. He had dark bags under them for staying up half the night, worrying. Ever since Father Crylic's visit, Grint hadn't gotten any sleep in the last couple of years. Beim touched his forehead gently.
"It's been five years, Grint. If he's a man of his word, he would've already came years ago," she said. Grint stared worriedly up at the ceiling. "Today's Samhain...he came on Samhain last time...I know he will come again...possibly with more men to help him...just like the witch hunts back home..." Grint said. Beim sighed and gave him a kiss on the cheek.
"Come on. It's also Sam's birthday. We dont want him to see you upset on his birthday, right?" She asked. Grint sighed softly and nodded his head. "You are right. I'll try and be a little more cheerful today...for Sam...he's growing up so fast," he added. Beim smiled and nodded. "I can tell he's going to be a part of something great in the future," she said.
After breakfast, Beim kissed Sam and Grint on the foreheads. "I'll be off. You two stay out of trouble. And dont eat too many sugared sweets, Sam. I know it's your birthday but I know how you are with those sugared things," she said before leaving
With an empty basket she made herself and went off into the forest to pick some herbs and flowers to make a concoction for Grint's sleep apnea. She hummed a song as she walked around the trees and bushes. She walked a little further than she usually did till she came upon an area she had never been before and went down on her hands and knees.
Hours passed as the white haired witch unearthed white roots and picked nearby shrooms. She hummed her melody. Filling up her basket. Enjoying the outside fresh air. Suddenly, she felt the stiff cold wind blow through her silvery white hair. Something was wrong. Beim could sense that something was horribly wrong. She stopped digging and her head shot straight up like an alert deer.
Something bad has happened... to your child and husband...The wind whispered through her hair. Beim quickly got to her feet and grabbed the basket. She picked up her pace and began to sprint as fast as she could, down the beaten dirt road, back to her small cottage.
Once she got there, she saw that the cottage door was on the ground inside the house, as if it got kicked down. She dropped her basket in horror. "Grint!" she screamed and ran into the house. The whole place was a mess. Curtains were tattered, tables and chairs were overturned and smashed to splinters. Glass jars were smashed and red stuff was seen spattered all over the floors. She called for her husband again. No answer. She raced into Sam's room.
"Sam?!" She cried. His bed was destroyed, along with his toys. She ran back to the living room and called for them again. Still no answer or sign of them. She turned in all directions, her heart beating fast. Beim stopped when she noticed a trail of blood heading outside.
She followed the blood back outside and down the trail. The blood stayed on the trail for a while till it went off a different way towards the edge of the fields where stalks of corn were growing, ready to be picked. The sun was just setting, giving off fiery oranges and reds.
She stopped when came upon a horrific sight.
Grint was seen on the ground body facedown in a pool of his own blood. Beim stifled a scream and placed her hand over her mouth. She saw something away slightly in the tree a couple feet away from a leafless tree. Beim cried out and felt tears come to her eyes.
The six year old child hung there with a heavy rope around his neck from the twisted black limb of a leafless black oak tree. The child's head was lopped off, and was replaced with a small pumpkin, crudely stitched on. Blood dribbled down from the child's body, staining his onesie.
Beim placed her hands over her mouth and cried in horror. Her legs gave up on her as she fell to her knees into the dirt. She sobbed heavily, seeing her family brutally murdered. Her tears mixing into the dirt and blood. Gradually, crying and felt an anger rise inside her.
Beim automatically knew the ones who were responsible for this. She heard their footsteps as they came up to her. Father Crylic lead ten other men. He pointed to Beim and told the men that she was the cause of Grint's sins and betrayal to the church.
As the man talked, Beim began to chant a spell. As she chanted, she called out to the spirits, called out to anyone who would hear her call, to bring her child back, in place of her own life. She drew symbols in the dirt around her. Father Crylic turned and shouted at her.
"Cease your witchcraft! Your evil lord cannot help you now!" He shouted. Beim ignored continued chanting.
The cold winds picked up and swirled faster and faster around the scene. Grint's hair rustled in the strong breeze where he laid. Sam's body swayed slightly from the tree he hung from. The men gaped at what they were seeing and took a couple steps back.
Suddenly, an eerie greenish white glow emanated through the child's body and an invisible force lifted him up into the air. Part of the rope that was tied to the tree suddenly began to grow hot and start to burn. The section snapped off and Sam's body lifted higher into the air.
The pumpkin head morphed and shaped. The crude stitches disappeared. Flesh and pumpkin became one. Beady eyes, a crooked mouth, and two holes for a nose appeared on the misshapen pumpkin head. Sam gasped and breathed his first breath in his new form.
Beim's eyes glowed as the winds whipped around her. Sam became aware and turned his eyes to his mother. Tears ran down his face. Beim's eyes trickled with black blood instead of tears. She reached up to her son's outstretched hand. Right as their hands touched, a strange power coursed through Sam's body. Their two bodies glowed in a strange unnatural light. The men shielded their eyes and turned away. Some muttered things from the bible out of sheer terror.
The light grew brighter and brighter till it exploded in a blinding flash. The men screamed and bolted. Father Crylic yelled for them to stay in their place. "God is on our side in this! Stay and help me fight this evil!"
The light stopped. Beim was gone. Sam stood alone near the tree. The winds picked up a little, causing Father Crylic's coat to flap. All the men stopped and stared at the new, unnatural, unexplainable horror before them. Sam stood there in his orange onesie. He stared at his hands and touched his new face. He turned his beady eyes up to the men before him.
Father Crylic pulled out a big metal cross and held it up in front of Sam, sputtering everything he knew from the bible. Sam stared at the cross, unphased by it. Father Crylic raised his voice and spouted more verses from the bible. Sam's beady eyes narrowed and opened his mouth. He screamed what at first sounded like a child screaming, then changed slightly to an inhuman sound.
In a flash, the child came running towards Father Crylic. Father Crylic held his ground and pulled his arm back, and struck the deformed pumpkin creature across the face with his cross. Sam went flying backwards. He hit against the tree and slumped there. Father Crylic and the other men thought the creature was dead and seemed to relax for a bit. They thanked Father Crylic for killing the satan spawn.
Suddenly, just as the men were deciding to leave the scene, they heard a noise. They turned, finding the body of Sam standing back on his feet. The gash across his misshapen pumpkin face slowly shrank and healed itself till the gash was gone. The men's screams echoed throughout the cold night...
...
Sam stared down at the bloody aftermath of the massacre. Twisted, mutilated bodies striped in red. Candied corn kernels and caramel apples were seen sprinkled around, covered in blood or shoved deep in the dead men's mouths. Father Crylic was the last one, barely alive and covered in his own blood. His own long face covered in many scratches. He tried gasping for mercy, but his throat was choking with his own blood.
Sam bent down and lifted the cross from under Father Crylic's weak, pale fingers. Father Crylic watched through heavy eyelids. Sam stared down at it, turned it over in his hands for a moment. In Sam's hands, the cross was like a short sword. Father Crylic coughed up some blood, and possibly part of his own lung.
"P-please...m-mercy..." Father Crylic finally cried out. Sam glared down at the Father. He made a low noise through his clenched teeth in anger. He got louder and louder before it came out as an enraged scream and brought the heavy cross down on the father's head. Father Crylic died instantly. His skull concaved and bubbling up with blood. Bits of pink brain were seen coming forth.
Sam looked over when he saw his father's burlap mask, untouched by the carnage. He picked it up and stared at it for a moment before looking over to his dead father, and where his mother once was.
Then the winds shifted again and he saw them. Their spirits. Grint and Beim both holding hands and smiling down at their son. Tears came to his beady face. As soon as they appeared, they were gone. Sam wiped the tears from his eyes.
His parents died for nothing. The men who wore no masks or costumes on his day were horrible people. They took away everything from him. No more... Sam would make sure their cruel selves would never come back again...He was Sam. The Spirit of Samhain.
He turned back and placed the mask over his new, grotesque pumpkin face.
Once the sun began to rise up above the corn stalks, Sam was gone in a blink of an eye. Where he once stood, was swirling dust and scattered pumpkin seeds...
...
The End...?