Splatterhouse 3

Chapter 11: The Angel in the Dungeons

Though the architecture of the Church was beautiful, there was a very different story underneath the building. Winding catacombs with recently lit torches, meeting rooms, torture chambers and prisons. Obviously the building had been used for more then just honoring Nightmare's services. In the prisons there were cries from monsters and beasts, many of the Forgotten were locked inside. One cell however had exactly three normal people inside. A pair of identical twins and a young woman. The twins were husky with dyed hair and beards. One had bright blue hair and the other had neon green hair.

"Dammit! What are we going to do?!" Jason said, pulling on his neon green beard.

"Just calm down Jason, this is not the time to panic." Freddy said, putting a hand on Jason's shoulder and looking at the flat iron bars that locked them in.

Jason snapped back at his brother, ready to slap him. "THIS IS THE PERFECT TIME TO PANIC!" He screamed. "WE GOT KIDNAPPED BY AN OLD GUY AND MONSTERS! WE'RE LOST! WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!"

Freddy slapped Jason across the face. "Stop freaking out, what are you? A man?! Or a pussy?!"

Jason shivered and held his cheek, rubbing the red skin. "I'm a pussy."

Freddy raised his hand to his forehead and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can't believe this."

The girl was quite petite with fairly nice figure that was concealed by baggy clothing. However her hips may have been capable of sinking a ship, even with the baggy pants. She had short, spiky red hair and a pale complexion. She had her legs crossed and was looking at the ground with a hand on each knee. "Shut up you two, I'm trying to think. I can't do it with you two crying like ninnies!"

Freddy sighed, looking at her and leaning against the bars of their prison. "Amy, what could you possibly manage to figure out?"

She shrugged her shoulders, not really sure. "I dunno, double barrel hinges maybe?"

Jason paused and looked at the door on the cell and his eyes half closed. "I'm not sure that the Pirates of the Carribean will save us." His legs shivered and he fell to his knee's. He punched the ground and winced as his knuckles cracked on the stone floor. "Oooooowww!" He whimpered, tears whelling up as he pulled up his fist and looked at the bruises already forming on his hand.

The air was filled with the growls of beasts, the clattering of claws on stone and even the rattling of wood. The specific sound of claws on stone was getting louder and Freddy looked out the bars and to his right, where the noise was echoing from. The tortured scream of a monster cut through the air and bones crunched loudly, Freddy's eyes widened and he backed away from the door, he bent over, facing into a dark corner and vomiting into it. Jason looked out the door and his eyes widened in fear at the destruction.

A muscular creature cut through bone and sinew with his clawed hands. He was bathed in blood and grabbed a Forgotten's face with his back left claw. He wrenched back and slammed the monster into the ground, crushing its skull on impact to the stone.

Jamie sighed, looking at his soaked body and then up at the eyes staring at him through the cell in the prison. He trotted over, the blood soaking into his skin and even draining out of his wrecked shorts. He stopped in front of the door and then stepped back in surprise. Jason backed up and pinned himself against the wall. "Dudes, monster! Giant fucking monster!"

Amy poked her head into view and looked out the door of the cell. Jamie's eyes widened. "Amy?!" He instantly moved forwards and grabbed the bars of the cell. He stood up as best he could while Amy backed away in surprise. "Amy, what are you doing here?"

"What the fuck?" She asked, her voice shaking.

He paused, looking down at his mutated legs and laughed nervously. "Ziggy ziggy kerpow, babe!"

"Jamie?" She moved forwards and put a hand on one of Jamie's long fingers and ran her fingers along one of his claws. "What happened to you?" She paused, something clicking in her mind. "WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN?!" She snapped. "You had me worried sick!"

Jamie jumped backwards and cringed, cowering at her rage and temporarily forgetting how much bigger and stronger he was. "Sorry, it's a long story."

Jason looked at Amy and moved forwards, admiring how she managed to get Jamie to cringe. "Nice, very nice! We need you at the head of the line." He punched her arm in a playful fashion. "You got a giant monster to fear you."

She slapped his other cheek and he staggered backwards and fell over, holding his cheek, his eyes watering from the pain. "Ooowwww!" He whimpered exactly like his brother.

"I like her." The Nightmare Mask said coolly. "She's strong. Stronger then you."

"Stay the FUCK away from her!" Jamie said, instantly standing up and baring his claws. "If you so much as TOUCH one hair on her head, I'll-"

"You'll WHAT Jamie?" The Nightmare Mask cut him off and he didn't flinch as pain shot up his spine, it started to increase and eventually he grunted in pain. She paused, noticing this sudden strength he seemed to be exhibiting. Rather out of character, considering his previous behavior. "She makes you strong." The Nightmare Mask paused. "Stronger then when your life or sanity is being threatened."

"Jamie, who are you talking too?" Amy put her hands on the bars, looking concerned.

"Not now!" He snapped. "Listen, I don't care about your stupid job, we're helping her get out of here." He got a lot more assertive and damn quick.

The mask considered him, he could almost hear her thoughts echoing indistinctly in his mind. "Alright, detour, you help her out of here."

He snorted, like an Alpha Male emphasizing his authority. "Damn straight," He moved up to the bars as Freddy looked at Jamie, looking surprised.

"So, who ARE you talking too?" Freddy asked.

"You don't need to hear it. All you need to know is I got fucked up and now I look like this and talk out loud more than usual." Jamie grabbed the bars and put his feet on the wall, he pulled, the metal creaked slightly. It wasn't giving. He jumped off and bared his claws. "Stand away from the door."

The three complied and Jamie paused before swiping upwards at the hinges of the door. His claws cut through the metal with some difficulty, but he still managed it in a single swipe. He pulled on the door and managed to bend the metal of the lock backwards and wrenched backwards, pulling the metal out and tossing the door aside.

Amy walked out first, running up to Jamie and putting a hand on the mask over his face. She had a calculated look on her face, one Jamie had seen many times. She mainly had it on when she was trying to solve a problem. It wouldn't take long before she put two and two together. "This is the thing that made you like this, right?"

Jamie nodded, looking away from her. "Well, that one was obvious." The Nightmare Mask said coolly. "Let's see if she can put the other piece into place?"

"It's alive." She muttered and Jamie nodded once more. "You've gotta get that thing off as soon as possible."

"The mask is alive?" Freddy rolled his eyes and walked . "Don't you think it's a little more likely that your friend is just crazy?"

His comment was ignored while Jason looked around skittishly and ran his fingers through his neon green hair. Freddy looked at the ground and picked up an iron pipe that had obviously fallen from the ceiling. Jamie grabbed it from him immediatley and tosse it up in the air, catching it and looking at it. He tried imagining swinging it with his current physique and immediately handed it back to Freddy, he couldn't even stand up straight for more then 15 seconds. It wouldn't make a good weapon for him.

"So how did you two get locked in here?" Jamie started trotting down the hall the way he came, nodding for them to follow.

The three had to jog to even keep up with his rather slow trot. Amy responded first. "Some old man and some snarling ghouls grabbed us while we were out. We were pulled into some big purple tunnel-thing and now we're here!"

Jamie paused, thinking to himself and starting to trot again. "What were you doing exactly?"

"Sexual stuff." Jason said instantly and was elbowed in the gut by his brother. He bent over and Jamie turned around, looking at them. Under normal circumstances he'd have punched Jason too, but there were slightly more important matters at hand. However they were only SLIGHTLY more important on his list. He acted more like an over protective older brother as far as people sleeping with her; male or female.

Amy blushed, but otherwise showed no sign of a response and kept moving. The Nightmare Mask let out a soft laugh. "You like her," She commented.

"Not like that." Jamie said quietly.

"Yes, you do." She sounded confident in her analysis. "I used to have a crush on someone you know."

"Oh really," Jamie really didn't care, he so far hadn't seen any sign of monsters as he backtracked and exited the dungeon and went down a torch lit hallway, dank and dirty with aged wood and stone keeping the place from collapsing around them.

"Yes, really." She sighed, fondly recalling it. "She was beautiful beyond words."

Something clicked in Jamie's mind. "She?" He wasn't sure how to take the fact that the mask, an inanimate object, had an orientation.

"Yeah, but her boyfriend was pretty good looking too." She shivered on Jamie's face. "Damn! It was hot to see those two go at it. Like a free porno!"

"Okaaay," Jamie cut her off, not wanting to hear any more. "Now that you've sufficiently scarred me for life, we need to change the subject."

"What? You're pretty friend is bisexual, ain't she?" The mask was a little surprised at his reaction.

"Yes, and she's got skin and a body. You're... a..." He paused, not really knowing what to call her. Yes, she was a mask, but that was a drastic simplification of her case. "Inanimate Symbiote?" He wasn't sure that was a good phrase to describe her, but for now it would work.

He paused, stopping and laying low as he heard foot steps. He raised a clawed hand and motioned for the three to get behind him. Bones crunched loudly and screams could be heard. From a turn in the hallway and wave of blood splashed against the opposite wall. Rick rammed forwards and into sight. A rather small bright blue ghast was attached to his shoulder arm. He smashed it against the wall and it died with an unnatural cry of agony. Rick pulled away from the wall and brushed the remains of the corpse off his shoulder.

"There she is! Told ya she was just around the corner." The Terror Mask said confidently.

"I know, I didn't doubt you." Rick said to him. He paused, looking at the figures behind Jamie, he was crouched low, so he could see the neon green and bright blue hair. "Freddy and Jason?" He walked forwards and Jamie sighed, relieved. He was sure Rick would attack him soon.

"I know that voice." Jason said. "Rick?" He ran out from behind Jamie and skidded to a halt in front of Rick. "Dude! You look..." He looked Rick up and down as Freddy followed behind him. "Like the Hulk... with a mask."

Rick laughed in a strange way, crossing his arms. "I think I'm a little better then the Hulk." His tone indicated he was almost a little insulted.

"Getting a little cocky, aren't ya Rick-O?" The Mask asked coolly.

"Shut up," He thought to the mask and then spoke out loud. "What are you doing here?"

Jamie moved forwards, but was tense. "For now, I've managed to detour Nightmare so she's not going to try to kill you till Amy is safe." Rick nodded, lowering his guard. "But apparently they came here because they were captured by an old man and some monsters."

"West," Rick muttered. "I guess he's here then."

"West?" Freddy paused, the name rung a bell. "That school teacher you were fuming about?"

"Yeah," Rick looked away and sighed. "I think I know why he captured you."

Jason looked interested, he felt a little intimidated considering there was a blood-soaked freak on each side of him in the hallway. "Why?"

"Probably to experiment on you and turn you into monsters." Rick spoke in a tone usually one wouldn't speak in when discussing such a topic. It was like he was listing off what he was getting at the grocery store.