RAMONE
Reports have been coming in about several disappearances in the last few weeks. All of which happened around the Mayfields Mall. No word or comment from the owner…
It's rather odd, really. As I'm driving, I hear the news over the police car radio.
"Reports are coming in about a strange behavior inflicted on by an unknown disease, first breaking out in Highgrave, Illinois. Symptoms shown include green skin, rotting flesh, and an uncontrollable state of cannibalism. This can be linked to a string of bizarre if not gruesome murders, in which the victims appeared to have been eaten alive. The government is working to contain this mysterious outbreak, and thus the town shall be quarantined until further notice. No one is allowed in or out of Highgrave. Further details to come as they arrive."
Highgrave? I recall a story about how two brothers burned half of that town down, and a legend about how spirits can't rest because the graveyard is too high. Hence the name.
Eyewitness reports state that the killer, or killers, are hiding inside this mall. I only step out after parking, readying my pistol. The odd green light of the eclipse seems to emit all throughout the sky. Now that I think about it…it's never moved since. But why?
I push that thought aside. That's something for astronomers, not cops. I enter the mall, only to find it incredibly dark. Must've been a power outage here. Maybe a failed generator? I only turn on my flashlight as I head through.
It's likely that the killer doesn't know I'm here. Good. I can take him by surprise.
I make my way through the mall until I come across a hallway laced with blood. A trail. He was dragging a body this way. Signs of a struggle, too. Maybe the killer was suffocating the victim while stabbing it?
I follow the trail until I hear something. Something…feeding…
I come into view, and I see him. The killer is standing over the dead body, eating the innards! Eugh! I almost hurl, but I manage to power through and aim my pistol!
"Freeze! Police!" I say. "Put your hands in the air! You are under arrest for manslaughter! Anything you say can and will be used against you!"
The killer stops. And he slowly stands up.
"Come on, hands up!" I ordered. "If you do not comply, I will be forced to open fire!"
The suspect only groans. He…sounds sick.
"Sir?" I ask. "Are…are you okay?"
And then, he turns his head. And what I see…makes my eyes go wide.
His face is rotting. His skin is green, and his eyes are glowing green!
"Braaaaaaaaiiiiiiiinnnnns…."
Suddenly, the man roars and charges at me with superhuman speed! On instinct, I pull the trigger.
BANG!
The bullet goes right through his head, and he falls dead to the ground as I see blood come out. It's…it's green.
"What the f-?!"
That's when I hear it. More moaning, echoing off in the distance. I swear in my head. Someone heard the shot!
And…I don't think…this was…human…
And then, I see them. A horde, slowly stumbling my way.
"Oh my god…"
Quickly, I turn and run! Soon, I hear them roar and give chase! I hear myself panting as I make my way through the mall. I turn a corner, only to see MORE of them!
My god…they're everywhere!
I go another way, firing at any that try to ambush me! Headshots seem to do it, but they shrug it off anywhere else. But it at least slows them down. Eventually, I find myself cornered! And I hear them coming closer…
Some slowly begin coming towards me. I only fire again and again, but no matter how many go down, more keep coming!
Click. Click click.
Damn it!
I look around, trying not to panic. That's when I see a door I never noticed before. I quickly kick it open and slam it behind me, barricading it with my baton. I then stumble away from the door, panting heavily as they slowly ramble about outside. Some try to get to me, and I wince as one scratches the window like claws on a chalkboard. Another tries to break the glass with a headbutt, but the glass is sturdy and it bounces off.
I notice that I only have one ammo clip left, so I reload. But no way can I take out all of them.
"This is Officer Ramone, I need backup!" I radio. "There's these…weird green guys! I…I think they're…zombies!"
I haven't been this frightened ever since the giant mantis attack! I'm not sure they'll believe me, though. Hell, I don't believe me!
Static. That's all I get on the other end.
"I repeat, I need backup! Is anyone there?!"
Still static…Damn it!
I can't stay here forever…eventually they'll find a way in. I look around and see that I'm in a shop. A clothes shop. But there's some mannequins missing…
This shop looks big. The first thing I think is that one of them's in here with me…
That's when I see something else. An opening into the air ducts…
Perfect!
…
I kick open a duct plate and crawl out. I've made it onto the roof. Hopefully they won't be able to find me. Still no reception on the walkie, though.
I only head on over to an edge to look down to see how I can get back to my car. That's when I see a sight that stops my heart.
There's a bunch of them outside. And they're all throughout town. I don't see anyone but them outside.
Oh no…this is worse than I expected. It…it's not just Highgrove…
Is this…really the end?
…
CORY
We manage to make our way into Dead House despite the undead hot on our heels! The whole backyard cemetery is full of those creeps! I slam the front door shut, trying to force out the grasping hands from the other side.
"ZOMBIES!" I curse, slamming myself against the door with each word. "I! REALLY! HATE! ZOMBIES!"
Finally, it slams shut. I slump down with a sigh of relief, with Lisa, Hannah, Mirpo, Conrad, Billy, and the rest of us having made it inside.
That's when another green hand bursts through the door, letting out a "GRAAAAAH!" before being atomized and disintegrated by Mirpo's blaster.
"Graah you too!" He gasps. "Man, I hate those things. Why is it that they're going after my brain?! It's not THAT big!"
"Slappy didn't get the Dark Tome." Hannah says. "I-I don't understand, how could he remember the spell?"
"Maybe he remembered it thanks to having the soul of someone who read the book before." I say, recalling how we told them of our encounter with Jimmy. "So…what's the plan?"
"Wow." Lisa says. "You know it's bad when even the leader asks for a plan."
"Huh." I see that Mirpo is looking at a wall. "Somebody spilled jam everywhere. That's no good." He takes some on his finger, tasting it. "Tastes like ketchup…"
"Uh….E.T.?" I gulp. "That…that's not jam…" That's blood.
"AH! OH, EW! BLEH! THIS IS EVEN WORSE THAN THE BLUE MINT, LEMONADE, AND CHOCOLATE! ALL IN THE ROOM OF BATHS!"
Lisa has to hold back a hurl. Still, blood being inside this place must mean…
Suddenly, another door bursts open, and more zombies emerge!
"Oh come on!" Mirpo throws his hands up as Gazelle manages to punch one away. However, it only gets back up!
"My super punches! They do nothing!"
One lunges for Mirpo, but he manages to hold it back.
"Hey! Stop that!" He yells, stabbing the zombie once with a high-tech energy knife that Billy gave him. The zombie only drops down, and the little gray spaceman sighs.
Only for it to rise back up again, making him yelp!
"AI! You-! DA!"
He pulls out another knife and stabs it again, this time killing the brain.
"Second knife!" He cries. "Nobody expects a second knife!"
More suddenly emerge, and Mirpo yelps before making a run for it!
"AI! I AM FLARKED! I AM FLARKED!"
He only slams into a larger zombie.
"AH! I GOTTA GUN IT!"
It suddenly grabs him by the arms when he aims his blaster and lifts him up!
"NAH! I SHOULDN'T HAVE GUNNED IT!"
He's then punched by the large zombie into another hallway, all while the alien yells "OW, MY RIBS!"
The mages have a try, using their magic to freeze the zombies in place! And here I thought Shadow House wasn't safe anymore…
"This way!" I say, leading us out of the room. We run through the hall that Mirpo flew down, and once we regroup with him, he's managed to get back up and opens up a door…to reveal a huge gap in the floor!
"Woah!" Larry Boyd gulps.
"Uh, okay…" Mirpo studies it. "Alright, so it's just a quick hop and a jump…"
Suddenly, even MORE zombies begin to ambush us! Mirpo suddenly fires his blaster, set on flamethrower setting, right at of the horde, screaming like mad.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-"
The rest of us are forced back into the main massive hall, where we find ourselves with the zombies! Well, running's not an option, and I'm scared as heck…
That means one option left.
Lisa only hits her hard rock playlist and readies her armor.
The Midnight Society soon charges into battle, and together, we begin hacking and slashing through the zombies! I keep going for the head as the monsters only rip and tear them to shreds. Gazelle also spins a fist to land a decapitating uppercut. Kruu makes another big zombie explode by overflowing it with water as the knights decapitate, slice, and dice.
Billy and Sammy manage to blast the zombies with their high tech, making heads blow up. Vampires bite the zombies on the necks as the werewolves and Wolf maul them. Erin and Marty unleash all of their robot weaponry on the undead, Marty not even feeling a bite as the zombie hears a CLANG of metal before it's blasted with an arm cannon.
Hannah also possesses another zombie, making it bite another before getting it swarmed with other zombies before having another rip its own head off!
Kruu and Randy also boost Monsty up in power as he begins letting loose with the machine gun bubble bomb attack. Tara uses her time magic to rapidly age more zombies until they turn to dust, as Matt uses the camera to make the zombies die via brain explosion! More only roar and charge.
"NOW!"
At my command, blasts of magic begin sending several zombies flying, and I use a nearby baseball bat to whack some aside before bringing it down on another's head. I only toss it back to Brad as Jane manages to whack another away from her with a golf club.
Monster Larry also defends Dog Larry, the poor boy shivering like mad. Lucy also lets out a bat scream right in a zombie's ear loud enough to make its head explode. Larry Boyd only yelps as some of the green zombie blood goo gets on him!
"Ewww! It died on me!" He groans.
Man, there's so many! It's like tonight is the Night of the Walking Dead! That's when I see Hannah release some ethereal ghost chains on the Dark Tome, which I saw her swipe before we escaped the overrun Shadow House!
"Braaaiiinnnsss…"
"You wanna eat our brains?" Hannah asks. "Choke on them!"
She opens the Dark Tome, and I see that super strong green vortex surge to life as all the zombies begin getting sucked into it like a black hole! WOAH, that's a strong vortex! It's pulling the zombies in no matter how far away!
I hear unholy screeching and moaning as more and more are gobbled up by the Necronomicon book, their green blood becoming ink filling more and more pages, and I even see MORE pages being added! With luck, I bet we'll have many types of zombies in this thing!
Finally, the vortex stops as the last of the zombies gets sucked in, its twitching hand seeming to reach out as it's pulled into a grave it can't ever escape. Full, the book slams shut.
"Hey, you think Mirpo needs any help?" Lisa asks.
I only turn back to the room and open the door, with Mirpo still going crazy on the horde with his flamethrower setting.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-"
I slam the door.
"He's fine."
That's when we hear a noise outside. A supernatural storm is forming MORE zombies in the backyard graveyard! All those we had killed before Hannah sucked the rest into the book! And with them, I see five figures, four being ghosts, and SLAPPY with them!
We rush outside to confront this new threat, readying our weapons and powers.
"So you managed to perform the spell without the book." Hannah tells Slappy. "But we'll find a way to stop you."
"Ah…so you're the one they call the Shadow Warrior." Norband says. "How cute of you to think that this living family of yours can stop me."
"And your friend must be this Ghost King she's told us about." I add. "Well, it turns out the Dark Tome can act as a supercharged Mystic Manuscript! Just wait until it finishes digesting!"
"Of course, you failed to get all the Graveyard Ghouls." Norband chuckles. "Especially these two. They're the most powerful ghouls in the graveyard!"
Huh? Our attention is turned to the other two ghosts. They both look like siblings, albeit a menacing pair.
"Meet the Manse brothers." Slappy introduces. "Oswald and Martin. Back when they were young living boys, they were so chaotically evil that they burned down half the town of Highgrave for the fun of it! Now THAT'S how you get on MY good side! Hahahahahahahahaha!"
"They were hanged for their crimes, but like all other spirits in Highgrave's cemetery, they were restless. So they emerged from their graves at night, seeking new bodies to possess to continue wreaking havoc." Norband says with a menacing grin. "Oh look…what's this?"
He then summons two corpses that soon rise up. One looks bigger and stronger. The other is younger and sleeker. They both groan zombie-like, but don't move toward us.
"Okay, boys!" Slappy says. "Why don't you bust some moves to feel more alive than ever? I'm sure it'll be to DIE for! Hahahahahahahaha!"
The ghost bros only smile menacingly before they…begin doing the Thriller dance?!
"Uhhhhh…..what are they…?"
Suddenly, as they dance, I see the ghosts allow themselves to be absorbed into the zombies, possessing them. Suddenly, their eyes go from green to a cyan blue before they let out a roar…and explode in energy!
We brace ourselves, and once the light fades, we see the ghouls having a more sentient look, with the big guy having purple skin and yellow eyes, and the little guy having entirely blue skin and red eyes!
"Oh no…" Hannah gasps. "That was Fusion! They possessed their own undead bodies!"
"Wait…" Lisa tries to piece it together. "If a ghost can possess a zombie…and possess their own zombified body…can they…?"
"Come back to life? Yes. And that breaks Rule Number One in the Reapers' Laws."
That's when I see Mirpo arrive through the back door, late to the party!
"Wew! Sorry 'bout nearly setting the place on fire, but-AAAAAAH MY GLARBLEBALLS THAT'S A GIANT ZOMBIE! OHMYGLARB, THAT'S A LOT OF ZOMBIES!"
A lot of-?
We turn and I see MORE of them rise at the command of the twins! Uh oh…
"Ahhhh…I feel better already…" The big one, Oswald, states.
"Why not cause some trouble for old times sake?" Martin giggles. "Oh, and miss? I'd feel guilty for not inviting some old friends…"
Suddenly, I can spot familiar bodies among the crowd. The bodies of Brian Colson, the Sadlers, Andrew Craw, the camp ghosts, and…a zombie family. At this, I notice Hannah's face is pale white.
"No…"
Once two and two are put together, I realize who these zombies are…
…
HANNAH
I can't believe it. I…don't want to believe it. But it's true.
That undead zombie girl…with the burnt hair, burnt face, burnt clothes, burnt everything…she…she has my face.
This is me. This is my body. And with it are…
Mom…Dad…Bill…Herb.
Suddenly, the memories come washing back. To think…it all started so innocently. When I was 12. The campfire…burning so gently.
I…I thought I had put it out…
It all comes back to me…no matter how much I want to forget. The nightmare…haunts me to this very day.
The flames…their screams…my screams…my cries…of fear…and sorrow.
"Why…" My undead twelve-year old body moaned in a clawing deathlike wail of grief. "Why did you not…save us…?"
"You…lit…the fire…" My zombie brothers moan as they get closer. "All…your…fault…"
"All your fault…all your fault…all your fault…"
"No…No…NOOOOO!"
The voices surround me as the bodies do as well. Meanwhile, I hear the Manse brothers and the rest of the zombies attack the others, who manage to fight back.
"You know they're right." Brandon said. "My death was my fault too. But why should I bother scaring you…when you keep reliving this eternal nightmare?"
"I'm sorry…I'm sorry…"
My weeping does nothing. The demons of my past begin towering over me. In undead anger, they swipe their claws at me…but they phase through.
"HATE YOU!" I hear myself screaming at me. "HATE YOU!"
It…it's true. Ever since knowing I was responsible for the death of my entire family…I…I've never forgiven myself. This is…who I am on the inside.
I just…want the pain to end. But I'm already dead…I've only seen myself for who I really am. A monster. A murderer.
Autophobia. The fear of yourself.
I feel as if…the world stops completely.
I can't move. Only…think.
Tara comes into view. As does Andrew.
"Looks like you haven't been paying attention to Hunter lessons." Tara says. "I take it that means you're only a Realmwalker."
"I was gravely haunted by my own death, too." Andrew said. "It was my own fault, though. Had I not hidden there…I never would've lost my head."
He turns to look at his own headless zombie body.
"It's a dark reflection. I want to go back. But I know I can't. We can only be brought into this world once. And ONLY once."
"I've seen the timeline." Tara said. "No matter what you did…you and your family were always fated to die. I know that would always make you afraid of your past. I was afraid too, when I learned I no longer existed. But…there's something I learned the other day about fear."
She only readies a clairvoyant energy orb and pears into the past. In it, I see Lucy talking to Lisa.
"Aren't hunters supposed to be brave and fearless?"
"True, but they are only brave and fearless BECAUSE of their fear. Fear heightens your instincts and senses. It kicks in your primal urge to survive no matter what. Fear and courage are two sides of the same coin. If you don't know or feel fear, you can't know or feel courage either."
"So…hunters do what they do…because they're complete cowards?"
"Some people act more differently than others when frightened beyond belief. For example, what would someone normally do in a hunter's situation?"
"Duh. They run away."
"Unless the monster can catch them in seconds and kill them, which they usually are able to do. Hunters know this, and thus know that running away is pointless and only hastens their demise. Thus, that leaves them only one option left."
"Fight rather than flight…"
"Only with the right knowledge and weapons can a hunter succeed in killing its prey. Know your enemy. And know yourself."
The orb fades.
"You've been running for as long as you can remember." Andrew says. "But…you never stopped to look behind you. If you had, you would have noticed."
Noticed?
"You would have noticed that that is not the true you. And that they are not your true family."
That's when I see them. The spirits of my parents and brothers. Off in the distance, watching.
"They've always been in the Shadow Realm with you." Andrew continues. "Just like mine."
"But I'm not telling you to let go of the past, or your fears." Tara adds. "You simply have to embrace it. Make it your own. Only then…can you know true courage."
"So what do you choose on this day? Fight? Or flight?"
I only stare at my own ghoulish body. Staring at me not only with hate…but with fear. Fear of the monster I had become. Looking back…I see a monster too. In both of us.
But…I have a NEW family now. In this world, just like I do in the Shadow Realm.
The memories consume me, and I feel my sadness, greif, and fear overtake me.
And then…I scream.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
The banshee wail echoes throughout the woods. My own body is knocked off as the zombies shriek, covering their ears.
And the Ghost King. He, who has no remorse or regret for causing his own death. All I can focus on, my sadness, fear, and anger…I focus it all on HIM.
My eyes glow white as my entire body does. I feel…having evolved beyond my banshee form. The Boogeyman only shows his large set of teeth with another grin as Norband looks on.
"The White Lady…"
The Boogeyman channels the fear. His shadowy body twists and contorts like a man possessed. And then, he lets out a bone-chilling scream, mimicking that of a scared little girl. With paranormal speed, he tries jumpscaring me with a clawed swipe.
I only ready my Ethereal Blade as the Boogeyman draws forth the Nightmare Styche. A weapon powerful to kill even Reapers.
And then, as black and white streaks of ghostly magic, we charge with screams and clash blades!
…
CORY
Ok, to be fair here, I haven't completely moved on from my immense zombie fear. But hey, at least it's making me stay alive some more.
The Manse brothers are merciless, too. There's many of them, but many of us, too. The monsters absolutely WRECK the zombies, and the mages use a spell to grow powerful plants that eat the zombies.
And since the brothers are alive again, I'm guessing that the Reapers will be coming any second now. Or not. Because Shadow Magic, apparently.
Still, Hannah's sudden evolution is really something! And Brandon can turn, too?! He said that she became a White Lady, right? The spirit of a woman who's suffered through loss, death, and pain?
And Brandon? I begin remembering what he was called.
The Boogeyman. Yeah, I think that's it. I remember hearing about all the different ghost types from those on the other side. Well, it makes sense. Brandon wanted to cause fear. Now he's BECOME fear.
He's become what every kid fears, hiding under every bed and in every closet. And if we don't stop him now, that's exactly what he'll do. He'll make so many die of fright. Now that's what I call a bully. At least Steve was able to redeem himself.
At least Hannah can take care of him. Meanwhile, we're stuck with the horde.
More specifically, while the rest of us deal with the zombies, Lisa and I are battling against the Manse brothers. And I think I can see Andrew Craw being a distraction to Norband. Whatever he's doing, it's working. The black and white spirits above continue their duel.
And I don't see Slappy anywhere. He must've left thinking we'd be finished off. Well, I've got news for him.
My zombie phobia kicks in, and with it comes the fight or flight responses. Focus. Imagine that you're the prey cornered by the predator. You have nowhere left to run, so you fight in desperation. This was the lesson the Darks taught us. Each battle must be treated as if to the death, even simple spars. Act as if each fight will be your last. Expect the unexpected, and expect that one wrong move results in death.
"Stopping us is pointless!" Oswald roars as I dodge a slam. "Worldwide the dead have risen! The apocalypse has already begun!"
"The dead will live and the living will die!" Martin adds. "That is why we chose to return to finish what we started! Once we destroy this town, we will head back to Highgrave and burn down the rest of it! And you won't be there to stop us when that happens!"
"Then that's why we're stopping you here and now!" Lisa adds, managing to block a strike from Martin. Man, these two are some really smart zombies!
Speaking of zombies, these guys never tire out! Soon, we'll be completely overwhelmed! Alright Hannah, this is your one chance to prove to us that you really are the Shadow Warrior.
Please don't fail me now…
…
HANNAH
The White Lady seems to fight all on her own as we touch down onto the ground. My Banshee form alone was hard to control! Now I feel like I've…lost myself.
The memories keep flooding me, and I hear myself screaming in sorrow and anger as the Boogeyman keeps charging and jumpscaring me, jumping around like a glitching demon. My blade cuts off an arm, and it lets out a low-pitched demonic shriek and roar as black blood seeps out. Yet, it quickly regenerates.
Brandon…what have you become?
The White Lady screams loudly at the Boogeyman, but the swing of a styche manages to shut her up, slashing across her face. Blade clashes against styche again and again, the Boogeyman roaring as if it is THE Grim Reaper.
I can feel it. The sorrow of not only myself and my sins…but the grief of every deceased woman in the Shadow Realm and Limbo. The White Lady is but one of many…yet they all act as the same lady.
Just like the Boogeyman. Many like him, who take the form of what children believe him to be. They all act the exact same…
Then, I hear the White Lady speak. It's my voice…yet NOT my voice.
"LEAVE…ME…ALOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE!"
The scream manages to be loud enough to split the Boogeyman's head in two, cracked open like an egg as she rams the Ethereal Blade right into its cold black heart.
Suddenly, at superhuman speed, the Boogeyman grabs onto her face. Still split in two, it lifts its head as the glowing red eyes stare right at me, the disjoined mouth smiling…
And then, with another jumpscare and a demonic scream, he scares the White Lady immensely, forcing her to retreat inside me and making me regain control of my body. The Boogeyman is the physical form of fear itself. And belief in him only makes him stronger, as it means he can feed off more fear from children. As long as the very concept of fear exists, it is impossible to kill the Boogeyman.
His laugh only echoes as suddenly, all the zombies drop dead.
I notice Cory and Lisa, who had managed to overpower and kill the Manse zombies. And the only undead body I see still moving…is mine.
"Hurts…" My badly burned body moans. "Hurts…so…much…"
"Yes, I know." I only tell her. "But the emotional pain of knowing what I've done only hurts far more than the physical pain you feel right now. I…I'm sorry. Which is why I'm putting an end to it. I'm ending your misery. And with it…I'm burying my past. The right way. I'll give you, Mom, Dad, Herb, and Bill the funeral we all deserve."
I only take the Dark Tome and open it. This time, there's no vortex. It's a more gentle pull, and my body slowly burns away, seeming slow yet painless.
I watch as the other four bodies burn away and turn into ash, glowing a magical green as they're drawn towards the pages, then cremated within the book.
"I bet you always knew." I only say. "That you weren't real. That you were just a shadow of who I always was. As were the rest of them. But I remember this now. My family was in the Shadow Realm this whole time. So I'm finally going to pay them a visit. I haven't done so for a long time. I know that I can never change what happened that day…but I can change what happens next. No one else will suffer like I did. Like we did."
That's when I see it. The deformed zombie-like skull begins to burn something back as the flames gently kiss my own body. A face, my younger self's face, stares back at me. A girl with short blonde hair and gray-blue eyes, wearing a bright orange sleeveless top with neon green shorts in a tomboyish fashion.
I kneel down to face her, and finally, we hug each other. My body doesn't phase through my spirit. Yet still, I can't help but shed a few tears.
"Thank you." My younger physical body says, shedding tears of her own, matching my emotions. "Goodbye. Remember me."
"I will. I promise."
Slowly, I watch as my own body peacefully turns into ash before fading into the pages. On it, the ink forms into a picture. A picture of me with my family, with the cursive text of "In Loving Memory", written by an invisible feather. Everyone's silent, since I'm having a moment here…
Looking at this portrait, I only have one thing to say.
"Rest in peace…Hannah Fairchild."
…
Finally, a five-star room all for himself! With the latest in luxury, all thanks to Creepy Co.!
Slappy slept soundly in his bed. The midnight hour rolled around as the werewolves howled.
And then, he heard something. A creak, just under his bed. He thought it was nothing, just the Stagger Inn settling in.
Oh, how wrong he was.
The wind sounded like screaming. GHOST screaming. Something was wrong. Usually THEY were the ones doing the scares, not GETTING scared!
He heard footsteps. Slow creaking coming up the stairs. And skittering.
It was then that he got slightly worried. Termites?!
The footsteps got louder and louder, like something running right for the door! But once they reached that door…they stopped.
There was a dead calm. All was silent.
BOOM!
The closet door burst open with a massive supernatural wind blowing from it! Once the wind settled, Slappy heard something…
Termites began crawling out of the closet. With it, a clawed shadowy hand gripped the corner of the closet entrance. The shape emerged slowly.
The big black figure with razor sharp teeth and glowing red eyes got on all fours, bent over with its head spinning, vomiting up more termites that surrounded the bed.
"W-What do you want?!" Slappy asks. He couldn't control this thing! His eyes darted around the room, but the termites made no move. That is, unless he tried to run.
Not that he could. Somehow, he was petrified. Just like he was with the Shadow Lord. Like…the mention of the park. Like…Mennis…
It…it was with HIM now. A spy! Something meant to watch him…
Suddenly, the Boogeyman glitched right onto the bed, staring the silently petrified dummy right in the face. What was once Brandon Plush pointed a long bony finger at the living dummy, and then spoke four creepy worlds that carved deep into his wooden soul…
"NEVER LEAVE. ALWAYS HERE."
