Dulsbury was a quiet village. It had a humble population of a hundred and fifty-two people. It was one of those places where everyone knew everyone. It was surrounded by miles of ranch land and a few trees. Outside of a library, convenience store, and a bar, Dulsbury didn't have much for infrastructure.
A tree stood in its heart. It was an old dead thing with twisted branches and peeling bark. An old law prevented it from being cut down The law was created two hundred years ago when the village was still young.
The villagers called it the witches elm.
It was said the early settlers discovered a witch among them. The witch and her beast terrorized the villagers. A brave hunter shot the beast with a musket. He and some friends tracked the wounded creature to the tree. There the found the beast dead by the tree. Next to it was the witch. They shot her before she could cast a spell. As she she died she laid a curse. A priest stepped forward. He told the villagers that they would be safe so long the tree stood.
The mayor then wrote the law forbidding anyone from cutting the tree down.
Fifty years later the tree was struck by lightning. The electric burned and scorched its trunk.
But the tree still stood.
Seventy five years after that the tree wilted. Its leaves shrivelled and and fell. Its branches became bare and its core began to rot.
But the tree still stood.
A few villagers lobbied to have the tree removed. Petitions and requests went out to get rid of the eye sore.
But the tree still stood.
Eventually the towns folk began to see it as a part of their history. The capitalized on the urban legend surrounding it. Every halloween they decorated it with hanging skeletons and jack-o-lanterns. At Christmas with shining lights and bells.
That all changed one early summer night.
A middle aged man stepped drunkenly out of the bar. He staggered a few steps before vomiting on the asphalt. He wiped the bile off his chin before reaching for his keys.
It took him a few tries to get in his truck. A prized top of the line ford F-150, he bought with money he got from an inheritance. Its white paint glimmered in the moonlight.
The engine purred life. The man put it into gear and rolled it out of the parking lot. He could barely see the road through his drunken haze. The truck swerved violently as he overcorrected for his doubled vision. Tires went over the centre line and then almost into the ditch.
The trucks head lights then shone on the witches elm.
That's funny, he thought, why's there a tree growing in the road?
He tried to hit the brake. Unfortunately through his stupor, he missed and hit the gas. The truck rapidly accelerated. The truck jumped the curb and in a cataclysmic second crashed right into the tree. Its number and frame warped around the trunk. the body crumpled and folded. The front axel snapped.
The tree fell.
Its gnarled roots lifted from the ground. The trunk fell to earth. Its ancient branches snapped and splintered.
Then everything went still.
The man crawled out of wreck of his prized truck, drunk and dazed. He wiped the blood off his brow as he gazed at the upturned tree. Its exposed roots tangled with twisted metal.
lights from a few nearby houses flipped on. their residents roused by the crash. The man was about to run when something caught his eye. A strange eerie light emanated from the hollow where the tree once stood. Curiosity took hold of him.
Thunder rumbled in the sky. 'strange, wasn't it a clear night a minute ago?' he half-wondered. Ignoring the odd change in weather, he approached the light. He looked into the hollow and reached into the light. Lightning flashed and thunder cracked. And in his ears a manic laughter cackled followed by a burning pain.
A couple blocks away, an old house sat. It was once a summer home for a wealthy family. It was inherited by the son, who was considered an eccentric inventor. The house was left uninhabited after the sons untimely passing.
Lightning stuck the house. Electricity surged and wormed its way through the wiring. It travelled deep into the houses basement.
There a machine sprung to life.