CHAPTER 312

Dr. Guitierrez ran as fast as his legs would carry him, but he was clumsy and in a panic.

"Oh Jesus! Oh Jesus! Oh Jesus!"

He didn't even know the terrified mantra was escaping his lips, but he wasn't aware of much else either. As he found a dark hallway that led him beyond the lobby he missed the directory that read: CONTROL ROOM, RESTROOMS, CAFETERIA.

The only light in the hallway was provided by broken skylights that trickled in water from the roof. By this Marty found a doorway and went to open it, but before he could he saw more bloody markings upon the door itself. The image was crude, but without doubt had been shaped into a human skull. In Marty's frantic state it was more than he could handle, and he stumbled away from the door with a shallow gasp. His clumsy wobbly legs carried him further down the hall, his arms swinging beside him like rubber. He wasn't watching where he was going and ran into something that was in the middle of the hallway. When he hit it it gave way and moved, but only slightly. The object was somehow attached to the ceiling and swung back into his arms. It had weight to it. Marty's hands fumbled in the shadows and he turned the object, trying to make sense of it. It was both soft and a bit firm and was about the size and dimensions of a kick bag. The texture was almost akin to a bale of hay, and Marty realized it was bundled foliage. Then in the dim light he saw a pale white skull sticking out from it.

Marty shrieked and backed away only to bump into another one. As he stumbled in fright the loose end of a vine which held the bundle together snagged his arm. Marty was stuck. He pulled and pulled, but the bundle of foliage just kept swinging at him, its spine chilling skull taunting Marty every time it swung his way. Finally it detached from the ceiling and toppled on Marty. He fell to the ground with a wail.

Shoving the scarecrow like object off of him he clambered to his feet and stumbled further down the hall. More of the scarecrows swung into him and he pushed them aside. Marty felt he had lost his bearings, and he couldn't tell whether or not he was going forward or back the way he came.

He dropped to the ground and crawled, leaving the bundles to swing above him. Scurrying frantically he found his way to the other end, but as he got up he bumped into one last scarecrow and fell back to the floor.

His glasses fell off. Not only was it dark, but now everything was blurry. Marty felt his way toward a wall and curled up against it. He was petrified with terror.

The sounds of scurrying feet zipped around him. Tiny animals were skittering along the floor. Marty saw eyes shining through the shadows near the ground. They were closing in on him. Then a larger man sized figure emerged through the swaying scarecrows, its heavy feet scattering the tiny creatures. The bigger figure rushed towards Marty and crouched down upon him. Then Marty received a firm backhand to the face.

"Calm down you nincompoop!"

In the dark Marty caught blurry glimpses of Reuben throttling him.

Marty gasped, "they'll rip out our bones! They'll suck out our brains! We're all gonna die! We're all gonna die!"

Reuben slapped him again, and proceeded to slap him five more times. "Shut up! Shut up you blubbering ignoramus! It's all a shy matter compared to what I'll do to you if you don't close your pie eater!"

Reuben raised his hand again, but Sparrow appeared at his side and caught his wrist.

"Don't stay my hand now! I'm teaching him a lesson! No one ever taught this fellow how to have a backbone!"

"It can wait." Sparrow had her pistol out. Her eyes shifted over her shoulder into the dark gauntlet of swaying scarecrows.

Marty pulled at his hair and scratched through his beard. He rubbed at his sore backhanded cheeks and whimpered. His body remained fetal and he shivered with fear.

The building was quiet save for the trickles of water dripping down through the skylights. Reuben held up his Luger and his pocket watch. The soft ticking stood out more as the seconds went by. He whispered something to it that was indiscernible to the others, then he made a sharp hushing sound and snapped it shut. Reuben was looking down the hall as though he had heard something. A moment later a door creaked at the far end.

Marty let out another whimper from the floor, and Reuben kicked him.

A shadow cut through the scarecrows. Its exact shape could not be made. It was there, and it was gone, and they did not see it again.

"Goblins," Reuben uttered.

Everyone sat still and waited.

Minutes passed, and Reuben finally said, "I don't know what to make of it." He glanced at his pocket watch. His eyes narrowed. "And Clive is befuddled." A moment later he spit at his watch, "give it a rest, man." He turned to Sparrow and shrugged. "He still gets pissy when I use his first name. Thinks it's disrespectful, but we've been over it time and again. It's just easier that way. But I digress. As we were saying, none of this malarky makes sense. Are these goblins gonna get us, or aren't they?"

Sparrow was paying him no attention. She was still looking into the dark, searching for movement. Then she heard something. They all heard it. It sounded human.

"Psst," a voice said as though it were trying to get their attention. "Pst!"

"What the god damn was that?" Reuben perked his ear. "Who's there?"

"Psst!" The voice came from down the hall.

"Hey!" There was another, and it sounded much closer.

"Psst!"

"Hey!"

"Psst! Psst!"

"Hey! Hey! Hey!"

It sounded like there were more and more individuals all up and down the hallway. Soon there was an eery volley of whispers and shouts from everywhere.

Sparrow glanced at Reuben. "What the shit is this?"

"Come out you nefarious bastards!" Reuben waved his Luger at the shadows. "Show yourselves, and we'll settle this like men!"

The shouts and whispers became louder and more abundant until there seemed to be an apex. Then suddenly it all ceased, and the only sounds in the quiet hallway were the trickling skylights and the ticking of Reuben's pocket watch.