I could feel it, the monster beneath. With every shift, I could feel my former self slipping away. The monster wanted to tare into anything, destroy everything in its path. What made it so angry? How could I transform into something so violent? This thing was a far cry from my usual calm demeanor. But when I really thought about it, maybe the monster was who I truly was. A violent beast intending to make others suffer the way I have. Perhaps being less human was a good thing after all.
People were warned to stay away from him for he was as dangerous as they come. His fury was one thing, but his rage was another. Untamed. Unpredictable. His rage was hot like molten lava indiscriminately burning whoever steps in its path. If you ever find yourself in a crisis, he is at the epicenter. God may have made man, but the Devil created him.
I opened my eyes, taking in my sudden surroundings. I didn’t recognize the room, but I did recognize the people in it. They were my characters. All of them either interacting with each other or doing their own thing. I glanced around. Travis Elliot was of course playing a soft melody in the corner. Irene, a werewolf, was leaning against the piano swaying slightly. Guilt rose in my gut. I had long since abandoned her. Not on purpose of course, I just forgot about her and her mate who’s name I can’t recall. Seated next to me on the couch was a small boy. Charlie!
“Do you want to play with me?” His smile was sincere but I knew better.
“Maybe a bit later!” I tell him. He shrugs his shoulders and leaves to the other side of the room.
In the opposite corner of Travis, is Detective Luella Hawthorne. She had her nose pressed deep into some case files. Poor woman! She really needed a break. Floating by her was Paul Grayson. He was nothing more than a ghost now. Tailing him was Nikolette. She always had a thing for the occult, so it didn’t surprise me none that she was following Paul.
“Well look who finally decided to join us!”
I looked behind me to see Lucian looking as smug as ever. The room grew quiet as people took in my presence. The atmosphere in the room turned from peaceful to intense real quick.
“Thanks for that announcement Lucian!” I said sarcastically.
“Anything for you darling!” He gives me a wink and I roll my eyes.
“You can’t flirt with me. I’m practically your mother!” I exclaimed.
“You gave me a mother remember? Before you tragically took her away!”
“Yes! But technically, I’m the one who created her and you.”
“So we should charge you with neglect!” Irene spoke up. I was surprised. She’s usually the quiet type.
“I could file those charges!” Detective Hawthorne volunteered.
Some nodded their heads in agreement
“You can’t. You don’t have jurisdiction here, where ever here is.” I tell her.
“Well something has to be done about you! You can’t keep getting away with this!” Irene exclaimed.
“Not all of you were left to rot. Travis here was a successful musician! Paul is dead so there’s no more story for him!” I shamelessly tried to earn some brownie points.
“Paul’s been left to haunt his former home, never being able to pass on!” Damien finally spoke for the first time since I got here.
“I’m quite content where I’m at!” Zoya says, eying Captain Anchor near by.
“I’m content with you as well!” Lucian says licking his lips.
“You really do try to fuck anything with a pulse!” Damien shakes his head at his brother.
“You make that sound like a bad thing!”
God he’s an ass! At least he’s in character.
“Well I’m not content!” Irene shouts.
“Neither am I!” Luella chimes in.
Suddenly, an eruption of complaints come barreling at me.
“You don’t have to do this Ryan!” He pleaded with his best friend, trying to reach whatever humanity he had left. The friend who wanted to help others. The friend with whom he shared the same dream of saving the world together.
With his back still turned to him, Ryan looked back over his shoulder and said
“I tried it your way Kyle. I tried to use these powers we have for good. I tried to be the hero everyone needs, but they villainized us instead. People painted us out to be monsters! Well if they want a monster, I’m going to give them one!”
And without another word, he vanished.
“I thought you said we were going somewhere fancy?” she asked.
“This is fancy!”
Melanie glanced around at the diner she was standing in. Even from a distance, she could tell the tables were dirty. She was expecting fine dining at a high end restaurant, but this wasn’t that.
“Take a seat anywhere you like!” A waitress told us.
John started walking towards a booth in the back, leaving Melanie no choice but to follow. She slid into the seat across from his, feeling overdressed in the black cocktail dress she was wearing. A few minutes later, the waitress came over with some menus for us.
“Can I start you guys out with some drinks?” she asked.
Melanie was about to speak when John cut her off.
“We’ll both have water.”
The waitress nodded and walked off to get their drinks. Melanie stared at John.
“I was going to order iced tea.” She told him.
“Yeah but water’s cheaper.”
Cheaper?
“Aren’t you an office manager for a big tech firm? Surely you can afford iced tea!”
He just shrugged his shoulders.
“I’m not big on spending.”
The waitress came back with our waters.
“You two ready to order?”
We both nodded.
“We’ll take the Reuben sandwich.” John told her.
“Actually, I’ll take the chicken fried steak.” I interjected.
“That’s five dollars more!”
John looked furious but Melanie ignored him.
“So the Reuben sandwich and a chicken fried steak?” The waitress asked glancing between the two of them.
“Yes!” Melanie answered.
As they waited for their food, Melanie absently rubbed her arms from the cold.
“Could you quit bouncing your leg? You’re making the table shake!” John asked.
“I can’t help it! It’s freezing in here!”
“Well no one told you to dress like that!” He gestured at her dress.
“I thought we were going to a fancy restaurant! I wanted to dress appropriately. If I had known we were coming here, I would’ve dressed more casually.”
Just then, two men were passing each other. One knocked the other into John, causing him to spill water on himself while he was drinking.
“What the fuck are you doing?” John yelled at the man.
The man looked embarrassed and quickly tried to apologize, but John wouldn’t let him get a word in.
“Do you know how much this suit costs? No? Well I’ll tell you! More than you make in an entire year!”
Melanie reached out to grab John’s hand.
“Calm down John. It was just an accident!”
John pulls his hand away. He stares the man down, who scurries off back to his seat. The waitress comes over with their food, which Melanie is grateful. It means this hellish date is almost over.
Zoya loved taking long walks late at night. Something about the stillness of the town calmed her nerves. As she walked, she heard a voice call out to her. She glanced behind her and saw a man leaning against the wall of a still open bar.
“Can I help you?” she asked.
“It’s a little late for a pretty woman such as yourself to be walking around at night, isn’t it?”
“Is it? I hadn’t really noticed!”
“Yes! There’s all kinds of creeps who could do a woman like you harm!”
“Well, then I’m grateful for a gentleman such as yourself taking an interest in my wellbeing!” Zoya smiled sweetly at him.
“Of course!” He gave a small bow.
“Would you mind walking me home then?”
“It would be my pleasure!”
They started walking in the direction of Zoya’s home.
“I hope you got your fill at the bar?” Zoya asked.
“Yes! Though I must admit, I am still feeling a bit unsatisfied.”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll find something. This great city has things that will satisfy all kinds of appetites!” Zoya smiled mischievously at him.
“I’m starting to see that now.”
Cloverleaf Summer Camp was supposed to be a place of fun and smiles. But for an entire community, it was a place of pain and confusion. On the 8th of July ten years ago, the staff and several children went missing. Police spent months trying to uncover exactly what happened, but to no avail.
At the time of the investigation, police suspected that the owner of the camp was involved. But they had trouble proving anything because the owner, Rachel Towny, had also gone missing. There were no signs of a struggle or any signs of violence. Everyone simply just vanished. Without any leads, the case remains unsolved. Urban explorers have ventured inside the camp only to find rusted up beds and old toys thrown about. Some have said the air inside the cabins feels heavy, though none can explain why.
What has happened to the missing people of Cloverleaf Summer Camp? Were they taken by someone or has something other worldly happened to them? Maybe someday there will be some answers.
Our lives were never our own Our families were in control
Gazing upon each other with glee Our families said our love could never be
So once we declared till death do us part We drank poison to stop our hearts
Forehead to forehead in a warm embrace In each other’s arms will be our resting place
