“One second, just give me a second! Not yet!”

My words echoed in the empty bathroom. I looked at the boy holding the knife to me. His eyes were wild, and his arms and legs contorted like he had an ocean of anguish.

He stopped and held the knife poised in place. It didn’t flicker or waiver as he pressed it into my flesh.

“You don’t want to do this, do you? What is it you are really looking for, huh? Killing me won’t solve anything.”

The sharp, cold edge pressed harder into my skin. “You’re nothing! You don’t deserve anything else,” he said to me. His face twisted in desperation. His breathing labored, the words coming out in a gasp.

“I know, I know... I can see it in your face. There’s a lot of pain in there. You hurt.”

I breathed out,” I hurt too.” I drew out the “I” to sound more emphatic and convincing. To take time and gather my thoughts.

“But is this really what you want to do? To end a life that hasn’t gone anywhere yet? I have so much I want to do, but I’ve been scared. So afraid. I didn’t want to fail.”

I looked into his eyes. They squinted, tried to see into me, see if I was serious with this. “You don’t do anything but waste space. You aren’t worth anything at all, and all you do is cause pain!” His words came out as a growl.

It wasn’t the first time I had heard words like this. They stung.

“I mean it! I’ll do better. There are things I want to do. PLEASE! Please let me try.” I lowered my eyes and my head fell forward. I whispered, “Please let me try.”

A moment passed. Then another. Sweat dripped down my brow and into my eye.

He pulled the knife back slowly, the flesh marked from how hard it had pressed in left behind; the skin lighter where the edge had pressed into my skin.

“Thank you,” it came out as a sigh. ”This time, I won’t let you down.”

Finally, he put the knife back in his pocket.

I looked back up into the mirror. “Thank you,” I said. “Thank you for one more chance.”

I pushed away from the sink, pulled my sleeve back down, and walked out of the bathroom and back to class.

Aidan woke up to the scratchy licking of a tongue on his face. Blinking to clear the sleep, he looked around and found himself lying on the ground in a verdant wood surrounded by tall trees. The fluffiest dark gray creature licking him hopped away and chirped a laugh. Nearby lay a beautiful young woman, curled up and snoring lightly. He could just make out the short, velvety stubs of her antlers.

What a birthday it had been.

The day before…

Aidan’s alarm blared out punctually at five. The obnoxious beeping that was part fire alarm, part police siren, caused him to bolt upright and smack it right out of the wall.

With a groaning sigh, he lay back down. It was Tuesday. Aidan hated Tuesdays. To be fair, he hated most every day. This particular day was shaping up to be worse than usual because it also happened to be his 21st birthday and the anniversary of his parent's accident.

He wallowed for a bit longer in bed but then pried himself up and went to have a light breakfast. Grabbing his only spoon and bowl from the sink, he ran some water and gave it a quick rinse; that was clean enough for him.

He glanced around the cramped studio apartment and noted the pile of laundry, clawed-up secondhand couch, and Xbox. Maybe it was time to grow up. He’s an adult now and should act like it.

After the bowl of peanut butter puffs, that is. Couldn’t waste food. That’s adult.

The last three years had been rough for Aidan. Family was the center of his life, and losing them devastated him. He was so close to graduation at the time and had more than enough credits, so he was able to get the school to grant his diploma early. The settlement money he received was enough to get him an apartment and let him live and go to college if he was frugal.

But he never went back to school. The days melded together into a blur as he drifted from the friends he did have. The melancholy was rooted quite deep.

He had changed physically, too. His body was more lithe than skinny now as he had taken to running. He could focus on the rhythm of his feet, and his music or podcasts were distractions from the malaise. His copper hair was unruly and longer than it ever had been, shaggy even.

He took a deep breath and decided he’d start growing up now.

An hour or so later, Aidan was cleaned up and dressed in his only clean clothes, a dark gray hoodie and some ripped jeans. He went down and took his Uber to the cemetery, stopping along the way to pick up flowers and a pint.

Rocky Road had always been his mom’s favorite.

The car pulled up to the entrance of Hollow Oaks, and Aidan asked the driver to stop at the gates. He wanted to take his time walking to their site. He looked at the gentle hills and the old headstones with a few gnarled, twisty trees and manicured hedges.

His parents were in the oldest section of the graveyard in a family plot, a short walk down the white limestone gravel path near the old forest where cemetery and wood mingled.

He crested the last rise and saw something out of place. In front of the headstone was a brown leather envelope. His forehead crinkled in confusion. He had been the only one at the funeral, and he didn’t know of anyone else who had ever visited.

Aidan stooped and set down the ice cream and flowers beside the stone and took up the leather holder. It was embossed in gilt letters straight out of a fantasy novel that wrapped in a circle around a stylized, broad tree with roots and was closed tight with leather laces.

He stood and craned his head, scanning for signs of anyone watching or cameras recording, but saw nothing.

Aidan gently opened and removed a parchment with brightly colored borders, flourishes, and illustrations of knights in gold on white chargers. He was surprised to see it addressed to him:

Aidan Duir, a charaid choir, Being this the day of your majority and being the sole heir of the Duir line, possessing the responsibilities and entitlements therein, you are bequeathed your legacy as a Squire of the Tuath.

You are hereby charged with bearing forth leaf and acorn of oak and presenting them to any member of the Sìdh at your earliest convenience.

Le fior deagh dùrachd Kiernen Mohan, Order of Ban Sith

Aidan read the letter three times.

“Nope, this can’t be real,” he muttered. His father had put him to bed as a boy on tales of the Dagda, Morrígan, and Lugh, so he recognized some of the references, but this was over the top. “Gotta be a prank.”

Aidan looked around again, ”Alright, ya asshole! Where are you? Come out and we can talk about your bad taste in jokes!”

Not a rustle. Aidan snorted and ground his teeth.

He took the second sheet, which was thicker and made of an animal hide. It was old. Really old. The paints had a faded permanence about them, and the pictures were more primitive.

There was a path marked on the hide. Starting at a tree, the path led through a mist to a hill surrounded by stones and bearing a dark opening. Three circles surrounded the hill, and the sun was setting in the distance. Primitive deer, intricate knots, and images of nature decorated the skin.

“Well, that’s less than helpful. Start at a tree and go to a hill with a cave.” He looked around,” If you’re gonna give me a joke of a quest, you could at least make the instructions useful!”

He looked at the map again, and a series of characters appeared in gold. They weren’t anything that he could read, but he heard the words as he looked at them:

Fealty to the oak and honor there, Traverse the misty paths without fear, To the mound crossing in between times Thrice round, entrance here.

Well, isn’t that nice, he thought, they even got it to rhyme in English. Nice effects though.

Aidan knelt at his parents’ grave and placed the flowers in the vase. Taking the ice cream, he spoke to his parents,” Hey Mom, Dad. I can’t tell you how much I miss you today. I made it! I’m an adult.”

This was so hard. “Some jerk left a package here with a joke you’d appreciate, Dad. It’s right out of one of your old stories. Tuatha and banshee and all.” He chuckled,” I’ve even been given a quest. Anyways. I miss you both so much. And I hope to make you proud; I’ve been pretty aimless, and ‘willful waste makes woeful want’, right Dad? I’m gonna go now, but I’ll be back soon. I love you both!”

Aidan turned with his head down and wiped away the tears rolling down his cheek. A gray flash brought his head up in a jerk.

“What was that?”

He went to the path and headed toward the exit when he saw the flash again. It was off towards one of the trees. When Aidan arrived, he saw a large, dark gray rabbit with fluffy fur and golden eyes. It didn’t seem scared of him at all.

“How’d you get here little guy?” He reached out towards it. “AAAHHHG YA Bastard!”

He sucked on his finger where the little thing had taken a chunk out and heard laughter.

Aidan spun about.

“Who’s there?”

“I didn’t give you permission to touch me boy.”

Very slowly, Aidan looked down. The rabbit was sitting on its back feet, looking up at him.

“I’ve lost my mind.” He closed his eyes and rubbed his temples.

“No, you haven’t lad. Believe what’s in front of your face.”

He looked down again,” OK then, I’ll play along. Who are you?”

“You may call me Arren.”

“Aaron, huh? Well, Aaron..”

“ARREN! Not Aye-ron!”

“Got it, got it. Arrrren,” at which the rabbit rolled its eyes,” who are you? Why are you here?”

“To make sure you don’t go off the path and because two people shorten the road.”

Aidan smiled. “My dad always said that. He had a lot of sayings.”

“Your da was a fair one. He and your mum are why I’m here now. I always repay my debts.” So saying, Arren gave a curt nod of his head.

“You knew my parents?”

“Of course, boy. You think I show myself to every weeping willow? They were fine. Mighty fine. And now it’s to you it’s fallen to take up their haft. So no more wasting about! No mornings sun lasts all day. Let’s be about our business.” Arren hopped off towards the great oak at the edge of the cemetery.

When Aidan didn’t move, Arren paused to look back, “Well, come on with you.”

“Where to? What’s this all about? I’m not following after a talking rabbit into the woods. I’m not Alice!”

“No, lad, you’re not. And I’m a Pùca, not a rabbit. You are Duir. One of the oaks of the Tuatha. It’s your blood. You have more in you than you know, and it will bring you through. Now then, do you want your legacy, or do you wish to go back and pretend this was all a dream, never reaching for what could be?”

Aidan looked at the path home, turned, and followed Arren.

Soon, the darkness shrouded us, hiding us from the hungry gazes of our predators.

There were sighs and harried glances all around as each member of the cast felt the tension leave their bodies. Opening nights were a bitch.

Jarvis leaned against the stone wall and surveyed the gaping maw of an entrance before him. His arms crossed and one finger tap tapping on his chin. Bushes, ferns and trees surrounded him. He had hiked for hours through the pine woods. Before him lay an improbable buried castle. Stone walls, paving stones made uneven over time and by vegetation. A trench or waterway leading into a wall with arch and portcullis and crenellations of all things. When he first started on this path it was the result of false courage and a desire to impress Mazie. She was always waxing poetic about romantic knights on quests of true love and he was smitten. Then the drunk down the bar piped up about a lost castle in the wood and the blue flower at the bottom. Mazie looked at him, ”Now that would be a quest worthy of a knight.” What was he to do. The only thing missing was bard singing in the background. Of course that’s when the jukebox started playing “I’m gonna be” by the Proclaimers. Freaking destiny. So now he leaned up against a stone wall in his jeans, Ariats and flannel looking into a dark, imposing tunnel in a buried castle right out of some damn fairy tale. All he had was a small khaki canvas pack of survival gear to get through this: a knife, flashlight, water bottle and paracord. “Stupid freckles. Stupid braids. And bloody stupid me,” he thought. Or maybe he said it out loud. He wasn’t sure right then. Right now his heart was pounding and his palms were sweaty. The damp, musty odor of the forest had been invigorating when he was still imagining this like a boy on a quest. Not now though, now the smells made him think of death and decay. His decay most likely. Jarvis bobbed his head a few times and chewed his lip, psyching himself up. “You got this. No problem,” he said out loud, for sure this time, shaking his head a little he continued. “Just go in through the pitch black archway. Down the little tunnel of doom. And bring back the flower I find in the fountain of death at the end. Easy peasy.” Now or never. He pushed off the wall and ambled towards the entrance, following the water channel. It was so much bigger the closer he got. At the entrance he pulled out the maglite he had bought for the occasion and flicked on the beam. “HELLO!!!” He cried out. Cuz that’s what you do when you are standing before a cavernous opening. A smile lit up his face as he listened to the echo. But then he heard something else. Screeches. Flapping. Scraping. Cries. Jarvis cried out in a voice pitched higher than he knew he could go and dropped to the ground. Arms covering his head, he made himself as small as he could and quivered as a swarm of bats flew out of the opening in a great wave. What seemed like minutes later they had passed and he climbed shakily to his feet. “Screw this.” Jarvis spun on his heel and marched back the way he came. But then he stopped. This was his chance. He wanted nothing more in this world than to be her knight. He steeled himself again and made his way back down and into the tunnel. His boots scraped along the stones and he could hear the trickle of the water as it flowed down the path. His light illuminated small swaths at a time as he swung it back and forth. And up. He knew that no one looked up in the movies. To his relief, there was nothing there. The tunnel seemed to go down for miles in front of him and the light was swallowed in the distance and in the twists and turns. Jarvis trudged on and finally came to a small natural cavern. He played his light around and saw a closed wooden doorway to the left and the trench of water continued down and to the right through a small, bricked hole. “Nice wooden doorway or tiny, uncomfortable hole?” The door was made of vertical planks and banded together in several spots. There was an iron handle on the right. And it was locked. Because of course it was. Jarvis put his shoulder into it and got it to give a little. He wasn’t a little guy and figured his muscles and his bulk could get him through. He propped his light on the ground facing the doorway. Taking a few steps back he rushed the door. CRACK Once more. He crashed hard into it and heaved feeling the door give way. He gripped the handle and pushed into the room. “Agghhhhh” He fell forward the same way as when you miss a step. By instinct, he grasped the handle with everything he had and held on to the ledge with his left foot. Praying for the first time in since he was a kid he levered himself back into the cavern and abruptly fell in a heap. “She better appreciate this.” Jarvis got back up after a brief rest and wiped the sweat from his face. He picked up the flashlight and shined it down into the room. “Huh, no bottom. Wonder how that works.” That left the tiny hole as the only option. Jarvis got on hands and knees in the water and shined his light through opening this time. The tunnel carried on for several feet and seemed to open up again. He crawled in and pushed his way through. Standing back up, he sloshed onwards. The only sounds were the echoes of splashing footsteps and the bubbling of the water. A slight breeze blew from below and carried a fresh aroma. It didn’t take long to find the source of the fresh air. The stream flowed into a large cave that glowed with its own soft light. Plants and vines were growing on almost every surface. Some of them monstrously huge. But most importantly, the stream led to a fountain at the base of the far wall. It was smaller than he thought it would be. In an alcove about 5 feet tall a small three layered fountain sat. It was made of white stone and seemed to be carved all out of one piece. Water bubbles up and out of a spout at the top where a bright azure blue flower grew. It had three long petals that grew up and then fanned out with a spray of golden stamens. Jarvis made his way over to the fountain being careful to avoid tripping on any of the vines or plants along the way. He looked around not trusting anything just yet and waited. Nothing happened. No traps. No beasts. No guardian. Slowly he reached out and plucked the flower. Then he cringed and held his breath. After a few moments he realized he was still breathing and alive. “I did it,” he whispered. “YYYYEESSSSS!” He fist pumped and jumped in his excitement. Coming down he landed on one of the vines and stumbled. The flower was beautiful. His foot slipped a bit and startled him out of his daze. Then it slipped again. Jarvis looked down and realized he wasn’t slipping, the vine had wrapped around his leg and started to pull. He pulled back. The vine gave a little and he breathed a sigh of relief. The next moment the vine snapped taut and pulled Jarvis off his feet. It started dragging him towards one of the giant plants. Jarvis looked up and saw the head of the massive plant turn towards him. It had to have been all of six feet tall and that big around. It was closed up with several great green leaves in a bulb shape. As he drew near though it opened to reveal jagged teeth all along the edges of each leaf. The interior was pink and red and undulated with each tug. The stench of writing meat wafted toward him and broke him from his stupor. Jarvis clawed for his pack but he was laying on it. With a lunge he flipped himself off and reached around to pull it close. He twisted until he could open the flap to reach inside for his knife. His Swiss Army knife with thirty-six attachments. Jarvis flipped one open. Flat head screw driver with bottle opener. Not gonna help. He tried again. Nail file and cleaner. He stared for a moment in awe at his luck. He was roughly pulled over a small rock and the thump made him focus. He pulled on one of the longer attachments and finally got the wood saw. Jarvis crunched up, pulling himself towards his trapped foot. He began to saw through the thick vine. The carnivorous creeper let out a howl of pain and the wound oozed thick mucous sap onto his leg. Jarvis cried out as it burned through his pants. The sap was acidic. He sawed faster as the plant pulled his leg into the air. Using the weight that now pulled down Jarvis was able to saw through quicker. As the lead bent its teeth towards him Jarvis managed to slice and rip through the final bit of vine. Falling back he tumbled to the side and kept to his feet. The acid stung but that only reinforced his urgency. Jarvis dashed to his pack and the flower. Grabbed up his fallen flash light and ran for the exit. Vines began to wake up all around him. Seeking him out. He leaped over the last remaining obstacles and headed up the stream. The journey back was much quicker as his adrenaline had not stopped.

“…and that’s how I ripped my pants and burned myself so badly.” Jarvis took a pull on his beer as he finished the tale. “Carnivorous plants and a secret underground castle? You’re sticking with that? I like all the stories but that’s all they were Jar. Stories. Besides, you know old Benny just likes to tell tales from his books and movies like they’re real.” Mazie looked at him in disbelief with raised eyebrows. “But I love that you would go to all that trouble and make that up just to be my knight in shining armor.” She leaned forward and gave him a kiss. Jarvis face went through every shade of red and his eyes opened wide in shock. Mazie smirked,” I’ll go settle up and maybe we can go have an adventure together.” “Ye-yeah that’s great.” Turning, a flash of color caught her eye. Laying in the bar top was a bright blue flower with golden stamen. She turned back to Jarvis, mouth agape. For just an instant, she swore he sat on the barstool in full armor. Beer bottle in hand.

Jonathan was not having it.

The stress of the day was just too much for him. He had been late waking up after hitting stop on his alarm instead of snooze. He hadn’t had time for breakfast and had to grab one of those nasty protein bars his sister ate after running. He left his computer in his bedroom when he ran out the door.

Thank god he remembered his backpack at all. He’d jammed a hoodie in there the other day and had been able to change out of the tee that stank of sleep sweat and filthy sheets.

Now he spilled his energy drink on the way to his comp lab. And his exasperation was reaching stratospheric heights.

The day had lasted forever and it was only 10 o’clock.

He sighed as he climbed the steps to the second floor and headed down the hall to the classroom.

Peeking through the narrow glass window in the door he felt his first relief at not being late. In fact, he was the first to arrive.

“That’s more like it,” he muttered.

Taking up his seat in the back corner he pulled out his book and journal and started in on his homework.

Twenty minutes passed. Confused at being the only one still in the class he scowled at the clock and ambled out to the hall to take a look.

Ghost town.

There wasn’t a soul in sight. Jonathan leaned back against the door and, with a puzzled look at his watch, he saw something that made his heart stop. It was Friday.

“Dang it! Dangitdangitdangitdangit DANG IT!” The screech echoing in the empty corridor. Jonathan took off at a sprint for the stairs, leaving his things behind in his haste.

Jonathan was breathing hard as he exited the Camden Building and hustled to the concert hall. His face grew more and more pale and his breathing became ragged as he saw that no one was walking around. “Nonononono I can’t be the last one here. I can’t I can’t I can’t.”

He ripped the doors open and tore through the entryway. Reaching the doors to the hall he stopped and took a breath.

“I’ll slip in quietly and no one will notice I’m last. It isn’t too late.”

Jonathan leaned into the door as if by his own weight he could open it quietly and not let any light in. He pulled it slowly, just enough to squeeze his slim torso through.

The dividing curtains had been pulled and he could slip in unnoticed. He would have a chance at not being called out.

Sliding through a gap, Jonathan stopped. A cold sweat broke out on his face and the blood in his veins turned to ice.

He was too late.

Every single person in the auditorium had already put on black wolf masks. On stage, the dean wore his white linen suit and had donned a solid white faceless mask. His head was down so he hadn’t seen Jonathan. None of the other students had turned to see him enter.

Jonathan knew he only had one chance. He would have to run now before they had assigned him as the goat. If another was chosen he would be free until the next year.

As he turned to go, the dean looked up and saw him.

“You are all very fortunate. This year it seems we have a volunteer burden bearer,” the dean addressed the assembly.

Every head turned in Jonathan’s direction.

The master turned towards Jonathan. “Thank you for your sacrifice. May you bear it well. Now then. Your time is up. Better run!” The last of it came out as a growl and the gathered students burst into a frenzy of howls and cries.

Jonathan turned and ran.

Snoring came from the back of the small house. Behind piles of opened books, bubbling beakers, scales of multihued powders and small self-heating pots filled with acrid liquids a tuft of bright blonde hair rose and fell to the rhythm of deep sleep. “Physik Anderson! Are you there Physik?” a deep baritone sing-songed from outside. No answer was forthcoming from the abode, just a gentle wafting of blue smoke raising from the chimney. “KAI! I know you are there! You will be late!” Kai awoke with a snort and rubbed crust out of his eyes. “I’m coming Poul. I’m coming.” A tall, thin man in the hermetical robes of a Physik Magus I opened the door, his loafers and pant legs showing beneath. He held in his spindly fingers a vial half full of a clear, noxious syrup. He welcomed the rotund little man in. “Come in. Come in. Time enough to break fast. Help me grab my portmanteau and then we will be off.” He drained the vial in a gulp. “Kai?” Poul inquired, his large bushy eyebrows raised high,” what in the holy pantheon was that? Do you even know?” “This? Not quite. I believe I was attempting to distill the thyroid of an amarok and found the fumes to be most invigorating. The pure essence seems able to clear the head and liven the muscles!” “Oh Kai, whatever possesses to you to do these things. We must be off right away. Your presentation to the Circle was difficult to arrange. Much is at stake. They do not care for you Kai. You are too… too erratic for their tastes. And you have none of the prestige of Leonides family to protect you. They have it out for you. Let us not give them any more reasons to doubt you.” Poul stood and grabbed a handle of the trunk and looked askance at Kai. With an exaggerated sigh he stepped over and helped his friend to the awaiting carriage and headed to the Agora Magus.

————-

Kai stood in the center of the stone amphitheater known as the Agora Magus and prepared to defend his methodology. He brought out a basin to hold Bimini waters and a small jade bowl of green vitriol. He took out a stone dagger and inscribed the hermetical symbols of Hebe on a prepared vellum scroll. Then he waited for the stands to fill. A nasal voice called out, “What farce is this Kai? Your man Flickwater has made much of your discoveries.” Kai looked at the man. Argus Leonides was tall and wore a deep purple robe, his expensive Minotaur leather wingtips peaking out. The hem of his robe was embroidered in gold thread with symbols of the noble metals. Argus had his head tilted back to look at Kai. “Argus,” he acknowledged. “Be patient. You will see today, as will all magi, that my father was unrighteously persecuted. I only await my patient.” “This will be good. Long have I waited to see the Anderson line stricken. And here comes the instrument by which you will be judged.” Argos looked to the entrance where Poul had arrived with two porters using a sheet to carry a writhing bundle to the table with Kai’s preparations. Beside them were two Stygian guards all in black and carrying heavy pole axes. Kai smiled. “Magi! Esteemed Physiks! Welcome today. The Andersons have long been ostracized forced to practice medicine in the hinterlands. But today I will demonstrate that has been unjust. Today I will show that the methods of myself and my father belong among the hermetical society.” Kai walked about the circle and looked at each of the attending magi. He turned, strode to the table and placed his hands beside the bundle. “Today you will see a miracle.” He removed the sheet. The gathered men gasped and turned away. Before them was one of the herostratus. A criminal who, beyond all reason, had survived his punishment. His skin was twisted and appeared to have been melted and ripped away. His nose had been cut off and his limbs were twisted where they had healed after being broken and unset. His hair was stringy and patchy on his spotted head. “Today you will see this man made whole!” Cries of foul arose. “He’s a murderer! No! No!” Kai basked in their outrage. Poul rushed to Kai’s side. “This is too much Kai. You have never performed this rite on such a grotesque before.” “How better to show that it works my friend. They will never believe the curing of such small things like curing pox or spots. With this, they will believe.” Kai began to murmur in the old tongue. He took the vellum and placed it on the man’s chest where he took the stone dagger and cut through the symbols into the flesh below. Kai took the basin of Bimini water and poured it into the man’s mouth and the green vitriol he spread into the blood and symbols. Now was the final and most difficult step. Kai needed to infuse enough of his vital aura to cause the elements to circulate and restore the man without pulling out all of his vitality. Kai placed his hands upon the man’s mouth and chest. The reaction was immediate and intense. Both of their bodies spasmed as energy coursed through their spiritual channels. A guttural scream tore from Kai’s mouth as he was drained. Poul charged and wrestled the men apart. Kai wept as he slowly regained his senses. The man on the table had ceased his spasms and a green glow surrounded him. The theater grew silent as they heard the snapping of bones and watched his arms and legs reset themselves. His skin flowed like liquid and became smooth again. Slowly he stood before the magi. “Yes!” Kai exulted. He stepped forward, raised his arms and turned to the assembly. It wasn’t over. Behind him the man had risen. With a cry he arched his back. His legs and arms continued to grow to monstrous portions and his skin pooled around about him. The reaction would not stop. His hair quickly grew to a meter then two. The nails of his fingers and toes flowed into talons and curled back on themselves. He began to shake and writhe. All at once, the man’s skin stopped pooling as fluid filled him. His skin grew taught as a drum. Kai watched in horror as his patient burst apart and his organs poured onto the stone plaza. Kai fell to his knees and put his head in his hands. He felt the cold pressure of the headsman’s axe in his final moment.

The glossy black Range Rover pulled down along the private drive and stopped before a rusted wrought iron gate. Elliot Leclerc stepped out of the vehicle and paused to take in his surroundings before stepping through the gate onto the walkway before him. The path to the house was rough with loose gravel and rocks, weeds and brush growing in the way, so that Elliot had to be careful not to turn his ankle or lose his way entirely as he made his way from the front gates. He had been pleased to be chosen to represent his family in this matter. His grandfather had received the invitation to renew an old agreement between their families. Elliot had expected the Bowers old estate would be grand and majestic, but was surprised at the state of ruin it had fallen to. Uncared for and dead weeping willows, magnolia and rotting vegetation abounded. The perimeter fence and road leading to the manse was well maintained and kept up, leading him to believe the summons had been in good faith. But passing these into the decrepit grounds, his sense of foreboding quickly rose. The gray clouds overhead and tingle of electricity in the air doing nothing to ease him. Elliot wondered if this was truly the staunchest ally of his family and source of their wealth. He trudged on, scuffing his oxfords in the wet gravel and getting his chinos caught on a thorn. “Well dammit,” he breathed. This was not how he wanted to present himself as the scion of the Leclerc family. He was here to represent their interests and it wouldn’t do to present weakness in any form. They had not renewed ties with their enigmatic benefactors for three generations and upon his graduation, as the firstborn son, it had fallen to him to reforge the alliance. Minutes later he stood in a circular drive, staring at a once magnificent house. Now falling into disrepair, Elliot took note of the faded and cracking paint, the hanging shutter, and out-of-control ivy. It was dark with very little light shining through. Only some flickering as if old lanterns. He steeled himself with a deep breath and walked up the porch to knock at the front door. The dark iron knocker made a hollow, booming noise. Elliot took a step back from the door to wait. Moments later the door opened to reveal a gaunt, aged man in a faded, threadbare black suit. He had lanky gray hair and a mean glint in his eyes. “Mr. Leclerc, you are expected.” His breath was stale and Elliot suppressed an involuntary shudder. “Thank you…” “I am Isaac, sir.” “Ur yes. Thank you Isaac.” “Follow me sir. Master Benjamin and the others are here and await you in the dining room.” Elliot followed him into the house. The inside was as worn and aging as the exterior with hardly any light; cold and silent as a tomb. Their footsteps echoed on the marble flooring, announcing them before they arrived. Isaac threw open the doors to the dining room giving Elliot his first sight of the Barrows family. “At last!” boomed a voice dripping in Southern charm. Benjamin Barrows, a pale giant of a man stood at the head of a long dining table holding covered dishes and elaborate place settings. Candelabra lit the room in a flickering warmth that did nothing for the chill in Eliot’s bones. Seated in high back chairs at the table were a sideshow’s assortment of guests. The tall man who spoke was white as bone and showed to have much muscle beneath his plantation suit. Next to him was a bony woman in a black taffeta dress complete with black pillbox hat and veil. A rotund man wearing only a stained undershirt and suspenders with his meaty arms laid out before him on the table and a glare to his piggy eyes. A couple sat across from him. The man and woman were both gaunt and gray with long, sallow faces. The last place was held by a young appearing woman in a pure white wedding dress. She sat with gloved hands resting in her lap and an opaque veil shadowing her face. “Mr. Elliot, we have waited so long for this day. Yes so very long. When the Leclerc line would honor their pledge and reunite with the Barrows. Sit. Be seated and join us.” Elliot looked around the table taking note of the odd gathering and took the only remaining seat at the opposite end of the table from Mr. Barrows. The silence stretched as those gathered gazed at Elliot.
He coughed and stood,” My grandfather sends his regards by me and wishes me to convey the desire to continue as we have done. May our families continue to strengthen one another and grow.” With that he sat back down. Those were the only words he was told to convey and the remainder was up to the Barrows. Elliot’s grandfather had let him know in no uncertain terms that he was to insure the relationship endured, no matter the cost. A predatory gleam entered Benjamin’s eyes on hearing this. “He sends you to renew our pledge,” he said as he stood and began to walk around the table. “This is wonderful. Young, fresh blood to instill vigor and life into a withered vine.” Elliot looked around and noticed the change in the atmosphere. Where there had been malicious looks there was now delight. “Did your grandfather tell you of our pact? How we give you the power to grow and build your empire?” The candelabra flared as Benjamin’s voice grew through this speech but now dropped to a whisper still heard throughout the room. “Do you know the demands you now fulfill?” Elliott swallowed, trepidation growing as the room seemed to darken and the light fade. “You take care of our competition and provide us with insight.” Benjamin let out a wild laugh,” Yes! Yes we do. We take care and provide. But our power grows weak and needs to be renewed, the pact fulfilled.” Benjamin gestured to the bride. “As such, you will now join us. My daughter Liselle and you will join in union. You will bring strength to our line again. And she will provide the power for a new generation.” Elliot knocked over his chair as he stood suddenly at the pronouncement. “Marriage? I think there is a misunderstanding.” Benjamin laughed again,” Why who said anything about matrimony?” Elliot turned and looked at Liselle who was removing her veil. Beneath was the brown husk of a creature with wrinkled, papery skin. Elliot let out a cry as Liselle lept at him and sank her teeth into his throat. Benjamin continued to laugh as the members of his house partook of their feast. Outside the lights over the well kept paths bloomed brighter, shining light on the stately old mansion. It gleamed white as if constructed only that day, and the crickets chirped among the beautiful trees and ponds of the Barrow estate.

Cody was looking forward to tonight. This was his first party in high school with no parents or sitters and he was almost bouncing up and down trying to will the clock forward.

His mom poked her head into his room,”Are you really going to that thing tonight? You know they aren’t like us.”

“Yes Mom,” he sighed, l finally have people to hang out with who are my friends.”

“I hope you know what you are doing. People like them don’t have friends like us,” she hissed and closed his door, leaving him to get ready.

He’d gone over what he was wearing and snapped it to Brent to make sure he didn’t look like an idiot. He’d brushed his teeth twice in case he got close to some of the girls. No reason to screw up tonight because he smelled like garlic chicken.

“Mom, I’m headed over to Brent’s!”

There was a little time til the party, but he wasn’t waiting anymore. He grabbed his keys to the ‘94 Civic he’d been passed down when his dad left and went to meet up with his friends.

Cody’s life hadn’t been the easiest and making friends wasn’t natural to him. This was his junior year and he’d finally made some decent friends. He still had some other issues though. His family was different. They weren’t a rich family like Brent’s of Jason’. They weren’t a nuclear family with mom and dad and two kids and a dog with a grassy backyard. Their family had lots of issues no one even knew about.

Cody worked hard to have decent clothes instead of the ripped up hand me downs he usually got. He was sick of seconds and family leftovers.

Driving over, he got more nervous as the trees gave way and the yards went from overgrown to manicured and the streets lost their potholes. He pulled up outside Brent’s and saw Jason’s BMW sitting in the driveway and parked on the street before heading up to the door.

The door opened as he walked up and Brent’s mom was there. “Hello Mrs. Jensen.”

“Oh, hello Cody,” she sniffed,” are you going with the boys tonight? I didn’t know you knew Miranda.” He felt her eyes judging his clothes from a big box store instead of her boutiques.

“Yes ma’am. I have a couple of classes together her and Jenna and she asked me to come along with Brent.”

“Well he and Jason are finishing up. You know where his room is.”

He headed up the stairs and went into Brent’s room.

“Jeez dude! How much cologne did you use?” Was the first thing he heard walking in.

“Just a couple of spritzes. Don’t be extra.”

They were going at it like usual and Cody fell into a state of ease.

——

Miranda’s house, no her mansion, was crazy. The music was loud and everywhere with the sound wired through each room and even out back by the pool. There had to be over fifty or sixty kids there and it was wall to wall energy.

Cody was feeling good, but he was looking for Jenna. Miranda’s cousin was his crush and he was hoping to move things up a notch tonight.

Looking around he saw Jason waving him over.

“Hey, have you seen Jenna? She looks amazing tonight.”

Cody blushed. He’d told Jason and Brent about liking her and they hadn’t let up.

“I’ve been looking. But I’m keeping my options open,” he lied.

Jason laughed,”Flexing? I like it.” He pointed outside, “She’s by the pool.”

Cody’s eyes got wide and his chest puffed out as he calmed himself down. No use blowing this.

“Go get ‘em tiger!”

He flipped Jason off and walked outside looking for her. She was on the other side of the pool and he psyched himself up to go over. She looked in at Cody’s direction and gave a huge smile. That really gave him what he needed to go up to her.

“Hey Jenna.” He said as he walked around the metal pool furniture.

“Oh hey Cody. I didn’t know you were coming,” she said and looked over his shoulder.

“Uh yeah, I uh wanted to come and see if you..”

That was when Cody felt the hand on his shoulder.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

Noah was the captain of varsity basketball and one of the most popular guys.

“Are you really trying to talk to her? Your broke ass couldn’t afford to take her to McDonald’s. Get your ass out of here.”

He shoved Cody.

The world went silent as his breathing ratcheted up.

Noah turned away from him and looked at Jenna. “Hey babe you ready to get out of here?”

Cody looked around. Across the pool Jason and Brent had their phones out and were recording him. Laughing. Those assholes were laughing.

He looked at Jenna. “Jason said you were looking for me.”

It sounded lame even to him.

She looked at him and her eyes went wide and her mouth opened as she pointed and laughed in his face.

“You? Why would I be looking for you?”

Noah smirked and with a mean chuckle pushed Cody back again.

“I told you to get out of here. Walk your ass home.”

Cody stumbled back against the table. He saw a few bottles and picked one up.

“You don’t want to do that man,” Noah said as he looked down at Cody.

Rage flared up inside of him. Cody screamed and swung the bottle. Noah dodged easily and lashed out with a wicked punch to Cody’s face. He went to his knee and Noah swung again knocking him into the pool.

Cody hit his head on the lip as he went in and began to lose consciousness. The laughs got louder as they pointed and recorded him sinking to the bottom of the pool.

His head hit bottom and he felt himself going under.

Waiting.

No one was diving in to save him.

His vision faded to black.

As the last minutes passed by his eyes turned to red. They had all been in on it. Jason, Brent, Miranda all of them.

The anger he’d kept inside for so long boiled out. His eyes closed and his muscles spasmed.

A primal scream ushered forth from the depths of his soul as claws grew where his fingers had been. His muscles bulged and bones cracked as his true family heritage took over.

Cody leapt out of the pool and landed by Noah who now looked up into Cody’s black eyes. Cody lashed out with a vicious swipe, opening Noah’s throat in geyser of hot blood. Some landed on Cody’s elongated face and his younger flicked out to taste it.

“Mmmmm sooooo goood.”

The breathy words broke the tension. Jenna screamed and Cody casually punched through her chest cutting off the noise.

More screams came from around the pool but hadn’t made it to the house as the music was still blaring. Cody turned and looked at Jason and Brent; their eyes wide and mouths agape with phones still up and streaming.

Cody dashed and jumped over the pool landing before them. Their bodies shook uncontrollably as Cody reached out to pick one of them up in each paw.

“Yoooouuuu lllliiiieeeddd,” the changes to his face making the words come out in snarls and gasps.

He bit into Jason and squeezed Brent breaking his neck.

The screams turned to wails. And the pulsating music finally came to a stop. Dozens of eyes were focused on him now and in the distance, sirens. Someone had already called the cops.

Cody knew this neighborhood was rich and the police wouldn’t waste any time getting there. He dashed across the years and down the street seeking darkness and a way back home.

The minutes dragged on and he made it to the woods around town.

Cody hunkered down and took a few minutes to gather his wits. Slowly he began to make his way home.

When Cody made it to the trees near him and his mom’s trailer he could make out the flashing lights of the police cars pulling up. He keeps forward slowly and stopped when he was close enough to hear.

The cops got out and his mom was banging out the door at the same time.

The first policeman, a large and with close cropped hair, pulled out his firearm, “That’s close enough! Where’s Cody?”

Cody tensed. His new body let him smell the sweat coming off the big man.

“I haven’t seen him all night. He took off and went over to that boy Brent Jensen’s house to go to some party tonight. I told him not to go.” She closed her robe around her more tightly.

“Ma’am, we need to find him. Are you sure he isn’t here?” His gun was now coming up to a ready position. His arms quivering and tense. The second officer now out of the car and pulling his weapon as well.

She sniffed, “I already told you I haven’t seen him! Now what’s the boy done to get you so riled?” She sniffed again.

“Several of the kids at the party were hurt or killed tonight and they are all saying it was Cody that did it. Now, I’m asking one last time, where is he?” He raised his gun a little more.

“Nnoooo!!” Growled Cody.

The officer turned.

“Well damnit,” his mother said quietly.

A squelching, ripping sound followed by a deep growl came from her. Cody’s eyes bugged out as she changed in front of him.

The officer fired at her point blank. Her body shook with the impacts but didn’t slow her down as she grabbed him and tore into throat. He kept firing as she ripped and clawed his body. They fell together in a heap.

Cody screamed again.

He didn’t hesitate as the second officer started to fire. He charged and grabbed the man. He lifted him over his head and smashed him through the windshield and then into the hood over and over.

He kept smashing him until he felt a soft touch.

“Cody, it’s over baby. Come on. We gotta get moving. I knew that party was a bad thing for us. We are just too different for these folk.”

Cody dropped the body and fell to his knees. His body shrank and bones popped. Sobbing, he slowly got up and went with his mother.

Driving, I was nervous. This wasn’t going to be easy at all.

In fact, I had been putting this off for far too long. I just hadn’t ever had the balls to come and say what needed to be said; to do what I had procrastinated for too much time. It only made it that much harder.

I pulled through the gates and drove along the winding road through grassy, tree lined hills. Finally pulling up, I gripped the steering wheel and pulled on my reserves of courage. The ones I had been saving up by not doing this for years.

I looked out the window and started to hyperventilate a little. This was so difficult for me. I turned and reached for the flask I had put in the glovebox just in case. Taking a quick pull I wheezed and coughed as it burned down my throat. God, now I remembered why I never drank.

I got out of the car slowly and walked over to the black, wrought bench and sat down.

“It’s time I get some things off of my chest,” I practiced. “And this time you’ll have to listen to me.”

Yup. I could do this.

I got up and began my condemned man’s walk to where she waited; shoulders down and head drooping. A shuffling, tortuous pace.

Finally I stopped.

“Hello.”

“It’s been a while. I know. I know. I said I wouldn’t stay away and would visit more often. But it’s so difficult. It hurts. You always remind me of everything I didn’t do. And all the things I DID do but not good enough.”

Breathe I told myself.

“I know you don’t do that on purpose. It just happens. The boys are fine. Jessup is focused on his basketball. And he’s talking more. And Marco is actually passing in all of his classes. This year he’s finally focused on his studies and not just on twitch and games.”

“It hasn’t been easy. I never feel like I’m doing it right.”

Another pause as I work up to my real speech.

“Do you know I think I can burn water? Jess finally started helping with the cooking since all I could make without screwing it up was pb&j.”

I turned and walked a few steps away. Looking up into the trees I closed my eyes and gritted.

I spun; threw out my and pointed accusingly, melodramatically.

“You shouldn’t have gone when you did. I told you Bri. We needed you. You were our rock and the one that steadied the boat. Schedules and dinners and driving and picking up and all the little things that are glue. It was you. You don’t just get to disappear from all that and then still condemn me.”

“Agghhh!!! It makes me so mad. Bri you just make me mad and then now you are silent. Accusing. Like it’s my fault. But it isn’t! I’m doing everything I can and I can’t keep going on with this judgement hanging over me. It’s through. I’m through.”

I was getting worked up. Ready to really lay into her.

But then I looked down.

“Bri, you said it was forever. We were forever. I need you now more than I ever have and it’s just not working. I keep reaching for that place. And it’s cold and it hurts.”

Phew I breathed out. Almost through.

“It’s empty and I can’t keep being empty. I love you. I’m leaving. I’m taking the boys and moving back to be near my family. What little there is left.”

“I’m starting over. I’ve got a job lined up and I think it will be good for the boys to have a fresh start.”

I looked at her.

“Don’t be that way.”

I grimaced as a pain gripped my heart.

“You knew this was coming and so did I.”

I reached out and placed my hand on the head of the angel standing guard. Reading the words there:

                    Brianna Jolene Mikkelson
   August 13, 1987 - December 22, 2020

Beloved wife, mother and daughter. Loved like no other. Our heart goes with you. You will be missed. Rest in peace.

“I love you but I am moving on. My heart must find rest and I know that I must let you have your peace.”

I kissed her stone and cried. Wept as a torrent of emotions that had festered and swirled within me found release. Wanting to hold on, to lay there and sink into the soil and be with her forever.

Spent, I got to my knees. With one last wracking breath I climbed to my feet.

“I miss you. But I promise the boys and I will be fine.”

I leaned down and kissed her stone one last time then turned and slowly walked away.

“Holy shit!!”

Ben looked back at the shoreline and heaved a sigh of relief.

“That was NUTS.”

Looking back he saw the bushes rustling and could hear the angry screams of his pursuers. Ben took a moment to collect himself and take stock of his situation. He had a backpack with paracord, small hatchet multitool, water purification tablets, the last little bits of his remaining jerky, and various other survival necessities. At his feet lay a spent tranquilizer gun and his prize all wrapped up in a heavy canvas bag, sleeping peacefully.

The screams came from shore again and Ben smiled knowing he was safe for the time being. Sitting back with the paddle in his hands he sighed deeply and began to chuckle at the audacity of what he had accomplished.

A few minutes later he leaned forward to open the bag and look at his prize. He gingerly opened the bag and peaked in at the large, leathery shell of a large egg.

“They’re never going to believe me without you little guy. Gotta get you home and organize an expedition back,” I said as I contemplated a bright future.

Screams broke out to his right as Ben began to slowly paddle down the river towards what he hoped was the way out of this crazy place. He drifted off into musings of what had brought him to this place.

Ben was a cryptozoologist who had been mocked mercilessly for years. It had begun when he was a teenager at his grandfathers trailer in the desserts of New Mexico.

One night while sleeping outside to get away from the stench of alcohol and old people he had his first encounter with a creature that sparked a fire in his soul. In the creosote he witnessed heard one his family’s cattle make a wounded cry. There he saw a dog sized hairless creature with black eyes and sharp teeth, its bloody muzzle buried in the flesh of the cow. He cried out and startled the animal. His grandpa heard him and came busting out with a shotgun he promptly fired while screaming, “Damn Goat Suckers!!”

“Goat suckers?” Ben had asked.

“Chupacabra boy, damned nuisance.”

With that he was hooked. He had studied legends, myths, folk lore, creepy pasta. You name it and Ben had sought after the esoteric knowledge that would bring him closer to the mysteries of the lost creatures.

After many years, Ben discovered several stories that led him to a far corner of the Devils Sea or, as it was also known, the Devils Triangle; an area of missing ships and airplanes. Where unnatural sightings had been reported and no sane captain would take his ship.

He wrangled passage on a merchant marine ship and from there arranged to be dropped as near the triangle as he could get with his ocean kayak. He was willing to risk everything.

And he was right.

Ben paddled for two days until reaching an area of unnatural calm. The skies here were unnaturally cloudy and fog seemed to fill the area in great rifts which created primordial canyons and illusory passages.

He had a marine gps connected via satellite uplink and was nearing the location his research had assured him was the basis of many lost ships and missing aircraft when the maps and directions… spasmed and then blinked out.

He pulled out his compass and headed in the north westerly direction he had laid out, determined to continue. But when Ben looked at the compass again it said he was headed east. He adjust course several times and continued to be redirected by his faulty compass when he realized he was right where he wanted to be.

The only problem was that there was nothing here. No islands. No vortex. Nothing, and no way to know how to get out without a direction. Lost in the endless miasma of fog.

Ben paddled and calmed himself. Assured of the knowledge he was on the right track and with a few days supply of food and water, he continued on.

The days passed and Ben despaired as those rations dwindled. Losing consciousness, he drifted and slept til he realized he wasn’t moving any longer. Rousing himself, Ben got up and stepped foot onto a pebbly beach.

“I did it.”

He got his equipment and quickly set up a base camp and restocked his water. Food was found in the form of fruits and tubers growing in the area as well as plentiful fish in the cove he had washed up in.

He explored heavily and spent weeks searching for anything, any sign of humans. Instead he found he had stumbled upon the fabled lost world of dinosaurs and lumbering megatherium.

Ben determined to take home a sample and mourn an expedition back to cement his place in history. Having stolen an egg from one of the giant lizards, like no dinosaur he had ever seen. And now he was finally on his way back home.

Just ahead he could make out the curve a the river through some shallows leading to the sea.

Suddenly a screech from the air shook him from his daydream. An answering cry from the shore brought him to high alert. Two of the great lizards broke from the brush and charged forward towards the shallows.

Ben paddled for all he was worth. The current carrying him along and helping him to make up for his carelessness. He watched as the two creatures raced to meet him and, with a desperate burst, Ben outpaced them. He fairly flew around the curve and into the bay leading to his freedom.

Days passed floating on the placid. Ben used every trick he knew to gather water and keep himself going. He was starving and the thirst pulled at him. Draining away every vestige of control he had left when he broke through the fog and found himself in the wider sea and out of the triangle. But there were no ships in sight.

Ben oriented himself toward the nearest islands and shipping lanes he could remember, hoping he wasn’t mistaken. Another day passed. He became gripped in delusion, hearing screams and cries. Hunger shaking his broken body. Thinking himself lost and starving, he knew he had only one hope left. With that he opened the canvas bag and took out his prize.

Weeping, Ben broke the egg open to have his final meal.