“Come on Jen, it’ll be fun, what are you scared of?” Sharron teased as she walked backwards down the dark lane, followed closely by Shawn.

“Sharron, I don’t think that this is a good idea. It’s really dark, what if something happens.” Jennifer whined not wanting to lose face in front of Shawn. He was her first crush and she was loath to appear weak in his eyes. Unfortunately Sharron was a lot braver than Jennifer ever was.

“Okay, we don’t have to go into the dark, scary country. We could just hang around in the town.” Sharron smiled as she placed her hands on her hip and made no move to leave the path.

Jennifer sighed, she knew that this was going to end badly, but she couldn’t show her fear. So she followed Sharron onto the gravel path that lead around a massive lake. This was on the outskirts of a small town, she had lived in this town all her life and never ventured as far afield as this lake before, and to do so for the first time at night was not something that she relished in.

Jennifer crept nervously onto the path, feeling the stones shift under her weight, making way too much noise for her to be comfortable with. Shawn smiled at her, a gleam of something in his eyes; she thought that he was just excited to be doing something dangerous. Shawn was the new kid in school, he had started last week and Sharron had lost no time in getting him on side. It was amazing to Jennifer that Sharron could be so ballsy in her attitude, she even argued with the teachers on a regular basis. 

The sun was long gone from the sky when they started on their travel around the lake, yet there were still lots of life in the place, perhaps more so after dark. The breeze rushed through the long reeds, creating ghostly whispers in the night. Everything was covered in a cloak of shadow, casting an eerie spell over all that seemed so normal in the light of the sun. Jennifer looked around her, peering close into the shadowy landscape looking for any abnormality that could justify her unease. Sharron marched on ahead, up the path, like a cat, she was so graceful in the half light. Her feet making nary a noise on the ever shifting gravel. The trees swayed in the breeze, the water fowl slept in the long reeds, and the grass gave of the scent of the forgotten sun. The moon was full, yet it seemed to give off little light. Shawn walked beside Jennifer, shuffling his feet, making more noise than he should have. 

They walked in silence for a while, deeper into the wilderness, removed from society as they venture on. It was getting colder; Jennifer pulled her jacket tighter around herself, huddling into its warmth. Sharron leapt over a fallen tree, her movements ethereal in the darkness. She looked like an angel, the soft light refracting off her platinum blonde hair, casting off in a thousand colours. She was truly beautiful, and in this light her beauty was accentuated, seemingly magnified. Jennifer had always been jealous of her friend, the way that she could move, and the way that she could wear a shirt. 

Jennifer slipped on a lose rock and started to fall, Shawn grabbed her around the waist and pulled her close to him, cuddling her into his warmth. “Careful there, you don’t want to break something.” He smiled at her and she smiled back, embarrassed.  

“Thanks.” She blushed, hoping that the weak light would shield her from his scrutiny. She was smitten with this boy. He was confident and strong; she wanted his arms around her, pulling her close, kissing her neck as he ran his teeth over her skin. Her blush became hotter as her thoughts drifted. She looked away and disentangled herself from his arms. 

They followed Sharron along the path in silence, then Sharron let out a little yelp, and they all came to a sudden halt. “Let’s sit here for a while.” Sharron veered off the path to a glade, a small clearing in the trees, complete with a pond and a circle of stones around a large flat table-like stone.

“Great idea Sharron.” Shawn beamed at her, a full smile, showing off all his perfectly white teeth. Jennifer’s mind started to wander again as she looked at him, her defences shattering. It was strange that she was so reluctant at first to come to this place, she was so comfortable now, the darkness that had seemed so confining was now bright and seductive. She let the feeling of the moons light infuse her as she sat down on one of the little stones. Sharron sat down next to her and removed her thin jacket, seeming to relish in the fresh air as she breathed deeply. Shawn started to walk in a wide circle around the stones, muttering to himself and crouching down, Jennifer was too relaxed to bother him. Suddenly there was a fire blazing on the large flat stone in the middle of the circle. Shawn rubbed his hands together and smiled widely, a little too widely, but Jennifer brushed this off as a trick of the light.

Jennifer smiled deep into the fire relaxing as Shawn began to speak in lyrics, almost singing. She listened hard, trying to hear the words of his song.

Fear turns stale, leading to safety

Body grown weak, eyes grown weary

Imagery turns to flights of fancy

Hear me now the words I say

Sinking deep into the ground

Flying up above the cloud

Cannot move, cannot speak

With this cast, I spell the weak

The words bleed together, making no sense, Jennifer strained to hear him, to understand. All was silent as she found herself lying on the stone. Her eyes fluttering as she tried to regain herself. She glanced at Sharron, to find her asleep on her own stone, snoring soundly as she slept. Nothing was making sense. This was wrong, what was happening to her.

Shawn was standing by the fire, stoking the flames with his bare hand as he spoke into the leaping inferno. Talking to some-one, some-one out of reach or sight, Jennifer groaned as she willed her body to move. It was way more difficult than it should have been, Shawn walked towards Sharron, still smiling that weird, elongated smile. Jennifer tried to rise up, to stop him, but it all happened so fast, Shawn plunged his hand into Sharron’s chest and ripped out her still beating heart. Sharron screamed a chocked cry as she convulsed once and stilled. Her blanked stare fixed on the silver moon high above. 

Shawn returned to the blazing fire in the centre of the stone circle, Jennifer watched as he raised the heart high into the air, the blood dripping down his forearm as he yelled into the night.

Beating heart cast to flame

Awaken he that has no name

Memories of slaughter past

Come to fore, recalled at last

Bring to me the one I seek

I gift to you, blood of the meek

The fire turned into a raging inferno as Shawn tossed the heart onto the burning wood. Jennifer’s eyes rolled back into her skull as she saw Shawn advancing on her. She felt the sharp tug on her scalp as he grabbed her by the hair. Part of her was terrified by him, the other part told her that this was just a dream, that she had fallen asleep by the fire, that none of this was real. Shawn pulled her close to the fire, grasping her hair with preternatural strength as he held her fast.

Virgin purity, this vessel contains

Full of life the soul remains

I gift her essence onto you

Grant my wish, find your way through

I summon now the nameless one

I call to him, his only son

Shawn lifted her up into the air and forcibly threw her into the flame. Jennifer screamed as the fire licked at her face, her body writhing in pain as the flame ate her flesh. Her mouth ran dry and hot as she breathed in the flames that sot to burn her from the outside in and the inside out. Her hair long gone she wailed into the sky, her teeth radiated the heat of a thousand suns blistering her cheeks. She screamed her last as the fire ate away her nerves, dulling her pain receptors. The next was blessed darkness as the flames turned blue and she was bathed in cold. Her mind was not her own as she stepped out of the flame, her body whole and strong as she regarded it. She lost the connection as she embraced Shawn. Falling away into the night, leaving this world behind for the next, no pain, no memories, nothing remained.