‘Beth!’ Josh exclaimed, and both he and Jim knelt down to help her up.
‘I’m fine,’ Beth lied. Truth was, her legs had simply lost all strength and could no longer hold her. The effects had been momentary, but shocking. On top of that, she felt nauseous. What’s worse, it felt… permanent. ‘I’m fine,’ she said again as she got back to her feet. Her legs were steady again, at least for now.
‘We need to find a way to stop all this,’ Josh said.
‘Yeah,’ Jim agreed, ‘Close that damn door they are all chirping on about. But how the hell do we do that?’
‘Aiden!’ Beth exclaimed, feeling a surge of inspiration. If everyone in town had been pulled through into this nightmare, then surely he had as well. And, while Beth didn’t exactly trust him, he seemed studious enough know about the cult’s practices and rituals.
‘The boy who tends the Heritage Centre?’ Josh asked.
‘Is he part of the cult?’ Beth asked.
Josh nodded. ‘He was William’s gopher, basically. But he knew his stuff. Forever had his nose in a book or in some scripture.’
‘I didn’t see him up on the cliff,’ Beth said. ‘Unless his face was hidden.’
‘I’d bet he is still at the Centre. He lives there.’
‘So, we go speak to this lad,’ Jim said, ‘and convince him to tell us how to put all this right?’
‘It’s as good a plan as any, don’t you think?’ Josh asked. Both Beth and Jim nodded their approval.
‘Let’s go,’ Beth said, getting to her feet. It was a plan… for now. But she knew that if the feeling within her continued to grow, she would have no other choice but to end things.
She just hoped she could get her brother and Jim back home before that happened.
37
Beth knew the journey back to the Heritage Centre would be an arduous one. Given the carnage they had seen on their brief sprint down from the clifftop, a longer path ahead meant the risk of being caught and ripped apart only increased with every additional step.
But they had no other choice, so the three of them steeled themselves, ready to run from the relative safety of the thruway. Before they had chance to move, however, Beth felt a shadow pass over them. She looked up.
‘Run!’ she cried as the form of a horrific creature descended. A thick, grey, wrinkly body filled the space between buildings, and it was pulled along on thin, tentacle-like appendages that stuck to the brickwork walls. White hairs which moved independently covered the body and legs in sporadic patches. At the head of the monster was a large, gaping, and fleshy opening that dripped with a clear liquid. The edges of the hungry mouth were lined with multiple, thick cilia-like protrusions, similar to the teeth of a Venus flytrap. The flesh inside the vertical mouth was pink and lined with fine hairs and small, sharp teeth. It came quickly down at them.
Josh and Jim, both reacting to Beth’s instruction, followed her gaze up and also shrieked after seeing what was coming for them. All three bolted from the alleyway, and Beth felt one of the writhing protrusions from the mouth brush against her just before the trio broke through into the street. The small group, now exposed, could do nothing but run.
‘Help!’ someone called from behind. Still sprinting, Beth glanced back over her shoulder, and saw a young man running down the hill towards them, bloodied and hobbling. ‘Wait for me,’ he called. But Beth had already seen his mistake. The man was limping as quickly as he could, but his path took him straight past the opening Beth had just escaped from. She had no chance to yell for him to stop before the man, completely unaware, moved before the huge monstrosity.
He was not as lucky as Beth had been.
The fleshy wisps around the monster’s mouth quickly extended and wrapped around him, snaring his body like the pedipalps of a spider holding a fly. The man screamed as he was quickly hoisted up and pulled into the fleshy opening. It started to suck him inside and his shrieks hit terrible new heights. Blood dripped from the mouth of the monster as the man was consumed completely, and the crawling nightmare then sloped back into the shadows, appearing content to lie in wait again.
With people dying around them—and the streets running with blood—Beth, Josh, and Jim sprinted over the footbridge, which was thankfully unobstructed. However, as Beth looked down to the running river below, she could see the water was infused with red, and bubbles were starting to pop on the surface.
She felt horribly exposed, especially given they were unarmed. Jim was struggling again, and his face was turning a horrible shade of red. He’d always walked with a stick, so this must have been agony for him. Jim kept trailing behind, and both Beth and Josh repeatedly had to grab him and pull him along with them again, but his breathing was becoming horribly heavy and wheezy.
They arrived in the large open area close to the Trout and Lobster, without much in the way of conflict, after successfully managing to avoid any creatures, all of which had been otherwise engaged in killing other townsfolk. The Heritage Centre was farther up the main road ahead, but the open space where they now stood was host to a wide array of creatures. Through all of the horrible noises around the group, Beth could hear familiar cries of children from beyond the low separating wall. And the small abominations she had seen yesterday now came climbing over that wall as their circular, sucking mouths puckered at the air.
Other things moved closer to them. Tall and gangly figures—with rotted and bloated flesh, alien heads with pulsating brains exposed—moved in. These things had no jaw, only a thin tongue that was pointed at the end and dangled from the roof of a mouth laden with fangs.
Another monster pulled its trailing, slug-like body forward on long arms that kept the front of its body upright. Movement seemed like a strenuous exercise for it, given it looked close to ten metres long. The chest of the vertical upper half was open, revealing a moving cavity lined with tendrils that wriggled like fingers. The pit within was hollow, and the back was lined with masses of fleshy eyes. The head of the creature was taken up by an irregular-shaped mouth—a circle stretched at an odd angle—and masses of wriggling tentacles that swayed and curled on top of the cranium. The slow-moving horror managed to snare and scoop up a fleeing girl with a massive talon, and it stuffed her inside of the open chest cavity. The walls of the torso then slowly closed behind the woman, cutting her off completely. Whatever was happening to her inside caused the creature to throw its head back and start to shudder, an almost pleasurable reaction.
There was also a group of three monsters that all moved together. They were formed from globs of glistening red meat and black flesh. The base of the creatures were little more than masses of gore that spread out on the ground, each opening like the bottom of a gown. Thin bodies emerged from these piles of mush, standing about eight feet tall. These bodies bloomed open at the head into a bulbous mass of congealed flesh, reminding Beth of a massive, dripping brain, one that was lined with roving eyes. At the lower edges of this sickening and brain-like ball of meat, two long protrusions hung down, glistening arms that curled and moved. The trio of horrors—pulled along the ground by successive contractions of their bases the same way a snail pulls itself across the ground—were slowly moving towards Beth and the others.
‘I’m sorry, Jim,’ Beth said, as the old man struggled with breath. ‘But we need to get moving again.’
She was confident they could outpace the three approaching threats, but if anything faster came after them it would be game over. Especially for Jim.
The group took off again, moving past the three masses of flesh that closed in, and Beth heard them emit a low and unsettling moan. Suddenly, something came bounding over from their left, leaping out from an open doorway.
This is it, Beth thought. That thing is too quick!
But Beth then heard a bark. The three quickly turned to see Jess, running towards them. Beth realised that the hound had come running from the same cafe she and Jim had been in earlier that day. Behind the dog, the cafe’s owner Patricia came
sprinting over as well.
‘What the fuck is going on?’ she asked, bewildered and terrified. Tears were streaming down her face.
‘I’m not sure,’ Beth said, being less than honest—though did it really matter? ‘But there might be a way to stop it. We need to get to the Heritage Centre.’
Jess was making a fuss of Jim, jumping up at him, and the old man tried his best to pet and comfort the dog, but he was still struggling for breath. ‘Good girl,’ he said, though it was a strained effort.
A small tremor underfoot drew Beth’s attention. After a moment, there was another, and another. They were barely noticeable at first, but growing slightly stronger each time.
‘What the fuck is that?’ Josh asked.
Beth shook her head. ‘I don’t want to know. Let’s keep going.’ A numbness was starting to permeate through her body, and she had to fight not to vomit.
‘You okay?’ Patricia asked her. ‘You look… sick.’
‘She’s fine,’ Josh snapped. ‘Let’s move.’
The group—now joined by Jess and Patricia—ran again, but did not get far, as yet another call stopped them. Turning, Beth saw a group of people come fleeing from the Trout and Lobster behind them.
It was Pete and his cronies. With them was the young barman who had served her in the pub.
‘Shit,’ she spat. ‘This is the last thing we need. Another fight.’
However, the group that ran towards them looked every bit as terrified as Patricia. ‘Wait!’ Pete cried out.
Beth wanted to tell them all to leave them alone and to fend for themselves. Though if Pete and his group were wanting help, she knew there could perhaps be safety in numbers.
‘What the fuck is going on?’ Pete asked, parroting Patricia’s initial question.
‘Fuck off!’ Jim shouted. Beth understood his reaction, but she had already noticed that the group were armed with knives, stool legs, bats, and other weapons they must have pillaged from somewhere.
‘Fuck you, old man!’ Pete snapped, bringing up his knife.
‘Stop!’ Beth cut in, knowing there was no time for this dick-swinging. ‘If you want to come with us, fine, but we need to get to the Heritage Centre. There may be a way to stop this.’
‘Stop what?’ Pete asked. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘The people that caused this are the same ones you run around after,’ Jim said, finally getting control of his breathing. ‘So this is your fault too, lad.’
‘My fault?’ Pete’s eyes were wide. ‘I had nothing to do with it.’
‘Enough!’ Beth shouted. ‘We need to move. Come with us and help us stop this, or stay here. It’s up to you.’
She turned and ran, not waiting for an answer, still feeling those tremors underfoot grow and grow. Thankfully, everyone ran with her, including Pete and his group. Beth knew that while they might have more protection in a larger group, it also made them a bigger target.
Every creature and monster that was in the street was now advancing on the newly formed group: the masses of gore and meat. The thing that pulled its slug-body along the ground—chest cavity now open again and lined with red chunks of flesh. The tall, gangly figures. And even other horrors that had converged on the area.
However, only the gangly humanoids with exposed and pulsating brains could gather up enough speed to close in on the group quickly. Given the height of the creatures—which looked to be over seven-feet—their strides quickly ate up the ground.
The Heritage Centre was not too far away, but Beth knew they would not make it in time. The four pursuers, giving out angry shrieks, waded into the crowd, swinging their long arms in an arc. The talons at the end of their arms cut into several of the group. One man’s head was lopped completely off, his body running a few steps as the exposed neck-stump gushed out blood before he fell. Poor Patricia was grabbed and hoisted up by the throat. She squirmed and screamed, but the long and razor-sharp fingers of the demon’s other hand thrust into her gut. The talon was then quickly pulled upward, ripping open Patricia’s front and spraying blood everywhere, allowing her insides to slop out to the floor. Her intestines flopped free as well, dangling down like long red strings of spaghetti. The beast dropped her to the ground. She still struggled slightly, wheezing and gurgling in the last throes of death. Her attacker raised a foot and stomped down. Patricia’s head exploded beneath it, like a popped water balloon.
And the poor bar-boy who had served Beth her drink was caught as well, with two of the tall attackers violently pulling at his body.
‘Help!’ he screamed, moments before his left arm was twisted free of its joint. One of the monsters standing behind him jammed its claw into his back and ripped his snapped spine free, pulling it up until his head detached and dangled from the long line of bone, mouth open in a death-scream.
‘Fight back!’ Pete ordered, not that he needed to. The remaining men had little choice and fought against the attackers in a vain attempt to survive. During the melee, Beth, Josh, and Jim were able to run towards the Heritage Centre door, leaving everyone else behind.
‘Fuckers!’ Beth heard Pete yell. He broke free and ran towards them, leaving his friends to die.
Beth rammed her shoulder into the door ahead and, thankfully, it burst open. She stumbled inside, along with her brother, Jim, and Jess. Beth then quickly turned to push the door closed, but Pete was right there. ‘You left us!’ he shouted as he forced his way in.
‘Close the fucking door!’ Josh screamed and pushed Pete aside just as one of the monsters came bounding over. Josh slammed the door shut and thrust the large, sliding lock on the inside of the door into place.
Pete grabbed Beth by the throat. ‘You bitch!’ he seethed. ‘You left us to die!’ But his grip released as Jim clobbered him with a swift right-hand blow. Pete quickly dropped to his knees and held the side of his head. Jim then stood over him, hands up in a fighting position.
‘Nothing more than you deserved,’ Jim said. He then launched a kick into Pete’s chest and a sickening thud could be heard over Pete’s cry of pain. Jess was then quickly onto Pete as well, clamping her jaws onto his leg. Pete screamed and tried to push himself up, however Jim delivered another kick to his head. Beth cringed at the sound of the impact, and Pete fell to the floor, sprawled out and unmoving, clearly unconscious.
‘I told you you’d be sorry for kicking my dog, boy,’ Jim snarled. He then commanded Jess to release. The door that separated them from the outside world thudded and rattled as the monsters beyond pounded against it.
‘That might not hold for very long,’ Josh said. ‘We need to keep moving.’
Beth guided them into the public area of the Heritage Centre, where she had first met Aiden. It was empty now, however, so she then led the group through the door behind the reception counter, and out into the open stairwell.
‘Aiden!’ Beth shouted. ‘Aiden, come out.’
She hoped to God the young man was still here and hadn’t been eaten alive by something. The tremors she had been feeling were growing more and more potent, increasing in frequency.
Boom, boom, boom.
‘Something big is coming,’ Jim said. Beth agreed, but didn’t want to think about it right now. She couldn’t—she was close to the breaking point as it was. They all were.
Beth listened, beyond the booming of whatever approached, but could hear nothing inside the Heritage Centre. That was good in one respect. It meant no creatures were in here with them. But, if Aiden wasn’t responding, it meant he wasn’t here, he was dead, or he didn’t want to be found.
She hoped it was the latter.
‘Josh, you and I will look upstairs,’ Beth said, forcing herself to act. ‘Jim, take a seat on the steps. We’re going to need to do more running soon, and I need you to get your wind back.’
‘I’m fi—’
‘No!’ Beth snapped. ‘You aren’t fine, and we don’t have time to argue about it. Get yourself together. Keep an eye on Pete. But be ready to leave
when we need to.’
Jim frowned, but he nodded reluctantly. Beth and Josh then thundered up the stairs, yelling out Aiden’s name.
The search was a short one.
As soon as they reached the hallway upstairs, they heard a door open to their left. Aiden’s head peeked out, a look of horror on his face.
‘I… I didn’t know it would be like this,’ he said in a whimpering voice. Anger surged through Beth. What the hell did you think it would be like? She couldn’t vocalise that right now, however. She needed his help.
‘Is there a way to stop it?’ she asked him as calmly and evenly as she could.
‘I didn’t mean for all this to happen,’ was his only reply.
Beth took a step forward. ‘That doesn’t matter right now. All that matters is stopping it. Now, tell me, do you know if we can? Can we close the door?’
Aiden was slow in responding, and Beth held her breath, waiting for his reply.
He nodded slowly. ‘I think so.’
38
William kept himself hidden central to the mass of people moving back into town. The Order’s numbers had dropped en-route, with many of the grey-robed protectors giving their lives protecting him from the monstrosities that attacked. Their numbers were still strong, though, and William knew this town well.
He knew which backstreets would best keep them off the main roads, and William successfully led the group to the main street, where they huddled in a secluded alley. From the relative safety of the thruway, he saw that bitch Beth and her troublesome brother disappear inside of his home. The Heritage Centre.
And then he realised their plan.
Aiden!
The young man was born to study and learn, and was therefore perfect for William to have around as a tool to distil information from the sacred texts and scriptures. Aiden would also know how to stop the ritual and close the door.
Beth and Josh had likely figured that out, too.
Aiden was a believer, but this madness was testing even William, and he did not think the young man could hold his nerve through what needed be done. That was one of the reasons he was always kept at arms-length for some of the more hands-on matters.
The Netherwell Horror Page 19
