The Pit in the Woods: A Mercy Falls Mythos

by Nathaniel Reed

  “I agree. This place rocks,” Staci said. No one looked at her strange. Myron looked at her with gratitude. She winked.

  “Let’s go over and say Hi,” Tony said. Their group went over to meet the others, and although they were friendly enough, it seemed like they had somehow intruded on something. It wasn’t anything in particular, Myron knew, but he felt like they wanted to be left on their own. They all felt it to some degree. Maybe it was something to do with Dragon blood, former ties. Yet Johnny had been one of them. Of course, Johnny no longer felt a part of the Dragons, in any way. But why is he with us?

  “Because we’re the misfits,” Jeremy said softly.

  Myron jumped back at least a foot, almost tripping over someone.

  “What the fuck’s got into you?” Johnny said.

  Staci looked on with concern.

  “I’m okay. I’m okay,” Myron said. He looked at Jeremy. Jeremy shrugged.

  The two groups separated naturally enough. Of course, if they ever needed an excuse to, Myron’s antics were enough. The Dragons had splintered off in more ways than one, and it was a shame the groups had separated when they did, because by the time the night was over, three of them would be dead.

  Myron whispered to Jeremy. “Did you just read my mind?”

  Jeremy’s eyes opened. “Oh jeeze,” he said out loud. He’d

  thought it had been his imagination before, but now? “We’ll talk later,” was all he could say. Of course they would, about more than just mind reading.

  For now they danced, to songs by the Beatles, the Bangles, Hendrix, REM, Billy Squier, Bruce Springsteen, Led Zeppelin, Scandal, The Doors, Kim Wilde, and of course, Rick Springfield. The Rock Spot played a great blend of sixties through the eighties. A slow song came on and they stopped dancing, but Staci asked Jeremy if he would like to. Of course, he did.

  Johnny swallowed his pride and went over to the other group to ask Julia to dance, and they did. Tony looked at Myron and shrugged, “Want to dance?”

  Myron laughed. “Nah, I think I’ll sit this one out.” They both sat that one out.

  When the song faded, and the guys and girls still stood looking longingly into each other’s eyes, the announcer got on the mic.

  “All right, boys and girls, this is the moment of truth. It is now exactly one minute until the New Year.”

  Loud cheers.

  “Now we’re all going to look back at the ticking clock behind me and start counting down when it gets to ten. And that should be coming on any second now. Um, engineer? There it goes!”

  The clock read 0:54.

  “Isn’t this exciting? We’re about to say goodbye to 1985 and hello 1986!”

  The crowd responded enthusiastically. Staci looked in Jeremy’s eyes. “Thanks for the dance.”

  Jeremy felt himself grinning like a doofus again. Staci’s soft laughter confirmed his suspicion.

  “10…” the announcer said with the crowd. “9…8…7…”

  “Oh God,” Staci said.

  “What is it?” Jeremy asked her.

  “6…5…”

  There’s something coming.”

  “4…3…”

  “What?”

  “2…1…”

  The crowd roared.

  “Happy New Year!!”

  The kiss he was hoping for didn’t come. Instead Staci hugged him tightly, with fear. Johnny fared better with Julia and got his kiss. He left her to her friends to join the others for now. Tony and Myron got up and they all came together.

  “Happy New Year guys,” Tony said.

  “Happy New Year,” Myron said.

  It was hugs all around, and echoes of that sentiment.

  “I hate to break this up,” Staci said, “but we’ve all got to get out of here, right now!”

  “What?” Johnny said, “Why?”

  “Did you have a premonition?” Myron said. He was more apt to believe her now.

  “Yes.”

  “Oh, this is bull,” John said.

  “Well, I trust her,” Jeremy said.

  “I’m with Jeremy,” Tony said, “If she feels there’s something wrong…”

  “Remember the girl,” Myron said, “In the woods?”

  “Fuck!” Johnny said. “All right, let’s go!”

  There were quite a few patrons leaving before them.

  “Just to let you know kiddies,” the announcer said, “We are open until two a.m. tonight, because it’s such a special night!” The DJ cued up more music and the place was booming with sound again. “So enjoy!”

  2

  “Great, just great!” Bill said, as they walked out the door. “Wish I’d brought my bat.”

  “Hey, hey!” Max said from across the street. “Not who we

  were hoping for, but you’ll have to do.”

  “You’re outnumbered again,” Julia said.

  “What, by one? Big deal, I’ve got my meanest guys here with me. And you’ve got what, two girls?” Max laughed.

  Lou and Mike made sure no one else was coming out the doors behind them, before they all pulled their switchblades. Max and Farris howled.

  “We’re going to kick the shit out of you,” Farris shouted, “and shove those pig stickers up your ass. Bet you’d like that Julia, wouldn’t you?”

  “Motherfucker!” She rushed at them with her knife. Bill and Pete held her back.

  “No, not yet,” Pete said. “Not here. Let them come to us.”

  “What the…?” Max looked up, Phil and Jake, then Eddie and Farris following suit.

  It looked like there were people on the roof of the club. All they could make out were shadows, but they didn’t look friendly. There were at least three, maybe more behind them.

  Max found himself looking at the motorcycles parked off to the side, about a block down. They seemed too far away right now.

  3

  Tony and Jeremy were in the lead, Staci, Johnny and Myron behind them. For some reason the other group was standing in front of the door, blocking them from getting out, backs to them.

  “What’s going on?” Johnny said.

  “I don’t know,” Tony responded. They heard Julia shout at someone, and Pete say, “Not yet.”

  “What the…?” Max’s voice, that much was sure. The rest was a blur.

  Something fell from the sky.

  4

  “What is that?” Phil whispered. Max shook his head. One of the creatures on the rooftop came into view, its face twisted into a snarl. It swooped down off the rooftop, grinning, and something was horribly wrong with that grin. Lou Jerreau looked up too late. The thing literally ripped his face off with its talons as if it’d been nothing more than a mask he wore all along, leaving bloody muscle and tissue.

  “Christ!” Pete screamed. Others leapt from the roof, while some seemed to glide down. There was definitely more than three, too many now.

  Julia’s knife went into one of them, quite by accident. She’d opened her arms in shock and the blade was sticking straight up. The thing rolled off her. Mike Lemon didn’t have such luck. A creature pounced on his back. Max and the other Dragons watched from across the street, horrified as the thing sank its enormous fangs into the top of Mike’s head and peeled his scalp back like a ripe grapefruit. Mary Crowley screamed. The thing that had been stuck with Julia’s knife rolled over and leered at her. “Oh God!” she said. It was bald; they all were; and grey. Long needle sharp canines extended from their mouths, almost reaching their chins. Their eyes seemed too big for their heads, their bodies long. Their nails were at least a foot long, curled into talons, razor sharp; their very appearance grotesque, like animated gargoyles.

  William “hell of a swing” Koontz met the business end of a set of these talons, his head cleanly and swiftly lopped off.

  5

  “What the fuck is going on?” Johnny said.

  “What are they?” Tony said, from what seemed like a million miles away.

  “Shut the door, before they come in her
e!”

  “We can’t just let them die!” Staci said.

  Tony shook his head. Behind them the music drowned out the screams, the crowd completely unaware anything was wrong.

  “Are we going to help them?” Jeremy said.

  “Yes, we have to try and get them away from those things!” Tony said with distaste.

  “All right,” Johnny said. “They haven’t seen us here yet on the other side, so on the count of three. One…two…”

  6

  The things, whatever they were, watched them from the ground, where they squatted on their haunches, moving like spiders, and hissing like snakes.

  Julia Stevens, Pete Whiteman, and Mary Crowley were literally backed against a wall; Julia being closest to the doorway.

  “What do we do?” Mary said.

  “Inch toward the opening,” Pete whispered, although he was almost sure they could hear him. “If we can get inside before they do…”

  Mary looked across the way at Max and the others. They stood there and just watched, staring, in uncomprehending horror. She mouthed the words, “Help us.”

  Max shook his head vehemently.

  7

  “…three!”

  Johnny grabbed Julia’s arm. Her left arm was already partly in the doorway, and he yanked her in. They both fell backward, Julia toppling over him. Jeremy and Tony rushed to opposite sides of the immense doorway and pulled the others in. It took less than a second, and nearly as short to register the look of shocked surprise on the creature’s faces.

  Pete and Mary were equally surprised. They thought they

  were being attacked from behind as well, it happened so quickly; they fell to the floor in a heap.

  “Quick Myron! Shut the doors!” Johnny shouted. Myron and Staci, the only ones in the group still standing, pushed closed the heavy double doors just as the creatures leapt at them. The doors shuddered with the weight of their bodies slamming into it. Outside the things howled, but not in pain.

  8

  Phil and Jake gave each other that knowing look only close siblings could, when they understood a situation all too clearly, at the same instant. “Oh shit.”

  Eddie said, “Boss?” unsteady. The things were turning to face them.

  Jack Farris simply stared, for once speechless. No fighting words were issued from his mouth this night.

  The creatures were rocking their heads back and forth, admiring the new meat, their last quickly depleted victims forgotten.

  “Run,” Max said.

  9

  “I thought we were dead for sure,” Mary said.

  “What were those things?” Pete asked.

  “Oh man!” Julia exclaimed.

  “What?” Jeremy wondered.

  “Max and the others. They’re still out there!”

  “Oh crap!” Tony said.

  “Fuck if I’m going out there for them!” Johnny said.

  “Johnny!” Staci said, only slightly outraged by the thought. “They’re still human, as much as we dislike them.”

  “You sure about that?” he said.

  “They’re not…” Staci pointed toward the door, “those things.”

  “And how the hell are we going to fight them?” Johnny said. “With our knives? It’s obvious they can rip our heads off, and they’re a lot quicker. We don’t stand a chance!”

  “You’ve got a better idea?” Tony said.

  “Yeah, stay in here until they’re gone.”

  “I cannot argue with that,” Myron said.

  10

  The creatures skittered, bounced, ran, and leapt after them. There had to be eight or nine of them, at least. They reached the motorcycles just as Eddie and Farris were throwing their legs over the seats, and they toppled with the bikes.

  Max Rifkin kicked at the one that had its bony arms around his waist. It laughed; high cackles like a madman. He was brought down to the ground, still kicking, unable to reach for his knife or chain. The thing held his head in his hand like a basketball. His body faced sideways so that he could see his friends underneath the other creatures, gruesome faces buried in their necks, gorging. The eyes of his friends looked toward him blankly. It was only a matter of seconds before Max felt the horrible piercing of skin as the tips of those fangs entered his neck. His head was rocked back violently, the monster tearing out his jugular. He felt the mouth on his Adam’s apple. It ripped away his flesh in strings, and he coughed up great bouts of blood as his vocal chords were torn away, his scream dying in the thing’s throat. The last thing Max saw was his own blood splattering onto the creature’s bald head, at first beading, then running down in rivulets down its pate. Max closed his eyes.

  11

  “What do we do?” Tony said.

  “I am not going out there,” Myron said.

  “For once I’m with Myron,” John agreed.

  “So we just wait it out?” Julia said. “Until when?”

  “’Til the crowd starts to leave, I guess,” Jeremy said. “It’ll be safer.”

  Others had already begun to disperse, and as they exited the doors they saw the bodies in the entryway. There were screams.

  Tony looked at Johnny again.

  “Okay,” Johnny said. “Maybe a change of plan is in order. Let’s say we all get the fuck out of here before the cops arrive and we have to explain this.”

  They bolted out the doors. The creatures were gone.

  12

  They came upon the motorcycles, knocked over, ownerless.

  “They were here all right,” Jeremy said. “Max and them, I mean.” There was blood everywhere. “I think they got them.”

  “Yeah,” Johnny agreed. “So where the hell are they?”

  “Crap,” Tony said.

  “What?” Mary whispered.

  “Look,” he pointed. They all saw it, the trail of blood leading from the motorcycles, down the streets, and around the corner into the alleyway.

  “Who’s for following?” Pete said.

  Staci and Mary shook their heads.

  “Let’s just get the hell out of here,” Jeremy said. “Um, Johnny?”

  Johnny was ahead of them by several feet, apparently following the bloody trail.

  “What’s he doing?” Tony said.

  “Following,” Myron answered him.

  “Come on Johnny,” Staci said. “We don’t know what we’re dealing with here.”

  “You knew this was going to happen?” Jeremy asked, staring at her.

  “I knew something was going to happen,” she replied.

  “Johnny!” Myron whispered loudly. John shooed him.

  “Come on,” Tony said to the rest. “We’ve got to follow him in case he gets in trouble.”

  Johnny turned into the alley. “Anybody got a flashlight handy?” he yelled back.

  “No, but I’ve got a lighter,” Pete volunteered. He walked in behind Johnny.

  “Great.” Even though Johnny’s face was in shadow, Pete could tell he was looking at him oddly. “You smoke?”

  Pete chuckled. “No, but my dad does. I took it from his dresser drawer. Me and a couple of guys were…” He made sure the others weren’t listening as he thumbed the catch to spark the flame, “…um, lighting farts earlier.”

  Johnny smirked. “Maybe you should save the fireworks for the Fourth of July. But I’m glad you brought the lighter.”

  “What’s going on in there?” Tony shouted.

  “Nothing yet,” Johnny yelled back. “You guys coming in or what?”

  They filed in slowly. Presumably if something was in there the two of them would be dead by now. Pete waved the lighter around.

  “Whoa,” Johnny said, “Watch the fire bad boy. Mind if I take over?”

  Pete handed over the lighter. In the circle of flame, the only thing visible was a lot of water from the melted snow, papers, and trash cans.

  “Hey look,” Myron said. “There it is.”

  John shined the light where Myron was pointing. The drops
of blood were thinning out, but it was definitely the trail they’d been following.

  “That’s odd,” Johnny said. Tony and Jeremy came up alongside him.

  “What?” Jeremy asked.

  “The trail just ends here, right behind these trash cans.”

  Julia shook her head. “Whatya mean Johnny?”

  “Look! They just stop.”

  “Where’d the bodies go?” Mary said. “Where’d those things go?”

  “It’s almost as if they disappeared,” Pete commented.

  “No almost,” Myron said. “They did disappear.”

  “Except where did they go?” Staci looked around. “They couldn’t have…” She looked up. “No, that’s impossible.”

  “You’re not thinking they dragged them up the building?” Tony said. “Up to the roof?”

  “Maybe they are still up there,” Myron shivered.

  “No, not dragged,” Staci said, “Carried. And not to the roof.” She pointed up toward the sky.

  “You’re saying these things can fly?” Julia said.

  “Yeah, maybe. Who knows? They’re not on the roof, that’s for sure. We would have heard or seen something by now. They would have come down for us, the way they did at the club.”

  Julia shrugged. “Hell, I guess they might be capable of anything. Look what they did to our friends.”

  The distant sound of police sirens intruded. Julia’s head was bowed, looking as if she might cry.

  “No time for that,” Johnny said, “We’ve got to disappear.”

  Staci burned him with her eyes. “I swear Johnny.”

  “It’s all right,” Julia said. "He’s right. We’ve got to go, before they blame us for this. I doubt they’re going to believe what really happened.”

  They made their way to Tony’s car, several blocks up, careful to avoid the watchful eye of the police cruisers and their searchlights.

  “Okay, we’re going to really have to pack in,” Tony said. “I’m not sure how.”

  “Actually, we’ve got our motorcycles parked another block up from here. We’ll be all right.”