(HAPPY HALLOWEEN!)

West Park Asylum

Apollo groans as he washes up on the mist-covered island, the gaping wound in his stomach seeping blood. He grabs the rotting pole of a pier, most of which has been washed away by the waves. Using it to get to his feet, the young man winces at the sensation of splinters burrowing into his flesh. The pain helps him focus and he staggers ahead, his eyes fixated on the strange shapes in the fog. He hears a crunch beneath his foot and looks down to see a yellowed rabbit skeleton. A gentle breeze comes off of the water to drive the mist back, revealing more animal bones scattered about the dirt. There are small tufts of grass scattered about the island, their green blades marked with black spots. Noticing a forest to his left, Apollo considers going there for safety, but quickly sees that the trees are sickly and crumbling to dust. Pillars of foul-smelling vapor rise off a lake that is barely visible through the dying plants. The sound of bubbling bubbles and hissing foam can be heard, the sounds occasionally broken by a lone frog calling out for its long dead friends.

“Where am I?” he asks, the growing pain in his body forcing him to collapse. He turns his head to see a building appear in the mist, the structure split in half by a lightning bolt-shaped crack. “Looks like some kind of hospital. Did I make it to Canada? No, that’s too far away. I guess I could have washed up on an island with some abandoned facility. Never really looked at a map of the area. Maybe I can find something to clean and fix up this wound. Can’t be that bad since I’m not dead.”

Dragging himself forward, Apollo finds a patch of tulips that have been trampled into the dirt. He notices a faint path of the flowers and stands in order to follow it to the center of the island. A leafless willow tree has been knocked over to reveal a patch of moist dirt that sticks to the severed roots. Seeing something metal in the soil, Apollo gets to his knees and tries to take a closer look. Before he can react, a filthy hand erupts from the ground and grabs him by the face, its grip impossible to break. The young man is yanked into the dirt, which turns red as the sounds of crunching bone and tearing flesh drift from the shadows. With a burp, a wild-haired figure cloaked in mud crawls out of the earth, its dark blue eyes blinking in the dim sunlight until they no longer hurt.

“Puppy is coming home, Addison,” the man growls as he trudges forward. The dirt falls from his body and is replaced by a dark red suit, the matching shoes leaving sizzling impressions in their wake. “And puppy is very angry.”

(Wow.  Last post was weird.  Go see for yourself.)

Magdalen College

With Gemma trailing behind, Dawn waltzes into the library and frowns at the chaos around her. Transforming her dress into a comfortable shirt and pants, she walks through the destroyed furniture and the remains of half of her followers. Her disappointment in missing the fun and not being the cause is etched into her pouting face, which only brightens at the sight of the ravens lined up outside the windows. Whistling loud enough to melt the glass, Dawn lets the birds inside and makes sure everybody knows that she has arrived. One by one, the survivors crawl out of their hiding places and line up along their master’s path. None of them dare to touch her, a sense of wonder and fear paralyzing them as she passes. Those at the back of the cleared walkway gradually fall into place behind Gemma, who repeatedly glances at an empty holster on her hip.

“Wait! This isn’t going to work,” Dawn abruptly declares as she reaches the lobby. Turning her nose up at the gore-covered chains, she waves her hand to turn them into a swing set that she happily sits on. “So much better than a throne. Watch me kick the ceiling when I get high enough. Bet I could knock the top part of the building into the sky if I got enough speed. Oh, but that’s not what we’re here for. All of you want some kind of reward. Just a bunch of takers with bad hygiene. I mean, one of you doesn’t even have teeth.”

“I lost them while working to revive you,” Charlene replies, stepping out of the crowd. The woman kneels in front of Dawn, who begrudgingly hops off her swing. “There is nothing we want more than to serve you. All of us are alive because you spared us eighteen years ago. Please let us return the favor by helping you with your goals.”

“Obviously, none of you know what kind of maniac you’re dealing with,” Gemma mutters from her perch on the front desk. A sudden pain grips her stomach and sends her toppling to the floor before she spits up a thorn-covered rose. “That was unnecessary. We both know you don’t have any goals, Addison. All you want is chaos and to have fun. You’re not the type to rule or save the world. The power of a god and you only want to make trouble.”

“Kitty knows me so well,” the grinning brunette admits. Standing on the swing, she rocks back and forth, her balance never faltering. “Then again, maybe I should think beyond my own desires. After all, I have the power to do whatever I want. It’s a gift that I’ve wasted for so much of my life and death and new life. What if I was created to change the world in my image? I mean, my face is adorable and the aliens would feel more welcomed if the planet looked more like me. On the other hand, all of that sounds so boring and I don’t want to be responsible for so many pets.”

“You don’t have to take care of us,” Professor Soleman says as he limps over to where Charlene is crouching. Bleeding and broken, the man tries to kneel, but ends up snapping both of his knees. “Patch us up and send us into the world. We will work to spread the word of your existence to everyone. You can focus on having fun while we create your new empire. Don’t think of us as pets, but as loyal servants.”

“Still sounds like a lot of responsibility.”

“I assure you that we can take care of ourselves.”

“She has no teeth and you look like the anatomy dummy that was holding onto my skeleton all this time.”

“That was you?”

“Yes and you weren’t very gentle with me.”

“I didn’t know.”

“Your goddess doesn’t like cold hands.”

Dawn flips off the swing and spins in the air before coming down on Professor Soleman’s head. The man is crushed like a tin can, which she casually picks up by a flailing arm and tosses into a nearby garbage can. Confused by the attack, most of the followers back away while two rush for the door. They throw the exit open and are immediately flattened by a giant hand that wipes the remains off with a blue handkerchief. Turning to Charlene, Dawn puts her pinky beneath her nervous follower’s chin and lifts her off the floor. Examining the administrator’s damaged mouth, she runs a finger around the gums and has new teeth gradually return. The grinning madwoman watches intently as they continue to grow, the points pushing through Charlene’s flesh and bone. As the teeth pierce her crying victim’s brain, Dawn drops the body and faces the rest of her loyal servants. Having grown bored with them, she waves her hand to switch all of their heads around. The first few who move prove that their borrowed skulls are barely attached and easily tumble to the floor. Fearing death, the rest remain motionless while their master returns to her swing.

“Whoever is the last one standing will be fixed and sent on their way,” Dawn says with a friendly smile. The crowd suddenly bursts into action with the followers doing their best to knock the heads off their neighbors. “Well, that’s mildly entertaining. I like how all of their holds roll for a few feet like marbles. Guess nobody won. You know, little kitty, you did have a point. Chaos can be so boring after a while. Maybe I need to find something else to do with my life. Running the hotel was fun, but I’d hate to repeat myself. Being married was great, but I can’t put my heart on the line like that again. What do you suggest?”

“To be honest, Addison, I still think you’re a murderer and I’m only here out of self-preservation,” Gemma replies as she examines her hands. Feeling a tightness in her joints, she pretends to shoot a gun and is surprised to see a bullet come out of her finger. “Not to mention I don’t think I’m human any more. What about traveling? See the entire world and then decide on if there’s anything you want to change or indulge in. For all we know, you have eternity to wander around.”

Dawn shudders at the thought of being in an airplane, her movements violently rocking the swing set. “Ugh, that sounds so normal. Yet, I can see a use for it. Perhaps it’s time for me to see if the world is ready for me. After all, it took years for me to be ready for the real me. How could I believe that the rest of the world is better prepared than I was? The only thing we have to do is make this fun. Glorious food, wonderful beasts, interesting people, and delicious deaths will be found across the globe. Nobody can stop us. By the way, I really mean me, but you’re here and it would be rude to leave you out. I mean, I think you can still die, so there are plenty of things could stop you. Hey, what if I set off a nuke to see if it tickles me?”

“Let’s save stuff like that for another time.”

“Was it too normal?”

“That and you could get killed by that.”

“I could always be brought back.”

“Yes, but you’ve already done that. A second time would make it . . . normal.”

“Wow. That’s a good point. As I always said, there’s never any fun in normal. I’m happy to have you with me, little kitty.”

With a squeal of delight, Dawn begins to swing as hard as she can and the ravens fly out of the windows. Once all of the birds are clear and circling the library, she kicks the ceiling with all of her strength. The entire building flips into the air and spins, sending books flying across the campus. All of the tomes transform to tell the story of a woman with the power to do whatever she wants, the ending nothing more than a blank page that sends a chill down the spine of anyone who reads it.

(I’m typing this while on the phone. CLICK HERE for link.)

Olivet College

A powerful wind repeatedly whips at Apollo as he gets to his feet and looks around for Aurora. Standing at the edge of the lake shore, he can barely see the library through the tightly packed trees. Hearing a cough from his right, the young man hurries over the slick stones and twisted roots. Coming around an angel-shaped piece of driftwood, Apollo finds his sister crawling out from under the shifting pack ice. He hurries to help her out and is about to hand her his shirt when he realizes the air is warm. Looking up to the sky, he watches the clouds part and reveal a moon that looks twice the size as it should. Bathed in the light, he can barely see the stars, which are in their early summer positions. The twins back toward the trees, which fall backwards when thousands of ravens leave the branches. Circling the entire campus, the ravens sing with voices that send chills down Apollo’s spine.

“Are we dreaming again?” Aurora asks as she shivers. She groans at the icy sensation beneath her warm skin, the combination making her want to vomit. “None of this makes any sense. Even if reincarnation or resurrection is possible, why would her parts go into people who are already alive? We have no connection to what happened eighteen years ago. All of us were only babies. Why is this happening to us?”

“Because you were chosen,” Gemma replies while stepping out from behind a boulder. She draws her gun and scratches her temple with it, her finger twitching as if trying to pull the trigger. “Not by me or Dawn, but by dumb luck. There’s no rhyme or reason to any of this, so stop asking. Would you be this confused if a truck ran a red light and hit you? No because those are accidents that you accept as a possibility. Carrying the soul of a madwoman is the same thing.”

“Bad luck makes this even worse,” Apollo says, moving between the former cop and his sister. A pang of anger rises in his stomach, but the emotion vanishes as soon as he tries to focus on it. “What if you take me and let Aurora leave? Dawn can even take my soul if she needs to fill the space. It’s ridiculous to kill two people in order to revive one.”

Aurora pushes her brother way and staggers forward, her body wracked with pain. “I think I’m sick, so take me instead. A disease shouldn’t do anything to the soul since that isn’t a physical object. Maybe I’ve worked too hard and eaten poorly for so long that my body is giving up. Doesn’t really matter as long as you do what I ask. Last thing you want is for me to die and your savior’s soul goes running off somewhere.”

“It’s adorable that you think it works that way,” Gemma coos, her voice changing into Dawn’s for an instant. Slapping herself in the face, the red-haired woman screams until she abruptly regains her composure. “We’ll just pluck the soul out of the sky or wherever it runs away to. After all, you dying doesn’t save your brother and his half holds enough power to get the rest. This is becoming tedious. All of the other parts are in place and I don’t want this nightmare to last any longer than it has to. Now, shut up and come with-”

Gemma’s last word gets caught in her throat as she falls to her knees, a pair of sharp stones piercing her shins. Her eyes twitching and her head rocking from side to side, she is about to stand when her body locks up. Drool dribbles from her mouth as she collapses, the rocks bursting to create a cushion of mud. The twins get closer to makes sure Gemma is still breathing, Apollo tossing the gun into the lake. Seeing a chance to escape, they only make it a few steps along the shore before the soaring ravens shriek and land on the ground. The birds stare at the siblings and only move to block their way, the animals tightening the circle. With a human-like warble, eight of them hop onto Gemma and stand along her spine, which they peck at without ever breaking the skin.

“My little kitty had just enough of me to get my motor running,” Dawn declares as she walks through the ravens. Her naked form dances in the moonlight, which curls around her and turns an eerie crimson. “I may have taken a bit of her too, but I’ll give it back. She wasn’t using all of it anyway. Now, I need to decide on who I will take first. The one that was already mine or the one that used to be mine. It’s so hard to decision because you both smell so yummy. Reminds me of home.”

“Why do I get the feeling that asking for an explanation won’t help?” Apollo asks as he backs toward the water. Picking up a piece of driftwood, he swings at the ravens that come too close. “You seem fine now, so leave us alone. A person as powerful as you could find another servant, so keep what you took from her. It’s obvious that you have enough to make you live again. Right, Aura?”

“Home . . . Smells like home,” his sister whispers, a spasm making her lurch forward. She lands at Dawn’s feet and slowly cocks her head to the side, the woman’s wiggling toes mesmerizing her. “One that wasn’t one. Tearing bodies apart because the skin feels wrong. False beneath the fingers. The depths are greater lies that flow to poison all. Nothing ever smelled like home before.”

“I think somebody is sniffing at my naughty little prank,” Dawn whispers as she crouches in front of Aurora. Stroking the young woman’s cheek, the brunette licks her lips and grins like a hungry shark. “I always knew where my soul was, but that had to be the last part. No real reason aside from it feeling right. My fun wouldn’t be much fun if I was hunting a kidney or my liver at the very end. Unfortunately, my soul was rather potent and baby Apollo didn’t do well with his first dream. Odd how he went into the hospital with a fever and came out with a twin sister that nobody ever questioned. She helped take the pressure off and allowed my wounded spirit to ripen perfectly. Possibly my second-best creation. Nothing could ever surpass the one I will always miss, but she comes close. Now, I believe it’s time to put my affairs in order and take back what’s mine.”

Flexing her fingers, Dawn is about to drive her hand into Aurora’s stomach when her other arm lances out at Apollo. She gleefully punches through the young man’s skin and twists, causing him to scream. His voice is drowned out by the ravens as they take to the air, their calls echoing across the campus. Dawn digs around inside her victim for several seconds that feel like years. When her arm finally retracts, her fist is glowing from the ephemeral liquid coating her skin. She coos at the sight of her soul while sliding her fingers into Aurora’s face, the flesh parting with ease. With both hands covered in her missing soul, Dawn presses her palms to her chest and runs them down her body. Shimmering lines run along her skin, the energy following the veins and arteries below. A thin tendril leaps off her tongue and plunges into Gemma, who stirs and moans as she is revived.

Feeling a comforting warmth seep through her pores, a sense of euphoria washes over Dawn and she starts to dance. The instant her knee touches Aurora’s frozen chin, she growls and kicks the young woman over. The empty husk shatters against the stones and turns into dark green moss, except for a single eyeball. Plucking the slimy orb off the ground, Dawn blows some dirt off of it and rolls it between her palms. As her soul finishes sinking into its proper place, she claps her hands and transforms the body part into a golden patch. Wind whips her hair away from her face, exposing an empty socket that she covers with the protector. Delicious pain ripples through her body as flesh fuses with metal, the sensation making her coo and wiggle in place.

“Everything is in its place,” Dawn whispers as she sprouts a crimson dress. Fixing her skirt, she looks around for Apollo, but finds that the young man has disappeared. “Guess I should have done something about that. Maybe remove his legs or take his soul instead of turning it into a balloon animal. Oh well, what’s life without a few loose ends?”