Chapter Seven.
Warden, Kosmic, Noble, Wyvern, and Griffin
T he streets were full of families as we headed out to the cemetery. We’d phoned the police and let them know we were patrolling it tonight due to previous vandalism. In other words, stay the fuck away. The cops had been called out quite a few times in the past, so the captain thanked us for saving them the job this year. I made a nice donation to the widows and orphans’ fund as well. Fuckin’ Old Timers. One of them had majorly fucked up.
We rode to the cemetery, which was situated on the outskirts of town, towards Mt Battie Rd. We’d already plotted who’d go where. In the end, to stop the bickering, we’d drawn straws to see who dug the corpse up. Normally, it wouldn’t be an issue, but knowing it was wrapped in plastic and there’d probably be a mush of skin, bone and muscle, nobody was keen. Plus, Dynamo and Vogue had both got it into their heads there’d be bodily fluids.
I expected a rotted carcass, but for some reason, everyone else envisaged something different. Maybe it was because this was Halloween, and it was playing on their minds a bit. Nobody could deny we weren’t a suspicious bunch. The sisters had managed to wriggle out of the short straw but were on duty on the grounds.
Digging had come down to me, Kosmic, Noble, Wyvern, and Griffin. The rest of the club was scattered to ensure we weren’t disturbed. Scorch and Soul both headed out to the crem. Scorch now ran the crematorium after we bought it ten years ago. Soul had just been put in charge of the funeral services and the graveyard. Tonight, this body would disappear forever.
“Should have got that mini digger the workers use,” Noble bitched.
“And alert people to the fact we’re excavating?” I asked.
“Well, get moving, Prez, lead by example,” Kosmic snapped.
I sent him a dirty look but picked up a shovel.
“How the fuck Undertaker got out of this, I don’t know,” I complained as I started to dig.
“How did Spice and the others escape this?” Wyvern grumbled.
“Fuckers used their age,” Griffin answered as he grabbed a shovel and began digging with me.
“Sounds about right. They’re up for shit until there are consequences, and then they pull, ‘Oh, we’re old now, we can’t do that.’ Bullshit,” Kosmic stated with a snarl. But there was no heat in it.
“Should have made them come out,” Noble said.
“I did. They’re on patrol, so I didn’t have to listen to their whining,” I replied and concentrated on digging.
Dynamo, Wisecrack, and Soar
“This sucks, I can’t believe we’re here patrolling a graveyard on Halloween,” I complained.
“You’re telling me. Fuckin’ Old Timers, I had a honey and movie lined up for tonight,” Wisecrack replied.
“The fuck you had a honey, more like a barfly,” Soar retorted.
Amused, I snorted, and they both spun to me.
“Why you are you laughing, Dynamo?” Wisecrack asked.
I winked at our Chaplin. “Dude, I had a date with my friend Bob.”
“TMI, Dynamo,” Soar groaned.
I was about to laugh but heard a second groan. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and goosebumps broke out over my arms. That hadn’t sounded… human.
“Did you hear that?” Wisecrack demanded, looking around.
“That’s one of the brothers messing about,” I said quickly. I loved horror movies, but the fuck, I was going to star in one.
We were walking a path and surrounded by tall gravestones. Tonight was cloudy, and as most of the town was trick or treating, it was deathly quiet out here. Which is why when I heard another noise I spun around and shone my torch in the direction it came from.
“What was that?” Soar asked, sounding spooked.
“Probably an animal,” I replied, my eyes searching for signs.
The sound echoed again, and we all jumped.
“That’s not a critter. That sounds like something digging,” Soar announced.
“Nobody is digging out here, and the boys are far away,” I said, but I moved behind Wisecrack, who sent me a sceptical look.
“Are you fuckin’ kidding me?” he asked.
“Dude, I’ll rip a man apart, but I ain’t dealing with zombies,” I said.
“Says everyone’s walking nightmare,” Soar retorted.
Bitchily, I gave Soar a stare and then kicked him up the ass using my abilities and made him move forward.
“I’ll get you for this, Dyn—oh fuckin shit,” Soar exclaimed as his voice rose.
“What is it?” I demanded, ready to run.
Wisecrack reached out and snagged my cut. “We’re sticking together,” he declared, and I glowered but allowed him to drag me over to where Soar was standing frozen.
My eyes widened. “What the fuck are they?”
In front of me were three figures, all pale white and bald. They turned their heads, and I squealed as I saw razor-sharp teeth and glowing red eyes. There was a dug-up grave, and the coffin was open. Two of them held what looked like a bone to their mouth with flesh hanging off it. The third had his hand inside the coffin, and as I stared, there was a wet slurping noise, and it withdrew its hand, holding a decomposing arm. The creature raised it to its lips, and I shrieked.
“Ghouls. They eat dead flesh but prefer living,” Soar muttered.
All three creatures were watching us and began straightening.
“I’m outta here!” I screeched and took to my heels.
Wisecrack and Soar weren’t far behind.
Blister, Aura and Thunderbird
This was not my idea of fun. Wandering around a fuckin’ cemetery late at night, looking out for stupid kids who think they’re brave enough to come to a graveyard on Halloween. All so we could dig up some dead a-hole. Yeah, I’d rather be in a warm clubhouse with a curry and a beer. I’ve got simple needs.
“Blister, did you hear that?” Aura inquired, turning his head.
“What?” I asked, jarred from my thoughts.
“That sounded like Dynamo screaming,” he said, craning his neck.
Thunderbird laughed in disbelief, and I couldn’t fault him.
“Dynamo wouldn’t scream,” I replied.
“Someone screamed,” Aura insisted.
“Must be kids, it can’t be Dynamo. That bitch doesn’t feel fear,” I responded with a frown.
“Fine,” Aura stated and glanced at a mausoleum.
I hated those fuckers. There was something spooky about placing bodies within four walls and locking the gates to them. Why lock a body in a vault? They’re dead. I shuddered and glanced away. This area was incredibly creepy and old, and my spine tingled in warning.
As we walked through them, something dropped ahead of us. I shone my flashlight in that direction but didn’t see anything.
Aura peered over and narrowed his eyes.
“You see anything?” I asked. My skills were useless at this point. My ability to read an item wasn’t handy in a cemetery unless I wanted to read graves.
Lightning flashed overhead, and I turned to Thunderbird. “Reel it in, brother,” I warned him.
“Something’s wrong,” Thunderbird said, stopping walking and twisting his head.
“Yeah, we stopped outside that witch’s mausoleum,” Aura complained as he shone his torch on it.
“The fuck we did,” I snapped, turning to stare.
Fuck!
There was a local legend about this one particular tomb. Back in seventeen ninety-three, the town of Camden had persecuted and then hung a young woman they thought was a witch. During her trial, she’d cursed the town’s people, and then, when she was hanged, she swore to return in the future. Her entire mausoleum was surrounded by iron fencing that was meant to keep her in the ground.
“That witch is not rising from the dead,” I muttered, eyeing the building carefully.
“What the fuck is that noise?” Aura demanded, and this time it was loud. It sounded like stone scraping against stone.
“Just a brick falling,” I explained logically. Bolt lightning flashed again. “Get a grip, Thunderbird. The dead don’t rise.”
“Yeah, so you say,” my brother said, his eyes wide on the door of the mausoleum.
In sheer disbelief, I watched as it slowly scraped open.
“This is not happening!” Aura yelled. A light flared inside the darkness, and we all stepped back.
“What the fuck?” I whispered.
Moments later, Aura took to his heels with a yell as a withered arm appeared and groped the gate. Thunder and lightning lit the sky as Thunderbird ran after him. The grasping fingers gripped the gate and shook, and I yelped as it began to open slowly.
Then I shot after my brothers without a backward glance.
Scorch and Soul
“You sure we’re alone?” Soul asked.
“Yeah, why?” I replied.
“Bro, I keep hearing shit. It’s probably the fact it’s Halloween and playing on my mind,” Soul answered.
It was unlike Soul to be on edge, so I glanced up and listened. I’d not yet started the furnace, but I was making certain everything was ready to go.
I jumped as a door slammed somewhere. Soul and I swapped concerned looks, and Soul appeared worried.
“Let’s check,” I said.
Together, we left the furnace and walked up the flight of stairs. Somewhere in the building, a door banged, and we exchanged glances. There shouldn’t be anyone here. If it had been a member of the club, they’d have called out. Soul and I pulled our weapons and quietly strode down the corridor.
A low groan met our ears, but it didn’t sound right. It was eerie. Soul’s steps slowed.
“Should we call backup to investigate?” Soul suggested.
I rolled my eyes.
“Are you expecting a zombie?” I replied with a slight laugh.
Soul gazed past me and pointed.
Scornfully, I turned, and my mouth dropped open. Three bodies that had arrived today and had been put on ice waiting for cremation were stumbling around.
Soul made a strangled noise, and then his boots echoed loudly as he raced towards the exit.
As the walking dead twisted to face me, I wasn’t ashamed to say I was right on his heels.
Undertaker, Dare, Rook
“Did anyone see that light?” Dare inquired as she pointed towards the area of the graveyard where the trees became denser.
“What light?” Rook asked as I peered into the darkness.
“That one,” Dare replied, pointing, and this time, I caught sight of a light that flashed on and off.
“Shit, we’ve got intruders. We better chase them off,” I said.
We began walking quickly towards the light when a scream pierced the air. We stopped, and Dare turned to me with disbelief on her face.
“Was that Dynamo?”
“Not likely,” I replied. There was no way our road captain would be screaming in fear.
“What’s with that damn light?” Rook complained as it flickered and disappeared again.
“Someone’s having a joke on us,” Dare said. “It’s times like this I wish I had a different ability, like one to send lightning bolts from my fingers.”
“That would be so cool!” Rook exclaimed as I rolled my eyes.
I stepped backwards as a wave of terror hit me and stopped walking.
“Undertaker?” Dare asked.
“A surge of fear came from someone,” I replied, searching for our family.
“From one of us?” Rook inquired.
“Yeah. I’m linked to you all. It was definitely from a brother or sister,” I responded as I searched for who it had been.
A second blast hit me, and then two male yells broke the silence.
“What the hell?” Dare demanded.
“Something’s not right,” Rook agreed.
“Look!” Dare cried, pointing towards the treeline we were near.
I stared and, at first, saw nothing. Then, a faint light appeared, and my eyes bugged out. Floating in front of us was the outline of a young woman. She gazed at us as we gaped at her in shock.
“Yeah, I’m out of here. I don’t do ghosts,” Dare announced and began backing away.
My hand shot out and snatched her arm.
“This is a hoax. Spirits don’t exist,” I murmured.
The ghost hovered there, calmly watching.
“Neither do people with powers,” Rook retorted, and I glowered at him.
“I’ll prove it’s a scam,” I said, stepping forward.
I hid a snort as the others held back and watched me. The image turned to face me as I approached, and once I got within a few feet, something startling happened. She twitched and shuddered. Her head twisted a full three hundred and sixty degrees, and her eyes began to glow.
From behind me, Dare released a squeak. I ignored her, intent on proving this was a fake, but my feet refused to move. The ghost’s mouth dropped into a horrifying grin, and her head snapped back around, making us all jump.
Her visage flashed back and forth, and suddenly, she changed into a terrifying monster. Her skin withered and clung to her bones, her eyes glowed, her hair became straggly, her legs disappeared, and her hands transformed into claws.
“That’s a fuckin’ banshee!” Dare shrieked as the spirit opened her mouth and keened.
Before I guessed what was going on, my feet had a mind of their own and were racing after the others as my heart thudded loudly. Dare screamed as another ghost popped up from behind a gravestone, and she darted down a path.
Jesus, what was happening? I wondered as I pounded after her. There was no way I was letting Dare end up in trouble. Rook raced beside me, casting terrified looks over his shoulder.
“It’s following us,” he yelled.
Dare screamed as she collided with someone, and we all fell while fighting to escape.
Vogue, Slasher, Cipher, Blue.
My hands lit with flames as suddenly the peacefulness of the graveyard was rent with screams and shouts.
“What the fuck?” I demanded, eyeing Slasher and Cipher warily. They moved and took one side of me each. Blue stepped up behind me.
“Don’t think our powers will help here,” Slasher said, looking around.
“Yeah, hide behind me,” I replied sarcastically.
“You’re the one with firepower,” Slasher retorted, and I groaned at the pun.
“Stay with me, don’t you fucker’s leave me,” I warned them, and we moved towards where a familiar scream impaled the air. “That’s Dare!”
A squeak came from a nearby grave, and we turned and flashed our lights in that direction.
“What was that?” I demanded. I recognised the sound but hesitated to label it.
“A rat, I think,” Blue replied.
“Fuckin’ hate rats,” I murmured.
“How much, Vogue?” Slasher asked, worried.
“A shit load, Slasher,” I snapped as I spotted two beady red eyes lying low to the ground. My hands flared as a second set appeared.
“Cipher,” I whispered as I twisted my head.
“This might be a time to go, Firestarter!” Slasher cried as red eyes emerged from every direction.
“Holy crap!” I squealed and let a blast loose.
“Don’t burn the damn graveyard down around our ears!” Cipher yelled as I let another blast loose.
“They’re not normal!” Blue howled, amping up my terror.
Frightened, I spun to where he looked and gulped at the size of the rodents there.
“Run!” I shrieked as they began heading towards us.
We dashed down a path as the rats gave chase, making squeals and spooky chittering noises. I aimed a couple of blasts over my shoulders, leaving small fires burning. We were fine until we ran into another group, obviously fleeing something themselves, and we all went down.
I curled into a ball and screamed as I imagined the hairy critters running over us.
Dare reached out and grabbed me and squealed herself. What the hell was happening?
Bogeyman, Oracle, Priest, and Romeo
“Why are they fuckin’ screaming?” I demanded of the others, who looked at me and shrugged. For the past few minutes, the previously quiet graveyard had been lit with screams and cries.
“Romeo, can you contact anyone?” Oracle asked with concern in his voice.
“Trying to, but they’re all terrified of something. I’m getting strange images: ghouls, rats, a witch. None of this makes sense,” Romeo replied.
“This was a terrible idea to do on Halloween,” Priest stated. We all shot the prospect a warning look. “Nope, I said it, and I’m sticking to it. We shouldn’t be messing with dead bodies on Halloween.”
“Superstitious?” I teased, and Priest turned and gazed at me solemnly.
“Dude, I’m not afraid to admit it,” Priest replied, and I shut up. If the man owned his fear, I couldn’t exactly tease him.
“Romeo?” I asked again, and he shook his head as another scream arose.
“That was Vogue!” I exclaimed, recognising my partner in crime’s tone.
“Rats, that’s all I’m getting from Vogue, and she’s burning shit left, right, and centre,” Romeo replied.
Three more screams lit the air, and we paused.
“Was that Lindy?” Oracle inquired.
“Why would Lindy be here?” I demanded.
“Rosalea!” Iona shrieked, and we swapped glances.
“What the fuck?” we asked.
“Could they be running from that?” Priest inquired, and we spun to glance where he pointed.
Shuffling figures headed towards us, and we all stiffened.
“Is that…?” Oracle whispered.
“Nope!” I said, shaking my head firmly. “Zombies don’t exist. The dead don’t walk.”
“Then what the hell are they?” Romeo demanded, stepping backwards.
“For fuck’s sake!” I snapped and walked forward to meet the lead zombie. I reached out and grabbed his arm and stared in mute disgust as it came off in my hand and dripped nasty crap all over me.
“Run!” Oracle screamed.
The fuckers took to their heels and left me as the zombie leaned into my personal space, and an eye popped out. I didn’t hesitate. I dropped the arm and ran. Shit had just got weird.
Lindy, Iona, Rosalea
“Should we be here?” Rosalea whimpered as she clung to Iona.
“We’re fine! The club owns this, remember?” I said as I placed the planchet on the board. We were sitting in a circle around it, and I’d set everything up.
It was hard not to smile, knowing what was coming, but I held back and urged the girls to put their finger on the planchet.
“Is anybody there?” I asked. Nothing happened, and Iona began to relax. Too soon.
Suddenly, the planchet shot to yes.
“Fuck!” Iona cried and leaned slightly forward.
“Tell me you pushed that!” Rosalea squeaked.
“Shush, child,” I reprimanded. “Can you spell your name?”
Slowly the planchet ran through the letters that spelt demon.
“Don’t take your finger off the planchet; you’ll release it!” I warned Rosalea, who looked ready to bolt.
Rosalea shook in her spot. Without warning, the planchet rose in the air and began spinning. That was all it took. Rosalea let out a scream, making me jump, and I screamed myself. Within seconds, Rosalea was on her feet and running.
“Rosalea!” Iona yelled and raced after her. Moments later, Iona returned, grabbed my hand, and we both chased after the terrified girl.
Warden, Kosmic, Noble, Wyvern, and Griffin
“What the fuck is happening?” I snarled as screams, cries and yells tore through the silence.
“I’ve no freaking idea. But something is scaring the hell out of everyone,” Kosmic replied.
“Warden. Ain’t that a coffin?” Wyvern asked, leaning forward.
“We’ve not gone deep enough for a casket,” I stated, frowning, as Wyvern scrapped his shovel along something.
“Well, Prez. This is a damn casket,” Griffin replied.
“What?” I demanded, puzzled. The screams were getting louder, and it sounded like chaos was breaking open. We’d only dug two feet down, and there’s no way we should have hit a coffin.
A scraping and creaking noise broke into my thoughts. We looked down, confused, as the lid popped open.
“Tell me that’s my imagination,” Noble demanded.
“Yup, and tell me they are too!” Kosmic cried, and I turned and saw shuffling figures appearing from behind gravestones. The coffin lid lifted, and a hand appeared, bony fingers searching for something.
“Zombie’s ain’t real!” I snarled.
“Explain that!” Wyvern exclaimed.
A figure ran through the zombies, screaming at the top of her lungs, and my sister crashed into Griffin and sent him toppling into the hole we’d dug. Rosalea took one look at the coffin and screamed and climbed onto Kosmic’s back and clung to him.
“Why the fuck are you here?” I demanded, shaken.
Griffin screeched from the grave, and I glanced down and saw him fighting a skeleton. Bones and ooze were flying everywhere, and I shook my head.
Noble began heaving as he was splattered with something, and I winced.
“Get Griffin out of there!” I ordered as I pulled a gun. Before I could take aim and shoot, Iona crashed into me, screaming, and climbed me, burying her head in my neck. Lindy came out of nowhere and joined the chaos.
Griffin was having full-on hysterics now as he was covered in gunk, and Noble was retching to one side. Suddenly, I saw a flare of fire, and Vogue screamed as her team raced to join us.
“Rats!” Vogue yelled, wild-eyed.
“Zombies!” Wyvern bellowed back.
“Fuck!” Vogue screamed.
Chaos ensued as the teams all came racing towards us. Dynamo ran straight into Noble and sent him down into the still-moving mass of bones and gunk. Noble screeched, and I shook my head. My MC was losing their heads all around me.
A terrifying vision of a ghost swooped as Undertaker, Dare, and Rook appeared. Dare spotted Noble in the hole, climbed Undertaker’s back and held on tightly, choking my VP.
“Noble’s a zombie! Aim at him!” she yelled at Vogue.
Vogue spun her hands ablaze, and I knocked them down before she could toast our Tail Gunner.
“Noble’s not a zombie!” I shouted.
“He’s in a grave!” my freaked-out Enforcer screeched.
“Rats!” Priest cried and, running backwards, tripped and landed on top of Noble, who shrieked, and the two of them began fighting.
“Will you all shut up?” I bellowed, and silence fell. As I turned to face the zombies, I discovered they’d disappeared.
“What the fuck is happening?” I demanded and heard a giggle.
I twisted my neck and found Lindy grinning. Then I dropped my head in my hands.
Fireworks lit the sky, spelling, ‘Happy Halloween, Fuckers!’
“The Old Timers!” I groaned as my club began to calm down and realise what was going on.
“I’m gonna kill those bastards!” Noble spat from the grave.
Three figures appeared and waved happily at us.
“We’ve got it all on camera,” Spice called cheerfully.
“There’s food at the clubhouse, Lindy organised it,” Pipes said, and the Old Timers disappeared.
“You’re dead. Prospects, fill this hole. There’s no fuckin’ USB stick we need to recover. We were all played!” I announced and slung my shovel in the Old Timer’s direction. I rubbed Iona’s back as she finally stopped whimpering and lifted her head.
“Not a Happy Halloween,” she whispered.
“There, there, baby. It’s all okay. We’ll get those fuckers,” I promised.
Just wait till next Halloween!