Spirit Scuffle
A storm threatened to burst overhead as I pedaled faster, my bike’s frame rattling with every pebble and branch swallowed underneath. Excitement grew within me as I neared the pavilion that sat at the center of the park’s clearing.
To my surprise as I ducked under the overhang, just as the first few drops of rain collided with the soft surrounding grass, I found neither of my friends waiting. Something wasn’t right. They had sounded so excited on the phone. Harshly dropping my bike, I climbed up onto the nearest picnic table and peered out onto the fields expecting at any moment to see a pair emerge from the treeline. I checked my watch. As seconds turned into minutes and the sun rapidly began to fall below the treeline, my anxiety rose. It was so quiet waiting all alone. I reached into my backpack and retrieved my camcorder from within to ward off the descending night with its flashlight as I began to pace back and forth. The weight in my hand was familiar and reassuring. Suddenly, a prickling sensation crept up the back of my neck as a previously unnoticed object entered into my periphery. Spinning, I shone the faint light upon it, revealing a skull that reflected vibrantly. Our gazes seemingly met.
I was not alone. Someone or rather… something was here with me.
As the thought manifested, a bright trail of lightning ignited over the fields. The flash of light only lasted for a second, but within that short timeframe a multitude of root-like tendrils became visible in the dark, reaching out toward me. It was as if something lurking outside of my perception had been momentarily revealed before then suddenly vanishing. A faint insight into an unseen horror. Jumping back fearfully, my leg caught the edge of a table and I tumbled down onto the cement flooring of the pavilion. Encroaching fear rooted my body to the ground as if any movement might turn deadly. A tiny glint from beneath a nearby bench caught my gaze. Curiosity slowly replaced fear as I strained to make out what it was. Underneath the same bench that had previously been occupied by the skull was a pair of backpacks heavily stained with an unmistakable dark color.
