In a cold forest, hides a creature of myth. Two opposing groups have come to find it. One seeks answers to a mystery. The other... a trophy. Who will reach it first? And what will they find when they do?
We stepped out of the truck bed, our feet touching down on hard concrete. It took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust to the light. Once they did, I could see where we now found ourselves.
And what I saw defied logic.
A Ferris Wheel. A wooden roller coaster. Ticket booths. Empty gaming pavilions. Smaller buildings with rickety old signs reading things like: House of Mirrors, The Magic Box, The Mystical Vortex...
We were standing in the main concourse of an amusement park.
I noticed that the area was much brighter than it should be. That was due to the three large flood lights that had been placed around the concourse, the kind that had long necks that reached up about twenty feet and ran on portable generators. Though the artificial light was much brighter than the moonglow, the area was still bleak and dark, giving this strange new environment an eerie, almost otherworldly quality.
Looking around, I could see that – even though it was winter – the place was no longer in operation and hadn't been for a long time. From what I could tell, it had been shut down for far longer than just this one season. Old brushy trees had grown up around the Ferris Wheel, and the paint on its carts was faded and peeling. The wooden roller coaster looked rickety with random boards having rotted and fallen off. The buildings were drab, with some of the signs hanging askew. A forest of scrub brush had grown up through the many cracks in the cement, as if nature was slowly reaching its tendrils into this place, patiently reclaiming the land for itself.
This wasn't just any amusement park.
This was an abandoned amusement park.
I could fathom being a part of an enigmatic boogieman's scheme to capture a Sasquatch. I'd accepted the fact that we were being hauled off to parts unknown with our ultimate fates in question. But to end up here of all places was like something out of The Twilight Zone.
I glanced at Stu and Sky, both looking as baffled as I felt.
Slater approached us with Janelle and Trent following close behind. I noticed that he was holding a different type of rifle now, one that most likely did not fire tranquilizer darts.
"Welcome to The Outlands," Slater said. "First built in 1968, it was finally closed in 1991 when its owner passed away and the state opted to reroute the highway and let nature reclaim the space."
Though I'd fallen asleep during the ride here, I figured we'd been driving for about two hours, which put us roughly a hundred miles from Grey's place, though in which direction, I had no clue. Still, it seemed like we were in another out of the way spot, the nature-intruding park the only sign of what passed for civilization that I could see.
"You're probably wondering why I brought you here," Slater said. "Let's just say, I need a few extra hands, and leave it at that for now. You may be tempted to run. I advise you. Don't. There's nothing around for miles. The man that built this place made sure to keep it away from any towns or cities for a very specific reason. More on that later. Just know that there's nowhere you can go where I can't track you. And if you make me... well, it wouldn't be a good idea, trust me."
From the looks of this place and knowing what I knew about the man so far, I was inclined to believe him. Like it or not, we were stuck here. At least he hadn't kept us locked in the truck or restrained our hands. If we wanted to keep it that way, we were going to have to cooperate. At least for now. I couldn't tell what Stu was thinking. He was doing a good job of keeping his emotions in check, his face neutral and unreadable. But I had a sense that he agreed that we were stuck here for the time being and had no choice but to ride this out to whatever conclusion awaited us.
"Trent, go get the forklift," Slater ordered.
Trent moved quickly to another panel truck that was parked on the concourse, one that I hadn't noticed until that moment. Flood lights. A second truck. I could only conclude that these items had been placed here in advance, as if they were planning to come here all along.
Trent opened the door at the back of the truck and pulled out a long ramp that led into the truck bed. He walked inside and came out a few minutes later driving the forklift down the ramp to the concrete ground. I noticed that the lift was carrying a wide pallet, creating a makeshift platform that something could be placed on. He then took it over to the truck we'd arrived in.
I had a feeling where this was going.
"You two," Slater said, gesturing to Stu and I. "Help him."
It was clear to me that they were going to use the lift to remove the Sasquatch from the truck bed and take it somewhere. Slater wanted us to drag it from the back of the truck and help place it onto the pallet. Stu must have figured the same and climbed up into the back of the truck without any further prompting, while Sky stayed put with the leering Janelle keeping a close eye on her. I climbed up as well, and we both went over to the sedated Sasquatch. By now, we'd both gotten used to the smell, though having had a few minutes of fresh air after the close-quarters ride, made its pungency return with renewed intensity.
Both of us grabbed an arm and we dragged it back to the liftgate. Stu, of course, was much bigger than me, and by proxy, did most of the work. Though I liked to believe that my straining and grunting helped a little.
Trent had lifted the pallet up to the level of the truck bed and we did our best to wrestle the hairy beast onto it. After we were done, we both jumped down as Trent backed away from the truck, lowering the pallet some and preparing the Sasquatch for further transport.
"What about Grey?" Stu asked.
"He's not going anywhere," Slater said, and slid the panel door shut.
Though the back of the truck was cold and dark, I figured it was as safe a place as any for him.
It was the rest of us I was worried about.
Despite all of the strange things we'd encountered so far this night, I had a sinking suspicion that the worst – and the weirdest – was yet to come.
And as Trent moved the Sasquatch deeper into the abandoned park, with Slater and Janelle forcing us to follow at the barrel of a gun, I would soon come to find out just how right I was.
Rất tiếc! Hình ảnh này không tuân theo hướng dẫn nội dung. Để tiếp tục đăng tải, vui lòng xóa hoặc tải lên một hình ảnh khác.
