Reapers - Thirteen Brothers

XII - Leaving (2 of 2)

Vincent could've at least made a map.

"Damn him!"

I slammed on the brakes when I saw a flicker of light somewhere in the woods to my right. Squinting, I stared at it for a while before starting the engines and driving as fast as I could, off the road toward the source of the light.

The potholed trail and the combined excitement made me bounce on my seat. But before I could even have my hopes up, my hands loosened on the wheel, twitching uncontrollably. A faint glow radiated from my fingertips traveling up to the rest of my body at a frightening rate.

It looked as if the road was splitting into two. And soon I could see a transparent version of myself separating from my body. Like my soul was trying to escape out of me.

"No!" I fought it and tried to take control with all my remaining willpower. But I had lost my gravity. Whatever force held my place on earth seemed to be crumbling.

Just a little more! I encouraged myself. A few more minutes and I would be there. And Vincent would fix me! Whether he likes it or not!

It was a miracle that I managed to keep intact for a little while longer. But then, a demented laughter filled the air. A pair of gnarly ashen hands materialized from outside the window of my Dad's pick-up truck. The hands easily passed through the glass panel and grabbed me on the shoulders. I writhed away from the hands, a horrified scream leaving my lips.

Arms slowly grew from the hands, followed by shoulders, a long twisted neck and eventually the face of a woman. She glided in the air, her long filthy hair billowing against the wind. My eyes widened in fear when she flashed a lopsided grin.

I stifled a cry, my whole body turning numb when I got a closer look of her face; it terrified me more. She looked a lot like me. We could have been sisters. Or twins.

Her bloodshot eyes were the color of mud. Her heart-shaped was face ashen and emaciated, her long straw-colored hair crusted with blood and dirt. The long flowing robes she wore might have been white once, but now it was brown and brittle with filth, like tentacles flailing against the wind. If she had feet under that robe, I couldn't be sure.

"Give it! It's mine!" she shrieked, trying to pull my hands off the wheel.

A shudder ran through my spine as she leaned closer to the glass. The stench of a rotting corpse wafted to my nose, urging me to gag.

Deliberately, I let the truck swerve left and right to shake her loose. But it didn't seem to work. I called upon the voice inside me, hoping that it would tell me what to do. But it stayed quiet, giving me a cold shoulder.

It was too late when I saw a huge fir tree in front of me.

I hit the trunk of the tree with a deafening crash.

The wind shield shattered into pieces.

I closed my eyes and shielded my face with my hands. My head hit the steering wheel so hard that I went blind for a few seconds. When I regained my bearings, I felt a huge bump on the side of my head and winced at the pain. Everything whirred around me, but I fought hard to keep conscious.

Once the wooziness had subsided, I looked around. The creature seemed to be gone. For now at least.

The hood was all scrunched up, black smoke puffing out from the busted engines. Weakly, I opened my eyes and kicked the truck's door open. The ground seemed to shake under my bare feet as I staggered my way to the source of the light.

It was getting brighter. I was getting closer.

An unnatural silence prevailed as I got deeper and deeper into the woods. The trees loomed over me like shadows. Autumn leaves seemed to dance around me despite the downpour.