Unknown location, 1930
Little flickers of red liquid sprinkled upon my face. It felt warm and thick, giving off a metallic smell I had never really smelt before. My brain kept trying to convince me that what was happening before me wasn't real.
No, the blood's not real. No, those aren't screams. Oh, no. Your mother's fine. She's fine.
But still I heard her scream. I still felt her sickly hot blood on my young face. My Uncle Benjamin was still hurting her.
They were arguing about something before it came to this. I didn't know what about, but it must've been serious. I came into the kitchen to see my mother, only to find uncle Benjamin beating her.
"Ma!" I cried out.
She screamed shrilly before uncle Benjamin clamped his big hand around her throat. He then groped the kitchen table for something, his hand finding a large knife. My mother choked out one last scream as the sharp object plunged deep within her chest.
The screaming didn't stop though, I screamed now too.
Uncle Benjamin barely even acknowledged I was there with him in the kitchen. I remembered backing into the corner and sinking down to the floor. I remembered hugging my knees to my chest and crying into them, the blood on my face smearing all over my dress. It got even worse when my father came in. He bursted through the door, yelling and asking what the screaming was about. Not another sound was uttered out of his mouth when he saw what was inside.
My mother, his wife, stabbed to death on the floor. His daughter, me, cowering in the corner. And then there was my uncle, his brother-in-law, wielding a knife. It didn't take very long for uncle Benjamin to roar out a battle cry and strike my father with the bloody blade. Over and over again did the knife impale the younger man. Poor daddy never stood a chance to such an insane man like my uncle Benjamin.
No, the blood's not real. No, those aren't screams. Oh, no. Your father's fine. He's fine.
Finally uncle Benjamin stilled, slowly standing over the two mutilated bodies. The knife was gripped hard in his wet hand, turning red stained knuckles white. The man breathed hard, letting the blade clatter to the floor. His breathing soon slowed back to normal as the adrenaline rush wafted away.
Finally, uncle Benjamin looked over at me.
I was up on my feet in no time, tearfully making my way to the door.
"Where are you going?" Uncle Benjamin growled.
I shrieked and bolted away from him. Just as I reached the door, I felt his large hand grip the back of my dress, tugging me back into the kitchen. My screams became so desperate and croaky, it felt like I was ripping my vocal cords apart.
"You ain't going anywhere." Uncle Benjamin grinned like a madman.
I didn't know how I got out of that alive. Somehow my uncle spared me. After the death of my parents, he dragged me off by the hair to his and his mother's farm. That was where I spent the rest of my days until they were both arrested. But we would get into that later.
Life on the farm was no walk in the park. Especially in my situation as you could just imagine. My grandmother Elizabeth and my uncle Benjamin were just plain awful. Plain evil. Life was hell and torture and not just for me. Somehow, I didn't know how, uncle Benjamin managed to get my older cousin here too. Cousin Jim was thirteen years old, three years older than me. Jim was just like me, and I was somewhat glad to have a friendly face like him around.
As rough as my life was here at the farm, I knew that I actually got it easy. Jim was the unfortunate one out of the two of us. You see, if you thought that uncle Benjamin would stop at my parents, you were dead wrong.
Every night I laid down in my bed, children would scream.
Uncle Benjamin just had this way of getting what he wanted. How he managed to kidnap these children so seamlessly? No idea. He even forced cousin Jim to do it too. That's what I meant from before. I got it easy, Jim had it bad. Uncle Benjamin was completely insane, no doubt about it. He would torture these children, do ungodly things to them before offing them with his rusty old axe. But if he didn't feel like killing them, he'd make Jim do it.
He'd yell in the boy's face, shoving the axe to his chest and demanding him to kill the kids. Jim's eyes would screw shut, tears streaming down as he tried to blur everything out. Just like how I taught them.
No, the blood's not real. No, those aren't screams. Oh, no. The children are fine. They're fine.
But that didn't work for my poor, big cousin Jim. With a red face and blurry eyes, he'd bring down the blade of the axe blindly. The screams would stop then. Uncle Benjamin would coo at Jim, stroking his tears away and petting his hair. It was disgusting.
"Such a good job, boy." He'd smile.
Disgusting.
No, seriously. Fuck you.
Fuck! You!
He'd make me watch all of this, did you know? He'd make me watch my cousin kill off helpless children. Uncle Benjamin would even give me 'the tour' of his godawful lair. Beaten children chained up on the dirty ground, bloody weapons and mutilated body parts. I was ten years old and he was showing me this.
Over time, the endless torture of children seemed to almost bore my uncle. Jim and I seemed to get more and more appealing to the sick man. An unhealthy obsession bloomed deep within his dead heart for us. Just like what he had for my mother before he killed her. Many nights would Jim and I cry together in our shared room. We cuddled close and silently prayed to whatever would listen. Jim tried to be tough, tried to be this big cousin strong boy, but he just couldn't. I understood. After seeing what he was forced to do, how couldn't I understand?
One day, Jim's mother visited the farm. After finally tracking down her son that was so forcefully taken away by none other than her younger brother, she was hysterical. Like I said before, uncle Benjamin was completely insane. But he loved his older sister, and told her everything.
He told her what he did to their younger sister and her husband. He told her how I watched the whole thing then he dragged me here. He then went on about how he then dragged Jim over here too. Made him kill, made me watch.
Disgusting.
Jim's mother, my aunt Betty, took him back. She grabbed Jim by the back of his shirt and pulled him away from her crazed brother and mother. Grandma Elizabeth knew about it all intimately. She never did anything about it. She let her son do whatever he wanted to to me, Jim and all the other unfortunate kids. With that being said, aunt Betty took the both of us away that day.
Cousin Jim finally got to go home and reunite with our family. Aunt Betty didn't take me home with them. Instead she sent me to an adoption centre, where the start of my new life began.
Fortunately for me, I was adopted by a warm and loving family. It was affection I hadn't known since my parents died. But since then, I finally felt happy. I remembered smiling on the car ride to my new home. Why? Because uncle Benjamin finally got what he deserved. Grandma Elizabeth was arrested, and so was her son. She spent the rest of her rotten days behind bars before her enviable death. Uncle Benjamin however, was sent straight to death. He was to be hanged by a noose, but not until a few months unfortunately.
That's when everything broke down again. I thought the day he was hanged was going to be one of my best, but I was wrong. The verdict made Jim and I be present at the hanging, as we were key witnesses. I remembered Jim's sweaty hand gripping onto mine tightly. Uncle Benjamin stood before us with a thick noose around his neck, head bowed and mumbling to himself. The floor under him gave way, and he was left in the air hanging.
Jim's hand broke away from mine as he stared fearfully at our dying uncle that was so grossly obsessed with us. My gaze was fixated on him too, his mumbling getting more and more clear. Was I the only one hearing this? My brows furrowed as I listened in to what uncle Benjamin was pleading.
"Please, please don't let me die. I'll do anything. Please, god. Oh, god. No, no. I'll do anything." He mumbled tearfully.
I looked about wildly, seeing if anybody else could hear him as clear as I could. All the other people who were present just watched him coldly. Oh, they couldn't hear a thing... a freezing cold fog overtook the scene. A shiver ran down my spine as the wind whipped against my dress. Everybody around me didn't seem to notice. I looked next to me where Jim sat, and he just looked down at his lap and cried. I touched his shoulder, but he didn't budge. I then shook it. No reaction.
"Jim!" I snapped.
The teenage boy just kept on crying. I stared desperately at my uncle that still hanged and prayed. The fog became thicker and harder to see through. My uncle's form was completely engulfed by it, and I was too.
The Entity's realm, ten years later
Thwack!
A knife spun wildly in the air before hitting the tree. Another was thrown shortly after, embedding deep into the wood next to it.
Thwack!
I threw another, then another, all effectively hitting the tree.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
The dull hunting knives weren't mine. They were from the old lair on the farm. I stared at them in the tree for a few moments, before turning away. As I walked, I gripped the final knife in my hand importantly.
"Yah!"
I whirled around and threw it hard into the tree. It spun in the air before it struck wood perfectly.
Thwack!
Dead auburn leaves crunched under my feet as a sigh left my lips. I glanced down at my hands, eyes focused on the dried blood under my nails. Another sigh. I didn't want to end up like this. I walked along a stone path by the farm, taking in its worn down features. In the real world, all I wanted was to escape this place. To escape him.
Now I was stuck in a worse version of it with a worse version of him.
But I didn't dwell on that. The fog's deep voice whispered gibberish in my ear that I somehow understood perfectly. I closed my eyes blissfully and let it take me, off to a trial.
Trials weren't as bad as they used to be anymore. At first, I wasn't in them at all. When I arrived here, I was only ten. Somehow the Entity missed me, me barely skittering out of its claws and off into the shadows. But then I got older, became a teenager. That's when it wanted me. That's when he wanted me.
I remembered being very angry while in trials. I nearly wanted to scream until my lungs gave out. Why? Because he never hanged. Not properly at least.
When uncle Benjamin had that noose wrapped snug around his stupid neck, he prayed. Prayed to whatever listened, much like Jim and I used to. No holy god heard his prayers. Nobody heard him except the godless spider that dwelled in the night's sky of its own making.
The Entity.
It gave him a second chance that I wished I could've snuffed out then and there. This 'spider' liked me too, and thought it'd let me tag along even though I was just a little girl. I grew up in the shadows here in the realm. When I strengthened and matured, it welcomed me into trials with open claws. A mere survivor, I was. Just scraping by. So very angry.
I was most angry when I was faced with... him. Uncle Benjamin to me, the 'Farmer' to everyone else. A middle aged man dressed in his tie and suspenders... a man with a big, old bloody axe in hand. A man that was completely insane.
He'd yell out to me when I'd run away. The other three survivors I would be with were always so confused. Uncle Benjamin would coo and try to con me into following him. He'd call my name in a singsong tune.
"Come home, little girlie. Come on, little girlie. Come home." He'd croon.
It was terrifying for me and survivors alike. It wasn't fair. I was supposed to get away from all this. My aunt found us, she sent me away! I got a new family who loved me! I was supposed to be getting better!
Now what?
Ten years I spent here. It was a strange world indeed. A lot of the people here had such strange clothes and strange ways of talking. When I grew up a little and showed my face a bit more, they'd say that they were from the far off twenty first century.
Gee... I thought to myself.
What was this place?
Not all we're firm that far into the future though. Some where ancient. Some were even from the seventies or nineties, decades I was well behind. I even made friends, I supposed. But that was a long time ago, even now. Now I stood at the old farm, more demonic than it ever was. He dragged me back here, again. He hurt me, again. And now I was trapped.
Again.
"Oh, girlie-girlie?" I heard uncle Benjamin call.
Oh, no. He's back!
I whipped my head from side to side, desperately trying to find a hiding spot like I used to as a child.
"Come on, spider!" I whispered. "Take me away from this! Please!" I begged quietly.
A deep rumbling whisper breathed against my ear. A breath of relief left me, and uncle Benjamin's calls for me faded away.
Trials were a lot more different for me nowadays, and it was all because of him. One thing I failed to mention, was that he apparently hated hurting me in trials. The man would openly cry, slamming me onto a rusty hook like a madman before begging me for forgiveness.
"Leave me alone!" I'd often yell.
All I wanted was to be away from him but now my existence depended on him. Uncle Benjamin would beg the Entity time and time again for me to escape the trials. To escape the survivor's curse. On his knees he kneeled down to the mighty clawed creature, begging for my mercy. An absolute madman.
I didn't know how uncle Benjamin managed to do it, but he did. After endless requests, it was done. Big bony claws descended down before me. I resisted, but that didn't matter. When the fog cleared... you were a different person after that. The Entity corrupted me. Twisted and turned me into its next little kill toy. There I stood in the dark, body changed, weapon in hand. A woman screamed at the sight of me and ran away, deep within the fog.
I readied my weapon, and followed after her.
I had no realm of my own. Uncle Benjamin pulled me by the hair and dragged me to his. I remembered kicking and screaming and swearing to god that I was going to kill him. Over and over I would kill him like what we did to survivors. I swore by it, and still stood by it today. One day I would get my chance and finally be free.
I wandered out of the gates of a realm for probably the fourth time that night. No survivors did. I scarified three to the Entity tonight. The other, I got to kill myself. They were all gone, all dead. As the Entity intended, as I intended.
Good.
I kept on walking through the tall grass. My mind drifted back to the farm, and how I did not want to go back. What if uncle was there? Couldn't have that, couldn't we? I focused hard and steered my thoughts into another realm.
Take me somewhere else. Don't take me back there. Take me elsewhere.
I was left in the woods, outside of nearby realms. I wandered about, my dress flowing in the freezing wind. Crows cawed and scampered about, often taking flight off into the night. I traced the old bark of tree trunks with my fingers, my mind elsewhere.
"Hmm." I grew bored. "Take me somewhere else now. Take me to the other farm. The farm better than the one I'm from." I told the Entity.
It did as I asked. The fog thickened in my face but cleared soon after. There before me was Coldwind Farm. Though there were the tortured corpses of cattle and a dark backstory like my own, I sought comfort here. This realm belonged to the Hillbilly, whom I was on good terms with. But I wasn't here for him, or for the secluded realm.
I was here for Bubba.
The Cannibal was from a time that I never got to know: the seventies. He seemed like this modern man from this modern world I just missed out on by a couple of decades. Bubba wasn't the best at talking, but he listened to me and knew what I was saying. Every so often when neither of us had trials, we'd meet here to chat. Never at my realm though.
I spotted Bubba by the old Thompson house, fiddling with his chainsaw. A tired smile crept onto my face.
"Hello, Bubba!" I said.
Bubba mumbled something incoherent to me as he shuffled over. My smile didn't falter when gazing upon the fellow killer.
"How are you tonight?" I asked.
The Cannibal nodded his head keenly before making a happy sound.
"That's great news to hear." I replied.
We traveled together over to a large tree (one that didn't have a cow hanging from it). We seated ourselves under it, staring at each other. Bubba's eyes seemed warm and friendly under his mask made of skin as I talked gently to him. I chatted to him about the little things. Trials, a bit of my past and other dumb stories. The Cannibal would chitter along with me or nod his head to show he was listening. I smiled warmly at the man who I was technically older than. It was so odd, this realm we lived in. Though I was born before this man, he looked and was older.
"What a world we live in, Bubba." I whispered longingly.
My eyes twinkled in the moonlight and I could feel him staring. It wasn't long until I felt a huge hand touch my young face. My eyes widened and I flinched away. Bubba retracted his hand back quickly as if I bit it. He looked hurt at my reaction and that made my heart ache.
"Oh, Bubba. I'm sorry. I'm not used to being touched... nicely." I trailed, rubbing my arm nervously.
Bubba said something that I couldn't understand.
"You can touch me if you'd like. I won't flinch this time." I said.
Bubba hesitated but held his hand out anyway. He stroked my cheek with a tenderness I hadn't known since my mother died. I stared lovingly into Bubba's deep brown eyes, leaning into his hand without even realising. I still remembered when he showed up here. I was brought here first, though time was so jumbled up. He was always so gentle with me. A true soul with a big caring heart, he was. I was afraid of him at first, I had must've admitted. I wouldn't approach him if I depended on it. It was one of those things that happened over time. Over time he would approach me. Bubba tried to make me feel safe and welcomed around him. Slowly but surely, it worked.
I closed my eyes and held his hand on my cheek delicately as I nuzzled into his palm.
"Oh, Bubba." I sighed contently.
Bubba purred in response, inching closer to my face. I opened my eyes and leaned in as well.
"Girl, I know you're here!" I heard a man roar.
I gasped, jolting up and away from Bubba.
"He's here!" I exclaimed shrilly. I scrambled to my feet and brushed off my dress. "Bubba, I've got to go. My uncle has found me." I panicked. Bubba seemed scared for me, murmuring to himself. "It'll be alright. I'll be back. I'll see you soon." I said.
I came in close to the man and gave him a warm hug. Bubba wrapped his muscular arms around me and completely engulfed my thin frame.
"Goodbye." I whispered.
"Where are you hiding, girly girl?" Uncle Benjamin crooned.
I hid behind the tree Bubba and I were sitting under. Bubba rose to his feet too, grabbing his chainsaw that sat next to us. I held my own weapon tight in both hands.
"Bubba, run along now. He'll see us." I cooed to the 'younger' man.
Uncle Benjamin was soon in view. There he stood in front of the tree, bloody axe in hand. The older man's chest heaved as laboured breaths left his lips. One of his calloused hands rose up to push his black hair out of his eyes. I froze in place and couldn't run even though I really wanted to.
"You're coming home with me right now, missy." Uncle Benjamin growled.
"No!" I snapped.
Bubba revved his chainsaw. I jumped at the sound and stared at Bubba wide eyed. I almost forgot he was even there. When my uncle was about, I would completely freeze with fear.
"What do you think you're doing, boy?" Uncle Benjamin warned.
"No! Uncle, leave him alone." I barked, moving from behind the tree with my weapon raised.
"Shut up! You come with me right now and I won't bounce your head off the fucking ceiling, girl." The Farmer shouted.
Tears pricked my eyes and I bit my lip. Bubba suddenly roared in anger, lifting his chainsaw above his head. I opened my mouth to scream but nothing came out. Before I knew it, Bubba charged my uncle. The older man swung his axe once but missed terribly. Bubba was not so careless. The chainsaw made an awful noise as it sawed through flesh.
Uncle Benjamin screamed, and I smiled.
My small shoulders shook as I laughed quietly to myself. I wheezed out a hysterical laugh while tears rolled down my cheeks. Bubba managed to saw uncle Benjamin clean in half. His mutilated body laid there on the ground in front of us beautifully. I clutched my chest as I struggled to breath, my laughter not at all faltering. Bubba looked back at me, his mask made of skin caked in my uncle's blood.
The sight made my eyes roll up into the back of my skull, and then I fell to the ground as well.
I moaned softly to myself. My eyelids were like stones but I still managed to open them with a flutter. I sat up from a dreamless sleep to find myself on a tattered mattress. I looked about the withered interior of the room I was in, immediately recognising it as the Thompson house.
Bubba must've put me here.
I cradled my head and swung my legs off the mattress.
"Bubba?" I called tiredly.
"Uh...!" I heard his voice sputter out.
The Cannibal was soon at the door. I shakily rose to my feet, only to stumble forward. The man sped towards me and caught me before I fell.
"Oh!" I uttered.
Bubba placed one of his hands around my slim waist and the other clutched my own hand. I leaned into his embrace and squeezed his hand as I regained my balance. He gave it a firm squeeze back.
"Thank you." I smiled shyly.
We stood there in each other's arms for a few lovely long moments. Suddenly I gasped loudly as I realised something.
"Oh...! Uncle—he—you—!" I stammered.
Bubba tried to reassure me with his gibberish but to no avail.
"Where is he?" I asked.
The fellow killer tried to explain but I should've known better that I wouldn't get an coherent answer.
"Are you in trouble? The spider must not of liked that you did that." I said.
I was sure that uncle Benjamin was back in our realm, waiting for me. You couldn't die here in the spider's realm. It had already brought my uncle back to life before. He still had a huge bruised gash around his neck from where the noose was. But in this moment I didn't care anymore. All I knew was that Bubba was here close and in front of me. The one person here in this realm that made me still feel human. Made me still feel young. Made it all feel worthwhile.
If it wasn't for Bubba, I would be completely alone. I would be completely without purpose, like my cursed uncle that the Entity liked so much. I pouted to myself. Bubba tilted his head in confusion at my childish expression. I surprised him when I flung my arms around his neck, nuzzling into it.
I sniffled a little and felt more tears begin to spill. I moved my head down to rest on Bubba's broad chest.
"Thank you, Bubba. Thank you." I expressed.
Bubba muttered out noises, keeping his strong arms wrapped tight around me. I felt so safe which was so alien to me. The mix of nostalgic emotions left a heated knot in my stomach. I closed my eyes and listened to the man's slow heartbeat.
I knew I would have to return to my uncle eventually. He would surely rouse on me for what happened and about Bubba. He hated Bubba. Uncle Benjamin hated the fact I always came to the other farm to see him. The better farm of the two. Maybe one day I could completely distance myself from my uncle. Maybe, just maybe, I could reside here with the Hillbilly and the Cannibal forever. Men who treated me well, didn't hurt me or abuse me or made me physically sick to the stomach.
Maybe, just maybe.
I slid my hand up Bubba's chest lovingly, a happy sound leaving me for the first time in years.
"I love you, Bubba."
Bubba's head slowly came down to the rest on the top of my own. His hand rubbed my back gently as he swayed us both. He shushed me softly, my sobs slowly dying down.
I love you too.