DEAD/ALIVE?
The raindrops, they were not moving in a way as normal. Instead, the rain poured, but it was flowing heavenward.
What kind of place is this? Samantha thought to herself. She stood drenched from head to toe, waiting in the dead of the night for them to finish the ritual.
Her uncle stepped out from the shadows and handed her a shovel. She stared into his glasslike eyes, looking into them all she mostly saw was her own reflection staring back at her.
They heard the sound of horses neighing not too far from their current spot. Her uncle frowned at her.
"Come on, any hour now, child. Hurry up- we don't have all night. The guardians will soon be here and end up locking us away. Get to work!"
The expression on her uncle's face spoke much louder than his warning. Samantha clicked her tongue and grabbed the shovel from her uncle's old and wrinkly hand.
As soon as she had managed to dig a six foot hole, her uncle raised his hand and pulled the shovel out of her hands. She gasped and before she could do anything else, she saw the shovel being swung right on the top of her forehead.
She fell backward into the hole and her uncle quickly shoved the dirt onto her body. Once he was done, he clasped his hands and fell on his knees. He tossed the shovel to the side, pulled a knife out of his coat and sliced it across his left hand. He squeezed it and let the blood flow over the grave of his niece.
He raised his head and stared at the full moon.
With a toothy grin, he cackled and uttered, "O, starlight, star bright. Listen to my plight. The folks here need something to face that will give them such a fright. A creature full of might. One that is not born from the light, but from the shadows. Listen to an old man's plea. Let my wish come true. Here lies a body for your use, for this night."
After a little while, the old man vanished into the shadows and waited.
A couple hours later, a group of guardians had come across the grave. They decided to leave their horses by the river's edge and walked on foot from there to search for anything that was ready to bring forth something malevolent.
One of the guardians bent down and tilted his head to the side. He placed his hand on the ground and closed his eyes. His mind had sensed the presence of a being buried in the ground.
The guardian alerted the rest of the crew and another had found a shovel lying on the ground. Picking it up, and a flash of images flipped through his mind. The guardians all had seen what the one who had picked up the shovel had seen.
They formed a circle around the grave and proceeded to chant. Their chanting rose in the air and a barrier formed around the grave.
The guardians felt a change in the air. A thick fog formed around the grave and they could hardly see a thing.
The ground started to quake. They heard a growling sound coming from the grave. One of the guardians yelled out loud. Something had emerged from the grave and managed to drag his body into it.
The guardians tried to save their comrade, but they just heard the crunching of bones and flesh being torn from the rest of the guardian's body.
They started to run and head back to where they left their horses. Another guardian had slipped landing face down, he looked around and could not see any of the other guardians. The only thing he felt was the hot breath of something breathing near his neck.
He reached for his sword and tried to swing it at the creature. That tactic failed.
The thing bit into his neck and tossed his head to the side.
From the shadows, the uncle watched in delight. His work here was done. Underneath his breath, he whispered and chanted, "Guardians of the night. Any barrier you place, shall not save you in your space. Even your shadows will gather, and take their own form. They will form any army, ready to fight ya."
At that moment, the rest of the guardians that could see their horses all fell onto their knees. Their eyes trembled in fear at the sight of their own shadows with swords in their hands.
It was off with all their heads, in one powerful swing of swords from the guardians shadows.
The uncle stepped out from the shadows and squatted near the grave. He peeked in and squinted his eyes. His niece stared at him and growled.
He waved his index finger and said, "That's my girl. Don't worry, there's plenty more bodies for you to feed on. C'mon. The night is still young. Let's take a stroll into Sleepy Hollow."
#DEAD/ALIVE? (c) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFNK-9A2VRo
10.31.2021