2513
Chapter 12:

The three stood in the front driveway surveying the house before them. 2513 Abes Drive looked no different than any other house in this quiet rural neighborhood than any other house. True, it did have its grass a bit higher than the other houses, but not to unkempt. The carport had a few stray odds and ends that could be organized better. But nothings untoward stood out.

The house had peeling paint that the casual observer would only notice on close inspection. The light gray color still evident. The dark red shutters looked faded and the house had an all-around lived in look.

Every house as it ages has a lived look, but something was different to this one each of the men noticed. There was a feeling of dread, a feeling of death that hung over the house. Slowly the three men approached the porch that led to the front door. It was apparent the door had not been opened in some time.

Jake looked at the others confused. “You sure someone lives here?”

Matthew motioned to one of the windows, “I thought I saw movement.”

Nick looked at the others, “be right back.” With that, he tapped his ring and disappeared.

Jake looked annoyed for a second, “after a few hundred years, you would think I was used to that.”

Suddenly there was a click and the door creaked open after a moment. Nick motioned from inside for them to follow him. Jake stepped inside, Matthew stood there confused. Nick looked at him sensing what he was thinking. “Sometimes in my line of work we have to walk through closed doors or solid walls.”

Matthew contemplated that then walked inside. He immediately noticed that the air in the room seemed stale. A layer of dust covered the furniture in the living room. Matthew stepped into the kitchen to see that there was cold coffee in the coffee pot, and breakfast on the table that had long since gone moldy. He stepped out of the kitchen before the smell got to him.

Jake called them from one of the back rooms. Nick and Matthew stepped in to see him standing over a badly mangled female body. Her skin had a greenish tint to it and her face was frozen in a mask of what looked like a very painful demise. There were chunks of flesh missing on her arms and legs. Jake looked over at Nick, “looks like you guys were late on this one.”

Nick looked around the room and then at the body.

“Something is wrong here. The Fates are never wrong about the time of death.”

Jake nodded in the direction of Matthew. Nick responded, “He is different, the Fates had his time right, we just failed to collect. I tell you that she should have been collected an hour or so ago.”

Nick motioned to her body, “It looks like she has been dead for days if not weeks. I have never seen a body with a green tint before.”

Nick shrugged, “Besides, if we had missed the time of collection, she would be alive right now. Just like Matthew here.”

Nick knelt down in front of her body. He held his hand with his ring over her body. “That’s odd.”

Matthew leaned over his shoulder. “What?”

Nick moved his hand over her body and noticed the strange glow in his ring. The stone went from a dark amber to a bright green and back as he moved his hand. “According to this, it is like pieces of her soul are still here, but the rest is missing.”

Jake looked confused and worried, “Missing?”

Nick stood up and looked at him, ’Yeah, almost like something had ripped it out of her body forcibly.”

Jake looked down at the chunks missing from her body and remarked, “or ate it.”

Nick nodded at a loss for what to say in response. He looked over at Matthew who was staring at what looked to be a closet door. “He anyone recognize this symbol?”

Jake and Nick looked at the symbol that looked to be drawn in blood. It was a darkened circle with rays coming from it. Underneath were the words: Umbra populous

Jake said, “Shadow people.”

Nick and Matthew looked at him.

Jake replied, “That is what it means, shadow people in Latin.”

Matthew looked at him, “You speak Latin? How old are you?”

“I am a priest, we all speak Latin,” Jake replied with a sigh.

“Shadow people?” Matthew then asked. Jake and Nick both shrugged their shoulders.

Matthew slowly reached out and grabbed the door knob. He noticed that while the room was stuffy and warm, the knob was ice cold. He slowly turned it.

Before anyone could react there was a loud wail, that echoed through the room. The scream of a thousand anguished voices as dark shapes sped by the three. Matthew was hurled across the room and landed with a loud thud.

Nick and Jake began slashing out at the dark streaks as they flew past with little or no success. Dodging hits from them as they flew around the room. The closet had bathed the room in an eerie dark blue glow.

Matthew pulled himself up and was immediately assaulted by the dark streaks. The streaks screaming and moaning as they flew around the room. Matthew struggled to make his way across the room to where the other two tried desperately to stay standing under the onslaught.

Matthew looked at the open closet and saw more streaks flying out and attacking them. The room getting colder and louder with each passing moment.

Jake looked over at the others and screamed so they could hear, “What are these things!?”

Nick looked around for a moment and answered, “I think these are the Shadow People! If you look dead ahead of you only see a streak, but out of the corner of your eye you can see that they have a human like a shape!”

“How do we stop them?!” Matthew screamed out.

“My first bet would be to close the door!” Nick called out.

Jake nodded, “It can’t hurt!”

Matthew started to make his way to the door each step becoming harder and harder as he was struck multiple times. Just a couple steps away from the door he was hit by a large blur. He screamed in agony and fell to the floor.

Moments later Jake and Nick also were hit hard and knocked to the ground.

Miles screamed, “THAT IS NOT HOW IT IS SUPPOSED TO END!”

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He found himself standing in the room, with everything frozen in place. He could clearly see the Shadow People, or at least their outlines. He noticed that they actually looked like shadows of individuals.

He saw that Jake had one above him, it looked as if the two were locked in a dangerous embrace. Nick looked to be frozen in place trying to reach down for his ring, but a Shadow Person holding him down making it difficult.

Then he saw Matthew. Matthew was on the ground his arms held down by one Shadow Person while another stood over him. Miles took a step closer and noticed that his right foot had been ripped off and there was a pool of blood.

Miles looked at the open closet door and then looked up in anger. “THIS IS NOT WHAT I WANTED TO WRITE!”

“So?”

Miles spun around to see Hades standing there.

He gave a half smile, “It is time we talked.”

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