We spread out into a line and moved across the grounds like the front rank of an invading army, slaying all weeds in our path. The New Orleans heat pounded down upon us with a remorseless fist causing beads of sweat to trickle down my face, stinging my eyes, and leaving me feeling as if I were slowly melting. Each rivulet of moisture trickling down my back felt like a bug crawling across my skin. My imagination ran wild, conjuring up images of vicious fire ants or deadly spiders; the what-ifs and worst-case scenarios filling my mind with dangers never present.
Ahead, on the other side of the grounds, stood the Crypt. An old stone wall, about waist high, kept watch over the overgrown tangle of weeds and bushes, marking the edge of the camp and the beginning of the forbidden territory. Stones of every size and shape formed the barrier, cement trying desperately to hold the wall together, though doing a poor job. Time had caused the cement to flake and crumble, letting many of the stones succumb to gravity’s caress and fall to the ground.
At the other end of the wall stood a cave entrance, a dark and ominous passage plunging into the heart of a tall hill. The opening was like the shadowy maw of some toothless beast, a spooky sight that left me feeling uneasy. The darkness beyond the entrance seemed to swallow the light, making it impossible to see what lay within. This only served to make the structure appear even more terrifying.
Students whispered theories about the dark cave, everyone curious of what lay hidden within, but it was instant expulsion to voyage into its shadowy depths. An old, rusted fence stood across the opening, keeping the curious at bay, but time and decay had loosened many a metal bar. Portions of the fence lay on the ground, the iron pieces enveloped by the growth of vines and weeds, leaving large openings for the curious and foolish. Across the top of the cave entrance stood a stone arc, the carved structure cracked and pitted with age. Seven hollowed-out spaces adorned the stone arc, each the same size and equally spaced. Some thought the recessions had, at one time, held something over the dark opening. Maybe a “danger” or “enter at your own risk” sign. But the more imaginative kids thought it had something to do with magic, though I thought that was ridiculous. No one really knew what those seven depressions across the cave entrance meant.
Bobby made funny comments, of course, as he bent over to grab the weeds, trying the lighten the mood, but the tension between the athletes and the techies felt toxic. Karl cast angry glances at me whenever possible, creating a lurking sense of fear that added to the dread I felt from the hidden eyes watching us. The all-too-familiar buzzing echoed in my mind, the rage on the baseball player’s face feeding my Beast.
Elisa glanced at me and gave a strained smile. “Look at the Moon. It’s kinda weird seeing it like that before the sun fully sets.”
It was late, and the western horizon had started its colorful symphony of reds and oranges, the blue sky to the east fading into a dark purple. Only a portion of the moon stood visible over the horizon, its speckled face staring at us as if we were the most important kids in the world.
I knew Elisa was trying to distract me, likely seeing the tension on my face.
“It looks bigger than normal.” Leonard glanced at me. “Why is that? Is it just an optical illusion?”
“No, we’re approaching a Super Blood Moon.” The buzzing in my head started to fade, though the feeling of being watched persisted. “It’s because the Earth and Moon are getting closer to each other. Tomorrow, they’ll be at their closest, and the Moon will look about fourteen percent larger than normal. That’s why it looks bigger right now.”
“Cool.” Leonard bent over and grabbed a clump of weeds, and pulled, throwing his victims into his pail.
“Who cares about stupid stuff like the Moon? I should be working on my curveball.” Karl dropped his bucket and stretched his back. “We’re all here because of you, Techie. And if I were you, I’d—”
Something red flashed through the tall grass around the Crypt.
“Did you see that?” My words came out fast, like bullets from a machine gun. I knelt and lowered my voice. “Everyone, get down. It’s back.”
“What are you talking about, Cameron.” Elisa moved to my side and crouched.
“Everyone, get down and be quiet.” I motioned for everyone to get on the ground as I laid on my stomach.
Bobby and Elisa did what I asked, but of course, Karl remained standing.
Leonard moved closer to me and knelt on one knee. “What’s this all about?”
A bird screeched from a nearby tree, making me flinch.
“On the ropes course, I didn’t laugh at you. I laughed at something I saw in the grass right over there.” I pointed at the tall grass near an ancient stone wall. “And it’s back.”
A splash of red moved through the weeds, its crimson hue rising through the tangle of devil grass and shrubs for a moment, then submerging again, the overgrown plants swaying in its wake.
“I saw it,” Elisa whispered. “What was that?”
“I don’t know. I thought I was dreaming before, but now I know it was real.” I glanced at Leonard, motioning him to get on the ground. The tall boy nodded and laid on the grass.
“You all look like stupid idiots.” Karl glanced back at the barn. Mr. Wallace was nowhere to be seen. “I’m out of here. I’ll see you losers back at the barn in an hour.” He reached into my bucket, grabbed a handful of weeds, and dropped them into his own.
“Hey. You can’t—” Bobby started to say, but I shushed him.
“Shhh . . . be quiet, or we’ll scare it away.” I waved at Karl as if shooing away a fly. “Whatever, go, I don’t care.”
Karl laughed, then headed toward a huge Magnolia tree, its fragrant white flowers swaying in the hot breeze, adding a hint of sweetness to the humid air. He sat down, leaning against the thick trunk, and closed his eyes, choosing sleep over helping us.
“What do you think you saw?” Leonard glanced at me, then back to the tall grass.
Just then, a red creature no bigger than a toddler rose into the air. Its crimson wings flapped hard as it gained more height. A long, pointed tail writhed like a snake, helping to keep the creature balanced as it rose higher. Two tiny horns protruded from his hairless head, the red skin covering its body looking scratched and tough. Slowly, it settled to the ground and disappeared into the sea of wild grass. Clumps of weeds bent aside as the creature moved toward the Crypt and vanished into the shadows.
“Did all of you see that?” Bobby’s voice rose in volume.
“Shhh . . . keep your voice down,” I said.
“Sorry.”
A loud crack pierced the air, silencing a squawking bird perched nearby.
“What was that?” I shuddered, the buzzing in my head coming back to life.
“It sounded like the crack of a whip.” Leonard rose off his belly and crouched. “Let’s get closer.”
“You sure that’s a good idea?” Elisa asked.
Leonard didn’t respond. Instead, he moved toward the stone wall, staying as low as possible. “Come on, everyone, keep up. Let’s see what’s going on.”
With a sense of unease, I moved toward the forbidden area. The air around me seemed to thicken, warning me to turn back before it was too late. I wanted to obey and turn away but knew I couldn’t abandon my friends. With clenched teeth, I continued toward the riot of weeds and out-of-control grass.
The buzzing in my head grew louder.
We gathered near the metallic gate built into the stone wall, the metal covered with a reddish layer of rust. Just beyond the wall stood the ominous marble structure housing the bodies of the camp’s past directors.
“Why do you think Mr. Wallace doesn’t mow the grass here?” Leonard asked.
“I think he’s spooked by the spooks in the Crypt, you know, ghosts and stuff.” Bobby made a ghostly sound, “oooOOOoo.”
“Stop clowning around and—” The cracking of a whip silenced Leonard.
“Dig faster, Fool,” a deep, scratchy voice said. “Malphas awaits the completion of our task.”
“Yes, sir,” a high-pitched voice said, its words quivering with fear.
CRACK. “Ouch!”
“I said dig,” the deep voice said. “We need a larger opening to get more monsters in there to search for the second Skull Key.”
“Yes, Krak,” the high-pitched voice replied.
A scraping sound, like something hard tearing into stone, floated out of the Crypt.
“What’s in there, digging?” Elisa glanced at me, her arms shaking. She looked scared.
I shrugged, trying to hide my fear, but my quivering voice gave it away. “I don’t know, b-b-but I don’t l-l-like the sound of it.”
“We need to go see what it is.” Leonard stood and moved to the gate.
“Are you kidding?” Elisa shook her head. “We have no idea who’s in there.”
“Not who . . . what.” My voice cracked with fear.
“We all saw that red creature,” Leonard said, “but it was far away. We need a closer look.” He glanced down at me. “This could be the scientific discovery of the century. We’re making history right now.” Leonard glanced at the crypt again, then back at us. “What do you all want to do?”
“I don’t know.” Elisa shook her head, uncertain.
The buzzing in my head kept me from saying anything. I didn’t want to awaken the Beast, so I stared at the ground, feeling like a coward.
“I say we go check it out.” Leonard’s deep voice sounded assured and brave, the echo of leadership resonating in his words, though his eyes looked sullen and sad. “We gotta take a chance.” He knelt and stared straight at me. “There’s an old Latin proverb: ‘Fortune favors the bold.’ You know what it means?”
“Sure.” I nodded. “It means no risk, no reward.”
“Right. We need to do this,” Bobby said. “It’s easy to make the safe choice, but we’ll end up regretting the choices we didn’t make because we bowed to our fear.” Bobby glanced at me. “Let’s do it.” Bobby stuck his hand out and spoke in a deep, profound voice. “Together ‘till the end.” He held his hand there for a moment, glancing from person to person, then slowly lowered it. “We’re supposed to put our hands out together, you know, like the ‘Three Musketeers.’”
“Together ‘till the end? That’s the best saying you could come up with?” Leonard shook his head. “It sounds like we’re all gonna die.”
“Well . . . I guess when you say it out loud, it does sound kinda bad.” Bobby chuckled.
“It does.” I nodded.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Bobby smiled. “I’ll think of a better saying next time.”
“Let’s go.” Leonard grabbed the metal gate with both hands and pulled it open. The hinges screeched, the layers of rust and decay screaming to the world in a grating chorus, making the many years of neglect known to all.
My Beast stirred in the dark places of my mind, awakening.
The digging within the Crypt stopped.
“What was that?” the deep, scratchy voice said.
“I don’t know, maybe it was—”
The deep voice grew louder. “Imp, follow me.”
“Everyone, duck.” Leonard fell to a knee, as did the rest of us.
I crouched behind the stone wall, my head hidden by a large clump of weeds. Peeking just over the rocky barricade, I watched the entrance to the Crypt, then gasped. A small creature with huge, pointed ears and long, muscular arms stepped out of the structure. Its skin was a rusty color, with jagged scars across its hairless chest and shoulders, evidence of the countless battles it had survived. This was obviously a creature of violence.
The buzzing in my head grew even louder.
Elisa gasped. “A gremlin, just like my great grampa described,” she whispered.
Fear prickled under my skin like a thousand tiny shards of glass, sending a chill down my spine. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and my heart pounded in my chest. The atmosphere around me seemed to thicken and constrict as if the air were alive with a sense of danger and evil.
I shuddered.
That looks like that creature from that Gremlins movie my parents made me watch last year, I thought. How is this possible?
“I don’t see anything,” the creature said. The deep, scratchy voice seemed out of character for such a small body. Leather straps crisscrossed the monster’s chest. In one hand, the gremlin held a vicious-looking whip. In the other, it held a large green stone, its polished surface shaped like a human skull. Behind him, the little red creature stepped out of the Crypt, a tool looking like a clawed stone hand in its grip. Its wings flapped nervously as its red tail thrashed about.
Bobby gasped, then clasped a hand over his mouth, hoping to stifle the sound that had already escaped. But it was too late.
“By the wall,” the gremlin said.
The whip cracked through the air, hitting the wall and causing rocky shards to fly into the air. One of the small pieces of stone sliced across my cheek, stinging.
“Let’s get out of here.” Elisa stood and ran.
The creature brought the whip back and aimed for Elisa.
“No!” I stood, reached into my pocket, and pulled out a small, metallic ball. Flipping the switch on the bottom, I tossed it at the terrifying creatures. It landed in front of the gremlin. A second later, the lid flipped open. Darts shot into the air, a thin strand of silvery wire trailing each. Two of the pointed barbs hit the terrible monster. Sparks danced along the wires and gave the creature a painful shock, causing it to drop its whip. It shrieked in pain.
“Let’s go.” Leonard stood and pushed me away from the wall. “Run . . . RUN!”
As we ran, I heard the tiny, winged monster’s voice.
“Krak, are you okay?” A crunching sound, then the painful cries of the gremlin ceased. “Let’s go back. We must tell Malphas and . . .”
The monster’s voice faded away, lost to the pounding of my heart as I sprinted across the rolling hills.
The four of us headed for the back door of the nearest building—the administrative offices. We ran as fast as our legs would carry us, Leonard making it to our goal first, of course. He stood next to the back door, catching his breath. When Bobby, Elisa, and I finally reached his side, Leonard reached for the door. But before he touched the handle, the door swung open, revealing Mrs. Chakoté, her crooked, wooden cane in her hand.
The old woman tapped her cane on the floor. A sound resonated in the hallway like thunder, making me shake with fright.
“In my office, now,” Chakoté said in a soft, emotionless voice, the lack of anger making her words seem even more terrifying. She stared at us for a moment, then glanced toward the Crypt grounds. With a nod, she turned and headed to her office, her cane tapping the floor with every step.
I glanced at Elisa and swallowed, my throat parched. Nothing good would happen when we reached Mrs. Chakoté’s office.
Dr. Jen’s voice popped into my head: What’s the worst thing that could happen, and is it realistic?
The worst thing, I thought. How about getting expelled from Camp Pontchartrain? Then my parents, in their anger, would kick me out of the house. I won’t have any place to live. I knew that wasn’t very likely, but my anxiety stayed fixed on it, worst-case scenarios playing through my head.
The angry hornets punished me from inside my mind as my thoughts grew darker and darker, the thought loop feeding itself as it slowly awakened my Beast. Images of those two monsters, mixed with Chakoté’s impending reprimand and punishment, surged through my head. The more I focused on it, the worse the scenario became in my mind. My heart pounded in my chest as the anxiety grew.
I shuddered, knowing I couldn’t do anything about this other than suffer.