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Camp Torment Part Two
Zack glared at his brother who was laughing yet again.
"What's so funny, fiend?"
Kevin stared straight at Zack his face contorting in a rictus of fury.
"My name is Jakuth. I am a lord in Hell. Other demons bow and scrape at my feet. You should have the same respect. YOU SHOULD FEAR ME!"
Zack gulped. This was too much for a 16 year old kid who just wanted to write heavy metal songs and maybe be famous one day.
"I wish I'd never found that stupid book. Then this wouldn't be happening."
"Well poor little Zack. Feeling sorry for yourself will make no difference. Especially as Kevin thinks I'm his imaginary friend, Jojo. He won't resist me now. I am in complete control. So to answer your question, Zack. That is what is so funny."
Jakuth laughed his guttural laugh all the more making Zack feel utterly, desperately hopeless.
"Come down for tea you two," their mother called up to them.
Zack panicked. "Don't hurt them, please."
Jakuth grinned. "Don't worry. I won't reveal myself just yet. I want to keep you on your toes. You won't know what's going to happen when."
"I hate you!"
"Good. This ain't a popularity contest."
****
They went down to the dining room and sat at the table. Their father was already sat there and their mum brought in their plates in each hand. Jakuth noticed her clerical tunic with its dog collar round her neck and recoiled in horror. A frightful sound came from him and he dropped his knife and fork with a clatter. Everyone stopped and looked at him. Jakuth thought quickly noticing the brussel sprouts on the plate along with the roast beef, peas, carrots, roast potatoes and gravy.
"Kevin, what on Earth is the matter," his mother asked.
"You know I hate sprouts, mum. How many times do I have to tell you."
"Don't speak to your mother like that, Kevin. I won't tolerate it. Now eat your food."
"Yes, dad. Sorry mum."
"Apology accepted. Now let's enjoy a nice meal shall we," she said as she sat down.
Jakuth's eye met with Zack's. Zack was struggling to hold it together. He was going to be a liability. Maybe he needed to have an accident of some kind. Then again watching him writhe and squirm with the torment of it all was too fun to pass up on. Jakuth would let him live a little longer.
Discovering their mum was a priest was unpleasant. And almost gave him away. He was going to have to play things carefully.
"Are you all packed and ready for Canadian Saints church camp tomorrow, Kevin?"
"Fuck!"
"Kevin! What on Earth has gotten into you? Swearing like that. That's not like you. You love church camp."
"Yes. I really love church camp. That's why I can't believe I forgot about it. I'll go and pack now." He jumped off his chair and ran up stairs.
"That's no excuse for swearing, Kevin."
****
In Kevin's room Jakuths thoughts raced. Of all the families he could've ended up with. Of all the places he'd had to go to, this had to be the worst. Zack really was a black sheep. And he'd summoned him to hang out with a bunch of God loving, bible thumping, do-gooders. It was all he could do not to make his head spin and projectile vomit everywhere. "I want to go back to Hell." Then again, tormenting innocent little Christian children and pious, pompous, prick, grown ups could be the most fun he'd ever had. Jakuth began going through Kevin's clothes so he could pack.
****
What kind of trouble would Jakuth cause at the church camp, Zack wondered. Those poor kids. He couldn't leave them to that kind of fate. But how the hell do you stop a demon? He had to do some research and come up with a plan. He just hoped he wouldn't be too late.
****
Lying in bed Jakuth was reconsidering his thoughts about keeping Zack alive. He wouldn't be around to keep an eye on him now. And that he couldn't have. Zack had to die. Jakuth rolled out of bed and quietly headed downstairs to the kitchen. He glanced around until he found what he was looking for. Next to the microwave was a knife block holding a set of colour coded knives. The handles were all different colours. Red, orange, light green, bright blue and bright pink. Jakuth was disgusted. Even the fun deadly stuff in this place was all colours of the rainbow, happy, happy, happy, puke, puke, puke. He shook his head then grabbed the red knife, the colour of blood. Then he crept back upstairs and sneaked into Zack's room. He tip toed towards the bed raising the knife, reaching out his hand, pulling down the bed covers so he could look into his eyes before he killed him. But instead of Zack's sleeping body there lay a pillow in his place. Jakuth looked up and noticed the open window. Zack was gone. Jakuth felt a burning rage well up within him as hot as the inferno's of Hell itself. “Son of a bitch!”
****
The door opened and Zack's older brother stared at him. “In trouble again, huh, Zack.”
“Yeah. Thanks for letting me stay here, John.”
“What are big brothers for? Right kid?”
Zack smiled. “Right.” He walked in, breathing a sigh of relief. “Can I use your computer, please, John?”
“Sure, go for it. I'm going to bed.”
****
Next morning Kevin was dropped off at the Canadian Saints camp. They'd gotten up early for the three hour drive. Jakuth looked around at the clusters of cabins, their rooftops covered in snow the same as the ground. Nearby there was a woods that stretched into the distance where huge mountains overlooked the camp. A flag pole stood tall, the red and white Canadian flag blowing in the breeze, the maple leaf at it's centre. Jakuth sneered at the patriotism. So much fuss over a piece of land. Humans really needed to get over themselves.
Kevin's dad got his bag out of the trunk and gave it to him. “Thanks dad.” Jakuth said in Kevin's voice. He couldn't stand the sound of his sickly sweet innocent voice. Other kids were arriving as well and their high pitched vocals grated on Jakuth's nerves also. Whatever havoc I wreak while I'm here could not possibly compare to what these little shits are going to put me through, the demon thought.
We'll walk you to your cabin, Kevin, so you can get settled in,” his mum said.
“Okay, mum.”
At his cabin his mum helped him unpack then kissed him on his cheek and said goodbye. Jakuth watched Kevin's parents leave then shuddered in revulsion. “Yuck.”
“Ha! Your mum kissed you, you baby,” one of the boys said laughing at him.
Jakuth glared at him, resisting the temptation to reveal his demon eyes. “You'll regret laughing at me. Just you wait. You'll never never see it coming.”
The young boy stared at him, taken aback. Jakuth walked away.
****
Zack woke up with a start and looked at his watch. “Shit!” It was 11 o' clock already.
“No, no, no,” Zack said as he jumped up and started dressing, quickly.
“What's up, kid?” John asked from where he was sat at his computer. “And what's all this shit you've been Googling? Demon traps? Exorcisms?”
“What the hell, John? You looked at my searches?”
“Well excuse me for keeping tabs on my little brother when he says he's in trouble. So what's going on?”
“Something's happened to Kevin.”
“Kevin. What's happened? Is he okay?”
“You won't believe me, John.”
“Zack, if something's happened to Kevin you have to tell me.”
Zack cringed. If he told John the truth he would most likely have him sectioned rather than help him. “Sorry, John. I can't say.”
“Damn it, Zack. Just tell me!”
“Okay, okay. But bear this in mind before I tell you anything. You may think I'm insane. You may think I'm telling stupid lies for a laugh. But know this. If you dismiss what I'm about to tell you and terrible, horrendous things happen as a consequence you will have to live with the guilt for the rest of your life.”
“Jesus, Zack. You're really serious. Okay. I'm listening”
****
“Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, when an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush” the narrator said.
A man dressed in robes approached a potted bush which had a device that was simulating a fire balanced on top.
Jakuth sat watching, squirming in his seat.
“The bush was burning yet it was not consumed.”
You want a burning bush, you'll get a burning bush, Jakuth thought, then stared at the wiring of the device bringing all his demonic focus to it. Suddenly the wire snapped and electric sparks flew from it into the leaves of the bush. It caught alight, the flames shooting up setting fire to the red paper masquerading as real fire and melting the plastic device. The acrid smell was sickening. Alarms sounded deafeningly loud, adding to the chaos.
The kids began screaming, some of them crying. The camp councelor's sprung into action. Some escorting the children outside, whilst one ran for a CO2 fire extinguisher. The councelor quickly returned and sprayed white dry powder all over the bush, putting out the flames. Coughing hard due to the smoke, he evacuated the building with the others.
Everyone gathered at the fire assembly point a good distance from the buildings. They waited in shocked silence until the alarm was turned off and everything was declared safe again.
****
It was lunch time and the kids were still talking about the burning bush incident, in the dining hall “Do you think it was a ghost?” one of them asked.
“Don't be stupid. There's no such thing as ghosts.”
“What do you think it was then?”
“How do I know,” the kid said shrugging his shoulders.
Then the kid who'd insulted Jakuth earlier came along. He snatched a handful of the fries from the plate of the nearest kid.
“Hey!”
“What are you going to do about it,” the boy said with a mouthful of fries.
Jakuth watching from another table realised that this was the perfect time for payback. He brought his demonic focus to bear on the bully's chewing mouth. He visualised the masticated fries and then pushed them into his throat.
The bully started clawing at his neck and choking.
“Oh my God!” a counselor cried out and ran towards Jakuth's victim. He grabbed him from behind pressing his fists into his solar plexus to perform the Heimlich manoeuvre. The man heaved, lifting the boy off his feet, once, twice, and then the mushed up potato flew from the boys mouth and onto the floor.
“Eww” the children cried out in unison.
The boy gasped in lungfuls of life saving air and the counselor took him away to be checked over by the nurse.
****
The boy's name was Steve. He couldn't understand how it had happened. He'd never choked on food before. He'd always been careful. It was strange. It was almost as if the food had forced itself down his throat by itself. But that can't be right, surely? The nurse had checked him over and said that apart from a few bruises around his abdomen he was okay. Steve just wanted to take his mind off things so he went out to play. They had an amazing playground there. They were spoilt for choice for things to do. He had a look around until he saw the zip wire. Steve felt his pulse race with excitement and suddenly the whole choking incident was forgotten. He climbed up the small hill that the zip wire was set up on. He looked down across the length of the wire which went, for quite a distance, at quite a height, over an impressive view of children playing an assortment of different games. Steve straddled the seat, holding tightly to the pole it was attached to, then he pushed off with his feet. He felt his weight pull him downward, and the sensation of his stomach jumping into his chest then found himself whizzing forward along the wire. Steve felt the exhilaration of speed and the wind through his hair.
****
Not far away, Jakuth was watching Steve. It's like he wants me to hurt him he thought
as he stared intensely at the wire holding Steve in the air.
Steve was squealing with joy when he heard a terrible twanging, snapping sound, loudly, above him. Then he was falling through the air and his squeal of delight turned into a horrified shriek. He plummeted onto the hard ground, his legs snapping as they bent awkwardly under the seat. He let go of the pole and fell on his side, screaming in agony. Steve looked at his legs. Shards of bone had broken through the skin and blood was pouring from the gaping wounds in each leg. Feeling sick and faint he noticed Kevin a short distance away, watching him. His arms were folded across his chest and he was smiling, cruelly. Worst of all, however, was the fact that Kevin's eyes had somehow gone black. Steve screamed all the more, not understanding what he was seeing. What the hell was he? An alien? Finally Steve passed out with the shock.
****
John and Zack walked into the Wiccan Wonders shop hoping to find what they needed. John had taken some convincing to believe what was going on but eventually he decided that it was best to go along with things to be on the safe side. Zack's speech had hit a nerve. As crazy as all this sounded, if it was true and he didn't act, well, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.
Zack looked around the shop until his gaze fell upon a circular black rug with the Devil's trap sigil displayed in white. “John, this is just what we need.”
“How much for the rug?” John asked the shop owner.
Having purchased the rug, rolled it up and placed it in the backseat of John's Ford Ranger, shiny black, pickup truck, the two brothers hit the road for the three hour long trip to save Kevin.
****
After Steve had been carried to the nurses office on a backboard and transferred to a bed he was being comforted by one of the councelors called Christopher. Steve was awake now and was in a state of shock, seemingly delirious. He was raving about Kevin being an alien and how he'd caused him to choke as well as causing his accident with the zip wire. Christopher tried to calm him to no avail.
“You're in shock, Steve. People imagine things when they're in shock. Try not to get so worked up.”
“You have to believe me,” said Steve.
The nurse then put a mask over Steve's mouth and nose, supplying him with Nitrous Oxide and he visibly relaxed. Christopher was relieved to see him more comfortable. It wasn't long before the ambulance arrived.
****
Meanwhile Jackuth was trying to decide what to do with himself. Now Steve had been taken away in an ambulance, there was no more fun to be had with him. He looked around at all the children enjoying themselves. What kind of games can I get up to now, Jakuth wondered. He saw the playground with a slide, swings, a merry go round and a climbing dome. He headed towards it in anticipation.
****
A little girl, only six years old, was playing inside the climbing dome. Her name was Alice and she felt quite at home pretending the dome was a house that she lived in and she was all grown up. Then she heard a creaking sound as the bars of the dome started to warp and bend inwards and downwards. She sat, awestruck, unable to move as the bars of the dome surrounding her crushed in, closer and closer. Alice curled into a ball and squealed at a pitch and volume that could be heard for miles. Counselors came running towards the park from different directions.
****
It was Christopher who arrived first and climbed through the undamaged bars to see what was wrong. The poor girl was absolutely distraught. It took Christopher a while to get her to look up. When she did she gasped and looked completely confused. She couldn't explain what had happened but she calmed down enough to go off and play again. What a day Christopher was having. He'd never known anything like it. A fire, a choking incident, a horrific accident and now a little girl having an absolute melt down for no apparent reason. Something wasn't right around here.
****
Jakuth was smiling with satisfaction. Projecting images into peoples minds was great fun. He now found himself wandering towards the assault course. There a boy was crawling under a belly crawl net. Again he projected images, this time into the boy's mind.
****
The boy was called Dave. He wanted to be a soldier when he grew up. He moved forwards using his elbows and legs, commando style. He felt like he was on a special ops mission. But then the ropes above him started to move of their own accord and he could hear a hissing sound. The ropes were no longer rough and abrasive but smooth and scaly. A green head appeared in front of Dave's face and a forked tongue licked his cheek. In his panic he tried to stand up but he was forced down by the strength of the snakes. He writhed around and he got more tangled as the snakes wound themselves around his limbs. He screamed for help. Suddenly the snakes were ropes again and he could hear other boys laughing at him. Confused and embarrassed he untangled himself with frustrating difficulty. Finally escaping the netting he stood up and faced the three boys who were laughing. Upset and angry he bellowed, lashing out at them with his fists. He landed a few blows before the three of them started to get the better of him until they were dragged apart, by the overwhelmed and harassed counselors.
****
Before Jakuth could set about doing anymore of his demonic head-fucks the councelors gathered everyone together.
“Okay, everyone were going to have one more activity before dinner. Let's collect the ice skates from the storage shack and head to the frozen lake.”
The kids cheered excitedly then followed the councelors. They all got their skates on and shuffled onto the ice. Jakuth skated around in a 666 formation. Fuck figure eights he thought.
****
Forty five minutes of skating later, the excitable, woohoo's and giggles of a girl skating around him, provoked his malice.
She suddenly found herself skating faster than she could possibly propel herself on her own. She cried out as she saw that she was hurtling towards a tree at the side of the frozen lake. Try as she might she could not steer out of her collision course. She crashed into the tree with a thunderous impact and collapsed into the snow, passing out as blood poured from her nose, soaking into the white, icy flakes. It looked like she was lying in a puddle of raspberry Slushie.
Another rush to the rescue from a group of counselors. They helped the poor girl up, whilst others started to escort the children away.
Jakuth, however, was lingering. He'd had enough of all this. He wanted out.
****
Christopher noticed Kevin, still on the ice. A few memories began running through his mind. All these things that had been happening. The burning bush, Steve choking,
the zip wire snapping, Alice's melt down, the fist fight. Each and every time, Kevin was there, just staring, with what Christopher now realised was a rather disturbing expression on his face. Everyone else had headed off now. It was just Christopher and Kevin staring at each other across the frozen lake. Like a sheriff and an outlaw facing each other in a western. But this was not the Wild West. But for some reason it really felt like it. Why did Christopher feel such a menacing threat from an eight year old boy. Then he noticed on the ice in front of Kevin were the numbers 666. A true sense of dread now filled every cell in his body.
****
Jakuth stared back at the man, enjoying watching him figure it all out. Finally he didn't have to be all cloak and dagger. This guy would know it was him who was making him suffer. Jakuth was going to savour every moment of this. “I can see it in your eyes that you've worked out what I am. Let me confirm your fears for you. You can see it in my eyes.”
Christopher recoiled as he saw Kevin's eyes turn black. “Steve tried to tell me about you. I thought he was delirious. He thought you were an alien. I know what you are. You're a demon!”
“Bingo! Congratulations! You've won the star prize for playing Guess Who the Demon Is. What's your name?”
“Christopher.”
“Well, Christopher. Come on down.” Jakuth reached out his hand towards Christopher and an invisible force drew the man towards him onto the frozen lake. “Have you ever had an ice bath before?”
“What?” The ice beneath Christopher's feet, cracked and gave way. He plunged through it, the shock of the freezing water making him gasp. He kicked his legs to reach the surface, grasping the broken edges of ice. His head popped out of the water and he coughed icy liquid from his lungs.
Jakuth looked down on Christopher then pressed the blade of his skate into his right hand that gripped the ice, slicing it open.
Christopher screamed. “Have mercy, please.”
“Mercy? I'm a demon. Mercy isn't in my vocabulary.” Jakuth pulled the blade from Christopher's hand then stamped it into his upturned, pleading face. The blade cut through Christopher's nose vertically and smashed into his skull. Christopher went limp in the icy water. His face was still attached to the blade and blood streaked down his cheeks. Jakuth raised his foot lifting Christopher partway out the water then prized his face off the skate. It made a horrible sucking sound as it came off, leaving bone fragments and stringy gore dangling from the blade. Jakuth let Christopher's corpse drop back into the water and it sank into the sub-zero depths and was engulfed by billowing, crimson clouds. I bet that guy died a virgin, Jakuth thought as he skated away to the edge of the lake, pulled off the skates and put his shoes back on. Then he wandered off into the woods.
****
An hour later John and Zack pulled up just outside the camp. They jumped out the Ranger. They'd spent the journey coming up with a plan. Now it was time to put it into action. “Okay, let's do this” John said.
****
Jakuth reached the end of the wood and looked up at the massive rock face of the mountain. Now for the grand finale he thought as he raised his arms toward the snow-capped peaks. A blast of telekinetic energy shook the mountain and the snow shifted then cascaded downwards. Just before the avalanche came crashing down upon Jakuth he teleported away.
****
John and Zack heard the boom in the distance and looked up to see what was happening.
At the camp, kids and counselor's came out of the cabins to see the snow smash through the trees. They ran, screaming in terror, away from the avalanche as it burst through the woods striking the cabins and shattering them into match wood. The great wave of snow finally came to a stop a few metres in front of John and Zack. They both sighed in relief. Yet things weren't over as Jakuth appeared before them both.
“What have you done, Kevin?” John said.
Jakuth searched Kevin's memory. So this was Zack and Kevin's older brother. Interesting.
“It's not Kevin, John. It's Jakuth.”
“How sweet of you to remember my name, Zack. Again he held his arms out aiming at them. John and Zack flew back into the Ranger so hard it dented. Jakuth revealed his black eyes and stalked towards his prey. He got so far until he found he could move no closer. “What's happening?”
“I can answer that,” Zack said as he gingerly approached, still feeling the pain of the impact when he'd hit the car. He used his foot to scrape away the snow near Jakuth revealing the rug with the Devil's trap symbol on it.
“Son of a bitch,” Jakuth hissed.
John and zack started reciting the words of exorcism in Latin they'd been rehearsing during their road trip, using Google on Zack's phone to hear the pronunciation .
Jakuth writhed and growled and fell to his knees. Then his eye's returned to normal.
“Why are you killing Jojo?” Kevin asked his older brothers.
“Kevin! Thank god.”
“Leave Jojo alone!.”
“Listen to me, Kevin,” John said. “That is not Jojo. It's a demon and it's been hurting people.”
“But he took me to Disney World. He's been nice to me.”
“It's a trick, Kevin. That's what demon's do. They tell lies and hurt people. Let us help you.”
“I don't know.”
“Kevin,” Zack spoke up. “We're your brothers. Trust us.”
“Okay, Zack,”' Kevin said.
Kevin's eyes went black again as Jakuth took over. His ploy to keep Kevin under the illusion that he was his imaginary friend Jojo and therefore maintaining a stronger hold of him had failed. He roared out his frustration as John and Zack restarted their exorcism.
Jakuth grabbed hold of Kevin's throat and began to squeeze. His fingernails dug in and began drawing blood. Kevin fell on his back, his choking sounds haunting his brothers.
They chanted faster in desperation, the strange Latin words reaching their conclusion.
Kevin's mouth opened wide and the black smoke that was Jakuth whirled out of him and swooped down into the ground returning to Hell.
The brothers stared at each other, their relief greater than before.
Everyone else had run far away from the avalanche and hadn't witnessed what had occurred.
Kevin stood up, shaking and crying. Zack and John ran forwards, pulling him close.
“Can I go home, please,” Kevin said.
“Yes, kid. Let's get you home,” John said.
In the car Zack sat next to Kevin in the back seat and held his hand. “We'll never let anything like that happen to you again, Kevin. I promise.”
****
When they got Kevin home their cover story was that Kevin had tried to call home sick and their parents weren't home so he had called John to pick him up. Later on the news of the avalanche was both a shock and a relief as they believed Kevin hadn't been there.
****
The next day in the back garden of John's house. John was holding the book of Satanic Spells and Rituals. “So this is what caused all the trouble.”
“Yep,” Zack agreed.
“Well, never again.” John dropped the book into the flames that were leaping out of his burn barrel. The evil pages, crumpled, blackened and finally disintegrated into ash and tiny particles of it danced around amongst the smoke.
THE END
© Andrew J Sinclair
"What's so funny, fiend?"
Kevin stared straight at Zack his face contorting in a rictus of fury.
"My name is Jakuth. I am a lord in Hell. Other demons bow and scrape at my feet. You should have the same respect. YOU SHOULD FEAR ME!"
Zack gulped. This was too much for a 16 year old kid who just wanted to write heavy metal songs and maybe be famous one day.
"I wish I'd never found that stupid book. Then this wouldn't be happening."
"Well poor little Zack. Feeling sorry for yourself will make no difference. Especially as Kevin thinks I'm his imaginary friend, Jojo. He won't resist me now. I am in complete control. So to answer your question, Zack. That is what is so funny."
Jakuth laughed his guttural laugh all the more making Zack feel utterly, desperately hopeless.
"Come down for tea you two," their mother called up to them.
Zack panicked. "Don't hurt them, please."
Jakuth grinned. "Don't worry. I won't reveal myself just yet. I want to keep you on your toes. You won't know what's going to happen when."
"I hate you!"
"Good. This ain't a popularity contest."
****
They went down to the dining room and sat at the table. Their father was already sat there and their mum brought in their plates in each hand. Jakuth noticed her clerical tunic with its dog collar round her neck and recoiled in horror. A frightful sound came from him and he dropped his knife and fork with a clatter. Everyone stopped and looked at him. Jakuth thought quickly noticing the brussel sprouts on the plate along with the roast beef, peas, carrots, roast potatoes and gravy.
"Kevin, what on Earth is the matter," his mother asked.
"You know I hate sprouts, mum. How many times do I have to tell you."
"Don't speak to your mother like that, Kevin. I won't tolerate it. Now eat your food."
"Yes, dad. Sorry mum."
"Apology accepted. Now let's enjoy a nice meal shall we," she said as she sat down.
Jakuth's eye met with Zack's. Zack was struggling to hold it together. He was going to be a liability. Maybe he needed to have an accident of some kind. Then again watching him writhe and squirm with the torment of it all was too fun to pass up on. Jakuth would let him live a little longer.
Discovering their mum was a priest was unpleasant. And almost gave him away. He was going to have to play things carefully.
"Are you all packed and ready for Canadian Saints church camp tomorrow, Kevin?"
"Fuck!"
"Kevin! What on Earth has gotten into you? Swearing like that. That's not like you. You love church camp."
"Yes. I really love church camp. That's why I can't believe I forgot about it. I'll go and pack now." He jumped off his chair and ran up stairs.
"That's no excuse for swearing, Kevin."
****
In Kevin's room Jakuths thoughts raced. Of all the families he could've ended up with. Of all the places he'd had to go to, this had to be the worst. Zack really was a black sheep. And he'd summoned him to hang out with a bunch of God loving, bible thumping, do-gooders. It was all he could do not to make his head spin and projectile vomit everywhere. "I want to go back to Hell." Then again, tormenting innocent little Christian children and pious, pompous, prick, grown ups could be the most fun he'd ever had. Jakuth began going through Kevin's clothes so he could pack.
****
What kind of trouble would Jakuth cause at the church camp, Zack wondered. Those poor kids. He couldn't leave them to that kind of fate. But how the hell do you stop a demon? He had to do some research and come up with a plan. He just hoped he wouldn't be too late.
****
Lying in bed Jakuth was reconsidering his thoughts about keeping Zack alive. He wouldn't be around to keep an eye on him now. And that he couldn't have. Zack had to die. Jakuth rolled out of bed and quietly headed downstairs to the kitchen. He glanced around until he found what he was looking for. Next to the microwave was a knife block holding a set of colour coded knives. The handles were all different colours. Red, orange, light green, bright blue and bright pink. Jakuth was disgusted. Even the fun deadly stuff in this place was all colours of the rainbow, happy, happy, happy, puke, puke, puke. He shook his head then grabbed the red knife, the colour of blood. Then he crept back upstairs and sneaked into Zack's room. He tip toed towards the bed raising the knife, reaching out his hand, pulling down the bed covers so he could look into his eyes before he killed him. But instead of Zack's sleeping body there lay a pillow in his place. Jakuth looked up and noticed the open window. Zack was gone. Jakuth felt a burning rage well up within him as hot as the inferno's of Hell itself. “Son of a bitch!”
****
The door opened and Zack's older brother stared at him. “In trouble again, huh, Zack.”
“Yeah. Thanks for letting me stay here, John.”
“What are big brothers for? Right kid?”
Zack smiled. “Right.” He walked in, breathing a sigh of relief. “Can I use your computer, please, John?”
“Sure, go for it. I'm going to bed.”
****
Next morning Kevin was dropped off at the Canadian Saints camp. They'd gotten up early for the three hour drive. Jakuth looked around at the clusters of cabins, their rooftops covered in snow the same as the ground. Nearby there was a woods that stretched into the distance where huge mountains overlooked the camp. A flag pole stood tall, the red and white Canadian flag blowing in the breeze, the maple leaf at it's centre. Jakuth sneered at the patriotism. So much fuss over a piece of land. Humans really needed to get over themselves.
Kevin's dad got his bag out of the trunk and gave it to him. “Thanks dad.” Jakuth said in Kevin's voice. He couldn't stand the sound of his sickly sweet innocent voice. Other kids were arriving as well and their high pitched vocals grated on Jakuth's nerves also. Whatever havoc I wreak while I'm here could not possibly compare to what these little shits are going to put me through, the demon thought.
We'll walk you to your cabin, Kevin, so you can get settled in,” his mum said.
“Okay, mum.”
At his cabin his mum helped him unpack then kissed him on his cheek and said goodbye. Jakuth watched Kevin's parents leave then shuddered in revulsion. “Yuck.”
“Ha! Your mum kissed you, you baby,” one of the boys said laughing at him.
Jakuth glared at him, resisting the temptation to reveal his demon eyes. “You'll regret laughing at me. Just you wait. You'll never never see it coming.”
The young boy stared at him, taken aback. Jakuth walked away.
****
Zack woke up with a start and looked at his watch. “Shit!” It was 11 o' clock already.
“No, no, no,” Zack said as he jumped up and started dressing, quickly.
“What's up, kid?” John asked from where he was sat at his computer. “And what's all this shit you've been Googling? Demon traps? Exorcisms?”
“What the hell, John? You looked at my searches?”
“Well excuse me for keeping tabs on my little brother when he says he's in trouble. So what's going on?”
“Something's happened to Kevin.”
“Kevin. What's happened? Is he okay?”
“You won't believe me, John.”
“Zack, if something's happened to Kevin you have to tell me.”
Zack cringed. If he told John the truth he would most likely have him sectioned rather than help him. “Sorry, John. I can't say.”
“Damn it, Zack. Just tell me!”
“Okay, okay. But bear this in mind before I tell you anything. You may think I'm insane. You may think I'm telling stupid lies for a laugh. But know this. If you dismiss what I'm about to tell you and terrible, horrendous things happen as a consequence you will have to live with the guilt for the rest of your life.”
“Jesus, Zack. You're really serious. Okay. I'm listening”
****
“Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, when an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush” the narrator said.
A man dressed in robes approached a potted bush which had a device that was simulating a fire balanced on top.
Jakuth sat watching, squirming in his seat.
“The bush was burning yet it was not consumed.”
You want a burning bush, you'll get a burning bush, Jakuth thought, then stared at the wiring of the device bringing all his demonic focus to it. Suddenly the wire snapped and electric sparks flew from it into the leaves of the bush. It caught alight, the flames shooting up setting fire to the red paper masquerading as real fire and melting the plastic device. The acrid smell was sickening. Alarms sounded deafeningly loud, adding to the chaos.
The kids began screaming, some of them crying. The camp councelor's sprung into action. Some escorting the children outside, whilst one ran for a CO2 fire extinguisher. The councelor quickly returned and sprayed white dry powder all over the bush, putting out the flames. Coughing hard due to the smoke, he evacuated the building with the others.
Everyone gathered at the fire assembly point a good distance from the buildings. They waited in shocked silence until the alarm was turned off and everything was declared safe again.
****
It was lunch time and the kids were still talking about the burning bush incident, in the dining hall “Do you think it was a ghost?” one of them asked.
“Don't be stupid. There's no such thing as ghosts.”
“What do you think it was then?”
“How do I know,” the kid said shrugging his shoulders.
Then the kid who'd insulted Jakuth earlier came along. He snatched a handful of the fries from the plate of the nearest kid.
“Hey!”
“What are you going to do about it,” the boy said with a mouthful of fries.
Jakuth watching from another table realised that this was the perfect time for payback. He brought his demonic focus to bear on the bully's chewing mouth. He visualised the masticated fries and then pushed them into his throat.
The bully started clawing at his neck and choking.
“Oh my God!” a counselor cried out and ran towards Jakuth's victim. He grabbed him from behind pressing his fists into his solar plexus to perform the Heimlich manoeuvre. The man heaved, lifting the boy off his feet, once, twice, and then the mushed up potato flew from the boys mouth and onto the floor.
“Eww” the children cried out in unison.
The boy gasped in lungfuls of life saving air and the counselor took him away to be checked over by the nurse.
****
The boy's name was Steve. He couldn't understand how it had happened. He'd never choked on food before. He'd always been careful. It was strange. It was almost as if the food had forced itself down his throat by itself. But that can't be right, surely? The nurse had checked him over and said that apart from a few bruises around his abdomen he was okay. Steve just wanted to take his mind off things so he went out to play. They had an amazing playground there. They were spoilt for choice for things to do. He had a look around until he saw the zip wire. Steve felt his pulse race with excitement and suddenly the whole choking incident was forgotten. He climbed up the small hill that the zip wire was set up on. He looked down across the length of the wire which went, for quite a distance, at quite a height, over an impressive view of children playing an assortment of different games. Steve straddled the seat, holding tightly to the pole it was attached to, then he pushed off with his feet. He felt his weight pull him downward, and the sensation of his stomach jumping into his chest then found himself whizzing forward along the wire. Steve felt the exhilaration of speed and the wind through his hair.
****
Not far away, Jakuth was watching Steve. It's like he wants me to hurt him he thought
as he stared intensely at the wire holding Steve in the air.
Steve was squealing with joy when he heard a terrible twanging, snapping sound, loudly, above him. Then he was falling through the air and his squeal of delight turned into a horrified shriek. He plummeted onto the hard ground, his legs snapping as they bent awkwardly under the seat. He let go of the pole and fell on his side, screaming in agony. Steve looked at his legs. Shards of bone had broken through the skin and blood was pouring from the gaping wounds in each leg. Feeling sick and faint he noticed Kevin a short distance away, watching him. His arms were folded across his chest and he was smiling, cruelly. Worst of all, however, was the fact that Kevin's eyes had somehow gone black. Steve screamed all the more, not understanding what he was seeing. What the hell was he? An alien? Finally Steve passed out with the shock.
****
John and Zack walked into the Wiccan Wonders shop hoping to find what they needed. John had taken some convincing to believe what was going on but eventually he decided that it was best to go along with things to be on the safe side. Zack's speech had hit a nerve. As crazy as all this sounded, if it was true and he didn't act, well, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.
Zack looked around the shop until his gaze fell upon a circular black rug with the Devil's trap sigil displayed in white. “John, this is just what we need.”
“How much for the rug?” John asked the shop owner.
Having purchased the rug, rolled it up and placed it in the backseat of John's Ford Ranger, shiny black, pickup truck, the two brothers hit the road for the three hour long trip to save Kevin.
****
After Steve had been carried to the nurses office on a backboard and transferred to a bed he was being comforted by one of the councelors called Christopher. Steve was awake now and was in a state of shock, seemingly delirious. He was raving about Kevin being an alien and how he'd caused him to choke as well as causing his accident with the zip wire. Christopher tried to calm him to no avail.
“You're in shock, Steve. People imagine things when they're in shock. Try not to get so worked up.”
“You have to believe me,” said Steve.
The nurse then put a mask over Steve's mouth and nose, supplying him with Nitrous Oxide and he visibly relaxed. Christopher was relieved to see him more comfortable. It wasn't long before the ambulance arrived.
****
Meanwhile Jackuth was trying to decide what to do with himself. Now Steve had been taken away in an ambulance, there was no more fun to be had with him. He looked around at all the children enjoying themselves. What kind of games can I get up to now, Jakuth wondered. He saw the playground with a slide, swings, a merry go round and a climbing dome. He headed towards it in anticipation.
****
A little girl, only six years old, was playing inside the climbing dome. Her name was Alice and she felt quite at home pretending the dome was a house that she lived in and she was all grown up. Then she heard a creaking sound as the bars of the dome started to warp and bend inwards and downwards. She sat, awestruck, unable to move as the bars of the dome surrounding her crushed in, closer and closer. Alice curled into a ball and squealed at a pitch and volume that could be heard for miles. Counselors came running towards the park from different directions.
****
It was Christopher who arrived first and climbed through the undamaged bars to see what was wrong. The poor girl was absolutely distraught. It took Christopher a while to get her to look up. When she did she gasped and looked completely confused. She couldn't explain what had happened but she calmed down enough to go off and play again. What a day Christopher was having. He'd never known anything like it. A fire, a choking incident, a horrific accident and now a little girl having an absolute melt down for no apparent reason. Something wasn't right around here.
****
Jakuth was smiling with satisfaction. Projecting images into peoples minds was great fun. He now found himself wandering towards the assault course. There a boy was crawling under a belly crawl net. Again he projected images, this time into the boy's mind.
****
The boy was called Dave. He wanted to be a soldier when he grew up. He moved forwards using his elbows and legs, commando style. He felt like he was on a special ops mission. But then the ropes above him started to move of their own accord and he could hear a hissing sound. The ropes were no longer rough and abrasive but smooth and scaly. A green head appeared in front of Dave's face and a forked tongue licked his cheek. In his panic he tried to stand up but he was forced down by the strength of the snakes. He writhed around and he got more tangled as the snakes wound themselves around his limbs. He screamed for help. Suddenly the snakes were ropes again and he could hear other boys laughing at him. Confused and embarrassed he untangled himself with frustrating difficulty. Finally escaping the netting he stood up and faced the three boys who were laughing. Upset and angry he bellowed, lashing out at them with his fists. He landed a few blows before the three of them started to get the better of him until they were dragged apart, by the overwhelmed and harassed counselors.
****
Before Jakuth could set about doing anymore of his demonic head-fucks the councelors gathered everyone together.
“Okay, everyone were going to have one more activity before dinner. Let's collect the ice skates from the storage shack and head to the frozen lake.”
The kids cheered excitedly then followed the councelors. They all got their skates on and shuffled onto the ice. Jakuth skated around in a 666 formation. Fuck figure eights he thought.
****
Forty five minutes of skating later, the excitable, woohoo's and giggles of a girl skating around him, provoked his malice.
She suddenly found herself skating faster than she could possibly propel herself on her own. She cried out as she saw that she was hurtling towards a tree at the side of the frozen lake. Try as she might she could not steer out of her collision course. She crashed into the tree with a thunderous impact and collapsed into the snow, passing out as blood poured from her nose, soaking into the white, icy flakes. It looked like she was lying in a puddle of raspberry Slushie.
Another rush to the rescue from a group of counselors. They helped the poor girl up, whilst others started to escort the children away.
Jakuth, however, was lingering. He'd had enough of all this. He wanted out.
****
Christopher noticed Kevin, still on the ice. A few memories began running through his mind. All these things that had been happening. The burning bush, Steve choking,
the zip wire snapping, Alice's melt down, the fist fight. Each and every time, Kevin was there, just staring, with what Christopher now realised was a rather disturbing expression on his face. Everyone else had headed off now. It was just Christopher and Kevin staring at each other across the frozen lake. Like a sheriff and an outlaw facing each other in a western. But this was not the Wild West. But for some reason it really felt like it. Why did Christopher feel such a menacing threat from an eight year old boy. Then he noticed on the ice in front of Kevin were the numbers 666. A true sense of dread now filled every cell in his body.
****
Jakuth stared back at the man, enjoying watching him figure it all out. Finally he didn't have to be all cloak and dagger. This guy would know it was him who was making him suffer. Jakuth was going to savour every moment of this. “I can see it in your eyes that you've worked out what I am. Let me confirm your fears for you. You can see it in my eyes.”
Christopher recoiled as he saw Kevin's eyes turn black. “Steve tried to tell me about you. I thought he was delirious. He thought you were an alien. I know what you are. You're a demon!”
“Bingo! Congratulations! You've won the star prize for playing Guess Who the Demon Is. What's your name?”
“Christopher.”
“Well, Christopher. Come on down.” Jakuth reached out his hand towards Christopher and an invisible force drew the man towards him onto the frozen lake. “Have you ever had an ice bath before?”
“What?” The ice beneath Christopher's feet, cracked and gave way. He plunged through it, the shock of the freezing water making him gasp. He kicked his legs to reach the surface, grasping the broken edges of ice. His head popped out of the water and he coughed icy liquid from his lungs.
Jakuth looked down on Christopher then pressed the blade of his skate into his right hand that gripped the ice, slicing it open.
Christopher screamed. “Have mercy, please.”
“Mercy? I'm a demon. Mercy isn't in my vocabulary.” Jakuth pulled the blade from Christopher's hand then stamped it into his upturned, pleading face. The blade cut through Christopher's nose vertically and smashed into his skull. Christopher went limp in the icy water. His face was still attached to the blade and blood streaked down his cheeks. Jakuth raised his foot lifting Christopher partway out the water then prized his face off the skate. It made a horrible sucking sound as it came off, leaving bone fragments and stringy gore dangling from the blade. Jakuth let Christopher's corpse drop back into the water and it sank into the sub-zero depths and was engulfed by billowing, crimson clouds. I bet that guy died a virgin, Jakuth thought as he skated away to the edge of the lake, pulled off the skates and put his shoes back on. Then he wandered off into the woods.
****
An hour later John and Zack pulled up just outside the camp. They jumped out the Ranger. They'd spent the journey coming up with a plan. Now it was time to put it into action. “Okay, let's do this” John said.
****
Jakuth reached the end of the wood and looked up at the massive rock face of the mountain. Now for the grand finale he thought as he raised his arms toward the snow-capped peaks. A blast of telekinetic energy shook the mountain and the snow shifted then cascaded downwards. Just before the avalanche came crashing down upon Jakuth he teleported away.
****
John and Zack heard the boom in the distance and looked up to see what was happening.
At the camp, kids and counselor's came out of the cabins to see the snow smash through the trees. They ran, screaming in terror, away from the avalanche as it burst through the woods striking the cabins and shattering them into match wood. The great wave of snow finally came to a stop a few metres in front of John and Zack. They both sighed in relief. Yet things weren't over as Jakuth appeared before them both.
“What have you done, Kevin?” John said.
Jakuth searched Kevin's memory. So this was Zack and Kevin's older brother. Interesting.
“It's not Kevin, John. It's Jakuth.”
“How sweet of you to remember my name, Zack. Again he held his arms out aiming at them. John and Zack flew back into the Ranger so hard it dented. Jakuth revealed his black eyes and stalked towards his prey. He got so far until he found he could move no closer. “What's happening?”
“I can answer that,” Zack said as he gingerly approached, still feeling the pain of the impact when he'd hit the car. He used his foot to scrape away the snow near Jakuth revealing the rug with the Devil's trap symbol on it.
“Son of a bitch,” Jakuth hissed.
John and zack started reciting the words of exorcism in Latin they'd been rehearsing during their road trip, using Google on Zack's phone to hear the pronunciation .
Jakuth writhed and growled and fell to his knees. Then his eye's returned to normal.
“Why are you killing Jojo?” Kevin asked his older brothers.
“Kevin! Thank god.”
“Leave Jojo alone!.”
“Listen to me, Kevin,” John said. “That is not Jojo. It's a demon and it's been hurting people.”
“But he took me to Disney World. He's been nice to me.”
“It's a trick, Kevin. That's what demon's do. They tell lies and hurt people. Let us help you.”
“I don't know.”
“Kevin,” Zack spoke up. “We're your brothers. Trust us.”
“Okay, Zack,”' Kevin said.
Kevin's eyes went black again as Jakuth took over. His ploy to keep Kevin under the illusion that he was his imaginary friend Jojo and therefore maintaining a stronger hold of him had failed. He roared out his frustration as John and Zack restarted their exorcism.
Jakuth grabbed hold of Kevin's throat and began to squeeze. His fingernails dug in and began drawing blood. Kevin fell on his back, his choking sounds haunting his brothers.
They chanted faster in desperation, the strange Latin words reaching their conclusion.
Kevin's mouth opened wide and the black smoke that was Jakuth whirled out of him and swooped down into the ground returning to Hell.
The brothers stared at each other, their relief greater than before.
Everyone else had run far away from the avalanche and hadn't witnessed what had occurred.
Kevin stood up, shaking and crying. Zack and John ran forwards, pulling him close.
“Can I go home, please,” Kevin said.
“Yes, kid. Let's get you home,” John said.
In the car Zack sat next to Kevin in the back seat and held his hand. “We'll never let anything like that happen to you again, Kevin. I promise.”
****
When they got Kevin home their cover story was that Kevin had tried to call home sick and their parents weren't home so he had called John to pick him up. Later on the news of the avalanche was both a shock and a relief as they believed Kevin hadn't been there.
****
The next day in the back garden of John's house. John was holding the book of Satanic Spells and Rituals. “So this is what caused all the trouble.”
“Yep,” Zack agreed.
“Well, never again.” John dropped the book into the flames that were leaping out of his burn barrel. The evil pages, crumpled, blackened and finally disintegrated into ash and tiny particles of it danced around amongst the smoke.
THE END
© Andrew J Sinclair
