Beware The Soulless

It’s been 13 years. 13 years since they found me. I want to run, but I can’t. They won’t let me leave. NO ONE leaves. This place traps us here, keeps us in this god-forsaken town. If you drive out far enough, you can find the edge of town, where the fog begins. But that’s all there is, just a giant wall of fog. Even on the sunniest of days, the fog never leaves.

13 years ago was when I found out the truth of this town. I was only 10, bright-eyed and curious. Every time I asked my parents about the fog, they’d be nervous for a minute and always say, “I-I don’t know what your talking about, Andrew. There is no fog.” I knew they were lying. So instead of listening to lies, I asked the elders. They told me the truth, “Oh little Andrew, the fog keeps us here, trapped with them. The Soulless. Horrifying little creatures, they are. But they only come on All Hallows Eve. Our costumes are disguises, protection from the darkness.”

I took their word like gospel. They’re the elders, old and wise. Shouldn’t we listen to them? It’s a good thing I did. If not, I would’ve ended up like Billy Hayes. Billy was a bully, always calling the elders old hags and egging houses. But no matter what, he always wore a costume, usually a devil mask. Even the cruelest of people obeyed that rule.

There were always a few who didn’t believe in the Soulless, or they forgot a costume. And after Halloween, they were never seen again. When I told my parents what the elders said, they had a serious look on their faces and told me the first truth in a long time. “Andrew Samuel Pierce, if you ever see any child that gives you a bad feeling, STAY. AWAY. FROM. THEM. Are we clear?” Mom asked me with all seriousness. I nodded in agreement. She gave me a small smile and looked over to Dad, who looked like he just saw a ghost. He shook his head and walked out of the room.

3 months later, it was time. October 31st, 1993. Halloween, or as I now like to call it, Soulless Day. ‘I WILL find out what the Soulless are’ my thoughts echoed, ‘Even if it kills me’. Looking back on it, I wish I hadn’t said that, because even if I survived, the others didn’t. So many others…

I put on my costume, an angel, and headed outside with my candy sack in hand. My costume was ironic, really. My angelic innocence and curiosity was twisted into a devilish desire for knowledge, and the blood on my hands will never disappear…

I met my friends on Merrybrook Ave, around the corner by the lake. My best friend, Paisley, was dressed up as a devil, since we were going as opposites. Oh how the tables will turn…

Her sister, Leana, was going as Little Red Riding Hood, and our other friend, Christopher, was going as clown. We began our candy hunt, continuing down 5 blocks until I noticed that we were right near the old cemetery. Some teenagers say it’s haunted, but they’re probably lying. People in this town like to lie a lot, don’t they? “W-wait! We’re not supposed to be here, especially on H-Halloween!” Parker stuttered. It was obvious he was scared. “W-what he said! Paisley, Mom told us to stay on the streets near the lights! D-don’t you think we should listen to her?” ‘Leana too? We’re old enough to go on our own, there’s nothing to be scared of anyway.’

I wish that it was true…

Paisley was getting impatient, I could tell. “Andrew, your the oldest here. Tell them there’s nothing to be scared of!” “She’s right guys”, I tried to reassure them, “All that’s there are some old graves and a few harmless animals. We’ll be fine.” “B-but the gho-” “OH MY GOD! JUST STOP BEING SUCH A GOD DAMN LITTLE BABY AND LET’S GO ALREADY!!!” Paisley grabbed Leana’s arm and dragged her in. Me and Parker looked at each other and shrugged, then began to follow the 2 girls into the abandoned graveyard.

I wish it really was abandoned…

The deeper we went, the quieter it got. At one point it was so quiet that all you could hear was the crunching of the dirt under our feet and the rustling of the candy in our bags. 4 sets of feet could be heard…then a fifth…But the fifth was running…

Right.

Towards.

US.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and I screamed. So did my friends. All you could hear was screaming…then laughter. The figure shined a light on it’s face and took of it’s mask…

Oh my god…

It was Billy Hayes…

GOD DAMN BILLY-FRICKEN-HAYS!!!

“HAHAHAHAHA!!! I GOT YOU LOSERS SO GOOD!!! YOU SHOULD’VE SEEN YOUR FACES!!! HAHAHA!!! PRICELESS!!!”

He scared us just to laugh in our faces…I should’ve seen this coming…along with the next set of deadly events…

“DAMN YOU BILLY!!!” Paisley screamed, her face red with anger and embarrassment. “Come on, it was harmless! Just relax!” He spoke through his snickering. No one else noticed the tall, looming silhouette behind him. Not until it was too late…

“Hahaha-wha-wait-ah-AAAHHHHH!!!!!!” Billy screamed bloody-murder as he was quickly grabbed by a long, slender, clawed hand and pulled into the darkness…

“Oh, ha-ha. We’re not falling for another one of your tricks Billy! Are your goons out here too?!?!” Paisley declared to the surrounding woodland just outside of the cemetery. That’s when I figured it out. ‘Billy took off his mask… his DISGUISE…If we don’t leave now, we’ll be next!!’

They WERE next, anyway…

“WE HAVE TO GO NOW!” I screamed. The others looked at me, puzzled. “Why? It’s only 8-” “S-S-S-” I stuttered. Behind them there were more. Tall, skeleton-thin creatures with long, sharp, black claws and completely blacked-out eyes with tiny glowing white pupils, along with a seemingly thick dark red substance oozing out of them. By their feet were young ghost-like children with the exact same eerie eyes and disturbing smiles. Faint whispers and screams could be heard throughout the cold autumn air nipping at our skin. Almost immediately I knew what they were….

“SOULLESS!!!”

…

Darkness. That’s all I could see. Eventually I woke up, along with Paisley and Parker. Leana was no where to be found. I walked over to my best friend and asked what happened. “T-They took her…” She said throughout her tears and sniffles. Parker was panicking and repeating the phrase “This can’t be happening”, over and over again. “Parker…” we looked at him worriedly. “N-NO! I’M F-FINE! WE-WE’RE FINE! LEANA’S FINE, SH-SHE’S JUST LOST! YEAH THAT’S I-IT, SHE-SHE’S JUST LOST, A-AND WE’LL F-FIND SOME ADULTS AND C-CONDUCT A-A-A SEARCH P-PARTY FOR HER! TH-THEN WE-WE’LL FI-FIND HER AS-S-SLEEP IN TH-E W-WOOD-DS-S A-A-ND B-BILLY W-W-AS-S JUST PR-PR-ANKIN-NG US! Y-YEA-AH, WE-E’LL B-BE F-FIN-NE!” Parker began to spiral out of control, stuttering and screaming about how we’ll be fine and that this is all fake.

I wish it was fake…

“Let’s go look for her”, I suggested, “The longer she’s out there alone, the more danger she’s in”. Paisley began nodding like a madman and jumped up quickly. Parker reluctantly agreed, but not before making us swear on our lives that we wouldn’t split up, no matter what.

I wish we didn’t come in the first place…

Not long after beginning our search, we found Leana by an old stone well, clawed up and in tears. “LEANA!” We all shouted happily. She looked up and smiled, then used the edge of the well as leverage.

The edge gave away…

“AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!” She screamed as she fell in. “NO!!” Paisley shrieked. We all ran to the edge of the well. “LEANA?! CAN YOU HEAR US?!” “YES I CAN! BUT I CAN’T MOVE MY LEG! I THINK IT’S BROKEN!” Parker was about to call again, but the rest of the edge came loose, then fell down, down, down, until…

CRUNCH!

“LEANA! OH GOD DAMNIT, ANSWER ME PLEASE!” Paisley began to cry again. No answer. “No…Oh my god-” Parker started to have an anxiety attack. Before I could calm them down, I saw something that made me want to scream and vomit at the same time. There was Billy’s body, but it was dismembered and each part of his body was drenched in blood and stuck on wooden stakes.

I wish they survived that night…

“I-I’m gonna barf-” Parker staggered towards a nearby bush to get all of that out. “What are we going to do, Andrew? I’m scared” Paisley said while hugging me. “I-I don’t know”, I said sadly, “But we have to get out of here.”

I wish Parker never left…

“Wait…Where’s Parker?!?!” We looked around wide-eyed and panicked. Parker was gone. “NOT PARKER TOO!” She cried. “AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!” The scream was in the cemetery. “PARKER!!” We ran over to Parker, who was being grabbed by bright white glowing hands and pulled into a grave. We each took one of his hands and attempted to pull him back out. It did nothing. With his final breathes he told us, “LIVE FOR ME, OK?!?! TELL MY STORY!” And like any other cliche movie character, he slowly sank into his suffocating death. The moment he was gone, the dust on the headstone cleared and said:

R. I. P.
PARKER EVANS
1984-1993
BELOVED FRIEND AND SON

“At least he has his own grave”, I said through my tears. Parker was like my brother, and now…he’s the corpse of a wonderful boy who didn’t deserve this. Not him, not Leana, not Paisley…wait, Paisley!!!

I wish she didn’t do it…

Paisley was on the ground crying. I knelt down and hugged her. After a few minutes, we looked up and saw them. The Soulless. A whole crowd of them. One of them stepped forward. “One more death”, it’s echoed voice rasped, “One more soul to be sacrificed, and then this year shall be completed.” “W-what?-” I whimpered out. “Each year, 3 souls must be sacrificed, then 3 others may be let free. 300 souls maintains the balance. One more must be taken.” “W-wait, you already have 3 souls! Leana, Parker, and Billy!” “The 1st was a mistake. An impure soul. One more must be taken by midnight.” I looked at my watch. It was 11:45. “Wh-who will it b-be?” Paisley asked quietly. “You will figure that out.” “How?” I questioned their logic. “A battle to the death.” “Wait, WHAT?!” We cried simultaneously. They gave us both incredibly sharp swords. “N-NO WAY! WE’RE NOT FIGHTING TO THE DE-”

SHINK

I looked over to see Paisley with a sword in her heart. “NO!” I screamed and ran over to her just before she collapsed. “N-no no no nononononononononono! WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?!?!” I broke down in tears. “B-because…I love you Andrew. Keep on living for me, ok? For all of us.” She smiled softly, then closed her eyes and took her final breath. “No…I-I love you t-too…” I let her go and look at the Soulless. “Are you happy now?” “Yes, and because of your good deeds, you and your descendants will be unharmed by our kind.”

I wish Paisley was alive instead…

I finally got home and my parents caught me in a huge bear hug. “Where were you?!?!” They practically interrogated me. I said with a stone-cold face, “The Soulless found us.” They knew exactly what I meant and then I heard the clock strike 12. ‘Year’s over’, I thought.

…So now, 13 years later, I want you all who know this story to do me a favor: Beware The Soulless

Credit : UndeadSouls