The Bones

Matt's life becomes complicated when some bones are discovered.

                                                                  The Bones

Police officer Matt Jackson approached the house.  No one lived there at present, but a fire had started inside of the building late last night, and when the firemen had gone in to stop the blaze, they came across the bones.  They alerted the police straightaway, thinking the worst.

The weather on that day was far from ideal, as the rain came down hard causing puddles to appear everywhere.

Matt made his way to the entrance where the door was open, then peered into the darkness of the hallway.  Inside he saw David lurking about.

“What’re you doing, mate?” he asked.

David turned round with a startled look, and replied, “Bloody hell, Matt.  You made me jump.”

Matt walked in and joined his colleague, before saying gravely, “So, where are they now?”

The other officer glanced at the closed door of the cellar, then said, “Some people picked them up this morning, to do tests on them I should imagine.”

There was a horrible stench in the place that made Matt gag.  What the hell happened here, he thought.  

David proceeded into the kitchen.

Matt followed.  “Where’re you going?” he asked, interested.

David peered his way, and said, “How old are the bones?  No one knows.  They could’ve been there for decades.”

Matt agreed with him without saying a word.

The kitchen was a mess.  Everything was damp and decaying.  

“There’s nothing else we can do, until we get more information,” said Matt.  “Come on, let’s get out of here, and resume to normal duties.”

David seemed a little disappointed by this, but replied, “Seems such a shame though.  Try using your imagination for a minute.  The bones they found are small, maybe it’s a child.  And if that’s the case, then only bad is going to come from it.  Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“Look, at present, we don’t know anything.  Come on, mate.  Let’s head back to the station,” Matt said.

David followed him out of the house where the walls were scolded and half of the roof had caved in.

Before he got into his car, he turned to David, and said, “Don’t go in there again, it’s a health hazard.  If you haven’t noticed the place could fall down at any minute.”  He opened the door and David then made his way to the other car which was parked only a few metres away.

Matt started the engine, and in the small mirror just above his head he thought he saw a child standing in the entrance of the house.  Out of disbelief he closed his eyes, once he’d opened them, all he saw was the empty doorway.  

Maybe he’d imagined it?

With ease the vehicle moved carefully up the drive trying to avoid all the puddles, the other car following closely behind.

………………………………................................................................................................

The young girl no older than ten screamed at him as he got closer.  He didn’t know where he was, but the best he could he tried reassuring her.  The moon above shone down and this is when he noticed the girl holding a knife.

“Put that down, sweetheart,” he said softly.  

Then a shadow appeared behind the child, laughing at the predicament she faced.  She turned towards the figure with utter fright on her face.  All of a sudden the knife she held was grabbed from her and plunged deep into her chest.  

Matt flew from the pillow, his breathing heavy.  He noticed it was still dark, peering at the little clock which sat on the cabinet it was only 3.13am.

He was used to having bad dreams, and thought nothing of it.  He brushed his hair and rested his head against the soft pillow.  Then he saw something move in the bedroom window.  His heart raced and reluctantly he turned his head.  The face of a child peered back.  Her wide staring eyes, blood trickling down her throat.  She opened her mouth and many rats started to appear as they ran down her grubby nightgown.

All Matt then remembered was falling out of bed and losing all consciousness.

………………………………................................................................................................

He walked into the police station feeling a bit on edge.  David met him in the corridor, and with a smile on his face, said, “Another day, another pound.”

Matt wasn’t in the mood for humour.  The dream he’d had was something he could cope with, but what happened after was something else entirely.  What did it all mean?

“I need a coffee,” was all he said, passing David and making his way up the corridor.

“Are you all right?” asked David, a worried look on his face.

Matt wasn’t in the mood, and answered, “I’ll see you later.”

………………………………................................................................................................

He’d made plans with some mates to head to the pub.  It was a Friday night and he felt like he deserved it.  It had been a strange week.  Ever since them bones had been discovered his nightmares were getting worse.  The most unusual thing was, they always involved the girl.  

He put on his nice clean shirt and looked at himself in the mirror.  Tonight he was on the pull.  At least it would take his mind off the job, which at times would get him down.  At the age of 29, sometimes he would have this feeling that being a police officer was more stressful than it was worth.

A knock was heard.

“Who could that be,” he muttered under his breath, knowing he was meeting his friends in the city centre, and he wasn’t expecting company of any kind.

He quickly put his jeans on and another bang was heard.  He ran down the stairs heading to the front door.  Matt opened it and lurking in the shadows away from the wall light was someone he didn’t find familiar.

“How can I help you?” he asked.

A man then said, “Are you him?”

Matt didn’t need this, “What are you talking about?”

The man came nearer.  He was an odd looking sort.  His face was badly scarred on one side, and he must have been in his late sixties.  “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” was all he said, with a grin on his face.

Matt was tiring of this now, “What do you want, I don’t know who you are?”

The man seemed bemused by this, and answered, “Soon you’ll know who I am.  The bones which you found are why I’m here.”

“How do you know about that, who’ve you been speaking to?” asked Matt, growing a little irritable with this person.

The man noticed this, and took a step back so now his face was covered in shadows.  “We’ll meet soon.  And then you’ll know the truth.  It’s good to finally meet you.  I must be off.”

With that he made his way down the three steps which led to the small front garden.  He looked back one more time with a slight smile on his face.  He then vanished behind a tall hedge.

Matt was unsure what to make of this.  The man seemed strange but he shrugged it off, as time was getting on.  He went back into the house, then closed the door.  

While he ran up the stairs he didn’t see the two people staring at him with great interest through the living room window.  In their hands they clutched a book.

………………………………................................................................................................

“Rotten fires of hell,” the young girl screamed.  “As they rain down onto the land of lost souls.”

Rats scurried around his feet and the child stood a few metres from him.  He was terrified to look at her, as he believed her to be evil.  One rat took a chunk out of his leg and the pain was unbearable.

With his hand he tried to smack the rodents away but it was useless.  They were everywhere.

Matt stared at the clock, realising he’d had another nightmare.  He couldn’t take much more of this.  “Please just stop,” he begged.

If only he knew.

………………………………................................................................................................

The next few days he began to notice things that worried him.  Maybe it was his imagination, but all of a sudden he had the ability to read people’s thoughts.  Old men leering over children.  The lonely nerd  contemplating shooting his classmates.  The attractive woman who always had a smile, but in secret she was being beaten by her husband.

Matt couldn’t take anymore.  Then one night while a storm attacked the city with immense force, the child who he had dreamt of many times appeared to him.  He was unsure if it was a dream, but there she was, standing in his living room holding a bag.

Nervously he said, “For many nights now you’ve tormented me.  Why are you here?”

She came closer, then replied, “Soon you’ll understand.”

In a blink of an eye she was gone, then he saw the bag which she’d held stood on the carpet.  He picked it up and a little frightened peered inside.

………………………………................................................................................................

Matt ran into the station straight to where the bones were now being kept.  When he made his way into the biggish white room he was greeted by a woman in her forties.  She wasn’t the most attractive female, but her sense of humour did make him laugh.  Her name was Susan and she originally came from Sheffield, which in some ways explained her filthy sense of humour.

“How can I help you?” she asked, looking at him with interest.

He got closer to her, and answered, “Any news on the bones?”

She scratched the top of her head, puzzlement on her face.  “There’s one thing we’re sure of, they’re not human bones.”

Matt didn’t know what to make of this.  But at least there wouldn’t be a murder inquiry now, which in a lot of ways was a very good thing.  

“So, who do the bones belong to then?” Matt asked.

“We’ll have to do more tests.  It’ll take a couple of days.  Until then, I’m in the dark,” she replied.

“Thanks, Susan.  I’ll see you later,” was all he said, while he left the room he felt another headache coming on.

………………………………................................................................................................

Later that day the message he had found in the bag sat on his desk.  What did it mean?  He read it again.

I’ve always seen you in my dreams.  You’ve been chosen.  

“This is lunacy,” he said under his breath.  Then a really bad feeling came over him.

………………………………................................................................................................

He was at home relaxing while watching a film when he received the call.  The bones had been stolen, but the thing which confused him more than anything else, none of the doors in the station had been tampered with.  He felt uneasy.  He needed a drink to sort out his nerves.  In the cupboard was a bottle of gin.  Knowing he would regret it in the morning he poured himself a glass and threw it down his neck.

………………………………................................................................................................

Matt heard a noise.  What was that?  It sounded like a door being opened.  He peered at the clock and it was 11.  Bloody hell it’s still early, he thought.

Only an hour before he’d decided to go to bed because he had an early start in the morning.  He then decided to ignore the noise as it was probably cats fighting in the front garden.  He closed his eyes and within seconds he was fast asleep.  

He was grabbed and looking up all he could see were many figures.  Their faces covered by outlandish masks.  He tried to scream but they stuck something over his mouth.  He tried to fight them off but there was too many.  Then everything went dark.

………………………………................................................................................................

He opened his eyes and realised what had happened.  Something covered his mouth, and looking about him he all of a sudden saw the most frightening sight.  His hands and feet were tied so he was unable to move.  He tried to wriggle free, but the ropes around his wrists and ankles were too tight.  In front of him were many figures, while they chanted unknown words.  Everyone of them wore masks.  Horrible grotesque masks.  They also wore white robes which hung to their shoes.

Then someone from the crowd came nearer.  This person was only five foot tall, and carefully removed their mask.

Matt with shock realised who it was.  It was the little girl who he’d dreamt about many times.

She glanced up at him.  With a smile on her face, she said, “You’ve been chosen.  This has always been your destiny.”

Matt done his best to say something, but only a muffled sound came out.  He watched her back away and join the crowd.  Everywhere he looked there were small fires which lit everything up.  Two people approached him and dragged him along the ground towards what looked like a small hole.  All the people stared at him while they still muttered words which he didn’t understand.  Finally he was dropped to his knees a metre from the hole.  He peered down and at the bottom were the bones.

What did this all mean?

Someone else from the group came closer and kneeled down so he faced Matt.  He also removed his mask.

It was the man who’d come round that night when Matt was getting ready to meet his mates.  

The man then said in a calm sort of way, “Tonight a sacrifice will take place.  You’ve been chosen by the child.  And your blood will give life to the most powerful force.  The dark lord will live again, because of you.”

Matt was horrified and using his whole body tried the best he could to escape, with no luck.

From the man’s pocket appeared a knife.  Without any warning he got hold of Matt’s hand and cut his palm deep so now the blood dripped into the hole.

Matt screamed because the pain was unbearable.  

Three more people came forward and held him.

This is when he noticed the bones increasing in size.  How was that possible?

On the bones a pink substance was observed while it bubbled and slowly became more.  Then from the strange substance thick black fur appeared growing at an alarming rate.

Everyone chanted and Matt knew he didn’t have much time left.

The man gave him a smile, before saying, “Satan is being reborn, and for many years we have waited for this day.  Your life was not in vain, dear friend.”

Matt terrified as can be finally had the courage to look back down.  Then he saw the yellow eyes staring back at him.  The beast roared, its dark nine foot frame standing only a few inches from him.  The crowd applauded.  Above, an immense fire erupted across the heavens, and from the ground little red creatures appeared attacking anyone close.

Before Matt lost all consciousness all he could hear were despairing cries from all around, as hell was being unleashed onto the Earth.

                 The End

Reviews

[Enid Blake]

'Matt did his best...' Instead of 'done'. Spooky!

[steve]

Thank you!

[Marie]

A surprisingly scarely story, especially the very last. I wonder if you could ut in something to explain why the bones were small, yet, yet the beast which became Satan is 9' tall?

[steve]

Yes, you have a point. I've changed it now. Thanks, Marie. I'm looking forward to reading some of your stuff a bit later. x