Chapter 28

Twenty-Eight

My foot dipped over the edge of the deep hole we had dug the night before, the muddy depth filled with dirty rainwater, leaves and debris swirling around the edge of the coffin. The lid to the coffin was torn to pieces, a full skeleton laying fully exposed, staring up at me with empty eyes. I wasn't sure if it was the fading sunlight or presence of rainwater, but something about the corpse seemed off. It was missing a rib. As I squinted, peering closer, a soft push against my back startled me, breaking my focus. The sole of my boot slid along the mud, the force almost causing me to fall into the ditch had I not thankfully balanced myself in time.

"Careful," Cain purred from behind, approaching to the side of the grave. I stepped back, calming myself. He bent down, reaching for a large hunting knife that was sitting, pierced into the edge of the muddy pit. He yanked the knife, raising it to his chest as he wiped the thick mud across his leather jacket, speaking to me. "You never know who might stab you in the back." He smiled, examining the reflective weapon a moment before sheathing the knife into the back of his jeans. The whole interaction made me uneasy. With the blink of an eye, Cain changed, an odd shift in his demeanor. His eyes were red, deep, heavy bags hanging, as if he hadn't slept in days. Beads of sweat rolled down his drained face despite the cool breeze that circled around us. His irises met mine, a green flicker moving across one of them as his smile branched further into his cheeks in an unnatural way. I couldn't look away, paralyzed by a foreign fixation.

"Okay," Ruby huffed as she approached from behind, breaking my eyes from the strange trance. "We found our bags. Most of what's in them is ruined from the rain, but we got the dowsing rods. Now let's head back." Her words faded off as she noticed the change in Cain's persona and appearance. "What's going on with you, Cain?" she questioned. "You've been acting weird all day."

Cain ignored her snarky words. He removed his leather jacket, his sleeveless shirt clinging to his sweat-soaked chest as he tossed it aside, fixated on the hole in the ground. Even his stance seemed off, as if he was purposely carrying himself in a new form. Ruby and I glanced at one another, puzzled by whatever it was he was doing.

"Cain?" He ignored me completely, almost as if he was completely unaware of our presence. He lurched into the muddy hole, his boots thudding against the disturbed coffin as he landed, crouched and on his feet. His hair disappeared from sight as he bent down, finicking with the coffin. "Why are you ignoring me? What're you doing?" I stepped closer, confused by what he was doing.

"Hey, where's Cain?" Alaska asked as she and Jinx joined Ruby and me, Alastair close to Alaska's side. I glanced behind, looking at the three women, pointing back to the grave.

"He's in the fucking ground." My words reflected my confusion and annoyance.

"Come on, Cain." Ruby crossed her arms, frustrated. "Cain, get out of the fucking hole!"

The sound of Cain grunting, followed by the echo of something cracking, vibrated through my bones. We could hear him moving in the dug-up grave, curious to see what the hell he was doing. All of us stood in silence, waiting impatiently.

The wind began to pick up, the surrounding trees rustling as the air suddenly dropped in temperature. It felt as though a storm had immediately rolled in, darkening the sky as the clouds gathered. Shadows drenched the woods and world around as thick clouds quickly formed in the sky above and thunder threatened us in the distance. "I swear, Cain, we will fucking leave you behind!" Ruby's hands were burning at her side as her words growled at him.

"Cain!" My patience had gone. It was getting dark and now a storm had appeared, and all I wanted was to leave this damn place.

Cain's body rose, his back positioned towards us as he fumbled with something in his hands. He slowly turned, facing us, a human skull firmly in his palms. Not just any skull, but John Crowe's. His eyes peaked up from beneath his rustled dark hair, shielding half his face.

"What the fuck—" Ruby gasped, stepping back as her words were hushed by Alastair's growls. His body crouched, ready to attack, his ears folded back and the hair along his spine raised high. He stepped in front of Alaska, ready to strike, focused solely on Cain.

Cain continued to fidget with the skull, positioning his fingers through the empty eye sockets and nasal cavity, his arm muscles flexing as he groaned loudly and yanked the front of the remains. The veins in his arms and neck bulged, turning green as his fingertips glowed fairly similar to Alaska's and Ruby's. That's not possible. Cain ripped the front of the skull apart from the rest with one motion, chunking the remnants aside, exhaling as he smiled at what he had done. He held the fractured piece up in his hand, examining the weathered bone carefully, a faint green glimmer dancing across his eyes. What the hell was happening?

"Finally," a distorted voice played from Cain's lips. He bent down, ripping his laces from his boots and began to tie them around the rim of the human remains.

"The fuck are you doing, Cain?" Ruby demanded, slowly backing away, her own hands lightly ignited. I stared at him, shocked, realizing what he was creating.

Cain ignored her question, placing the makeshift mask across his face, exhaling a loud sigh of relief as the bone gently settled against his flesh. He shifted his neck, cracking it while rotating his limbs and spine. It was as if he was settling into his own skin and getting a feel for his own body. The whole display was sickening and obscene. The broken skull of John Crowe was now resting atop Cain's. He was insane. Fuck this.

"Let's get out of here," I said to the others, all of us glued to the twisted sight before us.

Cain's head snapped up, his eyes instantly meeting mine. One iris was its usual dead, gray-colored self, the other now tainted in a neon green glow. That's not possible. Before I could speak, thunder boomed nearby as an eerie laugh escaped through Cain, rupturing through his mouth, his body jolting in reaction. Alastair snapped a warning, chomping his teeth as his claws dug into the earth.

"What ever is the matter, Lazarus?" Cain straightened as the sound of my name rolled from his tongue, emphasizing the ‘s'. "You're not frightened now, are you?" He lifted his arms, examining his faintly green fingertips. "My, such strength this Cain possesses," he snapped, a green flame emanating from his skin. "Strength fueled by such rage. How absolutely marvelous." A chill ran along my spine at his altered tone.

"Cain?" Alaska's wavering voice startled me as she stepped closer, her hand touching my arm for support. "What's happened to you?" Cain's gaze moved to her, his single green eye sparkling as he studied us closely.

"I am afraid your dear Cain is preoccupied at this very moment, little hexer." Hexer? "But do not fret." Cain's hands glowed vibrantly as his body raised from the hole and hovered over the grave. "It has been long since I have stumbled upon another of our kind. Too long. And you, my lady, have consumed my curiosity."

The group collectively remained still, confused and frightened by his words as he hovered in the air, something Cain had never been able to accomplish prior to this day as he was not gifted with magic. How is this even possible?

"You see…" Cain's muddy boot tapped the earth as he stepped onto the damp ground, the power he showed fading as he walked towards us. "You," he pointed at Alaska, "have taken something from me. And I want it back." He bit the last word, snarling at Alaska as he neared her. I raised my arm, blocking him from reaching her as he halted, his chest pushed against my arm, looking me up and down. "Others are such ignorant fools, always thinking they can stop those of us with power. Tell me, Lazarus." He placed his hands behind his back, leaning towards my face. "Do humans still bleed red?" His smile was more sickening than his odd question and foreign words.

Alastair growled, drawing Cain's dual-colored eyes away from me. "Ah, your sweet Cain seems to harbor a very strong dislike for this creature." He bent down, his fingers twirling as green magic emanated from them, taunting the wolf. Alaska squeezed the wolf's scruff, forcibly holding him back as Cain stared into the wolf's golden eyes, an odd expression washing over him. "There's something different about you." He pointed to the wolf. Cain rubbed his chin, his knuckles scraping against the fractured skull mask. "I've met your kind before—"

"Cain!" His head snapped toward Ruby, her hands now burning with power. "Whatever sick game this is, it needs to end. Now." He chuckled, rising as he approached her, her temper lightening his mood.

"Ah yes. You," he pointed to her, "are definitely not well liked by this." He motioned to his body. "But I, on the other hand, am quite intrigued by you. Tell me, do they not still burn our kind in these lands?" Their kind? Was he referring to witches? To Ruby and Alaska? Did he consider himself one of them?

A freezing breeze carried through, briskly weaving past each of us. The questions he asked, the way he spoke and pronounced his words, it was as if he truly was a completely different person standing before us. But it was still Cain…how was any of this possible?

Cain leaned in close, waiting for Ruby to answer his sick question. She tightened her jaw. "Byour kind, do you mean someone who can wield magic? Someone with power?" Her chin tipped up. "Because you, Cain, are neither. You have no gifts and the last I checked," she looked him up and down, releasing a faint laugh, "you're weak." Thunder echoed in the distance.

Cain's head tilted as he studied her closely, the tension between the two shifting in the thick silence. Ruby raised her hand, her motions swift in an attempt to use her magic against him, but he was quicker, catching her before she could do so. His hand mirrored hers, green fire engulfing his palm as Ruby strained, her maroon fire dying, fading back into the skin of her hand as it trembled against his new power. She groaned, her free hand now clasping her wrist, her legs buckling as she fell to her knees while we helplessly watched her crumble beneath his new found strength.

"Witches," Cain spat onto the ground. "What a weak and pathetic name for our kind. You see, dear Ruby," he hissed his words, "as I said before, I am not Cain."

She ground her teeth, tears falling down her dark cheeks. "Who are you?" she demanded, her flame sputtering as he snuffed it out.

"My name is John Crowe." He clenched his fingers tight as his hand squeezed into a fist. Ruby screamed, her wrist snapping as she fell forward in pain. Alaska cried out, Alastair barking as she restrained him. Jinx rushed to Ruby's side, examining her broken bone. John's magic faded away as the fire in his hand dissipated.

Ruby's burning eyes raised, piercing through her pitch-black hair, burrowing into his as she fought back tears. Jinx carefully held her snapped wrist, ripping the hem of Ruby's dress to create a sling. She groaned through pressed teeth, her voice growling with rage as she spoke to him. "It's going to take more than a broken bone to shatter me, you fucking prick." She spat at his feet, a single trail of blood dripping from her pierced nostril, a sign that he had challenged the extent of her power. He kicked her saliva from his boot, his eyes fixated on Ruby as she smiled, challenging him. "Interesting," he purred. He approached Ruby, Jinx holding her back as his finger wiped the blood from her skin. He raised the droplet to his mouth and tasted it, obviously enjoying his sick self.

"Your power is something to admire, hexer. And I must say, it makes an absolutely marvelous little treat." His green iris flickered as he consumed her blood, taking his time to savor the taste. Ruby gawked at his behavior.

Things had gone too far, and Cain—John—needed to be stopped. "Enough." John snapped his head to face me, leaving the two women alone as he dallied to my side. He leaned in close to my face, the foul smelling, fractured skull rubbing the skin of my cheek as he whispered into my ear.

"Do not think you can speak to me in such a way, other. I am far more powerful than your weak, feeble human body could ever dream to be, even if I am confined to this husk." The cold kiss of his blade against my neck surprised me, as I hadn't noticed him move. Alaska gasped, her fingers tightening around my arm as my body froze, stiffened by the new threat. John leaned closer.

"Yes. Do you feel that?" He pushed the sharp edge further against my skin, the blade delicately piercing my flesh as a small bead of my blood protruded, rolling down my neck. Alastair fought against Alaska's hold. "I would be careful with choosing your words, Lazarus. Aside from my own murderous urges, this body seems to be haunted by a starved craving for your blood. Something about you in particular has vexed this Cain, leaving him with such a feverish taste to watch you suffer. Tell me, what sin have you committed to make him immensely feel so?" My eyes quickly shot to Alaska before returning to John's single green iris. "Ahhhh." He smiled, removing the blade from my throat. He stepped back, motioning the tip of his blade, pointing from Alaska to myself. "I see it now." I swallowed, a sharp pain stinging in my neck. "You're Cain's," he purred, pointing to Alaska, "but you are also his." Her face flooded with shame, dropping at his words as he pinched her chin with his fingers. "Naughty little hexer. Does he at least pay you for your services when he's finished with you?" Alastair bit the air between them, barely missing his arm, causing John's sinister smile to grow. "Careful, beastie."

"Hey!" John's dual-colored eyes returned to me, amused by the discomfort and humiliation Alaska obviously felt. "Leave her alone."

"And why would I do that?" He tilted his head, raising a brow. "Your whore is one of the reasons I am here, in the flesh, so to speak." The disrespectful insult to Alaska angered me, her hand tightening around my arm sensing my temper.

"I don't know what you're talking about, but we're just going to slowly walk away and head back to the cabin, okay?" Jinx helped Ruby to her feet, the two slowly joining Alaska, Alastair, and myself. "We're going to leave, and you can just do whatever it is you need to do. Okay?"

John chuckled, the knife still tightly seeded within his grasp. "It is humorous to listen to you speak, as though you have a choice, other." His laughter grew, Cain's altered voice overlapping itself. The hysterics turned, quickly mutating into a soft, familiar cry. He stumbled back, groaning as he gripped his head. The crazed change in emotion was disturbing to watch as the person before me grappled with his own identity, speaking quietly to himself, now Cain pleading for John to stop.

"This is not what you promised me—" Cain growled through clenched teeth, his head violently twisting as the altered voice of himself cut his own words.

His head snapped. "Patience, Cain. I did not lead you here for nothing."

"Cain?" He snapped his head, his gaze meeting mine once more as John's voice silenced. His eyes were reddened, as if he had been crying, his irises now returned to their usual gray. "Lazarus?" He seemed confused, dropping to his knees as his breathing increased.

"Cain!" Alaska cried, rushing past me in his direction. I tried to grab her arm and stop her, but she brushed me off and kneeled at his side. Cain's eyes rose to her, softening as she hesitantly placed a hand on his cheek. Her pale blue eyes burned bright as tears rolled down her cheek. "Cain, it's okay. It's me, Alaska. I'm here."

"Bambi," he smiled as his hand touched hers. It made me sick to watch her comfort him, knowing how he treated her. "I'm sorry," he spoke into her palm, lightly sobbing. "I'm so sorry." I caught a glimpse of movement, bolting to them as I pushed Alaska aside just in time. Cain's blade dragged across my chest as I hit the ground, blood instantly soaking through my shirt. His sobs transformed into an unnatural cackle that belted from within his chest. He stood, his knife tightly in his grasp, my blood dripping from it. "Fools!" The presence of Cain had vanished, the single glowing green eye returning, an indicator that the ghost of John Crowe was with us.

Alaska crawled to me, carefully examining my wound as I groaned, my hand clutching my bleeding chest. John's hands glowed with his absinthe-colored fire as he watched us rise to our feet. "There is no one in this world who can prevent me from seeking my revenge." He raised his hand, his magic gripping my throat, constricting my breathing as it began choking me. Alaska screamed, John raising his other hand as he repeated the motion and began to strangle her as well, her hands burning with her own power, fighting back.

"Release us," she strained.

The two of us struggled, trying to break free of his grasp as Alastair growled, sprinting toward John. He noted the movement, swinging his arm, forcing Alaska's body into the wolf as they slammed together and barreled along the ground. "Those foolish townsfolk should have burned me at the stake when they had the chance. Now," he grinned, tilting his head, "I will bathe this world in the blood of all who oppose me—"

A burst of dark maroon fire engulfed John's body as his power dissipated and released me. I fell to my knees, coughing between his harrowing screams. He stumbled back, surrounded by the maroon fire, falling into the hole of his own grave, smoke quickly filling the air.

"Burn, bitch," Ruby spat. "Come on!" Ruby and Jinx gripped my arm, dragging me to my feet as Alaska and Alastair crawled from the ground and rushed to my other side, tossing my arm over her shoulder as she helped carry my weight. "It's time we got the hell out of here!"

The five of us began to turn when John's eerie cackle echoed from deep within the hole, the earth trembling from his power. Rain slowly began to drizzle as thunder boomed all around us, adding to the fearful moment.

Cain's slightly burned hand reached from the hole, clawing at the muddy dirt as he began to crawl from the grave. His skin was lightly burned and bloody as John's single green eye glowed from beneath the cracked human skull and Cain's messy hair. The whole scene was like a horror movie, his body moving in unnatural, impossible ways. It was enough to make our feet move as we began to run in the direction of the cemetery gates.

"Run, Bambi, run! All of you! Run like the helpless prey you are!" The mix of John and Cain's voices twisted in the night air as we continued to flee. "I shall hunt you down! One by one, I will devour your souls, consuming them until there is nothing left but your bones that I shall scatter across these lands!" That eerie cackle echoed into a wave of thunder.

What nightmare had we fallen into?