Your characters (the Priest, the Mortician, the Criminal, and the Private Eye) are visiting the small, isolated town of Bennington, Vermont. (Sorry, I didn't remember the character names.)
While passing through the area, your characters have become aware of a certain situation which has placed a teenage girl in dire peril. Jane Strong, the daughter of local business magnate Lucas Strong, has been kidnapped and held for ransom. Being compassionate, good men at heart, you've all decided to pitch in and join the posse which will hunt down her kidnappers, the villianous Sidney Harris and his gang.
At 10am Saturday morning, the group arrives at the local Police station in response to a general citizen 'call to action' placed by Bennington's local law enforcement, Sheriff Jenkins.
He explains the background of what's happened to the assembled crowd (around 40 men). The relevant facts are below.
- Sidney Harris and his gang have kidnapped Jane Strong, daughter of Lucas Strong
- Harris demanded a ransom of $10,000 for Jane's return and a hand-over was arranged for last night at the edge of town
- All seemed to be going smoothly until Harris and his men got twitchy and lead started flying. Chaos ensued with both sides shooting it out
- After shooting two police officers, Harris and one other member of his gang got away with the ransom money
- The escapees have fled back into the forest, where they are believed to be hiding Jane.
Lucas Strong is in attendance, and he adds that he is personally offering $25/day to anyone who joins the hunt.
The Sheriff then mentions that anyone wishing to join the posse should purchase any additional supplies they may need from Arthur J. Spence's Hardware and Gun Store on Main Street, then gather in the town square at noon. The volunteers will then be grouped up and assigned search areas.
Your characters visit the hardware store, purchase some additional equipment, and speak to the store owner. During this time, you hear the following rumors and bits of local lore.
- The forest in these parts was thought to be used as a hideout for fugitives trying to evade conscription into the Union army during the Civil War.
- Lucas Strong plans to build a rew reservoir in the area
- Lucas Strong has also sent a geological team out into the forest, to survey for precious minerals in what will become the reservoir's bed
- Lots of hunting parties frequent these woods. One thing that stands out is that none of the hunting parties like to stay in the forest for long, and none venture too far into the woods, as there is less game to be found in the deep forest
- A group of "weird artist types" arrived from the city and headed into the woods recently. No one seems to know who they are, or what they're doing although the shop keeper was suspicious of them.
The game session ended just before noon, when the characters were due to gather with the other members of the posse in the Bennington town square.
- Drove to clearing at edge of forrest
- Saw some shell casings and blood stains
- Entered the forrest and headed towards the quarry on a track
- Ran into two hunters. They didn't give us much detail. Told us to look for their friend Brian and his son. Brian has a big Texan hat. Brian, like his hat, is also large.
- Told to look for a group of artist
- Set up camp
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As the group beds down for the night, one of the fellow posse member introduces himself, Cas (Casteil) Winchester (age 16). He is wearing period dress. He may have feelings for the missing girl, or at least hoping to instill some sort of feelings in the girl. He is charismatic.
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6pm. It gets darker in the woods. We begin making dinner preparations.
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They light a fire to make coffee and food.
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Ezra takes the first watch (10-12), Quincy takes the second (12-2), Mike the third (2-4), and Melvin the fourth (4-6). We plan to wake up at 6 to roll out.
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Nightmares ensue:
- Melvin is in a yellow forest approached by figures wearing strange clothing...asking him to come with them.
- Cass is in a blighted forest and feels something pulling him down the path. He enters clearing with a yellow light, until something stabs him.
- Ezra has the same dream as Cass.
- Quincy is bombarded by images, remembering only dark trees with sickly yellow leaves and a feeling of foreboding, like something is out there waiting.
- Mike stands by water for hours until light glows and tentacles with inhuman eyes raise out of the water, followed by a massive array of metal spikes. He is stabbed in the chest.
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When Ezra wakes Quincy for his watch, Quincy hears a truck off in the distance toward the reservoir.
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At the end of Quincy's watch, he hears a staccato of gunfire in the distance. Too far to discern distance or direction.
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The group wakes to silence. No birdsong. Even the sound of insects was muted overnight. They agree that something is amiss in the woods, but continue down the path.
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A few hours later, the group discovers a portion of the forest that looks like something crashed through, with many broken twigs and branches. There is a small amount of blood spatter in that direction.
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The group follows the bloody trail. About half a mile down, a rusty hunting knife is on the ground, covered in sticky blood.
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Fifty yards further, the group encounters a dead man lying facedown on the ground. He is wearing paint-splattered overalls. He is not recognizable from the posse. No ID or anything in his pockets. The man had poorly attempted to bandage a nasty knife wound in his side that had obviously been inflicted by the knife on the ground and had bled out over a long period of time. The trail ends with him.
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The team doubles back and continues along their path toward the reservoir.
I just want to make a note on the dreams that people had. Specifically, I'm going to copy in the specific 'flavor' text of the dream descriptions.
Quincy's Dream _Your sleep is far from restful. You toss and turn from side to side, bombarded throughout the hours of darkness by images that you barely recall when you awake. Maybe it's the previous day's trek through the forest that's influencing this. All you remember are the dark trees surrounding you, the sickly, yellowing leaves falling to the ground. You feel a terrible foreboding. Something is out there. Watching. Waiting...
Quincy wakes feeling exhausted. It's as if he didn't sleep at all._
Ezra and Cass's Dream _The forest extends all around you. The path cuts and snakes its way between the trees, carpeted by freshly fallen yellowed leaves that have begun to dry and wither as if a sickness infests them. You're walking slowly down the path in silence. Nothing moves by you. There is no wind. There is no sound. Everything is dead. You feel something calling you from further down the path, just out of sight. There's a clearing up ahead; yellow light reflects off something... Could it be water? There's a snap of a twig behind you and as you turn to look, a sharp pain sinks into your chest as something plunges into you.
Ezra and Cass each wake with a gasp and a sputter._
Melvin's Dream _Yellow leaves fall slowly from the thick roof of branches above. Blades of sunlight stab through the darkness. Ahead of you stands a dilapidated log cabin. The door swings slowly open and figures emerge. They advance slowly with purpose. You want to turn and run, but you can't take your eyes from them. Your muscles strain as your brain cries out for your limbs to work---you are powerless!
The figures wear strange clothes... You hear the first one, a man's voice, as he comes closer. "Come with us. Join us in His service. Embrace your new destiny and bask in his eternal glory." Its face is lifeless, pale and unblinking. A dark green smear of corruption spreads down from an empty eye socket. It grins and its skin cracks.
Melvin wakes in terror._
Mike's Dream _You stand on the shore of a stagnant lake. Black, stinking water lies before you, while the pale moon above reflects off of its oily surface. An unhealthy yellow glow shines through the wooded tree line surrounding the lake. You can feel their presence behind you, blocking your retreat. You've stood there for hours and now you know the time is finally at hand. Strange light pulses from beneath the water. Tendrils rise slowly from the surface, writhing and twisting in the cold night air. At their ends, lids open and blink, revealing inhuman eyes that look into your soul. An array of metallic spikes begins to thrust upwards as something huge rises to greet the night. Like polished metal, it glistens in the moonlight. The spines writhe and flex. You feel a sickening stab as something plunges into your chest.
Mike wakes screaming_
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Mike Hammer investigated the body further to discover defensive wounding on the man's arms and scuffing on his knuckles.
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The group heads back up the path to the main trail and continues to follow the dying man's path through the underbrush, marking the way by notching trees with an ax along the way.
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The group follows the trail for most of the day. The forest canopy grows thicker, the light dims, and the trees themselves take on an unsettling appearance, twisted a gnarled as if writhing in pain. The undergrowth has changed to a pale, sickly, yellow color.
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Cass and Melvin notice the forest is completely silent. Unnaturally so. Unsettling.
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Of course, the group continues on for several more hours.
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The team enters a clearing and sees a tent.
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Cass and Ezra spot a campsite with a two larger and four smaller canvas tents around a cold campfire. The tents are all broken (guy lines and poles broken). There is debris on the ground. No one is around.
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Cass and Mike attempt to sneak up on the camp. Mike is quiet. Cass stubs his toe and curses loudly.
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The tents are all in disarray. One large tent is a kitchen, the other large tent is a studio with several paintings -- that appear or portray scenes from dreams the group had the previous night.
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There is a stetson hat in a bush next to a tent with drag marks leading off into the woods.
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Alongside another tent is a hunting rifle. The magazine has been emptied and the final shell is still in the chamber.
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A notebook in another tempt reveals this was the campsite of artists from Boston. The final entries describe frightening dreams they were all having. They were very similar to the dreams the party had. The notebook also indicates they met Brian and Arthur Hall, the other hunters.
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There is another path nearby with tire tracks.
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June 19 (2 days ago) was the final entry. The same day as the firefight on the edge of the forest.
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The party decides not to stay at the campsite. They retreat down the path they way they came.
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As they walk, they hear the distant sound of an engine. It appears to be getting closer.
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The sound of the engine is on the road. It is getting closer. The road appears to run from town to the reservoir. The engine sounds to be traveling from the town to the reservoir.
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Cass hides. Melvin and Ezra attempt, but do so poorly.
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Mike and Quincy unhitch their smoke wagons and wait in the road for the engine.
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A truck approaches and stops. A middle aged man is driving. It is a flatbed truck with a tarp drawn tight over someting on the bed.
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Ezra and Mike notice the driver is a bit off. He is telling them to get off the trail and he needs to get through.
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Mike pleads their case, indicating the mission to find the girl. The guy appears to pause. He has no knowledge of the event.
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The man says he is going to the survey team at the reservoir. He will not say how many. He refuses to give them a ride.
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Mike tries to intimidate the guy so they can take the truck, but he says good luck shooting him. He has half a ton of dynamite in the bed. He drives off.
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Cass throws a rusty steak knife at the truck. It hits him in the cheek and he drives off.
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Ezra notes the man had no reaction to the wound. And the wound did not appear to bleed.
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The group walks down the path, following the truck.
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Mike notices a glint of light up ahead, as if light is reflecting off of glass on the side of the road. He looks with his binoculars and sees a man lying prone with a rifle, scanning the area with his gun scope.
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Quincy and Mike attempt to sneak up on the figure. As they get closer, they note it is a man in ratty clothes.
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Mike pulls his gun and shouts "Freeze!"
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The man turns and spins the gun toward him.
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Mike shoots him in the arm.
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The man crumples. It looks like he'd already been shot in the torso with a shotgun with a glancing blow.
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Melvin attempts first aid. He notes the man is feverish, as if the previous wound is infected.
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"I surrender," he says. His name is Eugene. "It was all Harris' fault. It was his plan to take the Strong girl. They strong armed me into helping."
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He does not know where the rest of the gang is. He had been shot in the altercation with the police and has been wandering ever since.
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They had been keeping the girl in the cabin.
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When ask what he had been looking for, he said this place is strange. He shot a man last night and the man didn't even notice. He just wants to get out of here.
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Mike Hammer points his gun about him and asks questions.
- Is any of the Harris gang using the reservoir? No
- Where is the cabin? He tells them.
- What sort of defenses? Only one man had been watching the girl.
- How many are you? 5 went to the exchange. Dobbs stayed with the girl. As far as he knows, only he and Harris escaped, but were then separated.
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They search the Eugene. He has no other weapons. He has a few dollars and smoking supplies. An empty canteen and flask.
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Ian Chesterton agrees to take the man's rifle and lead the man back to town on the path in the morning.
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The group makes camp.
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Cass takes the first watch (10-12), Mike takes the second (12-2), Ezra the third (2-4), and Melvin the fourth (4-6). We plan to wake up at 6 to roll out. Quincy requests to sleep all night because he is sleepy.
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During his watch, Cass feels like he is being watched.
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During his watch, Mike sees something move in the woods. Something man-shaped. It flees.
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Everyone has terrible dreams (same as before):
- Melvin: The forest extends all around you. The path cuts and snakes its way between the trees, carpeted by freshly fallen yellowed leaves that have begun to dry and wither as if a sickness infests them. You're walking slowly down the path in silence. Nothing moves by you. There is no wind. There is no sound. Everything is dead. You feel something calling you from further down the path, just out of sight. There's a clearing up ahead; yellow light reflects off something... Could it be water? There's a snap of a twig behind you and as you turn to look, a sharp pain sinks into your chest as something plunges into you.
- Ezra: Yellow leaves fall slowly from the thick roof of branches above. Blades of sunlight stab through the darkness. Ahead of you stands a dilapidated log cabin. The door swings slowly open and figures emerge. They advance slowly with purpose. You want to turn and run, but you can't take your eyes from them. Your muscles strain as your brain cries out for your limbs to work---you are powerless! The figures wear strange clothes... You hear the first one, a man's voice, as he comes closer. "Come with us. Join us in His service. Embrace your new destiny and bask in his eternal glory." Its face is lifeless, pale and unblinking. A dark green smear of corruption spreads down from an empty eye socket. It grins and its skin cracks. He wakes screaming.
- Quincy and Cass: You stand on the shore of a stagnant lake. Black, stinking water lies before you, while the pale moon above reflects off of its oily surface. An unhealthy yellow glow shines through the wooded tree line surrounding the lake. You can feel their presence behind you, blocking your retreat. You've stood there for hours and now you know the time is finally at hand. Strange light pulses from beneath the water. Tendrils rise slowly from the surface, writhing and twisting in the cold night air. At their ends, lids open and blink, revealing inhuman eyes that look into your soul. An array of metallic spikes begins to thrust upwards as something huge rises to greet the night. Like polished metal, it glistens in the moonlight. The spines writhe and flex. You feel a sickening stab as something plunges into your chest. They both wake screaming.
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Mike wakes up Quincy and Cass to go look for the watcher.
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There is a loud explosion in the distance that wakes everyone else. The echo of the blast fades quickly, but a faint blue light can be seen reflecting off the clouds.
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Cass, Quincy, and Mike run off after the figure. Melvin and Ezra draw weapons and wait (Ian and the prisoner are also still there and awake).
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Quincy tackles the figure. They grapple. The figure has a big knife he is trying gut Quincy with.
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Quincy tries to knock the knife out of the way, but fails massively, like a second Spin Doctor's album. He is severely wounded and falls to the ground but does not pass out.
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Cass takes a shot at the man. He falls to the ground, wounded.
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Mike inspects the man. He is wearing very antiquated clothes (Civil War era) that are rotting off of him. He looks like a rotting corpse. He is motionless.
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Mike shoots the corpse in the head.
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Mike and Cass attempt first aid on Quincy. They are unable to help. It's like watching kittens create a spreadsheet. On Linux.
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Melvin and Ezra also attempt. They are finally able to help.
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They notice the knife is very similar to the knife they found in the other guy.
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They head back to camp. Cass hears the sound of twigs snapping and rustling off to the west. As if six or seven people (or one eleven year old boy) is walking in the woods toward camp.
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Mike decides to sneak up behind them. He thinks he's being stealthy, but who can really tell? He sees that it is another search party.
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Melvin and Ezra pull weapons while arguing with Quincy about the corpse that stabbed him. Quincy disregarded all the other bananacakes stuff going on -- the shared dreams, the paintings, etc. -- until it directly impacts him. It's exactly the type of entitled bullshit apparent in kids these days.
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The search party asks for permission to join the camp. Quincy is freaked out and wants the men to approach unarmed one at a time. They say they will come in slow, but not one of a time. Everything appears to be cool.
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The other posse indicates they are leaving. They are not feeling well. They all look tired and haggard.
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Mike tells them they cannot leave. They should help get the girl from the cabin.
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Mike and Quincy unsuccessfully try to persuade them to stay and
diehelp the group. They say they are too sick. Melvin can tell they are lying. -
Mike presses them for information. They cave -- saying they are all scared and having nightmares.
- "And", says the man, "Fuck the girl. I never met her."
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The other posse agrees to take the wounded Eugene with them, while Ian stays with us. Before leaving, Eugene tells us where the hideout is. They head out immediately.
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Deciding it might be creepy to leave a zombie corpse so close to the camp, Mike and Ezra goe back to burn the body. They find the scuffle and a spray of tissue where Mike had shot the corpse, but there was no body.
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Using his old man powers, Ezra sees tracks leading off in one direction.
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Mike and Ezra go back to camp to alert the team.
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Afte a discussion, the group decides the ghoul had not attacked until provoked. And no one knows how many of those things were out there. They decide to post double guards and then get to the girl as quickly as possible tomorrow.
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Ian and Ezra keep first watch. The night goes without incident.
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Dawn breaks. The group heads to the cabin.
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And hour later, the group comes upon a clearing with an old cabin. The door is closed and there is no visible activity.
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Once again using his old man powers, Ezra is able to see that the cabin is riddled with bullet holes.
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Cass attempts to sneak up on the cabin. Once in the clearing, he notices the sweet smell of death and blood. He traces the smell to a man impaled on a branch about 15 feet up a tree. He is quite dead. He is dressed much like Eugene.
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The rest of the group advances. Quincy creeps up the rear, clearly having lost his nerve.
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A shotgun blast breaks the silence. It came from the house.
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Cass is getting shot at. The shot goes wide.
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"Give her back or get the hell away!" yells a man from the house.
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He fires again, this time at Melvin. He tries to dodge, but flails as if he is trying to catch butterflies. He's hit. Seriously. But not life-threateningly so.
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Mike takes a shot. He hits. The man falls hard.
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Quincy shouts that we don't mean any harm, that we've seen bad things, that we didn't take the girl.
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Melvin bleeds and listens.
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The team advances on the cabin. They can see him crumpled and incapacitated on the ground.
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Cass climbs in through the window. The inside of the cabin is in disarray, like a fight has been there. There are dozens of spent shotgun shells on the ground and the window is haphazardly barred. It's like what I imagine AJ's childhood bedroom to look like.
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Cass kicks away the shotgun and tries to calm the freaking out man. To no avail.
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They ask who took Jane, but Harris babbles incoherently.
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Quincy fires a warning shot in a random direction. Harris's eyes take on clarity for a moment. He starts making sense.
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"They took the girl. I came back the other night and Dobbs was gone. These things came and took the girl. And they keep coming back. And they will come for you, too." He dissolves back into madness.
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They tie up the man for Ian to take back to town.
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Ian takes Harris back to town. He has clearly had enough.
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The team heads to the reservoir instead of waiting on the ghouls to come for them.
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After an hour of walking, the path divides. The tire tracks continue forward and a less-recent footpath heads to the right, covered in freshly fallen yellow leaves. It is not fall.
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Melvin, Cass, and Ezra feel a strong sense of deja vu about the path and their previous dreams.
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Everyone has a nice, long, good look around. Like there might be free beer somewhere.
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Cass sees a cabin down the leafy path.
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Everyone sees recent foot traffic on path.
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Despite all good sense, the team unholsters hand cannons and proceeds down the leafy path. Slowly.
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After about a hundred feet, the path enters a clearing where an older cabin sits. Melvin and Ezra immediately recognize it from their dream. It is in disrepair and shuttered, but has obviously been kept clear of brush.
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Mike and Cass investigate the cabin.
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Mike listens at the door, but hears nothing. Like listening to a BA explain RAID configurations.
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Cass kicks at the door and his foot goes right through the rotten wood.
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From the hole, Cass can see old furniture and some long-dead animal carcases hanging from hooks.
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Not satisfied with Cass's assessment, Mike shoves him aside and has a look. He sees a bunch of Civil War uniforms and weapons. And an eerie blue light emanating from between the floor boards.
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The team reasons the ghouls may have taken the girl into the cabin. Or it might be Civil War zombie ghoul factory. Regardless, the team thinks they need to investigate.
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But first, they do some light renovation work and open the shutters to let some light in and increase curb appeal.
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The additional light reveals a trap door.
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Cass and Mike heard in. Ezra mans the front door for cover.
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Cass grabs the ring and Mike readies his pistol.
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Cass pulls open the door. Nothing happens. There is a set of steps down to an earthen floor. The blue light is significant. the cellar is silent.
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Ezra enters the cabin to cover the door. Melvin remains outside. (What's the matter, holy man?)
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The blue light is emanating from five stone caskets made from glowing blue stone. Three of the caskets are open. Two are not.
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Mike wants Melvin and Quincy to come in the cabin to secure it. Melvin refuses. Wuincy comes in and they shut the door.
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Ezra and Cass head down to investigate further.
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The caskets are heavy stone and more like sarcophagus than a casket.
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In the first open casket is a locket, some rings, and some green dust. The green dust is reminiscent of the green corruption on the face of the ghouls in the dream.
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The next open casket contains glistening metallic spine/ tube. It's lightweight and unlike any metal known to Ezra. There is a tubular channel running through it, but no manufacturing marks. Also trinkets.
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The third open casket contains more trinkets and a diary.
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Ezra, with not regard to the privacy of others, opens the diary.
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The diary has a series of entries starting in 1865. Joseph Turner and four friends were conscripted into the Union Army. They were terrified of dying, so they bolted for Canada, like a bunch of hippies. Eventually, they ended up here.
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The last passage: They found what they desired on the dark waters of the lake. And other weird shit. Something about a thing that is imprisoned in a crystal.
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Cass and Ezra go back upstairs to discuss with the others.
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The group agrees to open the remaining caskets.
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Ezra, Cass, and Mike will open the casket. Quincy will oversee with his gun.
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The lid opens. Inside...
At last our journey is over. We fled the army to escape with our lives and make a new start in Canada, but instead we have found that which we desire on the shores of the black lake north of Somerset. It called us here with the promise of life everlasting. It called us here in our dreams. It exists here and yet not here at the same time. It remains trapped in a crystal prison from which it longs to be freed. It came here so many centuries ago upon a comet that broke apart and was scattered around the world. One such piece landed here, with part of the crystal that keeps it bound. If we aid it in finding the crystal and deliver it the lake, our benefactor can destroy it, weakening the strength of the prison that binds it. One day it shall ascend to the stars and we shall bask in its eternal gratitude and power. It is the one true God, the one true master over life and death. We go to join with it in the black waters of the lake. We go now to be made immortal by our new God. Gla'aki, may your will be done.
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Mike, Ezra, and Cass push the lid off the casket. Quincy is standing buy with his gun readied.
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Inside is a corpse dressed in decayed Civil War garb. Perhaps mid-twenties. The group discusses shooting the body.
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The corpse stirs and starts to rise. "Don't shoot," he says.
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Mike Hammer takes a shot at the corpse's leg.
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Quincy proceeds to lose his shit for a moment and drops his gun.
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The corpse is not phased. "Settle down."
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The corpse claims to be immortal, the gift of Gla-aki.
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Melvin descends the stairs, gun in one hand, Bible in the other. As if either could help him.
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After a ridiculous amount of banter, the corpse says he was put in here by Turner and ... his other compatriots.
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Cass sneaks off and opens the other sarcophagus.
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Inside, is another Civil War corpse who scrambles out of the casket and stands.
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Quincy freezes. He's gone bye-bye. He doesn't know anyone here or remember how he got here. The last thing he remembers is breakfact in town.
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Melvin shoots at the second corpse. The shot hits, but there is no reaction.
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Mike Hammer grapples with the first corpse, pinning him to the ground sloppily.
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Ezra moves to help Mike. But he fails because he is a weak old man.
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The corpse tries to escape, but he cannot.
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The second corpse attacks Cass. He fails, and Cass attempts to stab him with the spike from the other casket. He fails. The group is doing great today.
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Quincy makes a run for it. He's beet gut stabbed with a rusty bowie knife. He's insane. He's had enough.
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Melvin retreats up the stairs, not yet sure if he is going to lose it.
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Ezra tries again to help. But no good again.
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During the fight, the corpses continue to entice the group to become immortal.
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Cass tries again to stab with the spike. He misses again.
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Quincy has run outside, running madly.
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Melvin likewise has headed out.
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Mike, Ezra, and Cass continue to grapple with the undead.
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Melvin kicks the trap door closed and leaves the cabin in pursuit of Quincy.
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The caskets stop glowing when they are open. Since they are all open, there is no glowing. It now very very dark in the basement.
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Civil War Zombie Corpse #1 frees himself from Mike's grasp.
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Civil War Zombie Corpse #2 gains control of Cass, who attempts to break free.
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Mike hollers for Ezra to open the door. Then he grabs his gun.
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Ezra turns on his flashlight and heads for the door. He staggers up the stairs and opens the door. Light floods the basement.
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Mike sees that Civil War Zombie Corpse #1 has crouched and is ready to pounce.
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Upon seeing Ezra emerge with the glory of a newfound god, Melvin turns, shocked, as if he expected everyone in the basement to be dead.
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Mike follows Ezra up the stairs.
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Civil War Zombie Corpse #2 attempts to disarm Cass, but fails.
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He tries to stab. And then Civil War Zombie Corpse #2 rips the spike from his graps and it flies across the room.
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Civil War Zombie Corpse #1 joins Civil War Zombie Corpse #2 they proceed to toss Cass into a coffin.
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His sense of guilt overwhelming his sense of...sense, Mike Hammer charges down the basement to save Cass.
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Meanwhile, Civil War Zombie Corpse #1 and Civil War Zombie Corpse #2 close the lid over Cass's struggling body. The casket begins to grow.
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Cass suddenly gains superior motor control and pops off the lid of the casket. The blue light fades.
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Civil War Zombie Corpse #1 and Civil War Zombie Corpse #2 push the lid back down.
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Cass struggles and opens the casket again. This is getting funny.
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Mike Hammer takes careful aim.
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The Struggle of Coffin Lid continues. Cass cannot open it up, but the zombies are not making progress shutting it.
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Quincy unexpectedly realize he is more fucked trying to get back to town on his own so he starts walking back to the cabin.
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Mike fires, releasing all the built up expectation of the moment. Civil War Zombie Corpse #1 takes the shot to the head.
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Enticed by the excitement, Ezra "charges" down the stairs and readies his gun. (Charging is relative, since he old.)
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The zombies wrap a strap around the coffin and begin to cinch it tight. Cass is unable to fight against them. The light begins to glow.
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Ezra fires at Civil War Zombie Corpse #1, hitting him in the gut.
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Mike implores Ezra to grab the second.
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Ezra explains in a hoarse old man whisper that he is weak as fuck and instead fires his gun at the zombie. It fails.
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The zombies click the strap in place, securing Cass in his coffin.
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Mike runs to tackle Civil War Zombie Corpse #1.
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Civil War Zombie Corpse #2 smack Ezra's gun out of his hand.
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Mike attempts to cuff the zombie. He gets one of the links on one wrist.
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The struggle continues.
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Ezra calls pleadingly for Melin to come help. But Melvin is a chicken shit so he refuses and it turns into a berating lecture about what it means to be a man.
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Ezra grabs his gun off the floor. Zombie Two Dives to takle, but sprawls on the ground, slamming against the stairs.
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Meanwhile, Mike clicks the second cuff on Zombie One, pushing him down.
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Cass continues to persist in the coffin.
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Quincy arrives back at the cabin.
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Melvin asks Quincy to cover him and takes a shot down the stairs at Zombie One, which flies wide.
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Ezra also takes a shot at Zombie Two. He misses.
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Mike decides to stop fucking around and shouts at Ezra to hold Zombie Two and at Melvin to get downstairs. He moves to tackle Zombie One, dragging him to the ground and immobilizing.
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Zombie Two is struggling with the handcuffs, pulling his wrist through the bracelet and shearing off the skin in the process.
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Melvin arrives, with rope, and begins to tie up Zombie One. He is successful.
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I keep referring to the zombies as "him", as if they are people.
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Ezra pushes the gun to the back the Zombie One's head and pull the trigger but only grazes the monstrosity. To be fair, it has been hours since the man has had any coffee.
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Mike removes the strap holding down the coffin lid, but Cass is unable to free himself.
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Quincy heads down the stairs.
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Melvin puts his gun to Zombie Two's head and pulls the trigger.
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Ezra fires again at Zombie One. It goes limp.
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Mike tries to get the lid of the casket. He fails.
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Quincy takes a shot at Zombie Two. It continues to struggle, pulling the skin from its hands to free itself from its bonds.
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Melvin also takes a shot at Zombie Two. A hole opens all the way through its head, as it continues to struggle.
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Ezra helps Mike open the casket, but who the fuck is he kidding.
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Ezra grabs the spike and uses it as a wedge for Mike to pry open the casket. In one final heroic push, Mike puts everything into his attempt. But all he does is pull a muscle.
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Not wanting to die in the coffin, Cass gives it one more try. The lid opens.
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Meanwhile, Zombie Two is nearly free. In an act of brilliant desperation, Melvin douses the zombie in alcohol and lights him with a flair.
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Rolling on the ground, the zombie catches the support for the stairs on fire and the ceiling is not far behind. It finally stops struggling.
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Ezra grabs the spike and runs up the stairs and ot of the house. Everyone follows.
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For a moment, the forest is quiet.
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After an impassioned dialog, Ezra begins walking down the path toward the reservoir.
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Cass jauntily sets off in the same direction, too.
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Quincy and Mike do the same.
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Melvin also follows, mumbling to himself.
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The group reaches the edge of the reservoir. The water is black and stagnant and smells like AJ's house. The group in uncomfortable.
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There is a series of people standing on the edge of the lake. They appear to be attached (or possible impaled) on some poles.
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Every foolhardy and courageous, Mike sneaks up on the path. He sees the people are tied with their backs to roughly hewn poles.
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Cass readies his firearm.
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Each person appears to have been stabbed by two foot metal spikes. Blood and viscera covers their clothes, which indicate they are the remaining artists from the camp.
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The spikes are identical to the spike from the casket in the cabin. Uh-oh.
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Quincy screams.
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All the people turn at once. Their eyes look terrified and pleading. "Help us," they beg.
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Cass pulls a spike out of the first person he comes to, but does not untie him. The man lets out a blood curdling scream. And then falls over limp. He's fucking dead.
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"They took us from our camp in the night..walking corpses. They have a camp where the others are being kept. A man and a boy and a girl. One of us got away. He might still be out there. The corpses are trying to raise something from a pit. There is something in the water. There is something in us. Please kill us.
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Melvin begins to read last rights and the other pull the spines from the people.
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They ask the last man where the camp is. He says to untie him soe he can draw a map.
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The group prepares for what is most certainly a terrible decision and unties one arm. The man draws a map, showing the camp, the pit, and where the giant spiked beast impaled them.
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Power Force Ultra begins creeping through the forest toward the cabins. They attempt to be quiet, but some are more successful than others.
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Through the woods, Mike sees two men approaching on the path. He motions for everyone to hide. The group falls to the ground.
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The men inspect the corpses of the dead men. And then start looking around in the woods.
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They say something to each other and then start walking back up the path.
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It should be noted that the men are dressed like surveyors or engineers. Mike recognizes that one of the men was the driver of the truck. The one who had been stabbed with the knife and did not react.
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Fresh motherfucking ghouls.
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The group continues to creep toward the cabin. They come upon the 1920's Rube Goldberg style pulley system that is extracting something from a deep pit, like something designed to remove Matt's sense of regret from all the memories of his youth.
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They observe. They see two or three guys walk between different sheds and buldings carrying tools and ropes to the pit. Within the pit itself, there is the sound of work, like pickaxes or sledgehammers.
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They wait....
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After considerable discussion, the Unicorn Task Force 1 decides they should create some sort of distraction to allow them to search the cabins.
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Taking a page out of Ryan's senior prom playbook, they decide to soak all the Mike's gauze with whiskey to wrap around the rope and a post at the end of the scaffolding by the lake, which can be set on fire as a diversion. This will allow them to search the buildings.
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Team A (Cass, Mike) will set the fire.
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Team B (Quincy, Melvin, and Ezra) will look in the cabins.
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The fire starts successfully, burning off the alcohol and then starting the gauze.
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Mike yells, "Fire!"
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The three ghouls drop their buckets and run to cabin 5.
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Quincy, Melvin, and Ezra each go to a window of a different cabin.
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Ezra sees: a mess hall - a rudimentary mess hall with tables. It is devoid of people and appears to hae not been used for awhile.
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Quincy sees: sleeping quarters - two rows of bunk beds with personal effects, also devoid of people.
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Melvin sees: an office - geological survey maps, basic lab equipment. No people.
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Everyone regroups. And then heads to cabin 4.
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Melvin peeks around cabin 4 before everyone charges in. The fire has gone out. The survey ghouls are looking around.
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"There! Right there! Get him!" one shouts, pointing at Melvin.
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"Jane! Jane! Where are you?" yells Quincy. There is a muffled response from cabin 4. "Let's go" shouts Quincy as he runs into the cabin.
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Inside he finds 3 bound figures: A teenage girl, a younger boy rocking back and forth, and a middle aged man in hunting gear.
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Jane's mouth is covered by the rotting hand of a civil war soldier (Turner). He is joined by another soldier (Vincent) also standing guard.
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Quincy has lost all of his shit he can, so he is unfazed by the tableau before him.
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The two survey ghouls from the end of the scaffolding begin running toward the cabins, and another ascends from the pit, and yet another from cabin 5. Things are not looking good.
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Vincent (one of the civil war dudes) lumbers over and takes a swing at Quincy with a stick. He misses.
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Cass runs onto cabin 4.
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Surveying the scene, he squeezes off a few rounds at Turner.
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Turner hits the ground, more dead than it had been before.
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Ezra books it behind the cabins, heading for the truck.
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Mike goes for the ghoul outside of cabin 5, taking three shots.
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The ghoul's head disappears in a mist of gore.
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It was clear to everyone at this point that shit was now and forever very real.
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Quincy decides to sweet talk the Civil War ghoul left in cabin 4, to convince him that he really should give up the girl or he will be killed.
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The ghoul is not moved.
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Stepping up, Cass takes three shots at point blank range. One hits, the other two go wild.
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The ghoul dives away from the girl.
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Quincy continues the sweet talk to the same result. It is getting embarrassing.
-
Mike bolts into the cabin.
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Melvin arrives at the truck and jumps in, closing the door behind him.
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Ezra continues to "run" toward the truck with his old man legs, gasping for sweet breath.
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The survey ghoul from the pit arrives at the truck.
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The other survey ghouls arrive at cabin 4.
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Meanwhile, Civil War ghoul stands and points at Quincy and beging speaking in a strangle tongue.
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Quincy feels a cramp in one leg, but he shakes it off.
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Quincy again tries to talk some sense into the ghoul. He snarls.
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Cass takes another shot at the Civil War ghoul, who fails to dodge.
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His gun empty, Cass drops it and pulls his spare.
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Melvin can't find the keys. He locks the door and rolls up the windows to the truck.
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Mike takes a shot at the Civil War ghoul. He collapses in the pile of gruel. How poetic.
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Ezra takes a shot at the survey monkey by the truck, misses, and then hobbles to the front of the truck.
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The two survey ghouls (Carl and James) bring up their tools to smash Cass.
-
Carl misses with his sledge hammer.
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James swings his pipe wrench. He also misses. Fuck these guys.
-
The survey monkey at the truck swings his pick axe at Melvin. He smashes the window but barely misses.
-
Quincy takes a shot at James. Three shots, actually. One hits.
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Cass takes a shot at Carl. Fuck Carl. Carl begins oozing all over his coveralls.
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Melvin starts shooting at the survey ghoul. He misses. He dives out of the truck.
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Mike takes a few shots at James. Fuck James. James drops.
-
Ezra takes a shot at the survey ghoul. He actually hits.
-
Carl swings at Cass with his sledge hammer. Cass dodges.
-
Survey ghoul (Dean) swings at Ezra with the pick axe. The point spears the old man's wizened flesh. He may be dead.
-
But wait. Ezra is not dead (yet). He's dropped to the ground with the pick axe buried in his chest, just above his right nipple. Blood darkened by age and coffee and regret begins to blossom on his shirt.
-
"Damn you, dark lord. I am not ready to give up this fight," he mutters as he fights to stay conscious. And then: "I will avenge you, Lucy."
-
Ghoul (Dean) slowly pulls the pick axe, slick with Ezra's ancient blood, from Ezra's chest. He glares at Melvin.
-
Quincy takes a shot at Carl. Three shots. Point blank. He hits once.
-
Cass likewise takes three shots at Carl. He hits once. It blows off half his head and Carl collapses in a heap.
-
Melvin yells for help. Then he runs around the truck to get a clear shot at Dean, squeezing off one shot at Dean. But he misses.
-
Ezra continues to battle for life.
-
It clearly being Hammer Time, Mike runs toward Ezra and Melvin. And Dean. He pauses only to fire once at Dean. Dean's face explodes in a shower of gore.
-
Not yet clocked out, Dean goes after Melvin, swinging his pick axe. Melvin dodges. Just.
-
Quincy hangs back to comfort the terrified hostages in the cabin.
-
Melvin takes another shot at Dean. This is what is typically known as a "final stand".
-
He hits one shot. Dean collapses, spent.
-
Cass sees Ezra on the ground with a hastily spreading pool of coffee blood. Fuck that. He goes to cabin 5 and kicks the door open. Inside is a tool shed containing tools and several crates of motherfucking dynamite.
-
Mike runs to Ezra and attempts first aid. He kicks sand into wound,
-
Despite all logic, Ezra hangs on.
-
Quincy continues comforting the prisoners.
-
Melvin also attempts first aid. He is much better at it. Ezra is out of immediate danger.
-
The gun battle is over, but the emotional battle is only starting for some. Upon seeing the carnage, Jane looses her shit. Melvin begins talking her down with a bunch of Jesus stuff, but it's too late for her. She's bananas.
-
The little boy remains catatonic.
-
The father is a broken man, as if he has worked in an office for thirty years and spends way too much time thinking about truck stop bathrooms.
-
The group becomes aware of a low humming sound coming from the pit. A subliminal sound almost, like something is in them. It feels unclean.
-
The team finds the keys to the truck hanging on the wall of cabin 1. Everyone starts piling into the truck. Except Mike Hammer, who moves toward the pit with a crate of dynamite. And Cass follows along.
-
Inside the pit is a glowing blue crystal about the size of a table. The pulleys and ropes are set to pull the crystal from the pit.
-
Mike fills the pit with dynamite. He then jumps onto the back of the truck to dramatically throw in a lit stick of dynamite into thepit as they charge away.
-
Cinematically, this would have been great, but Mike drops the stick of dynamite the first time. And the second time.
-
Then everyone tries. Quincy succeeds.
-
Boom.
-
The ground shakes. Trees tremor. Cabins shake. Blue lightning crackles in the sky.
-
Alpha Force drives back to town. Ezra is carted off to the local doctor's office, along with the other battered members of the party and hostages.
-
They are celebrated as heroes.
The End.