I felt extremely self conscious as I slipped off my shirt. Next to Greg, the high school quarterback, I looked practically skeletal. When I heard Mindy, Sandra, and Nichole giggling, I assumed they were laughing at me.
Greg picked up on my unease. He turned to me and smiled, saying, “Don’t worry about it. You’re fine. None of us have to worry about anything ever again.”
With that, Greg took off toward the shoreline, joining the girls as they plunged into the waves.
Greg was one of the cool kids. The only reason he slummed it with a scrawny dork like me was to make himself look even more masculine in contrast. Or that’s what I used to think. But none of that high school pecking-order crap mattered anymore, did it?
The green light had done something, altered us somehow. I felt like a weight had been lifted from my chest. Greg was right, I didn’t have to feel ashamed or inferior. Things were different. There were no winners and losers, no cool kids or dorks. There was only the moment.
“Go on,” I heard a voice say. It resonated deeply in my mind, both comforting and strangely inhuman.
I turned to my right. Standing next to me was a towering figure, shrouded in an aura of pulsing green light. It was vaguely humanoid, with four arms and a pair of shimmering wings. Segmented, exoskeletal plates covered its body. Its head was v-shaped, flanked on either side by a pair of oval eyes.
“Go have fun with your friends,” It said to me.
That sounded like the most amazing idea I had ever heard. I turned and rushed to catch up with the others, knowing two things for certain. We were going to have the best time of their lives, and then we were all going to die.
Together we frolicked in the waves, laughing, splashing around, having fun. Later, by the fire, we did other things. It was the first time in my life I felt complete, truly satisfied. We were free, without a care in the world.
At some point Mindy grabbed a big rock and drove it into the side of Sandra’s skull. A stream of blood spattered across my chin. The act wasn’t malicious. They were best friends after all. Sandra was even smiling as Mindy brought the rock down on her head, over and over.
The green light appeared and took Sandra’s corpse away. It shone brightly in the darkness. Even at a distance, I could see the outline of the creature in the light ripping off Sandra’s arms and legs, devouring them one at a time. It saved her head for last.
Mindy sat back down by the fire. Her face was painted red with blood. It drizzled off her chin and ran down her chest.
“That was fun,” she said, reaching into the cooler and pulling out a can of beer. She popped open the top, raised it in the air, and said, “To Sandy!”
Greg and Nichole joined her in the toast. So did I, though with slightly less enthusiasm than the others. Something didn’t seem right, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.
“Do you want to slit my throat?” I heard Nichole whisper in my ear. In her hand was a hunting knife. It was huge. Its blade glistened brightly in the fire.
“Where did you get that?” I asked her.
“Jesus gave it to her,” Mindy said while laughing maniacally.
Nichole leaned in close, running her fingers along my shoulder. “Do you?” She asked again. She sounded excited.
I guess I could do that, if that’s what she wanted. It seemed like a good idea, but I wasn’t entirely sure either. A half an hour ago I wouldn’t have hesitated. But now?
The night air suddenly felt very cold on my skin.
There was a loud splash behind me. I turned to see the shoreline on fire with green light. The creature was thrashing around in the water.
“Probably washing Sandra’s blood off,” Greg said, answering the question before anyone thought to ask.
“I’m leaving mine on,” Mindy proclaimed. “It’s my war paint!”
“You going to war Mindy?” Greg asked her, sarcastically.
“I dunno Greg, what do you think?” She answered. A big smile stretched across her bloody face.
Greg smiled back and stood up. He walked over to Mindy, reached down, and pulled her to her feet. Then they started dancing, the orange glow of the fire accentuating their bodies.
“How nice,” a voice said. It was resonant, high pitched and guttural at the same time. I turned to see the creature standing over me. Droplets of water ran down its shell.
Earlier, its presence soothed me, relaxed me in ways I had never thought possible. That sense of calm had passed. Just being next the thing made my skin crawl.
It was a monster, I realized. An actual monster. What I could only describe as a feeling of primal revulsion welled up inside of me. A visible shiver ran through my body.
The creature slowly craned its head in my direction. Its almond-shaped eyes squinted slightly, as though it was scrutinizing me.
“Is everything alright?” It rasped. There was menace in its tone.
Waves of green light poured out of the creature’s exoskeleton, washing over my body. With it came an incredible sense of relaxation. The tension instantly went out of my muscles. Everything suddenly made sense again.
“Yeah, I’m good,” I assured the creature.
“Ah, excellent,” the creature responded, smiling back at me in its own, inhuman way.
Again I felt a tinge of unease. I watched as the creature’s mandibles peeled away to reveal a nest of viciously curved fangs. The sight of that hideous mouth cut through the euphoria I was experiencing.
The sound of muffled gurgling drew my attention to the other side of the fire. Greg had both of his powerful hands wrapped around Mindy’s throat. He kept squeezing tighter and tighter, until finally there was a dull, “Snap!”
“Well done Greg!” The creature exclaimed. “You must be very strong.”
Greg turned to the Creature, still holding Mindy by the neck, and said, “Not as strong as you, though.”
“True,” the creature agreed. “But we are of two very different kinds.”
The creature fell forward in a fluid motion, going onto all six legs. Its wings shimmered as it passed by the fire. In an instant it made its way over to Greg and Mindy.
“May I?” The creature politely asked Greg, motioning to Mindy’s body.
“Oh sure,” Greg said, relaxing his grip.
Before Mindy could hit the ground, the creature scooped her up in its front pair of claws. Then it spun around, unfurled its wings to their full extent, and rocketed upward. Low buzzing filled the air as it flew off. From a distance, it looked like a green firefly, burning brightly against the night sky.
Greg walked over to Nichole and I, sitting down beside us.
“Terry’s so cool,” he said.
“Yeah,” Nichole agreed, still holding the knife in her hands.
“Terry?” I thought. Was Terry the creature’s name? That seemed unlikely to me. Slowly the haze began to lift from my mind. Nothing could be trusted, I realized.
For whatever reason, that last dose of green light failed to do its job. It hadn’t sedated me like it did earlier. As to why it seemed to be less effective on me than the others, I had no clue.
“Greg,” Nichole said, holding the hunting knife out in front of her, “You do it.”
“I just went,” Greg told her. “Let’s give someone else a turn.”
“I’ve been waiting.” Nichole answered, glaring at me impatiently.
“Don’t worry about it,” Greg assured Nichole. “I’ll make sure everybody gets taken care of.”
“Okay. But who does you then?” Nichol asked him.
Greg waved his hand through the air, dismissively, saying, “Terry will take care of me. I think I’m being saved for last.”
Greg emphasized his point by slapping his hand against his chest.
Nichole laughed. “You are very meaty,” she said.
Greg laughed too, and so did I, though the humor was lost on me. I thought it best to try and fit in.
That was a skill I had developed long ago. Smile and nod, tell everyone what they want to hear, and hope I blended in enough to avoid getting picked on. In high school, that strategy meant the difference between having a typical day or an awful one. Here, it could very well mean the difference between life and death.
Once again, splashing in the water drew my attention. A green glow was bobbing up and down in the waves. The creature must have finished with Mindy already.
I felt a heavy arm fall over my shoulders. It was Greg.
“Let’s chill for a little bit longer,” he said. “Then I suppose we should probably wrap things up.”
What an nonchalant way to announce we were gonna die in about ten minutes. The friendly tone of Greg’s voice only heightened the terror.
“But what about this?” Nichole huffed, casually tilting the knife back and forth.
Greg shook his head and leaned over me. In a single motion he snatched the knife out of Nichole’s hand, raised it in the air, and brought it down through the top of her head.
She locked eyes with me, her mouth slightly agape. Blood trickled down from her hairline. Then she fell forward with a thud.
“There,” Greg said. “I hope you’re happy now.”
I was paralyzed with shock. When Sandra died, I barely noticed. Greg breaking Mindy’s neck registered a little bit more. But watching Nichole get murdered right in front of me hit like a truck.
Throughout this entire ordeal, I knew that I was going to die. At the time though, I didn’t understand what that meant. Without the green light clouding my judgment, the full weight of my predicament came bearing down on me.
What was I going to do? Run? The creature could fly. It could tear a human being apart like a paper doll. And that’s assuming Greg wouldn’t chase me down. He was in football for crying out loud. I didn’t stand a chance against either of them.
I was screwed. Dead. The only question left was how it would happen. How would Greg decide to kill me?
“Let’s go lay down by the water,” Greg said. “We can let the tide wash over us, fill up our lungs.”
I felt Greg’s immense bicep squeeze against my neck. “Yeah,” he continued. “Just you and me, washed out to sea.”
However hopeless my situation was, Greg’s delusional rambling convinced me I had to make a break for it. I shot up in a flash, nearly getting to my feet before something tight wrapped around my ankle. It was Greg. His grip was like iron. He yanked backward, sending me tumbling face first into the sand.
So much for running.
A hand grabbed me by the shoulder and flipped me over. I looked up just in time to see Greg’s fist come crashing down. The force of the blow mashed the back of my head into the ground.
One punch, that’s all it took. I was already seeing double. I felt something warm ooze out of my nose and run into my mouth.
The world came back into focus long enough to see Greg standing over me. He was looking at his own fist. Then he turned to me. His expression was a mixture of anger, confusion, and disgust.
“What?” He muttered.
I heard a heavy thump, followed by grains of sand streaming over my body. I twisted my head to see the creature standing nearby. Its wings were folding up neatly behind its carapace.
“Jesus Christ,” I heard Greg shout.
Greg was staring directly at the creature, with a look of terror plastered to his face. The effect of the green light must have worn off. For the first time that night, Greg could see the creature for what it actually was.
Even though I was still dazed, I had enough presence of mind to turn over and get up. My head swam and my legs buckled, but I still managed to scramble to my feet.
The creature let out a series of hisses and clicks. Just a few minutes ago, those noises would have sounded like a voice. Instead of insectoid rasping I would hear words, words capable of lulling me into a state of total contentment. The spell was broken though. The creature’s true nature had been revealed.
I started running as fast as my injured body could carry me. From behind I heard the sound of several feet jabbing into the ground in quick succession. The creature was on the move.
Adrenaline pounded in my ears while thoughts raced through my mind. It was ridiculous for me to think I could get away. I knew that. It might have been better to let Greg kill me. At least then I wouldn’t be alive as the creature slowly pulled me apart, piece by piece.
A high pitched shriek cut through the air. I turned in the direction of the sound on instinct, expecting to see the creature bear down on me, claws and mandibles poised for the kill. Instead I saw it reeling backwards.
Greg was standing in front of the creature, thrusting a burning log into its face. A cloud of sparks flashed brightly, scorching one of the creature’s eyes. It let out another squeal.
In the split second between me running and the creature giving chase, Greg must have reached into the fire, armed himself, and sprung into action. Whether it was instinct or genuine courage, Greg’s decision to stand and fight likely saved my life, at least for a few more moments.
Greg’s life, however, was over. The creature quickly regained its balance and swiped a talon across Greg’s chest, splitting open his sternum. A second claw removed Greg’s head.
At least it was quick. Sandra and Mindy weren’t so fortunate, and I suspected I wouldn’t be either. Still, even in the absence of hope, I ran. I ran as fast I could, faster than I had ever run before.
I sped across the beach, bounding up the stairs that led to the parking lot. My car was still there, next to Greg’s truck and Mindy’s little hatchback. Seeing as I left my keys back at the campsite, driving away wasn’t an option. So instead I just kept on running, and I didn’t stop until the sun was well over the horizon.
The whole time I expected the creature to swoop down and rip me apart. It never did, though. Eventually a police officer managed to restrain me and get me calmed down.
Things were a blur after that. The cops questioned me. I was too hysterical to lie, telling them everything, however crazy it sounded. They went to the beach to investigate, finding blood and some bits of bone. They also found the knife. But that was it.
Clearly something had happened. The police were suspicious, but without any bodies or evidence to help them form a theory, the case was eventually closed. That didn’t stop the community from turning me into a pariah. I was the last person to see others alive, after all.
So, I took the hint and moved away. I didn’t mind really. The more distance I could put between me and that creature the better. Why didn’t it chase me? Where did it come from? What even was it? Questions like those have haunted me ever since.
Moving on hasn’t been easy. The trauma is one thing, but there’s more to it than that. The green light changed me. Its influence gave me a sense of belonging that I had never felt before. It was a trick of course, one that twisted my friends into violent mockeries of themselves. But it was liberating too. Part of me knows I’ll never be that free again, and I long to return to that one, perfect moment.