(IC) HtV STL by Night

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

"Do you want to pack up and drive, like right now?" Jen asked.

"Or just drive and leave the tents?" she asked, "because I'm kind of torn."

[Daishain]

Frank hesitates, looking at the tents. "Lets pack up first, use the activity to focus a bit. If we've been drugged I'd rather find out for sure by taking too long untying knots than by wrapping the truck around a tree."

[Bennosuke]

Trying to pack in the dark by flashlight is slow, frustrating work; and it does not help that Frank only has one good arm. Any time a bush rustles with the sound of a scampering critter, or a bird hoots overhead, the two are momentarily shocked with fear.

But the dark night is never split by the sound of the Wytche's cackling call. Instead, just as the two are nearly finished, the light of a flashlight peers into the campsite like a terrified yellow eye. A shaking desperate voice calls out, "Hello? Please tell me you're there! Please!" The voice sounds like Mitch, frightened out of his mind, coming from behind the yellow beam.

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

Jen has kept her rifle on her at all times, and that slowed them down even more, but no way was she letting her weapon go, not with that thing out there and who knows what else.

When ranger Mitch came walking up, she immediately thought of another trick. She dropped to a knee and brought her rifle up.

“Mitch? Is that you? Stop where you are, shine the light on yourself, right now,” Jen said. Her voice sounded tight and panicky, even to herself.

[Bennosuke]

"Ah, yeah, sure," Mitch's voice squeaks. The yellow eye of the flashlight lifts, turning into a column pointing shakily skyward. The beam illuminates the gaunt face of the park ranger. The boy's eyes are two round white circles, a rictus mask of terror pressed into his face. Mitch's hands were shaking, causing the flashlight to quiver this way and that, lighting his face in an almost strobe effect, and his teeth were chattering, causing the boy to appear to shake and twitch violently in the darkness. Seeing Jen's raised weapon and her combat stance, he shrieks, "[B]Please, don't shoot me! Oh god.[/B" ]

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

Jen pulled the barrel of her rifle away and flipped the safety back on.

“Relax, I’m not gonna shoot you, but there’s something out there, and as soon as we pack up these tents, we’re gone,” she said.

“You’re coming, right? Grab that, throw it in the trunk,” she said as she continued packing as fast as she could.

She could figure out his story later.

[Daishain]

Frank is still trying to awkwardly haul his rifle with one arm into position as Jen handles the issue, he hesitates before putting the rifle back up, but then follows suit, "You saw something too huh? Come on kid, help me get this damn thing on the tailgate."

[Bennosuke]

Jen pulled the barrel of her rifle away and flipped the safety back on.

“Relax, I’m not gonna shoot you, but there’s something out there, and as soon as we pack up these tents, we’re gone,” she said.

“You’re coming, right? Grab that, throw it in the trunk,” she said as she continued packing as fast as she could.

"Oh god," Mitch shrieks as Jen lowers the aim of her rifle, "you saw it too didn't you."

Rather than following Jen's command and coming over to help, the boy just stands there shaking, his hands so out of control that he actually drops his flashlight.

Frank is still trying to awkwardly haul his rifle with one arm into position as Jen handles the issue, he hesitates before putting the rifle back up, but then follows suit, "You saw something too huh? Come on kid, help me get this damn thing on the tailgate."

"It... it got Zach and Lydia. Oh god, it got both of them. I... I ran, I just ran. Ran as fast as I could. Don't know how I got out. Oh god, I left them." Mitch drops to his knees, trembling hands moving to cover his face.

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

The image of the skinned girl swam across Jen’s vision, and she angrily forced herself to keep packing.

“You wanna end up like them? Keep packing,” she thought.

She redoubled her efforts to get everything in the car, and when they were done she looked to Mitch.

“You coming?” she asked.

[Daishain]

"Not the time to break down kid. Survive, and then panic when you can breathe. On your feet Mitch. We've got things to do." Frank doggedly hauls the cooler he'd been hoping for health with up with one arm, keeping moving so he doesn't have to think himself.

[Bennosuke]

Mitch pulls himself up from the ground and begins to help Jen and Frank with busting the campsite. Once all the tents are packed up, sleeping backs rolled and tucked away, and gear loaded into packs, the three get ready to hike everything back to the parking lot. Between the three individuals, the process takes a little under a half hour, but as the three get ready to leave, Mitch stops in his tracks. "Jason," he half yells, half shrieks, "I forgot about Jason! He got away I think. We got separated at some point. I... he may still be out there!" He looks back and forth pleadingly from Frank to Jen, panic written in the lines of his face.

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

Jen shook her head. Go back? Not a chance in hell.

"No way. I shot that thing right in the chest and it just laughed at us," she said, "your friend Lydia is beyond dead, and I'm pretty sure I saw another body on the way out while we were running for our lives. I'm not going back."

[Bennosuke]

Mitch's eyes go wide at Jen's refusal, his body stiffening. The park ranger opens his mouth as if to protest, but closes it mechanically as if learning how to use his jaw. With a whimper Mitch shrugs, and without waiting for the other two begins marching towards the trail back to the parking log. Over his shoulder he weakly hollers, "Then let's go then."

But when the group gets to the parking lot with their packs, Mitch freezes. "M..mmm... my car is gone," he stammers, eyes wide in the flashlight (why are there not street lamps in this parking lot?). "My car is gone," he repeats, this time turning to Frank and Jen, adding, "I don't know where it is!" As he gets over his shock, Mitch asks, "Would you take me to my house?"

[Thundercracker]

Mitch's eyes go wide at Jen's refusal, his body stiffening. The park ranger opens his mouth as if to protest, but closes it mechanically as if learning how to use his jaw. With a whimper Mitch shrugs, and without waiting for the other two begins marching towards the trail back to the parking log. Over his shoulder he weakly hollers, "Then let's go then."

But when the group gets to the parking lot with their packs, Mitch freezes. "M..mmm... my car is gone," he stammers, eyes wide in the flashlight (why are there not street lamps in this parking lot?). "My car is gone," he repeats, this time turning to Frank and Jen, adding, "I don't know where it is!" As he gets over his shock, Mitch asks, "Would you take me to my house?"

“We’ll figure out what happened to your car later, let’s just get out of here first,” Jen said, “your house sounds like a good idea.”

[Daishain]

Frank looks back at the woods briefly before shuddering and looking away, "We'll keep an eye out for him. But we're in no position to go wandering around blindly looking for someone when we have no idea where to even begin. We've all already gotten turned around too many times. Its a good way to end up dead."

"Where is your house, do you live alone?"

[Bennosuke]

Mitch says in reply to Jen, "Sure, yeah, sounds good," even as his head shakes side to side, his eyes glazed in the flashlight beam. He begins to follow Jen mechanically back to Frank's truck.

In response to Frank's question he says, "Uh, no. My mom and I moved into a house in Salem about a year ago. It's not too far from here. I can give you directions."

The trio finish packing up the truck, and pile in; Frank getting behind the wheel. Mitch gets into the back, allowing Jen to take the passenger seat. There is a terrible moment when Frank keys the ignition and the engine turns over and over and over without starting. The headlights flicker on and off in the dark parking lot as the car fails. But with a second attempt the old reliable truck's engine roars to life, and Frank practically peels out of the parking lot of the old national park.

Mitch is mostly silent in the back of the truck, but as they get closer to Salem, he begins giving directions. He leads Frank to stay outside of town, cutting along old dirt roads that cause the truck to jump and vibrate despite it's size and suspension. They pass outside of the main strip of the town, winding behind a trailer park filled with old campers and beat up rectangles on cinderblocks. That's when Mitch pipes up, "Over there... that one. That's my truck!" Sure enough the only light coming from the trailer park at this hour are the head beams of an olive green flatbed, parked outside a relatively well kept looking trailer; this one still on wheels.

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

"What are the odds your buddy found your truck and drove it to your mom's place?" Jen asked as she stared at the pickup.

[Daishain]

Frank frowns, "Yeah, I could see Jason grabbing the truck and driving off, but why would he go here? Lets approach carefully. Too many surprises tonight already."

[Bennosuke]

"My mom's place is down the road still," Mitch says in reply to Jen, adding proudly, "we don't live in a trailer park."

To Frank he says, "“I don't know. Jason doesn't live in the trailer park either. After tonight, I don't think we can be cautious enough." He offers a very uncomfortable stilted chuckle, adding, "There's only one entrance to the trailer park, but a little farther down there's a break in the fence through which we can crawl... if you wanna."

(OOC: Please let me know how the group is approaching)

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

"You're joking, right?" Jen replied, "I say we leave the car where it is and call it in as stolen, which is WAS, and let the cops handle it. If it is your buddy you can always drop charges later and have a good laugh over a beer. If it's not... better safe than sorry."

"Keep driving," she said to Frank, "at least until we're out of sight."

[Daishain]

Frank nods in agreement, and keeps moving, "Sorry kid, but we can look into that thing in the morning."

[Bennosuke]

Mitch's mouth opens as if to protest, but no words come out as he stares agape as the Frank drives the car past the trailer park. Once out of sight, Mitch's mouth flaps closed, and he resumes whispering directions to Frank from the backseat.

Mitch leads them through a series of narrow claustrophobic residential roads; most of the properties no more than a small farmhouse surrounded by browning grass fields and rotting wood fences. Eventually he tells Frank to pull up in front of a leaning two story colonial of warped wood and crumbling brick. In the forested night, it looks like a perfect haunted house. No lights shine from the dirty windows, and no cars are parked in the dirt driveway. "This is me," Mitch says, waiting for Frank to finish pulling up. Before he steps out of the car, Mitch pauses and pulling out his phone says, "Uh, maybe we should exchange numbers or something, given everything that happened."

[Daishain]

"Hold on just a sec." Frank looks around. "You said you live with your parents right? Where are they?"

[Thundercracker]

Jen scanned outside of the car. She was still freaked out by what happened and would probably stay that way until dawn.

[Bennosuke]

Mitch seems stunned by the sudden suspicion. He stops, staring at Frank with a confused and almost stoned expression. "Uh, I live with my mom. I assume she's upstairs sleeping," he says, pointing a finger at one of the dark second floor windows that almost looks like a skull's eye socket. He adds, "It's like, almost three in the morning man."

Jen scans the surrounding area; blackness clawing in from flat wasteland and dying vegetation. She can maybe see another property, maybe a 50 yards away... but it's almost all darkness.

[Thundercracker]

“I think what Frank meant was, where’s her car?” Jen asked, “or it’s just you that has one..?”

[Bennosuke]

"We only have the truck," Mitch says flatly, perhaps too exhausted to be embarrassed, but frustration still peaking through his voice at the end. After a moment he steps out of the car and closes the door, saying in frustration, "It's been a ****ty night, but what the **** is there to be suspicious of?" almost yelling by the end.

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

“You didn’t see what we saw,” Jen said flatly.

“We need to get to a hospital, Frank’s messed up,” she said, “give me your number, I’ll give you a text.”

[Bennosuke]

Mitch opens his mouth to respond to Jen, and he clearly is forced to stifle a scream. Biting down on his anger, the young man growls, "And you sure as **** didn't see what I saw." But when Jen mentions Frank's injury, a light of empathy turns on in the ranger's eyes. "I, I didn't realize," he stammers with sincere apology. He puts his head into the window to address Frank and asks, "What happened. Did... did she get you???"

He does happily exchange numbers.

[Thundercracker]

Jen Gibbs

"No, no the ground dropped out beneath us and dumped us into a ravine," Jen said, "that's where he hurt his arm."

She paused and looked at Mitch, but not really seeing him, her eyes unfocused.

"You saw it too?" she asked, "it was wearing her skin. Did you know that? It was wearing her skin."
She patted the barrel of the rifle that rested between her legs, pointed at the roof of the truck.

"I hurt it though, it was bleeding," she said, "And then we ran like hell."