“How many people are here?” Ashley asked.
“I’m not sure,” Marcus said. “We never really did count how many people were part of the movement. Hundreds, thousands, no one knows.”
“How far away are we?” Billy asked as he stood up out of the car.
“Not far,” Marcus answered, putting his phone in his pocket. “We have another two hours before the show. We need to be careful, though. A lot of people there will know any one of us. We’ll have to avoid being seen, if possible.”
Ashley walked next to Marcus, her hair pulled back in a ponytail and a light blue scarf covering her head. She put on sunglasses and then started walking away from the road. Billy jogged to catch up.
“You okay, Billyboy?” Ashley called back.
“Yeah,” Billy answered. “That migraine medicine is kicking in.”
The three walked into the tree line. Marcus wanted to go slower and ensure they weren’t seen, but Ashley just strode onward. As they passed through groupings of trees, music could be heard wafting through the woods. Some of it came from portable stereos, some from guitars and bongos. As the voices grew louder, the three would weave away. Ashley began to walk more cautiously, but her face was fixed in a stern, nervous resolve.
Billy struggled to keep up and winced when sunlight broke through the clouds. Marcus decided that Billy must have a pretty bad concussion, but wasn’t sure what to do about it.
“Where is the concert at?” Billy asked.
“About a mile away,” Marcus said. “This place will empty out then.”
“Should we just wait until then?” Billy asked.
“They’ll take Sean with them,” Ashley said.
A group of voices, laughing and screaming, emerged. Ashley motioned for them to slow down and crept over a hill to see a small pond below. There were dozens of people swimming naked in the water.
“So, they do wash after all,” Billy smirked.
“Stop here,” Marcus said, grabbing Ashley’s hand.
She jerked away, but didn’t walk any farther. Marcus motioned up to a hill on the other side of the pond.
“Once we work around to that hill, we’ll be on the outskirts of the campground,” Marcus said. “I haven’t been here in a while, so I’m not sure how many people are in the campground anymore. We need to be careful. There is a clearing at the side of the campground. There will probably be no one there. We can go through there and head straight into the heart of the campground.”
“Why isn’t anybody set up in the clearing?” Billy asked.
“It’s where the rift is,” Marcus said.
“And we’re going to walk through it?”
“No, it doesn’t open for very long, and only at night,” Marcus said. “Apparently, they are giving it human sacrifices to close it back up every morning. From what I’ve heard, it’s obvious enough that you won’t accidentally step in. Lots of lights and wind.”
“And scary monsters?” Billy asked, shaking his head. “Jesus, Marcus.”
“That’s just what I heard,” Marcus shrugged. “I didn’t say I buy into any of this crap, but they do. If you’ve ever seen anyone with their left hand cut off, that’s why. They sacrificed their non-dominant hand to close the rift.”
“That’s fucking sick,” Billy said.
“Which way is it?” Ashley asked.
Marcus pointed to the south and Ashley started walking again. The music and the voices dimmed and the forest grew denser. Marcus did his best to keep from walking through spiderwebs and stepping on fecal matter left by either animals or humans.
Ashley’s pace quickened and Billy trailed farther and farther behind, but they didn’t slow for him.
After an hour passed without a break, Ashley finally stopped walking. Marcus caught up. There was a large clearing cut out of the forest. It was bigger than Marcus remembered. In the center was a flat circle of dirt.
“That’s it?” Ashley asked.
“Yeah,” Marcus said, looking over the field.
“Let’s go,” Ashley said.
“Wait, someone’s out there.”
Marcus pointed at a man kneeling on the ground, his head drooped down. He was over a hundred feet away, but they could see he was a big man. Marcus guessed he might be a guard who was stoned or drunk.
“What’s he doing?” Billy asked, between heavy breaths. He was sweating profusely, his face was pale and he seemed unsteady on his feet.
“I don’t know,” Marcus said. “Let me go talk to him. Stay here.”
Marcus stepped out into the clearing and jogged toward the man.
“Hey!” he called, waving his hand at the man.
The person didn’t raise his head. As Marcus got closer, he saw chains behind the man. They were staked to the ground. Marcus stopped and looked around for anyone else that might be watching. The trees around the clearing were a curtain of vegetation, and if someone was out there, there wasn’t anything Marcus could do about it now. Marcus decided to run.
As he got closer, he saw that the man was dressed in a suit, which was unheard of at the campground He had a thick beard, and was even bigger than he’d initially thought. He then recognized the man.
“Robbie!” Marcus yelled.
Robbie’s head lifted and Marcus began sprinting toward him. He slowed as he neared, then slipped and fell in mud. He grunted in pain, but pushed himself up and knelt down next to Robbie.
“Get out of here, Marcus,” Robbie whispered. “They are looking for you guys.”
Robbie’s arms were shackled to his ankles and his face was bruised and bleeding. Flies were buzzing around in thick swarms.
“Who did this to you?” Marcus asked.
“The other Lions,” Robbie said weakly.
“Where’s Sean?”
“Brian has him now,” Robbie said. “I tried to get him out of the campground, but they stopped me.”
“Is Jim here?”
“No.”
Marcus turned when he heard Ashley and Billy running through the clearing. Marcus stood up and looked around the tree line. He still couldn’t see anybody.
“It’s Robbie,” Marcus called as the two approached. “Watch out for the mud.”
“That’s not mud,” Robbie whispered. “It’s blood.”
Marcus looked down at the mud on him, and saw that it was tinted red. He then looked at his shirt. His whole right side was covered in blood.
He’d just bought the shirt.
“Whose blood is this?” Marcus asked. “Robbie? Whose blood?”
“I’m not sure,” Robbie said. “It was like that when they put me here. It’s not from a sacrifice. There’s never blood after a sacrifice.”
“Sean?”
“No,” Marcus said. “Sean is still fine. He’s in the campground.”
Ashley and Billy walked up to them.
“Where’s Sean, Robbie?” Ashley asked.
Robbie just shook his head.
“Brian has him,” Marcus said.
Ashley started walking toward the camp; Billy and Marcus followed.
“They’ll see you,” Robbie called. “They are looking for all three of you. They know you are coming for him—you can’t get to him.”
Ashley kept walking.
“What do we do about Robb?” Billy asked.
“Leave him,” Ashley snapped.
“I’ll stay with him,” Marcus said.
“Leave,” Robbie said. “It doesn’t help me if they find me with you. They aren’t going to kill me. Go get the boy!”
******
The compound had become a festival with booths set up selling water, cheap arts and crafts, jewelry and all manner of drugs. The campground had grown since Marcus had last seen it. It looked like its own medieval fair. There were even bootlegged Plaid CDs.
Ashley led them into the edge of the campground and they huddled together closely so no one could see their faces.
“What are we going to do?” Marcus asked, looking
out at the congested crowds wandering through the campgrounds.
“What’s the use of selling anything if they are all going to disappear anyway?” Billy asked.
“Those are the witnesses,” Marcus answered. “They are staying behind to tell the world what happened.”
“Fucking vultures,” Ashley said.
Marcus shrugged. He glanced back at the crowd again.
“We can’t make it through there,” Marcus said. “Someone will recognize us.”
“Someone already has,” a voice behind them announced.
A large, thick man with long gray hair and a gray beard looked at them.
“Hello, Brian,” Marcus said, trying to remain calm.
“You brought them right to us,” Brian said with a smile, walking toward Ashley. “I thought that the great Marcus the Lion had given up on his flock, but here you are, Marcus, delivering the enemy unto the faithful.”
Ashley glared at Marcus.
“He’s lying,” Marcus said.
“It is good to see you again, princess,” Brian broke in. “You’ve come for the Prophet’s son haven’t you?”
“Give him to me!” Ashley growled.
“No,” Brian smirked. “Take them to the anomaly.”
A broad-shouldered man with a goatee and a kilt known as “Vader” stepped out from the group. He winked at Ashley, then grabbed her arm.
Ashley jerked backwards and tried to run, but Vader and the rest of his kilted guard rushed forward and overwhelmed her. People swarmed from all around, pushing and holding Marcus to the ground. All Marcus could see were arms and hands as someone shoved his head into the grass.
“‘In the dirt, you will find me,’” Brian sang, in a crackling tenor. Marcus recognized the line from a Plaid song. He always hated when Brian did that. He knelt down beside Ashley and ran his hand along her back and into her hair. “‘In the dirt, you will find my love.’”
Brian stood and walked away. Ashley was jerked onto her feet by Vader and pushed back toward the clearing. Marcus and Billy were pulled behind her. Ashley glanced behind her toward Billy as he struggled to get free from the two men holding his arms.
Marcus was being dragged so fast that his feet couldn’t keep up. He struggled to walk, but then he was lifted up into the air.
“It’s been a long time, sir,” Vader called back to Marcus.
“Yeah, that’s a nice shirt you got there,” Marcus snarled, referring to Vader’s “What a Wookie!” T-shirt.
“Fuck you, Marcus.”
Marcus thought that of all the ways to die, being killed by a medieval fair dork named after a Star Wars character was just about the most undignified.
Marcus squirmed, trying to kick one of the men holding him, but they just dodged and laughed.
“Let me go, please,” Ashley pleaded to Vader, but he puckered his lips and pushed her forward.
The campground disappeared behind the trees, the path curved around and the clearing came into view. Robbie was still kneeling on the ground, and he looked up as the group approached. Ashley jerked and fought, but couldn’t wrestle free. They came closer to Robbie, and Marcus looked at Robbie’s chains. They were lying limp behind Robbie.
Vader pushed Ashley to the other men.
“Tie them up,” Vader growled and then walked back toward the campground.
One of the men licked Ashley on the cheek. Billy bucked and jerked, trying to get to her, but other men grabbed him and threw him to the ground.
Robbie’s head lifted and he watched Vader disappear. Once he was gone, Robbie looked at the guards.
“Let her go!” Robbie growled, jumping to his feet and running at the guards.
Other men shouted from behind them, Ashley was pushed to the ground and a man fell on top of her. The man holding Marcus’s left arm spasmed violently and blood poured out of his mouth. Marcus dropped to the ground.
There were sharp hacking sounds and then a hollow “thunk.”
“Marcus!” a voice called. Marcus turned to see Charles Martin swinging a pair of large bolt cutters. “Fight goddammit!”
Ashley was on the ground, a guard pressed down on her. She managed to free a hand and scratched at his eyes. Marcus jumped onto the man’s back and slid his arm around the man’s throat. He’d seen it on Ultimate Fighting, but it didn’t feel like it was working. Ashley pulled another hand free and jammed her fingernails into the guard’s eyes. The man screamed and bucked Marcus off. Billy jerked the man off Ashley.
Marcus grabbed Ashley and pulled her to her feet away from the man. They heard a “crack” behind them. They turned and saw the guard squirming violently with a machete buried into his rib cage.
“You need to hurry,” Robbie said, standing above the dying man.
Marcus looked around and recognized a pawn shop owner named Oscar. Oscar was an “undisclosed” pawn shop owner who traded merchandise with Marcus on many occasions. Next to him was his son who had gone into the army. The only thing he’d ever heard him called was “Junior.”
“Where is Sean?” Ashley asked.
“In the center of the camp,” Junior answered.
“They are going to take him to the concert,” Robbie said. “If you try to fight through the camp, they’ll kill you, but you can cut them off on the way to the concert.”
2
The skies were streaked with purple and red as the sun dipped below the trees and cast an orange glow across the field where Vader led a small group of his kilted guard. Marcus watched from a nearby hill, trying to keep his breath steady. He trembled a few times, but was calmer now than he’d been since getting to the campground.
Vader was moving Sean to the concert area. Marcus and the others were going to get him back. Marcus didn’t know what he was going to do once they reached Sean. He didn’t have a weapon, and from what happened earlier, it was clear he didn’t know how to fight. He just hoped once he got there, some instinct would take over.
Billy leaned against him, nearly pushing him over. Billy’s eyes had glazed, but he startled and tried to steady himself.
“Are you okay?” Marcus whispered, holding him by the shoulder.
“Good enough to beat up a couple cross-dressers,” Billy smirked, rubbing his temple.
“Get ready,” Junior said, holding his hands up while he watched the group. “Baby Girl should be showing up in a few seconds.”
Ahead of Vader’s group, three people appeared, waving at the guards. It was Baby Girl, a teenage boy and a man. The teenage boy, named Andy, was a follower whom Robbie ordered to help and the third was Jack Daniels, the owner of a music venue.
“Where’d you guys find JD?” Marcus asked.
“I talked to him earlier; he’s running sound for the concert,” Charles said. “He came back to see if he could help.”
Marcus didn’t care for JD’s taste in music, but seeing him walk up to Vader made Marcus respect JD more. Not enough to actually go to The Listening Room for a show, but he would have to remember to put him on his Christmas mailer.
“Are we sure we can trust him?” Ashley asked.
“Baby Girl seems to think so,” Junior shrugged.
“How does Baby Girl know him?” Oscar mumbled.
“Pops, don’t know if you noticed, but Baby Girl’s kind of a slut. Probably slept with the guy.”
“You better shut your mouth about your sister,” Oscar snapped. “I ain’t above beatin’ a cripple.”
“Sorry, Pops,” Junior whispered. “Well, let’s get going, keep it slow and quiet.”
Everyone stood up, but kept crouched low. Marcus pulled Billy up and they all jogged toward the small group. Jack Daniels ran up to Vader and talked while pointing at the stage. Marcus’s jog sped into a sprint as he approached. Junior ran with a limping gallop, and by the time Vader heard them coming, Junior was colliding into him.
Marcus ran toward Ashley to protect her, not knowing what else to do. The others ran right into the group. Jack Daniels and the teenage
r grabbed one of the other guards, pushing him to the ground and kicking him.
Ashley dove between two guards and they collapsed down on Ashley. Marcus reached for one of them, grabbing a ponytail. He yanked the man’s head back and punched him in the temple. Marcus’s fingers crackled when they hit the man’s skull. The guard just looked annoyed as pain screamed through Marcus’s wrist and forearm.
Billy swung and lodged a machete into in the man’s shoulder. The man rolled away and shrieked in pain. Billy yanked out the machete and continued swinging it at other followers. Marcus reached for another body in the pile, pulling him by the foot and dragging him backwards. Ashley emerged with Sean in her arms. The boy was blindfolded and gagged.
Vader ran toward Sean, but Charles hit him in the chest with the bolt cutters. Vader collapsed to the ground and crawled away.
Four other followers dove for Ashley. One caught her leg. She tried to jerk away as Marcus kicked at them. The men let go and grabbed Marcus instead. Marcus fell backwards, but was pulled away by the Oscar and Billy. Junior limped toward the pile. He stood on one foot as he threw jabs and hooks at anyone near him. The guards tried to dodge and pursue Ashley, but Marcus ran to cut them off. Billy sprinted toward the guards waving the machete in the air.
“Protect Ashley!” Billy yelled as he swung. He sliced into one of their arms, but another guard grabbed Billy’s arm and wrestled away the machete. The others piled on top of Billy.
Marcus turned and ran after Ashley along with Oscar, Baby Girl and Jack Daniels. Other followers were pursuing Ashley from the right side. Marcus sprinted ahead to catch up with Ashley as she ran into the tree line. The teenager, Junior and Charles followed close behind.
They ran until they couldn’t see or hear anyone.
“Stop, stop!” Ashley said. She pulled Sean’s blindfold off and untied the gag. The boy wrapped himself around his mother.
“How do we get out of here?” Ashley asked, as she held Sean.
Marcus glanced at the others, but no one said anything.
“You don’t know where we are?” Ashley asked.
“Hold on, goddammit,” Oscar grunted, breathing heavy as sweat poured from his face. “You still have that compass?”