Devil's Elbow

Act I: Chapter 4

As Kodi woke, it felt as though his head was ringing. “Where the fuck..?"

As he looked around to get a sense of where he was, he saw nothing but pitch black and looked up above his head. It was a good six-foot drop from the top.

“Great.” He sighed and pulled out his phone and tried calling one of the guys. He first tried Shani… but got no signal. “The hell? I had a great signal earlier," he groaned, trying one more time to call, and sighed annoyed as he was met with yet another dead line. "Dammit!”

He heard a rustling from above and went quiet. “Guys?” He called out and was rewarded with silence. He then decided to turn his phone's light on and what he saw made him go speechless with fear.

There had been bones everywhere and not just animal ones, humans included. “Oh s**t!” He shouted and crawled back in the cave.

“Kodi? You down here bro?” A voice called.

“Shani! I’m down here man!” He shouted to his friend as he looked up. Shani was standing with the rest of the gang, with Cole holding a rope.

“We heard you screaming, you damn pussy.” Cole smirked.

“Not the time, man. You guys won’t believe what the f**k is down here.” He said, making the gang look at each other.

“C’mon guys, let's go down.” Cole sighed.

“Man is that wise?” Shani said, looking at him curiously. “Seen enough horror films to know how this plays out.”

“Well, we have to get him out anyway. Might as well see what the i***t found.” Cole shrugged off the rope and climbed down with it.

Shani looked at his friends, who all looked skeptical. “Gav?”

She just looked at him and shrugged. “We did come for adventure.” She said and began to climb down.

“I dunno about you guys, but this wasn’t the kinda adventure I was looking for.” Vincent said, being the most worried until Shani patted his back. “C’mon man, we’re gonna be here the whole weekend, so we might as well,” Shani said smiling as he climbed down... although in the back of his mind, he had to agree with his friend.

Seth just climbed down grinning with Mica close behind. When she climbed down the rope, Shani was there to greet her with a smile. “You can stay up there if you want Vince!” He said, looking at his best friend, who just blinked. “I’m fine up here, thank you,”

“Suit yourself man." smirked and followed his friends down the cave, turning on his flashlight. “Kodi?” He called out as he and Mica walked down the passage.

“Over here.” They heard him call and followed the echo.

“Kodi, what’s this thing you found-?”

Shani went silent as Gavri screamed at the sight. Skeletons were everywhere, with what appeared to be blood along the walls.

“Holy fuck..!” Cole said, voicing the words screaming in everyone’s minds.

“Kodi, what the f**k did you fall into?” Seth asked, stunned.

“Don’t ask me, as if I know! I was just taking a damn piss and when I walked back I fell in this damn cave.”

“These bones don’t appear that fresh. They have to be a decade or two...” Seth said, stunned as he knelt by one and flicked it.

“It’s not real is it?” Mica said, clinging her hand to Shani without even realizing it.

“Oh yeah. Fake bones are made out of plastic, hollow. These have some density to them, though it's hard to tell how old they are. They have definitely been down here for a long while though,” Seth said, feeling the bone's density.

“So the rumors are true. Someone has been killing around here?” Gavri said, running a hand through her hair.

“Or it could have been an animal. We already know wolves are in the forest.”

“Wolves or not, we should get the f**k out this forest! I don’t feel like being a meal today.” Kodi said, shaking, having freaked out.

“Kodi,” Cole said with a tone in his voice.

“I’m not f*****g kidding man-”

“Shut up!” Cole said, holding a hand up to the gang. “You guys seriously saying you cannot hear that?” He said quietly and when he did it was only then they heard what was spooking Cole; a whisper in the caves leading to an opening.

“Everyone just be quiet. Seth,” Cole said, and Seth nodded as the two walked ahead.

“Cole, are you crazy?” Gavri whispered sharply at him, but the two didn’t stop making Shani worry.

“Shani, watch the gang,” Cole said. Shani just stood in the front, frozen and nodded, getting a very bad wave of nausea.

Cole took four steps forward, hearing voices getting louder. As he turned he saw what looked like a girl sniveling, reminding him of his sister, Tani.

“Hey, are you okay?” He asked her, kneeling beside her. The girl was in tears, unable to hold back her sobs.

“You shouldn’t be here kid,” he said to her. “Where are your parents?”

“They’re… they’re all dead.” The girl said, making him place his hand on her arm and freeze when it went through her.

What. THE. f**k!

“It’s coming.” She said, making him look up at where her body pointed and see a shape in the dark. What he could see was something he wished he couldn’t. Seven feet tall, all he could see were sets of pale, pupil-less, eyes and a grin of something sinister.... inhuman even. He remained paralyzed, unable to move though every fiber was screaming to do just that.

Run. Run, you f*****g i***t. Run.

As he kept saying the words, the shape came closer. As he thought he couldn’t speak or move, by sheer will from the shape’s skittering and screeching sounds, he finally stood and ran, finding his voice.

“RUN!”

Shani looked as Cole and Seth ran from the cave waving to run.

“Run like hell!” Cole shouted from behind Seth. As they turned, the girls and Kodi ran screaming. Shani turned to see a shadow with a large grin appear behind Cole.

My god...

“The rope! GET TO THE f*****g ROPE!” He shouted as Gavri tripped. Shani and Cole barely skipped a beat, picking her up literally off the ground and back on her feet. “C’mon move Gav!” Shani shouted, running in sync with Cole.

“Go, go, go!” Cole shouted as they turned the corner, the shrieks behind them getting louder… closer.

“We’re gonna die!” Kodi shouted as Mica began climbing up the rope.

“f**k’s going on?!” Vincent said wide-eyed as he helped her up.

“Don’t wanna find the f**k out, trust me Vince!” She panted before helping pull the rope.

“There’s something down here!” Kodi shouted, climbing for dear life. Seth began climbing behind him.

As she looked into the cave and helped Gavri out of the hole, Mica looked down in the cave worried. “Where’s Shani and Cole? Shani!”

“We’re here!” Shani shouted back as he and Cole reached the rope and leapt, beginning to clumber out the hole. “Go man!” Cole shouted, looking back before climbing.

As Mica helped him out, Shani looked back down, seeing Cole smile as he climbed, almost reaching the top.

But before Shani could return that same smile, something, they couldn’t see what, tugged Cole by his ankle, making the older man frown in fear as he began to be pulled down. “Nononono-!”

“Cole!” Shani leapt for the rope as Cole clung to it for dear life. “SOMEONE HELP!” Shani shouted, only to have Seth and Vincent help him not fall in.

“Shani man, don’t lemme go!” Cole pleaded.

“Shut up dumbass! I’m not gonna-whoa!” He shouted as he began being pulled in.

“Shani, you gotta let him go before we all get yanked in!” Vincent shouted, straining as they fought to hold on. “No! I can almost reach him!” Shani said, reaching for Cole, who stretched his free hand as far as he could.

“Cole, hang on!” Gavri shouted tearfully.

Just one… more..!

As he said it to himself, Cole was then yanked away into the tunnel. And as his upper body leaned off the hole, all Shani could do was stare in shock, the last thing the group heard or saw of Cole... was his echoing scream.