Mistica Chronicles


Welcome to Issue 66

Raine Winning Entry

The impish trio, Flannery, Dazzling, and Countess, open the old and rusted shut window with a loud creak.
"Shhh!" Dazzling squeaks. It is night time during Lanturnacht, and Raine told Flannery and Dazzling no to going out tonight. She said it was too dangerous. Ever adventurous, however, Dazzling convinced Flannery earlier in the day to take her trick-or-treating tonight. Countess wants to cause a little trouble tonight, so she tags along.
Flannery climbs onto the fire escape and ushers for Dazzling and Countess to follow her. The Stignightus follows without hesitation, quietly stepping into the chilly air of the autumn night. "Well c'mon then," she whispers in her thick British accent to Dazzling. The Anya hesitates for another moment, and then straddles the window sill, closes the curtains behind her, and steps onto the fire escape.
"Hurry up!" Flannery calls from ground level. Countess whips her tail.
"Just because we're outside doesn't mean you can't hear us from inside!" She whispers loudly to the Vix below. Dazzling shoves Countess on until they too reach the ground. Giggling pets of Mistica wander around the streets, dressed as Apocalyptic and Plague themed pets. Flannery shudders, wondering if some of them aren't dressed up and really are such horrid creatures.
Countess leads them to the sidewalk. Dazzling backs behind Flannery as a human dressed in a hospital gown passes them talking to himself saying, "They think I'm crazy. I'm not crazy." He starts to shout, "They can't take me back now!" The man starts to laugh maniacally. Countess snorts.
"The sad part is I don't know if he's acting or not," Countess murmurs, watching him pass. She notices red stains across his shoulder blades and shudders. "Tonight is a night that gives crazies an excuse to wander the streets." She guides them down the walkway, asking Dazzling where she wants to start at.
"Not here.." Dazzling murmurs, watching two young children go up to a house asking for candy. An old man opens the door and crankily says, "I have cigarettes and aspirin. Which do you want?" The children stand confused for a moment, and then leave.
Flannery snorts. She then suggests the neighborhood two blocks down. "Bigger, fancier houses usually mean better candy!" She explains.
"We're stopping by that supermarket before we go there," Countess says with an impish grin.
When they arrive, Countess declares she'll be right back and hurries off inside. Hardly ten minutes later, she returns with a plastic bag. "I have a great idea!" She proclaims with a sinister smile. Flannery stares her down for a moment, and then follows her as she leads the way to the neighborhood she mentioned earlier.
When they arrive, Countess applies fake blood she bought at the store to Dazzling's face to make her look plague-infected, and then let the two run free in the neighborhood. She lets the two have their fun for the next hour, but she soon becomes bored. "It's my turn to have fun," Countess purrs. She eyes down the area.
"Alright, those people don't have their porch light on, but you can see their TV light. They're home. Ready?" Again, by street lamp light, Countess smears fake blood across Flannery's chest expertly, applying a larger amount near the center and then trickling it in the rest of Flannery's fur.
"Does this stuff stain?" Flannery whines.
"No." She hesitates, then, "Not much." Flannery glares at her, and she adds, "For long." As she finishes up, she pours the fake blood onto her own hands and puts hand prints over the Vix's body. Then she stands up and flicks her tail eagerly. "You really have to play the part. Start crying."
Flannery blinks, unsure, then starts forcefully tearing up. She tells the Anya to do the same. When the two are fake crying profusely, she too starts to cry, and then begins to scream. She tosses her arms around Flannery. Dazzling flinches, and then tries to help carry the "injured" Vix to the doorstep.
Countess bangs on the front door and yells that she needs help. Dazzling rings the doorbell repeatedly. Sauntering feet scrape against carpet as the three scream and yelp for help. Very frantic scratching starts at the front door, like claws. Flannery screeches for fear of being killed but whatever lies on the other side of the door.
The scratching stops for a moment.
Then, a claw bursts through the door, sending wood splinters flying everywhere. Dazzling flees, terrified. Countess and Flannery cling to each other, unsure what to do. The hole in the door widens, and Countess catches just a glimpse of a Cheran with off-white skin.
Silence.
Then, the door breaks open and an Apocalyptic Cheran stands staring dead at the duo. Spit dribbles out of its mouth and it licks its lips, snarling at them. Flannery takes Countess by the wrist and runs as the Cheran starts to chase after them.
The pounding of feet on pavement and the pounding of her own heart are all Dazzling can hear behind her.
Flannery stumbles on the curb as she tries to get up, but Countess continues to run. The Cheran snags a mouthful of Flannery's fur, but the Daydream Vix gets back on her feet and flutters her wings, trying to fly above the Apocalyptic pet's reach. Ahead, Dazzling spots a chain-link fence. Considering this their only hope, she shouts at Countess to follow her. As fast as she can, she climbs up and over the fence and hits the ground with a thud. Countess follows shortly, and Flannery flies above the fence and lands roughly.
The next fifteen minutes feels like an hour as it circles the fence, trying to find a way in.
Finally, it leaves.
Countess gazes at the two and says quietly, "I'm sorry." Flannery shakes her head and murmurs, "Let's just go home." The three get up, climb over the fence and walk silently home.
~
Later on, the "Apocalyptic" Cheran washes her fur clean of her own fake blood and chuckles to herself. "Maybe next time they'll think twice before they cause trouble on Lanturnacht night!"