Pagan or Gothic Rituals

Kyle was picking through the garden in his back yard. Every day he checked the flowers in the flower beds planted in the front yard and the back yard of his home in Lancaster Pennsylvania. Kyle noticed something strange in the flower bed of Chrysanthemums. He reached out his hand in between two beautiful yellow ones. His hand wrapped around something furry and sticky.

“What the devil is this?” he asked himself as he pulled whatever he felt out of the bed.

To his surprise it was a squirrel without a head. Kyle did not believe what he was seeing in his own hand. An effing squirrel was found in his own flower bed. His wife came out with a cup of ginger tea. She wore her bath robe on over her pajamas.

“Honey, what is it? What did you find?” She asked from the back door.

Kyle held up the headless squirrel in clear view of his wife Olivia. The squirrel without a head was startling to the peace-loving and caring Olivia Macintosh. She shook a little at the sight of the headless thing and let her tea drop on the stone steps Kyle laid out for them when they first moved in.

“H-Honey…W…wha…what is th-th-tha-“, Olivia didn’t finish her question she fainted, falling back against the wall. Her limp body slid down into the flower bed next to the back porch he had built thirteen years ago. Kyle dropped the headless Squirrel rushing to Olivia’s aid.

“Olivia, are you okay hon?” he asked her, she didn’t respond. “Oh dear.” He said as he walked over to her body and lifted her up off the flower bed. Kyle carried his wife back inside the house. He laid her down on the sofa then went to the kitchen to grab a cup of water and a fan, which was in a drawer in the cabinet he bought from Spruce Pine, NC. When he walked back in the living room she was blinking her eyes awake.

“Wha-?” she was about to ask what happened, but realized she had fainted and collapsed into the flower bed. “Oh your azaleas, I am so sorry honey!”

Kyle closed his eyes and looked down with his hand up. “Olivia forgets about the azaleas we have a headless squirrel in our backyard!” Kyle wanted to argue, but chose not to. His wife must have hit her head on something, fainted or something. His mind was too hung up on the headless rodent in his yard.

“Hello neighbors, hope you don’t mind the intrusion. Say Kyle you’ve got a dead squirrel in your back yard! Is something up?” Steve popped his head in the house with Ellen Rose behind him. She popped her head in and waved hello. When she saw Olivia on the sofa she rushed up to her.

“Olivia! What happened?” she asked as though someone had beaten Olivia to the ground.

“She fainted at the sight of the headless squirrel then hit her head on the brick wall. Olivia should be okay in a few days. Take care of her while I talk to Steve.” Kyle said as he went for the door and grabbed Steve along with him.

“I’ll go get a towel and a bag of ice for her head!” She cried as she went to their kitchen.

“What’s up Kyle, do you know when this happened?” Steve asked gazing at the headless rodent.

“No clue, Steve. I honestly have no clue!” Kyle admitted hold his head and shaking it.

“This is crazy Kyle, someone or something left a headless squirrel in your yard! What the hell are you going to do about this?” Steve asked him. This was too weird, a headless squirrel and no traces of bite marks or scratch marks to show that a predator was responsible.

“Screw it let's go see that kid named Ethan!” Kyle growled making a fist with his hand.

“Calm the fuck down Kyle Ethan is just a kid! Sure he may shoot at squirrels with his BB gun or what ever the hell his dad got him for Christmas, but I don't think he has any thing to do with a headless squirrel.” Steve said trying to calm Kyle down and keep him from accusing the wrong person.

“You're right Steve Ethan is just a kid he wouldn't something like this! I'll call Sheriff Paul Smithwick. He should know about crazy things happening in town.” Kyle said getting his phone out of his pocket. He dialed the Sheriff's number since they lived in a pretty small town.

“Wait Kyle wait don't call the Sheriff just yet look, look over in those trees.” Steve whispered to Kyle while pointing at the trees thirty feet away.

“What the hell, who the fuck is that?” Kyle asked Steve.

“I don't know but he looks weird in that robe or whatever he is wearing. Is, is he naked under that, you know what I don't even want to know.” Steve said squinting his eyes at a figure dressed in light brown robes in the trees.

“HEY YOU! YEAH YOU are you responsible for this?” Kyle yelled at the top of his lungs at the figure who seemed to slip deeper in the forest. He held the headless squirrel in the air to show the robed figure who disappeared into the woods.

“Calm down Kyle this isn't going to help! You can't just ask a random person about the headless critter!” Steve said trying to calm Kyle down.

“Well the who the hell was that then you pointed him out! You think he might be the one responsible don't you?” Kyle snapped at Steve who looked taken aback.

“Alright alright maybe he does, we may not know that yet, but yelling at some weirdo in the woods holding up a headless squirrel doesn't exactly scream sanity.” Steve said continuing his attempt to calm Kyle down who was fuming by know.

“Fine I'll chill out Steve. Do you even know who the fuck that is?”Kyle asked and agreeing to calm down.

“You know I don't who that is, but I have heard there is some weird ass group of people who worship some pagan god what some Christian folks think is a version of satan or some crap.” Steve said scratching his chin.

“Wait what group of people?” Kyle asked more curiously.

“Umm, yeah there is some cult that meets every month at night in the other town several miles away.” Steve claimed now scratching his head.

“Okay so where would this cult meet? And why did they meet here?” Kyle asked still trying to figure things out and hesitating on whether he should call the Sheriff or not. Steve did not answer since he was still confused by the fact he mentioned a cult meeting in the other town. To him and normal people it seemed too weird for this to happen.

“Look we need to get to the bottom of this! To hell with the Sheriff and those preachers and the other towns.” Kyle growled shaking the headless creature a little before putting it in a box.

“Since we cannot get the Sheriff involved and the preachers would send us away or just close the door we could track that guy down.” Steve suggested to Kyle who held the box in his hands.

Without a word Kyle looked down at the box and looked at the woods. Taking a deep breath Kyle made his choice to go after the robed figure. Steve followed alongside him to the woods flanking the back yards of their neighborhoods. Carrying the box with the headless squirrel Kyle made his way into the woods as Steve joined him.

“Okay steve we need to figure out who the hell that is and if he is responsible for the headless squirrel.” Kyle said taking another deep breath that was more of a sigh.

“I am right behind you Kyle.” Steve said showing he got Kyle's back.

Both men steadily went towards the woods where they saw the robed figure. They entered at their own risk despite its location along the edge of the neighborhood. Kyle and Steve searched for any signs of this robed figure while pressing past a neighbor's back yard with some dogs barking at them. Their feet stepped on leaves and twigs making crunching and snapping noises. Neither of them cared about how much noise they made as long as they attempted to pick up the trail of that robed weirdo.

“I know the neighborhood kids would often venture into these woods, but did not expect to see that guy pop out of nowhere.” Steve said trailing close behind Kyle.

“Well he didn't leave any trace except a few footprints we should be able to find.” Kyle said studying the ground closely. His eyes scanned the leaf covered ground in search of clues.

“Remember the boy scouts?” Steve asked Kyle while he was kneeling down studying the leaves to find any signs the weirdo was here.

“The kids at the High Rangers Boy Scout Camp? I don't think they would be of any use since they have school now.” Kyle responded slowly pressing past a maple tree.

“No, no Kyle I meant do you remember being in the boy scouts?” Steve corrected him following Kyle through the woods.

“Wait, you were in the boy scouts?” Kyle asked turning around and looking at him with a confused expression.

“Well yeah I was for about four years until I had to quit for other things like sports, and family trips.” Steve answered Kyle dragging attention away from the search for the weirdo.

“I don't remember you being in the scouts. I was a scout for like two years, but my mother dragged me out because of some reports of a bear attacking the camp.” Kyle replied still unsure if Steve was in the scouts or not.

“Well Kyle I certainly was, because that bear attack turned out to be some asshole putting a stuffed grizzly bear at the door of one of the scout cabins.” Steve said starting to smile at the memory.

“Ha ha ha ha, wasn't that done by a group of college kids or high school hooligans who pulled pranks for years until they graduated and left?” Kyle asked laughing and trying to remember the details of the story.

“Yeah and the whole town got pissed off too, at least one of them got off the hook while the rest had to spend time with old Barley the sour sailor with his boats.” Steve said now taking things towards that one story. Both laughed a little while maintaining focus on the task.

“We, we should get back to the search, ha ha ha.” Kyle said trying to stop himself from laughing even more.

“Have you found any traces of that weird guy in the robe yet?” Steve asked Kyle wanting to get this search over with quickly before dark.

“I see a few small branches broken off, some holes in the leaves or signs they were shuffled around like someone had crossed through here.” Kyle said pointing ahead of their location.

“Then follow that trail.” Steve said immediately rushing in the direction of the bent twigs and branches. Kyle was forced to follow his friend deeper into the woods. The two men kept following this trail left by the robed figure.

“Okay Steve, steve we need to slow down and not get lost here.” Kyle said keeping up with him and pushed a branch out of his way.

“What the hell Kyle, you and your concerns need to shut it! We are in the middle of the woods ten minutes from town. We could easily walk that way and find our way into town and make it home from there.” Steve said chastising him.

“No that is not what I meant Steve, we need to slow the fuck down. Those weirdos could be out there and we might run into them out in the words.” Kyle explained to Steve who still seemed a little skeptical of the explanation.

“Cut the crap Kyle, that group of weirdos cannot be that dangerous. I have heard some stories, but most turned out to be fake and made up.” Steve said to the neighbor and friend.

“Listen whoever the hell those guys are we need to find them, and figure out if they are responsible for the squirrel or not.” Kyle said trying to get Steve on board with going after these weirdos in a way that won't get them harmed or killed.

“All right, all right Kyle we will follow this trail carefully. If we see those creeps we are not backing down. I know I said you should hold off on accusations, but it is clear now. That guy must be responsible or knows who is. So come on and see what is the truth.” Steve said pressing forth along the forged trail in the woods.

“He certainly left a track to follow. Look at how those twigs and small branches are bent. These leaves show he is not carefully walking through the woods.” Kyle said observing the ground. The two men followed the forged path deeper and deeper inside the woods behind their loving, peaceful neighborhood.

“Should we tell some of our own neighbors what we've been doing out in the woods?” Steve asked Kyle who had his sights on a set of footprints in the dirt.

“Why would we say anything to the Andrews, Terrells, the Hartmans, Weavers or even the Hendrix's? None of them would believe a word we said and say a dog or wolf bit off the squirrel's head! Kelly Hartman, the dumb bitch, would accuse us of doing drugs in the woods.” Kyle said pausing to study another set of footprints clear as day.

“So we are telling no one what we are doing right now.” Steve said gaining foot on Kyle as he slowly checked some bent branches and parts of the ground.

“Nope.” Kyle said as he followed a set of footprints and a trail of bent twigs and broken sticks. “We chose not to talk to the Sheriff so we are not saying a damn word to anyone about this.”

“Other Sheriffs would get nosy and other people would want to know.” Steve said as if warning Kyle.

“Sshh quiet steve I think I see some people over there in a clearing up ahead.” Kyle said in a whisper, getting steve to be silent.

Kyle spotted a group of robed figures in a clearing conversing about something. He did not see any signs of the figure they were following. This worried him until he saw a figure that looked familiar carrying a large candle stick in a candle holder. Each figure in this clearing wore the same type of robe. All the robed figures spoke to each other, but it was undecipherable because of the distance they were from the figures.

“What are they saying?” Steve asked Kyle in a lowered whisper.

“I don't know it is too far from where they are, and I cannot tell what their lips are saying so lip reading is not my skill set.” Kyle said to Steve still watching the group of robed figures.

“Should he creep up a little closer to hear what they are saying?” Steve suggested.

“No, no we can't they might kill us or capture us and hold us hostage and no one will know anything other than we've gone missing.” Kyle answered getting steve not to go after them.

“There goes the fun of eavesdropping. Hey there they go!” Steve said in a disappointed tone just loud enough for Kyle to hear him. His last sentence caught Kyle by surprise.

“Quiet down Steve that will only draw their attention!” Kyle hissed at him. When the figures were out of sight kyle stood up and tried to follow them with Steve behind him.

“Okay I'll follow you.” Steve said as Kyle tried following the footsteps of the figures.

Kyle and Steve pressed on the trail of the footsteps of these figures even though they were not visible. Going around trees, bushes, and leaping over fallen trees and branches they finally came to a large clearing in the woods. Inside was a larger group of people standing in the ring. Every one of them wore a dark robe that covered their bodies.

“It looks like some kind of ritual or ceremony.” Steve commented pointing out an altar set in the center of the circle of people.

“What kind of ritual is this satanic or some weirdo witch craft kind of crap?” Kyle asked turning to Steve who had no clue either. His friend shrugged then returned to watching the circle of people. One of the people went to the altar set up in the center of the clearing.

“Today we bring about the resurrection of nature's elder gods. A god who's name cannot be said in the tongues of mortal men. It is a he and a she yet has no gender to speak of. This god is the deity of nature forgotten, lost and left in the abyss of time itself. No mortal has seen it with their own eyes save for drawn images, and the descriptions from more ancient beings that lived here...!” the leading robed figure cried at the top of their lungs.

“What the fuck is going on?” Steve nearly shouted in bewilderment.

“I have no fucking clue what is going on Steve. This kinda freaks me out a little.” Kyle said in a shaky voice. He froze for a few seconds then snapped out of it before watching a little more to see what happened.

“....Our days of fortune are about to begin my brothers and sisters. For we shall see our great deity grant us rewards one could never imagine!” the leading figure cried out loud with her arms raised up and looking up at the skies.

“Holy shit these people are nuts!” Steve blurted out a little louder than he intended.

“I know, it's no wonder people hardly come out to these woods.” Kyle said with his eyes focused on the leader who threw their hood back.

“Mrs. Perryworth? What the hell? Is she with these people too?” Steve said from behind Kyle.

“I believe it is her. She always gave off a strange vibe about her.” Kyle said to his friend.

“She was a weird woman for a librarian, and a writer.” Steve said sounding confused. “No one would suspect her of being part of a cult or whatever this is.”

“No one would considering the way she carried herself in public.” Kyle said watching Mrs. Perryworth, a woman with brown curly hair of age thirty four.

“Has she been hiding something this whole time?” Steve asked Kyle now crouching beside Kyle.

“Perhaps, she never spoke about cults or the occult. Unless she never said anything like when I wasn't within earshot.” Kyle admitted.

“Never heard her speak much except to a few people whenever I saw her walking around.” Steve said folding his arms. Both friends watch Mrs. Perryworth continue her speech or incantation, or whatever she was doing.

“I call upon the candle bearer forward and set the candle of earth and nature onto the altar of regeneration of fortunes!” Perryworth cried out still hold her hands in the air.

A tall figure holding a large candle stick in a candle holder came forth from the ring of people. This figure carried the same candle Kyle and Steve saw earlier before discovering this ring of lunatics. Perryworth put her hands down and urged the candle bearer forward to the altar. When the candle was set on top of the altar the figure retreated back to his place in the ring of robed figures.

“Okay this is getting more weird than I imagined it would get.” Steve said scratching his jaw. “Considering you discovered a headless squirrel, and we went out to discover who is responsible for this.”

“I guess you are right it is getting a little too weird. Let's go back home our little mystery is over. It was clearly one of these weirdos.” Kyle said with a bit of relief in his voice. He stood up to leave the woods and head back home to see about his wife.

“Yeah who would have thought that this was caused by a robed cultist weirdo freak tromping about in the woods.” Steve added also getting up to leave the woods.

The two of them were about to leave when they heard Perryworth's voice shout even louder than before. Her voice sounded more crazed and her words came out as if they were orders. Both men halted in their tracks and froze to the ground. Perryworth's voice continued a few of the same words over and over as if they were meant for the two of them.

“Seize them, seize them, bring those guests over here, seize them brothers and sisters. We have guests!” Perryworth shouted at the top of her own lungs.