Storymania - The Monsterboys by Jimmy Mason

The Monsterboys
Jimmy Mason

                        Part 1
                  The Man & The Zombie

A close knit group of friends called themselves the monster boys. There were only four of them but judging from their attitudes you would’ve thought they had an army in reserve, in their battered northwest territory backpacks. The monster boys were the quintessential punk skaters of the era of the late eighties and early nineties. Their hair sported different unnatural colors. Their backpacks were covered in different patches of various band labels and sigils, filled with; packs of cigarettes, lighters, firecrackers, pellet guns, some fat sacks of good Midwestern marijuana, pipes, rolling papers and in each pack surrounded in their anarchy material and illicit paraphernalia were four other smaller leather packs. Their dress was beautiful for the times. Long john shirts were a year round fashion commodity, as were the flannel shirts tied around their waists. Over the long john shits were band label t-shirts in varying display of torn disarray. The boys all wore baggy cargo shorts cinched tight with belts under the flannels, and shod their feet in either army boots or Chuck Taylor high tops. All four of the boys had matching double kick skate boards with gasoline soaked ball bearings for extra speed. They were a squad, a band. They were the fear of the preps, the brunt of jokes from the gang bangers, and the idols of the stoners & alterna-brats. No one dared cross them however, not any of the cliques at Midwestern High. They were held in high regard by all.
The boys hung out in a ramshackle shack they found in the woods across from Mercury Park. Fixed up a bit by the foursome, it became an excellent and somewhat livable place. This was in October of 1992, at that time it was just a safe haven from four different broken homes. A sanctuary where they could hang out after school, smoke their weed safely away from prying eyes of the law and parental units. It was their freshman year and none of the notoriety they would soon have over the school was evident at this time. They all piled in to their shed witch they called The Hollow. One by one they entered the hollow and tossed their backpacks on the floor next to their seats.

Derek Jensen was sporting canary yellow hair, his house was the closest to Mercury park and subsequently it was usually his older brother’s small refrigerator that provided the monster boys with beer. Derek was a mechanic, his joy was the smell of gasoline, disassembling engines, and reassembling them with parts left over. He sat down on a large beanbag chair. Jason Ere had jet black hair with three dark blue stripes running back. He was a fanatic of anything that shot anything including; bb guns, slingshots, cannons, even bow & arrows. Jason had a knack for finding good weed at good prices. He sat down on a padded milk crate and began the business of rolling a couple of after school joints.
Alex Danbro’s hair was fire engine red and closely shaved except for his long bangs. Alex was the inventor of the group, he loved making something out of nothing. He was rarely seen without some device or contraption he was presently working on. He sat on another beanbag chair and pulled the model airplane he was working on out.
Craig Kraven had the longest hair in the group down to his shoulders, it was jet black with purple highlights. He was already being noticed by the girls at Midwestern High. He loved blades and always had one or more on his person at any given time. One such blade he pulled from his boot as he sat in a padded hollowed out steel drum.
On that late afternoon October of 1992 the second joint had just finished making it’s rounds around their spool table. The boys sat enjoying the high as only teenagers can. Not with whoops and hollers but with silent ruminations. It had grown almost completely dark when something thumped into the side of the hollow. All four of them high and paranoid jumped up. Derek held a monkey wrench up, Jason reached under the spool and brought out an air pistol. Craig being closest to the door held out his boot knife.
“ What the hell was that?” Alex asked.
Then the door burst open spilling a man onto the floor, He was bleeding and mumbling.
“ Help me….It’s after me! Help me.”
Craig and Derek pulled him the rest of the way in and Alex closed the door, Jason hadn’t taken his gun off the man. Craig helped the man turn over and they all jumped back. The man was coated in blood and beat up pretty bad. A slash above his eyebrow line and a gouge in his right fore arm was the culprit of the blood. Craig leaned down near to the injured man.
“ Hey man. Are you going to be alright?” The man looked up at Craig with a look all the boys later recounted to be a sad recognition.
“ No….No I won’t be alright my boy, but perhaps I can help you boys if you help me.” The man looked around wildly blinking blood out of his eyes.
“ It’s coming here….Yes!….I know it was right behind me. It caught me by surprise.”
Jason lowered his air pistol and looked over to Derek.
“ Dude’s nuttier than squirrel turds.” Derek said. Jason looked back at the man and asked.
“ What caught you by surprise? What’s fallowing you?”
The Man looked up into Jason’s eyes. “ The Zombie.”
Jason raised the gun back up. “ Get the hell outta here with that night of the living dead shit!”
Alex pointed to the man's arm wound. “ Dude I don’t know that could be a bite but it’s a big one if it is.”
The man nodded and pushed the large leather bag he’d been clutching to the whole time into Craig’s hands.
“ Take this. You will find everything you boys will need to stay alive. When the zombie gets here douse him with the liquid in the yellow jar, but don’t use all of it.”
The man curled into a tight ball and then unfurled with such force to bounce the back of his head of the floor with a loud THWACK!
“ Jesus man!” Jason said alarmed taking a step back.
Craig unfastened the bag and looked in. He saw an assortment of different colored jars on a small rack, sharpened wooden steaks, three bunches of herbs tied up with string, a leather bound book, and a revolver. He saw the yellow jar and took it off the rack. The man looked at Craig approvingly.
“ That’s the one. Now remember don’t use all of it.” The man grunted and made a face as he sat up to look at the boys.
“ I only have a short time so I must explain briefly. You boys and your town are in danger. Supernatural powers are at work in the world and go far beyond our understanding however, I do believe your town is the next focal point.”
“ What does that mean?” Craig asked
Once again the man looked up at Craig with those sad eyes that promised endless tales that would never be told. The man stammered.
“ It…means you boys are going to have a lot of monsters to kill.”
“ What monsters?” Alex asked. The man pointed to the bag.
“ You saw the gun didn’t you boy?” Craig nodded yes but couldn’t speak.
“ Take it out.” The man fell down to the floor, doubled up and flailed back out releasing a horrible strangled sound of pain. Craig handed the yellow jar to Derek and had the revolver in hand it’s heaviness was surprising, Jason couldn’t take his eyes off of it. The man’s lips crimson and shimmering from his own blood moved with words saying the unbelievable.
“ Shoot me in the head boy.” It was an order as well as a plea. Craig stood up and took a step back.
“ No way dude! What the hell’s wrong with you?” The man struggled up and opened the door stepping outside he turned around his eyes had gone milky and his skin was paler and waxy looking.
“ Listen boy if you don’t shoot me in the head soon, you’ll have two zombies to kill instead of one.” Craig just stood there as did the other boys. The man stepped forward.
“ Do it! Please just do it!” Craig raised the revolver.
“ I don’t think I can.” The man’s eye’s closed and when they opened again they were now stark white.
“ This is my hell child. Do it now please.” It was the unnatural gurgling noise that accompanied the man’s voice that finally made Craig pull the trigger. The gun’s report was loud in the failing dusk and echoed off the trees. The man’s head snapped back and he fell to the ground dead.
“ Holy shit man!” Derek screamed “ What the hell? You just shot that guy!”
Craig whirled to Derek.
“ Did you hear his voice? That pain and the bubbling sound?”
Alex and Jason went outside to look at the man, Alex looked away fast to stare at Craig.
“ Damn dude. The whole left side of his head is gone.” Alex said.
The rustling came from above a split second before it landed on the man. Alex and Jason jumped back so far that they both were pressed up against the wall of the hollow.
The thing fell right on top of the dead man from the trees and began eating. Jason and Alex made their way back into the hollow with their friends. The rancid smell of rotten meat instantly thick in the air was not a very nice partner to the sounds of crunches, slurps, and swallows. The creature looked vaguely human, some of it’s bone protruded from it’s rotten skin and meat. It’s mouth seem larger than a normal human’s and it didn’t seem to notice the boys as it took large bites out of the carcass of the man Craig had shot. Even though they didn’t know it all four boys as they stood in shock and horror had very much the same thought.
That can’t be a zombie. It moves to fast.
The zombie had almost finished devouring it’s supper when Derek remembered the jar. He stepped passed his friends and carefully unscrewed the cap. He poured some of the viscous liquid into the cap and flung it on the zombie. The zombie dropped the remainder of the leg it was munching on and hissed up at the boys as it began rolling and flailing on the ground like it was on fire. A sizzling sound like bacon accompanied the death dance of the zombie. From the area the liquid Derek threw on it’s back a red glow slowly spread over it’s entire body and retreated to the same point of contact leaving nothing but ash behind. The boys buried what was left of the man’s leg and went back into the hollow where they all had a beer and Jason rolled four joints. As they drank their beers and smoked their joints they looked through the man’s bag. His journal was aptly named “ Monsters Are Real “ they never knew his name cause he always signed his entries off with his initials C.K. In it he explains how to kill zombies, lycanthropes, & vampires. Also how to track them, and protect against their powers, not to mention rituals for speaking with ghosts and laying them to rest. They also learned from the journal that the supernatural forces in the world were not all evil, and different focal points appear at random up to four times per year. These are points of entry for the supernatural into our world. They all tried to calm down and get their buzzes back and decided to carry on monster killing.
They called them selves The Monster Boys.


Part 2
Meeting the Vampire
&
Tragedies from the past

From the man’s larger bag, the monster boys fashioned four other, smaller packs. These packs were made of hard leather book covers, and usually cinched tightly shut. They each held; Two medium sharpend oak stakes, a syringe filled with lycanthrope anti-venom, crushed rose petals, a small bundle of wolves bane, a silver dagger, and four matches. Also held in each pack is a row of four small jars; Zombie acid, Healing salve, Ghost ward, & Truth smear.
These implaments may seem odd, however the monster boys swore by them. In 1992 when the man stumbled into the hollow he changed their lives from ordinary to extraordinary, and by 1994 they had killed 5 boneafied monsters, 3 zombies including the one in ’92 and 2 lycanthropes. One was a nasty fat rat-creature that prefferd it’s animal form rather than the human, They finally tracked him to the drainage tunnel for the creek next to mercury park. The other was the varsity quarter back of Midwestern’s rival high school Ricthon south. Bolth of the lycanthropes were just as difficult to kill. The Zombies were easy. On this fine warm afternoon the monster boys were together making the trip home from school interesting by doing tricks along the shoulder and gaurdrails of Main street. To the people driving down the road they looked like a bunch of punk skaters, To most of the students passing them by in school busses they looked like saviors. Last Halloween the monster boys destroyed a zombie that crashed a keg party in St. Patrick’s cemetery. The children that were there thanked them profusely and spread their story throughout the school. Hence the respect they held over all cliques. The kids knew that something strange had been going on and the adult mindset had no room for monsters but the kids knew. The monster boys were the only ones that could help.
It took them about a half hour to make it to their hollow and when they entered all seemed normal. They tossed their back packs on the floor and sat in their usual circle.
Jason fished a baggie and a pack of rolling papers from his back pack and began rolling a joint. Then the voice came from the shadow in the corner.
“ Monster boys?”
They all looked over starteld at the young man standing in the shadow, hard to see even though they knew he was there. His eyes glittered. Derek stood up with a monkey wrench in hand.
“ Who are you?” The man came into the light and they all relised he was about their age, just a little older. He was very still, his brown hair stayed in place like it was waxed, and his smile was friendly.
“ I am Trevon Voriton.” Alex stood up behind Derek and said
“ And that means what to us?”
Trevon’s smile dropped.
“ You are the ones that call themselves the monster boys are you not?”
“ Yeah that’s us. What’s your problem?” Craig said while watching Jason disconnectedly put the finishing touches on the joint he’d been rolling. Trevon shifted over a step to look at Craig.
“ The problem my friend is you have vampires in your town.”
Jason put the joint in his mouth, fished for a lighter, and looked at Trevon for the first time.
“ Yeah? How many and where?” The reffer stick bobbed with each syllable. Trevon motioned to the circle.
“ Do you mind if we sit? I’ve been waiting quite a while for you gentelmen to arrive.”
“ Yeah, sure.” Alex said as he and Derek took their seats. Trevon came forward and sat on his feet, kind of perched low on the floor arms crossed over his knees.
“ It’s my belif that two vampires have come, one is residing in St. Mary’s cemetery in one of the masoulueims.”
Jason nudged Derek and waggeld his thumb at him and Derek passed over a lighter.
“ And the other?” Craig asked.
“ Is sitting right in front of you.” The boys all instinctively reached for their packs which they all quickly relised were stacked in a neat pile behind Trevon, behind the vampire.
“ Please boys don’t try and harm me, at this point I’ve no reason to harm you.”
“ Don’t make threats Trevon.” Craig and Derek said in unision, and they glanced at each other and couldn’t help but smirk. Jason lit the end of the joint and Trevon continued.
“ I only come to you for help and to help you kill another vampire. That is all.”
Derek leaned forward.
“ Why? Why help us..” He waved a hand over his group mincing the smoke that drifted there. “..kill one of your own?” Trevon shrugged.
“ I am a being of truth and honor, the vampire Delancer is not so. I am willing to pay you five hunderd dollars a piece, in cash, upon delivery of Randall Delancer’s head.” Jason looked around at his friends. Two grand for their first vampire, asuming they could trust this one that spoke to them.
“ Could we have a day to confer on this asssingnment?” Jason asked and trevon nodded.
“ Yes. I think I can distract him that long however, I’ll not be responsible for anything he does do. I’ll come back here tomarrow afternoon.” And like the snap of fingers the boy vampire vanished.
They sat in silence for a moment after gathering their bags. Jason began rolling another joint and was visably shakeing so that the green leaves kept tumbling to the table top.
“ What’s on your mind Jason?” Alex asked. Jason picked up leaves and put them back in the paper and said.
“ Trevon must be more than one hundred years old. He’s awake in the daylight hours. He’s not over three hundred, cause he still avoided raw sun beams.”
Jason lit up and around the circle it went in steady rotation. They discussed how, before now they had never witnessed a vampire and now had met one and gained knowledge of another. Their knowledge was improved when Alex who was flipping through the man’s journal said.
“ Hey! C.K.’s got something written in here about Randal Delancer.” They all listend intently while Alex read from the journal.
“ 3:20 a.m. July/10th/90
In the late 1600’s Randal Delancer was a nobelman in Paris, France. His family owned a large stud farm and were among the richest families in the country. In 1685 the Delancer keep came

under attack by the town’s folk. I could not find any reason for the upriseing. All family and servants in the Delancer keep were slaughtered. Everyone except for Randal. He resurfaced in 1965 as the leader of a cult. The cult of forever time. Reports from fellow monster hunter Melvin Tagget say that Randal Delancer was viscious and badly addicted to drugs. Now drugs, poisons, and any other toxins don’t affect the vampire’s dead body, That’s why he created the cult of Forever time. At meetings, his fallowers were greeted at the door with salad bowls full of joints and sugar cubes of acid. He and his four vampire fallowers would take their pick of the drugged humans, and drain them dry.
The blood filled with with the drugs affected the vampires.
By 1978 Randal Delancer had a total of seven vampire and one hunderd twenty nine human fallowers. The cult had become the church of forever time. In 1980 Melvin Taggert and a crack group of vampire slayers went in to bust up a mass. The seven vampires and the one hundred twenty nine potential vampires were destroyed. Melvin encountered Randal behind the church, I’m sorry to say he encountered Randal’s bite and the vampire got away. The next day he was found in his house where he had staked himself through the heart. A note read that he was scared of being a vampire.
I always kept my ear open and since ‘80 There were two reports that I found that I belive were Randal. The first in ‘84 was a cult that rose in Amsterdam that bore striking resemblences to the cult of forever time, and then on January12th 1990 a large beach party on the Oregon coast, since then I have found nothing yet but I will find this fiend eventually and kill him”
Alex stopped reading then.
“ Holy shit.” Craig said “ He was hunting this vampire and I bet that’s why C.K. was here in the first place. He tracked Randal here.”
“ You think that’s what’s going on?” Jason asked. Craig nodded. Derek just shook his head slowly back and fourth.
“ Can you imagin having to steak yourself through the heart? I mean to keep from turning to the undead ways. Delancer’s gotta be super powerfull, like abel to uproot trees and knock over tracktor trailer rigs, Even walk around in daylight. We might have already seen him and not been the wiser.”
Craig spoke up.
“ We may be able to get the drop on him. We know where he is and he’s being ratted out by one of his own.”
They all nodded and Craig continued.
“ Keep your steaks with you when you go to sleep tonight. Tomarrow we meet with Trevon, are we in or are we out?”
They all considerd this for a moment then decided they were in. That night the monster boys went home fast.
While the boys slept a teenage couple were caught in their car making the windows fog. Unfortunately for them it was not a police officer who found them it was something much worse. Their screams went unheard and their hearts dried of blood. The couple were found dead in their car out side of St. Mary’s cemetery. The monster boys all felt edgy in school that day waiting, anticipating the final bell that would ring them out of scolastic endeavors and on to the more pressing bussiness of monster killing.

Part 3
Deals,
Revolutions,
& Vengeance

Trevon was waiting again in the hollow when the monster boys arrived. His eyes regarded them all from the half-light, glittering over his innocent boyish smile. Derek pointed at him and said.
“ Mr. Vortion, you have yourself a deal, but first we must ritualize ourselves.”
“ I herd that.” Jason said as he plopped down in his seat with a sack and rolling papers. Trevon then told them about the couple found dead in St. Mary’s cemetery. All four of the monster boys had a overwhelming feeling like gravity had gotten stronger, they sat their in the hollow getting stoned under the scrutiny of the undead and came up with the plan. They would wait till twilight and leave for St. Mary’s cemetery, by skateboard a fifteen minuet trip. They would then be lead to Father Parson’s mausoleum where the vampire Delancer resides. Then Trevon will lure Delancer out of the mausoleum where the boy’s will be waiting in ambush. Then something occurred to Craig.
“ Doesn’t Father Parson’s mausoleum have a large crucifix on it’s door? How can he reside there? “ Trevon smiled broader than they had seen yet.
“ I’ll tell you boy’s one of the most coveted jokes in vampirism is by all rights we are supposed to hate the crucifix, but crucifixion was the vampire slaying style of the Romans. He was one of vampirism’s forefathers, and they titled him the son of god..” Trevon chuckled “..damn politicians.”
Craig held up his hands.
“ Wait a minute Trevon, your saying Christ was a vampire?” Trevon with his unmovable hair nodded yes.
“Craig think about it.” he said “He was able to make himself lighter than air giving him the ability to walk upon the surface of water, He was able to give sight back to the blind, vampire victims come back with no mortal afflictions, and they nearly killed him when they hung him on that cross of wood and stabbed the spear in to drain his blood. The Romans were arrogant and allowed his followers to take him down and away to a cave where they had stock piled rabbits and he spent three days eating them before he had the strength to move the stone.” Alex threw back his head and laughed saying.
“ Easter! Holy shit. Sorry guys.” He stifled his giggles when Craig said.
“You know guys, I’m not sure we’re ready for this.”
His friends and the vampire looked at him with confusion.
“ I mean is five hundred dollars a piece worth getting killed, or worse getting turned into minor vampires?”
“Yeah, or having to steak ourselves like Melvin Taggert .” Derek chimed in. Then turned his attention to Trevon.
“What guarantee can you give us that, that won’t happen?” Trevon just shrugged.
“I can give no such guarantee. I can’t say you will a survive, I can’t say you will not get bitten, however I can pay twice the original amount.” The monster boys all looked at the vampire in shock and replied at the same time.
“Alright.”
Jason then said.
“C.K. also kind of left us in charge to take care of stuff like this. We have to do this.” The others nodded and they began to gear up.
Twilight would soon be upon them and tonight was to mark whether they were just a bunch of kids playing find the monster or if they were indeed true monster hunters. Tonight was the night they were to define themselves. Trevon assured the party that any losses would have their share split among the survivors. The monster boys each had; two oak steaks, a pouch of crushed rose petals, and a silver dagger. They were fairly well prepared, or as prepared as one can be going to face an undead adversary. Once the sun sank below the horizon, the buzzing of gasoline soaked ball bearings could be herd. The monster boys rode down Sandra Drive with Trevon, hovering just above the ground and going the same speed keeping with the group. As Jason planted his foot to push faster he watched the clouds in the sky ignite with colored flame. Derek watched his house slide by and wondered if he’d ever see it again. Craig rode at the back of the group to keep an eye on Trevon and his friend’s backs. He saw Alex put something in his mouth which he begun to chew feverishly as he pushed off the street. They arrived fifteen minuets later the large hills stood adorned with myriad headstones & mausoleums in the dark purple bruised shadows. They knew where to go and stashed their boards by the entrance and made their way up the gravel path into the night.
As they stealthily crept up the path they got ready to do battle. Derek took out both of his wooden steaks and held them with points at elbows as was instructed in the journal. Craig took out his silver dagger and a wooden steaks. Jason took a handful of rose petals and pulled out his silver dagger. Alex made a face as he sprinkled some rose petals into his mouth, then taking out a wooden steak and his silver dagger.
The monster boys surrounded the mausoleum’s entrance with Derek and Craig on one side, Alex and Jason on the other and Trevon entered. For a few agonizing moments they herd nothing then they herd Trevon explaining that he’d found some teenagers in a car smoking some good smelling marijuana. Then a deeper colder voice came to them and the moment they herd it they all had a chill of death.
“Really my boy? How kind of you to let me know, tell me where.” The doors opened with groaning hinges and saw Trevon’s back.
“They are right near the entrance Lord Delancer.”
It happened so fast the boys hardly saw it happen. Trevon was kicked in the back of the head sending him hurtling into a headstone that broke as a result of the impact. Before the marble had a chance to crumble, Derek and craig were both on the ground in pain from getting punched in the neck. Alex and Jason stood looking at this frail looking creature. His eyes glittered in the gathering gloom of the night, they shone with an eerie green light. His hands were gnarled and clawed, his teeth quite prominent.
“Ambush is bad form children. That turn coat will be dead by dawn.” Delancer then chuckled.
“You four will live as my new servants. Forever.” Alex threw his dagger and it stuck in the small of the vampire’s back. He screamed in pain and tore it out and threw it at the still downed body of Trevon. Jason took a step back as the vampire Delancer grabbed Alex around the throat and picked him up like a doll, then blew his hand full of petals onto the vampire’s arm. Where ever the petals touched flames licked his undead skin. Derek and Craig were getting up when alex spat a huge gob of; chewed up garlic cloves, and rose petals into Delancer’s face. The vampire howled in agony as his head burst into flame. He threw Alex into the side of the mausoleum killing him instantly with a crunch. At this the monster boys sprang into action; Jason lunged swiftly and placed the blade of his dagger into the right eye socket of the creatures flaming head. Delancer smacked Jason into a headstone rendering him unconscious and turned his attention on the other two. Derek and Craig came at the monster together, the vampire pushed craig aside causing him to lose his balance and coming close to bouncing his head off the mausoleum. Delancer caught Derek’s wrists, twisted his arms behind his back, and bit him. Craig came from behind and jammed the steak in to Delancer’s heart. The vampire let Derek’s body fall only a second before it fell on top of him and expired.
When craig looked up he saw Trevon drop Jason’s pale bloodless body and he stood up.
“What the hell Trevon? We had a deal.” smiling with blood the vampire vanished and was behind him in a flash, his voice at his ear as the arm lock tightened.
“Yes we did have a deal. You four kill the vampire who made me, I’m free of my servitude, and you were always going to die.” Using the arm hold he herded craig into the mausoleum. In the back corner there was a shimmering that filled the space.
“What’s going on? What the hell is that?”
“That is a focal point. Past, Present, and Future. Enjoy your death.” And with that Craig was tumbling through space and fell into a wood. He had time to relies he had a bag in his hand just before a zombie tackled him giving him quite a nasty gash on the forehead and biting a chunk out of his fore arm. It sat up to savor the flesh and that gave Craig enough time to fish the yellow jar out of the bag. He then whipped it at the zombie, the jar burst over the zombie in a hot white glare. Craig bent down and pulled the revolver out of the bag and laughed as the zombie turned to an ashy statue of it’s former self.
“I got you now.” he chuckled to himself. When he got to the shed in the woods he smacked the side of it only once. Muffled from inside he herd a voice.
“ What the hell was that?”
When the boy with black hair split down the middle answered the door, Craig saw himself yet still shot the boy through the head. The other three met the same end. He then turned back to the woods and said.
“Better this way than your way Trevon. Do your dirty work yourself.”
The last shot was herd by no one.

The End