Hours had gone by in a snap and he was almost done with his work when the sound of heavy hooves beating against the ground caught his attention. He looked up at the clock across from his desk and cocked an eyebrow, it was nearly midnight, what business could this person have at this hour?

Out of curiosity he slipped off his chair and walked to a window. He could still hear the sound of the hooves on the path but couldn't see anyone. But soon his own horse, that stood secure in a makeshift stable by the window, began to neigh and toss its head. He could see the old boards used to make the door of the stable, begin to bow in and the old rope that acted as a latch pulled taunt.

Fearing that his only way home might escape he rush out into the cold night to make sure his horse stayed secure. As soon as he stepped a foot out the door the noise stopped and he noticed the thick fog that had begun to roll in from the forest. Chills ran up his spine but He chose to ignore this as he ran to his horse. She had calmed some by his presence but he could tell she was still nervous and jittery.

He stroked her sides as he whispered her name and words of encouragement in an attempt to sooth the creature. But his efforts were in vain as her eyes widened in fear and he caught the glint of blue light reflecting in them. He turned to where the forest line once was but all he could see was a wall of fog and a bright glowing blue light behind it.

Then a figure trotted out of it, it had a blue flame in place of a head and held a whip that look as if it were made from a spine in one hand and a carved pumpkin with a hellish grin in the other. Its stead was massive and black as night, except for its face that was white as bone with gleaming ruby eyes. It seemed to look towards him and freeze before it dismounted and slowly started to stalk over to him. He felt his heart rate skyrocket out of fear and in a split-second decision, he untied Hana from the stable and hopped on her back, urging her to run the second he made contact.

His actions seemed to stun the creature for a moment as he could hear no movement from behind him for a good five minutes. He knew he couldn't let Hana slow for even a second though. Just when he thought he might have put enough distance between him and the creature, he heard those deafening hooves clapping on the path behind him.

With a girlish scream he urged Hana to run even faster, cutting through the thick fog like a knife. Low branches scratched and grabbed onto him, ripping the sleeves of his shirt, but Hana never slowed, she could tell that whatever was behind them was not something she would want to meet. He would have to make sure to give her a nice treat when they get home— if they survive, that is. He closed his eyes in fear as he saw the blue light growing dangerously close— he swore he could even see the top of its whip— and though about how nice it would be to be by the warm, bright fireplace in his personal library, curled up with his favorite book. He might never get to finish it now.

But suddenly something ahead caught his eye. A lantern on a post, sure enough, he was almost out of the forest and he knew that post that sat by the stream that encircled his property. He can still fondly recall the days he and his sister used to play by it. He thanked whatever god's above that decided to show him mercy, but still wondered how a light that he, nor anyone else for that matter, had lit in years was now suddenly ablaze.

He quickly steered Hana towards the stream and as she leapt over it, he realized that the fog had begun to dissipate and now he could see his house just up ahead, clear as day. Once he was almost to the house he slowed Hana and looked back to the creak. The creature stood there but didn't dare try to cross the small steam. It merely watched him— or rather he assumed that what it was doing, without a head it was hard to tell. 

He recalled back to the old hard back copy of the legends of the dullahan and other Celtic myths that sat on his book shelf and remembered a part that told about a weakness of the legend. They can't cross running water or covered bridges. He let out a tight breath that had been held in his chest for far too long and felt a little safer at this.

After he had put Hana up in her stable for the night, he grabbed one of the many gardening tool that laid unused in the back of the stable and cautiously crept to the back of his property. He ducked behind an old apple tree that sat behind his house and also overlooked the creak and peaked from behind the tree, feeling somewhat relived when he spotted the headless man still standing there. It meant it wasn't about to sneak up on him at least. He grabbed an apple and quickly ran back to the stable and handed the apple to Hana before scurrying inside and double locking the doors and windows.

On his way up the stairs he traded the old rusted hoe in for on of his fathers old swords. It was one of the few thing he didn't sell years ago. It had too much significance to his father for him to just up and sell it. He reminisced for a moment on it, remembering the story behind it.

His father said he had received the sword called a chokutō, from a high class nobleman in a county called Nihon, after saving his daughter from a giant snake. He used to tell that story all the time when he would clean it and every time Alec was mesmerized by it. Just like he was with all his story's.

He was thrown from his thoughts of the past as he tripped on the final stair and landed with a loud thump against the hard wood floor. He looked up from the ground as his bedroom door creaked open, from the vibrations. He hoped.

Lucky for him, his bedroom windows showed a perfect view of the creak and forest behind the house. With a sigh he heaved himself off the ground and shuffle into the room. He pulled up a chair to the window and patted the sword in his lap for reassurance. He watched the creature through the night, but it never moved. It only stood like a statue, watching him as he watched it, until his eyes were too heavy to keep open and he drifted into a fitful sleep. Sword still gripped tightly in his hand.

———————————————

Running. He was running. Why was he running? He didn't know. But he had to keep running. Running away from the black void that was chasing him. It was all around him like it had swallowed him whole. There was no light. There was nothing.

Then there was a hand.

He reached for it, squeezing his eyes shut, and was pulled into a warm embrace.

When he opened his eyes he saw blue. Blue fire.

It surrounded him in a ring.

He looked up at the person embracing him. They wore a black vest with a red cloak pulled around their shoulders. He looked to their face but could only make out a single detail at a time. A strand of coils red hair. Soft skin the colour of bronze. Stains of  red running down their neck and shirt collar. But his mind couldn't compose a full face for them.

They reached their other hand out and stoked his cheek softly, but then every thing began to fade back to the black void. As he faced the black, empty void again, he could feel a primal fear well up inside of him.

That's when he saw it.

Red. All around him was now nothing but red. It dripped from the   cavernous ceiling and down the parlour striped walls and globed onto the floor like syrup.

He felt dizzy from all of it.

He was alone but somehow there was a scream that was not his own that echoed through the room that's walled seemed to be closing in. And then... silence. Every thing blurred and he closed his eyes.