Chapter 1:

Getting thrown through a wall hurts. Big surprise I know, but still, damn does it ever. It’s not something you can get used to even after years of practice.

In truth I consider myself something of a connoisseur of being thrown through things. I’ve seen the wrong side of cakes, tables, windows and even an inflatable dolphin one time. I must admit that it is nice to go back to the basics every once and a while. Not that I’ll be lining up to hit a wall and keep going or anything silly like that. It’s just that it could be a lot worse, like a baker’s store house filled to the brim with rock hard confectionaries, that’s just embarrassing.

The wall in question was ancient stonework built more for style and flair than for stability. I suppose I owe my body not being jelly to the snotty Victorians that had the thing constructed. It was a painful but smooth break. In truth I was more worried about what had thrown me through the wall than the collision itself. One seemed a lot more likely to rip my head off to finish the job.

Standing over seven feet tall, but looking more like five and as half thanks to its hunched back and terrible posture lessons, the sack man glared at me as if I was the last piece of fried chicken in a five dollar bucket. Wow that thought was really disconcerting; I should see someone about it if I survive this whole fiasco.

What really bothered me wasn’t facing down this mammoth of a man, it was the fact that my knife had gotten lost somewhere when I had face high fived the wall. The silver blade would have proved some deterrent against the creature I now faced.

A sack man is a dangerous adversary at the best of times. They’re the Hispanic version of the bogeyman and they don’t mess around. They come into existence when a deranged old man who has fed upon human flesh dies a violent death, so thankfully they’re pretty rare. The creatures like to eat out so they carry a sack with them wherever they go allowing them to grab a meal and dine at their leisure. They prefer kids but adults aren’t safe from the sack if food gets scarce.

I’d heard the stories of strange disappearances in this small county in northern Spain. Children were vanishing from their beds in the dead of night, parents reporting hearing thumping sounds in bedrooms but arriving too late to save their beloved children. I had thought it sounded like my kind of gig, unfortunately I was right.

I had spent a few weeks connecting the facts before I figured out where the monster had made its lair. I’d headed out to put an end to the creature. It had met me at its front door when I was preparing my trap.

The sack man looked as twisted and deranged as the soul it had once been was. Layers of sinewy muscle piled upon each other like cement that had set poorly. I almost lost my lunch when the thing opened its foul mouth to reveal teeth stained red with dry blood and black with unchecked rot. I was sure I saw a small finger bone caught between its incisors. Its yellow eyes were slits of amber in dim lighting of the dark manor I had tracked the monster to.

I fumbled around on the ground frantically searching for my blade. I wasn’t going to deal with this creature unless I could get it restrained somehow. I had no luck and my weapon evaded my groping hands. I sighed and turned to my back up; a pistol loaded with silver bullets, which didn’t work nearly as well as you might think. It was still a lot better than throwing my hands up in the air and hoping for salvation that would never come.

“Hey, you’ve got something stuck in your teeth,” I hissed as I raised the weapon, my time in the Special Forces taking over along with my time on the hunt, “Let me get that for you.” I fired a shot that took the beast clean in its gaunt jaw; it would have put down any man I was up against.

It just pissed the sack man off.

The old bugger charged me as I fired several more shots into its deformed flesh. The bullets sizzled into its body, but didn’t do much else. Silver works at least a little on most things, but it wasn’t the best way to deal with this monster. The creature grabbed me by the neck and did it’s best to beat its previous record. The wind was knocked out of me when I hit the ground and I lay there amidst overgrown stone unable to pull myself back to my feet and completely helpless.

The sack man pulled its old canvas bag open ready to add another morsel to its heinous collection, there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it. Other than some sort of intervention I was going to be toast, or more likely just raw meat.

Thankfully I had an intervention planned.

My partner took the sack man in the back just as he leaned down to pick me up, knocking the brute off his feet onto the hard ground. The sack man roared in pain as he tried to rip my companion off but he couldn’t reach Galiane who was sinking her canine teeth into his exposed neck.

I have a really awesome dog.

The sack man managed to get a grip on his attacker, he flung the faithful hound into the night, but I was already on my feet. I had what I needed in my hand. I flung the contents of the small red container all over the sack man’s back which must have stung nicely in the open wound. I had not wanted to risk wasting the liquid when he was aware and could avoid it.

I dodged out of the way of the sack man’s vengeful appendages and backed up to let the monster come to me. In a straight up fight the thing would have taken my head off a dozen times over, but I’m not one to waste time on foolishness. If I’m going to fight then I’m going to fight to win regardless of what I have to do.

“What took you so long, pooch?” I asked as I sparked the cheap lighter l had purchased at a gas station on the way here. The cheap contraption took an agonizing amount of time to get going, but it made its mark, the flame flickering to life as the monster charged me with nothing but brutal bloody murder on its mind. “It’s been fun.” I whispered as I lobbed the lighter at my gasoline soaked adversary.

The sack man tried to bat the lighter out of the air but it only managed to knock it straight onto its back where the flammable liquid was most plentiful. The flame caught the gas and burst into a brilliant display of searing heat. The monster howled in surprised pain, it must be shock to finally be on the receiving end of the hurt. I smiled as I watched the spectacle; the fire had raced up the gaunt body of the creature and was feeding eagerly on its fuel.

“You must be wondering why it hurts so much.” I said to the sack man as I rested on my haunches, “That’s because I had the gasoline blessed by a true believing priest and let me tell you, that wasn’t easy.” I smirked at the flailing beast, “But it was worth it.”

To my surprise the flailing didn’t cease and the beast didn’t fall still. Instead it pushed itself to its feet with a fiery rage burning in its slitted eyes. I backed away groaning, I should have known better than to assume victory before the monster was dead. The bastard obviously needed a lot more killing before it would oblige and stay dead.

The sack man lunged towards me as its eyes began to bubble and slide down its already grotesque face. I would have averted my gaze in disgust if such action was not likely to get me killed. As it was I choked back and threw myself out of the way as the creature stumbled past me.

I knew that if the monster didn’t go down after everything I had hit it with then I would have to find something else to make sure the job got done right. My knife might work if I could find it, but I wasn’t crazy enough to try to get close enough to the beast to try to stab it, bludgeoning or combustion would have been a likely result of such an endeavor.

I had to leave my rental back at the edge of the forest the manor house was situated inside and thus much of the gear I had brought with me was out of my reach. The arming sword lying under a blanket on the backseat might have been useful, but alas it wasn’t going to help me now. I didn’t want to risk Galiane on those flames, not that I thought it would hurt her that badly, she’d survived much worse, but my friend had earned her respite.

There was only one other option.

Checking what equipment I did have I sprinted for the old decayed manor door, signaling Galiane to back off on the way. The rotted wood gave way to a sturdy boot and I was inside the ancient abode. Hopefully this family had something useful in their possession. I was hit with a wave of stale air as I entered into the residence that mustn’t have been in use for decades. I was met with the stern glares of long dead family members whose portraits lined the entrance way as I made my way through the old building pulled out of another time.

The carpets had been born down by centuries of feet treading over them, but they still retained some of their ancient elegance as did the rest of the adornments. On of the home’s many owners had been a hunter, his grim trophies were displayed throughout the house; he must have been so proud. I was struck by how surreal this place felt, I was walking through the lives of owners whose histories were as forgotten as the once proud manor’s former glory.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by a crash behind me that meant the sack man had found an alternate entrance to the house. I hurried through room upon room of fascinating-but useless-items that document this family’s legacy.

My search came to an end in an abandoned living room were many an evening must have been spent. A couch and two armchairs were pulled up to a barren fireplace, the back marks marring the finely crafted metal grate spoke to the number of fires it had housed. I had an idea of what I wanted, this placed seemed as likely as anywhere else to hold it.

I found what I needed by an empty wood rack, but I blanked on how I would manage to use it on the creature. As the crashes grew louder and louder I gave up trying to strategize and secreted myself behind a couch with an audacious floral pattern. Things never turned out as you planned them anyways; if they did I wouldn’t even have been inside the house mentally apologizing to whoever owned the doomed structure now.

I would just have to improvise.

The sack man stalked into the room sniffing at the air. I hoped that the flames that licked its flesh and had ruined its eyes would also hamper its excellent sense of smell, but it had to have found me somehow. The sack the monster gripped tightly in its hand was in perfect condition as it would be, the sack’s of the creatures are almost indestructible and escape once inside is practically impossible even for being of extreme power.

I edged along the protection of the couch hoping that the sack man would not pick up the faint noise my shifting created over the crackle of the fire. I might as well have hoped for a sports car full of super models to pull up on the curve next to me for all the good that did. The sack man swiveled towards me looking even more fearsome in its current stated.

I swallowed my fear and stood up to face the monster, it was not going to harm another hair on the head of a single child. It was a monster that didn’t deserve to live and I was the only one who could stop it before it claimed another victim.

The sack man smiled, thinking its prey was finally in its grasp with no way to escape. It walked towards me slowly clearly relishing the power it held over the creature who had dared cause it such grievous harm.

Then I did something it didn’t expect.

Instead of waiting for the beast to come to me and slain my sorry self I charged the damn monster with a vengeful fury. I wished I had worn my flame resistant duster, but I didn’t like wearing it wear it might get caught on things or hamper my movement. I wasn’t going to let that stop me from doing whatever it took to slay this child eating bastard of a disgrace to all that is good in this world.

I put my shoulder straight into the chest of the surprised bogeyman, knocking him off his gnarled feet while trying to avoid any hungry tendrils of flame. I gave up any fragile presence of self preservation when the monster tried to rise. Adrenaline giving strength to my berserk rage I bore down upon the filthy swine with my knee knocking the wind out of his empty belly that I was going to keep that way even if it killed me.

The sack man was stronger than the most steroid infused mule, but he was hurt and he’d been thrown off his game. I had the edge, but it wouldn’t last long. I had to end this fight sooner rather than later if I wanted any chance of victory.

I brought my hand down upon the sack man’s snarling face, repeatedly bashing him with all my strength. I breathed searing breathes of smoke and my arms cried out as fire lashed towards them, but I accepted the pain. It was all in the back of my mind, all I was thinking about was putting this monster in the grave.

The sack man’s arm thrust upwards with strength I was unprepared for. I was knocked back against the room’s walls, the thin paper that covered it crinkled in protest as flames raced up their delicate patterns.

I ducked underneath the sack man’s following charged and rolled behind him where the skin on his back had peeled away revealing sinewy muscles. I grabbed the item I had hidden under an old armchair and stabbed it at the monsters chest. The sack man failed to get out of the way as the iron poker pinned it to the wall.

The beast struggled to free itself, I knew that it would be only moments before it escaped and finished me off. Moments were all I needed.

Next to where the poker had lain was the old woodman’s axe I had found. I gripped it tightly in both hands and brought it around with a cry of rage just as the monster freed itself from its temporary entanglement.

The blow struck the sack man in its thin neck, the old iron axe head doing its job admirably after so many years of disuse. The monsters head was cut cleanly from its body; it fell to the carpet with a menacing snarl still plastered across its face. The body stood for a second as if unwilling to accept the irreplaceable lose it had suffered before collapsing next to its head still twitching futilely.

I only noticed that my clothing had caught fire after the adrenaline wore off a few short seconds later. I yelped and struggled out of them until I had nothing on but what nature had given me. The whole house had caught blaze at this point and the ceiling creaked underneath the assault. I tried to pull myself out but it was too much.

I barely felt my chin strike the floor as the world turned black.

My eyes opened, I was staring up at the dark night sky. I felt the moist grass I laid upon before my aching body began to demand my attention. I was alive; which is always a pleasant surprise for me when I wake up. I might have wondered if this was the afterlife, but I thought they would have enough curtsey in the land beyond not to leave me in the skinny. Not to mention this was far too damn nice for where my ticket would be taking me.

A shadow loomed over me from the corner of my vision. I tilted my head and was rewarded with a slimy lick on my defenseless face. Galiane-who had sat watch over my body while I was out cold-was getting her own form of revenge on me. She sat back upon her haunches and opened her mouth in a huge doggy grin. It revealed a row of vicious canine teeth, but it was endearing none of the less.

“None of that!” I cried as she leaned over to lick me again, trying to force me to my feet no doubt, “You know I hate it when you sober all over me! Besides, it’s hardly dignified for someone of your station to act in such a foppish way.”

Galiane simply continued to grin at me like a fool, or a dog. I followed her gaze and felt the jaw mark around my wrist. I realized who had saved me when I was lying passed out and helpless in the burning manor. I lifted my head in time to see the roof give out, crashing down on top of where I had lain. It was a sobering thought to know how close I had come to my death, not to mention what she had risked saving me.

“Thanks girl.” Was all I could manage to say to the friend who had saved my life once again. I pushed myself to my feet before she could start licking me again and surveyed the area. “Let’s get out of here before the fire fighters arrive and start asking question about this and that.” My eyes returned to the wreckage of the grand manor, “I don’t feel like explaining the headless old man covered with gasoline lying on the floor.”

The two of us walked back through the forest towards my car; the only items I held was the knife that Galiane had found lying upon the ground somewhere and the sack man’s sack which we had pilfered from the remains of the house. I had lost a decent amount of gear in that fight, but it was worth it to see another monster gone from the face of the earth. I could always get more stuff anyways and I had more stashed in various places.

I felt exposed and embarrassed walking through the forest in the nude, but hey, some people pay for experiences like that. Personally I was more worried about insect bites than anything else; I didn’t need an itch down there.

I was relieved to arrive back at the old rental I had taken to the sleepy village, an old vehicle I wasn’t planning on getting attached to. I was happy to throw on a shirt and pants and climb into the driver’s seat. I didn’t like spending much time in any one place; it would be good to get on the road again.

I was five minutes out from the wretched forest when a fire truck went speeding past me toward where smoke had emerged from the tree tops. I hoped that the fire wouldn’t spread too far, but I had saved much more than I had destroyed this day. I would accept a lot more if it meant keeping even one child out of the grasp of some foul creature with a head full of hate and stupidity. I’ve never liked bullies who take things from people who can’t fight back.

I was making the world better one bastard at a time. Every time I batted down one monster another would emerge from its hidey hole to receive my punishment. It was hard thankless work but someone has to do it to prevent our whole world from being overrun. Someone has to show them that we are more than cattle to the slaughter, show them that we can and will take them down. I guess that person has to be me.

I am Isaac Marcus Francis and I kill demons, monsters and whatever else is stupid enough to lurk in the dark.