The Ghosts of Highwater

The Man In Black

On the drive home I told dad about everything. How I met the man in black and how he just seemed to disappear before we left town. Dad still wasn't budging on his belief that this town is anything but great.

As the days pass I just can't shake the feeling that there is more going on with the man in black than I can put my finger on. I'm definitely going to have to do some digging to find out more. There has to be something to convince my parents that we need to get out before it's to late.

The first day of August came fast. Almost three weeks have gone by. Although we have been out and about some I have yet to met any other kids. We seldom ever see anyone outside. Mostly just the occasional person walking their dog.

After supper I tell mom I am going to ride my bike for a while. I thought maybe I would be able to find the man in black again or at least find another kid to talk to. I have to find out what's really going on with this strange town.

It's a nice evening to be outside. The sun is still up and the air is warm. I get my bike out of the storage building behind the house and head down the driveway. As I'm riding down the sidewalk I hear a voice, "Hey kid, come over here." I look over to see a boy about my age with blonde hair. "Come over here!", he said, this time with a raised voice. He is standing next to a fence holding a skateboard. I hop down off my bike and walk over to him. "Hi. I'm Frank Alexander. Just moved here from Minnesota. What's your name?" "My name is Keith Hartford. You know you should not have moved here. Right?" "Well, I'm 14. I had no choice in the matter", I tell him. Keith looks me straight in the eyes and says, "Well, it's just everything goes to shit when someone new moves to town. Everyone stays on edge about what's going to happen." I don't even have to ask him what he's talking about because I already know. "We always try to do everything we can to prevent it but when someone new comes to town, someone will die and in this case, three." "What can you tell me about the man in black", I ask. Keith looks shocked. "What exactly do YOU know about him?", he turned the question back on me. "Well, not much but he said the population 'can't' stay at 669. What does he have to do with all of this?" "Chernobog. He controls everything in this town. Once you move here there is only one way out. Death. You can't get out alive", he raises his voice with fear. "What the Hell man! I tried to get my parents not to move here because I had heard stuff but I never once heard anyone say we could never leave after we got here!" Keith just looks at me for a minute without saying anything, then he says, "Well, I have heard of one way but it is not easy and I have never personally seen anyone accomplish it". "Well, keep talking man", I say, "I have to get out of here! This is completely insane!" He tells me how he had heard stories about someone capturing Chernobog. He obviously escaped but the people got out of town with their lives. Now whether or not the story is true, I guess we'll never know but Keith says he would help me try to get out. His family has been here forever so he will never leave but he understands why I want my family out.

As night starts to fall we exchange phone numbers and agree to meet up again later in the week to start our plan. I know it will not do any good to tell mom and dad anything. They won't listen to what another kid has to say about this messed up town but I still have to try to get us out.

I went to bed after I showered, but couldn't sleep. I couldn't stop thinking about Chernobog and what we could do to trap him at least long enough to make a run for it. I have so many thing's running through my mind it is difficult to shut down. I slowly start dozing off when my phone chimes signaling an incoming text. It's Keith asking me to meet him Saturday at 3 at the big weeping willow at the edge of town. "Ok, I'll be there", I type back, lay my phone back down and drift off to sleep.

I can see that it's still dark outside as I open my eyes. I pick up my phone and check the time. 3:15 am and I'm wide awake. I had not slept the greatest. All I could see was the man in black with his twisted grin every time I closed my eyes. Chernobog. What kind of name is that anyway? I pull up the web browser on my phone and google it. To my surprise Chernobog came up. It means 'the black God'. I suppose that fits with all of the stories I had heard. He's a demon alright. How the Hell are we supposed to stop a demon? I lay my phone down and close my eyes. I have to get sleep so I can think clearly. It's definitely going to take a lot of time and energy to come up with a full proof plan. 

As I start drifting off I see Chernobog. He  looks at me with that same twisted grin that he had on his face the day I saw him in town, then he starts laughing and says, "You'll never figure it out kid". "Yes I will! You can't keep me here and I am not ready to die yet!" "I'm not going to let anything happen to you kid", he says with an evil laugh, "but you better watch out for those soft unbelieving parents of yours."

I sat straight up, eyes wide open. It was 8:30. I can't stand how I have let him get into my head like this. This is fucking crazy!

I'm sure mom is already in the kitchen making breakfast. I jump up, get dressed and head downstairs. As I get closer to the kitchen I smell pancakes. I love when mom makes pancakes. I sit down at the table and she hands me a plate. Pancakes, eggs, bacon and toast. "Thank you mom", I say smiling at her. "You are very welcome sweetheart. Would you like a glass of orange juice?" "Sure!", I say excitedly. I know she always has fresh squeezed and orange juice is my favorite.

As I sit enjoying my breakfast I try to remember my dream so I can tell Keith but no matter how I try, within a few minutes it's completely gone. All I can remember is the creepy feeling I had when I woke up. Shit! This really isn't going to be easy but I have to figure something out.

I have two days before I'm supposed to meet up with Keith so I'm going to dig up everything I can find about demons. I'm glad I have my computer set up. It will be so much easier to look stuff up than on my phone. I grab a bag of chips and a few bottles of water. As I turn to head back to my room mom asks, "What are you up to today sweetheart?" "Well, I met a boy named Keith last night when I was outside riding my bike. We sorta have a plan to build something. So I'm going to my room to look up what we might need," I tell her, which isn't a complete lie. We ARE going to build something. I just left out exactly what. "Oh that sounds fun", she says with a grin. I'm glad you made a friend." "Me too. Well, I'm going to go to my room now", I say and turn to walk off. Mom stops me and says, "Frank, you know your dad and I love you and we believe this was a good move. I hope you will grow to like this place over time". Not much chance of that, I think to myself, but, "we'll see", I say as I walk off.

For two days I barely came out of my room. I done little but study about demons and such. I had so much information to share with Keith. Not really sure anything I have will be any good in actually trapping a demon but I did learn a lot.

The day seemed to drag out forever but the time finally came to meet up with Keith. I got my bike out and rode to the edge of town. You couldn't miss that big ugly tree. Keith was standing propped against the willow tree holding his skateboard when I got there.

"So, do you have any idea what we can do to get me out of this insane town of yours?" I asked. "Well, not exactly. I have been trying to come up with stuff but I'm not sure that any of it will actually work", he said shrugging his shoulders. "Well, tell me what you have and maybe we can make something happen, together". "Well, like I said, it's not going to be easy because he seems to know everything before it happens. We have to keep this between just us", he says with a bit of a raised voice. "Ok man! Not like my parents are going to believe me anyway", I say and roll my eyes. "This has to be our meeting spot because for as long as I've been here I have never seen him come out this far from town. I'm not quite sure why but I am sure we are safe here. We have to make a trap but you can tell no-one why you are collecting the needed items". "I swear to you that it will just be between us", I try saying with more reassurance in my voice, "Like I said my parents won't listen and I don't know anyone else but you in this town. No offense but I don't care to be here long enough to meet anyone else. I just want to get out of here". "I'm going to try my best to help you and your family get out", Keith says raising his fist. I fist bump him and we both laugh. "I'm glad I have one person on my side", I tell him. "Always", he says with a grin. "It really is nice to see new faces here but I know nothing good can come of it. I'll be happy to see you go. No offense". "None taken", and we both laugh.