Ed had never seen anything so beautiful.
The blood of the workers had become a river, rushing down the grimy dirt path. Limbs, organs, and various body parts dotted the landscape like leaves in a forest. It was like a rain of havoc had descended upon the earth, and Ed loved it. The chainsaw responsible for the massacre was still in Ed’s hands. He cackled maniacally as he shredded man after man in the construction site, watching people attempting to flee before slipping in puddles of blood.
He gazed in awe at the raging fires his flamethrower had caused. He laughed at the destruction. He watched as a whole year’s worth of work, discussion, planning, building, went down in a shower of debris.
Workers crawled out from under the carnage and ran off, but that didn’t matter to Ed. it was a fraction compared to the amount he had slain, and look! A few had taken up pipes and hammers, actually trying to fight him! Oh, how amusing. How joyous! How…delicious.
He giggled as he brutally decapitated every last one of them, chopping the last man in half.
Ed turned to leave, when he felt an impact on one of his boots.
A man was clutching it with both hands, blood rushing out of the many gashes in his body.
“Help me…”
Ed knew he was beyond help and would bleed out soon. But he still raised his chainsaw and put him down anyway.
Then he felt another impact, this one on his back. This one was more intense. More forceful. More…painful.
Ed tumbled to the floor, whipping his head around just in time to see and dodge a hammer strike by the man standing over him.
“I’ve got you now, Shadow Butcher!” The man roared, his glasses crooked. His face was covered in scratches, blood staining the front of his plaid shirt. “I…Ed?”
Ed narrowed his eyes beneath his metal beaked mask, before cringing. So Maruice did recognize him.
Too bad that he hesitated with that hammer of his.
Ed drew his burial dagger and stuck it into Maruice’s chest, watching him fall to his knees. Just before he died, Ed leaned down, next to his ear, and whispered,
“See you.”
After Maruice was taken care of, The Shadow Butcher got out a can of blue spray paint and got to work.
=============================
Shadow Butcher Strikes Again!
Ballistic Arsonist burns down newly-constructed library!
Was the headline of The Evercrest Gazette, The Times Dispatch, The Evening Tribune, and practically every single other newspaper in Evercrest.
There was a huge photo displaying the Butcher’s symbol spray-painted onto the floor. It was the mark the Shadow Butcher left after every sick, twisted job of his.
Robin set the newspaper down beside his bagel, the giant, vacant eyes of the symbol staring at him as he took a sip of coffee.
Despite what the Shadow Butcher had done, Robin couldn’t care less. He had other things to care about today. Philosophy on the mass-murdering psychopath could wait for later. He had other things to do, like finishing this bagel, returning that overdue library book, praying that Mike Novak wouldn’t publicly scream his name aga-
“ROBIN!!” Mike’s voice broke the silence. “ARE YOU COMING OR NOT?”
Robin shoved out a sigh. Abandoning his breakfast, left the cafe, and shoved his way through the crowd of pedestrians all trying to get in the Starbucks for the newspaper.
He heaved himself onto the backseat of Mike’s dark green truck.
“Jesus, Mike,” he said. “Could you be any louder?”
“SURE!” Mike roared. He cupped his hands around his mouth. “HI EVERYONE-”
Lydia slapped him on the arm from the shotgun seat. “Shut up!”
Mike cowered like a shamed puppy. He may not listen to Robin, but he was an absolute weasel for Lydia.
Robin coughed. “Anyway,” he said, trying to change the subject. “The forest only has two cabins right?”
Lydia turned around. “Yeah,” she replied. “There’s another group renting out the other cabin, but they’re pretty far apart, sooo…we have the place to ourselves!”
(They were wrong. There were three.)
Mike regained his composure and started roaring again. “WE READY TO GO?”
Robin yawned. “Yeah yeah. Step on it.”
=============================
The green truck drove down the road, unaware that there were eyes on it. Maybe eyes weren’t the right word, considering that they were behind a thick pair of leather goggles, but eyes nonetheless.
The Shadow Butcher smiled. Three cabins worth of people…
Oh, this was going to be so much fun!
The blood of the workers had become a river, rushing down the grimy dirt path. Limbs, organs, and various body parts dotted the landscape like leaves in a forest. It was like a rain of havoc had descended upon the earth, and Ed loved it. The chainsaw responsible for the massacre was still in Ed’s hands. He cackled maniacally as he shredded man after man in the construction site, watching people attempting to flee before slipping in puddles of blood.
He gazed in awe at the raging fires his flamethrower had caused. He laughed at the destruction. He watched as a whole year’s worth of work, discussion, planning, building, went down in a shower of debris.
Workers crawled out from under the carnage and ran off, but that didn’t matter to Ed. it was a fraction compared to the amount he had slain, and look! A few had taken up pipes and hammers, actually trying to fight him! Oh, how amusing. How joyous! How…delicious.
He giggled as he brutally decapitated every last one of them, chopping the last man in half.
Ed turned to leave, when he felt an impact on one of his boots.
A man was clutching it with both hands, blood rushing out of the many gashes in his body.
“Help me…”
Ed knew he was beyond help and would bleed out soon. But he still raised his chainsaw and put him down anyway.
Then he felt another impact, this one on his back. This one was more intense. More forceful. More…painful.
Ed tumbled to the floor, whipping his head around just in time to see and dodge a hammer strike by the man standing over him.
“I’ve got you now, Shadow Butcher!” The man roared, his glasses crooked. His face was covered in scratches, blood staining the front of his plaid shirt. “I…Ed?”
Ed narrowed his eyes beneath his metal beaked mask, before cringing. So Maruice did recognize him.
Too bad that he hesitated with that hammer of his.
Ed drew his burial dagger and stuck it into Maruice’s chest, watching him fall to his knees. Just before he died, Ed leaned down, next to his ear, and whispered,
“See you.”
After Maruice was taken care of, The Shadow Butcher got out a can of blue spray paint and got to work.
=============================
Shadow Butcher Strikes Again!
Ballistic Arsonist burns down newly-constructed library!
Was the headline of The Evercrest Gazette, The Times Dispatch, The Evening Tribune, and practically every single other newspaper in Evercrest.
There was a huge photo displaying the Butcher’s symbol spray-painted onto the floor. It was the mark the Shadow Butcher left after every sick, twisted job of his.
Robin set the newspaper down beside his bagel, the giant, vacant eyes of the symbol staring at him as he took a sip of coffee.
Despite what the Shadow Butcher had done, Robin couldn’t care less. He had other things to care about today. Philosophy on the mass-murdering psychopath could wait for later. He had other things to do, like finishing this bagel, returning that overdue library book, praying that Mike Novak wouldn’t publicly scream his name aga-
“ROBIN!!” Mike’s voice broke the silence. “ARE YOU COMING OR NOT?”
Robin shoved out a sigh. Abandoning his breakfast, left the cafe, and shoved his way through the crowd of pedestrians all trying to get in the Starbucks for the newspaper.
He heaved himself onto the backseat of Mike’s dark green truck.
“Jesus, Mike,” he said. “Could you be any louder?”
“SURE!” Mike roared. He cupped his hands around his mouth. “HI EVERYONE-”
Lydia slapped him on the arm from the shotgun seat. “Shut up!”
Mike cowered like a shamed puppy. He may not listen to Robin, but he was an absolute weasel for Lydia.
Robin coughed. “Anyway,” he said, trying to change the subject. “The forest only has two cabins right?”
Lydia turned around. “Yeah,” she replied. “There’s another group renting out the other cabin, but they’re pretty far apart, sooo…we have the place to ourselves!”
(They were wrong. There were three.)
Mike regained his composure and started roaring again. “WE READY TO GO?”
Robin yawned. “Yeah yeah. Step on it.”
=============================
The green truck drove down the road, unaware that there were eyes on it. Maybe eyes weren’t the right word, considering that they were behind a thick pair of leather goggles, but eyes nonetheless.
The Shadow Butcher smiled. Three cabins worth of people…
Oh, this was going to be so much fun!
