The sky seemed angry as the thunder rolled in. Rain would fall soon. Little droplets sprinkled along the windshield of the truck as it moved along.
The silence in the truck was deafening. No one wanted to face what this evening was leading up to.
"Speed it up!" Damien commanded at his driver.
The man had worry washed over his face.
"This is the fastest we can go over this terrain. The ground is already moist. Any faster and we could lose the trailer and damage the truck. Then we all will be stuck here." He said worriedly.
"I don't care about the trailer. Get us out of here now!" Damien spat as the driver reluctantly accelerated the vehicle attempting to beat the sunset.
The truck bounced uncontrollably on the rough terrain as the trailer began to slip and slide. The driver looked at Damien with uncertainty.
"Alright, slow it down a bit. It is not dark yet, but we need to get to the Circus borders as fast as possible." Damien said as he clenched his jaw.
He made a fist and slammed in onto the armrest of the truck, knocking it off.
"Goddammit!" He shouted as the driver jumped, a bit startled.
Damien's frustration grew with everything that was happening at once.
If he made it to the circus untouched by the darkness, he would still have to face the fact that Nerezza was not negotiating when it came to Zia. Everything was a mess.
He wondered what it is that Nerezza really wanted Zia for. What did she mean by Zia not belonging here? What purpose did Zia serve? He wondered.
All he could remember is finding Zia on his doorstep. He knew she was different, and she was a healer but maybe there was more to the story.
There was something that Nerezza wasn't telling him. Nerezza wouldn't go to these lengths just to have a healer in her possession. He wondered what kind of power Zia brings.
A faint sound of growls was caught by Damien's ears, pulling him out of his thoughts as his heartrate increased. The sky began to darken the closer they got to the boundaries of the Circus.
Damien looked in the side view mirror to see if his greatest fear had come true or maybe his imagination deceived him. He had been anticipating the worst since they left Nerezza.
Suddenly, a cloud of dark mist rolled in like angry waves, spiraling behind the truck. Red eyes beamed throughout the mist as the dark creatures gathered to hunt their prey.
The handlers began screaming and scrambling around the truck and trailer like wild animals in a frenzy. Out of fear, the driver sped up, causing the trailer to sway from side to side as the truck fought to stay on the pathway.
One the handlers who was responsible for monitoring the trailer, grabbed onto back of the truck and tried to edge his way to the front of the vehicle.
His hands shook uncontrollably and began to sweat. As he reached for a metal bar attached to the side of the truck, a dark stalker crept in closely, as it forced him off of the truck, spiraling him into the dark mist as his screams echoed throughout the forest.
Damien looked behind the truck in the direction of his screams and witnessed the man's limbs being ripped from his body and thrown to the side as other dark stalkers feasted on the remains.
The most disturbing thing about the stalkers was that they attacked in no defined form, there was no way to kill them.
The creatures had no heart or organs. They flowed freely through time and space existing in all their evil glory, terrifying everything in its pathway.
How do you get rid of something that you cannot kill? Damien wondered as sweat formed along his forehead.
Upon completing their feast, the stalkers continued on the pathway, hunting the remainder of the men, as the growls grew louder.
The driver made a harsh turn, smashing the trailer in a large tree as part of the trailer broke off into the mist. The trailer twisted on its side, causing the truck to tilt over.
Damien and the driver held on as the truck slammed back down on all four tires as the trailer continued to drag behind it, slowing the truck down.
Damien got up from his seat and grabbed one of the handlers who sat in the back seat of the double cabin truck by his shirt, under his chin.
"Get the goddam trailer off of the is truck!" He shouted.
"They will kill me!" The man replied with fear consuming him. His eyes were moist from crying.
"I don't give a damn! If you don't do as I say, I will kill you myself." Damien threatened as his eyes began glowing red and fangs began to elongate from the sides of his mouth.
The man's eyes grew wide at the sight of Damien's transformation.
"Yes sir." The man complied as he scrambled to go to the back of the trailer and unhook it.
Damien returned to the front seat, next to the driver as his fangs retreated.
"As soon as he unhooks it, speed up and let's clear out of this pool of death." Damien said.
The driver remained quiet and followed instructions.
The handler careful inched his way to the back of the truck as the darkness followed. He head straight for the hook that attached the trailer to the truck as the trailer dragged and swerved behind the truck.
The handler tried his hardest to keep his grip tight as he moved through the chaos.
He reached for the hook on the trailer and unhooked it as he came face to face with darkness.
Red beaming eyes stared into his as the creature growled snatching him off the truck as the mist engulfed him.
His screams invaded Damien's ears as he looked back, satisfied that the job was done.
The driver picked up the pace with his harms shaking at the sound of the man's final scream.
As the stalkers ripped him to pieces. They left nothing but trails of blood behind, along the pathway.
The Circus came into Damien's view as his heart rate eased a bit. The driver sped up with tears streaming down his face as the road became smoother, allowing him to accelerate without swaying and bumping.
The remains of the sunlight peaked through the diminishing overcast cloud's, giving them a small window to get to the circus as the darkness slowed its pace.
As soon as the truck entered the boundaries, Damien and the one remaining handler, jumped out of the truck and ran towards the circus, leaving the darkness behind.