The car has stopped next to an old rickety house that stood alone at the end of the street. It was a small minivan, dark blue in color. It was one of those cars which families and friends usually drove in to a picnic party or out of town on vacation. This time, however, was different. Instead of a group of friends, four men got out of the car, looking serious and dressed clearly not for recreation. Dusk descended and night gradually began enveloping everything around. One of the men, dressed in a dark sport suit, stopped near the entrance of the house. He was looking at an old sagging door that somehow reminded him of a mouth of a toothless homeless beggar on the street.

While looking at the house, it became clear that the structure itself was very old, abandoned many years ago. Everything was covered with weeds and grass, the roof was visibly leaky, the shutters were askew, and there were no window frames. 

"Nice place," Walt chuckled. He knew what they had to do, but just as always, he couldn't help but make a comment in his usual manner.

"Can you be quiet for once?" Andrew, his cousin, has always been unhappy with Walt, because the latter got on his nerves in every possible way. Usually, Andrew remained calm and silent, but not now - the situation was too difficult.

"Stay calm, Drew." Walter uttered. "You've always been great at being a reinforced concrete slab on the edge of the road." Walt was nervous, which could be heard in his voice, but him being harsh and unyielding, he uttered this without hesitation. Walter has always been like that. Andrew turned even angrier, because more than Andrew disliked verbal attacks, he disliked being called Drew. He could easily get into a fight, which actually happened many times just for being called by that name, by accident or on purpose. No one knew why he hated the name Drew, and Andrew himself kept it private.

"I'm going to smash you in the head!" Andrew grabbed a stump of a tree that was lying nearby. Walt turned around and took a defensive position. The guys were on edge. A sudden blast of a shotgun distracted both of them. They turned around - Jonah, who had been standing by the trunk all this time, has stopped being tolerant.

"Finish it, it's time to do what we came here for."

No one argued with Jonah - a military man who served in one of the hot spots in East Asia was an inflexible authority in this company. No one argued with him and his opinion was always respected. Jonah, on the other hand, was taciturn, he kept up the conversation, but never spoke first. But Jonah began to behave a little differently after a bunch of townsfolk disappeared. He became harsher and less tolerant of everything that surrounded him. He could, for example, allow himself more than usual even in an ordinary conversation and sometimes persuaded with force.

The men took everything they needed out of the car - baseball bats, metal rods and, along with a shotgun, a pair of pistols and flashlights. Only one man did not take any firearms. 

His name was Luke.

"Our pacifist is back in town." Walt did not stop making barbs. Luke looked at him reproachfully, and finally took the baseball bat.

"Don't be afraid, I'll strangle this murderer with my bare hands." Luke was a big guy and a big beer lover with a strong punch capable of breaking a couple of boards. Luke has recently won the third place at an arm wrestling competition, which secured his right to be the strongest in the company.

"So, guys, listen carefully. The scum that killed Kira is hiding in this house. We are going to act like this. We walk-in in two groups. Walt and I will take the first floor, Luke and Andrew will go to the second one." Jonah outlined a plan of action that suited everyone.

"Well, the killer chose a place no one would come to." Walt couldn't help but remark. Everyone knew what kind of house it was. There were urban legends about this place, each sounded different from the other, but the essence was always the same: many years ago, an unsociable old man lived in this house. He practiced black magic. Allegedly, a greenish glow often made its way out of the windows of his house at night and terrible screams were heard. One day, children began to disappear in the neighborhood. Without thinking twice, the locals blamed the old man and raided his house. However, when the crowd broke into the kitchen, the old man was caught doing an impossibly terrifying thing. He was busy dismembering the corpses of children with a butcher's axe. He immediately attacked those who entered and ended up being killed on the spot. A cellar was opened from the kitchen, which led to a staircase down. Apparently, that was where he used to dump the severed body parts.

Every child knew this story and it was strictly forbidden to enter the territory of this house. But since a series of murders swept through the area the locals started talking about this house again. However, no one dared to visit it. And only a small group of four friends, who has known each other since school, decided to ignore the urban fables. They were Walt, Jonah, Luke and Andrew. And after the city police published the suspect's description and possible location, it took these four only half an hour to get to this old house. According to witnesses, almost all the girls who went missing attended the Milky Paradise club, where various kinds of informal gatherings often took place. There was a very strange DJ among the performers whose name no one knew. His stage name was "D-tri-Ville" and he often played progressive music, which gained popularity amongst the youth. And, as the investigation showed, every evening since his entry, one of the young girls disappeared. According to rumors, they all tried to get an autograph or a phone number from "D-tri-Ville", some of them went as far as visiting the DJs dressing room. Since all the information about the identity of the performer was classified, the journalists insisted on announcing a possible suspect and his location. Being pressed by the public and media the police department was obliged to make a statement. The orientation was announced at five in the evening by the chief of police, who was an obese man with greasy hair and a plump face. He publicly announced the signs of the wanted man. The suspect was a tall guy in a dark hoodie with a hood pulled over his face.

"He's not going to get out of here alive today," Jonah replied, slapped Walt on the back and led him away. 

They went inside the house through the front door. No bulging was needed because the door collapsed to the floor after the slightest push. The beams of the lanterns illuminated the shabby walls of the hallway. The doorway was almost completely covered with cobwebs. To the left of the hallway was the kitchen, which was a complete mess; in the center on the floor laid a pile of various junk - tables, chairs, barrels and even large stones. Using a flashlight, Walt noticed a trail of blood on the floor.

"Here, look. What is it, blood?"

"Looks like it is. Do you see where it's coming from? "Jonah illuminated everything around, even the walls, but the more he shone, the more obvious it became that the debris had to be cleared first.

"I don't like all this. Of course, you've been to many places and seen a lot, but I got the feeling that we are in a place where something really terrible has happened. And these are not children's bedtime stories anymore."

"Walt. Twelve girls are missing. Kira is one of them. If you're scared, just say so, don't fool around."

"Am I scared? Huh-huh! You should've judged better!"

Walt turned to the garbage dump and began clearing the rubble. They men lost track of time, but after a while they found a cellar, where, in fact, traces of blood led and where, in fact, according to a tale, a terrifying creature was kept, summoned by the old man straight from hell. The cellar was closed, filled up with various rubbish, and the house was boarded up. According to the legend, sometimes strange sounds could still be heard from there. It is rumored that the ghost of this monster has not found peace and lives there. And nobody should disturb it. 

The trash was dragged out into the hallway. Finally, Walt took a hold of the handle and opened the hatch leading into the cold and damp, dark abyss. The beams of the flashlights illuminated a pile of bones of the children, judging by the size. A chilling fear swept through Walt's body like a whirlwind. He was stunned for a while - the stories, then, weren't fictional after all.

"Hey, is anyone alive?" Jonah shouted, hoping to hear at least someone's voice. He seemed completely unconcerned by what he saw. Nerves of steel. Then, Jonah took a step towards the stairs leading down. Walt's face twisted even more.

"What are you doing?

"I'm going downstairs," Jonah replied coldly, even slightly detached.

"Careful, the stairway may be broken or missing." Walt couldn't believe that Jonah had the guts to take such a step. He wanted to stop him, but it was too late - Jonah took his flashlight in his teeth and quickly rushed down. After a while, a crunch was heard. It seemed that something was being crushed down there. 

"I'm going to go downstairs too!" Walt shouted down and hurried off, as if he were visiting a haven of unknown evil.

"Wait, don't! The ladder is barely holding up, if it breaks we won't be able to climb up. And the cellar is deep. If the two of us get stuck in here, it will be pretty sad."

"Okay, tell me everything you see."

"Nothing special yet..." Jonah hesitated as he began to light his way into the depths of the cellar. After a while, the sound of his footsteps stopped. Walt began to feel nervous and trembling in his knees. He wondered what was happening and why there was such an eerie silence downstairs.

"Jonah!" Walt shouted, but no one answered.

"Jonah, answer me!" and again silence.

Suddenly, there was a noise in the cellar, as if someone rushed to the stairs, crushing the bones covering the ground with their boots. Walt's flashlight illuminated John convulsively climbing the stairs. All of a sudden the partition broke down and only Walt's hand automatically grabbed his friend's hand. A few seconds later, Walt, showing remarkable abilities, pulled Jonah out. He was pale; his eyes seemed to be staring at a single point, and his other hand was tightly gripping the handle of a shotgun. The flashlight was left below, treacherously illuminating the bones on the floor.

"What happened?!" Walt was trying to bring John back to his senses.

"Let's go!" Jonah rushed out of the kitchen and stumbled towards the main doorway, but they were not destined to get out.

In the doorway they were met by something that looked like a huge goat; the animal stood on its hind legs, its eyes shone with a bright purple color, huge horns dripping with an unknown liquid, and its black fur, like protective armor, enveloped the entire body.

The creature suddenly rushed towards Jonah and Walt and in the blink of an eye, as if on a hinge, impaled John on the horns. It was so fast that Jonah, with his finger still on the trigger of the shotgun, couldn't make a shot.

"Oooo!" sang the creature on whose horns Walt's friend was slowly dying, as if it had a loud bass like a trumpet.

"Fire!" Walt shouted, but Jonah was bleeding out and couldn't pull the trigger.

"I can't..." John went all pale and suddenly fell silent. The creature shook its head sharply and Jonah fell down like a rag doll. He didn't move afterwards. Walt had no choice but to swing the bat. But at that very moment, a goat-like creature, went back on all four and, deflecting the blow, began slowly approaching Walt.

"Leeeoooaaaa!" the monster bass was shaking the walls. Walt was scared, but he kept swinging the bat. The goat deftly beat off his every blow with its horns.

Walt swung the bat again and hit the goat's head. The bat shattered into splinters, and the goat only continued to advance, slowly and confidently clacking its hooves. The violet light which was coming out of his eyes got brighter and brighter, and Walt could see better and better what kind of creature he was dealing with. The goat's head was completely bony, the horns were like two metal crossbars, pointed at the ends. The hooves were huge, and every click of them echoed in Walt's ears. The fur, in turn, turned out to be pieces of dark and light skin wrapped around the body. The rotten smell and the pieces hanging from all sides caused incredible disgust and Walt restrained himself from throwing up.

"Oookaaay chop-chop..."

Walt pulled out a gun in a hurry and started shooting. He wasn't the best shot, but he could have sworn he hit the monster. However, this did not stop the goat. It was getting closer and closer, and Walt had to step back, all the way to the kitchen.

"What do you want? Walt blurted out angrily, exhausting the last rounds.

"blink-blink..." the creature boomed, completely ignoring Walt.

"Eh, the devil..." Walt stumbled and found that the creature had driven him into the kitchen, almost into the corner. All that remained was to either accept his fate or jump into the cellar.

"Who didn't listen to mommy? Who was scattering the dough?" The bass changed to a heart-rending scream, the words became legible. Walt understood everything - he only had a few seconds left. Down to the cellar or be strung up like John.

"The one on the horns will find his place!!!" The goat screamed and rushed at full speed at Walt, who stepped into the cellar at the very last moment. The monster flew by without hitting Walt, who ended up face-down on the bones. He looked up. The monster growled, reared-up and ran out of the kitchen with a loud clatter of hooves.

Walt turned on the flashlight and looked around the cellar. Bones were everywhere. It was dark, however there was a tiny thin ray of light ahead. Walt quickly got up and rushed to the single source of light. When he reached the end, a brightly lit room appeared in front of him, where in the center of it sat the same DJ, in a black hoodie, pulled over his face.

"Tell me, do you believe the ales now?" DJ asked without looking up.

"What the fuck is going on here? Where's Kira? "Walt was scared, but that didn't stop him from being serious. The DJ did not answer, but only stretched out his hand to the left and pointed at the door with his finger. Walt rushed to the door and opened it and found himself in a garden where cherries were blooming. A sad Kira was sitting next to one of the trees, and was folding fallen leaves. Walt ran up to her and grabbed her by the arm in an attempt to drag her out of that place.

"Let go, Walt," Kira ordered softly. Her eyes have filled with tears.

"We've come here for you..." Walt began, but Kira interrupted him.

"No, Walt. The goat has come for you. You will be punished here. Like me."

"What are you saying? Let's go quickly..."

"No! I'm staying here! This is the only way out!"

"What's the matter with you!?" Walt was furious. He barely escaped death, while Jonah couldn't stay alive. His temples were throbbing, and his heart was pounding at a rapid rate.

"It's just you and Luke left. You either run away or meet the goat. That's the only way..." Kira started, but was interrupted by the sound of hooves. They were approaching them quickly from the direction of the garden. Huge horns appeared in the distance. Walt tried to grab Kira, but she turned away. He had no choice but to run. With all his might, Walt rushed to the door and pulled the handle open. He had only taken a few steps when Luke appeared on the threshold. He was covered in blood, with a shotgun in his hands. Walt was taken aback and took a step back. At that very moment, the horns bit into Walt's body. Blood poured from everywhere, and he himself was immobilized. Now he understood why Jonah couldn't shoot. Walt himself now couldn't move no matter how much he wanted to. He could only contemplate how Luke, firing a shotgun, was trying to overcome a huge monster.

"Run..." Walt squeezed out of himself and fell down to the ground. His eyes were slowly closing, his life was leaving him. He saw Luke desperately trying to defeat the Goat, but it was all in vain. The last thing Walt saw was Luke running away, leaving him and Kira alone with the Goat. Walt's eyes closed.

Luke, meanwhile, ran with all his might along the corridor strewn with bones, and having reached the opening from the cellar by a rope, which he lowered for himself, he climbed up. Rushing out of the kitchen, he found himself in front of the doorway. There was no one guarding it this time and Luke jumped out of the house into the night. He shone his flashlight in all directions like a maniac, but couldn't see where the Goat was. Quickly taking out the keychain, Luke jumped into the car, inserted the key into the ignition lock and pressed the gas pedal to the floor. He was covered in blood, which began to dry up and become sticky. Luke didn't know where to drive, he was just trying to escape anywhere really. After what seemed like a long drive he stopped the car. There was no one on the road. Anger and fear tore at him inside out.

"The devil!!!!" He shouted. Luke pounded on the steering wheel with all his might until he heard the sound of a siren. He raised his head - in front of him, in the distance, he could see the signaling lights of a police car. Luke began to honk to get their attention. Two tall guys in uniform got out of their vehicle and approached Luke's car.

"Sir, are you all right?" One of the policemen asked and shone a flashlight.

"No, it's not okay. I need help..." Luke looked at the police, who were taken aback by what they saw. It was even worse than Luke expected. He began to doze off and slowly closed his eyes only to realize that his consciousness was leaving him. It felt like dying, with one exception: Luke would wake up in a few hours. The last thing he saw, closing his eyes, was the police talking on the radio. Apparently, it was really bad. He hoped and begged silently so that they wouldn't track him back to the damned house.