Dance of Death

I still have faint memories of that night. Friday, the 13th, it was. It was a night, darker than usual, thick mist spread across miles, weather rather chilly.

Having a merry time drinking at the local pub, I was enjoying, all by myself. It was getting darker by the second, colder, too. I had an old shack to my name, where I passed my days and nights. A forest, rather thick, came in the path towards my place from the pub.

I had the habit to cross it, alone, every night. But this time, it wasn’t the same. It wasn’t, at all. An unusual feeling of fear, an unusual feeling of fright, an unusual feeling of terror was gripping me tight, tighter by the moment.

The mist was thick. The moon and stars, barely visible. Light, very low. I held out my lantern, drew out my sword, and started my journey back to my shack. It was quiet. I never had been in such silence.

I walked through the bushes, not aware of a presence, a presence causing the unusual chill, a presence watching my every move, a presence which was ready to pounce on me, which was so near to me.

All of a sudden, I realized, I was being followed. Being followed by something, not human, something not normal, something rather ghastly.

Feeling scared, I fell to my knees. Something rushed to me from the trees. I shuddered, my sword fell, my lantern still in my hand. I saw something which made my eyes pop out. Was it a spirit, a ghoul, a zombie, a ghost, I do not know.

I was caught. It took me to an unholy place. It was not alone. I could not believe my eyes. There were hundreds of thousands of them. I felt a chill run down my spine. The sight was scarier than any thing I had ever seen. All of them, dancing and singing by the blaze.

A few of them neared me and the spirit with me. They summoned me to join in with them, join in to the DANCE OF DEATH. I did as was told. I followed them into the circle of fire. They led me to the middle.

I was numb with fear. It felt like time had stopped still. But somehow, I wanted to go. I wanted to go to the blaze. It was scary. Magical, but scary. The blaze of the fire did me no harm, as I walked on red hot coals towards it.

It felt as though I was in a trance, my spirit, being lifted away from me. And then I danced with them. I pranced with them. I sang with them. I saw them straight in the eye. Silvery eyes, they had. They had death in them. They were undead, all of them. They had ascended from HELL.

As I danced with the undead, my free spirit, was high above, laughing and howling down at me. Below it, my undead body just danced the circle of dead.

When the time came to reunite us both, is when my free spirit, came back down to me. I did not know if I was dead or alive, while the others, all undead, danced around me. I realized what was happening. My death was near. ‘If they realize I am alive, I will die’, I thought.

By luck, a skirmish started among them, and they took their attention away from me. When they took their ghastly gaze from me, I fled.

I ran like a wild forest fire, faster then hell. I did not want to glance behind. When you know your time is about to end, you realize it. Strangely, I did not. I dared to see behind. No one was following me. All I could see was a skirmish by the side of the blaze.

I ran and reached my shack. Rushed straight in, still cold with fear and the shock of what I had just witnessed and done. This incident still remains fresh in my memories.

To this day, I guess, I do not know, just why they let me get away. But all I know is that I will never go dancing again, till I dance with the DEAD, or rather, the UNDEAD.