The Maybrick Estate: The Devil's nest

There was a luminescent sheen that glistened on the abomination's skin in the glow of the neon light. Steam rose from the muscular tissue as if we were standing in the middle of a walk in freezer.

Thankfully were weren't, trapped in a confined space with no means of escape - yes, but adding the cold to the equation would have added salt to the wound. So I could at least be thankful that while the situation was bad - It could still be much worse.

The Beast ripped the silver chain from around it's neck and laughed,

"Do you really think this puny scrap of metal is going to save your souls? It did nothing for Jacob O'Neil". The cross lazily fell through the beasts fingers on to the tiled floor with a chimed tinkle.

"Who are you?" I asked the putrid being as it hovered its way closer toward Victor and I.

"My name is Raum, I am the Great Earl of hell, your friend O'Neil was merely a vessel, a sacrifice offered to me as a gateway into the realm of Gods Children, he no longer resides in this plane of existence, his body now belongs to me".

The beast elegantly bowed as if despite his intentions to kill us both, he at least offered us his respect while introducing himself - it was a delay all the same whether or not it was intended as a an honor or an actual act of mockery toward us.

Victor had obviously interpreted it as the latter.

"Fucking murderer" he spat as he raised the sawn-off shotgun and fired off two shells, spraying Raum with pellets that ripped through the exposed flesh and shattered the already deformed bone structure of Raums chest and mid section. Raum stood in shock, standing unmoved from his spot despite the blast from the shotgun being enough to send a normal human being flying across the room. Raum placed a clawed hand to the open hollow wound as black gritty smoke escaped the orifice. He fell to his knees whimpering in high pitch like a child with a grazed elbow ending the over dramatic performance by slumping the rest of his body to the floor.

Dead....

Victor snapped the shotgun in half and replaced the spent shells as he approached Raums body laying like a mound of rancid meat on floor. Victor knelt beside him and retrieved the cross that had belonged to O'Neil which he clenched tightly in his fist as he got to his feet.

"I have no regrets, that is no longer O'Neil", he said out loud as some sort of justification for firing at the body that had once belonged to his friend.

I placed a hand on his shoulder a one part reassurance and the other part for saving our lives.

***

"Damnit Wake up!"

A mechanical sound echoed throughout the room accompanied by a rumble that shook the room. A cool breeze entered the small room as a gap appeared across the room. The wall that led to the Library was opening once more, bellowing dust and grit into the air as it sunk into the floor.

Victor stood over me, jabbing his steel capped boot into my side.

"You drifted off" Victor acknowledged, "I guess my story isn't that riveting to everyone" he said with a little annoyance in his voice.

"I'm sorry" I said as I tried to rub the blur from my eyes and trying to adjust to the lighting in the room. The skinned body of O'Neil still swung lightly from the ceiling in the middle of the room. The whole thing - the body coming to life, the demon Raum - all a dream?

The house seems to be having some sort of an effect on my sanity, I can no longer draw the line between dream and reality other than what seems to be dream comes across as being slightly more fantastical.

Dreams and Demons aside, there is still a monster lurking within these walls. Someone or something murdered and tortured the man that hung before us. Whether disfigured looking hulks that resemble an amalgamation of the grotesque or purely taking human form, monsters do reside in both planes of existence.

Maria let out a startled scream as the library wall sunk beneath the ground, exposing Victor, myself and the body of O'Neil to her.

"Don't Move!" Victor yelled holding his palms out to halt Maria from moving from her spot.

"The last thing we want is for all three of us trapped in here alone with no means of escape" he mumbled on the quiet.

Maria nodded her head and stayed put, she was as still as a possum in headlights anyhow. Her eyes fixed on O'Neils remains. It must have come as a shock to her to first of all stumble upon the button in the floor in the library and then of course to see ( but not hear ) the wall come falling to the floor - and then of course the sight on the other side of the wall would have been most disturbing for her.

Victor stepped outside of the tiled room and back into the Library. Maria glanced into his eyes and half mouthed, half mumbled the words "We 'ave to ge' ou' of 'ere. We no' alone, it's no' safe".

"I know......I know" Victor answered, "but we have to find the others first"

I appeared that Maria agreed with him to a certain degree, however she followed his response with "She 'ere, I c'n fee' it".

To whom the "She" was that Maria referred to was uncertain, but It didn't take a rocket scientist to come up with the theory that their past was linked to this Estate - Was Maria referring to Ellanor Sutherland? could Ellanor be hiding out somewhere in the house? The idea seemed a little to convenient but with the happenings over the last couple of days I'm prepared for almost anything.

Maria pointed toward O'Neils body hanging in the small tiled room, "Who?" she asked Victor, her eyes fixed to his lips awaiting his answer.
Victor took a moment before answering, it was as if he was responsible for the demise of one of their own - he didn't she a tear, nor did he break down, but there was a tension in his manner as he broke the news to Maria - whom placed her hands to her mouth in shock and shed a tear for both of them.

"Please!" Maria pleaded - or could it have been "Police", either way Victor shook his head in refusal.

Victor broke away from Maria, "We need to get him down" he instructed, "do you know of any refrigerators or freezers that we may be able to place Jacob in?.......you know, so that he doesn't smell" He asked.

I shrugged my shoulders - I'd done very little exploring of the house since being here, but surely there would be a kitchen with some a freezer or cold storage of sorts, whether or not it was in working condition would be a different story.

"Where have you been within the house?" I asked Victor, " I mean, since my return this afternoon, how long had you been here? enough to locate and get the power reconnected obviously"

"The power is running off a generator, with a full tank of fuel. It should last a few days hopefully but there were plenty of refill drums in the basement below the caretakers shed out in the back courtyard" Victor scratched his head, thinking, " I didn't come across any kitchens on my way out to the courtyard, only bedrooms, sun rooms and galleries, all of which led from one of the doors from the foyer, none of which led me back to the foyer other than the way that I'd already come. Which could mean that there are potentially a greater number of rooms behind every one of those doors in the foyer. And who knows, what's behind the other doors down the hall, this library is only one of many and already it proves that there are also hidden rooms and passages within. This place is a fucking Labyrinth! a maze of evil..........the Devil's nest!"

"Interesting to know.What are you suggesting we do? split up?" I asked,

"Safety in numbers is best in my opinion. It may take us longer to find a kitchen or the rest of your friends but we have a better chance of survival against whoever......whatever did that to O'Neil if we stick together. Agreed?"

"Agreed", Victor answered, "and may I suggest that It may be a good idea to keep a record.....a map of sorts to the house so that we can find our way around without getting lost".

"That's, not such a bad idea, we can start some place central, like the foyer and work our way from there, it will at least give me a little bit more sanity in regards to the impossible structures to the house that I may or may not have experienced".

"May or may not?"

"In other words I have a feeling that the house is fucking with me".

The duo followed as I exited the Library and back into the hall, being sure to leave the Library door open enough to let the light spill down into the dark corners making it easier to navigate our way back to the foyer.

"I have a paper and pens in my room on the second floor of the foyer, It should do the trick to document our progress"