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The Blood and Rain of Pennsylvania

In 1953 Heinsburg, Pennsylvania, a young girl played in the grass by the forest edge. The mother and father sat upon their porch swing at the front of the cottage, watching their child. Spontaneously, dark clouds covered the sky, yet the parents thought nothing of it, for rain was a common occurrence and never posed any danger to threaten their well-being. “Papa!” the young girl clamored,“ Papa!” At that moment the birds stopped chirping, the breeze stopped blowing, and the clouds lay still as a stone in the sky. Then a droplet landed before the small girl, yet it was no ordinary rain. More droplets poured from the sky, intensifying by the second. A droplet landed on the girl and burned a hole in her skin. The little girl shrieked and shouted, “ MAMA, PAPA!” The parents stood abruptly, as the downpour was as thick as a bloody lake. The blood, drenched the girl and burned her flesh, she yelped for help, and her parents ran after their child to save her from this calamity. They were foolish to do so, for the blood had coated their skin the second they left the shelter of the cottage porch. They wailed in pain and howled for help, yet they were too late, for the blood rain had a hold of them, and was not letting go. Mercy was yet a tear, that could not be shed as the blood provided immolation to their souls. Their remains were left to rot in the field, as the clouds vacated as quickly as they had come.
****
At the dawn of the next day, two young men stumbled across the pasture, their names were Lewis and James. Two brothers whose bond was unbreakable and would never be so shattered as ice when broken in the winter. They found the bodies sprawled across the field, missing their skin and flesh. Horrified by the sight, the brothers reported their findings to the mayor, who organized a town meeting. The meeting was mandatory for all of the villagers in the area, for this was a large calamity that they had put one’s finger on. The townspeople, filed into the town square, talking amongst themselves, and sharing rumors that they had heard about. “ I heard that a murderer came and clutched their souls and tore the skin right off their flesh!” a woman screeched to her companions. “ No, no, I heard they killed their daughter and felt guilty so burned their own skin off!” yelled an old man. Many false stories were shared throughout the crowd, yet clarity was brought when the major announced what had happened. “ People of Heinsburg, I am here to deliver the news of the death of the Banford family,” declared the mayor. Whispers filled the crowd and worried glances were shared between the people. “ The cause of this inconvenience is the blood rain,” delivered the mayor. Gasps fluttered throughout the crowd, and an old lady shouted, “ What is the blood rain?” The mayor stared at the lady and for a split second you could see the confusion and despair in his eyes, yet the mayor quickly recollected his thoughts and was able to speak once more, “ We do not know what this strange occurrence is, yet what we do know is that the rain seems to only poor on the edge of the wood.”
At this point, the people had no response, for they were frozen in shock and fear. Silence filled the room as an uncomfortable unwanted guest until James spoke before the crowd. “ I think we should set an expedition to find the source of this terror and end it for good.” The townspeople looked at him like he was crazy and stared at him as if he had horns upon his head. No one spoke, nor cared to acknowledge the boy, in fear of what would come to them if they so set into the dangerous wood that lurked beyond the forest edge. His brother came to the rescue and put in the picture of why they should do such a thing, “ My fellow people, this journey seems rough and hard, yet we are tough people and can overcome such things. My brother James, provides a great plan that can aid our town greatly, and help us belittle the number of deaths that our town does posses.” Through more discussion, finally, a group of men, including, Lewis and James, agreed to venture off into the wood in hope of destroying the source of the bloody rain.
****
The next day the men had their rucksacks and crossed the forest edge into the wood. They had hope and resources along their backs as they went deeper into the plantation. The deeper they went, the more unsettled they felt, and the more fear consumed their bodies. One by one, many of the men would disappear and not return. The men assumed they became frightened and had turned back home, yet Lewis had a trepidation this was not the case. That eventide, they men set camp by a lake, and when you looked upon it, you could see not the substratum of the body of water. When the sun slept, the moon did arise from her wistful sleep, and her place set high upon the sky. Two men sat watch, one on the brink of slumber, the other staring at the moon in the welkin. “ Brother, are thou awake?” one murmured to the other. “ Yes, I cannot find drowse,” James whispered.“ Do you mind if I rest my eyes for a bit James?” Lewis implored. James did not retort but just nodded his head.
****
 Several hours later, Lewis awoke to a sound, for when he did, the sky was still as black as a raven, assuming that they were still upon night. Lewis turned his fore towards James, only to see that his dear brother was missing. In alarm, Lewis shouted to his companions, only to find them dead. Each body sprawled by the lake. The lake! The lake was now the color of blood and bubbled as if at the boiling point. Lewis stood in terror as a figure arose from the body of water. It was a creature with scarlet horns and blood emanating from its body; its eyes glowed a carmine red, and when it spoke, it was the most dreadful sound one could hear. “Lewis.” the beast muttered. Lewis fell to the ground from the dire blare that the beast released from its lips. Lewis was only able to stutter as he spoke, “ Ho…w do y..o.u k..now my n…ame?” The beast looked at him with no hate in his eyes as he remarked, “It is I, James your brother, and I spared you because our bond is unbreakable and I love you as any brother would love another.” Lewis stared at the beast in utter shock and did not believe what was spoken, yet Lewis saw the ring his brother always wore on the right hand of the creature; he knew this was his brother. Lewis felt betrayed on so many levels and wondered how his own brother could be such a horrifying thing, “ How?” Lewis asked, “ How could thou be my brother when our very own mother delivered us from the womb and we had no such imperfections as you posses.” James looked at Lewis with empathy in his eyes, “I am not the original James, I am but a replacement.”. Lewis was not satisfied with this response and was full of frustration and confusion as he asked, “ Where is my brother, and what tis your true name?” The beast slowly responded, “ I am Malum of the Northern realm.” Lewis gaze did not leave the line of sight to the beast, he ran his fingers through his ginger hair and took a large breath. “ WHAT HAPPENED TO MY TRUE BROTHER YOU FOUL CREATURE!” Lewis screamed at Malum with wrath in his voice. Malum did not reply, but vamoosed from the lake and started walking towards Lewis. Lewis screamed a multitude of times until finally, he stopped and replied. “As a changeling as myself, I was required to take the form of a human being. The person I replace cannot continue to live, so to replace him, I was required to take his life.” Lewis falls to his knees and a single tear falls from his cheek, a tear of pain, loss, and betrayal. Lewis gently wipes his tear away and looks at Malum with a blank expression. A few moments later as Malum gets closer, Lewis’s eyes burn in disgust and hate. He slowly reaches for the knife in his pocket and starts to rise as fast as the leaves fall off the trees in the fall. He grunts and lunges toward Malum, piercing his flesh with his knife. He stabs his heart over and over again until Malum changes his form into James once more. “ Lewis,” James muttered. Lewis’s eyes filled with tears at the sight of his twin, each identical to one other with a face full of freckles and ginger hair. Even though the greatest evil lay before him, Lewis could not deny he still loved his brother. Lewis clutched the knife and began to sob, he sat next to James with his knees clutched to his chest. Lewis looked towards James with love in his eyes, a brother's bond could not easily be broken even if they were not biologically brothers. As Lewis cried, clouds started to form and rain began to fall, yet this time it was only ordinary rain; clear and pure water spouted from the sky. The bloody lake turned normal once again, and in James's final breaths, Lewis hugged his brother tight and gripped his clothing.“I am so sorry James,” Lewis cried, “ I AM SO SORRY!” James’s life was quickly leaving him, yet he used all his final power to mutter, “ I am sorry Lewis. I am so sorry.” James’s eyes said it all, and they shared one final hug before James held lifeless eyes. Lewis sat in despair and sadness, as his only friend, his only brother, was gone, and it was his fault.
****
Lewis did feel remorse but had made the right decision, many lives were lost at the hand of Malum, and only more destruction was yet to come if Malum had continued to live.  As Lewis grew old and his hair turned white, he still longed for his brother’s company and only wished he was still here with him. However, this did not satisfy the heart of Lewis, for his heart only became colder over time, yet he was the rain to the blood of his brother. Forever in time, they were known as the Blood and Rain of Pennsylvania.
Written by SunFox
Published
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