Chapter Text
As the full moon rises above the horizon of the Monongahela national forest treeline, the needles of the evergreens shimmer. The sky is clear for the first time in a week, the snowfall finally residing, allowing the fresh laid snow to reflect the light; the forest last fully lit.
The air is quiet, save for the rustle of the pine trees as a light breeze blows through them.
However, a towering figure moves through the night, unnatural and with no rhythm. Heavy footfalls crunch into the inches of powdery snow, and as it pulls out, it trails white dust in its wake.
It lumbers through the brush, pulling bushes and branches aside, on the hunt. It pauses, takes a deep, curious sniff, and turns to face a particularly large patch of shrubbery.
As it shambles slowly towards the bushes, it hesitates as it hears a low growl. A medium black bear emerges slowly from the leaves, slowly prowling yet leading the figure away from its territory. They share a pseudo dance, staying an appropriate distance between each other, spinning slowly in a circle.
Suddenly, the black bear surges, a loud growl echoing through the trees as it attempts to take a swipe at the creature. As it stands on its hind legs, pushing its claws forward into the creature… Its paws become stuck. A thick, black tar attempts to curl its way around the front legs of the animal; weaving a sick, sticky tangle of slime that crawls up and begins to devour the creature whole.
As its body begins to be sucked into this being, it cries out once more, a pained, panicked roar towards the bushes. The shrubbery rustles as two baby bears bolt in the opposite direction of the scene, not stopping to look back.
It's quiet again. The creature’s stature grows as it embraces the black bear in its makeup.
The silence is once again broken as a shotgun is cocked and unloaded against the back of the creature. It flinches, only for the gross substance holding it together to spit out the slugs, still completely intact. It turns slowly, facing the source.
“Shit.” A man drops his shotgun and bolts in the opposite direction, sprinting for his life.
The monster hesitates before chasing after its prey.
//
It was December in Kepler, and given that the majority of animals were now hibernating for the winter; most of Blueberry’s job now entailed staying by the desk to work dispatch. She sighs as she looks out the window to see a gorgeous full moon in a clear, star-dotted sky; bored, but happy to enjoy the view.
Her brief admiration was broken by the landline phone against the wall ringing loudly. She walks over and grabs the handle before pressing it against her ear.
“Ranger Blueberry Skye, how may I assist?”
The noises on the other end of the phone are terrifying and frantic. It sounded like a man struggling to catch his breath as heavy footfalls approached.
“Hello?”
Her greeting was met with nothing but snarls and growls as she hears quickly receding footsteps, then the sound of a car screeching its tires against pavement. What laid beyond was some kind of guttural groaning inlaid with sighing and pained gurgling.
Without another word, she hangs up the phone, grabs her hat, flashlight, and the keys to her truck and rushes out the door.
She speeds down as carefully as she can to her branch of the Monongahela before parking and leaving her ranger truck running.
Her breath is shallow, the cold air stinging her lungs as she walks carefully through the snow covered woods to see if there were any animals or people in the area. She comes across a shotgun, two intact slugs laying right beside it. She grimaces.
She traces a trail footprints with the beam of her flashlight, one set of human-esque… One set more uneven and unlike any animal track she'd ever seen.
Suddenly, a dark, unnaturally fast figure darts between the trees, just barely missing the shine of her light.
“Hello?” She says shakily into the wind, attempting to make common sense of the situation. “If this is a prank it isn't funny.”
A branch snaps to her right and as she turns to face the sound, her flashlight catches a dozen eyes, all on one being; a scary amalgamation of aggravated animals. It stood at least 8 feet tall above her, moving and undulating in almost a glitch like fashion. Its pelt, pelts? were glued together with what appeared to be a sticky black tar. It groaned as it took a curious step towards her.
Blueberry’s hands shook as she attempted to keep the light on it.
This was no animal.
As calmly as she could, she reached down for the radio attached at her hip, and held her thumb firmly against the side of it. As it buzzed to life, the static of the output seemed to agitate the creature as it winced and shuddered.
“T-This is Ranger Blueberry Skye, requesting any and all backup near Greenbriar. I've got a… s-situation.” She continues her hold of light on the creature as she catches her truck in her peripherals. She gulps and lets out a shuddering sigh of relief when she hears another person on the end of the line.
“Ranger Skye--*KRRRCH…*” The radio’s output sputters out a loud screech of static as the creature's eyes zero in on it.
It huffs, growls, and charges in her direction. She drops her flashlight as she turns on her heels and takes off in a sprint towards her truck, bobbing in between the trees in an attempt to slow the creature.
“No, no--!” Her jacket catches a branch as it slows her down only for a half second. A moment was all it took however, as the creature reached out and snapped her arm in between two separate jaws and clamped down with harsh, sharp teeth.
"Ugh!" She pulled away with all the strength she had as she felt flesh and fabric tear as the blood began to soak through her uniform.
The receiver on the device began to agitate the creature again, so in a moment of panic, she turned the volume all the way up before chucking it at the creature’s face; or, well, one of its faces. It hissed and backed away, the sound hindering it just enough so she should make it back to her truck and speed away.
As she attempted to catch her breath, she began to wince at the growing pain in her arm, alongside the spreading puddle of blood gathering on the arm of her jacket and beginning to drip onto the fabric seats.
She looked to the right, up the hill, where a soft orange glow met her eyes.
Amnesty lodge. Close enough.
//
Sebastian nodded his head to the quiet beat of the radio as he drove through the woods, a wooden sign coming up over the bend into view. It was a worn, brown wooden sign, with pine trees lining the edges; green letters stood out amongst the pines and read:
Kepler Welcomes You!
As he drove further into Kepler, he noticed the moon begin to creep its way across the sky. It was late. No harm in staying the night, he’d head back out in the morning. As he passed through the small town, all glowing signs advertising motels showed “no vacancy”. He continued down the main drag, taking it all in and quietly hoping he wasn’t SOL.
As he crested the hill, a faint orange light shone through the trees. It appeared to be a lodge nestled into the side of the mountain. He shrugged to himself before turning off and making his way carefully up the driveway. He parked and took a minute to admire the building from inside his car.
It was a quaint place. The snow lining the drive accented the Christmas decorations that painted the outside windows and beams in a picturesque, almost cliche way. A smoke stack jutted out from the side of the building, a steady plume of wood-burned smoke flowed gently through the top. He also took note of the steam emanating from behind the building; he could barely see what looked to be a natural hot spring attached to the back of the lodge itself.
It was worth a shot to see if they had any vacancies, beats sleeping in a cold car. He got out, stretching out his tense muscles before reaching in to grab Daisy and sling her around his back before locking his car and heading up the cleared path.
He walked up the ramp to the porch before hesitating right at the door. He heard soft piano music coming from inside, a tune he instantly recognized.
He nods with a smile before opening the door. As he does, the warmth of the lobby washes over his body and fills him with a feeling of home; something he hadn’t felt since he left. Patrons of the lodge dotted the edges of the room, some playing games, some sharing steaming drinks, and some sitting by the roaring fireplace.
“Welcome to Amnesty Lodge!” A warm, confident voice called from the open plan kitchen to which Sebastian turned to face.
A tall man stepped into view, his bearded smile as bright as the room itself. He was handsome, broad shoulders wrapped in blue flannel and long hair half tied back. A small orange pendant hung from his neck tethered by a fabric chain. As the man approached him, he stuck his hand out.
“I’m Jett, head of the lodge. What can I do for you?” His grin softened as his hand was taken in a firm handshake.
“Sebastian. Somewhere to stay, if at all possible?” He smiled in return as if the man’s, Jett’s, smile was infectious.
“Of course. Third door on the left on the west side should be open, if that’ll treat you well enough. I can get your info once you’re all settled. Anything else?”
“Um… What is there?” Sebastian squinted.
“Say anything, I’ll see if I can make it happen. Within reason.” Jett winked.
“Hot… Chocolate.” He smiles, to which Jett nods in return.
“You got it.” As Jett walked away, Sebastian turned to face the piano that faced opposite from the fireplace. Sitting upon the bench was a gaunt, pale woman, playing a familiar tune. He cautiously approached and attempted to grab the woman’s attention gently.
“Can I… Play with you? I love that song. My family sang it to me every night, and I know it like the back of my hand.” He pointed at his back where Daisy sat, and softened a bit as the woman looked at him with surprise.
“Of course.” She smiles. Sebastian walks over and grabs a chair from one of the empty lounge tables and pulls it over next to the piano. As he pulls his guitar case out from around his back and pulls it out, the woman turns to introduce herself.
“Moira.” She holds out a slender hand.
“Sebastian. Nice to meet you.” As he leaned back, he pulled a necklace out from under shirt. The pendant dangled from the end of the chain; a large looking locket. He snapped it open carefully before pulling a clear, crystal looking orange guitar pick out. Moira stared in shock for a moment before shaking her head and turning back to the keys.
The song began, a hauntingly happy melody accented by a bouncy baseline that gave off lullaby vibes while uplifting the room as the pair played in tandem.
As they both got into the rhythm, swaying in time with their duet, the patrons stopped what they were respectively doing to watch the pair. Jett even paused his drink making process to watch with a smile; a look which quickly changed to confusion when the lights of the lodge began to act up. The lightbulbs in every chandelier and lamp in the lobby began to flicker, their lights fading in and out in time with the music.
Jett’s focus on Sebastian was snapped as the landline against the wall began to ring. He reached over blindly to grab the phone, pulling it to his face with his face remaining on the pair duetting in the lobby.
“Amnesty Lod--” Jett started but was quickly interrupted.
“Looks like you’ve got a live one.” A snarky voice said from the other end of the line.
“I’m doing fantastic, Xander. How are you?” He responded with an annoyed tone, his free hand absentmindedly playing with the worn, coiled cord.
“Just trying to help, Jett. Might wanna keep an eye on him.” Xander was not in sight but Jett could hear the man roll his eyes. “Ugh, and not like that.” Jett huffed as he could feel his face burning in embarrassment.
He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. “Gotcha.”
“Aww, not even a thank you… You’re not the easiest to work with either, you know.” He chuckles.
“Look, there’s something… about him. Not sure what yet. Once I get eyes on him I’ll know more. You… also might wanna have a bowl of warm water ready.” The line on the other side then goes dead, Jett grunting before putting the phone back on the receiver in an aggressive manner. He never questioned Xander’s abilities but he didn’t have to be so damn cryptic about it.
But, he compiled, pulling a bowl from the cabinet and filling it with warm water.
As their song reached the antithesis, Sebastian played a quick flourish to accent the final verse and the lightbulbs shone bright, then shattered all at once. All the patrons flinched, Moira included, her fingers leaving the keys and shielding her face. Sebastian looked up at the panicked people around him and stood from his chair apologizing profusely.
Jett gasped as he took a step back. Xander was right. Xander is unfortunately always right.
“I am, so sorry, holy shit. I don’t-- I’m not sure, I--” Sebastian sheepishly shrunk a bit in place as Jett re-approached him.
“Hey, it’s alright. Some of the lights in this place are definitely not up to code anymore. Probably just a power surge. It’s all good.” Jett places a hand on his shoulder and he feels the man relax a bit. Sebastian gulps before setting Daisy against the leg of the grand piano and tucking his guitar pick back into its pendant around his neck.
“Lemme help clean up, it’s the least I could do.” He attempts to ask, but is met with a hand held up in a ‘hold on’ motion.
“It’s alright, I don’t need anyone getting hurt on broken glass. You just head to your room. Once I get this all cleaned up I’ll bring your drink to you, okay?” He cocked his head with a patient smile as Sebastian nodded in return, grabbing his guitar case and walking away down the hall.
“You do your thing, don't worry about the drink. If there's anything I can do to help lemme know… Thank you.” Sebastian quickly packed Daisy away back into her case before heading down the west hallway.
Right before he entered his room, he heard the front door to the lodge swing open violently. He heard gasps come from the inhabitants of the lodge as he caught a glimpse of what looked to be a park ranger, bleeding profusely.
He heard some frantic talking from Jett as he led her down an adjacent hallway out of sight.
//
Sebastian sets his guitar case gently against the tail end of the bed frame as he shuts the door gently behind him. He took a deep breath in, the room smelled of warm cinnamon. It was quaint, the woodsy aesthetic matching the outside and lobby perfectly. He flops down on the bed, luckily plush, before looking to the bedside table. An older lamp sat there, its yellow-orange light filling the room. He curiously pursed his lips, looking over at his guitar case.
“Power surge…” He tilts his head before leaning over to grab it.
He pulls Daisy out once again and throws his legs up onto the bed and crosses them. He begins to pluck at the strings, humming a melody. He watches the lamp intently, the light remaining unchanged. He huffed, his hunch seemingly incorrect. However, when he pulled the pick out from around his neck, it seemed to be glowing from beneath the metal encasing it.
“What…” He opens it and has to squint, the light emanating from his hands brighter than the room itself. He pinches it between his fingers and begins to strum while he sings the song he'd shared with Moira. The light of the lamp began to ebb, the filament shaking.
He pauses and the light goes back to normal. He attempts another song, first one coming to mind being his favorite. As he gets into it, the pick glows even brighter and the lamp begins to shine bright; he barely keeps his eyes open, as if he was looking towards the sun.
He flinches as the bulb shatters, the lampshade catching most of the shards as they projected out.
“Power surge. Sure.” He furrowed his brows as he looked down at his pick, the glow still apparent but dimmer. He placed Daisy onto the bed and stood up, ready to make the walk of shame of having to tell Jett that he broke something else. He'd be lucky if he didn't get kicked out at this point.
//
Blueberry finally got her breathing back down to normal as she sat on the edge of a cot, her uniform dress shirt and coat now removed and set to the side; each garment soaked with her blood. She sat in her undershirt which was luckily unbloodied.
Jett then entered the room with a warm bowl of water and a washcloth in one hand, a coffee mug in the other. He was followed shortly by a small dog, her tail wagging with a gentle, obedient sway. Once Jett had sat himself in front of Blueberry, she curled up in a dog bed in the corner of the room.
“Now that you've had a second,” He hands over the mug and sets the bowl down before tying his hair completely back. “Tell me what happened… And forgive me in advance. This is going to hurt.”
Blueberry took a deep breath of the coffee’s scent, warm and welcoming, before taking a few tentative sips.
“It wasn't natural. Not a bear… Not a bobcat… It was…” She stared past Jett, bracing herself for the treatment she was about to face. Jett's eyebrows furrowed.
“Are you… Okay?” He asked sheepishly, bracing himself. She looked over at him with a deadpan stare, making intense eye contact for a few moments before glancing at the now blood soaked towel being held on her injury.
“I’m…” She takes a deep breath. “Obviously not.”
“I have no clue what that thing was. But I’m terrified it’s going through the woods terrorizing other animals, or attacking people. I barely got away, Jett.” She frowned, her voice cracking at the end as he removed the towel from her arm with gloved hands.
“Gods…” Jett winced, the wound now open to view, still blood covered. He could easily make out two distinct sets of torn bites, both made by two sets of jaws. The blood began to slowly seep again as he reached over for the cloth submerged in the water. He hesitated and looked to his friend again before reaching in to wipe the wounds clean.
Blueberry flinched and let out a pained, breathy groan through her teeth as her arm tensed reflexively. Jett swallowed the urge to apologize through each heavy breath he was taking. His hands were shaking in an attempt to be gentle, but do a thorough enough job.
“Tell me about it, talk me through it.” He sighs, wringing the cloth of the bloodied water before going in for another soft swipe.
“It was…” She pauses to think for a moment, gritting her teeth through the pain as the wounds had been sufficiently cleaned off. Her breath caught in her throat as she caught sight of them clearly.
“Almost like someone had taken… Tar. And glued several animals together. They were all suffering, every single one. But it stood so much taller than me, and the way it moved… I don’t know, Jett. I just know it has to be stopped. I don’t…” She looks away from the entire scene with a frown.
“I don’t want to kill it, if we don't have to.” She said through a clenched jaw.
“Blue, I know how you feel.” Jett then grabs a fresh cloth and soaks it with hydrogen peroxide before pressing it gently against her wounds. She clenches her fists again until relaxing once more, attempting to fight through the pain.
“But you know this thing isn’t natural. You said it yourself, this isn't your usual wild animal encounter.”
“But it’s made of wild animals. Scared, wild animals. Aggravated for being pulled from hibernation and forced to be inside this… Thing.” She pauses again for a deep breath. Jett pulls fresh gauze and medical bandage ribbon around her arm, using the tension he believed to be strong enough.
Jett sat back, letting Blueberry process. He looked over at Pebbles, calling her over to comfort his friend. The puppy approached Blueberry cautiously as the slightest smile painted her face.
“Hey, girl.” She leaned down to give her a few good pets. Pebbles wagged her tail and nuzzled her head into Blue’s hands. Blueberry felt herself smiling for the first time in what felt like the longest hour of her life.
Jett stood, taking the soaked garments and towels with him. He stood at the counter, his mind racing. He couldn’t tell her, could he? He’d spent so long keeping his mouth shut, keeping folks in the dark, keeping these things from his friends to ensure their safety. Was this finally it?
“I'm… going out there.” Jett stays facing away from her, his eyes closed, wishing she'd just let him.
“Then I'm coming with you.” She says seriously, her posture straightening.
“No.” Jett flinched, squeezing his eyes shut.
“I am not about to let you go out there alone! What would you even do? I know you're bigger and broader but this thing will kill you.” She attempts to push herself up from the cot, a hot sting of pain rushing through her injured arm.
“You're not going alone.” Blueberry attempts to stand but is stopped by Jett grabbing her shoulder.
“I'm not leaving yet. I just…” Jett winces during the pause.
“I need to go make a phone call. Stay here, please. I promise I will be back.” He leaves the room, closing the door gently behind him. He makes his way down the hall back into the kitchen, a creeping feeling of guilt and shame crawling across his skin. He grabs the phone from the wall.
He holds his hand over the receiver as he hesitates. He types in the number before waiting for no time at all for the other line to pick up.
“You only ever call me when it's work related. You never call just to talk.” Xander teases, Jett remains silent. “Course, I'm the same.”
“I take it you're asking about the monster.” Xander huffs. Jett continues to stay quiet.
“...Look, if you go at this thing alone, you'll die. I know your angle and I know you're gonna try to brute force it. Let that shit go or things will get bad. Fast.”
“Then how.” Jett grunts between gritted teeth.
“You're gonna need the girl and that new guitar player of yours. Every future where they're involved, you win, in some capacity.” Xander's teasing tone drops, a genuine statement that shakes something in Jett's stomach.
“And what exactly am I supposed to tell them? ‘Hey guys magic and monsters are real! I need you to put your lives on the line to take this thing down!’ Hell, I've known Blue for years, and I've kept this all a secret so damn well. And Sebastian… He's a complete stranger, he got here like an hour ago.” Jett turns to look out the kitchen’s window, his face burning in shame and fear.
“Well…” Xander starts.
“Jett?” Sebastian has his head peeked around the corner from the hallway. “I uh… I'm down to help.”
“Dammit.” His shoulders fall as he turns to face him. “Momma's gonna have my head when she gets back.”
“...Don't die, please. Contrary to your belief, I still do like having you around.” Xander's smile can be heard through his statement.
“Good luck.”
“... Thank you.” Jett huffs, hanging up the phone. He turns to face Sebastian fully as his eyes dart from him to the phone.
“I uh… Broke another lightbulb. Probably damaged the whole lamp. My bad. There's some weird shit going on, and I know we probably don't have the time to talk at length about it at the moment.” Sebastian rubs the back of his neck before shrugging.
“C'mon.” Jett brushes past him, grabbing his forearm and pulling him down the hallway towards the infirmary. Jett pushes his way in, Blueberry’s eyes moving from Pebble’s to the boys’.
“Hi.” She waves to Sebastian with her uninjured arm. “Blueberry.”
“Sebastian.” He does a quick wave back.
“There's… Hell, I don't even know where to begin. Blueberry, I've been lying to you, and I'm sorry.” Jett starts, leaning against the counter. He takes a heavy deep breath, considering the consequences one last time.
“Magic is real. So are monsters. Cryptids. The whole nine. I know it sounds crazy but both of you have faced some of that tonight, first hand.” He's tense as he looks between Blueberry and Sebastian, their faces slightly surprised but mostly unchanged. He turns specifically to Blue.
“And I'm sorry that you got hurt. Usually we're on top of these sorts of things.” He looks worriedly at her arm. “And you have every right to be upset, pissed, whatever. After we take whatever this is down.”
“I…” Blueberry’s mind was racing. “This whole time?” She gulps as she runs a nervous hand through her hair, her ponytail barely holding on. Jett nods with a crooked frown.
“We don't… have time for this.” She frustratedly attempted to push up from the cot before wincing at the pain as she fell back down. “We've got to stop that thing before it… I don't even know what it does. It bites, that's for sure.”
Jett nods, turning to the counter where he grabs a clipboard and a pen. “What did you learn about it?”
“It… Doesn't mind light but hates sound. It attacked me when my radio went off when I called for reinforcements.” She looks out the window.
“I didn't stick around to see if anyone was dispatched out. Given the time and circumstances, I doubt they did. But… I'd prefer if it stayed that way. I'm sure you would too.” Blueberry’s shoulders fell as she leaned forward, her elbows settling on her thighs, almost in acceptance.
“But… its makeup… shook. When the noise happened. It hated the sound and attacked--”
“Because it's its weakness.” Jett finished her sentence with a look of clarity. Blueberry nods in agreement.
“Sounds like that's where I come in.” Sebastian looks from Blue to Jett.
“I can make some noise.” He smirks.
“Is it solid? Like, are the animals it has completely covered?” Jett shook the pen between his first two fingers quietly doing mental gymnastics.
“No. Some were sticking out partially, but not consistently. Jaws, fur, tails. Biggest aspect was a bear, it looked… fresh.” Her hands shook. She gulps, looking between the two boys.
“We can't hurt them. We won't. Not any more than they already have been. Understand me?” She attempted to stand again, holding out her left arm for Jett to grab and help her up. Both boys nodded in solemn agreement.
“...Do you happen to have tranquilizers at the ranger station?” Jett sets the clipboard down on the counter.
“Yes, for emergencies. Think it'll… be enough?” Blueberry shrinks as her heart drops, her shoulders slouching as a tense shiver runs through her.
“We don't need it completely down, just slowed long enough so that Sebastian can do his thing.” He motions to him, who was now moving to stand up as well.
“And this is definitely an emergency.” Sebastian finishes.
“Are we sure this is gonna work?” She grabs her coat, the blood now stale and brown, and throws it back on.
“It's the best chance we've got. We can't wait.” Jett opens the door for the pair before leaning down to give Pebbles one more pet.
“Go to Dani, okay? I'll be back soon, baby.” She quietly barks once before trotting down the hallway in the opposite direction. Jett watches as his, well, teammates for now, walk towards the front door of the lodge. Sebastian quickly dips into his room to grab Daisy with a smile before continuing on.
Once outside, Sebastian climbs in first, sitting in the middle. Blueberry and Jett flank him on either side; it's a tight fit. The cabin smelled of lavender and blood. No one talks about it.
“One more thing.” Jett clicks his seatbelt into place, the others mirroring the motion before looking over at him.
“There's a gate in the woods. Stone. Two vertical pillars holding up a horizontal one. It only appears to folks who know about it. I'll explain it better later.” Jett puts a hand on the ceiling handle as Blueberry pulls out of the amnesty lodge drive. Sebastian nods, while Blueberry shakes her head with wide eyes.
“Seven years. I've worked with the forestry service for seven years. I thought I knew these woods like the back of my hand.” The group makes the short drive to the ranger station. Once there, Blueberry hops out to run in.
“So… Welcome to Kepler.” Jett gives him an awkward smile and a shrug. Sebastian snorts, a short laugh filling the space.
“Thanks for the very warm reception.” He smiles back. “I'm gonna be in the back for the fight, yeah? I've got an idea…”
“Lemme hear it.”
//
Blueberry stood in front of the caged cabinet where a variety of tools she prayed she never had to use hung on hooks before her. Her heart was beating so hard, she could feel the blood rushing in her ears. She felt her wound throb from underneath the fresh bandages. She reached in with shaking hands to grab a tranquilizer pistol and the thickest dart they had.
“It's just a tranq. It's not…” She had to psyche herself up to move her feet again; she felt as if she'd been glued in place and had to physically pull herself away.
“It'll be fine.”
She treks back outside to see the boys standing in the truck bed. She places the gun and dart in the open passenger seat and walks back to see what they had gotten up to.
“You cannot be serious! No!” Blueberry stares in shock as the boys had mocked up a harness situation: two bungee cords on either side of Sebastian, both hooks pinched around carabiners and secured to the belt loops of his torn skinny jeans. He stood proudly facing outward away from the front of the truck.
“Look, you're gonna be driving to catch up with this thing, yeah? Better to be strapped in and ready. This is better than me being loose in the truck bed.” He did a little shimmy with a smile to ensure his body is thoroughly secured.
“Jett's gonna be back here too, you gonna get mad at him for no restraints at all?” He crossed his arms jokingly as Blueberry shot them both a ‘disappointed parent’ look.
She rolls her eyes before hopping in the driver’s seat and restarting the engine. She watches as Jett holds onto the side of the truck with one hand and holds onto one of Sebastian’s cords with the other.
“If you get me close enough, I can hold it long enough for you to get a clean shot.” Jett looks at her through the rearview mirror. Blueberry nods and pauses as she puts it in reverse, her foot not leaving the brake pedal as she stares down the tranquilizer gun sitting in the passenger seat.
“Blueberry? You alright?” Sebastian calls out.
“Y-Yeah. Just… Hold on. Sorry.” She drives off from the ranger station, making the same path through the tire tracks she had made earlier in the night. Jett scans the woods as she drives, his eyes catching sight of the gate.
Sebastian gasps as he sees it too, beautiful, glowing beneath the moon. Familiar. He feels a warmth against his chest.
“Anyway you can get closer?” Jett calls back.
“It'll be off-road. Hold on.” She cuts the wheel and turns down into the access road, the ground hardly shoveled. She picks up speed, doing a full circle around the gate. Jett scans the woods as if hunting prey and sits up, his legs folding under him, ready to jump.
“THERE.” Jett yells as he points out a tall stalking figure in the woods dashing between the trees with an uneven gait. He jumps off the back of the truck, both Blueberry and Sebastian looking at him like he was crazy.
He does a quick tuck and roll before removing the woven orange bracelet from his arm, and takes off running towards the creature. There's a quick shine of light before Jett's human figure disappears, a taller, more broad and hairy one takes its place.
Both parties still in the truck watch slack-jawed as Jett, no… Bigfoot, real, dashes into the moonlit woods.
“I…” Blue shakes her head to shake off the confusion.
“Making a hard right, Sebastian! Hold on!” She juts her arms, wincing, as her ranger truck makes a stiff turn, the tires sliding across the snow before gaining traction. Sebastian holds on to the runner bars behind him as he quietly commends Blue for some sick driving maneuvers.
Blue pulled about ten yards away from the gate, as close as she could get given the treeline.
“Ready!” Sebastian held the pick high in the air and watched as two figures, unnaturally big and fast, approached them. As he puts his arm up, he sees an orange light fly by, his pick glowing bright, as if the sun had manifested in his hand.
“C'mere you ugly beast!” As the creature and Bigfoot (still in disbelief about that one) reach the gate, his arm swings down as his strum rang out, reverberating through the pines. He took a half step back, shocked at how loud, and somehow bright, the chord had been.
The creature howled in pain as its gross sludge organically glitched; a fox and a squirrel were released from its amalgam and bolted. Blueberry nods as she grabs the tranquilizer gun from her side and hops out of the driver's seat.
Jett roars, surprising both of them, as he tackles the creature and pins it against the gate. As he holds it down, the tar begins to lace through his fingers and climb up his arms.
Blueberry has a clear shot of the bare back of the bear, its fur being clear of any of the corruption. She raises the gun, her hands shaking violently as she points it at the scene.
“Blueberry, it's just a tranq!” Sebastian yells, watching as Blueberry stood frozen in place. Her face is wet, her vision is blurry. She's crying and didn't realize it. Her blood is rushing all over as her heart rattles against her chest.
A few more tense seconds pass before he undoes his bindings and hops out from the truck bed.
“Let me--”
“Do it! Just do it.” She shoves the gun in Sebastian's hand and turns away.
Sebastian lines up his shot, blinks, and it's done. A silver dart with a bright pink end sticks out from the creature's back as it heaves, dwarfing Jett before falling over, the man barely moving out of the way before it hits the ground. The tar dislodges from Jett's forearms as he steps away.
“Blue?” Sebastian puts a gentle hand on Blueberry's shoulder.
“It's down. And it's okay. Are you okay?” He speaks evenly and gently as his hand travels from her shoulder to her back.
“I…” She takes in a stinging, deep breath.
“Yes. Let's do this.” She pulls her unwounded arm up to use the sleeve to wipe her face dry. She follows as Sebastian runs forward, looking towards Bigfoot to ensure he's also alright. He doesn't speak, he simply points at the creature and makes a guitar signal.
“You got it.” As Sebastian begins to strum again, more intentional and focused this time, the light from his guitar pick now controlled and even, each stroke pulsing with orange light.
Blueberry sat on her knees next to the bubbling mass, helping small animals pull free of the tar. They all seemed unharmed and happy to be free, most of them wiggling from her grasp to run back to their burrows. The remaining animal was the black bear, which was still down from the tranquilizer but breathing.
Blueberry looked past the dart at… Bigfoot. He leaned down, grabbing the bear by its belly and deadlifting it and pulling it away from the tar. She stood up quickly to remove the dart before Jett carried it over to some thick shrubbery to lay it down. She looks the dart over, its contents emptied, making it much lighter.
As he returned, Jett put the bracelet back around his wrist and turned back to his human persona. Both of them watched as his imposing figure disappeared, leaving behind the man he was before.
“So… what do we do with it?” Blueberry asks as the trio looks down at a convulsing mass of hairy tar; Sebastian continues to strum, ensuring it stays down.
“There's a hardware store bucket in the back of Blue’s truck and a shovel. We could just… chuck it in there? For now?” Sebastian shrugs as he watches his associates share shrugs as well.
“We can burn it…?” Jett looks at Blueberry.
“Not in the woods. Absolutely not.” She crosses her arms sternly but gently.
“There's a fire pit at the lodge. We'll take it there.”
The crew take the bucket, now full of the creature's slime and dirt, and throw it in the back of Blue's truck; Sebastian climbing inside to secure it to the side hooks and ensure that it wasn't going anywhere. He pulls Daisy into his lap before he sits, his head resting on the top of the cabin, his eyes looking at the full moon in the sky.
As they drive slowly away, the soft light from the gate becomes dimmer and completely disappears as they crest a hill. They're all cold, tired, and worn. Jett takes in a deep breath as he yawns and stretches.
“I know you both have dozens of questions. I'll answer them all tomorrow, I promise.” Jett looks between both of them from his place in the passenger seat. They arrive at the lodge, and before getting out, Jett puts a hand on Blueberry's shoulder.
“But I need you both to promise me, right here and now, that this remains a secret. There's some real cosmic forces going on that could be world ending if the wrong people were to find out.”
“I promise.” Blueberry nods. Jett gets out of the cabin in enough time to offer Sebastian a hand to help him out of the truck bed.
“I promise. Absolutely.” He smiles as he gives Jett's hand a squeeze. Jett then unhooks the bucket from the side hook and carries it towards the back of the lodge.
“Bonfire?”
//
“I'm… so sorry.” Blueberry quietly croaks, wishing to cry but feeling she had nothing left. She watched as the flames consumed what was left of the creature.
“About what? We handled it pretty well I think.” Sebastian looks to Jett and the man responds with a nod.
“I hesitated. Both of you could've been killed.” Blueberry pulled the blanket tighter around herself as she simply nodded, the ability to fight no longer in her. Sebastian puts a hesitant but gentle hand on her shoulder.
“I'm happy that you were there. You know these woods better than anyone, you pulled some sick driving maneuvers, and had all the tools we needed to take it down and contain it. None of this would've been possible without you.” He gives her a warm smile. She nods, a hint of a smile pulling at the corners of her lips.
“That should be the last of it.” Jett looks over from his team to the flames, the last of the creature completely burned away.
“Can I stay tonight, Jett? I really don't wanna be alone.” Blueberry looks up at Jett through tired eyes.
“Of course. You're always welcome here, Blue. And you're welcome to stay as long as you'd like, Sebastian. I… hope you do.” Jett shrugs, looking away.
“Blue, do you want me to go get Frederick?” Jett offers a hand out to help her up.
“That would be wonderful. Thank you.” She hands him her keys, her arm luckily stable enough to handle the gesture.
“The room right across the hall from Sebastian’s should be free. Make yourself at home.”
//
Sebastian stretches as he makes himself comfortable under the quilt. His mind was racing. The adrenaline had finally worn off enough for his brain to catch up with the fact that this whole night was real. Magic. Monsters.
The fact that he… Had magic. All he could do was stare at the ceiling as he felt rushes of energy at the thought.
His thoughts were interrupted as he heard a stirring from outside. He threw his legs over the bed and went over to his window cautiously, now out of a newly formed habit.
It was Jett, a towel around his neck and a pair of swim trunks on. He stood by the hot springs, taking in steady, deep breaths. Sebastian paused for a moment before opening his window.
“Wh-- Sebastian.” Jett flinches before relaxing at seeing him.
“Would you like some company? Or are you wanting some alone time?” He tilts his head.
“I really would like some alone time, no offense. It's… been a long night.” Jett stretches. “Next time.”
“Can I tell you something real quick? Then I'll be out of your hair.” He sits in the window sill, watching as Jett fully turns to face him.
“I've…” He rubs his arm. “I've spent a lot of time these last few years trying to find somewhere I belonged. Working with a few bands, trying out solo gigs, nothing really felt… Right.” Sebastian paused again to take a peek at the sky.
“This? Tonight? Felt right.” He looks back down at Jett to find the man smiling back at him.
“Goodnight, Sebastian.”
“Night.”
//
As Blueberry finally relaxes, her tense muscles easing, she allows herself to fall into bed with a huff. She peeks her head up to see Frederick, her ferret, curled up on a pillow next to hers.
“Hey buddy.” She holds her hand out and allows him to nuzzle into it. She lets out a weak chuckle.
“I missed you too.”
She fully puts her body fully under the covers and sighs, her body almost instantly settling into sleep. As she falls asleep, we zoom in, underneath her bandages. Her wounds are slowly closing, however…
The veins around the bites begin to turn midnight black.