Reign of Evil

The giant horned Krampus-like creature came to the next chandelier. Instead of sweeping this one aside, it wrenched it from the ceiling, then hurled it at them. It crashed against the lane in front of them as they dove out of the way.

Trev ended up in the pinsetter of lane thirteen.

The others dove the other way.

Walker climbed back to his feet and continued to fire.

Ian was slower to get up.

Jerry didn’t even try to untangle his limbs from the pinsetter. He continued to fire from the prone position.

Two homunculi attacked Trev, who was forced to drop his rifle. He pulled his Glock with his right hand and his knife with the other. The knife was long and thin, unlike the K-bar. It was a Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife, used exclusively by the British Special Air Service, and had more of a stiletto appearance.

Walker watched while Trev shot one of the creatures in the head, then stabbed the other several times and finally, in a rush of screams and adrenaline, sawed off the thing’s arm.

That’s when Walker had an idea.

Now that all the smaller versions were dead or dying, he had more freedom of movement. He ripped his rifle free and tossed it aside as he ran to a rack of bowling balls. He picked one up but couldn’t get his fingers in the holes. He ripped off his balaclava and, using his teeth, pulled his glove free. Then he stuck his fingers in the ball and turned.

The giant Krampus tore yet another chandelier from the ceiling.

Walker windmilled his arm and let the bowling ball fly free. It soared in the air, missing the giant but striking a chandelier, shattering the glass.

“What the bloody hell are you doing?” Ian yelled.

Walker grabbed another ball. “We’ve got to bring it down.” He threw again. This time the ball hit it in the midsection, knocking it back a step.

Ian and Jerry ran up beside him.

“Then what?” Jerry asked.

Walker turned with another ball in his hand. He shouted loud enough for Trev to hear, from where he was crouched in the pinsetter recess, “Then we cut off its fucking head!”

Walker let loose with a ball, catching it in the chest.

Jerry and Ian did the same, both missing.

“Come on.” Walker unleashed another missile. This one hit the creature in the head and it reeled.

Both Ian’s and Jerry’s balls hit the creature too. Bullets couldn’t hurt it, but blunt-force trauma was doing something.

It came at them, but they were protected by the giant score screens above the ball racks.

They spread out. Now that it was closer, it was an easier target. That said, Walker was tiring quickly and his shoulder felt wretched from not only breaking through the plywood but also hurling ten- to fifteen-pound balls at a giant monster.

Jerry scored a forehead shot and the thing went to a knee.

That was all it took for Trev to make his move. He leaped to his feet and sprinted the short distance to the homunculus.

Ian and Jerry unleashed two more balls, each one impacting the giant’s head.

As the creature put out a hand to steady itself, Trev climbed up its back and wrapped an arm around its neck and began to plunge the knife in and out as rapidly as his arm could piston. Orange goo came from each hole as the monster screamed.

Jerry pulled his own knife and ran forward. Walker shouted for him to stop, but Jerry was so intent to join the fray that he missed his obvious mistake. As soon as Jerry got close enough, the beast lowered its head and thrust one of its horns into the unlucky man. The horn pushed out his back, severing his spine, killing him instantly.

Ian yelled, “No!”

Walker stared numbly.

Trev had begun to saw at the creature’s neck but was having trouble holding on as it began to shake its head back and forth. He had no choice but to plunge the knife into the side of the beast’s neck and use it to hold on, kicking at the hands that were constantly trying to pluck him free.

The giant monster shook its head, sending Jerry flying across the lanes. Trev lost his grip and fell hard to the ground.

Walker flung his last ball, then pulled free his blade. He ran forward and grabbed the knife Jerry dropped. Sliding between the giant’s legs, Walker came up on the backside of the creature and used the knives to climb, plunging each of them into the back, then higher and higher, until he was on the other side of the neck from Trev. Using one knife to hold on, he began to saw. He noticed right away that the creature was constructed. It was like sawing through semi-hard clay. He managed to saw through most of the neck. The weight of it did the rest as it ripped free, falling to the lanes. Walker fell with it and slipped several times trying to get to his feet.

Ian ran over to where Jerry’s body lay.

Walker got shaking to his feet. He drew his Glock and crouch-walked along the front of the lanes to where the witch and the warlock were doing battle.

Only they weren’t doing battle.