In a haunted, desolate valley a lone man and his dog venture back to civilization to return with an ancient map that will lead them on a journey to a far off land.

Wullee
by Cleo Kraft

Thunder rumbled over the darkened rolling hills bordering the vast deserted landscape of a dead tree forest. Fog and mist hung low in twisty little tendrils reaching down to the marsh and up through a long forgotten graveyard which sat beside an ancient abandoned abbey. Wolves howled off in the distance and the crashing of waves upon a deserted shore sounded from miles away rolling, rumbling and echoing in through the lifeless valley.

The clattering and clanking of dusty old extinguished oil lamps hanging on splintery old broken and bent lamp posts accompanied the screech and howl of some unforeseen evil awakened in the lurch of night.

James Flanden stood atop the windy hillside trail with his trusty old hound and looked back upon the haunted landscape with a shiver and a twitch in his eye as he remembered his brief encounter with evil there. His shotgun barrel still hot and smoky from the last fidgety fiend he'd extinguished. His tan leather overcoat bathed in blood and ripped to shreds in parts was the only thing really keeping him warm in the chill wintery night.

He gazed out upon the valley with gray eyes and scratched his brown stubbly beard with the back of his hand and wiped the dripping blood from the corner of his mouth. "Soulless bastard," he cursed, patting his coat pocket. "At least I have the map."

His dog glanced up at him with a fearful concerned look in its eyes and snapped to attention the other way as it spotted a lone dark figure making its way through the valley floor far below.

"Come, Boy, before the necromancer catches up with us," Flanden said reloading his shotgun and continuing on the trail up and over the ridge.

He made it to his waiting pickup truck. An old rusty 1941 Plymouth with one headlight busted out and cracks in the windshield. He fired up the motor and with his dog at his side he drove off down the bumpy old dirt road back to town.

Awhile later sitting in the library of his wealthy employer Mr. Deeken and counting the wad of money he'd been given for producing the map he said,"This is the last time I risk my life for you out in that
godforsaken place. My life's worth more than a couple wads full of money you know."

"Were you followed?" Deeken asked worriedly.

"The necromancer was on my trail but I doubt he had a car or anything to follow me once I got to my truck," Flanden replied unphased by his employer's concern.

"Fool. I warned you about him. I warned you not to let him follow you. Do you know what this means now?" Deeken asked rolling up the map and stuffing it in his leather bound briefcase. "It means we're both dead men if we don't get out of here and off this island immediately."

"Why you're so worried about that old guardian, I don't know. I took care of every foul creature he summoned up. All you need is a little guts and one of these," Flanden said patting the barrel of his trusty shotgun. "Besides... The ferry's not due out of here until nine in the morning. Unless you've got a better idea or can grow wings and fly out of here I suggest you just stay put and lock all the windows and doors and get a good night's sleep."

"There's no time to waste. I can't chance loosing it all now. I'm going for the row boat," Deeken said walking over to his desk and opening up the drawer. He pulled out a small revolver and checked it for bullets before placing it in his coat pocket.

Flanden laughed and said,"That thing? You think that thing'll do any good against any of the necromancer's pets? You go out there with that little toy pistol and you'll be dead for sure if you run into him."

"Then I advise you to come along with me. I'll pay you double if you just get me safely off this island and back to the mainland," Deeken offered.

The bell tower rang off in the distance.

"Too late. They've sounded the alarm," Flanden said.

"The town must be under attack. We've got to get out of here, now!" Deeken said hurrying out to the hallway and towards the front door.

A great flurry of howling off in the distance grew nearer all of a sudden as the two men rushed outside the manor. They ran for the shore and hurried up the beach. The boat house sat alone at the end of the pier several hundred yards away.

Sounds of gunshots and people hollering came from the town and echoed deeply from the dark ridge bordering the shoreline.

"Calamity shall be drawn upon you," a wicked voice cried out of the howling wind. A voice so pent up with death and doom and so terrifying in its presence that it sent shivers running up and down the spine.

The sound of hoofbeats coming hurriedly up the beach from behind caused the two men to stop and turn and there, off in the distance and approaching rapidly was a dark and hairy beast with yellow glowing eyes.

"Look! A fell beast!" Deeken exclaimed.

Flanden cocked his shotgun and let off a blast and the creature stopped in its tracks and slumped to one side. "Not anymore," he said.

Now the sound of rattling bones came scurrying over the hillside. Hundreds of them being towed along the sand, bumping and tumbling end over end by invisible strings and suddenly forming into dozens of skeleton warriors screaming harshly through permanent grinning teeth.

"There are too many for us. We're done for!" Deeken cried cowering in fear with an arm raised up over his face to avert the impending danger.

A couple more shotgun blasts cut through the hoarde but more kept coming.

Flanden took out a stick of dynamite and lit and threw it at the skeletons and shoved his companion to the ground as the blast echoed loudly through the night.

The two men got quickly up again and continued running for the boat house.

Flanden kept reloading his shotgun and firing off blasts at the few remaining undead fiends until he dispatched them all by the time they arrived at the pier.

They got in the rowboat and quickly rowed away. Flanden's dog whimpered and cowered beneath the seat as horrible screams sounded from shore.

"That map must be worth quite a bit to that old wizard," Flanden said at last as they made sight of the mainland some distance away on the horizon.

"You have no idea," Deeken said wiping the sweat off his brow with a white handkerchief.

"Some kind of treasure map?" Flanden guessed.

"You could say that, I suppose," Deeken replied. "It's a map to an ancient ruin buried beneath the desert."

"What desert?" Flanden asked. "Not that one back there I hope."

"No. Another one. It's on the mainland. I would like for you to come with me to find this place. I will pay you handsomely of course," Deeken offered. "We'll need the key though."

"And I suppose that involves sending me on another mission to get it, right?" Flanden guessed.

Deeken let out a slight grin and said,"You might not be a big fan of the idea I am about to propose. I'll explain in detail once we get to the inn on shore."

(end part 1)