“Scar! Drive faster!” Zander calls. “We ain’t got all day ya know!”
Scarlett scoffs and mutters under her breath. She slams the accelerator and leans forward, evading all the greenery and foliage of the Twilight Veil. The rest of us get flung round the trailer like ragdolls. I can barely feel my limbs and my head is throbbin’ like crazy. I’m so irritated with Ethan, for suggesting we take the deadly shortcut route. Thankfully, we’ve only got an hour to go ‘till we reach the Sunny Trek Campsite.
I’m Avery Sullivan. I’m sixteen years old and I’m out here with my friends; Scarlett, Finn and Zander. We’re going on a road trip to the Sunny Trek Campsite in Valoria Heights, a refreshing and exciting escape into nature. Finn bought us all tickets, n’ now we’re on our way! It’s really far from home, but it’s worth goin’ for four days. There’s so much to look forward to, from birdwatching to outdoor movie nights and guided nature walks. Eeeeeeee! I’m so excited!
We’re still racing through the woods when our rusty trailer suddenly crashes in the dirt. I can hear a poppin’ sound, n’ next thing I know, our wheels are deflating and our trailer’s sinking to the ground.
“Scarleeeeett!” Finn whines. “You were being too reckless and now look where you’ve got us stranded!”
Scarlett rolls her eyes at him. She opens a compartment in the bottom of the trailer and pulls out two handy-dandy spare wheels. But it’s not enough. Somehow all our wheels are busted, and now we can’t even get back on the road.
Finn groans. He pulls out his phone and begins to dial emergency services, but there’s no signal. How unfortunate. I look ‘round this dense forest n’ our rusty trailer lyin’ dead on the ground. “I guess we’ll have to stay in this dump for the next few days…”
We’ve now decided to take all our belongings out of the trailer and look ‘round the place for a bit. There’s a trodden path that looks pretty good for trekking. So, we begin trekkin’ through the woods. This is nothing like how I thought our vacation would’ve gone like. There’re no outdoor movie theatres here, and no guided nature walks… It’s just not the same!
As we’re walking, we come across a sign reading ‘CAMP BLOODMOON’. Great! It’s another campin’ site. Maybe this won’t be so bad and who knows we might get someone to help us!
“There’s probably some other people in ‘ere.” Scarlett states. “We can ask ‘em to help us repair our trailer n’ get outta ‘ere!”
We all nod and follow her inside. It’s jus’ a campsite, surely it can’t be as creepy as its weird name suggests?
As we enter Camp Bloodmoon, we all realise that there doesn’t seem to be any sign of human life nearby. All that can be seen throughout is dozens upon dozens of trees, the evening sun’s peeking out from behind ‘em.
“Now what do we do?!” Zander groans. “There’s absolutely nothing productive that we could possibly do in this dump!”
With no idea of what to do and no idea where to go, we unpack our things, deciding to settle here, at Camp Bloodmoon. Sure, we aren’t at Sunny Trek, but what is the harm in getting the Bloodmoon experience for a night! I ain’t goin’ to make assumptions so quickly, I don’t even know what this place has in store for us, all I know is that it’s gonna be one bizarre adventure.
As nightfall grows closer, I creep into my sleeping bag, the rest of the group mirroring my moves, n’ doing the same. It’s gettin’ late, the others are beginning to fall asleep, one by one.
No matter how hard I try, I jus’ can’t drift to sleep. It’s as if my eyes are glued open, preventing me from gettin’ any decent shut-eye. Being the daring and reckless person I am, I arise from my sleeping bag n’ decide to explore the strange campsite. I gotta admit, the name is pretty sus, after all, what kind of sicko would name a campsite after sum’n as horrifying as a blood moon? Surely there’s more to this place than meets the eye. I get an eerie feeling that we’re goin’ to be ‘ere for a long time!
SNAP!
A twig splinters beneath my feet, producing a sharp burst of sound that echoes through the brisk and crisp forest. Suddenly I ‘ear a frightened wail comin’ from the opposite direction. It’s a long, discordant roar that pierces the air and rattles the Earth. There’s a vibration in it that I can vividly ‘ear in my chest, a warning of immense anger, as if the very breath of the mysterious creature would probably tear the skies apart. The roar intensifies, building layers upon layers of terrifying sounds. And then the terror-stricken whimpers stop. The atmosphere’s thick with tension, as though a mighty beast’s exhaling. A loud n’ noisy breath is released and then all becomes quiet again.
My breath is caught in my throat, what was that? One parta me is tellin’ me to run, back to the heart of the forest, to warn my friends ‘bout the terrors that lay within Camp Bloodmoon. But another part, my ego, is telling me look further, to investigate.
“Look deeper. Don’t be a coward! Think ‘bout what discoveries you could make! Oh… what if you discovered a new species? Jus’ think ‘bout the money you’ll make! And the newest headlines, ‘Avery Sullivan, the youngest scientist of the eighteenth century!” Oh… the rewards you could obtain, and the fame!”
My brain swirls with conclusions, but only the ones that’ll probably come with rewards. I don’t even stop to think of the consequences, all I think ‘bout is the money, the discoveries, the fame! Maybe I’d finally be popular at school. What’d my classmates think of me? Of course, they’d think I’m the coolest scientist EVER!
The greed consumes me whole, from my skin, to my bones. It is as if I am being controlled from an unknown inside. I’ve never felt anythin’ like this before. It is as if sum’n had clicked in my brain, like all of a sudden money and fame are important to me. As these feelings of avarice and pleonexia grow stronger, I feel myself being drawn towards the scene. The scene where the monster called. Where it yowled for eternity, silencing the atmosphere around it.
As time passes by, I find my attraction to the scene growing stronger. I am now merely a magnet, who is being drawn towards this ‘ferromagnetic material’. I’m not even myself anymore. I’m a completely different person. And as these feelings start living in my head rent-free, the sky suddenly brightens again. The pale, blue moon returns, taking its rightful place from that terrible, bloody red moon. I find my thoughts taking their rightful places in my mind, and now I can finally think for myself.
I find myself standing in front of the scene where the monster once called. Only now, I can actually see it with my own eyes, not with the eyes of my possessed soul. In front of me lies a dead doe, its body drowning in a pool of blood.
So, this is the creature that was wailing in fright…?
How could this have happened? Those ghastly cries certainly weren’t normal… I’m certain that there’s a wild beast gone loose here at Camp Bloodmoon, but that’s not the only thing…
That tragic blood moon, it took over my thoughts. Although it only lasted for a couple dozen minutes, it made me feel vulnerable. During that time, I didn’t feel like myself anymore. I wasn’t myself anymore. I was being possessed, by some unknown demon, and it didn’t feel right at all…
As I continue to investigate the scene, I see what looks like a feather lying on the ground. It’s coloured in a shade of dark crimson, and it’s massive, engulfing the size of my palm. Could this be the feather of the beast that was lurking on the grounds earlier? I’ll be sure to collect this as evidence…
I leave the scene with my thoughts back in their rightful place, my mind. And some evidence that could potentially assist in solving the case of Bloodmoon’s beast, what is it, what does it look like, and how exactly did it get here?
I grip the crimson feather tightly in my hand, as I make my way back to camp. The moonlight’s shifted back to its pale blue, but the unsettling feeling of vulnerability is yet to leave my chest. Only now, as I step into the clearing where the rest of the group is, I feel as though something is off.
Scarlett, Finn and Zander are all huddled together at the campfire, their faces illuminated by the flickering flames. But as I approach, none of them dare say a word. Their expressions are tense, their eyes distant, as if lost in thought – or fear.
“Hey, uh.. guys?..” I begin, my voice small in the heavy silence. “I’ve gotta feeling that I’ve found sum’n useful…”
Scarlett’s eyes snap up to me, only they’re sharper than usual. “Where were you?” she asks, her tone clipped.
I falter, stuttering on my words. Why is she being so accusatory?
“Just… lookin’ around! Anyway, I found this.” I hold up the feather, its dark crimson shade looking even more sinister in the presence of the firelight.
Finn’s gaze narrows on it, his eyes fearful n’ frantic. “What is that?” he asks, voice strained. “That thing looks… wrong.”
Zander stands up, pacing back and forth. “I don’t like this, Avery. First, we get stranded in this cursed place, and now you’re bringing back creepy souvenirs. Are you trying to get us killed?!”
I recoil, shocked from his sudden outburst. I’ve never seen my friends so angry at me before, what did I even do wrong?…
Before I can utter another word, Scarlett cuts me off. “You shoulda stayed right here, this ain’t a game Avery. Somethin’ is out there in these woods, n’ it’s not safe for you to roam ‘round by yourself!”
Her eyes flicker to the surrounding trees, and I notice the thick layer of sweat formin’ on her brows. As I look around, I notice Finn and Zander- all of them trembling.
“Wait, did anything happen, you know… while I was gone?” I ask, my voice quiet and hushed. I am afraid to hear how they will respond.
Finn runs a hand through his hair, his frustration apparent. “It’s been weird, okay? Time’s been… off. And you’ve been gone for hours!”
I can feel my stomach twist. What are they saying? I wasn’t gone for hours, at least… it didn’t feel like hours…
“What?!” I exclaim. “No, I was just-”
“Gone. For Hours.” Finn retorts, emphasising each word. “None of our phones are working. It’s like the whole world went dark the second you left, Avery. Don’t wander again like this.”
Scarlett nods, then looks over to me. Her gaze locks on mine, eyes full of suspicion. “You sure you didn’t see anything strange out there? Or… anyone?”
I shiver as it all hits me in the head once again. The dead doe splattered across the ground. And that awful, bone-shaking roar, of the Bloodmoon beast, who arrived from the very grounds of Hell itself. “I-I heard something.. it was loud, probably like a monster or sum’n like that. And there was also a doe lyin’ on the ground, dead.”
The silence is louder than ever, nobody dares to utter a word. That is… until Zander begins laughing hysterically.
“A monster? Ha.. aHAHAHAHA!…” he cackles, like a witch brewing up a storm. “You’re being satire, aren’t you? Stop making jokes like these Avery, it’s really not funny. Come on everyone, let’s go to sleep.” He points to our sleeping bags, organised in a row on the floor, and then Finn and Scarlett follow him, also climbing into their sleeping bags.
Defeated, I closely follow behind them, the crimson feather still clutched in my hand. I climb into my sleeping bag, but I think that if I keep the feather next to me, it’ll blow away in the wind. As I look closer at it, I realise that it’s a pretty shade of red. A-a r-really PRETTY shade of red… Oh, how BEAUTIFUL this shade of red is…
I shake my head, getting rid of those thoughts. What the hell is wrong with me?! I never even liked the colour red, I’ve always hated it. So how come I’m suddenly developing a liking towards this ghastly colour?
But even after all of this, I can’t help but admire it. I’ve never noticed how pretty red is. Red roses, red strawberries, red sunsets… Oh, how I love red…
It’s so hypnotic. I just can’t seem to stop thinking about the colour red. So much thinking about this stupid colour, that I don’t even realise my fingers twisting themselves, tying the cursed red feather into my hair. It’s such a pretty red ribbon! OH HOW I LOVE RED!! I love red…
Zzz…
I wake up a few hours later, but the sun is yet to rise. How weird. I would’ve thought it’d have been 6 am by now.
The sky is still dark, myriads of stars engulfing the beautiful skies. But this stargazing session has now been interrupted, by a familiar, guttural roar. Why of course, it’s the Bloodmoon beast, who has returned to find a new victim to claim as his next meal or dessert perhaps…? His feet pound themselves against the Earth, creating craters in the ground, while nearby endemic wildlife trot or flutter away in panic and fear.
I look to my left and right, but there’s no one here. No Scarlett, no Finn and thankfully, no Zander. But this isn’t a time when I’d be dreading Zander’s company. The Bloodmoon beast is nearby, and I’m all alone.
His strong and mighty arms destroy everything they come in contact with, searching for a new meal. By now, almost all animals have evacuated. It’s too late, he’s got nothing to kill, nothing to eat, nothing to help him grow. That is until he spots me! I swear I can see him lick his lips! And then he charges towards me. And before I know it, all goes dark.
I SCREAM!!!!!!!!!!.
Eyes wide and wild, I wake up from this wicked nightmare, coming back to my senses. I’m dripping with sweat, head to toe, and I’m scared for life. Before I can collect my thoughts, I feel my shoulder being aggressively shaken. I turn around, and feel surprised to see Zander shaking my shoulders. The next moment he screams in fear. He tugs on my ponytail really hard and pulls the red feather out.
“O-OW!!” I screech in pain. “Are you mad?! What was that for?!”
He doesn’t reply, instead he pulls out his lighter and lights up the feather- which is now aglow with a strange vermillion light. Sparks begin to release from it. Then a fire starts and I watch as the feather burns to the ground.
I crash to the ground in agony, it feels like my skin is catching fire. I reach for my hydro flask and pour it all over my arm, but the burning sensation won’t go away. And then I choose to run up to that red feather lying on the ground. It’s still aflame, burning bright like a small volcano. I stomp on it, extinguishing the flame, and now my pulse is steady again.
I look back down at the red feather. Yep, it’s definitely cursed.
I want to rip it in half, but I can’t help but wonder what’ll it do to me. Maybe it will rip me in half along with it. I look at Zander, who’s looking right back at me, wide-eyed and pale, as if he’s just seen a ghost.
“That thing.. it was doing something to you Avery…” Zander whispers, his shaky fingers pointing directly at the feather. “You were whispering in your sleep, you were shaking.. and your eyes were… glowing.”
A cold shiver runs down my spine. What could he possibly mean?
“They were glowing..” he repeats. “Like the moon. But not the good blue moon. It looked more like… the BLOOD MOON.”
Scarlett and Finn rush over, coming to see what the commotion is about. But they can see it in our eyes, our fear, and our panic.
“We can’t stay here much longer.” Zander states. “We’ve got to leave immediately. This place is not safe.”
Finn looks torn. “But how? Our trailers busted, and we don’t even know how far we are from civilisation.”
“I don’t care,” Zander snaps. “We’ll walk if we have to. But we’re certainly not staying here.”
As everyone packs up their things, I remain glued to the ground. I glance back at the now black feather one last time, and for a fleeting moment, I swear I see a flicker of red, like the embers of a dying flame. But as soon as I blink, it’s all gone.
Zander begins leaving, and Scarlett calls after him. “Wait! Shouldn’t we wait until sunrise? It could be dangerous if we leave this late?”
Zander scoffs. “There’s nothing more dangerous than this vile camp, you idiots.”
And as we all walk out the gates, I look back one last time at Camp Bloodmoon. And then I see the trees shaking. Hold on, is that an earthquake?
“Oh! things couldn’t possibly get any worse for us now!” Scarlett groans.
But wait, maybe it’s not an earthquake. For a moment, everything stops. And then time speeds up again as all of the animals come rushing out from a gap in the trees.
This is a familiar feeling, have I seen this occur before? I can’t even remember.
And then feathers start raining from the sky. It’s a pretty scenery at first. I start to think it’s a miracle occurring before our eyes, until the feathers drop lower and lower and I realise they look awfully familiar. That same shade of red, that same hypnotic nature.
The Bloodmoon beast has arrived, only now I’ve got a clear view of it. It’s gaze lands on us, eyes intimidatory, as it stops in its tracks. It starts coming towards us, pushing everything out of its way to make a clear path.
And then a brilliant scheme makes its way into my head. Smirking to myself, I quickly reach into Zander’s jeans pocket and pull out his lighter.
I jump up into the air and grab a floating red feather in my hand. I watch intently as I try, again and again, for the sparks of the lighter to show. A small flame appears at its edge… now the feather has been lit.
As the fire leaks around the edges of that one feather, the rest begin to burst with light too. The world crackles as this inferno continues to grow larger, its bright hues resembling a distorted sunset.
And then the pain hits me like a boomerang. I scream my heart out, letting all of my pain and emotions. Some distance from me, I can see the monster doing the same. It falls to the ground, mirroring my actions, for it has lost its glory. It seems to have been defeated. Through the piercing and engulfing pain that is wrecking my mind and body, I manage to smile. My arms are on fire and burning craters in themselves. It hurts so bad. But there’s nothing I can do. The pain surges through my body, my arms aflame. I gasp for breath, but each inhale feels like it’s pulling in shards of glass. The others rush to my side – Finn, Scarlett and Zander, their faces twisted in shock and horror.
Scarlett kneels beside me, trying to soothe the flames on my skin with her jacket. Finn stares at the now-fallen beast, eyes wide and wild. “I-is it over?” he mutters.
Through the immense pain, I manage to smile weakly. “Seems like, it’s over… at least for the time being. The beast seems dead.” I can feel it – no more eerie roars in the distance, no more presence of danger. Everything is oddly quiet.
But… my hands are blistered and raw, I can even see a bone peeping from beneath. I can barely move. My plan worked, but at what cost? The red feather, that cursed object, burnt me too. I wonder if I’ll ever recover from this.
Scarlett’s face spawns into view. “We have to get you to a hospital, now.”
Zander nods and looks at me. “We can’t stay here, not a second longer.”
With their help, I struggle to my feet. As we leave the campsite, dawn begins to break. The blood moon has set, and with it, the horrors of the night seem to dissolve into nothingness.
But as we walk, I can’t help but glance back one last time at Camp Bloodmoon. The clearing is silent, and the trees are no longer shaking. Yet in the breeze, a single crimson feather floats through the air before disappearing into the shadows.
I shiver. Maybe the beast is gone, but its memory will haunt me forever.
Three Weeks Later
I sit by the window at home, staring out at the sunny skies. My arms are wrapped in bandages, the burns are still healing. Yet the nightmares continue to linger. Every night, I see the Blood Moon, the beast, the feathers raining down. I see the crimson feather that almost consumed me, that almost became me.
But I managed to survive. We all did.
I pick up my phone and scroll through all of the recent messages from Scarlett, Finn, and Zander. They’re okay. We don’t talk much about what happened. We’ve made a pact to leave it behind – no more Camp Bloodmoon and no more cursed feathers. So, we just talk about what’s going on in the school in my absence.
There’s something I would like to talk to them but I don’t.
Sitting on my desk, half hidden beneath some papers, is a dark crimson feather. It was there- in my bag when I had gotten home. I know I should’ve burnt it, destroyed it like I did before, but something inside me – curiosity maybe- prevents me from doing so.
Instead, I tuck it into a drawer and close it, my mind already swirling with possibilities.
The blood moon may have set, but I have a feeling that the end hasn’t arrived yet. Who knows, it may just be another beginning…??
Writer : Harman
Grade : 7 (Year 2024)
Place : Sydney, Australia
