Speaker 1: The following is a special presentation of the micro Terror's
original novella Skinless, written by Scott Donnelly. This is part two.
Be sure to listen to part one before listening to
this episode.
Speaker 2: Welcome to micro Terrors, scary stories for kids where it's
always the spooky season, full of chills, thrills, and spine
tingling spooks. Micro Terrors are family friendly frights for those
ages eight and up, and while our stories are for
younger years, we are still talking about things that go
bump in the night, and some jewel may not be
able to handle what others can. Parental consent is recommended.
Now Portal Knights micro Terror Skinless Part two. Just as
the sun was setting for the night and the woods
fell into cool shadows, Brody gathered all the boys from
our cabins and let us down a path to a
small clearing. In the center of the clearing were all
the ingredients of a campfire. A few flicks of his
flint and steel later, and Brody had created fire. Like
the cave man he was.
Speaker 1: He instructed all twelve of us to sit around the
fire on a circle of generic log stumps, and then
he pulled out a clipboard. The hike is in the morning,
Brody said, as if reading from a script that was
clipped to his board. The goal of the hike is
to familiarize you with the grounds of the camp, the
places you're allowed to go, and the place's yarned. Of course,
we'll fit some other things in there, like tree identification
and not tying. This isn't the cub Scouts. Nol suddenly
broke the silence that hung over the kids as Brody
read from his pre approved script. Let's get to the
real meat and potatoes of this, Brody Emery Gut, Who
is he? And why does his ghost haunt these woods?
A sudden worried chatter from all the kids sparked a
smile from Null. He had accomplished exactly what he had
set out to do to cause trouble, dismay, and mounting panic.
I looked around as the other boys were whispering to
one another, some questioning the same thing Null had, others
shaking it off as complete nonsense. Arney Crumb, who sat
clear across from me and just a couple stumps over
from Brody, was paying extremely close attention to everyone, trying
to soak in as much of the jumbled conversations as
he could. Riff, who was a couple of spots over
from me, stirred uncomfortably on his style. Brody sat his
clipboard down and stood up. Max already told you there's
no truth to that story. His voice was loud and beefy,
but unconvincing. The more shade that came over these counselors
on the subject, the more I started to believe that
maybe there was some kind of truth behind what Riff
was talking about back in the cabin. After all, every story,
every legend, has to come from somewhere, right, They're all
based on some kernel of truth. Arnie Crumb raised his hand.
Do you know why the camp was closed so quickly
twenty two years ago? Brody shook his head again, unconvincingly.
Couldn't have had something to do with every gut. Arnie
kept the questions coming. Would happen to all the counselors
and kids in They grabbed opening picture from two thousand
and two. Brody shrugged. He was clearly feeling overwhelmed and concerned.
We all felt as if he knew more than he
was telling us, and that wasn't going to sit well
with anyone, especially the great and inquisitive Arnie Crumb. Arnie
raised his hand again, are the acidic flushes a real?
In the dark woods? Stick snapped somewhere nearby, silencing everyone.
Only the crackling of the fire and crickets hiding in
the night were making noise. Even I was on edge now.
Brody looked around for a moment, and when there wasn't
a second sound, he smiled in relief, taking in a
deep breath and letting it slowly trickle back out our
rabbits and squirrels and deer around this area. I'm sure
it was one of the boys, screamed, suddenly, jumping to
his feet and pointing frantically behind Brody. His panic caused
everyone else to panic. Everyone jumped up, and Brody spun
around as quickly as he could, already screaming himself. In
the flickering light of the fire, we all saw a
man standing behind him. He was large, wore a bushy
beard and heavy jacket with the camp Resting Stone logo
on the breast pocket. Rody grabbed his chest to prevent
his heart from leaping out and caught his breath.
Speaker 3: Oh auto.
Speaker 1: He heaved, frightened, yet relieved. You scared the cow pies
right out of us. Once we all heard the name
and saw the man in a better light, we were
able to relax a bit. His name was Otto Cunningham
camp Restingstone's new modern day chef. I'm not sure about
that title, though, since lunch had been catered sandwiches and
small zip locked bags of potato chips. We'd only first
met Auto at the dining hall for dinner, when he
served us homemade mac and cheese and corn bread. He
seemed like a quiet man overall, but when he did speak,
he did so in a low, rumbling voice. Rody, you're
not scaring these kids with oar stories about ghosts in
the woods.
Speaker 3: Are you.
Speaker 1: Otto sternly said. He was significantly older than Brody, so
I couldn't tell if he was being serious and getting
on the young counselor or if he was just playful
giving him a hard time. No way, Brody proudly insisted,
straightening out his shoulders. These little turds keep bringing up
the past, and I have to keep shutting it down
like a road closure. Otto nodded and glanced around at
all of us one at a time, almost like he
was trying to capture a mental image of us all.
His focus finally returned to Brody. If I were you,
I'd end this soon, Otto said, Max wants to make
sure the kids are all arrested for the hike tomorrow. Okay,
Brody said, with an accompanying nod. Otto then addressed all of.
Speaker 3: Us, I'll see you all for breakfast. Scrambled eggs, hash browns,
and sausage are on the menu. None of the kids responded.
Even Null remained silent. He may have also been a
little spooked by Otto's unexpected appearance. Otto turned and walked away,
disappearing into the woods into the dark. We could still
hear his footsteps on the leaves and sticks for the
next minute or so, then silence. I lay on the
bottom bunk bed of one of the beds, wide awake.
An hour later, Nol was snoring in a separate bed
above me. I could hear Riff moving around restlessly. He
was either having a hard time getting comfortable or just
having a hard time with all of this.
Speaker 1: In general. I couldn't sleep. The only thing on my
mind was Ebery gut. How did he die? How do
they know he died? And why would he be haunting
the camp. Even being only ten years old, I knew
there weren't such things as ghosts and monsters, so why
would the camp shut down for that reason alone? There
had to be more to it. I tried to line
up the facts of what I knew in order to
try and reason my way through the information, but the
facts were scarce. The only fact I had on my
side was that Camp resting Stone had been mysteriously shut
down for twenty two years. However, there were a lot
of other things I was also taking into consideration. Why
was it such a secret as to why the camp
was shut down? Why would no one confirm that Emory
Gutt worked here twenty two years ago? Why were Max
and the councilors acting so strangely about the topic? Jay,
are you awake? Riff whispered from the top bunk, Yes,
I said, coming out of my many thoughts. Did you
hear what Brody said to Anno at the campfire? I
tried to remember, but Riff reminded me anyway. He said,
these little turds keep bringing up the past. That revelation
hit like a gut punch. Riff was right, he did
say that. Did that confirm that Emory Gutt was actually
a real part of the camp's past. We were woken
up early by the sound of a metal banging sound
that rippled through the morning air. It sounded a lot
like a wooden spoon pounding against a pot. Then Max's
voice echoed outside. Wake up, sleepy heads, he called that
from somewhere, the day has begun. I grumbled myself out
of the bottom bunk and saw Noll sprawled out on
his back on the floor next to his bed. He
looked dead. I quickly rushed over and tapped him frantically
on the face. No are you okay, I asked, with
a series of frantic face taps. He then came to
life and swatted me away like I was a pesky fly.
Stave it, he grumbled. Sitting up, He looked around, noticed
he was on the floor, and then laughed, oops. I
sleep hard sometimes. I stood up and turned back to
the bunk to see if Riff was awake, But he
wasn't there. The top bunk was empty, Riff, I called out,
But unless he was going to appear out of thin air,
he wasn't there. There was nowhere for him to be
in the cabin that Noll and I couldn't see. Maybe
he's already at the dining hall, I wondered. Nol snapped
his fingers. Yes, he wants a good seat. He seems
like the kind of dude who would want to get
breakfast when it's hot and fresh. I personally didn't get
that specific feeling about Riff, but I knew Whatnaul was
trying to say. Maybe a riff was just an early riser.
Shortly after the loud, banging wake up call, we were
all in the dining hall for breakfast. The room was loud,
this time with the chatter of the campers. Max, Brody
and Arena stood by the door going over a list
of things on a clipboard. Otto was coming around to everyone,
serving up plates of exactly what he had promised during
his fireside scare, scrambled eggs, ash browns, and sausage. The
food was good and made me think that the day
would be too. After the awkward, uneasy tension of the
first day, a good day was exactly what we needed.
Maybe less focus on the camp ghost story and more
focus on the camp activities could serve as the reboot
the week desperately needed. Already, I placed another fork full
of eggs in my mouth and swallowed them. Yes, I
thought this will be a good day. Then Nol tapped
me on the arm after he hard swallowed a piece
of sausage. She said, I don't see Riff anywhere. I
looked around and quickly realized Nol was right. Riff was
nowhere to be seen in the dining hall. My stomach
tightened as I sat my fork down. I was hit
with a familiar feeling of unease and decided to immediately
ask someone about Riff. I stood up and walked briskly
to Max and the counselors. Max saw me coming and
stopped talking to Brody and Arena Jay. He said, with
a smile, how's the breakfast good? I said. I then
faced Brody. Where's Riff? He wasn't in the cabin this morning,
and I don't see him here either. Brody looked around
the dining hall and shrugged. Max then glared at Brody.
Did you lose one of your kids? Max asked him,
of course not. Brody said he's probably in the outhouse
or something. Go check, Max instructed him. Brody did as
he was told and left the dining hall. Thanks for
the heads up, Max said to me with another smile,
although this one didn't feel as genuine. We'll have Riff
back in no time. I didn't respond to Max. I
just gave him a half nod and turned to walk away.
As I was walking away, Jemma, one of the girl campers,
approached Max and Arena. I heard what she asked them
before I was too far away. Mallory wasn't in the
cabin this morning, Jemma said, and she's not here either.
Once I sat back down at the table, I saw
Max instruct Arena to leave the dining hall. She was
now also tasked with finding another missing camper. So much
for a good day. All the girls and boys were
gathered up by the lake shortly after breakfast. We had
backpacks and were all dressed in camp resting stone shirts
and matching shorts. Max, Brody, and Arena stood before us,
explaining the hike we were about to embark on. But
I was barely paying attention. Riff was still not back,
and that was after Brody was supposed to go look
for him. I saw Gemma standing not too far away.
She too, continued to look concerned and kept glancing around
at all the girls. I assumed her bunk mate Mallory
hadn't returned either. I found it super suspicious that the
two counselors who were tasked with locating the missing campers
were back but without the campers, and there had been
no further mention of them. After Max gave another over
enthusiastic camp resting stone speech, the hike was set to begin.
Max wasn't a part of the hike, so after he
retreated back to the front office, Brody and Arena split
all of us into two groups. My group was led
by Irena. Naul was with me as well as Gemma.
I was glad about that because I wanted to ask
her some questions about her missing friend. Urina led us
around the lake to where a dirt path cut up
through the trees. The path was heavily shaded by the
dark green fl and a thin morning fog still clung
to the ground. The air smelled cool and fresh. The
flowery scent teased our senses. Noll sidled up beside me
and quietly said, there's a rumory the two kids are missing. Now.
I nodded my head. Mallory's the other one, who I shrugged.
I overheard that girl say it this morning, I whispered back,
motioning to Jemma, walking a few yards ahead of us.
What is going on here, Nul wondered. I didn't have
an answer. I was just as confused as he was,
just as confused as Gemma or anyone else who had
caught on or cared up ahead. Irena stopped walking and
turned to face us with a pretty smile on her face.
She showcased a tree next to her, as if she
were presenting a prize on a game show. Does anyone
to know what kind of tree this is? Irena playfully giggled.
No one answered. I looked at the tree, but I
had no idea. I says, some kind of joke, some
kind of blanket. As to cover up the fact that
this camp was pointless. Noel raised his hand and Arena
pointed to him. I want to shoot bow and arrows,
he said, not talk about trees. IRENA's smile disappeared. There'll
be time for all that. This is only the second today.
Another kid raised his hand. When I got a good
look at him, I noticed it was Arnie Crumb. I smirked,
already knowing he was about to start asking the hard
questions and it seemed like Irena expected it to She
was hesitant to acknowledge him next, but ultimately it didn't matter.
Arnie spoke up anyway, Do the disappearances of two campers
have anything to do with Ebery Gut? And does the
mysterious death of every Gutt have anything to do with
the closure of this camp twenty two years ago? IRENA's
irritated gaze stung Arnie. I don't know what you're talking about.
All questions regarding the camp's history should be directed toward Max,
not me. Irina sounded emotional, like she was being unfairly attacked.
Would you admit to the disappearances of two campers overnight?
Arnie then asked. Arena didn't say anything. The tension between
her and the group could be cut with a knife.
The campers, who were initially unaware of the others who
were missing, were now aware. Any sort of cover up
or concealing of information was out of the question. Arena
opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, a
woman's blood curdling scream ripped through the woods. We all
ran as fast as we could. No Gemma and I
led the way instinctively. We must have been the most invested,
or at least the most concerned missing kids followed by
a scream in the woods. It couldn't have been a coincidence.
It had to be related. I was just scared of
what we were about to see or run into. We
broke through some trees and into a clearing where the
other hiking group was. Brody stood by some bushes, and
the other kids were gathered up behind him. They were
all quiet, as if they were anxiously awaiting Brody to
say something. His back was to everyone as he stared
down the shrubbery. I tapped one of the kids from
Brody's hiking team on the shoulder. What's going on here?
Speaker 2: I asked?
Speaker 1: Who screamed? The boy looked me directly in the eyes.
Brody screamed, he said flatly. I shook my head. Now
it was a woman, a girl. Maybe we all heard it.
Trush me, the boy said, running back to their lead counselor.
It was Brody. Arena had finally caught up and quickly
joined Brody's side. She saw whatever he had seen and
then gasped, cupping her hands over her mouth. Are those
human bones? I heard her expel. With a second gasp,
her words sparked panic in the campers. Some began to
freak out, some ran back down the trail from which
they came, and a couple of them screamed. I looked
at Knowl and Gemma. We all had the same morbid thought.
The bones must have belonged to Riff or Mallory. Ardie
Crumb pushed his way through the crowd and ride up
to us. Well, looks they can't the resting stode is
about to be shut down again. They could try again
in another twenty two years. I felt a little dazed,
praying there was just a giant misunderstanding. I stepped away
from the group to catch my breath and call my nerves.
My heart was beginning to palpitate. That's when I looked
up and saw something through the trees. There was another cabin.
It was much smaller than the ones we'd been assigned to.
It was made of a darker colored wood and seemed
almost hidden away from the heart of the camp. I
could see a window on the side of the small,
dark cabin that faced me. Even with a slight glare
from the sun bouncing off the lake nearby, I could
see someone moving around inside of it. Whoever it was,
then pulled a loose sheet or a curtain down over
the window. The morning hike was called off and we
were all sent back to our cabins while Max, Brody
and Irena escorted a couple of police officers down the
hiking trail. Since Camp resting Stone was so far off
the beaten path, it took a responding patrol car nearly
an hour to arrive. Rody had come back to each
of the boys cabins one at a time to give
us all the details on what the police had discovered
on the trail. Deer bones, he said, with a sigh
of relief. They were just deer bones. That was a relief.
That meant the Riff and Mallory weren't a pile of
bones in the woods and the police were finally on
the case. Are we looking at another twenty two years shutdown? Then? No,
I'll asked. Brody cocked his head, what what are you
talking about? No, looked at me. Once again, we shared
the same thought. I stood up from the edge of
my bunk and approached to Brody. The police are looking
for Riff and Mallory, right, I asked him, with authorready.
Brody didn't say anything. There are two kids missing at
the camp, I continued, You guys brought in the police
for animal bones, but not to search for the missing kids.
Brody cleared his throat, took a deep breath, and spoke
his next words as if they were practiced or instructed.
Max checked the camp roster, and there are no children
registered here by those names, he said. I couldn't believe
what I was hearing. Of course there are. Riff was
our third bunk mate, I said, pointing to the top
bunk of where I slept. I then forced my way
past Brody into the chest against the wall where Riff's
clothing and personal items had been stored. I lifted the
lid and my stomach dropped. The chest was empty. Where's
Riff's stuff? I turned back and faced Brody. There's no Riff,
he repeated, Max, look into it. You must have been
imagining him. Then what about Mallory, the girl Jemma said disappeared?
There's no Mallory either, Brody said mechanically. I turned to
know His eyes were wide in disbelief. A silent fear
began to grow within him as well. Max said for
everyone to take the next couple of hours to yourselves
and regroup after the scare, Brody said lunch'll be served
at one o'clock. Without giving us much time to respond.
Brody left our cabin and closed the door behind him.
Can you believe this, I asked Noll. It doesn't make
any sense, he said. We all saw a riff. He
was here for some reason. Max was trying to cover
up the fact that there were two kids missing, and
all that did was open up the floodgates for questions.
Why would he want to cover it up? Where were
the kids? And once again, did it have anything at
all to do with the reason the campus closed in
the first place. Nel sat down on his bed and
tried to shake off all the sketchy information that Brody
had just dumped all over the place. My brain, however,
started to work overtime. I wanted answers, and if we
weren't going to get any from the adults in charge,
we needed to get them ourselves. The small, dark colored
cabin hidden in the woods crawled back into the forefront
of my mind. Someone was in it while we all
gathered around the deer bones, Someone who didn't seem startled
or bothered at all. By Brody's less than manly scream
and all the commotion. I wondered why. I wondered who
it was. Maybe they had seen something, Maybe they had answers.
Thank you for listening to part two of Skinless, a
micro Terror's original novella. Be sure to stop buying micro
terrors dot com for your chance to win the Skinless
prize back, which includes an autographed copy of Skinless, an
autographed copy of Where It's Always Spooky Season, a micro
Terror's bookmark and pen, as well as a one year
free membership to the micro Terrors Fan Club. You haven't
till August thirtieth to sign up. The winner will be
announced on some Tember first, twenty twenty five, and the
micro Terrors monthly newsletter. Tune in next week for part
three of Skinless. Thank you for listening to micro Terrors.
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