Chapter 9: Chapter 9 – Cats Are The Number One Priority!

Jason and Kashyap stared at each other in solemn silence. Something here wasn't right. They could feel it.

Just as Kashyap went to talk, a sudden flash of green light streaked across the sky, slamming into the hilltop by the Devil's Rise with the belated crash of thunder. They both turned to look at the flash and were shocked to find a single thundercloud, as black as night, hanging over the Devil's Rise.

"Weren't… Weren't Max and Vincent headed in that direction?" Jason asked nervously. Something about the thundercloud unsettled him. It wasn't moving in the wind but hanging motionlessly directly above the Witching Circle. If anything, it looked like something pretending to be a thundercloud but failing.

"Damnit, this isn't right!" Kashyap grabbed Jason and started running up and out of the forest. "What if he's hurt?"

"We should cut through the graveyard. It'll be quicker!" Jason said, pointing towards the spot in the bushes the muddy footprints disappeared into.

Kashyap looked momentarily reluctant but gritted his teeth and ran. They tore through the undergrowth, panting as they squeezed through overgrown briars and cloying brambles.

They quickly stumbled across a muddy trail where new, fresher footprints could be found. Following the path up the hill, they finally arrived at an ancient iron gate. It was more rust than metal and covered in crawling ivy.

Neither bothered to open the gate, instead opting to jump over and dash into the graveyard.

The graveyard was a peculiar place. Nobody ever visited the graves there; in fact, nobody even knew who was buried in them. Their names had been rubbed off by time, and not a soul alive could remember them.

For Kashyap and Jason, the graveyard was simply a shortcut, but it was a right of passage for younger kids. To come here at night without a torch was a chilling adventure that only the brave could stomach.

As they were running through the graveyard, Jason paused. He had heard a soft whining cry, so weak it was barely audible.

"What are you doing?" Kashyap hissed, grabbing Jason.

Jason shook him off and ran over to where he had heard the sound, "Wait a second, it sounds like an animal is dying,"

"For all we know, Matthew is dying! Will you just hurry up!"

Jason ignored him, brushing aside overgrown grass and leaves. He reached into a tangled pile of foliage and pulled out a feeble black cat with dull green eyes. Its fur was matted and ensnared by twigs and brambles.

The cat looked up at Jason and mewled weakly, "It looks like she's out of it," Jason said quietly as he started untangling leaves from the cat's fur.

Kashyap looked like he wanted to speak but stopped himself and sighed, "Alright, take the cat with you. But can we please just hurry up?"

Jason nodded slowly, standing up with the cat cradled in his arms like a newborn.

They quickly started running out of the graveyard again, moving slower so that Jason wouldn't jostle the cat. Once they had left the cemetery, they crossed the main road and found a gravel path that led up the side of the hill, sprinting up it.

"How did you know it was a she?" Kashyap asked as they ran.

Jason pulled a thorn from the cat's tail before answering, "My dad's a vet, remember? We've always had cats around the house,"

Kashyap nodded, jumping over a massive pothole in the run-down path, "Can you tell what's wrong with her then?"

"She hasn't eaten in days, from the looks of things." Frowning, Jason continued to fix the cat's fur, "And for some reason, she isn't cleaning herself,"

Before Kashyap could reply, another bolt of lightning struck the top of the hill as they were climbing it. Suddenly, the air felt different, electrified. They could almost feel the static prickling their exposed skin.

The second the lightning bolt hit the ground, the cat, which had been lying limply in Jason's arms, jolted upright. It stared up at him with a mix of fear and relief but made no move to leave his arms.

"That's strange," Jason mumbled while fixing her fur.

"What?"

"Usually, if a cat woke up and found me carrying them, they would bite me. Especially if it's a person, they don't know," He looked down at the feeble cat, whose ear had a small chunk missing. "But she is… calm,"

They paused their conversation long enough to jump a fence and continue on up the hill. They were close enough to the top to see the trees, and shortly thereafter, the thundercloud simply ceased to exist. One moment it was there. The next… gone.

Kashyap sped up, running ahead of Jason as he darted towards the ring of trees that seemed somehow untouched by the thundercloud that had been present moments before.

After half a minute, they arrived outside the circle, but just as Jason and Kashyap were about to climb the mound of earth and enter the ring of trees, the cat started to freak out. She clawed at Jason's arm as though possessed, although her swipes did little damage, owing to the fact her claws weren't out.

"Wow, wow, wow, calm down," Jason whispered in a hushed tone, doing his best to assure her.

Kashyap glanced back, "What's wrong with this thing?"

"I don't-"Jason started to say, but the cat jumped out of his arms and started hissing at the circle.

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"I", Jason stuttered.

"Just leave her be. We'll bring her with us if she's there when we get back." Kashyap said agitatedly, "Come on, we need to see if Matthew is alright! I'm pretty sure I can hear voices from in there," After saying this, Kashyap ran up the side of the steep mound and disappeared from view into the ring of trees.

Jason looked reluctantly at the little cat before sighing, "Wait here. We'll be back soon," he said softly before running into the Witching Circle himself.

Immediately upon entering the circle, Jason's heart stopped. A body lay motionless in the very centre of the ring. Matthew's clothes were charred black, and, from head to toe, he was drenched in blood. Occasionally, his hands spasmed as though out of his control, but besides that, he was still as a corpse.

Jason sprinted to the body, joining Max, Vincent and Kashyap, who were looking down at Matthew solemnly.

"Is he breathing?" Jason asked nervously.

"I-I think so," Vincent stuttered, fumbling for his phone in his pocket. He finally managed to grab it, and with shaking hands, he googled how to do CPR.

"Do you think he was struck by lightning?" Max asked, eying the scorched clothes. His hands were clenched into tight fists. "How the hell did this happen!?"

"Which one of you called the police?" Kashyap asked sternly, although his voice shook a little.

"Me," Max said, reaching into his pocket for his phone.

Kashyap sighed in relief, "Great, ring them again, and tell them where we are, and what happened,"

"Now?" Max asked dumbly, his expression a little shell-shocked.

"Yes! Now!" Kashyap yelled.

As Max ran off to call the police, Vincent bent down and placed his hand under Matthew's throat. With trembling fingers, he felt for Matthew's pulse. His face turned sheet white when he realised it wasn't there. Even though Matthew's arms twitched, his heart made no such movements.

"Oh…" Vincent said blankly, his eyes dull and uncomprehending.

"What's wrong? I thought you said he was breathing." Kashyap asked firmly.

"His heartbeat…"

"Yeah!" Kashyap shouted urgently, frustration creeping into his tone.

"It-it's not there,"

Kashyap practically had to shove Vincent out of the way before he clambered on top of Matthew and started to hammer his chest.

Boom, Boom, Boom.

He pounded a steady rhythm on Matthew's chest. The Witching circle was utterly silent besides the drumming of fists against sternum, almost as though they were in a hospital listening to a heartbeat monitor.

Without warning, Matthew's eyes opened, and he shot bolt upright, throwing Kashyap off. His eyes were glassy and distant, while his breathing was panicked and heavy. His pale face gradually flushed red, the same colour as his hair, and he started to look more like a living person and less like a ghost.

The three boys standing around him looked on in utter incredulity as Matthew panted for air. Their slack jaws and wide eyes made them look like poorly drawn comic book characters from how over the top their reactions were.

"M-Matthew?" Vincent squeezed out a few nervous words.

But Matthew didn't respond. His jaw was clenched tight, and his hands twitched wildly.

"Matthew!" Kashyap yelled, but the boy's eyes remained fixed on something that didn't exist. Locked in an intense staring contest.

"Are you alright?" Jason bent down and tapped Matthew's shoulder.

It seemed this touch did something, as Matthew's gaze suddenly changed, and his body slumped over again. He was still panting but less aggressively, and it no longer seemed like he was fighting his own body for air.

For a moment, they thought his heart had stopped again, but Matthew suddenly groaned. As they heaved a collective sigh of relief, Kashyap crouched down to Matthew's eye level.

"What happened?" He asked softly.

Matthew wheezed, barely able to form words from his leaden tongue.

"I-I don't… I don't know."

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