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No. No. No, No! Not again!
Tyler picked his head off the back of the seat slowly, feeling sickness swirling in his head like a tsunami ready to crash. The car hurtled down the same road as always, passing countless blurs of trees atop an expanse of white snow on either side. It was deathly cold inside the vehicle, the kind that sinks into your bones and drains the life from your bloodstream. Ahead of him lay the wide horizon, barely turning pink at the dawn of another day. The sun hadn’t yet crawled above the trees. In the front seat, a hooded figure sat with both hands on the wheel.
Thus was the story every night. Every time Tyler lay down and closed his eyes, he returned to the back seat of the car. Every morning when he awoke, it was the same cycle, never slowing, never ending.
“H-Hey,” Tyler’s voice quivered, “Where are we going?”
The figure didn’t turn, choosing instead to lay his foot heavier on the gas. Tyler’s head smacked against the seat once more, pulling a curtain of darkness over his eyes until he shook his head to dispose of it.
“Where are you taking me?” He asked, no longer a tremor in his words.
“No.” Was the figure’s reply.
Tyler’s heart pounded behind his ribcage as a grinding shriek from the car began to mirror it. Suddenly, the seat below Tyler jolted, and when he looked down through the window, the tire was wobbling with a terrifying noise. First the dark red hubcap was ripped off, skidding across the road and out of sight. The tire followed, spewing orange and red sparks in its wake when the bare axel landed roughly against asphalt.
“Stop!” Tyler called to the villain up front, “You’ll kill us!”
No reply. The figure’s grip tightened on the steering wheel.
The wheel was pulled sharply with the curved road, throwing Tyler against the window, now littered with pocks from the fire. To his horror, Josh stood in the middle of the road ahead of them, unmoving. Something was different. His drum kit was there, but he didn’t sit down. He didn’t play. The sticks were in his hand, ready to begin the beat of the war drum in his head, but someone had pressed pause.
And the car was hurtling towards him.
“No, no, no!” Tyler screamed, “Slow down! Stop!” He grasped the back of the seat where the figure was. As soon as his fingers made contact with the vinyl, he was thrown back. His hands seared and burned so strongly that he gripped his wrist tightly to keep from screaming. He bit his lip, forcing a cry of pain through gritted teeth. When he looked, his skin was stained black. He was suffocating in the darkness, and he felt the burning color surround his neck like a noose. He ran his hands over his face, forcing his tears back under his skin.
“Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop! STOP!” To his horror, his voice warped until it was not his own.
The car skidded past Josh by a hairsbreadth, flames igniting the drum kit. Tyler had to turn in his seat to see as the car pulled him from sight, but still Josh did not move. The kit was ablaze, sparks flying from the cymbals and snares. Soon it stood like a torch in the daylight, and as Tyler watched, darkness fell across the sky. The sun was drowned beneath the horizon.
Tyler turned forward again, and fear fell across his body in a wave. The figure was no longer driving. Instead, he was in the back seat, his face close to Tyler’s as he crouched over him. Tyler couldn’t even scream. The weight in his chest was too heavy. The pressure in his throat was too much. The burning in his eyes was blinding him, to the point where the figure’s face was blurred. All Tyler could see were the horrible red eyes, ghostly pale skin, and a gaping red mouth.
Rage boiled beneath his skin. His hands shook but he forced his voice to not, “It’s over.” Tyler commanded.
The figure growled, “It’s never over.”
Tyler closed his eyes. When he opened them again, the figure was gone. No one lay in the front seat, nor the back, aside from himself. The burning in his eyes faded, and his vision was suddenly clearer than before. The car was still alight, and this time, he wanted it to burn. He lay back calmly, watching as the black hinges were torn from the black doors, and they fell behind him in the empty road. The black hood rose up like a wild beast ready to strike, only to be slain as it fell to the asphalt in a shower of sparks. Tyler watched in awe as the roof was ripped off as if by a giant’s hand, falling to the road and tumbling out of sight.
The night roared above him and clouds covered the stars but he didn’t care. He stood, gripping the black vinyl through the searing pain in his hands. He took a breath, feeling the cold winter air pierce his lungs and bite his skin, but it only soothed him. It fought the fire within him, washing across his body like he’d been dunked in a bath of ice water. It was life. It was Him.
Victory coursed through his veins and he screamed into the empty sky with arms open wide. The car continued to hurtle towards Josh once more, who saw the car ablaze and smiled. At the sight of Tyler standing triumphantly, Josh took his seat at the drums. With all the force he could muster, he slammed into the instruments, striking Tyler with the beat of his heart.
At the vibrant sound of the first cymbal, the car seemed to die, skidding sideways as the hood caught ablaze. Tyler quickly hopped to the back of the vehicle to avoid the boiling flames, squinting as Josh’s figure neared, illuminated in the glow of his brightly lit drums. The kick drum was almost completely burned off, embers licking ravenously at the skin and rim. With each hit, sparks flew from the sticks, dancing into the night sky like deadly firecrackers.
The hearse grinded past Josh, and Tyler grasped his chance. His legs ached as he leapt from the melting seats and the boiling metal. He hit the ground roughly, putting his arms out for balance as fresh air filled his lungs. Josh sat in front of him, endlessly playing, smiling behind his bottom lip between his teeth.
Tyler looked past him to where the deadly car finally ended its march. The tires had melted, and fire engulfed the engine, blasting a tower of smoke and flame into the sky, so brilliant that Tyler shielded his eyes as the heat blurred his gaze. Pieces of metal flew off and landed in smoking heaps on the white snow. The fire crackled and roared like a great wounded demon, but Josh’s kicks drowned out the sound.
The figure, absent since the harrowing ride until now, stood in the flames, unmoving as they licked his sides and tore the hood from his face, but still, distance made it hard for Tyler to see him clearly. Both boys turned as the flames won over, and the figure fell into their blazing grasp, like a dragon finally slain.
Josh fell silent. He looked up at Tyler in concern, doubt blanketing his mocha eyes, “Is it over?”
Tyler couldn’t speak. He looked at the fire, at the place where the figure had disappeared beneath the flames, and then at the dark sky above. The dark clouds had decidedly moved on, exposing clusters of stars that shone brightly on the scene like billions of glowing eyes.
“I hope so,” he finally whispered, like his voice might once again wake the figure from his slumber.
Josh exhaled sharply, like a dam breaking. Neither one of them wanted to move. They seemed balanced on a precipice, too afraid that a single move would throw them back into the nightmarish circle.
“What happened?” Josh’s voice was small.
Before Tyler could answer, the sky began to brighten. He turned. Beyond the trees, the sun was rising, painting everything in shades of pink and orange. The shadows shrunk. The snow began to thaw. The fire behind them continued to crackle and moan, but the heat no longer burned their skin. It couldn’t touch them. The drum kit was whole again, the sparks extinguished. Tyler took a breath.
“I was saved.”