Chapter Text
Meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow
The forest loomed ahead, and there was no way to distinguish where he'd come from or which way he was going. His chest ached as he ran, spurring himself past the point of exhaustion as he raced through the forest, not daring to look back yet.
The flashlight in his hand illuminated his path, but as he tried to put distance between himself and the thing chasing him, he could feel his legs begining to give out from beneath him, causing him to stumble and stop, almost collapsing against a tree. He spared a moment to glance around, and he couldn't see it anymore. His head fell back against the tree, body heaving as he panted in a desperate attempt to get the oxygen back in his lungs.
The loud bang of a gun being fired was followed by a searing pain in his thigh, causing him to fall to the floor, writhing in agony as blood seeped through his jeans, coating his hands as he clenched the site of the wound as his light rolled of into the near distance. His eyes were blown wide in both pain and shock as he gasped in short and frantic breaths.
He felt their presence before he actually saw them, and panic settled over him, along with the certain knowledge of death. Whilst they remained in darkness,.they picked up his light and pointed it at him whilst he began to weep, but before he could plead for his life he was grabbed by the hair, and his head slammed back against the tree, making him cry out in pain. "N-no, please... Please! I-" he began, but was silenced when a knee was slammed into his guts.
He doubled over, but the hand in his hair forced him to look up, sight bleary with tears at the person attacking him. Their face was hidden behind a gas mask, but he could make out their eyes, unnaturally blue, bearing down on him. White hair fell down from behind their shoulders as they leaned over him, long and unkept, matted in some areas. They looked like some vile mockery of a soldier, their clothes black and almost militaristic in style.
He was pulled from his pain induced delirium when he was dragged by the hair onto the forest floor, before a boot fell across his neck, pressing against his throat enough to restrict his breathing but not enough to suffocate. He was too tired to fight back, so he faced no other option but to submit to his fate. They trained the gun at his head, one eye squinting as they aimed, and he made a final thrashing movement at escape, but the boot on his neck pushed him down again. He fell back against the floor with a thud, eyes still wide and panicked, but his body was giving up. The rifle was pressed against his forehead, and he heard them say, barley there and muffled by the mask, "I'm sorry."
The gun fired.
His head was blown apart by the force of the bullet, brains splattering against the ground. They hesitated after they'd shot him, only lowering the rifle a moment later, looking almost defeated. An innocent man. Wrong place, wrong time, saw too much. He had to go, they knew that, but killing people like that never became easier, no matter how much Jeff insisted it would, or that they weren't made for this kind of work. Whatever. They'd prove him wrong someday... Maybe.
They sighed and sat down beside the body, setting their mask aside on the grass and wiping away the splatter of blood on the leather, then licking it from their fingers. The taste was metallic and warm, almost comforting.
Hunching over the body, they rummaged through the man's stuff in case he had anything of value on him, finding a tape and a few bucks, both of which they pocketed. Who even used those anymore? Tim might want to take a look at it though, so they'd give it to him when they next met.
They then began to remove his shirt before reaching into the pocket of their trenchcoat, pulling forth a pocket knife, which they drew across his torso from below his naval up to his throat. The skin was peeled back to reveal the muscle and fat beneath, which they cut open up to the sternum. They needed a saw to cut that, so they resorted to breaking the ribcage open. Straddling the body, they moved their hands, almost as if administering cpr, and slammed down hard against the bones over and over, repeatedly slipping on the bloody, skinned chest, but after a few tries they managed to break open the ribs, flinching at the loud crack.
Settling back next to the body they pulled open the bones and flesh, which gave way to the organs it housed. It reeked of blood, which seeped from the recently dead body, staining the forest floor red. With a sharp exhale, they moved on to find the kidneys. They didn't like that organ, but Jack was strangely fond of them for whatever reason, so they opted to set them aside for him if he wasn't around. They put the organs in a ziplock bag which they took from their pocket, stashing it away in the inside of their coat.
Their hands were slick with blood, so holding and using the knife proved difficult, making them resort to using their teeth and hands to tear at the flesh, the act animalistic in nature. They reached inside the chest cavity, digging through the squelching matter until they found their prize: the heart. They winced at how cringe that sounded but it was the one of the few organs they actually enjoyed, and it's not like they meant it in some weird way.
The sound of a twig breaking it the background made them stiffen, their head whipping up to look around and snatching up the man's flashlight to illuminate their surroundings in the hand not occupied with being dug half inside a corpse. Their gaze landed upon a spot of blue between the trees, barely visible in the darkness. Their mouth pulled into a grin at the familiar sight, revealing teeth coated in blood. "Hey. Jack." They whisper-shouted, dropping the flashlight back to the floor.
Upon realizing that he'd been spotted, his posture relaxed, no longer bothering with being completely quiet as he padded across the forest towards the source of the sound. "Who's that?" He whispered from behind his mask, stopping a few trees away, just to be sure. "Me." They responded briefly, mouth now full whilst the heart in their hand was now missing a bite shaped chunk.
Jack's face moved to 'look' at them straight on, head tilting slightly to the side. "Flynn." He said simply, sounding a bit relieved at recognizing the source of the voice. He moved between the trees with surprising efficiency for a blind man, occasionally making small clicking sounds to better navigate the area.
Flynn watched as he moved to stand beside them, his hand resting on the padded shoulder of his coat, fingers brushing the black fur that lined it, before he moved to crouch beside them. They saw what little bit of his face was visible was visible through the eye holes of his mask screw up into a frown from being hit with the reek of the corpse. They knew Jack found their methods... unsavory. Too messy. He preferred clean incisions, everything neatly executed whilst Flynn's way of doing things was... the total opposite of that.
"Oh-" They reached into their pocket to take out kidneys they'd put aside for Jack, extending them towards him. "Didn't think you were gonna be here," they explained between chewing, "so I bagged them for ya." Jack took the kidneys offered to him, his expression turning into a smile, albeit one hidden by his mask, as he took them.
The organs were still warm in his palm, and he nodded in acknowledgement. "Thanks," he said, taking one of them out of the bag, inspecting the texture of it with the pad of his thumb before tilting his head down to hide his face as he lifted the mask to take a bite.
He despised the thought of anyone seeing his face, barely comfortable enough for Flynn to see it, and in the middle of the forest surrounding the mansion anyone passing by could catch a glimpse if he wasn't careful.
Jack could hear Flynn go back tearing away at the flesh of the man, chewing loudly as they ate. His pointed hears twitched uncomfortably at the sound of the body being ripped apart, the quiet squelching of meat and blood slightly unsettling him.