Blood Moon Rising

Chapter One: The Omen

The town of Red Hollow had always been a quiet, unremarkable place, nestled deep in the Appalachian Mountains. It was a town where nothing ever seemed to change, where the same families had lived for generations, and where old traditions were upheld with a reverence that bordered on superstition. But there was one tradition that everyone in Red Hollow feared—the Blood Moon.

Every few decades, when the moon turned red and the night sky seemed to bleed, the townsfolk would lock themselves in their homes, their doors and windows tightly barred, their prayers whispered in the dark. The Blood Moon was an omen, a harbinger of death and destruction, and those who ignored its warning rarely lived to tell the tale.

The stories were as old as the town itself. They spoke of a curse, of a night when the moon would rise like a bloody eye in the sky, and the dead would walk the earth once more. It was said that the Blood Moon was the result of an ancient sin, a crime so terrible that it had stained the very soil of Red Hollow, and that the only way to escape its wrath was to stay inside, to avoid the gaze of the cursed moon.

This year, the Blood Moon was set to rise on Halloween night, a coincidence that filled the townsfolk with dread. The air was thick with tension as the date approached, the streets growing quieter with each passing day. The old-timers shook their heads, muttering about the signs, about the things they had seen in the sky and in their dreams. And when the night finally arrived, Red Hollow was a ghost town, its streets deserted, its windows dark.

But not everyone heeded the warnings.

Jesse Carter was new to Red Hollow. He had moved there a few months ago, looking for a fresh start after a string of bad luck and poor decisions. The town had seemed like the perfect place to start over—quiet, peaceful, far away from the chaos of the city. But as Halloween approached, Jesse noticed something strange about the town’s residents. They were jumpy, nervous, as if they were expecting something terrible to happen.

When he asked about it, he was met with vague answers and superstitious mutterings. But Jesse wasn’t one to believe in old wives’ tales. He had spent his life in the city, where the only things to fear were the living, not the dead. So when Halloween night arrived, and the Blood Moon rose in the sky, Jesse decided to ignore the warnings. He would go out, see the town under the light of the Blood Moon, and prove to himself that there was nothing to fear.

As the clock struck midnight, Jesse stepped out of his small, rented house and into the cool night air. The town was eerily quiet, the only sound the distant rustling of leaves in the wind. The moon hung low in the sky, a deep, blood-red orb that cast an unsettling glow over the landscape. Jesse felt a shiver run down his spine, but he pushed the feeling aside, telling himself it was just the cold.

He wandered through the empty streets, his footsteps echoing in the silence. The town felt different under the Blood Moon—darker, more menacing, as if the shadows themselves were alive. But Jesse kept walking, determined to see it through, to prove that the stories were nothing more than myths.

But as he rounded a corner, he saw something that made his heart stop. At the end of the street, standing in the middle of the road, was a figure—tall, thin, and dressed in ragged clothes. The figure’s back was to him, but there was something off about the way it stood, something unnatural.

“Hey!” Jesse called out, his voice echoing in the night.

The figure didn’t move.

Jesse hesitated, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. Every instinct in his body told him to turn around, to run, but he forced himself to move forward, to get a closer look.

As he approached, the figure slowly turned to face him, and Jesse’s blood ran cold. The figure’s face was pale, almost translucent, its eyes dark and hollow. It was a face that no living person could have, a face that belonged to the dead.

Jesse stumbled back, his heart pounding in his chest as the figure began to move toward him, its steps slow and deliberate. He could hear the faint sound of bones creaking, of joints cracking, as the figure drew closer, its eyes fixed on him with a gaze that seemed to pierce his very soul.

Panicking, Jesse turned and ran, his breath coming in ragged gasps as he sprinted through the deserted streets. The town around him seemed to warp and twist, the buildings closing in on him, the shadows reaching out with cold, dead hands. And all the while, the Blood Moon hung in the sky, watching, waiting.

Chapter Two: The Dead Walk

Jesse ran until his legs burned, until his lungs felt like they would burst. He didn’t know where he was going, only that he had to get away, had to escape the horrors that seemed to be closing in on him from all sides. But no matter how far he ran, the town seemed to twist and turn, leading him back to where he had started.

And then, the whispering began.

At first, it was faint, barely audible over the sound of his own heartbeat. But as he slowed, trying to catch his breath, the whispers grew louder, more distinct. They came from all around him, from the shadows, from the ground beneath his feet. Voices, dozens of them, all speaking at once, their words a jumbled, incoherent mess.

Jesse pressed his hands to his ears, trying to block out the sound, but it was no use. The whispers grew louder, more insistent, until they filled his mind, drowning out his thoughts.

And then he saw them—the dead.

They rose from the ground, from the graves that had been hidden beneath the town’s streets, their bodies twisted and broken, their eyes dark and empty. They moved slowly, deliberately, their arms outstretched, reaching for him with fingers that were little more than bone.

Jesse backed away, his eyes wide with terror as the dead closed in on him. Their faces were twisted in agony, their mouths open in silent screams. He could feel their cold breath on his skin, could smell the scent of earth and decay that clung to them like a shroud.

He turned and ran again, but the dead were everywhere, blocking his path, surrounding him. There was no escape, no way out. The Blood Moon had risen, and with it, the dead had returned.

Jesse stumbled, falling to the ground as the dead closed in. He could feel their hands on him, cold and clammy, pulling him down into the dirt. He tried to scream, but no sound came out, his voice lost in the cacophony of whispers that filled the air.

As the dead dragged him down, Jesse caught a glimpse of the Blood Moon, its red light burning in the sky like a fiery eye. And then, everything went dark.

Chapter Three: The Curse Revealed

When Jesse woke, he was lying on cold, hard ground, the smell of earth and decay filling his nostrils. He opened his eyes and found himself in a dark, underground chamber, the walls lined with old, crumbling stone. The air was thick with the scent of rot, and the only light came from the faint, red glow that seeped in from above.

He pushed himself up, his body aching, and looked around. The chamber was empty, save for the rows of stone coffins that lined the walls. The whispers had stopped, replaced by an oppressive silence that pressed down on him like a weight.

Jesse’s mind raced as he tried to piece together what had happened. The dead had risen, just as the stories had said, but why? What had caused this nightmare? And more importantly, how could he escape?

As he stumbled to his feet, he noticed something strange about the coffins. They were old, ancient even, and each one was engraved with a name—a name that was familiar to him. The names of the families that had lived in Red Hollow for generations, the names of those who had founded the town.

And then he saw it—the symbol.

It was carved into the lid of each coffin, a simple, circular design that looked like a serpent eating its own tail. The Ouroboros, a symbol of eternity, of life and death in an endless cycle.

Jesse’s heart sank as he realized the truth. The stories weren’t just about a curse; they were about a pact, a deal made long ago by the founders of Red Hollow. A deal with something dark, something ancient, that had granted them prosperity and protection in exchange for a terrible price.

The Blood Moon was the key. Every few decades, it rose in the sky, and the pact had to be renewed. The dead would rise, and one life would be sacrificed to satisfy the curse, to keep the town safe for another generation.

Jesse had been the chosen one, the outsider, the one who had unknowingly agreed to be the sacrifice. The Blood Moon had marked him, and now it was time to fulfill the pact.

But Jesse wasn’t ready to give up, not yet. He had to find a way out, had to escape the curse before it consumed him completely.

He moved through the chamber, searching for an exit, but the walls were solid, the only way out sealed by heavy stone doors. The red glow from above grew brighter, and he could feel the presence of the dead all around him, their whispers growing louder, more insistent.

Desperate, Jesse looked up and saw a faint crack of light in the ceiling. It was small, but it was his only hope. He began to climb, his hands gripping the rough stone as he pulled himself up toward the light.

The whispers grew louder, the dead closing in on him as he climbed. He could feel their cold fingers brushing against his skin, could hear their voices calling out to him, begging him to join them.

But Jesse didn’t stop. He climbed higher, his muscles burning, his breath coming in ragged gasps. The light grew brighter, and he could feel the cold air of the night above him, could see the faint outline of the Blood Moon in the sky.

With one final effort, he pulled himself up through the crack and into the open air. He fell to the ground, gasping for breath, the cold wind biting at his skin. The town was silent, the streets empty, the dead nowhere to be seen.

But the Blood Moon still hung in the sky, its red light casting an eerie glow over the landscape. Jesse knew that the curse wasn’t broken, that the dead would rise again, that the pact would have to be fulfilled.

But he had escaped. He had survived. And as he looked up at the Blood Moon, he vowed that he would find a way to end the curse, to free the town of Red Hollow from its dark past once and for all.

Chapter Four: The Final Stand

Jesse spent the next few days researching the history of Red Hollow, digging through old records and speaking to the few remaining elders who still remembered the old stories. He learned that the curse had been placed on the town centuries ago, when the founders had made a deal with a dark entity in exchange for protection and prosperity. The Blood Moon was a reminder of that pact, a time when the dead would rise, and a sacrifice would be required to keep the town safe.

But Jesse wasn’t willing to accept that fate. He knew that the curse could be broken, that the pact could be undone. He just needed to find the key.

As the next full moon approached, Jesse prepared for his final stand. He gathered everything he had learned, every piece of knowledge, every artifact that could help him in his fight against the curse. He knew that he couldn’t do it alone, but he also knew that no one in Red Hollow would help him. They were too afraid, too bound by the traditions and superstitions of the past.

So, on the night of the full moon, Jesse returned to the underground chamber, the place where the dead had risen, where the pact had been made. He carried with him a lantern, a book of old rituals, and a single, silver dagger—the only weapon that could sever the ties between the living and the dead.

The chamber was just as he had left it, the stone coffins lined up against the walls, the Ouroboros symbol carved into their lids. But this time, Jesse wasn’t afraid. He had a plan, and he was determined to see it through.

As the moon rose in the sky, its light filtering down through the crack in the ceiling, Jesse began the ritual. He lit the lantern, its flame flickering in the darkness, and opened the book, reading aloud the words that would break the curse.

The air in the chamber grew colder, the shadows deeper, as the dead began to stir. The whispers returned, louder this time, more desperate, as the spirits of the founders awoke, their eyes glowing with an unnatural light.

But Jesse didn’t stop. He continued the ritual, his voice growing stronger, more confident, as he recited the ancient incantations. The dead moved toward him, their forms shifting and twisting in the darkness, but Jesse stood his ground.

As he reached the final words of the ritual, the dead let out a collective wail, their voices echoing through the chamber like a chorus of the damned. The air crackled with energy, the very ground beneath his feet trembling as the curse began to unravel.

With a final, decisive motion, Jesse plunged the silver dagger into the center of the Ouroboros symbol, severing the ties that bound the town to its dark past.

The chamber erupted in a blinding flash of light, and the dead let out one last, terrible scream before they were consumed by the light, their forms dissolving into nothingness.

When the light faded, Jesse found himself standing alone in the chamber, the air still, the curse broken. The Blood Moon was gone, replaced by the cool, silver light of the full moon, its soft glow illuminating the chamber.

The town of Red Hollow was free.

Epilogue: A New Dawn

In the days that followed, the town of Red Hollow slowly began to recover. The fear that had gripped the town for generations began to fade, replaced by a sense of hope and renewal. The dead no longer haunted the streets, and the Blood Moon was nothing more than a distant memory.

Jesse became a hero in the eyes of the townspeople, the man who had broken the curse and freed them from their dark past. But he didn’t stay in Red Hollow. The memories of that night, of the things he had seen, were too much for him to bear.

He left the town, traveling to new places, seeking a fresh start, just as he had done before. But this time, he carried with him the knowledge that he had faced the darkness and won, that he had the strength to overcome anything that came his way.

And as he looked up at the sky, at the full moon shining down on him, he knew that he would never forget the Blood Moon, or the curse that had once haunted the town of Red Hollow.

But he also knew that the curse was broken, and that the town was finally at peace.