It was a very windy and dark night. There was a big, fat moon shining in the night sky. There was a town that was known for a mysterious legend. The legend goes like this: In this town, on October 31st, during a full moon, these creatures called the night crawlers come out, revealing themselves. They hunt humans and animals for food. Nobody knows for sure if the legend is true, but there is some evidence that these creatures are real, existing beings. In the story tough, the only way to put these creatures back to sleep is by grabbing the book and reading the story to them.

“Kevin, are you ready for the hike?”

“Yeah mom. But I just need to find my water bottle.”

“Well, hurry. If you want to watch the movie when we get back, then we have to go now.”

“Where could it be,” I mumbled.

My name is Kevin Turner. I’m in 5th grade, and for some reason, I have trouble finding things. I remember one time, I couldn’t find my comic book. But then something caught my eye. I looked and found it right in front of me on my shelf, and right now, I’m having trouble trying to find my water bottle.

“Kevin, we need to go!” Mom urged.

“There you are!” I exclaimed as I grabbed my water bottle. It was literally right there sitting on the desk.

“Kevin, where are you?!”

“I’m coming, mom!

***

We drove for about five minutes to the mountain. The town is small here. There are few stores and restaurants downtown. There’s also a park for kids to play. When we got there, we started unpacking. After that, we started hiking up the large hill. The backpack I was holding had a lot of stuff in it, so it felt like I was carrying two tons!

“Are we there yet?” I asked.

“No.” Mom replied.

I groaned. I was so tired from the bag, that every step I took, it felt like the bag was getting heavier.

“Why are we coming here again?” I asked.

“Your dad and I came here on our first date.” Mom told me. “He said he came here to relax by looking at the amazing view. Oh, and you’re going to love it. The mountain view is beautiful!”

We were almost up the top, but then I heard something rustle in the leaves. I turned towards the noise. Nothing there. Strange. I started walking again but then I saw a shadow tower over me. A huge shadow, big and broad. I felt a chill go down my back. I turned and saw a creepy, enormous monster, standing right in front of me. It had about 5 eyes, and antlers on either side of its head. I thought I was seeing things. I rubbed my eyes and looked back at where the monster once stood. I was getting creeped-out. I wanted to go back home and stay in my bed, where I was safe.

“Kevin, get over here! Stop wandering off.”

I didn’t realize that I had walked away from mom. “Sorry.” I muttered.

We took a few more steps and stopped at the tip of the mountain. I stared in amazement. The view was amazing, just like mom had said. There was a nice lake flowing down below the mountain. There were also trees and animals resting at the bottom. I grabbed my phone and snapped a picture of the view.

“It’s amazing isn’t it?” Mom asked.

“Yeah!” I replied.

It was getting dark, so me and mom started to walk to the bottom of the mountain. I led the way down. It was silent outside. No sound at all. Weird. We walked in the strange silence. Then, I heard a scream. I turned and saw an enormous creature grabbing mom. It looked like the one I had seen earlier.

“Kevin, grab the book in your bag! Hurry!”

Mom looked very scared. I unzipped my bag and pulled out the strange book. I didn’t pack a book, I thought while gripping the book in both hands. The monster stared at the book in my hands. It growled and reached for the book. I screamed in horror. The monster dropped mom. She hit the ground hard. Was she alive? “Mom!” I shouted. But the monster grabbed the book and stared at it angrily.

“Without this, you won’t be able to stop us.” The monster growled.

I didn’t know what that meant, but I knew it was bad. What was I going to do? Then, I saw creatures come out of the trees and begin to walk toward the town. What were they going to do?