Kabuki

Kabuki

I was hired to find a missing girl, who apparently ran away from home. As I asked her friends where she may be. Most of Sarah’s friends were very tight lipped. 

Only one kid, Daniel, actually said something to me, although accidentally. “Oh, Sarah went with that guy. Kabuki.”

I asked Daniel, Danny to his friends. “Who’s Kabuki?”

“He’s this guy who wears a kabuki mask. He’s a kind of a weird guy. Just walks around the old warehouses, wearing that mask.”

“Warehouses?”

“Yeah, we used to go there & smoke out sometimes. Get high, you know?”

I pulled out my tiny notebook & pen from my shirt pocket. “Where?”

Danny grabs my notebook. “I’ll draw a map.” Danny draws me a crude map.

The red X signifies where the kids have seen Kabuki. I thanked Danny and head towards the red X. 

The warehouses were definitely abandoned & creepy. Sarah has been missing for about three days. The police had checked the area (including the warehouses) as it was known to be a hangout but found no sign of Sarah. Daniel had told me why the police didn’t find anything. In warehouse number nine...

there was a false floor. 

I drove to warehouse number nine. I grabbed my pistol & flashlight. I didn’t bother calling the police until I found the false floor. Danny told me there were 5 rooms on the first floor. He didn’t know which room but it was definitely in warehouse nine. 

As I cleared the rooms one by one, I thought this kid was screwing with me & was probably getting high off of the twenty bucks I gave him for his shitty map drawing. Then, a noise. It sounded like the rustling sound was coming from room # 5. I turned off the light & used the natural lighting. With pistol on hand, I slowly crept to room # 5. I peeked my head in. I saw someone in a Kabuki mask. He was kneeling in front of crudely set lit candles. There was a samurai sword next to him. Kabuki was reading from a book. It seemed to be Japanese. He didn’t seem to hear as I crept into the room . As I got closer, I could see a figure to the side of the room. It was Sarah. She was lying unconscious, bound & gagged. 

Kabuki then stopped reading & holding the sword, got up from his keeling position. He turned to me. “You’re too late. She belongs to the Jorōgumo now.”

Pointing my pistol, I yelled “Drop the sword. Put your hands up!”

Kabuki got closer to me & swung the sword. I dodged the sword & pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the 

wall behind Kabuki’s head. He moved left & swung again. I jumped & shot back, this time hitting Kabuki in the chest. He fell to his knees. 

As I moved closer, I took his mask off. It was a man. He seemed to be homeless. “Who are you?” 

Kabuki smiled. “It’s too late. The spider-woman will rise.” Kabuki then collapsed on his side. 

I heard a noise behind me. I turned my flashlight & looked at Sarah. She was trembling & shaking. As I got closer, I stopped. 

Her body started sprouting giant insect-like legs covered in blood. Her head peeled back & pincers burst from her neck. Her screams became awful shrieks as Sarah’s body became a giant spider body. Her head, while still intact had a blank look in her “face”. 

The Sarah-spider turned to me. “Dinner.”

I fired the rest of my rounds into the Sarah-spider, turned and ran to my car. As I got in & turned the ignition, I saw the creature quickly approaching. It hit my car. I was rattled as the car shook violently. It backed up, then hit my car again. Again, the car shook. I climbed out of the passenger side. The smell of gas permeated the air. I looked & saw a trail of gasoline coming from underneath my car. 

The spider-Sarah shrieked again & hit my car. This time, peering into the car, it’s human head staring blankly into the interior. 

I pulled my zippo lighter out of my pocket & tossed it into the gasoline. The car exploded. The force of the explosion blew me back, knocking me on my ass. Battered & bruised, I get up & see the Sarah-spider on the ground. I can hear a train whistle from far away. 

Only the light of the flames illuminate the night. I approach the spider creature. It’s not moving. 

Suddenly the creature shrieks and turns over. It starts chasing me. I quickly think & start running toward the nearby tracks, with the giant spider thing close behind me. I see lights getting bigger & bigger. I start running faster & faster. Spider monster right behind me. I can hear its insect legs skittering on the pavement. The lights get larger. The train is close.

I jump over the tracks, as the train barely skirts my back, hitting the Sarah-spider. The creature bellows in pain. The train is coming to a screeching halt as the creature’s screams became more & more human. 

As I slowly approach the front of the train, I can hear the conductor. “Holy shit!”

I see what he’s talking about. There is no giant spider. No monstrous monster human-spider hybrid. It’s just a girl.

A girl named Sarah. 

She is holding a Kabuki mask.