The wind stirred softly through the eerie stillness of Ravenhill Park, a cheerful theme ground now deserted under the weight of the night. Rusting ride tracks curved in shadows, and the faded smile of a clown statue grinned crookedly under the flicker of a dying lamplight.
A night patrol officer stood by the gated entrance, leaning against the iron rail, a half-eaten hot dog in one hand, his eyes heavy with fatigue. The only sound was the crunch of his own bite and the low static of the comm radio attached to his shoulder.
Then—
A flicker.
Something darted past the trees beyond the fountain court.
The officer paused, eyes narrowing. He blinked. Rubbed his eyes. Maybe it was just the light or his gnawing hunger getting the best of him. He went back to taking another bite of the hot dog.
Something moved again—just past the line of tall, leafless trees at the edge of the park. A shape— faster this time.
His posture straightened, alert now. He grunted under his breath and reached for his flashlight, flicking it on. The beam from the flashlight stretched thin and narrow as he moved across the crunching gravel into the open field. The rusty carousel let out a long groan in the wind, turning half a circle as if pulled by something invisible.
"Who's there?" he barked into the night, voice gravelly and sharp.
No answer.
He stepped onto the damp grass, boots squelching with every step. "I said—who's there?!"
Still nothing. No answer. No footsteps.
His flashllight swept past a row of swings, swaying slightly from the breeze. He ventured deeper into the field. He didn't see anything out of place.
The officer scanned left, then right—then made his way towards the benches near the candy stall.
And then—crack.
A heavy footstep. Louder this time.
He spun. Brought his hand to his waist and unsnapped the pistol. His fingers hovered near the trigger as he retraced his steps.
From behind one of the old park benches, he heard sounds coming from there. Slow. Tense. Alive.
Just as he moved another step closer, sudden burst of flapping wings filled the air.
A flock of pigeons erupted from behind the benches, feathers scattering and rushing into the night air like torn shadows.
He exhaled harshly and lowered his weapon. He cursed under his breath.
"Stupid birds."
He turned to leave—
And then froze.
A long vague shadow crept up from behind him. Far. Still. Unmoving.
It stood just beyond the edge of the grass, near the twisted metal gate of the ride maintenance shed. Its figure was eerily human, but... wrong. Off. Too symmetrical. Too still.
The silhouette was too slender and narrow—its limbs unusually elongated. Something shimmered off its skin like dull chrome under moonlight.
The officer raised his voice, louder this time. "Hey! You can't be in here! What're you doing at this hour?!"
No reply.
He slowly reached for his gun again. "Are you lost? Do you need help?"
Still nothing.
Then—the figure twitched. Its arm jerked unnaturally. A long, thin object—metallic—gleamed in its hand.
"Identify yourself!"the officer shouted, still contemplating on whether to take out his gun or not. The person looked unusually relaxed to be in here by this time of the night.
The figure took a sleek and jerky step forward again. This time, the officer had no choice but to pull out his gun and aim.
"I said identify yourself!"
The figure didn't budge and instead took another taunting step.
The officer's hands were steady—but his breathing wasn't.
"One more step and I'll open fire!"
Suddenly, the figure lunged at the man vigorously.
He fired. Once. Twice. The shots echoed through the park, bouncing off rusted carnival rides and hollow booths.
The figure staggered—but kept coming.
"What the—?!"
A third shot. A fourth. Sparks flew as the metal caught one bullet, then the next.
The officer's breath caught in his throat.
"What the hell...". He reached out to the comm on his shoulder.
In a blink—the figure vanished.
Gone.
The officer's pulse skyrocketed. He turned in circles, pointing his flashlight and gun in every direction. His lips parted, shallow breath coming fast. His eyes scanning the field and ears straining to pick up on any sounds but nothing came through.
"Control, this is Unit Five," he rasped into his shoulder comm, voice shaking. "Spotted an unidentified person inside the theme park. Suspect is armed. I repeat, suspect is armed."
A crackled voice responded, "Unit six, did you initiate contact? Over ."
"Negative. I lost sight of the person a few minutes ago. No visual but it didn't look like the person was lost or trapped. They're still in here somewhere. I'm sure of it."
"Copy that. Backup en route. Hold your position and keep us posted. We'll be there shortly."
The comm went dead.
The officer advanced again. One step. Another. His weapon was the only thing that somehow steadied his nerves and kept his resolve together.
A sharp pain exploded at the back of his skull. The flashlight flew from his hand and spun into the grass. He collapsed to the ground with a grunt, the grass brushed against his chest as he hit it hard.
He managed to blink through the blur and bile rising in his throat.
His head throbbed with searing pain, and he grasped it with both hands, as if holding it together. When he pulled his hand away, his gaze fell upon the red smudges on his fingers – blood."
He gasped, trembling, eyes darting in a daze.
He looked up.
And there it stood—towering, mechanical, human-like, yet void of any life. Its eyes—cold red holes. Its body covered in a dark metallic alloy, dented from bullets that hadn't pierced it.
It raised its hand.
The officer spotted his pistol nearby—just a few feet away. He crawled, gritting his teeth. Each movement made his vision pulse in and out, wavering due to the heavy impact of the hit. His fingers brushed the grip—
But too late.
With an inhuman screech, the figure lunged forward. A long, steel spike jutted out from its elbow and plunged clean through the back of the officer's head. The tip of the blade exited through the officer's face with a wet, sickening crunch.
His body jerked then went limp. The park was silent once more.
Blood saturated the grass, forming a thick sticky patch.
The red light on the machine's face flickered.
The red light on the robot's face flickered.
It stood above the body silently.
Then, just as soundlessly as it had come—
It vanished back into the night.