Hi, my name is Gregory, and this is my story. I barely escaped, and if anything similar ever happens to you. PROCEED WITH EXTREME CAUTION.

I woke up from my nap, awakened by a small bump in the road, we were going back home from a soccer game. I was on the High School varsity team, and I even got a few minutes in. This was a big game and we had just barely won with a penalty kick after they fouled us.

I lived in Arizona, where the dirt is brown and the sun is bleak. There are no beautiful greens or blues, especially out where I am. Only ugly browns and yellows.

"How far are we?" I asked anyone who was awake, feeling the fatigue weighing heavily on me. Sore from the few minutes I was in.

"Few hours out." Ethan, my closest friend on the team replied, his voice soft and weary.

I sighed, closing my eyes.

A sudden bump jolted me upwards. The shock shook me, fully awake now.

I looked at my phone and saw the time, 1:16 am, it was way too late. The length of the drive almost deserved a night at a hotel, almost.

The ride was silent. It was also bumpy, strangely bumpy, I noticed. And rough. I mean, rougher than normal. Not like a bumpy road. more like-

I looked out, we were in the middle of nowhere. It was your average nowhere here in the Grand Canyon state. Ugly creosote trees, nasty and their leaves just felt wrong. The road wasn't even asphalt, it was dirt. I don't think we ever drove on dirt to the game, and why would we?

I looked ahead and tried to see the coaches in front, it was hard to see through the seats and other players. Everyone was scattered about, on the floor, between chairs, backwards, underneath, and other ways.

I was able to see the bus driver, he looked straight ahead, unmoving.

I wanted to ask why we were off the regular road, but would have to yell to do so and I didn't want to wake anyone up. So I played games on my phone until I couldn't take it anymore. I walked to the front of the bus and asked the driver where we were going. He did not reply, he only kept staring forward. Which kinda scared me.

"Hey, where are we?" I asked, still no response "This ain't funny..."

I waved my hand in front of his face and nothing still.

Right as turned and started to walk away he said "Smell it? it's beautiful, and strange." I stopped and turned back at him, he sighed "it's amazing, I want it, whatever it is."

My mouth went dry and I felt goosebumps climb up my arms and up my back, something about this just felt wrong. "We're almost there. Can't you smell it?" he said, emotionless "I think, I think this is it." He said right before he floored the brakes, throwing everyone forward. I got thrown the furthest and landed up on the dashboard and then rolled off, my already sore body hurt. At the moment I thought it was painful, how wrong I was, because soon I would experience pain much, much worse. The driver smiled "Everyone out." he said into the microphone, the sound emanated in and through the bus and out into the cold night as he pushed the button that opens the door.

I smelled nothing, everyone else seemed as confused as I was. Especially the coach "What's going on?" Coach Johnson asked.

"It's outside, go see it." The driver said. Coach looked worried and confused, but replied calmly "Why, what's out there?"

"The amazing thing, its smells, it smells like joy, and happiness..."

Coach shifted in his seat before slowly getting up. "Alright, but only if you come with me, right? Kids, if I'm not back in a minute, call 911."

"Wait, what's out there? Coach, don't." Noah said.

"If this is a prank." Coach Johnson said before slowly stepping out the bus. The driver followed him and Coach inspected the area around the bus. I stood up and looked at the others, everyone, including myself, was nervous and scared. Something about this whole thing just felt off. Soon we were all watching out the windows, as they moved around so did we, trying to get good views. I felt hot air hit the back of my neck and I looked away for a moment to see who, Jordan. There was a sudden scream and a shrill moan, the scream was cut short and the moan faded. I quickly and in horror looked back and saw nothing. Both the coach and the bus driver were gone.

Everyone was paralyzed with fear, especially those who had actually seen it. "What happened? I looked away." Thinking it was probably all just a prank.

No one responded for a moment, I smirked. In the blink of an eye, Tyler, who had seen it, frantically ran to the front of the bus and pressed the button to shut the door. He stared at it and leaned forward, looking like he was trying to get a glimpse at something out of it. Right as the door shut there was a bang as something hit it. Tyler screamed and jumped back, his face in a petrified state.

"What?! What?!" I yelled, begging to know what was happening.

"The-the thing!" Tyler stuttered out.

"What thing?!" I asked.

"The thing that took coach, it's out there! It's banging on the door, it wants in…" He said quietly. There was another bang. And quickly following it was a sound like a scrambling animal around and under the bus.

Sam began to cry, I got more and more freaked out by the minute. The worry I was experiencing was sickening and my adrenaline was at an all time high, and just kept getting higher. I was getting pretty sure it was not a prank, but the idea still held on. Deep down I knew it was not a prank, no matter how hard I tried to pretend it was.

"What do we do?" Someone asked.

"We gotta drive away." Tyler said.

"Please do!" Sam shouted through tears.

I didn't move, I stood still, petrified. Tyler turned the key, but nothing happened. He tried again, and again. It wasn't working. "Grab anything that could be used as a weapon!" he shouted.

We all scrambled to find a weapon, one player brought a pocket knife, the others just had to make do with pencils and pens. I had nothing, so I took one of Ethan's pencils.

"What is happening?!" I yelled "What is it?"

Ethan stopped, "A monster." he said before continuing to scramble around the bus, trying again to see it. Everyone was now looking for what took coach. I looked, but couldn't see it, only darkness. The bus’s headlights were on, but it didn't seem to make a difference.

Silence and nothingness. Everyone perked their heads around the windows, looking for the 'monster.'

I was still confused, what did they, could they mean by monster? An animal? A person? It did not even occur to me that what they meant by a monster, was a monster.

I felt a sudden chill and looked to see where it had come from. There, I saw Mason peeking out of a window, he had openedit to look for the monster. His fingers clinged to the edge to hold himself up and to get a better view. He looked around. Tyler yelled at him “Shut the window!”

“What?” Mason asked, confused. Frenzied animal-like running could be heard from under the bus as it ran towards the window. His eyes went wide for a mere moment before he screamed in pain as his arms were pulled through the window. He pulled back in anguish and panic. I wish I could say I tried to help him, to rescue him, but I only sat there as Tyler ran from the front of the bus and grabbed him and pulled him back. Barely saving him from being pulled completely out the window.

I looked at him, half his fingers were gone and the others half gone, they all were chewed and gnawed on, blood leaked from the wounds. Tyler ran to the front of the bus and grabbed the first aid kit, he ran back opening it, Mason was in agonised frenzy. Tyler grabbed some gauze and wrapped it around his hand, trying to stop the bleeding. Mason cried and groaned in pain.

The sound of scratching came from the wall. Everyone froze, looking at the side of the bus. Everything was silent save for the scratching and Mason’s quiet whimpers.

Long fingers were crawling up the window, I stared as the pale, white fingers, equipped with long, rotten claw like nails dragged across the window then lowered back down.

I looked at the others and they all seemed equally as freaked out.

Bang! The sound came from the back of the bus, everyone jumped.

Bang! Another one.

Everyone started to move away, and the banging stopped. The beast was looking for another way in.

"I think it can't get in, as long as we stay away from the windows."

Tyler was still helping Mason, who quietly cried. Terrified by his mangled hands.

"But, we're trapped, how can we escape?" Dylan asked.

"Maybe, maybe someone can get help... That's it, call someone!" I shouted. Truthfully I was proud of myself and felt heroic.

"Yes, everyone try to call." Tyler said hastily.

Everyone once again scrambled, grabbing their phones. I grabbed mine and closed Call of Duty Mobile and switched over to the call app. But there was no service, everyone else had the same result.

"There's no way out, this is how we die." Sam said through his still tearful face "Ethan, Tyler, Jordan, Ryan... Mason, Noah, Connor, Lucas, Dylan, Nathan, and Brandon... Jake, Alex, and Sam. and Gregory too." his words frightened me beyond any fear I'd ever felt "this is how each of us die. Tyler, your efforts are wasted and in vain, there is no point…" He finished.

"Sam, get a grip on yourself! You're bringing everyone down." Tyler shouted.

Everyone sat in stunned and fearful silence. Sam only grabbed and threw his phone, the clang made everyone jump.

"Sam?" Tyler asked puzzled. Sam walked to the back of the bus and did nothing for a second, before turning and saying "Continue what you're doing, don't mind me."

No one did anything until Tyler initiated action once more "Alright everyone, um... keep going. Look for the monster, maybe if we all attack it we can defeat it!" he said as noblely as he could.

"Sam’s right." Lucas said. Giving up, a few other players nodded their heads. I almost did, but no, I could not give up. I had to live.

"If you are weak, gather at the back with Sam. The rest of us who still have a will to live, board the windows with your backpacks and anything else you can find!" Tyler yelled furiously, angry at the ones who were giving up, sounding almost sure of their survival, but there was an underlying tone of doubt in his voice. Still, it gave everyone a little bit more hope.

I grabbed my backpack and went to the windshield, and put it against it. The monster was still clawing and scratching at the sides, trying to find a way in.

I glimpsed it run under the bus when I looked out the door. Its pale white skin was across its whole body and it runned on all fours, but it had a human-like body! I didn't get a very good look though, but the little I did see horrified me. This is the point where I decided to give up. I did nothing, contemplating my end. It killed coach, it'll kill me too. I began to walk to the back, head down.

While walking I was stopped by someone putting their hand on my chest. I looked up and saw Ethan wind up and slap me across the face. His face was serious and sad at the same time, he looked me in the eyes then shook me "No, you can't. Because if you do, I might have to too..." Then he threw me to the ground roughly.

My cheek burned, but I ignored the pain, he was right. I mean, what's the point in not trying?. No effort was weak, it was the easy way out. So what if my efforts would end up in vain? At least I tried! There was absolutely no point in not trying. "Thank you." I said to Ethan hovering over me. I stood up and slapped him back "We will get out of this!"

He nodded and we continued following Tyler's orders. He had us gather all our food in one place in case we would need it and cover the windows with our backpacks as best as we could, even though they didn't stay up very well.

I found a gross piece of jerky on the ground, it only had a single bite and was sticky. I needed to get a better look at what we were up against, so I approached Tyler. "Can I throw this out the window to get a better look? I need to know what we are up against." I thought maybe if I threw it out the window the thing would chase after it.

"It's a skinwalker." Ryan said as he passed.

I rolled my eyes but Tyler looked back at me, his face grave and serious "Who knows, Ryan could be right. I have no idea, and no, it's too dangerous. All you need to know is its not human. It's a beast, with white skin and a primal hunger..." he paused as he heard a bang from the back of the bus "and an insatiable thirst." He looked me in the eyes “It will not hesitate to kill you, so no. Get back to work.”

What surprised me was that my fear did not grow. I think perhaps my fear was at a max at this point. I only turned and got back to work, leaving the jerky on a chair.

We continued to work, trying to secure the bus as best we could. We were all quiet. Trying to hide from the monster, As if that would help.

The silence was broken by a long, low, moan from under the bus.

The creatures hurried footsteps ran to the front of the bus, we all stood up on our toes, trying to see.

Suddenly, coach began talking from where the footsteps had quieted. "Hey guys, it's safe, I'm fine! Come on out here!" he said in a joyful voice.

How…?

Everyone looked at eachother, confused on what to do. I looked at Ethan right next to me, who was looking at me. We both knew.

"Haha, of course. It's a coach!" Sam yelled, he sounded like a crazy man.

"Is this all a prank?" one of the 'weak' players asked.

I turned to look at the others "That's not coach!"

Tyler agreed and said to ignore coach, "Do not open the doors!"

'Coach' got angry and yelled "Hey guys, just come out here. We need to practice. Guys! Do you all want to sit on the bench?!"

"No," the weak player said as he started to open the back door.

"Stop! That's not coach, I'm sure of it." I said. My teammate stopped.

"How are you sure? What if you are wrong?" he asked.

"Dude, if its coach, he'll show himself!" Ethan yelled.

"And if you open that door, the skinwalker will get in." Ryan finished.

'Coach' went silent for a moment, before it moaned a long, inhumane moan.

The player gave up the argument and sat down.

It ran to the back of the bus and faced towards the players there, I could not see very well with all the players in the way.

I jumped on a chair and saw it staring at us, it was humanoid, but had the pale and white skin I had seen earlier. It had beady eyes and a slit for a mouth. It was bald too, it also was disfigured and each limb was a different length and one of its arms a stubble with no fingers. Its ribs showed and was skinnier than a stick. It inhaled a long, deep breath before screaming at the bus, the scream was so loud it hurt. My ears rang.

It was a scream of pure hunger and craving. Then it clawed at the glass, but couldn't get through. It did not give up though, it kept scratching and scratching. The glass, miraculously, didn't break, and it seemed to tire itself out. It then ran back under the bus.

"Daylight." Tyler said "That is my hope. You see how pale that thing is, it will leave when the sun rises. Greg, what time is it?" At least, I think that's what he said, it was hard to make out through the ringing still in my ear.

I pulled out my phone, shivering with fear, "Um... 2:30." I said. Just hearing myself was difficult.

"We only need to wait another four hours. It can't get in, we're fine." Tyler said.

"Huh?! Nope!" Sam shouted crazily, then he began to laugh maniacally. "No one will get out, not you Tyler, not me, not anyone!" He said as he ran to the front of the bus, appearing to have lost all sanity.

He reached for the button to open the back and front of the bus and pushed them both. I was near the front and did, again, nothing. Why did I do nothing? I would have given me just a couple more seconds to get away, then maybe I wouldn’t have lost anything.

The creature ran into the front and tackled Sam to the ground. It knocked Noah over next, then me. I tried to scramble away,  it bit me in the leg and kept running. I stood back up and ran to the front of the bus. It was tackling and biting every player it could. It missed only Tyler, Jordan, and Connor.

I ran to the front and off the bus.

Once it had gone through the whole bus it turned around but another player kicked it out the back door, a few players fell off as well though. A few others followed me out the front door.

Tyler ran to the front and told us all to get back on. I started walking to him but my bitten leg started to fail me, it was a strange numb feeling. Soon my leg collapsed under me and I fell over. The beast ran at me and dragged me, screaming, under the bus. The rocky rough dirt scraping all my exposed skin.

***

The first sense that came back to me was smell, and it hit me like a wave of putrid decay. It was a stench so vile, so overpowering, that it seemed to seep into every fiber of my being. It was worse than anything I had ever experienced before, a noxious blend of rotting flesh, stagnant water, and something indefinitely sinister. It clawed at my senses, threatening to overwhelm me with its sheer foulness. It was the smell of death itself, hanging heavy in the air like a shroud over the scene unfolding before me.. Worse than any smell I had ever smelled.I woke up Under the bus. Laying there, I couldn't move anything but my eyes and to some extent my neck. I looked around and saw the monster feeding on one of my teammates, one of my friends! I couldn’t even tell who it was, his face was ruined and he was dead. Coach was right behind him, dead as well. Most of the team surrounded me, most were asleep. But Ethan, in front of me, was awake and staring right back at me. I tried but failed to swallow.

I heard noises from above, it was muffled but it sounded like talking, mostly Tyler. They were ok, I think.

I turned back and looked at Ethan. We had to find a way out. He stared at my lower body. I looked down confused. What I saw I still dream about, this moment shattered the last bit of my cool and I can never forget it. My left leg was detached from my body, the creature had torn off my leg. The leg... my leg was nearby and torn, ruined, and bloody. The sight of my own limb, separated from me yet grotesquely present before me, filled me with a visceral dread, a sensation I struggle to comprehend even now. It was a moment of profound horror, one that haunts me still, I dream about it every night to this day.

I tried to move as hard as I could, really, really hard. I barely lifted my pointer finger, then it fall back into its limp state. It was such a small unnoticeable effort, resistance was futile and I figured I would probably die. I began brainstorming ways out, it was hard with my brain so clouded with my fear and the disgusting sight in front of me. But I managed to come up with one thing, hope. Hope, despite the terrible circumstances. Even though my death seemed set in stone, I had hope.

I tried again to move, my finger lifted again, it wanted to go limp but I refused. I waged a silent battle against my own body, willing it to obey my commands despite the relentless onslaught of fatigue and pain. I pushed through with every ounce of strength I could muster, refusing to yield to the oppressive weight that threatened to destroy my hope. Soon I could move my entire hand, somehow it got easier and easier and the limpness waned more and more by the moment. Giving way to a gradual thawing of the stiffness that had once gripped my limbs like ice.

There was a shout from up above, the creature perked up a moment, then ran off. This was my chance, it was now or never.

With every ounce of strength, I fought to lift myself.  Sweat soaked my brow, mingling with the Arizonan dust beneath me as I strained. After just a half minute of trying or so, somehow, I got enough movement out of my body to roll out from under the bus. It took everything I had, but I did it… I was exhausted. I rolled out on the side with the door and gasping for breath, I glimpsed Tyler's concerned face through the window before darkness claimed me once more.

***

I woke up back on the bus, my leg was bandaged and movement, while still hard, was relatively easier. The joy and gratefulness I felt in that moment could not be compared to even the size of Mount. Everest. I sat up and looked around. Tyler, Jordan, Connor, and Kyle were all here, waiting. Tyler noticed my wakefulness and walked over "How did you get away?" He asked.

I sighed and shook my head, "How did... I'm ali-... alive?" I croaked, my throat sore.

"I saw you, me and Jordan went out and got you."

"Got this though." Jordan said, walking over, pointing at a bite on his arm.

"Jordan... you'll... go-"

"Go limp, ya, it's already started." he replied solemnly.

I closed my eyes for a minute before reopening them "Time?" I asked like a dead man.

"Time for you to get a watch…" Jordan replied, he smirked, thinking he was funny, he wasn’t "Just kidding, 6:05. The sun will rise any minute."

It was drawing to an end, it was close to over. Finally, a tear formed at the corner of my eye and the emotions took over as more tears filled my eyes. I was too weak to do anything else. Tyler walked over to attend to some muffled screaming or shouting. I was sent into a confused, almost panic. What was that?!

I looked and it was Sam, my eyes lit up with anger and I pointed at him, which in my fury took little effort.

"Calm down, cool it." Jordan said "We got him tied up."

I watched Sam as he thrashed around, trying to escape the ropes that confined him.

Tyler checked his knots to make sure he could not get out. He was the reason the monster got on the bus, he was the reason Ethan is probably already dead, HE IS THE REASON I NO LONGER HAVE MY LEFT LEG!!

I could hear my heartbeat and heavy breathing, so I tried to relax. But I couldn't.

Then, it happened. The back window shattered and the creature rushed in in a craze.

It jumped and tackled down Jordan right next to me, I stood up and hobbled to the front again, hoping the same thing would not happen last time it got in, even though it already was lining up that way. My tiredness did not concern me in any way.
Five minutes, five minutes, five minutes till the sun rose I repeated to myself. It was hard to move with only one leg, but I managed, for the sake of my survival.

I pressed the button to open the side door and started hobbling over, hopping on my one foot. I looked and saw the creature running towards me, I dived out the door and landed on the hard earth below.

I crawled as fast as I could away from the bus. The thud hit me when I had only made a few feet. The creature was on top of me and tore at the skin of my back, ripping my shirt and causing me to burn in pain.

I turned and shoved it off, but it quickly regathered and jumped back on me. It hurt everywhere and every second hurt worse. The pain was unimaginable and I thought for sure I would die.

This is when my hope died.

 But only for a bare moment. It was only gone for just a few heartbeats.

Through the pain, teeth gritting, and suffering, my hope was regained in an instant when I saw a beam of light emerge over the distant brown hills. Enveloping the land in light. I hoped and begged that Tyler’s theory was right, it was my only hope to cling to, that it could not be in the sun.

And he was right! Its skin began to sizzle and burn like an egg on a stove, steam rose in the air from its back, the creature started to scream a horrid scream and it dashed away into the distance, running to a rock, but collapsed before it got there. The gray steam continued to emit from the creature while I lay there in pain.

***

An hour or so later I got up and walked back into the bus, everyone was limp and unconscious, the creature had bit everyone and the effects had taken their toll faster than they had for me, perhaps the creatures venom or whatever numbed us got faster the more desperate the creature was.

I guess I’ll never know. I thought to myself. But that was wrong, this would not be my final encounter with these creatures.

***

Once they were all able to move, Tyler and Kyle went on a hike to go get some service and call for help, they thought it wasn’t far and promised to be back before the day was out. I figured we’d be fine and only worried a little bit they wouldn’t get back before night.

***

We ended up fine and alive, I was stuck with only one leg for the rest of my life of course, too much of it was gone for a prosthetic.

Only Me, Tyler, Jordan, Kyle, Connor, and Sam survived. I miss Ethan and can't stand thinking about him, as I wrote this tale I cried and mourned for him.

I will always remember what happened that night, and the terror the monster brought. But it wasn't over yet.

This has been a cautionary tale, if something similar seems like it's happening to you, be careful and DON'T let the person who is ‘smelling it’ guide you. For now, goodbye.

-Gregory