It was 3:00 AM in the forest, with just three men and the wilderness. Alan, Andrew, and Dawson were their names, and they all loved to camp every weekend of October. This spot was a place they have never ever been to before. They left for the campsite late in the night as the clock struck midnight, meaning Halloween was here. They were there by 3:00 AM and unloaded everything they had brought. The men had a supply of water and food along with a tent. They enjoyed listening to the campfire crackling with the sound of nature surrounding them.

They began to search for wood to start the fire. It was a struggle at first, almost every piece they found was too big or too wet. They decided to split up and to go and find some, each going different directions. Alan walked about 300 feet before finding a stack of wood at what looked like a recently used camping spot. Without hesitation, he walked over to take what he could and he was on his way back to the spot. Andrew found a pile of brush and began to break the longer pieces into shorter ones to make them more carriable. Shortly after, he was finished and made his way back, as he had about a 10 minute walk.

Alan and Andrew weren’t scared fellows, they have camped for years and years in the month of October, enjoying the Halloween setting that goes with it. Dawson is newer friends with the two men, as they met at a campsite a year back. The only difference is that Dawson camped in public places, while Andrew and Alan liked to find a spot in the middle of nowhere. It has been an adjustment for Dawson, as he isn’t a fan of the forest at all.

Dawson walked along in this sketchy forest shaking in his boots.

SNAP!

Dawson is on the ground after he tripped over a limb. He looks up and sees a campfire less than six inches from his nose. He freaks out and crawls backwards away from the fire.

“Th-that wasn’t there before I f-fell…” He nervously said.

He then heard a voice escaping from the fire. “Feed me.”

He looked to his left and saw a pile of wood that was perfect for a fire. The wood was not there when Dawson tripped and fell either. He quickly grabbed an armful of wood and tossed it into the talking campfire. Almost immediately the campfire grew bigger, warmer and then started blazing. Dawson saw a face emerge in the fire, it looked like a face you would carve in a pumpkin, but there was a difference: it was not a friendly face. He tried to run, as he completely abandoned the firewood. He was then pulled back by a strong suction. Fighting for his life and screaming for help, seconds later Dawson was gone.

Alan and Andrew met back at the site almost simultaneously when they heard echos. They shook it off and assumed it was wolves, which they have heard in past times camping. They placed down the starting wood for the fire and got the flame of their lighter ready. Alan reached for the wood and just struck the edge of it when a blaze of fire erupted from it. The two men were fully unaware that this was the fire that snagged their friend Dawson.

“Holy heat!” Alan exclaimed. “Too bad Dawson wasn’t here to see how quick that fire shot up, that was incredible,” he added.

However Andrew looked concerned. “That is not normal Alan,” he said. “No fire grows that big off of one little flame.”

They saw a face emerge from the fire and they both jumped back out of their chairs. It was an evil face you would carve on a pumpkin. Alan foolishly ignored the campfire at first to shout for Dawson.

“Dawson, come back to the site, we got a campfire with a face! Coolest thing I’ve ever seen!” He chuckled.

The fire grew blazing red and popped. A piece of lit firewood hit Alan in the back of his hand leaving a burn as a result.

“YOUCH!” Alan screeched.

Andrew reacted by saying, “There is a campfire with a face on it and you’re gonna play it off as a joke?”

The blazing grew louder. They two stood stunned as the fire grew up above them. There were mumbled words coming from the fire.

“I met Dawson earlier,” the voice said. “He’s with me permanently, and you are next.”

“That explains why the campsite I got my wood at looked sketchy– those people must have been captured just like Dawson!” Alan said as they started taking off.

The two dashed out of the site of the fire and tried to make it back to the entrance of the forest. Looking back, they saw the whole forest up in flames. They tried to speed up while avoiding loose stones and sticks. Andrew dialed up the fire department and police as they made it out of sight of the blazing forest. Shortly, down the street they heard sirens all over the place. They quickly hopped in with the firefighters showing them the direction to the forest. Upon arriving, they saw no more smoke in the air or blazing fire.

“I thought the forest was on fire,” the fire chief said, irritated. “I brought extra backup for that reason.”

The two men looked at each other with their jaws on the ground. They insisted the fire department and police walk through the forest with them as they told the crew about the campfire outrage. They made it to the spot and saw a strange silhouette. Andrew and Alan stepped back in fear and let the first responders lead the way.

“Hey, you guys brought the police and firefighters to camp with us?” The silhouette said.

A few steps later, they saw that the silhouette was Dawson. The first responders then accused Alan and Andrew of being adults acting like children that like to prank call 911. The two tried explaining over and over again. Not listening, the first responders turned and walked back. Dawson looked on in confusion, but Andrew and Alan were stunned. They assumed they were dreaming the same nightmare at the same time. When they went to tell Dawson about their crazy nightmare, he was gone. They started to panic again and turned in the direction of the first responders to get their attention, but they were long gone. They turned their heads in the direction of the campfire that mysteriously got slowly bigger and bigger. Without hesitation, they got out of there in a heartbeat. They got back to Alan’s vehicle empty handed and drove off to anywhere but there.

While they had sympathy for their friend, Dawson, they were blessed to make it out because not many can escape the campfire conspiracy.