I'm a Monster Bounty Hunter Assigned to Hollow's End

following the riots and subsequent Escape of several dozen prisoners from the maximum armored confinement Stockade the max for short my partner and I were dispatched to round up the fugitives George and I had been working together as priority 7 bounty hunters for nearly a decade and had seen a lot but this was by far the worst event to have happened in the history of the prison and it would be our most dangerous assignment yet see the thing is our prison is not a normal one the max is known for its unusual and highly volatile prison

population this isn't just the highest security prison in America or the world we're talking about this is the highest security prison in the entire Multiverse now if you're not familiar with multiverses it's basically just a bunch of different universes stacked on top of one another like an infinite pile of cosmic Flapjacks I'm not going to go into more detail than that like telling you how dark matter is the maple syrup and Wormhole serve as the butter but if you want to learn more go watch a Marvel movie or something if I had to sum it

up quickly it's basically referring to the fact that there are near infinite universes stacked up on top of one another in these other realities parallel to your own there are things which you might call monsters in your world I'm not trying to scare you but some of these creatures seem to have slipped through into your plane of existence they hopped from one one Cosmic pancake to the other Against All Odds and that's where George and I come in we have the training equipment and expertise needed to bring these monsters back we are equipped with a

portal gun which allows us to travel between Dimensions at will and we have the TCH to keep us safe no matter what sort of environment we step into fortunately for us Earth is pretty hospitable you don't need a lot of specialized equipment to come here the air is breathable and the climate is temperate and most places where you humans like to live maybe that's why so many Escape e decided to make earth their destination of choice sorry I probably shouldn't have brought that up I know how scared you humans can get in any event the

monsters are here now and so are we hopefully we won't overstay our welcome we're here George said from the driver's seat next to me startling me awake I dozed off somewhere a couple hundred miles back and my brain was hazy with sleep quiet little ber isn't it I said rubbing my eyes you sure this guy's actually here he might have just slipped into a surgeon's office to get his chip removed that's the case we'll question the doctor or what's left of him I nodded all standard procedures but we had to talk about something wonder if

there's some place to get a coffee in this hole I muttered yawning for the record coffee is by far the best invention you people have ever come up with don't let anyone try to tell you it was the microchip or the printing press or internal combustion engines coffee is your ticket to multiversal fame xgf 7624 has something similar but it tastes like battery acid and gives you the shakes for days after consumption something about Earth's climate and environment makes it just right for growing your delightful little coffee beans with just the right amount of bitterness

and you can't find that anywhere else I doubt it said George little hole in the wall like this hollow Zen probably doesn't even have a Burger King let alone a Starbucks what kind of name is that anyways hollowen it's a creepy name that's what kind of name it is and I get the feeling headquarters knows more about this place than they're telling us those bastards and research are always so damn secretive about everything as it is when I mentioned the name of this town they all shot up even faster than usual said it was on

a need to know basis as if being sent here on a damn Mission didn't qualify let's just get in and get the hell out of here as fast as possible Dead or Alive they said and I'm leaning more towards dead simpler that way what the hell happened to this place George muttered as we entered the town proper buildings had collapsed and some had been burnt to the ground blood stains painted the streets a ruddy red color in places and it looked as if a war had recently been fought inside of the Town Craven I asked

not really believing it myself couldn't have been even he he isn't capable of something like this and those blood stains aren't fresh they're at least a couple days old he hasn't been out of the max for that long true but it begs the question if Craven isn't capable of doing this what is the tracking Beacon LED us to a quaint little Barber Shop of all places the storefront had a very plain and simple wooden sign out front which read Clovis wolf Barber a Barber's pole spun lazily hypnotically a twisting blue and red candy cane we

left the car parked out front and went into the shop inside there was an oldfashioned barber's chair facing a mirror on top the mirror's ledge were the standard arrangement of Comb scissors straight razors and a tall jar of murky blue barberside besides that the room was mostly empty aside from a chair near the window and a stand with a cash register top it a man wearing a white Barber's apron came in from the back room sharpening a straight razor against a leather strop morning gentlemen were you in need of a cut or shave his smile

was a bit unsettling the wide grin not touching his brown eyes I noticed when I looked at them that he was staring at us a little too intently as if not really expecting us to accept his offer for a split second I wondered what he planned to do with that blade if we did say yes to a shave would he slit our throats bathing in the blood and licking up the drops like rain as the arterial spray erupted into the air laughing and dancing and Swinging the straight razor like a conductor's baton I shook away

the gruesome mental image but it persisted anyways I'd seen too much and sometimes the flashbacks made their way into my mind at the worst possible moments no cut no shave I said a little too forcefully recalling the butcher Barber of Heath Street in dimension TZ K 8422 this only made him smile wider well if not that what else can I do for you this is a barber shop after all my partner took the lead since I found myself suddenly incapable of speech we're looking for a friend of ours said he lived around here but when

you believe it the crazy son of a forgot to tell us his address it's pretty particular about getting his haircut once a week so we thought maybe you'd seen him George was always so good with these quick lies blending just the right mix of Truth and fiction so that it concealed the actual reason for our presence while still getting us what we needed what's your friend's name the barber asked amicably he goes by Craven I said pulling out a picture if the barber had seen the man he was a great liar because he kept that

same steady smile on his face and shook his head nobody looking like that coming here he said think I'd remember a name like that that one too huh that's a strange one Craven you say yeah weird name no offense none taken not like it's my name I think he'd take offense though so might want to keep that to yourself if you do run into him is that right yeah he a dangerous guy you friend should we be worried about him being in town we are a bit particular about Outsiders around down here again no offense

to you folks bad experiences in the past that's all it is I thought about this for a second then looked at George he gave me the slightest of nods imperceptible to anyone but me yeah he's dangerous if you get on his bad side listen I'll level with you Clovis is it that's right we're not his friends we're bounty hunters sorry for being dishonest with you but you never know when our line of work when someone might be protecting your mark But I get the feeling you're not doing that I managed to piece that together myself

gentlemen no offense but you got the words Bounty Hunter written all over your faces not to mention the hardware you're carrying he sat down the straight razor he'd been sharpening and crossed his arms over his broad chest so now that we got that out of the way what can I do for you gentlemen and keep in mind I got bills to pay and haircuts don't make a millionaire I sighed and brought out a wad of bills then threw them onto the barber chair in front of the man he picked them up and began to count

them impressive for bounty hunters this guy must be worth a pretty penny he is which should give you an idea of how dangerous he is f came by here yesterday didn't say his name but he didn't have to for me to know he was your man wasn't looking for a haircut he looking for help with an injury a bullet w wounded George and I looked at each other meaningfully we were pretty sure one of us had gotten him with a bullet and we had 20 bucks riding on who it was you see gentlemen I'm not

just a barber small town like this back before we had a medical center everybody came to the local barber for their injuries their ailments my dad his dad before him we took care of the people in this town still do for those who like an oldfashioned healing touch or those who don't have adequate health insurance did you get the slug out of them I did 45 caliber big ugly son of a I winced George smiled in Triumph he brought a Colt Double Eagle back with him on a previous trip to Earth the big bastard loved

that gun more than his own children the barber looked at me confused why is your friend smiling about this guy getting shot he whispered it's creepy never mind George interrupted did he ask for anything else to be surgically removed weird question but yes as a matter of fact he did the man rummaged in a nearby drawer and pulled out a microchip stained red with blood does this belong to you gentlemen once we were back in our car I put the keys in the ignition and started the engine uh uh uh George teased not so fast

nice try buddy boy hand over the 20 bucks I took out the bill crumpled it up and tossed it against his forehead sore loser you got a freaking laser scope it's practically cheating come on let's go to that Diner the guy told us about I'll buy you a grande mocha Java to make it up to you big baby so you think he's telling the truth I asked once we were sitting down and drinking our warm caffeinated beverages we'd managed to find the small Diner downtown after hounding Clovis about it telling him we were starving he

seemed intent on getting us out of town after telling us a story but we were going to disappoint him on that front we wouldn't be gone until we found Craven or a new lead that took us out of hollow's end I have no idea George admitted usually I can read people like him small town nobody like that man that weird smile on his face the whole time threw me for a loop see seems logical he's telling some version of what really happened even if he's lying parts of it are true how else would he have

that microchip George was processing everything I could see the gears turning in his head as he tried to make sense of it all something's off doesn't add up that Barber's lying about something man I'm telling you I don't know what it is but I'm going to find out don't you go Commando on me again George I swear the coffee shop owner interrupted us with a clearing of his throat and I immediately realized what the conversation he just walked in on had sounded like more coffee gentlemen he asked holding up a full steaming pot just made

it fresh I'd love some I admitted and he topped off my mug fill her up George said smiling good stuff by the way we've been on the road having had a decent cup of coffee in days the man smiled nodding but didn't say anything he was about to walk off when I called after him excuse me sir he came back a second later call me Rob he said could never get used to people calling me sir of course Rob did you ever see this guy around here I asked pulling out the picture of Craven we're

looking for him he might be dangerous word traveled fast in a small town like this if we'd been upfront with one person it made sense for us to do it again the last thing we wanted was to get caught in a lie and lose trust with the people in this town no one would speak to to us again if we did that and right now we were the rich Outsiders throwing around money for tips and that seemed to appeal to the folks who lived in hollow's N if nothing else they were happy to humor Us

in exchange for our cash I didn't need to be asked this time and quickly produced a wat of bills which I threw onto the table Rob pocketed the cash a second after he landed I saw him this morning in fact he ordered pancakes and a double order of hash Brands sausages on the side with a plate of eggs man ain't like he'd been in prison for the past 10 years try 20 Rob bed at that remark he looked surprised what this fell do break out less we say about that the better they're trying to keep

things quiet I don't want to speak out of line you understand of course well if you're looking for this fell I think you're going to have to do it outside of town the two of us were stunned to silence for a few seconds before George replied thoughtfully why is that said he was headed up north leaving town this morning never looking back man seemed scared had bandages all over him plus some wounds weren't covered at all looked fresh did he say anything more about where he was headed did he have a car no car he

was walking went straight up the road that way the man pointed we both downed our coffee and bolted out of there within the next 30 seconds leaving a healthy tip for Rob who accepted it with a wide grin a grin which looked very similar to the one Clovis the barber had given us do you think he's telling the truth I asked George once we were back in the car not a chance so what the hell is he hiding George didn't seem to have an answer for that instead he glanced around at the windows and through

the windshield his eyes cast upwards toward the faces looking down on us from all around citizens of hollow's end watching us from their homes and workplaces every single pair of eyes trained upon us okay I'm starting to get the creepy Vibe you were talking about when we got here I said locking my door Drive man let's get moving he obliged and we were off rolling down the road a few moments later so what are we doing I asked we can't take on a whole freaking town and something is telling me these people aren't playing around

they want us out all of them can't leave George muttered even if this whole town is conspiring against us we need to get to the bottom of this it's our job man so where does that leave us he thought about this then side we're not going to solve this tonight I say we make a stand show these people we're not backing down we check into that motel near the edge of town remember the one we saw on the way in we get a good night's sleep look at this whole thing with fresh eyes in the

morning George had seniority and a lot more experience under his belt it was pretty rare for me to argue with him especially when it came to these big picture problems all right I'm not going to argue with that I said you haven't slept in a day and a half and you're starting to look worse for wear lead the way partner I'm on guard Duty in the back of my mind I was thinking that motels on this planet usually had televisions and Earth TV was actually pretty decent maybe I could find some Family Feud or a

rerun of the office I didn't actually care about sleeping in fact I wasn't sure I would be able to after my long nap in the car but George on the other hand looked dead tired and I could play look at while he caught up on his sleep the unwritten code of Max Bounty Hunter partnership said one of us needed to be awake and on guard and this time it would be me we pulled up in front of the motel a few minutes later finding ourselves to be the only people in the parking lot no other

cars could be seen in the small gravel lot George went into the office and came back out a minute later waving a key for one of the rooms he walked over to it and I followed after him leaving the car parked where it was away from our room at the time I didn't give that decision a second thought but later I would think about it a lot I brought in our small bags of luggage and dropped everything on the floor just inside the door to our room thanks for your help with the bags George I

muttered but he was already passed out asleep on one of the beds his snoring filled the room with a loud steady tree sawing noise I shut the door behind me and turned off the lights then I hit the power button on the remote control and quickly found a Channel showing Family Feud the TV Guide showed it would be playing a marathon of said show for approximately the next 14 hours it was going to be a good night I was startled awake around 4:00 a.m. the room was quiet and still aside from George's snoring and Steve

Harvey's voice he was berading a contestant for their terrible answer and laughing as they insisted it's up there Steve it's up there and their family cheered along good answer good answer standing up I rubbed my eyes then I went into the bathroom to splash some cold water on my face I didn't like the fact that I'd Fallen sleep I didn't like it one bit I was supposed to be better than that this town was too weird too strange and unsettling I didn't want to let my guard down for even 1 minute I dried my hands

on the ratty old towel and went back to the living area I switched off the light as I exited the bathroom and when I did I noticed the glare on the front window disappear revealing the silhouette of a giant head it seemed to be staring at us from outside my heart began to beat in double time as I froze a Step Beyond the bathroom doorway looking at that shape in the window I tried to make sense of it two pointed ears a broad neck and what appeared to be fur whatever this thing was it looked

like a giant dog or a wolf George I managed to whisper George he startled awake and I saw his hand reaching for his gun the window I said looking away from that Sil for just a second look but by the time he did and by the time I looked back as well the shape was gone as if it had never been there at all I didn't sleep for the remainder of that night but George was quickly back to snoring again he believed that I had seen something but dismissed it as just a natural occurrence a

coyote or a stray dog outside our room but that didn't make sense to me for one thing that dog had been huge its head was the size of a manhole cover and for another wolves and coyotes don't disappear when you point them out to people as if they're listening to your conversation with their Keen ears but we didn't get the time to debate it when the sun rose a phone call woke George up from his sleep and he managed to answer it before I did still I heard the voice on the other end speaking in

his ear through the tiny connection found your man they said is at the sheriff station come and get them they hung up without waiting for a response the two of us piled into the car and George sped off from the motel leaving a cloud of dust hanging in the parking lot I looked back to see if the wolf was still around somewhere hiding in the shadows but if he was I didn't see him after a few minutes of driving in awkward silence my partner pulled to a stop in front of the sheriff's office which was

located downtown he let out a deep breath pulled his gun out from its holster and checked it satisfied he tucked it away and looked back at me this could be a trap he said and I nodded probably is a trap let either this or we turn around go back to Joshua with our Tails between our legs ask for backup you know I got your back we can handle Craven and anybody else they got in there protecting him you hope I know George didn't answer he just gave me a hard look as if to say he

knew more about this world than I did and he was right he'd been here a lot more than me and he was technically my senior even if we worked equally as partners most of the time we got this man he's probably sitting there in handcuffs courtesy of the local sheriff just need to pick him up take him back to the max I'll bet you're making this into more than it is instead of arguing George took out my crumpled $20 bill from our earlier bet doubl or nothing I tried tried to grab it but he pulled

it back waiting for me to agree he stuck out his other hand and I shook it deal double or nothing I'm telling you man everything's going to be just fine we walked up the wooden steps outside and entered the Sheriff's Office inside was a single jail cell that reminded me of something from an old western movie and a pair of ancient wooden desks there was also a standing desk near the front where someone might have worked on occasion doing clerical work perhaps but there was no one there currently in fact the entire place looked empty

at least for a moment it was then someone came down the stairs at the back of the bullpen and began to approach us the man looked to be the deputy judging by the patch on his uniform which identified him as such he was slightly disheveled and his hair looked like it hadn't seen a comb in several years hey folks what can I do for you he asked in a friendly southern accent Deputy Randy Burton At Your Service George produced the picture of Craven and showed it to him we're hoping you can help us sir we're

working with a bill bondsman at a Tallahassee and we're looking for this gentleman we were told he was here Deputy Randy took the photo and examined it carefully now he does look familiar I think this fellow came by a vault 77 the other night that's one of the bars downtown fellow owns the place real nice just calls himself the Vault 77 citizen you can check with him but I'm pretty sure this guy would have left town by now why is that well he got into a scrap with somebody at the bar that night I think

he was trying to talk to somebody's girlfriend and they took offence he got beat up pretty bad I couldn't help but scoff at this and George shot daggers at me something funny about that back there Deputy Randy asked you sure are quiet you two partners how come this guy's the one doing all the Talking he's the muscle George replied covering for me quickly he doesn't need to talk right Randy chuckled I just find it a little bit surprising this guy got his ass kicked by some Rando at the bar I said ignoring George's continued looks

of anger he's not exactly your typical my partner's elbow caught me Square in the gut and I felt the wind get briefly knocked out of me that was one way to shut me up you'd be amazed how many tough customers there are in this town Randy said grinning I could hardly believe it myself when I first came here you get used to it something seemed to click in my partner's mind I saw his face change suddenly the old bravado gone George began to back away and I followed his lead thanks for your time we'll be

on our way George said and I think I heard a slight quiver in his voice we both turned to face the door and watched in horror as the lock spun shut before our eyes eyes sealing Us in the dead bolt closed and the chain lashed into place as if by an invisible hand the two of us turned back to face the deputy his eyes were now blazing with a faint orange light shouldn't have come here he said should have left when you had the chance we all pulled out our guns and a shoot off would

have likely followed that would have left most of us if not all of us dead but instead there was a loud bang from above us and I was thrown backwards by a blast which thundered from the ceiling in front of us sending drywall and fuzzy pink insulation shrapnel everywhere a moment later two people dressed in police uniforms tumbled out from the hole in the ceiling landing hard on the floor in front of us they stood up and immediately began bickering with each other not able to see the Mexican standoff happening all around them through the

settling dust Haz I told you that was too much gunpowder you almost got me killed again well at least I did something we'd still be up in that room waiting to be murdered if I hadn't rescued us again when have you ever the taller of the two men stopped speaking as the dust settled and he saw the guns and standoff they were now standing in the middle of I saw a sheriff badge on his chest and realized then who he was oh hi people with guns please don't shoot us then the two of them turned

and saw the other deputy and I realized that the two deputies looked exactly alike Craven George said just as I was about to you must have tied them up and taken on the deputy's form yes that's exactly what happened the deputy nearest US said getting behind us shoot that guy quick but before we could Craven was on the move the sound of guns firing filled the room but each bullet missed its Mark Craven was extremely fast and now that he had been discovered he wasn't trying to hide it anymore he was behind us in less

than 2 seconds before we even realized what was happening he and the other Deputy began fighting with each other spinning around and grappling as they each tried to gain an advantage they appeared evenly matched despite Craven's abilities and I began to suspect that the real Randy had a few abilities of his own unfortunately the longer this went on for the less sure I was of which Deputy was which especially since the gun Craven was holding went flying at some point slap out of his hands by ry's forearm can you tell him apart I heard George

ask from behind me but I was too focused to answer I felt like I was watching the most important game of three card Monty ever played the two of them wrestled back and forth as I tried to keep track of the real Deputy but it wasn't easy the sheriff came over to stand next to me and whispered in my ear I can't tell which is which he said sounding terrified how are we supposed to know which one is the real finally one of the the deputies managed to get his forearm under the other's neck and

began to choke him out it was at that moment that I realized I had completely lost track of who was who ry's face began turning a shade of pink then red then purple as he lost the ability to breathe we got to stop him I yelled he's going to kill him the three of us pulled them apart and managed to get them into handcuffs the real Craven would have been able to fight us off but he was putting on a good show trying to convince us he was is merely human in the end we had

them both sitting side by side next to each other on a pair of plain wooden chairs their hands cuffed behind their backs the sheriff sighed and turned to George and I reaching out his trembling hand to shake mine Sheriff Parsons He said I figure if we're going to be doing this weird sci-fi daytime television together we should at least know each other's names George my partner murmured Lenny I said giving him my Earth Alias he smiled a bit at that and I figured he got the reference okay boys do you have any ideas kind of

at a loss here and I never thought I'd see the day where Randy could be confused with any other individual he's pretty much One of a Kind untime me you Heathen of slip jockeys one of the two deputies shouted unexpectedly fidgeting against his restraint okay actually I'm like 99% sure it's that one Sheriff Parson said pointing at the one who just yelled at us he really likes to make up words that's a load of and you know it you traitorous Jackalope yeah that's definitely him he likes to use the wrong words out of context a

lot too I looked at the other deputy and saw he was getting nervous a beat of sweat rolling down his forehead and another thing I noticed his shirt had a spot of blood on it as if a fresh wound were beneath the clothing marching over to him I pulled back the colar of his shirt revealing a bandaged surgical incision blood was seeping through the dressing staining the brown Deputy uniform the shape shifter was capable of changing his appearance enough to camouflage any superficial scrapes or Cuts but deep wounds like this one stayed this is Craven

I said looking him dead in the eyes I'll bet my life on it my mistake was immediately apparent to George Who widened his eyes in dismay but it wouldn't be clear to me for several more hours when I would wake up tied to a chair with a ringing headache blinking my eyes I tried to make sense of what had happened I pulled at the ropes which were bound behind me but found they were tied tightly one moment earlier I had been standing in front of the two deputies identifying the impostor but then it all started

to make sense Craven was a powerful being lightening quick with the ability to shape shift and even some Proficiency in telekinesis such a combination was exceedingly rare and Craven had reveled in his powers at a young age turning to a life of crime when he realized what he could do and how much he could get away with he was an outlier in every sense of the word his powers were a rare mutation never before seen on his Planet his parents were otherwise normal it made no sense to anyone in his world how he could do

the things that he did he would have committed countless unspeakable crimes if left to his own devices and that was why he was captured by the multiversal law and Justice task force and brought to the max all traces of his existence were wiped from the memories of his own world so that not even his own family remembered he was born some speculated he was from the lineage of a powerful being who M it with a mortal like the Greek Legends of Zeus and Hercules either way he was strong enough to break out of the max

and someone that strong could easily break out of handcuffs the only reason he hadn't done so earlier was that he was putting on an act pretending to be the deputy whose appearance he had copied as soon as I figured out who he was Craven had no reason to continue with the charade I would later find out from George that Craven had wed me in the back of the head with a paper weight off the sheriff's desk which he had manipulated using his mind hence why I couldn't remember anything past the smug look on his face

when I ided him George had managed to point his gun but that was it before he was likewise knocked unconscious by the paper weight which was now flying through the air like a Troublesome 10B insect it did the same to the sheriff but Craven left Randy awake since he was already handcuffed to a chair the rest of us woke up a while later finding ourselves lined up side by side handcuffed and likewise tied to uncomfortable wooden chairs the only question was why he was keeping us alive but I got the feeling I would find out

soon enough you all should have left town when you had the chance Craven said reclining with his feet up on the sheriff's desk I noticed he now had the sheriff's badge pinned to his shirt not a uniform but a simple plaid flannel with the sleeves rolled up and before our eyes his appearance changed he no longer looked like himself or the deputy but like the sheriff images of old westerns came to mind Bandits rolling into town picking a gunfight with the sheriff and killing him in the street they would Meander over to the body bend

over and pick up the badge pinning it to their own shirt instead I'm the sheriff in these parts now bucko I imagin Craven saying next you better hi tail it out of here if you want to live to see tomorrow the town's folk in those movies never rode off into the sunset with their tails between their legs they fought back they always fought back and the good guys always won so here's how I see it playing out Craven said waving around the double eagle in his meaty fist out of the corner of my eye I

could see George seething nobody was allowed to play with his gun nobody I kill all four of you then I take this town for myself we were all stunned into silence unsure of what to say but if I do that all of a sudden I don't have two bounty hunters looking for me I've got 10 and suddenly I'm not liking my odds so much anymore so what are you saying going to let us go I asked incredulously you know believe it or not I considered it microchip is out of me there's no proof of my

existence aside from the word of YouTube you and if I knew for a fact that the two of you would lie and tell them I'm dead I might just feel comfortable letting you leave I held my breath waiting for the other shoe to drop but there's no way I can guarantee that even if you gave me your word which leaves me with only one real option his hand shot forward and wrapped around my throat I I felt him squeezing so tightly that I worried my Airway would permanently collapse the giant fingers closed Tighter and Tighter

and I felt the blood vessels in my eyes burst as redness filled my vision that option is to Snuff you out like a flame spreading in a forest you need to be extinguished there's no way I was going to do that while you were unconscious I want to see the look in your eyes when you slipped away at that moment I understood how insane he was looking into his eyes I saw pure evil staring back at me he was never going to spare me all he wanted was for me to be awake and Lucid while

he killed me and I could not fight back my hands were tied tightly behind me I saw George pulling desperately at his restraints trying to get free the sheriff and Deputy were doing the same to no avail Craven began to laugh louder and louder as I struggled for a tiny gasping breath of air but found nothing suddenly a sound thundered through the room and I felt that grip loosen for just a second before it tightened Vice likee once again through the haze of redness in my vision I caught a glimpse of gray fur and a

huge hulking shape teeth snapping and blood spraying in the air another shape smaller and blue about 5T tall and dashing around on two legs the world turned a shade redder and then began Fading Into Blackness and for the second time that day everything went dark and I lost Consciousness despite all the fighting and Mayhem Craven's hand was still wrapped tightly around my throat squeezing and squeezing as if his last dying wish were for me to never speak again if I die I'm taking you with me I remember him saying as I passed out but it's

entirely possible I dreamed that part it really does sound like something a movie villain would say when I woke up I was laying in a barber's chair which was reclined back so that it was nearly flat I looked around groggy and tried to call out for George I instantly regretted that decision as my throat achd with pain at the slightest attempt to talk the memories of Craven returned and I darted my eyes around nervous ly you're safe you're safe said a voice I looked up to see well I guess dog man would be the best

way to describe him he had short blue fur and stood around 5T tall I'm puppy Dan he said wagging his tail you can call me Scamp if you like some people do don't worry Craven's been taken care of he won't be hurting anyone ever again Clovis came in behind him and I saw he was carrying a bottle of water he handed it to me and I opened it grateful drinking it down it was cool and refreshing and felt like heaven on my inflamed esophagus bunch of us from around town were worried about craving from the

start the barber said after a while knowing I couldn't speak but I had plenty of questions he seemed to know about this place said he had relatives here he told us he had abilities and wasn't accepted anywhere because he was different some folks around here can relate to that so we let him stay but then he started picking fights at Vault 77 scant broke in to say I was working there that night clearing tables Craven started hitting on this guy Derrick's girlfriend while he was playing pool so him and his buddy Elder Jam decided to

give him a Stern talking to next thing you know I see bodies flying I can't do much to help but I started barking the two bouncers came in from outside casy Hawaii he's a big dude and Elder being you don't want to mess with elder being anyways 2 minutes later the fight's over and Craven's on the floor with his arm Twisted behind his back yelling Uncle quite a story I managed to say before Scamp began again so that's when we all decided he need to get the heck out of town and then you folks came

asking about him and we knew for sure he was bad news not just a fellow with a temper so why did you still try to protect him I croaked my throat burning with every word Clovis seemed to think back to that day when we'd met he and so many others had hinted that Craven left town but apparently that wasn't the case I got a soft spot for shape shifters Clovis said rubbing the top of scamp's head that's why I took in puppy Dan he showed up in town one day with no place to go it's

like a lot of others around here as much as people in Hollow an say we don't trust Outsiders some times we got a soft spot for him I thought back to the sign out front Clovis wolf Barber suddenly all the puzzle pieces were coming together Shape Shifter it was you outside our motel room that night are you a a werewolf or something and why were you there I was protecting you and I still wouldn't have been quick enough if not for where you parked your car car what he parked in front of a motel room

door which was several rooms closer to the main office than yours Craven came to find you when you were sleeping but he entered the wrong room he broke into the room your car was parked in front of and he would have killed you luckily the motel owner called me and told me what happened I went there to protect you falling asleep while on guard Duty was starting to feel like more and more of a blunder I guess it was lucky for me me that there were others looking out for me and lucky that I hadn't

moved the car closer to avoid walking the extra 20 steps my laziness threshold had nearly insisted upon it feel like I'm lucky to be alive I wheezed out and Clovis nodded you are very arrest your voice for now your friend is healing in the back room he was injured Gravely as well Craven tried to inflict maximum damage upon both of you once he knew his demise was imminent but you're taking care of us I said my eyes feeling heavy with a weight of sleep yes Clovis said softly putting a blanket over me for years my

father and his father before him we took care of the sick In This Very Room and we still do for those who prefer an old-fashioned healing touch or those without adequate health insurance Scamp ch in I drifted off to sleep again trying to forget about everything our mission was complete Craven was supposed to be brought in dead or alive and I'd always known that dead would be better the next day George and I were on our feet again and feeling well enough to return to headquarters we piled into the car and rolled down the windows

to say goodbye to our new friends friends it occurred to me that that I had never really used that word before George was my partner Joshua was my boss I had colleagues and acquaintances but never any real friends they had saved our lives and we owed them big time see you Clovis bye Scamp I set out my car window say thanks to the sheriff and Randy for us will you Clovis nodded waving his meaty baseball mid of a hand we'll do and if you're ever back in the area be sure to stop by and say

hello my throat tightened at that and I felt myself suddenly incapable of speech don't say a word George whispered under his breath not a word as the car began speeding off down the road I let out a long sigh why couldn't I tell them you know why you couldn't tell them yeah but no butts Lenny we don't talk to civilians about our future assignments even if it's for their own protection yeah yeah I know I know closing my eyes I decided to take a nap it was going to be another long car ride uhuh not

so fast George teased remember our bet groaning I began rumaging in my pocket I pulled out another crisp $20 bill crumpled it up and threw it at George's forehead that's 40 bucks now you got off me I hope you're happy my partner took the bill and stuffed it into his pocket with the rest of his winnings nice could buy myself a Starbucks with this I closed my eyes again hoping to get some sleep it's important in this line of work to get some shuty when you can you never know when you'll get to sleep next

and we're going to be on this Earth mission for a while one down 13 to go are you new to hollow xan well if you are you may just want to check out the hollow Zan playlist which will be showing up on your screen at the end of this video within that thing you'll find the answers which you seek or maybe not what do I know well I guess one thing I do know for sure is who I want to thank for helping make this episode possible the real life citizens of hollow's and if you

want to help support the channel and become citizen of hallan yourself check out the Jordan group horror patreon page and become a featured character just like these fine folks so head on over to patreon.com jordanr horor to see all the exclusive content and bonus videos that are over there or click the join button to become a channel member and you'll get Early Access and bonus videos finally if you enjoyed this video please like subscribe comment All That Jazz and if you really loved it maybe share it with somebody else who you really want to torment

it it really does help out a lot all right everybody that's it for today's episode of hollow and see you next time