Author's note: My first attempt at horror so please do review accordingly. Oh, and it's all copyrighted and all that junk so there, no touchy.

Test One: Little Boys Lust

You have searched me and you know me.

Dark clouds form overhead of the Expedition. Though it was the early afternoon, no light came passed the clouds. The gas meter was running low and thirty two years old Joshua Kleve was worried that they might not be able to make it to the next rest stop. He was now having regrets of not filling his tank at the last motel three hours ago. His sixteen years old son, Timothy slept peacefully in the passenger seat.

Joshua Kleve was the average businessman from the big city, going into the country to celebrate the wedding of a close friend. Unlike normal people however, he has no recollection of the earlier half of his life. His first memory included being dragged out of cold freezing water and into the warm hands of Melody Kleve who took him into her foster home not far from where his was found. After a few months of searching with no answers found, Melody named the boy Joshua who took her surname as well.

A medium build man, Joshua has lived for most of his life working to repay Melody and the rest of it living his way, chasing the dreams of making a name for himself. He takes an interest in extreme sports during his younger days, often going snowboarding, wakeboarding and rock-climbing with friends. These activities have given him a rock hard body and dark tan skin to add to his sun blond hair.

His son looks nothing like him and is perhaps because he wasn't his son to begin with. Joshua adopted him much like how Melody adopted Joshua and they have just signed legal document a few month ago for Timothy to bear his name of Kleve.

A bookworm of sort, Timothy is what modern day kids would call a geek. And that's what he would have been called if he wasn't such a darn good air gun marksman, having earned his school three gold and two silver medals in air gun competitions. He carries a book around wherever he goes as it is his second hobby of sort and for this journey; he has chosen "The Chronicles of Narnia, The Last Battle".

Timothy for one, unlike his father, had brown hair, naturally spiked to give the look of some sort of anime character brought to life. He was wearing brown baggy shorts with sandals. His oval glasses dangles off the collar of his shirt. He had this look of tranquility as he sleeps, though it is the same as when he's awake.

Joshua held onto the number one button on his cell phone for speed dial and after a few seconds of ringing, "Hello, Melody Kleve speaking."

"Hey mom, it's Josh." He replied with affection.

"Josh? Oh my dear, how are you doing? Is Timmy with you? Are you coming for Linda's wedding?" Her reaction was instantaneous, happiness filled excitement. This made Josh give a quick smile to no one.

"I'm fine mom. Tim's asleep right now and yes, we're coming to Linda's wedding."

"That's wonderful."

"But I have a little problem."

"Speak, my boy."

"I'm running low on gas and I don't think I'll be able to make it to the next rest stop."

"Say no more, Josh. Where can I find you?"

Just as he was thinking of a reply, a farm came up from the right of his view. "There's a farm off um… ten miles on Route 139." He checks a passing sign to make sure of his distance. "Yeah, around ten miles."

"I know that place. It's been abandon for a while so I'm sure you can stay the night there."

"Stay the night?" Joshua repeated as if he did not hear her correctly. And a sense of forebode—that puzzled him.

"Oh, I did not tell you, my boy? It must have slipped my mind. Well, the price of being old."

"Don't say that mom, you're still young. Now about the ride?"

"Oh, yes. My car is in the shop right now and it'll only be done by tomorrow."

"What about Alex's?"

"He's running errands for Linda and Mark."

"Cecily?"

"Traded her car in for a bike and a bike won't do now would it?"

"I guess not." Josh turns off road onto the dirt path leading to the house. The field where crops must have once grown lays barren. The old house beside the barn looks sturdy enough, though. Some of the red paint on the barn has started to peel off and a little moss grew on the triangular tile roof of the house. Aside from that, the place looks to be able to accommodate them for the night. The doors and windows were also closed which suggest that the place might truly be abandoned.

Josh chatted with his mother for awhile longer before saying goodbye and hanging up as he parks his car in front of the house and woke Tim from his slumber.

As Tim stirs awake, Josh explains the situation to him and says he is going to check out the house, asking the boy to stay in the car. The boy waves sleepily at his father to show that he got the message before turning back to sleep.

Josh made sure to leave the engine on before proceeding down to the house. The main door was locked so he circled round the front to the right, passing a set of what looks to be kitchen windows with the drapes drawn before finding an unlock door at the side of the house in the small pathway between it and the barn.

He steps into the kitchen and closes the door behind him. A man in a straw had sawed away at a log held between two tripod stands at the end of the alley, the makeshift headwear covering his face. The muddy white singlet and the baggy brown cargo pants were stained with blood. The sun beats down now as if the darkness had come and gone with Joshua. But light did not reach the Sawman as he stood between the two buildings.

Zoon zoon zoon… goes the rusty saw.

What an irritating sound.

XXX

Tim woke to the howling of wind and the rustling of leaves. The sky outside the Expedition was dark. The numbers on his digital watch shows 21:39. The Expedition was warmer than it was in the afternoon and upon inspection of the meters, he realized the final bit of gas had run out. His father… nowhere to be seen.

Stepping out of the car, he circled round to the driver side, pulled out the key and placed it in his back pocket; all the while feeling the bite of the cold wind and listening to the music made by crickets, frogs and leaves. He closed the car door and headed for the house. Even though his father said the place was abandon, it was in surprisingly good shape. He tried the front door.

Locked.

Turning his head around, the towering size of the barn stood in his sight. He headed for the barn.

His footsteps were soft but he could hear every bit of it. The sound strangely seems to be emitting from inside his head. His body felt weird, like anesthetics had been pumped into him and did not take full effect. His thinking was clear but his mind shut down.

Without knowing when, he reached the front of the barn. It seems newly repainted. He tried the large double wooden doors.

Locked.

To his right, stone steps of three lead to a single wooden door. He moved swiftly to the steps but slowed down when walking up, as if to increase the dramatic tension. And adding to that, the door creaked when swung inwards. Leaving the door open, Tim enters the barn, leaving the field of crops fluttering in the wind.

The barn was bathed in strange blue light and had two stories. The one below was where all the animals would have been kept. Now, it was just an empty dark path with nothing in the stables at the side. The second story, from what Tim could see, was filled with piles of hay. A stair to the right led up to it.

He sped up the stairs, again with unexplained speed. Weaving through the piles of hays, he stopped at a window at the back. Looking out, a clear river flows for miles down towards the rest of the country.

"Who are you?" A gentle female voice came from behind, making Tim spin around.

A girl, around the age of fourteen or so, laid in one of the last pile of hays to the left. She was wearing a white cloth sleeping gown which reaches her shin. It looked more like a bathrobe though, being held together only by a white cloth at the waist.

The girl herself was stunning. Her skin was smooth and clear and there was not a single blemish or mole on her face or anywhere on her body as far as he could see. Her black hair reaches halfway down her back. Her fringe held up by a pink hair band revealed a set of beautiful blue eyes.

Tim could not speak, but his voice came out anyway. "I'm Timothy Kleve. Who are you?"

The girl smiled. It was a gentle and genuine smile. "They call me Sister. I live here."

"You should leave this place, it's not safe." He did not know why he said that.

"Only if you carry me out." She said.

Tim wanted to protest against the idea but his mouth would not open. Next thing he knew, he picked her up in his arms in a cradle. She was surprisingly light.

Zoon zoon zoon…

He sensed a presence behind him but continued walking.

Zoon zoon zoon…

He maneuvered through the hay piles with skills. The band around Sister's waist came undone and fell off. The rest of the clothes slowly and gently unraveled itself.

Zoon zoon zoon…

He reached the stairs. The rest of the cloth slipped out from between her and his hand and floated down into the blue. The girl was now completely naked and she was a beautiful sight. Her developing body had a beauty all men dreamed about.

Zoon zoon zoon…

First step. She has such smooth skin. She smiled at him again. But her smile was more seductive now. It made Tim hard.

Zoon zoon zoon…

Halfway down. The girl was so beautiful, so tempting. Tim wanted to drop her down and make love to her there and then.

Zoon zoon zoon…

Last few steps. She touched his chest and his shirt went ice cold. But the skin where her hand overlaid was comfortingly warm.

Zoon zoon zoon…

"I like your book," she said, licking his neck.

Zoon zoon zoon…

Across the landing and out the door. She kissed him and he resisted her tongue. A lightning flash overhead and she disappeared. Another flash and she stood a couple of feet in front of him, fully dressed in her white gown in front of a wallpaper of a swaying corn field. The sounds of sawing stopped.

She smiled at him. Again, it was the same gentle smile. An innocent smile, not like the one she gave at the top of the stairs.

"You passed." She said happily. Another flash and she was gone.

Tim turned around to close the door. The rusty saw came down on his outstretch hand. He screamed. Another flash. A pair of cold glowing red eyes. An evil smile. The smell of blood.

Zoon zoon zoon…

XXX

Tim woke up screaming. His body drenched with sweat. The car's air-conditioner was still on. The meter was tilting just millimeters from empty. The clock in the car read 01:39. The sun was still shining, making it afternoon. Tim checked his watch. 21:46.

He slid his hands over and under the driver seat, pulling the small lever to open the trunk. He caught a glimpse of the key in the ignition and immediately felt the same key poking him in his back pocket. He threw himself out of the car, flinging the trunk wide open and search through the two bags of luggage before pulling out his dad's six-inch long switchblade.

He pulled the lock down and the blade shot out. He pushed it a little to make sure it had locked itself in place then check his right hand, realizing they were still attached, unlike his dream.

But it was more than a dream. The image of the girl called Sister and her warm touch seemed and felt so real. The Sawman's rusted blade cutting through his flesh felt real, too.

Reality is wrong. Dreams are for real.

He walked towards the house and barn. Mossy roofs and peeling paints. The dried up river behind them went on for miles. The field was barren and the land, sun beaten. No wind or sound passes through.

An image of Sister flashes into Tim's mind and into his sight. She stood in her white gown between him and the house.

She stared at him worryingly before giving a sigh. She looked up to him with a sad face though still beautiful and in an echoing voice, "Let the tests begin."