The Redmask Incident

Author's note: This story is part of the Breck Farm Anthology.

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My name is Alex, and I'm writing about something that happened to me. Something I can't explain.

It was the summer of 2014 and I decided to pack my things and take my caravan up to the Breck Farm campsite. Just for a bit of fresh air.

Strange things happened right from day one, when I started to have recurring nightmares. I was in the forest surrounding the campsite, and this... man was hunting me. He was dressed in all black except from a red oni mask adorned with spiked horns and fangs. I tried my best to hide from him, but he found me and stabbed me with a machete. This was when I woke up in my caravan, dripping with sweat.

Nothing happened the following day, but I couldn't stop thinking about my dream. It just felt too real. A lucid dream, perhaps.

My next nightmare also took place in the forest. I was still being chased by the man, who I'll call Redmask, but I kept finding theater masks. You know, the laughing and crying ones made of porcelain. The disturbing thing was, they were floating in midair, and when I walked by one, it turned to look at me. At the end of the dream, I was caught by Redmask again and killed.

This was when I realized I was having recurring dreams. They both took place at the forest, so I decided to go there and see if there was some connection.

What I found was unsettling to say the least. Two theater masks, lying on the forest floor, the light through the trees giving them a demonic look. This was too freaky. Were my dreams some kind of premonition? If so, that means Redmask is real, and he's trying to kill me. I told myself I would stay one more night, just to see what would happen.

My third and final dream took place in my caravan. Redmask was trying to break down my door. I tried to find a way out, but it was too late and he broke in and stabbed me.

I woke up and realised exactly what was going to happen. I grabbed a flashlight, my phone and a backpack with a few supplies and ran. It was dark and I was scared and couldn't see where I was going, so it was just my luck when I found myself in the forest. From my dreams I knew that Redmask could run faster than me, so I hid in a bush and started to call the police. Suddenly, I heard a rustling and saw Redmask himself walk past, just like in my dreams. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't terrified.

I waited a solid 10 minutes for someone to answer my phone, but nobody picked up. I chalked it up to bad connection, and once I was sure Redmask was nowhere to be found, I left my hiding spot and started running for my car, all the way on the other side of the Breck Farm campsite.

Finally I made it to the carpark and looked for my car. As I walked around, I could have sworn I saw Redmask standing next to a lamp post, machete in hand. I ducked down and stayed low to the ground until I found my car. Then I drove out of the campsite as fast as I could, and didn't stop driving until I reached a motel.

My dreams stopped after I left Breck Farm, and I'm never going there again. I can't help but think Redmask has some kind of power. I don't usually have dreams where I predict the future, so it has to be something to do with Redmask himself. Maybe he picks one target at a time, because he's never been mentioned online or covered by any news company. Usually a masked killer prowling the woods of a family campsite would spark outrage. It's like he's some kind of demon...]]