28/05/2022
Stories of the Dark: Bonfire (Written by Paige SG)
Graduating batch of 2012. I can still remember how excited we were to be in college. And even if ten years have passed, what happened during our last high school summer camp was still clear to me.
I am a member of a scout group. Every first and fourth grading, we will have camping. I was tasked with the games and events for the last camp, so I was focused and excited. I prepared ahead to make it happy and memorable for my fellow scouts. Besides, this might be the last time for most of us to camp in Mount Makiling.
The mountain is located in Los Baños, Laguna. It is famous for hikers and scouts like us. It was a beautiful mountain. You can do different activities, and it's so peaceful. The peace that you can feel in that mountain is different. The fresh air will make you feel like you want to be one with it.
Based on the legends and stories of the old folks living at the foot of the mountain, Maria Makiling is a goddess living in the mountain who occasionally socializes with the regular citizens. She has long black wavy hair. They said that she was quite tall and always wearing white clothes. Her face was very beautiful, tamed, and serene, complemented by her naturally brown skin. According to them, Maria Makiling helps whoever needs food or those who are sick. They don't even have to ask her because she knows everyone's needs. There are also stories that Maria goes down the mountain to shop, and she exchanges items with her gold pieces of ginger. But there was a time that people abused Maria's kindness, so she went up the peak mountain, stopped helping people, and never showed herself again.
Our travel from the school to Makiling did not take long. When we arrived, we immediately brought our stuff to the hall, where we would stay for a few days.
You can easily see the Luna Hall even from a distance. It was quite huge and had a row of teepee houses where we could cook and conduct different activities. There was also an area for a bonfire. Just what I needed for the game I had prepared for our group.
We will stay here for three days and two nights with our head, Sir Rod. He knows many foresters in Makiling who joined him to keep our area safe.
On the first day of the camp, I had already prepared what I would need for the last activity. I hid plastic eggs, which contained three matchsticks, paper, strings of different lengths, and some rubbing alcohol that I poured into a small plastic before putting it inside the egg. I hid it in different areas of the campsite.
When I finished preparing for the other activities, they called the younger scouts. Most of them are in second and third-year high school. Also, during this camp, we will pass them our roles since we are outgoing officers already.
After the reminders from our teacher and my fellow officers, they gave me a chance to tell them about the games that we would have. Most of the activities are easy to explain, so I took the time and emphasize the last one.
"I have four pendants here for the troop leaders. In the entirety of the camp, you have to collect plastic eggs that contain important things that you will use on the last challenge. You can ask other groups for an exchange. But you cannot buy them with real money or steal them. You are also not allowed to open it unless I told you so. The eggs are sealed with my signature. Your team will receive a demerit if you violate the game's rules," I explained.
The younger scouts are interested. They had broad smiles, and I saw them looking at different places from where they were standing. It seemed like they were already trying to look for the things I hid. Even my fellow officers expressed their willingness to join.
The whole day passed by quickly and the first day of the camp ended. We just started, but you can already see the exhaustion on our faces. Our teacher asked us to gather and tell stories by the bonfire. He usually does this during the first and last night of the camp.
He told us about his personal experiences when he was still a young scout. He also shared some memories he will never forget. And obviously, he told horror stories as well.
He said that an unknown entity always appears in every final camp of each graduating class. It never missed once, even in the previous batch ahead of us. And every year, it just gets more terrifying than the last. As per his story, the last was seen by a troop who received punishment and was tasked to sleep on the foldable tents. According to the group, they heard loud footsteps. And it grew louder and nearer, and it started sounding like a horse running. When they peeked from the tent, they saw a man standing in the dark part of the forest. They said that it was tall, naked, and hairy. It moved oddly when it ran away as if it was riding a horse. They wanted to confirm, but the lower part of its body was engulfed in darkness.
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(https://www.ghastlycollection.com/2022/05/stories-of-dark-bonfire-written-by.html)
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