The Kelpies - Blood in the snow

I am sure that you have already heard about Krampus, a horned, anthropomorphic figure in folklore, who during the Christmas season scares naughty children. Ice Yeti, Abominable Snowman, Wendigo, Old Man Frost, Skadi, Jack Frost - all figures of cold, winter nightmares. Seasonal icons used to scare children into behaving properly during the holidays. I too believed that they were nothing more than legends and myths, whispered around warm fireplaces and campfires on a blue winter's night. That was....until my horrifying, bone-chilling encounter with the Kelpies.

Gerard and I had been together for two whole years. Our relationship was playful, strong, and devoted. I had suspected that he intended to make an offer of marriage during our trip, and I was more than ready to accept. I had never experienced Scottland, I anticipated the trip to be nothing less than a magical, enchanted wonderland that would forever change my life.

It was a cold, blustery December afternoon when we found ourselves within the small, Scottish village of Dornoch. The snow was falling fast and our need for shelter was growing more and more dire.

I was in awe of the long-lived brownstone buildings, particularly the impressive cathedral. It was founded in 1224, it was restored by the Countess of Sutherland in 1835, and again in the 20th century. I learned these facts as we walked through the streets on our quest to find a place to spend the night. The town is also reputedly where the last witch in Scotland was burnt in 1722 - a fact commemorated by the Witch’s Stone that we passed in the dormant garden of a cottage.

As night blanketed the village, we noticed that more and more residents were scurrying inside and securing themselves behind locked doors. The entire character of the village was changing with each passing moment. Adults were leading children swiftly inside, and the young ones chanted an eerie rhyme that I shall never forget.

We eventually stumbled upon a small, private, cottage that had been modernised to provide homely comfort to visitors passing through. The lady inside was friendly and accommodating with a warm, inviting smile. "You're lucky!" she gestured with a grin. "The snow has arrived early this season, I can't say that I've ever seen so much of it come quite so fast." - I watched as Gerard pulled his coat tightly around himself with a shiver. "Is that why everyone is rushing indoors so quickly?" he questioned. "Oh, no darling, nobody want's to be outdoors after dark. The snow always brings them out of their hiding. Way up there in the mountains, that's where they need to stay, and as long as nobody disturbs them, they will do just that." - "They?" I countered with a curious tone. "Yes, the Kelpies." she seemed some·what distressed by our interrogatives.

She quietly led us to our room, and gently closed the door behind us. "The Kelpies!" A sneer of laughter escaped me as I flumped down on the bed. "What in the hell is a Kelpie?" Gerard asked with a huge grin on his face. I reached for the lamp sitting on the bedside table and quickly flicked it off, using my very best scary voice, I began to explain.

A kelpie, or water kelpie, is a shape-shifting spirit inhabiting the lakes and mountains in Scottish folklore. It is a Celtic legend; however, analogues exist in other cultures as well. It is usually described as a black horse-like creature, able to adopt human form.

With a loud, unrestrained burst of laughter we tumbled across the bed wrestling and tussling. Suddenly the door swung open with a loud explosive sound. "How dare you come into our village and poke fun at our customs and heritages!" The once sweet lady had now unfolded into a raving, ill-tempered monstrosity. Her sudden act of delirium sent waves of cold fear straight through my bones.

The following moring Gerard and I gathered our baggage and quickly left the warm cottage. We neglected to stop in for breakfast and coffee, although the aroma of fresh eggs and bacon made me feel frail with hunger. After the events of last night, we felt little less than welcome.

Apparently, word travels quickly in such a small village. It seemed as if every person that we happened upon gave us a cold shoulder and promptly shunned us away. Before we were even aware of our surroundings we had ventured far out of the village, and was now hopelessly lost in the cold, snowy mountains surrounding it.

As the bitter blanket of night fell upon us, we knew for certain that we were in terrible danger of freezing to death. We stomped through the snow, desperately searching for some form of shelter.

The most terrifying sound that I had ever heard came from deep within the snow covered trees. "What was that!" I screamed as I threw myself in Gerard's arms. Together we peered into the darkness unknowing what we might see. "Was that a horse?" Gerard's voice was trembling and faded.

Suddenly we were surrounded by red eyes glaring at us from within the shadows....so many beaming red eyes. "Gerard, I'm scared!" I heard myself admit. "Don't move" he replied as he reached for a fallen limb laying on the ground. "Is it the Kelpie?" I whispered, my voice low and stifled. "Don't be ridiculous, there is absolutely no such of a thing. It's wolves or gunrunners, some sort of wild animal, just be quiet." he urged.

Just then we both witnesses the impossible, the most horrendous, mortifying sight that I had ever seen, and I pray to never see again. It was me...but it wasn't. The Kelpie had taken on my image, just as the legend alleged. The disturbing replica glided out of the darkness and into the moonlit snow. Completely nude and unaffected by the freezing, cold conditions. She was my perfect doppelgänger in every way, aside from the animalistic claws and the feral whiffing which left misty clouds of moisture hanging in the air.

Gerard was frozen - either by fear or by the drifting snow...I assume that is why he didn't even attempt to run away as the carbon copy approached. I stepped back as more and more shadowy replicas came forth from the obscured treeline.

I was helpless, unable to save him - every inch of my body was silently screaming. I could hear it in my mind, my screams...my bloodcurdling, heart-stopping screams.

I closed my eyes, I squeezed them so tightly that it hurt. Skewers of agony stabbing my brain. I covered my ears to muffle the gruesome sound of ripping flesh and blood slopping in the snow. When I finally opened my eyes he was gone. The only evidence of his existence was the blood in the snow

I tried to run away as the gruesome scene replayed in my mind over and over. I had watched myself kill Gerard, the love of my life...

Countless....simulations...of....me.....

We tore him apart leaving not a trace. Was it the Kelpies? Am I to blame? Had I lost my mind and all sense of reality up on that numbing, wintery mountain? Did I unknowingly succumb to madness - temporary insanity, leaving me clueless, unaware and ignorant to the truth.

No! The legend is true, Kelpies.....When darkness falls and the snow blankets the ground, they come! They surely exist.

When darkness falls upon the town,

When icy snow lays on the ground,

Hide youself, and run inside,

Avoid the stare of the Kelpie's eyes,

For if she see's you, she surely will,

You will become a blood-soaked meal.

In the mountains, within the trees,

The Kelpie looks like you and me.

She'll steal your soul, and then your face,

Run, run away far from this place.

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Ghost Town - by Rebecca L Ivey