FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Our story begins in Keres University, a big college in New Mexico that follows a 20-year-old skunk named Franklin Simmons or simply referred as Frank to most people. Frank was walking out of his student dormitory with a smile plastered on his face as he adjusted his round glasses that shined brightly in the light and covered his eyes from sight with royal blue fur tracing the outsides of the white stripes of his fur. He decided to wear a casual outfit today with a tan button up shirt, beige khaki pants, brown boots, and the school jacket that was adorned in emerald, green with red and gray highlights on the sleeves and cuffs with the school emblem of a black and gray raven perched on a branch with red berries and green leaves growing on it. The jacket may not be necessary since it was summertime, but he wanted to be prepared just in case it got a bit chilly where he was going.

He thought back to the physics class he had signed up for as an elective class and how they were discussing many ways to generate energy and how it functions in many of our daily lives now during the second quarter of his junior year. He also recalled the sudden announcement made by his teacher, Miss McCoy who is an arctic fox in her late 30's, that our advanced physics class was discussing the same subject as another class. A late 40's warthog named Mr. Gibson is teaching an introductory physics class, or in other words the beginner's class and he and Miss McCoy decided to further the subject by combining our classes and going on an academic field trip to the nearby dam east of the city to discuss and examine how dams are a huge factor in energy generation and so much more.

Frank was intrigued that two classes of different levels were going on the same trip but Frank, having had Mr. Gibson in a previous course, had a sneaking suspicion there was more to this trip than just academic purposes. He most likely convinced Miss McCoy into thinking it would be purely for teaching his students as well as hers, but he was not very subtle about the crush he has on her as he gloated about her intelligence and other aspects of her to the entire class. Rumors did spread of course but Miss McCoy always waved it off as nothing but young adults playing matchmaker for the single woman. She also expressed that she believed most students projected Mr. Gibson to hide their own fawning over her. If only he had the courage to correct her but he's too cowardly a beauty like her would reject a man like him.

But regardless of how it was set-up, the academic field trip was today as Frank made his way to his white 2014 Toyota Camry to meet up with everyone attending at the dam. However, just before he could get into his vehicle, a deep voice rang out from the car next to him, angry and irritated.

Frank looked over and spotted the old yet familiar red 2002 Chevrolet Silverado with the hood opened up and someone working on the engine. Frank smiled as he threw the notebook, he was carrying on the seat of his car before walking over to the truck and casually leaning on his side on the grill of the truck.

“Old Grett giving you trouble again, Trev?" Frank asked the individual with a knowing smirk.

The individual looked over and smiled as he stood up straight and was now seen to be a very built and stain-covered ram wearing a white tank top that hugged his muscled torso just right, black sweatpants and an old pair of black sneakers with gold accents. His hazel eyes locked onto the small statured skunk as he chuckled before replying, “Yep. You gotta love hand me downs from cheap ass older brothers."

Trevor Jenkins is the star sniffer tight end on the Irena football team and a major player who loves the sport as much as the rest of his family but is the only one to pursue a career in the sport. The 21-year-old ram eyed Frank before he let out a chuckle, prompting the skunk to ask, “What are you laughing at?"

“You just look so nerdy for this field trip we're going on!"

Frank rolled his eyes. “Well, did you think we were going to a dam or Disneyland? This isn't a vacation or a trip to a more fun location like the planetarium."

“Did you really just say a planetarium is fun? Nerd."

“Remind me why we're friends again?"

“Because you love me and we've been best friends since middle school."

“One of those statements is true," Frank remarked with a grin as he quickly dodged away from a greasy rag that Trevor balled up before chucking at him. The two laughed as Frank picked up the rag and handed it back to Trevor before Trevor went back to working on his truck.

“Weren't you supposed to go pick up your girlfriend for the field trip?" asks Frank.

Trevor sighed. “That was the plan before Old Grett decided to hate me today and not run today. I swear the high maintenance this old girl needs is killing my budget."

“I guess you can say you're reGretting your decision to buy the truck off of your brother," Frank laughed out but saw the unamused look on Trevor's face before the skunk cleared his throat. “Sorry. I know you're upset."

“That's the understatement of the century. If I don't get Old Grett up and going soon. Nicki is going to do “it" to me and I'd rather not-" As he was saying this his phone buzzed with a text notification. He wiped off his greasy hand and pulled out his phone before groaning as his eyes scanned the screen. “"It" happened."

“She's mad?"

“Yep. She's upset I wasn't on time to pick her up so she's getting a ride from the twins now. That means she's not going to answer anything I send to her until I apologize in person and looking at how messed up Old Grett is, I don't think I can make it now. And if I don't make this class work, I can say goodbye to my future career as the next star athlete on an official NFL team and Nicki as my girlfriend. Without those, I think I'm better off dead."

Frank shoved Trevor lightly. “Will you stop it, ya drama queen? I swear you're in the theater with how overdramatic you get. Just get into my car already," he paused before looking Trevor over, “After you clean yourself off."

Trevor smiled at the skunk. “Dude, you're seriously the best! What would I do without you?"

Frank shrugged. “I dunno. Fail most of your more academic classes without me tutoring you and lose your girl thanks to the age-old tradition of passing old junk from one generation to another. Really, it's not a problem buddy. What are roommates and best friends for if not to help each other out?"

“They're great for making insults at with no repercussions. Nerd."

“True. Alright ya dumb jock! Get cleaned off and be down in ten minutes. We need to be there by noon."

“Yessir!" Trevor saluted before slamming his hood closed and running up to get changed into clean clothes.

After driving for nearly an hour, the two hopped out of Frank's car, with Trevor's horns getting caught on the doorframe which made him grumble about the small car and just made Frank giggle as Trevor adjusted the outfit he changed into. That by Trevor's definition was simply changing the tank top to a “clean one" he grabbed from the floor with a t-shirt to go over and his letterman jacket he wore for tailgate parties and other events outside of the sport itself. They approached a group of people gathered together, both recognizing the faces as their respective teachers and classes.

Frank looked over the students he recognized from his class gathered in front of Miss McCoy. He saw the faces he knew all too well like Klein Chambers, a raccoon who was originally the student body president before he was selected by the university to be one of their prefects for the year in his final year, and his girlfriend, Ellie-May Heath, a ragamuffin cat with a beautiful tortoiseshell coat who was vice president of the student body before being promoted to student body president. He also saw June Morrison, a curvy shark who despite her slim figure is working on a medical degree to follow the footsteps of her grandmother. Next to her was a short, red-eyed tree frog girl named Paige Underhill who is also following June's path but more so in the laboratory scene than the hospital, working on a medical science degree. Behind them was the overweight, introverted Saint Bernard man, Owen Turner, who had an intelligent mind going for a career in the engineering industry but lacked the confidence in himself due to his weight. They among his other classmates were all gathered and chatting amongst the thirty-four of them very casually and kindly.

On the other hand, Frank took note of Trevor's class and felt his stomach twist at the sight and reminder of who else was going on this trip. His eyes first landed on Trevor's girlfriend and Frank's nightmares, Nicole Brown, who is a serval wild cat with purple spots dying her natural, black-colored spots with her cheerleader uniform on. Garnered with the same uniforms were the rabbit twins, Rosie and Lily Sinclair, as they rested on both sides of Nicole as the henchmen they acted like. Standing in a cluster of that class was a rowdy party boy named Dewey Watson, a weasel who enjoyed the simpler life of throwing parties every chance he got which is surprising since he's trying to get a degree in history to become a genealogist. Frank also took notice of the one student who was tucked away from the rest, sitting on the trunk of his car was the brooding and nihilist Gila monster, Lorenzo Flores, who was one of many football jocks that took this course simply for the electives. There's also the fact a good chunk of both the football team and the cheerleaders were also in this class for the same reason as they were all rowdy and uncontrollable with Mr. Gibson trying to calm all twenty-seven of his students down.

Miss McCoy looked up from her clipboard as she saw Frank and Trevor approaching. “About time you showed up, Mr. Simmons. I expected you to be here much earlier than the call time."

“I probably would have been had my roommate's truck decided not to die on him," he responded back as Trevor winked and pointed finger guns at her.

“How charming, Mr. Jenkins," Miss McCoy sighed before turning back to Frank, “Both of you may join up with your classmates as Mr. Gibson and I begin preparing to take attendance."

The two males nodded before sliding in with their classmates as they made their way to Nicole and her cronies. “Nicki baby! I'm here!" Trevor called out happily to which Nicki turned away and the Sinclair Twins stood in between her and Trevor as bodyguards.

“She doesn't want to talk right now, Trevor." Rosie spoke first.

Lily followed up that by stating, “Not after the way you ditched her this morning for-" she paused as her eyes scanned over Frank. “-well, that."

Frank felt his eye twitch at that remark, but Trevor spoke up before anything could be said. “I'm sorry Nicki. But my truck was acting up again and I spent over an hour trying to fix her up so I could drive you here. I was just lucky my good buddy Franky was still around, or I probably wouldn't have been here at all."

Before the rabbits could give a reply back, they were shoved aside by Nicki who gave a sultry grin at Trevor. “Oh baby. Why didn't you tell me when I texted you? We would've gladly picked you up so you wouldn't have to show up with stinky trash."

“Are you racial profiling me now?" Frank huffed out.

“Oh no! Never! I'm not saying that because you're a skunk! I'm only stating a fact."

Trevor put a hand on Nicki's shoulder. “Come on babe. We talked about this. I know you and Frank have had beef in the past, but you promised we'd move on from petty insults and be kind. You're my girl and he's my best friend and I want to see you guys get along."

Nicki sighed. “You're right, babe. I'll try harder. I swear." She and Trevor leaned in together to plant a long kiss as they shamelessly sucked on each other's tongues before drawing into a hug. With Trevor's back turned and Nicki facing Frank, she opened her eyes and with crossed fingers mouth the words “Not really, you fucking loser," to Frank who only growled as he walked away to his class where June and Paige approached him.

“Need us to step in and tell Trevor what that bitch is doing behind his back?" June asked him.

Frank shook his head. “No, it's okay. I've dealt with this treatment from her since middle school. It's nothing I'm not used to by now. Besides, Trevor loves her and would believe her over me. She's a bully but she's smart since she always seems to know when something might be recording her, so she doesn't give us any evidence to use against her."

Paige frowned as she replied, “I w-wish we could help. I hate seeing her pick on you for no reason."

“If Frank doesn't want us getting involved, we should respect his wish. This matter is between him and the bimbo," said June.

Frank smiled at that remark before hugging them. “Thanks guys. It does me good knowing I've got friends supporting me."

“File up! It's time to take attendance!" Miss McCoy shouted out as it echoed through the parking garage we were gathered in. As Mr. Gibson struggled to take his attendance, Frank ignored them as he focused on Miss McCoy as she was making her way down the list quickly.

“Rachel Gulliver?"

“Here!"

“John Harrison?"

“Here!"

“Ellie-May Death?"

The students looked bewildered as Ellie-May raised her hand looking just as confused. “Um, I'm here but my last name is Heath.

Miss McCoy looked down at her notes and saw her attendance list was printed with a D instead of an H as snickering could be heard from students in Mr. Gibson's class. She glared at them. “Nice senior prank. Very original. I'm so impressed by such a clever prank I'm practically falling over dead here." She shook her head as she continued the roll call. However, Frank had felt a weird chill in his body at that remark as he untied the jacket around his waist and put it on but despite the warmth, he felt putting it on, the chill was still there.

A hand lightly tapped his shoulder making Frank jump in surprise, scaring the Saint Bernard who got his attention. “S-Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you! I swear!"

Frank sighed as he nodded at him. “I know you didn't, Owen. I was just distracted. No harm done." Owen gulped, looking unsure of Frank's words but nodded, nonetheless.

With roll call completed and all sixty-one students were accounted for as they began walking out of the garage and towards the dam outside. As they began walking, Miss McCoy and Mr. Gibson began going over the rules such as no electronics, paying attention to the tour guide and the teachers when being lectured and taking notes, the usual grounds for an academic field trip.

As they walked Frank saw a number of tourists standing around, taking pictures, and looking down the huge wall of the dam and the huge reservoir on the opposite side. A road was also on top of the dam as traffic was busily driving down both sides to cross it. One such vehicle was a cement truck driving past them and as Frank saw it come past, he saw his reflection in the windshield but behind him was an almost ghostly figure as he gasped and turned back around but saw nothing there expect some teenage girls taking a selfie with their backs nearly hanging completely off the wall of the dam.

“Hey! Simmons! Don't lag behind!" Miss McCoy shouted out.

Frank shook his head as he ran to catch up with the group. He saw Trevor holding Nicki by the waist, but his eyes were fixed on him with concern. “You okay, buddy?" Trevor whispered to him.

“Yeah. I might be getting sick or something. I'll take care of it when we get home," Frank replied.

“Let's hope so. If you get my boyfriend sick, I'll end you myself," Nicki hissed out.

“I know he wouldn't. He knows how to take care of himself. It's one of his many charming traits that makes it a good thing we're roommates since he takes care of me when I'm sick," added Trevor.

Nicki rolled her eyes without Trevor noticing as the group came to a stop as a female black wolf wearing a vest with text in big, bolded wording saying " TOUR GUIDE" stood in front of them unamused before finally speaking up. “Welcome young, impressionable adults to the Charon Dam. My name's Lilith and I'll be your guide today. As you probably already know, the Charon Dam was built to create a more environmentally friendly way to create energy for us. How is that done? Well, that's why you're here, is it not?"

No one made a response to her dry attempt at humor except for Mr. Gibson, who pumped his fist in the air and screamed, “Hell yeah we are!"

Dewey grumbled with his arms crossed saying, “This might as well be hell."

“Except there's not really a hell. It's just as fictional as all the other misguidings that religions and politicians try to invoke into our brains to give us a concept of life after death to make dying seem less scary," Lorenzo muttered. Dewey blinked blankly at the muscular Gila monster before backing away from him, before mumbling to himself, “Freak."

“Let us begin the tour. Follow me." Lilith spoke out as she turned and began leading the classes down to a staircase that led into the Charon Dam's interior as the sign on the door read “Only Authorized Personnel Allowed Beyond This Point. To Schedule A Tour, Call: (968)273-3323"

As the tour began and the students began making their way further into the dam, there was a lot for Frank to take in. He saw many old-fashioned turbines that were being powered by the river, a railing that when looked over showed the tunnels that the water traveled through to continue the river on the other side of the reservoir, and many cracks in the wall that was being plastered with cement by construction workers.

Frank felt uncomfortable at the sight of the sizable cracks in the walls and ceiling. “Um, excuse me but how old is the Charon Dam exactly?"

“Excellent question, Frank!" Miss McCoy called back. “The Charon Dam was built in the early 1900's, over a century ago! The Sticks River was much larger than it is now and many people, kids and adults, of that time got swept away by the strong currents and drowned. As both a precaution to help preserve the locals from dying while fishing and to help generate energy more efficiently and safely for the environment, the Charon Dam was built by Frederick Charon and his team into the architectural wonder that stands now."

Mr. Gibson chimed in. “Fun fact: the river wasn't named until after the dam was built and was given the name Sticks after the Greek mythology of Charon and the River Styx. Seeing as the last name of the builder was the same as the Greek legend, they thought it would be appropriate to name the river similarly since the River Styx carried the undead to the Underworld by the ferryman, Charon. As such since the dangerous river couldn't be crossed by any other means than Charon, the dam was seen as a safe vessel for travelers to cross over the dangerous river that claimed many lives in the past."

“How unoriginal using a story based on false legends to make a stupid pun for us to make," Lorenzo huffed out.

Miss McCoy glared at Lorenzo. “Just because you're an atheist doesn't give you the right to bash on other cultures. I myself have Greek ancestry in my bloodline and yet you don't hear me attacking your Mexican culture."

“Mexican culture is all bullshit too," he retaliated.

Mr. Gibson suddenly shouted. “Hey! Watch your mouth, Lorenzo! Do you want me to assign you more pages for your essay later? If you don't, then I suggest zipping your flap trap shut!"

Lorenzo muttered something under his breath before turning away.

Mr. Gibson grinned at Miss McCoy who gave him an appreciative smile back before continuing the discussion as they walked but once again Frank felt unnerved by what both teachers said in response to his question as he felt even colder than before. He shivered as he rubbed his sides then suddenly, he felt something snatch his ankle causing his arms to flail as he fell forward with a “WHOA!". He collided into Nicki who was in front of him before a domino effect happened that also knocked over Trevor, Rosie, Lily, and Lorenzo. All the other students saw this and either looked shocked or laughed as two other jocks were seen standing at the back high-fiving each other.

“Man, I just love the fall season!" The tiger jock said.

“Yeah, and looks like they do too!" the grizzly bear jock added as the two laughed harder.

Nicki glared back at Frank before growling out, “Get off of me, you reject!" She proceeded to harshly kick Frank off of her, causing the skunk to collapse backwards as the notebook in his hand got flung out of his grip and through the railing as he saw it helplessly plummet down into the water to be sucked out into the rover thousands of feet below.

Trevor sat up and looked back, glaring at his teammates. “Rory, Chuck, you assholes!" He then turned his attention to Nicki as Lorenzo, Rosie, and Lily all stood up, dusting themselves off. “Are you okay sweetie?"

“Besides that, heavy jerk pushing me down, I think I'm okay," Nicki answered.

“Sorry. Those two are so ignorant when they play their pranks. They don't care who gets hurt. But I'm glad you're not hurt."

“Aww babe! That's so sweet of you to be concerned about-"

“How about you, buddy? Are you okay?" Nicki choked on her words as she opened her eyes and realized he was now talking to Frank as he seemed to be thoroughly inspecting the skunk's body. “You definitely took a nasty fall there. And you look paler than before! Do you need water?"

Frank just hesitantly shook his head. “N-No. I'm good. Just upset I lost my notebook with all my notes."

“Oh shit! That's not good! Here!" Trevor pulled out a folded up paper and handed it to Frank. “I was gonna use this to take notes but you're the better note taker between the two of us. As for your older notes, I do still have all the notes you made me write during our study sessions. I can give you a copy so you'll still have yours with the only difference being my bad handwriting."

Frank smiled at Trevor. “Trev, you're seriously the best."

“That's why we're best friends. It's in the title!"

Nicki seethed at the attention the nobody was getting as she then smirked before gasping loudly. “O-Owie! I think my ankle is sprained."

Trevor gasped as he rushed back to her and reached down carefully. “Shoot, I'm so sorry baby! Here! This might help! We get massages to help us when we get injured during games. Let me see if I can minimize the pain for you." He began massaging the ankle for her and as she stiffened up before relaxing she whispered out, “Thank you baby." Then she smirked at Frank before pulling down her lower eyelid and sticking her tongue out at him in mockery as Trevor was too focused on her ankle to notice.

Frank sighed as he stood up. As he shook his head and was about to start writing notes down as Lilith began explaining how the turbines helped create energy, Frank's attention was drawn away as he heard a radio playing. He looked over and saw one of the construction workers covering the cracks in the wall had a radio strapped to his belt as Frank heard the familiar chorus of Clay Walker's song “Chain of Love" playing.

“You don't owe me a thing,

I've been there too.

And someone once helped me out,

Just the way I'm helping you.

If you really wanna pay… back,

Here's what you do:

… let the chain of love end… you."

Suddenly static began arising in the radio as words began getting cut off before it began playing a new song out of nowhere. The worker seemed just as confused as the chorus of another song began playing instead, which Frank recognized in perfect clarity as “River of Tears" by Eric Clapton.

“Drowning in a river

Drowning in a river of tears

Drowning in a river

Feel like I'm drowning

Drowning in a river

Lord, how long must it go on?

Drowning

Drowning

Drowning in a river of tears"

If Frank felt uncomfortable before, now he felt like something sinister was going on now. As he stared blankly at the radio, he could see shadows clouding his vision before he felt a fierce shaking snap him out of it.

“Dude! Something's not right with you, buddy! Please tell me what's wrong!" Trevor pleaded to him with major worry embedded in his eyes.

Frank tried to smile and wave Trevor off him. “Sorry buddy. I'm fine. Just getting distracted, that's all."

“The only time you're unfocused is when you're getting sick. You can't fool me. I know you too well. Come on!" He then roughly grabbed Frank by the hand before he could object as he led him up to the front of the group before leaning into the teachers and whispering, “Mr. Gibson? Miss McCoy? I think my roommate is sick. May we be excused so I can take him back home so he can rest?"

Mr. Gibson gasped. “Oh dear! That's no good! Of course you may!"

Suddenly Miss McCoy held up a hand. “Now wait just a moment. I see exactly what you're trying to pull here, Mr. Jenkins! You're trying to skip out by using your roommate as an excuse to leave early! I don't know what you said to Mr. Simmons to convince him to play along with your scheme but my students know better! You clearly threatened to beat him to make him go along with this!"

Trevor glared at the arctic fox as his free hand balled up into a fist. “Are you fucking kidding me? He's been my best friend for years! How dare you accuse me of threatening him!"

“Probably said that so you wouldn't be seen publicly bullying him and now you think you can walk all over him to get your way. When we return to the school, we're going to have a sit down with Coach Eddington to discuss your horrid behavior!"

As Trevor felt his anger rising, Mr. Gibson suddenly stepped in between them and said, “Settle down, Trevor! Let me discuss with Miss McCoy privately please."

Trevor, not taking his gaze off Miss McCoy simply responded through gritted teeth. “Yessir."

Mr. Gibson guided Miss McCoy away from the group before speaking, “I don't think they're trying to pull something. Trevor is the most well-behaved student in my class out of everyone and he has taken his studies seriously even if he struggles from time to time. Also I had Frank in my class his first year and he was always attentive and never got involved with the more immature college students and their hair-brained schemes. Besides, I have seen those two hanging out over the years after class a lot. I doubt a bully and his victim would be seen as that carefree and happy around each other that often just to put up a façade."

“You should also know that Mr. Simmons helps Mr. Jenkins with his homework very often, not just in your class but almost all things academic in mind. I don't trust that boy to be truthful about anything that would involve his team, his girlfriend, or his roommate. If it were anyone else, I'd believe him but-"

“Wait. Be quiet." Out of nowhere, Mr. Gibson interrupted her as he began looking around.

“Did you just tell me to shut up?! How dare you!"

Suddenly he slapped his hand around her mouth and put his finger to his lips. “Please! Be quiet, Kristen!" He harshly whispered at her.

She knew he would just that tone with her or her first name if it wasn't serious. “Wh-What is it, Gerald?"

“Do you… Do you feel that?" He asked her.

The two stood still but felt a rumbling under their feet. Normally they'd think it was just the running turbines and river water making the dam shake but this felt a little too strong than what they were feeling before. Soon the sound of rocks clattering against concrete and water bottles began trembling at an alarming pace as suddenly everything began to shake around them.

Lilith looked around with concern on her face. “Oh God! Everyone take cover! We're having an earthquake!" As she screamed that, the shaking intensified as everyone began tripping and falling as the earthquake began reaching its peak. Trevor immediately took action as he grabbed Frank in his arms and ran for cover under a turbine, positioning himself protectively over the skunk. Nicki, enraged by this, ran over to him and cried out, “Ahh! Protect me, Trevor!" He then grabbed her and pulled her under him alongside Frank as the two glared at one another menacingly while Trevor had his eyes squeezed shut, trying to focus on protecting them both.

Lorenzo was quick to grab onto a pillar nearby as he hugged himself as close to it as possible. Dewey yelped as he scrambled under a nearby table that had the construction worker's belongings on it as stuff fell off it along with the scream of the hoisted up worker as he plummeted and hit the ground next to the weasel as he groaned in pain from the fall. Klein grabbed Ellie-May and rushed them over to another turbine where he also threw himself over Ellie-May as debris began falling around them along with the twins, Owen, who began rocking back and forth in the fetal position, and June who clung to a shivering, crying Paige. A sizable piece of concrete fell out of the ceiling and fell directly over Kristen's head before Gerald tackled her out of the way and laid over her as debris began falling in smaller chunks but began slamming into the warthog as he cried out in pain every time he was struck.

Just as the earthquake began reaching a higher breaking point, the quakes suddenly softened up before gradually and completely dissipating. Everyone began slowly stepping out of their hiding places as Lilith stepped out last and looked over everyone. “Is everyone okay?"

Gerald grunted as he rolled off of Kristen as his body was beaten, bloodied, and broken as one of his tusks was chipped in half and his leg had a cement chunk lodged in his calf. Kristen gasped as she cupped his face. “Oh God Gerald! Stay with me! We need an ambulance!"

“I'm on it!" Lily called out as she began dialing 911 on her phone.

Dewey stood up and ran to Lilith. “Hey! That construction worker suffered a bad fall! He needs help too!"

Lilith ran over to the lion man and knelt over him. “Oh dear. His spine is fractured. I doubt he can move." She then stood up and looked more serious than ever before. “Tell the 911 dispatcher that we have several injured people and that we need help immediately. After how big that earthquake was, I think any aftershocks that come after won't be as bad so for now we should be safe an-"

BOOM!!!

Suddenly water erupted from the wall behind Lilith and the construction worker as they were blasted to the ground and forced to the edge where they attempted to grab onto the railing but with both their hands and the railing now soaking wet, their grips slipped as they both screamed in terror as they plummeted into the depths of the dam before their screams stopped after two slams echoed back up to everyone else. Everyone watched in horror as they saw two people die so suddenly in front of them.

Lily ran over to the spot they fell from and screamed into the phone, “Oh my God! They fell into the dam! I'm not fucking kidding! They died! Please we need help! PLEASE!" Rosie grabbed the phone from her now hysterical sister as she began speaking calmly. “Yes, yes! We're all students from Keres University! Our guide just fell and there may be more people on top of the dam who may need help! …Yes I'll stay on the line!"

As Rosie spoke to the dispatcher and Lily just hugged herself against Rosie's side, sobbing uncontrollably, suddenly the ground where they stood on where water was rushing around their ankles at high speeds began to spray higher as something began forming around the backs of their feet! Frank took notice of this and shook in horror as he saw the old cement was cracking from the high pressure of the water! Frank shoved Trevor off him who screamed out his name in response as Frank desperately screamed out. “GET AWAY FROM THERE!"

Just as the twins looked up and over to him, the railing gave way as did the ground they stood on as Rosie and Lily along with the phone began plummeting with the screeches of the twins as once more two loud crashes in the rushing water below echoed back up as Frank fell to his knees. He was too late.

“ROSIE! LILY! NO!" Nicki screamed out as Trevor hugged her back as she attempted to run out. Was it to look out and confirm the deaths of her friends or to blame Frank for not saving them? He couldn't care at this point as he had witnessed two more deaths today.

Before he could react the ground began shaking again but it was not due to an aftershock. The cracks that were being mended exploded out as more water shot out massive clogs of cement out and sprayed water from multiple spaces all around them. Kristen trembled in both fear and the cold of the water as she shouted out to the students, “The dam is collapsing! Everyone evacuate immediately!"

Hectic, screaming students began making a run for the entrance they entered in from behind them but a blast of water spouted up from underneath them as the flooring gave way, sending a handful of students screaming and falling, including Chuck and Rory, to their collective deaths.

“There's an emergency exit on the opposite side! Hurry before we're cut off!" Klein shouted out as more students began running in the direction he pointed.

Trevor and Nicki began to run as Trevor dragged Frank onto his feet before slapping him in the face, leaving a mark, and snapping the skunk out of his daze. “We have to run Frank! Now!" Frank without hesitating found the strength to stand on his own but stopped when he saw Miss McCoy struggling to help Mr. Gibson limp his way to the exit. “We have to help them!" Frank cried out. But another burst of water and cement fragments stopped them in their tracks as they were now cut off from their teachers.

“Just go! Get out of here now!" Kristen ordered the students.

Gerald coughed up blood as he began slipping on the water beneath him and Kristen struggled to hold him up. “Just leave me. I'm not going to make it." Gerald begged weakly.

Kristen shook her head and cried out, “I'm not leaving you! I won't!" That's when cracking was heard from above as an enormous chunk of cement cracked out of the ceiling and began falling down. With only a brief moment to scream in terror from Kristen McCoy, the cement slammed down and immediately crushed them both as the slab smashed into large shards that buried their bodies from sight.

Frank shook now seeing more deaths in one moment than in any horror movie he'd ever watched. “Frank! Let's move! Now!" Trevor cried out as he began dragging a grief-stricken Frank behind him as they along with Nicki began running as fast as they could.

Ahead of them were more students as Owen was seen struggling to keep up with the others. One of the remaining jocks ran past him and in his desperation to flee, he shoved Owen out of his way which knocked the Saint Bernard into Dewey as they crashed into a nearby turbine, knocking Owen out as Dewey was now trapped under the unconscious body of the big dog. “Ow! Get off me you lard of fat!" Dewey screamed out as he tried rolling the unconscious student off of him but to no avail.

Nearby Paige was seen tripping in her struggles to stay upright as the dam began caving in around them. June was seen running back and grabbing the frog by her hand before attempting to help her stand and run together with their hands interlocked. But as they neared the turbine Owen and Dewey were at, many cement pieces began falling as an empty car from the road above fell into the gaping hole above before it began making its descent down. Dewey saw this and could only get out a small scream before the car crashed into the turbine which exploded with Dewey and Owen engulfed by the flames with the explosion also sending multiple students flying out and either falling to their deaths or slamming into the inside wall of the dam, leaving bloodied imprints as they fell quickly after. As this happened, shrapnel from both the car and turbine shot out as metal shrapnel shot out hitting multiple other students that were far enough away from the blast as their bodies got shredded up as they all died instantly. This included June and Paige as they both got metal shrapnel seen sticking out of their faces and chests with one gaping hole seen in each of their chests as they both laid on the ground with a pool of their mixed blood washing away and their hands still tightly gripping each other as their rigamortis bodies remained connected even after death. Frank, Trevor, and Nicki all ran past the bodies of their fellow students as Frank saw June and Paige in their horrifying state and the charred corpses of Owen and Dewey from the earlier explosion.

Most of the students were now dead but a few survivors began running to the surface as Klein made sure they all made it to safety until he noticed Ellie-May on the ground, scrambling around. “Ellie-May! Hurry!"

“My mother's necklace! I lost it!" She cried out in a panic.

Klein ran over to her. “We don't have time! We have to run now!"

“No! I can't! You know that necklace is all I have left of my mother!" Ellie-May cried out as she continued her search. Klein, knowing he wasn't going to convince her otherwise, quickly began helping in her search. Just as Frank and the others began running up, that's when Ellie-May spotted her necklace chain broken in a puddle nearby.

“Oh thank God! I found it!" Just as she was reaching in however, a cement piece smashed into the turbine as loose wiring began flinging around as electricity waved them around before one fell into the puddle the moment Ellie-May grabbed her necklace before her body seized up as she was electrocuted. “NO! ELLIE-MAY!" In his attempt to save his girlfriend, he grabbed onto her free hand but due to them both being soaked by the water spreading inside the dam, Ellie-May acted as a conductor as the electricity surged through her body into Klein as they both instantly collapsed charred and burned from third-degree electrical burns as both died immediately.

Trevor, seeing this and the small river of water ahead of them, picked up both Frank and Nicki under one arm each before he took a running start and jumped over the electrified water and safely on the other side before setting them down. Frank looked back at the carnage all scattered behind him as he trembled, feeling he was on the verge of vomiting. “Oh God! Holy fuck! They're all dead! Everyone's dead! We're gonna die! W-We're all gonna die!"

“Frank! Knock it off!" Trevor screamed at Frank making the skunk tremble at the harshness of his tone before he was hugged into the ram's muscled chest. “We will not! I won't allow anything to happen to us!"

“Yeah! If we die because of your whiny bitch ass, I will kill you myself!" Nicki shouted at Frank.

Trevor suddenly glared at her before snapping back, “And you need to shut up!" Nicki was stunned in disbelief at his tone towards her before he continued, “Stop attacking him! He's scared and rightfully so! I'm fucking scared as shit after seeing our classes die like they did! But I'm more scared about losing the two most important people in my life! I refuse to let either of you die!" With that said, Trevor began running to the exit and up the stairs as Frank was quick to follow after him. Nicki followed after but not before a thought crossed her mind, “Why does he care about that fucker? I'm the only one he should be caring for! Not some fucking loser! I'm his girlfriend! Not him! He needs to go."

As the three found themselves on the surface of the dam, they saw multiple tourists running and crying as some were seen falling through the cracks in the dam as it broke apart under their feet with the parking garage behind them completely gone as it had already broken off and fallen down the cliff face below. They soon looked back in front of them and saw the last of the students meet the same fate as the others as the road beneath them crumbled before they fell, all screaming as they fell down thousands of feet along the wall as their bodies slammed and became ragdolls that tumbled down the remains of the wall of the Charon Dam. However, Trevor looked ahead where solid land west of the dam stood firm and only one surviving student stood there alone.

Lorenzo waved his arms at the three of them. “Hurry! Get over here before the damn dam falls apart more!"

As he screamed that out, more of the dam behind them began to give way in the center way behind them and began racing towards each end. “Go go go!" Trevor screeched as the three of them began booking it as fast as possible with the cracks quickly catching up to them. With Trevor's athletic body pushing him faster than ever he reached the side of the dam where cement met nature as the ground connecting to it began to turn the roadway into a cliffside as he leapt up and snagged onto the grass as he felt the height of the cliffside rising slowly, giving him less space to plant his feet on flat ground. Lorenzo was quick to rush over and kneel, grabbing his arms, and hauling him up and onto the land that wasn't falling down with the dam.

Suddenly Trevor realized he was the only one there with Lorenzo as he looked back to see Frank just reaching the sinking ground as he began digging his fingers into the dirt to try and climb up the now considerable wall that was now building space between them. Trevor leaned down, his chest hanging over the edge as he reached out to Frank. “Grab my hand!" He called down.

Frank slowly began making progress as water was now rushing even faster over the dam's remains and just as his fingertips grazed over Trevor's, Frank let out a cry as he was suddenly yanked away as Trevor watched in horror as this was done not by the water but by Nicki as she reached up to him in Frank's place. “Save me, Trevor!" She cried out as Frank barely managed to stand up and grab onto the wall before more water came sweeping in. He tried to start climbing again but was shoved down by Nicki again. “I need to be saved first! Wait your fucking turn!"

“I was here first before you pulled me out of Trevor's grasp! We can both climb up, you stupid bitch!"

“No! Trevor needs to save me! I'm his girlfriend!"

“You mean his cocksleeve?"

“Oh you fucker!"

Nicki grabbed Frank by his hair before dragging him back down the what little ground was left as they began scratching and tussling about.

“Let me go!" Frank screamed.

Nicki shouted in response, “Make me!"

“Nicki! Franky! NOOOOO!" Trevor suddenly cried out as the two heard loud splashing and looked over to see a massive, abandoned gray boat with a decal sticker reading “MARLO" plastered on the front from the reservoir came flying towards them. As they both reached up in one last futile attempt as the wall was now too tall for them to climb up in time, the boat smashed into them as everything was sent cascading over the edge, leaving Trevor alone as the two people he cared for most were killed in front of his eyes.

He couldn't find the strength to scream or move as he simply stared down over the spot where they were stolen away from him, frozen in place as he felt time for him ceased while the world around him continued on as many civilians and tourists were behind him or on the opposite side of the former dam as their echoing cries across the empty space rung heavily in his ears. Suddenly time began moving for him again but not because he wanted it to. He was forced back into it as Lorenzo grabbed him and began pulling him back.

“Come on you fucking lunatic! We have to get away from the edge! If we don't, we're both gonna-" But it was too late. At that moment, the ground underneath Trevor broke apart as he and Lorenzo were now both falling to their deaths along with the rest of the dam as the waters overwhelmed them and both the millions of gallons of water and debris from the dam smashed on top of both Lorenzo and Trevor as death claimed its final victims in this travesty.

That is until Trevor suddenly gasped as he was now breathing extremely heavily as he felt himself hyperventilating. He blinked hard as his vision began readjusting to his surroundings as he saw his fellow students standing in front of him, staring at him with weird looks on their faces, alive? But how was that possible? He saw them die! He saw them all die!

A voice that spoke up next to him made him jump as he looked to see Nicki glaring at him. “Babe! Get your shit together! Everyone's staring at you and not in a good way! You're making us look bad!"

Trevor grabbed her head in his hands as Nicki grew perplexed at his sudden change of attitude. “You're okay?! You're not dead!?"

“What the fuck is wrong with you today? Of course I'm not dead!" She spat at him before tearing hands off of her.

Trevor was still trying to process this when he heard a sudden, “WHOA!"

Immediately recognizing this, he turned around and caught Frank, who was just tripped by Rory and Chuck. The two laughed as Rory said, “Man, I just love the-"

“Fall season. And it looks like they do too," Trevor said finishing their punchline as the two looked at him, annoyed by this as they sauntered off, grumbling at Trevor for stealing their thunder. But Trevor paid them no mind as he saw Frank in his arms also very much alive as he hugged the skunk tightly.

“Oof! Uh, Trevor? What's the matter? You're trembling," Frank sputtered out as he felt his lungs collapsing under Trevor's iron grip hug.

Trevor pulled back from Frank but still grasped his sides before saying, “Where's your notebook? Don't answer that. It fell over the side, didn't it?"

Frank blinked at him before nodding slowly. “Yeah, when I was tripped and you caught me it fell-"

“I knew they were gonna trip you, I knew what they were gonna say, and I knew what happened to your notebook! What was next? What was next?"

“Trevor? What's going on?" Frank asked with concern.

But all Trevor had to say was, “The radio! The radio on the lion up there is going to change from one song to another inexplicably! Listen!"

Frank looked up where the wide-eyed Trevor was now laser-focused on and at first Frank was going to ignore his sudden ramblings until he heard the weird static transition from “Chain of Love" to “River of Tears" as he felt a darkness in the moment.

“There! That's that pale expression I saw in you before!"

Frank began to back away from Trevor. “What are you saying? You're scaring me, Trevor."

“Well, I'm sorry to say this but you need to be scared!" Trevor suddenly ran up to the front of the group and started shouting out, “Everyone needs to be scared! The dam is going to collapse! Everyone is going to die!" But instead of the students freaking out most everyone was either rolling their eyes or laughing at him, thinking he was just joking around.

Miss McCoy stomped up to Trevor and grabbed him by the horn. “That is the last straw! You jocks and your pranks have gone too far! That is NOT something to joke about!"

Trevor easily pulled himself out of her grasp as he shouted, “I'M NOT FUCKING KIDDING!!! AN EARTHQUAKE IS GOING TO WEAKEN THE DAM BEYOND WHAT IT IS NOW!!! THE WHOLE THING IS GOING TO CAVE IN AND KILL US ALL!!! WE NEED TO RUN!!!"

“Trevor, son. Let's just calm down. How about you and I step outside and get some fresh air to clear your head?" Mr. Gibson suggested.

“Not on this death trap! I'm getting the fuck out of here with anyone who is smart enough to come with!" Trevor hollered as he ran into the crowd, grabbed Nicki's wrist, and proceeded to pull her towards the far off exit before he was met with an unmoving force. He looked back to find Nicki was resisting him. “Babe? Come on! We have to get out of here!"

“Stop it, Trevor! You're acting crazy! I'm not going anywhere with you until you calm the fuck down!" Nicki tore her hand away as he tried grabbing her again but was cut off by the twins who resumed bodyguard positioning.

“Nicki, please!" Trevor begged her but when she remained unphased by his pleas, he knew he had to hurry before time ran out. So he turned his gaze back to Frank and ran up to him before grabbing his hand and looking into his glasses with tears beginning to form. “Please, Franky. You believe me, right?"

Frank felt torn as he was now the center of attention along with Trevor. Yet despite his crazy words, he had felt something sinister since arriving here and seeing someone he has never once seen cry to anyone besides him on the verge of openly weeping in front of everyone made Frank do something he knew he had to do. “I believe you, Trevor."

Trevor beamed happily. “Thank you, Franky! If I couldn't convince you then nothing would be worth it! We have to go! Now! This way!" With his best friend gripping his hand, Trevor rushed Frank to the opposite exit on the far end of the dam.

Seeing this exchange and what Trevor said sent Nicki into a hateful spiral. “Like hell he's running off with that retard and not me! After him, girls!" With that Nicki and the twins gave chase as they ran after them.

“Hey! All of you get back here now before I suspend you all!" Miss McCoy shouted at them.

Klein raised his hand up. “Allow Ellie-May and I to retrieve them for you as representatives of the university and its student body!" Before Miss McCoy could object, Klein grabbed Ellie-May's hand before running after them.

Dewey saw an opportunity to bounce as he elbowed Owen's side. “C'mon tubby! Let's ditch this joint!"

“U-Uh I don't think we-"

“Move it, fatso!" Dewey hissed at him making the Saint Bernard yelp as he attempted to run after everyone else with Dewey quickly running past him.

“All of you stop this instant!" Miss McCoy screamed out.

Paige suddenly looked up at June and just before she could say anything, the shark nodded to her and whispered, “Let's just go. I can tell you're scared and as crazy as it sounds, I'd rather you feel safe than scared." Paige was able to smile softly at June before the two of them quickly began running off too. Lorenzo, who was the farthest back away from the group already, just sighed before he looked at Miss McCoy who glared at him with a non-verbal warning that read, “Don't you dare think about it". To which he smirked and flipped her off before casually following everyone else.

Just before anyone else could begin following them, Miss McCoy ran over and stood in their way before shouting out, “Don't anyone of you think about taking one fucking step! Lilith, please watch the students and make sure they don't leave! If anyone else leaves after me and Mr. Gibson, I will have you all expelled!"

Lilith let out a sigh. “Yeah, sure. I don't get paid enough as it is so what's wrong with babysitting a bunch of frat boys and sorority sisters on top of this with no additional pay?"

“Come on, Gerald!" Kristen called out to Gerald to follow her which he did obediently, knowing better that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

Outside on the top of the dam, Trevor looked around and saw everything was okay. But he knew it was only temporary as he began leading Frank up the road towards the land off the west side of the dam before they suddenly heard a screech behind them. “Trevor Jenkins!" Nicki screamed out as she stomped up to them with the twins close behind!

Trevor smiled as he went to meet her halfway, saying, “You did believe me after all!"

That was before being promptly slapped by Nicki, who shouted out, “How dare you abandon me back there! Leaving me all alone to look like an idiot as you run off with him!"

“B-But you weren't following me-"

“That's no excuse for leaving me alone to look like the fool with a psycho boyfriend!"

Frank suddenly stepped in between them and said, “Back off, Nicki!"

“You! This is your fault! I know it is! You've been acting the fool to try and brainwash my Trevy into thinking you needed his attention more than me!"

“Keep your delusions to yourself," Frank scoffed in response.

“Not until you stop making my man talk crazy!"

“I don't need to do that! You do that to him plenty!"

“Why you little-!" Nicki threw herself on top of Frank as they began fighting.

“Stop it please! We don't have time for this!" Trevor begged them.

“You five! As members of the university prefects and student body office, we order you all to stop this immature fighting and get back inside before you all face immense consequences!" Klein shouted out as he and Ellie-May ran up with the raccoon grabbing Frank and the ragamuffin cat hoisting Nicki away as the twins ran in to help hold Nicki back, seeing that Ellie-May was struggling to do so.

Soon the others found themselves gathered around and either helping hold the fight off or encouraging them to keep fighting. Not long after both teachers arrived on the scene, they were now trying to break up the circle and retain order among the argumentative students. Miss McCoy growled and she suddenly screamed at the top of her lungs, “I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE! IF YOU DO NOT RETURN TO THE REST OF THE CLASS, YOU ARE ALL EXPELLED!"

Suddenly, at that moment, the ground began to shake as an earthquake began rocking the entire area as the waves of the reservoir splashed violently against the side of the dam and threw them all to the ground as they struggled to keep their balance. The ground shook and the winds howled as they felt the dam roughly tossing them around as tourists and civilians in their cars also struggled to stay put where they were. After what felt like an eternity, the seismic activity started to dwindle away and soon everyone was beginning to regain their balance.

“A-Are you kids alright?" Miss McCoy asked them all as they all nodded to her.

“That was quite the earthquake," Mr. Gibson noted before looking over to Trevor. “Didn't you babble on about an earthquake earlier?"

Trevor gulped as he wasn't sure how to explain it. “I-"

But suddenly the sound of water and ruptures deep below their feet began reverberating under their feet and before they could react, they felt more unsteady shaking throw them off balance as they heard screaming behind them. Everyone looked to the direction of the parking garage and saw as it was being splashed by huge waves of water as the eastern side of the dam began collapsing with everything and everyone inside the garage falling down the wall of the dam, leaving huge cracks in its surface as the road began collapsing as tourists and civilians in their cars and on the sidewalks began crying out as they suddenly began falling in.

Mr. Gibson's eyes widened as he looked at the students. “Get moving now! Hurry up! Let's move soldiers!"

No one cared about what he called them as everyone immediately began running away from the dam except for Kristen as Gerald grabbed her. “Stop! Let me go! I have to get the other students!"

He forces her to face him before violently shaking her. “Kristen! Listen to me dammit! We don't have time to go back! We have to go now!"

With the arctic fox kicking and yelling at the warthog to let her go, he dragged her to land where everyone else was waiting for them as the fourteen of them watched as the dam was falling apart more and more as many people managed to run off to their side in time or watched in horror as many men, women, and even children fell to their doom right before their eyes.

As the dam was reaching its peak before it wouldn't be able to support its leftover structure, a small group of students were seen exiting from the exit they took as they cried out to them for help as some were running for dear life while others were trying to help those who were injured. Kristen immediately began to run to them to help those students but was grabbed by Trevor who was trying to hold her back.

“Let me go! I can save them!" She cried out.

“No, you can't!" Trevor shouted back and just as he said this, the road which all the students were on crumbled and just as Trevor said, it was too late as the remaining students screamed as they all fell to their deaths.

Kristen trembled as she collapsed to her knees with Gerald ruining up to her before kneeling down. He nervously placed a hand on her shoulder, hoping she would be okay with his attempt to comfort her before she turned into his body and beat a fist against his chest as she screamed out in anger before her strikes grew weaker and her screams turned into wails of anguish as Gerald hugged her close to try to comfort her.

The rest of the dam began to slowly sink as its foundation began to slowly crumble more and more as the twins walked up with Ellie-May as the three girls stared down at the carnage below. Rosie and Lily just stared in disbelief knowing all their classmates, fellow cheerleaders, football players, and other students were now gone. Ellie-May grabbed the necklace around her neck which was now seen with a cross on it as she closed her eyes and gripped the cross tightly before she began praying for the dead to be safe and given a chance to rest in peace up in heaven.

Trevor was preoccupied trying to calm down both Nicki and Frank that he just noticed where the three girls were standing as his mind briefly flashed back to the first time he was there and what happened as he looked up and saw the boat fast approaching. “LOOK OUT!" He screamed out.

Ellie-May was too caught up in her prayer to hear his warning but she felt a sudden urge to sink to her knees and weep for her fallen friends. The moment she did the boat's boom flung out and swiped just above her head as the twins turned after hearing Trevor's screams. The boom of the sail slammed into the twins' heads as they were knocked over before the boat fell down the dam's side and smashed into pieces on the wall below.

Ellie-May opened her eyes and saw the twins looking dazed and hurt, lying on the ground near the edge as she stood up and ran to them. “Are you both okay?" The moment she stepped close enough to them, the ground underneath them crumbled away as the three girls suddenly fell in front of everyone's eyes as Kristen screamed out in terror and Klein and Trevor ran towards the edge. They watched as the twins screamed as they grew smaller in size, falling down the ravine, before they eventually hit the bottom where the dam was. That was quickly changed as they now noticed directly below them was Ellie-May clinging to an exposed root!

“Ellie-May! Hang on! We'll get you!" Klein shouted as he ran over to Mr. Gibson. As this was happening, Lorenzo, taken by his curiosity, peaked over the edge and spotted Ellie-May, hanging on for dear life.

“How is that possible? There's no way she survived that!" Lorenzo said in shocked bafflement.

Soon Klein and Mr. Gibson returned to the edge with a sturdy, broken off tree branch in hand as Mr. Gibson and Trevor wasted no time lowering the branch down to her. Just as they reached the end of the branch, Ellie-May managed to grab her end and the moment she did, the root she was holding suddenly gave way in the dirt and flung out, throwing the ragamuffin cat off balance as her one hand dropped the root to fall down before quickly gripping the branch with both hands.

“How did an unearthed root that wasn't attached to anything manage to hold her up until the last moment?" Lorenzo questioned to which Trevor replied, “Dude! Now's not the time for you nihilism bullshit! Help us pull her up!"

Lorenzo quickly ran in and grabbed the end of the branch pulling it up so Mr. Gibson and Trevor could grab down lower and pull Ellie-May up closer to Klein's outstretched hands. As soon as she was close enough to touch Klein's finger, the branch suddenly snapped where her grip was as she began falling but was immediately caught by Klein who started to sink with how much he was hanging off. Both Trevor and Mr. Gibson grabbed the raccoon around his waist and torso as they quickly stabilized Klein and began pulling both him and Ellie-May up until they were both on land, safe and sound.

Ellie-May instinctively curled herself into Klein's body and began crying as he held her tightly, whispering into her ear and gently kissing the top of her head to soothe her.

Trevor laid back in the grass, panting as he soon felt eyes on him and sure enough everyone else there was staring at him in confusion or outright fear. “Trevor?" Frank spoke up. “How did you know that was going to happen?" The ram felt a shiver run down his spine as he already knew the answer to his question. He had no fucking idea and that terrified him like never before.