The Ballad Of Bloody Mary

And this week's number one is...
They've done it again folks, Dragon Eaters have done it for the third week in the row with Bloody Mary!

"Haha yeah!!"
Finch punched the air in delight as the current tune of the summer blared out of his radio.

Mary, she's got a lust for blood
Mary, Satan's evil slut
Mary, she's gonna f*** you up
Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloodyyyyyyyyyyyy

Finch sang along with the words as the excitement of next week's gig at the Blood Bowl dawned upon him. Rock had seen somewhat of a resurgence in recent times and the charts were now heaving with rock and roll acts, with Dragon Eaters the top of the pile. Finch had been a fan of them since their early days and finally he had the chance to see them at the grandest rock stage of them all. The band's fame wasn't without protest though, with plenty of people voicing their concerns over this newfound love for what they called 'Satanic rock' that they saw as poisoning people's minds and supporting death and destruction.

Finch would laugh upon these suggestions and would snigger every time the sheer mention of the Bloody Mary Ballad being one that supported people risking their lives in uttering those infamous words that would raise the evil spirit of her. It took him back to the days in the school toilets, standing in front of the mirror and attempting to say those words three times in succession with his friends.

Bloody Mary
Bloody Mary
Bloody...

He never quite managed to gather the courage to finish off the words, his youth clearly garnering thoughts of the 'what if' kind. Even to this day he had avoided completing them, not out of fear but because it was something he simply saw as a silly urban legend. He would often see reporters gathering in the city centre to ask people what they thought of the band and their now historical song, making sure he avoided the debacle.

It's a song, he often thought, dismissing any claims that it was anything but.

While many people were still debating the band's decision to release such a song, Finch's mind was well and truly focused on what he thought would be the best gig ever. It had taken him a few months to persuade his girlfriend Lyndsy to delve into his musical world, her taste usually lay no further than the bubblegum pop of a bygone era, but his constant witterings had soon broken her down into submission. He had promised her the event of a lifetime and little did he know, he wasn't wrong.

One week later...

The moment had finally arrived, Finch and Lyndsy clung tightly on to their tickets as they approached the front of the queue as Finch's long-lived dream was finally about to come true. The Rock Arena was host to the Blood Bowl for one night only and Dragon Eaters were finally headlining the biggest rock stage on the planet. Finch was among 70,000 other fans in mass anticipation for what was dubbed as the event of the summer and he'd even got Lyndsy into the spirit, her usual colourful attire replaced for one night only by fishnets, long socks and an abundance of darker clothing, if only to fit into the the surrounding crowds that embarked upon the famous stage.

Once inside, they head straight for the standing area of the arena, covered in a felt black flooring emblazoned with the Blood Bowl emblem, a mixture of mythical creatures and fiery flames. Ahead of them stood the grand stage, a behemoth for any rock act and one that would see Dragon Eaters finally grab the limelight they so fully deserved. In just over a few hours the world's biggest anthem would be rocking the stage and filling thousands with euphoric joy.

************************
"We're Dragon Eaters and we're gonna rock this mother fuckin' place!" Jared Johnson kicked off their moment in the spotlight to a rapturous applause as the band proceeded to belt out their best tunes, much to the delight of Finch and the rest of the 70,000 faithful who had waited patiently for the main event. Sweat poured from Finch and Lyndsy as he rocked their heads back and forth and danced together within the delighted crowd and all seemed to be going well for everyone within the arena. Then came the pinnacle of the night.

"Our next song is a little number we like to call Bloody Mary and you like to call Number One!"

With that the drums began, the bass kicked in and the crowd in attendance went wild. Flailing arms, stamping feet and a worrying amount of satanic props suddenly appeared in the crowd as the song hit its audience with a bang.

Mary, she's got a lust for blood
Mary, Satan's evil slut
Mary, she's gonna f*** you up
Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloodyyyyyyyyyyyy

"Mary!!!"
Bloodyyyyyyyyyyy
"Mary!!!"
Bloodyyyyyyyyyy
"Mary!!!"

As if in sheer defiance of any warnings of the consequences of meddling with such an urban legend, the band and audience joined together in unison as those famous words were combined. With no thought of their actions, the whole arena, continued with their chants to the number one song, Finch and Lyndsy joining in and loving every minute.

Hitting the final notes of the song, Dragon Eaters came to their final bow.

"You've been fucking amazing Blood Bowl, good night and tread carefully out there, Mary just might be out for ya!!"

With that, the band disappeared backstage and the crowd chanted for the obligatory encore, but to no avail. Five minutes on constant chanting continued but yet still the band would not deliver, until a a dark-haired gaunt-looking woman appeared on stage, clearly an actor sent on to portray the mythical Mary.

"All of you are gonna die here tonight."

The crowd cheered in glee, believing they were all playing along to this 'actor'.

Not content with her words and the reception she received, the woman raised her hands in the air as the stage began to set alight behind her. Met with more cheering, her rage was now apparent as Finch looked worryingly at his girlfriend, joined by others slowly becoming unsettled in the crowd. As the flames of the stage burnt, out came the screaming band, engulfed in flames and burning to a crisp.

"YOU'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!"

Any thoughts of an act were now quelled as Bloody Mary dove into the crowd, the force of her jump taking down some of the audience at the front as she began thrusted her fist through their very souls, blood slowly flowing and seeping into the felt surface. Immediately Finch grabbed Lyndsy's hand, gripping it tighter than he ever had, as they attempted to meander through the terrified masses as they looked to head for an exit. The arena was now one of blood and death, much like a coliseum full of gladiators ripe for death's picking. Frantically they stumbled over fallen individuals as the ear-piercing sounds of Mary's slaughtering and screaming victims filled the air.

As the exit and possible solace for the pair appeared closer and closer, Lyndsy took a tumble, her ankle buckling in an excruciating release of pain, forcing Finch into a base of action that saw him carrying her in both arms. With her safe in his arms, Finch gradually made his way through the hellish scene of death and bloodshed, all the while remaining fearful of the evil that lurked behind him. Finally reaching the exit to the stadium, he dared not breathe a sigh relief and rightly so, as the doors wee bolted shut just as he was about to reach safety. Screaming and pleading for their lives, the pair, along with thousands of others, were now lambs to the slaughter as Bloody Mary feasted on those who dared to utter her name.

Finch fell to his knees, clung to every bit of the girl he loved and wept, as they both saw the evil figure making her way to turn the night of their lives into the night of their deaths.