Chapter 1

Author’s note: The Sho-Sho Mamu is purely a figment of my imagination!

Mason Running Bear (oh, how he hated that name!!) stole out of the house after midnight. He didn’t want to wake up his family and have to explain why he was wearing his ceremonial shaman regalia. This was the fourth consecutive night that he had made the trip to his secret shrine, and he planned for it to be the last one before the big event.

Mason Running Bear had a deep hatred for the Whites who had taken up so much of the sacred land of the Black Hills. His problems started in early school grades when the White children had teased him about his name and Sioux heritage. Mason became more and more “Indian” as he was teased, even as far as high school. He was looking for a measure of revenge long before he graduated from high school, and he made no secret of his hatred of the “oppressive Whites.”

He spent four years in the US Army as the penalty for starting a fire at the local county courthouse. The judge who heard his case decided that what Mason Running Bear needed was the discipline that the military could teach him, but he was not acceptable to the Marines, so the judge compromised with the Army. Anyway, Mason spent his four years that the judge had decreed just barely getting by without a discharge for being a troublemaker.

Upon discharge, Mason returned to his family home in the Black Hills and cultivated a friendship with a local shaman who believed the way Mason did. The shaman taught Mason everything he knew about the mystic world of the Sioux and how to make contact with the spirits that dwelled there. During this time, Mason eked out a living by subsistence farming and hunting until he met a woman who was willing to marry a “crazy witch doctor” and was willing to work at a job which would support the both of them. They eventually had two children, but that was as much of an accident as was most of what happened to Mason Running Bear.

Mason’s hatred of the Whites came to a head when he heard of a plan to put in a theme park catering to the whims and foolishness of White tourists. This park was to be located on a formerly very sacred section of ground. Mason was sure that the park and its visitors would disrupt all of the sacred spirits dwelling in the Black Hills; therefore, Mason took it upon himself to put a stop to the sacrilege.

He discussed the situation with his only confidant: that other, older, “crazy witch doctor.” They concluded that the only proper way to counter the White plan was to call upon the spirits themselves to fight. Never one to settle for half-measures, Mason wanted to call up the most fearful demon monster to fight for the sacred land. His friend did not object, but neither one realized that once the monster was called to the human dimension that there would be no way to control it.

Mason and his friend Gray Wolf set about gathering what they would need for the summoning ceremony. Most of the stuff was easy for them to collect, but the main component of the ceremony was going to be a bit tougher: a human child to be flayed alive as the culmination of the ceremony.

As it happened, Mason knew exactly who he wanted to be this sacrifice: the 8 year old son of his worst tormentor during Mason’s school days. Gray Wolf was not sure that it really made much difference who the victim was, so he went along with Mason’s wishes.

The climax of the ceremony had to take place on the night of the full moon, so they had three weeks to get ready. Other than the child for sacrifice, there was no problem gathering what was needed. The main problem was in constructing the altar and purifying it so that the sacrifice would be accepted. The two men found a suitable place and constructed the altar very carefully according to all of the specifications that Gray Wolf could remember. The altar construction was just a mundane job of building a simple structure, but the purification routine was another story, entirely.

The two men finished the altar and its associated components with a two-day cushion wherein they could rest before the four days of purification ceremonies had to begin. Each night of the purification ceremonies involved about five hours of intense activity so that each man was exhausted by the time he got to bed. It was fortunate that only four nights of this activity was required; otherwise, no human could have endured the trials involved.

The last night of the ceremony was especially trying because the main participant, Mason Running Bear, had to sacrifice a part of himself. After some discussion with Gray Wolf, the two men decided that Mason would part with his foreskin, since that was attached to his most intimate organ. Because of the difficulty of a man removing his own foreskin, they decided to have Gray Wolf do the honors. The operation had to be done without anesthetic for it to be sufficiently meaningful, so Mason allowed himself to be tied in place on the altar with the same bindings they planned to use for Joey Bishop the following night.

In honor of the sanctity of the ceremony, Gray Wolf was planning to use a flint knife that had come to him through inheritance from one of his ancestors back before the days of trading with the Whites. This was no hindrance since freshly knapped flint was sharper than the common razor blade. Both men bathed ritually and made ready for the ceremony.

Mason was remarkably calm as he lay down on the altar, and it was easy to see that Gray Wolf was the more nervous of the two. Actually, Gray Wolf had to spend a few minutes in prayer to the spirits of the Black Hills before he could begin the ceremony. However, once he began, Gray Wolf made the cut in one continuous motion and caused very little pain to Mason. Both were surprised as how easy it had been to circumcise Mason, but the pain hit when Mason tried to walk after rising from the altar.

They had the necessary bandages ready, and Gray Wolf applied the dressing to Mason’s penis. Mason rested for about an hour before he was able to walk to the pickup truck that Gray Wolf used to drive him home. The next day, Mason slept late, and his wife did not notice anything different in Mason’s habits as compared to the previous week. Mason arose at noon and changed his bandage before meeting Gray Wolf on their way to kidnap Joey Bishop for that night’s ceremony.

The kidnapping went smoothly as they were able to capture Joey as he walked home from the school bus that delivered him from school. They tied the boy’s arms and legs and slipped a canvas bag over his head before driving to the planned site of the sacrifice.

Joey was kept tied up and Gray Wolf stayed with him as a guard while Mason went home to maintain an air of normality. They did not want to give any sign of being involved in unusual activity and bring suspicion upon themselves. Gray Wolf now lived by himself, so he did not have to fool anyone.

Mason went through his usual routine and sneaked out of the house a little after midnight. He drove the pickup to the site of the shrine. The two men woke up Joey and stripped him of his clothes. They tied him to the altar and began the preliminary activities associated with the ceremony. They were far enough away from any dwelling that they did not have to worry about being overheard, no matter how loud Joey screamed.

Both men were skilled at skinning dead animals, but this was their first try at skinning a live one. Unfortunately for him, Joey lived through most of the flaying, but he did die before Mason had made the last cut. Mason did the flaying while Gray Wolf kept up a series of prayers and chants. Just as Mason was finishing his last cut, there was a glow of red-yellow light in the air, just as one would see at a fire.

Neither man had known how the Sho-Sho Mamu would manifest itself nor exactly what it would look like, and they would have little opportunity to contemplate the results of their gruesome work. A hulking beast approximately 12 feet tall and proportioned somewhat like a man suddenly appeared. That was all they were able to see before they were torn in two by sweeping blows from massive clawed hands. The Sho-Sho Mamu seemed pleased as it dined on the more delectable parts of the three bodies presented to him. Once it was satisfied, it moved off into the forest.