Shout At The Devil: Road Trip

by Bucket of Skies

Chapter 5 : Let's Go Fishing

Alright, I think I’m fine now.

Okay, that's good. We can keep going with the story now?

Yeah. Let’s tell them about Hoovesiana.

To give a little context, we had a blast at the Crush concert over in Mareland. Especially since we were allowed backstage passes for returning the bassist’s bass from some asshole who stole it from him. Brim had the time of his life and we were ready to hit the road once again. This time, we were heading for a recommendation that was told to us by the guy we helped out. That place was Hoovesiana. In the little bit of information we got on the way there from research, it was a state that was very famous for its bakery, and yes it’s only good bakery. The only other famous part about it was it’s river that had a lot of historical background around it.

But just like in Mareland, nobody gives two shits about the history other than the people that live there.

But there we went, for two solid days of driving we had made it to Hoovesiana with no effort. However, Sunset was beat. I have to give credit to where it is due on this road trip by saying that Sunset was a real trooper in driving us this far in two days. I mentioned numerous times while she was driving that she didn’t need to push and drive for those days and could let me drive, but she refused and kept going right up until we had arrived at the hotel we were staying at in this weird little town called Yakyette.

In the hotel, she quite literally threw herself onto the bed and passed out. I didn’t think she was gonna wake up as easily as she would, as she seemed to be in the deep, coma like sleep from two days of driving non stop. I couldn’t blame her for collapsing onto the bed like that. Realizing that there wasn’t anything we could do without Sunset, Brim and I finally decided to settle down for the night with Brim sleeping on the pull away couch and me in the bed with Sunset. The rest of the night was silent as could be. That was until the morning after.

“Hey! Rocky!”, Brim whispered to me to try and wake me up.

Still half asleep, I groaned telling Brim I was still sleeping.

“Rocky, get up! You and I are going to have a fun day today!”, Brim said trying to bring me out of bed again.

“Brim, just a few more minutes. I’ll see you in….”, I yawned out before slowly drifting back to sleep.

Before I drifted off to sleep again, Brim snapped his fingers and I felt myself become weightless. I don’t just mean weightless as in drifting off to sleep, I meant literally feeling weightless. When I realized this, I was falling from the ceiling onto the floor of the room. I gave a small yelp before hitting the floor.

“Wake the fuck up, Sleepy Eye! We got a day to burn.”, Brim said to me as I looked back up to him from the floor.

“What do you want? Do you even know what time it is?”, I said still tired and groggy.

“6:00 in the morning. And now is the perfect time to wake up. We can finally have a few hours to ourselves.”, Brim explained.

“To do what? Nothing is open yet.”, I asked Brim.

“I don’t know. Let’s go fishing. You did say that Hoovesiana has a great river for fishing.”, Brim said suggesting an idea.

“I was reading the gist of what that river was known for in the past.”, I said getting up from the floor.

“Still, better to try something out and prove whether it was bullshit or not.”, he said shrugging.

“Okay, let’s say we do that. We don’t have any fishing supplies with us. And we can’t just go to a store at this hour and pick up two fishing poles and-”, I said before being interrupted by Brim snapping two fishing poles into existence.

“Why did I not see that one coming?”, I asked him rhetorically.

“You mean to tell me you were not expecting me to somehow make things work in my favor? A demon who has used possessions to fulfil my sexual urges?”, Brim asked me.

“I didn’t need to know that last bit. But anyways, we can’t just leave without letting Sunset know.”, I tried to explain.

“That’s what leaving a note is for, bonehead. Which, I have provided right here.”, he said handing me a red piece of paper in his handwriting.

“‘I’m taking the pussy out for the morning. TTYL- BS’? That’s your note to her?”, I asked him.

“It’s honest and straightforward. Now hurry up and get dressed. I want to get the fresh batch of fish.”, Brim said throwing me some clothes.

I gave a small sigh and decided to go along with it. I didn’t see a point in trying to argue if he was gonna be there the whole time to pester me about it.

“If we’re going to do this, I’m gonna need some coffee.”, I told Brim putting on my shirt and hoodie.

“And thank Lucy that there is a bakery on the way to the river. The only bakery in Hoovesiana.”, Brim reminded me.

---

I want to start off this section by stating how bad of a driver Rocky is. Dear Lucy, I could literally see how much of a Manehattan you are based on your driving. How did you not kill someone when you took your driving test?

Give me a break! It’s not my fault that Manehatten has the worst traffic of all places.

Ah excuses excuses. Keep going with the story.

Okay, whatever. We made it to a bakery over in this little town called New Saddle. It was a very dainty town, but somehow gave off a vibe of importance in Hoovesiana. I say that because everywhere we went in the town, there was some sort of picture of a woman who looked to be in her late 60s. It was almost like she was some sort of idol in this community.

Or a very hot GILF.

Brim!

What? There are some people reading who think that. You can’t deny that.

Okay, moving on before you say something insulting about an unknown figure, we made it to the one place that seemed to be the talk of Hoovesiana; Cakes + Confections. This was what people around here called,”The one place”. In terms of history, this was the one place that carried the most in terms of interesting facts. The bakery was owned by some family who lived over a hundred years ago, and has since then been the only business in all of Hoovesiana to have a family member in charge over three centuries. The other interesting thing about the place was whoever runs it. The owners of the business are the only ones to know the family recipe to the bakery’s most famous dish: Cobbler. It varies from each owner on what type it is, but the one thing that stays the same is how secretive it is. Not once has it ever been exposed to anyone in the three centuries its been open in. It was crazy long for a recipe.

Pulling up to the curb in front, Brim and I got out of the car to the semi lit bakery. As I expected for most bakeries at this time, it was open but still empty from the window. With no time to waste at all, we walked inside. It was emptier than I thought it was. It was silent, only with the ambient noise of the air conditioner joining us.

“Are you sure it’s supposed to be open at this time?”, I asked turning to Brim.

“It’s unlocked. This has to be a really shitty bakery if they simply leave the front door unlo-”, he tried to say before being interrupted by the door in the back swinging open.

Out came a pregnant woman coming out with a fury. Whatever she heard must’ve set her off.

“Velvet told you to arrive an hour earlier Pipsqueak! It’s six forty f- Oh. Forgive me, I thought you were someone else.”, the woman said recovering from her outburst.

“It’s...okay. Are you open right now?”, I asked her.

“Oh sure sure. I’m sorry, were expecting one other employee to be here but…..yeah. Anyways, what can I do for you?”, she asked me.

“Get me a coffee. I need to play the role of a goth with cigarettes and coffee.”, Brim asked me.

“Can I just get two coffees on the go?”, I asked her.

“Yeah, I can get that for you.”, she said turning around to the coffee machine behind her.

“What’s going on Ruby?”, a guy coming from the back said.

He looked to be about the same age as me, just slightly older. Maybe early 30s or late 20s.

“Nothing dear. Just an early customer.”, ‘Ruby’,explained.

“God. I swear this is the last time she arrives late.”, the guy said putting his hands on his head.

I awkwardly sat silent as the two began to discuss about this worker who was late. Silently, I turned to Brim.

“I am starting to look forward to fishing now that my coffee is being delayed due to a conversation.”, I whispered to him.

“Yeah, I agree. But I get the weirdest sense of deja vu with these two. I don’t know where, but I feel like I know them somewhere.”, Brim said.

“So, where you off to this morning?”, the guy asked me deep into thought.

“What? Oh uh, I’m meeting a friend for a little fishing expedition. I’m getting him a coffee. Do you happen to know where the river is?”, I asked the owner.

“Well, it’s only the biggest river in all of Hoovesiana! You must be a tourist.”, he assumed of me.

“Well, I am on a trip with my girlfriend. Kinda wanted to meet an old friend from-”, I said before being cut off by Ruby.

“Manehatten!”, she exclaimed.

“I’m sorry?”, I asked.

“You must be from Manehatten. “, she explained.

“Yeah, I am. How did you know?”, I asked her.

“Just a hunch I get every once in a while. I used to live there for a little while. Almost like a second sense for that.”, Ruby explained.

“Oh. That’s cool I guess.”, I said.

“Well, here’s your coffee. Hope your fishing expedition goes well. Do be careful. There are rumors of some weird freaks that hang out by the river.”, the owner warned.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks for the coffee Mr?”, I asked wanting to know who he was.

“Velvet. Red Velvet.”, he explained.

“Well, thanks Mr. Velvet.”, I said taking my coffees.

“Don’t mention it. See you soon.”, he said waving.

“Holy shit! Why can’t I put a pin on where I have seen those two before?!”, Brim complained as we walked out of the bakery.

"It's probably something you hallucinated while smoking or something. Let's just get to the river so we can get to fishing. ", I told Brim getting into the car.

---

We finally made it to a safe place to park the car and not have to worry about some mugger coming up to try and break in. Stepping out of the car, I was followed by Brim carrying both our fishing poles.

"Well, work your magic.", I told him.

"Huh?", He asked me confused.

"We need a boat to get out on the river. You do have one right?", I asked him.

"No, but that's where demon magic comes from.", He said snapping a canoe on the coast of the river.

"I never asked, is it stuff you made from thin air when you snap stuff into existence?", I asked him.

"Pfft. I don't make shit. Too much work to be put in, so instead I just use my magic to steal whatever we need.", Brim explained.

"Once again, not really surprised when I should be.", I answered him.

"And that's how I know you are a good friend when you realize my habits. Might even give you a best friend smooch later on for realizing. Now let's get on the boat and float down the river.", Brim said tossing the poles into the canoe.

I hadn't had much experience with boats since it was yet another thing that people from Manehatten are not around a lot. Thankfully Brim knew a thing or two about moving and steering.

You bet I did. It was something I did back when I was alive. Despite all those years of having to go even further back in time as a demon in Hell, I still remembered how to canoe.

Moving along, we floated down to an area between some fallen trees in the lake to some mossy coastline to set anchor. Right then and there, we managed to get the rest of our things, or rather Brim stole the rest of our things for our fishing trip and got us all set up. He handed me a pole and put a worm on the end of the hook.

"Now, do you need to learn how to fish properly?", Brim asked me.

"Nah, I think I understand the basics. Just toss the worm out there and wait for a fish to bite.", I said attempting to toss it far.

"It's not just tossing a worm out there! You have to keep in mind where you're gonna aim the worm. If you aim it somewhere too far off into the distance, you won't be able to see if you got a bite. If you go to close, no fish is gonna come by because they know it's a trap. Fishing is all about skill. Fishing is about-", Brim tried to explain before I interrupted him with my rod tugging.

"Got something.", I said feeling a tug.

"Are you serious? Huh, guess there is no skill after all. Okay, now stay calm and reel in. Don't lose grip on the fish.", Brim instructed to me.

""What? I I'm grabbing the pole. How do you expect me to grab the fish?", I asked him.

"Not what I meant Bonehead! You have to keep a grip on the fish with the hook on the end. You have to maneuver the fish into submission. ", Brim explained.

"Good Grief! Is fishing always this overly complicated?", I asked him.

"You were the one who said it took no skill.", Brim said.

"Brim just help me out with the damn fish!", I exclaimed.

"Alright alright! Keep hold and pull. I'll real it in.", Brim said grabbing the base of the pole.

Both of us felt the tug of the fish that was pulling it. Whatever we grabbed, it was wanting to get away. The fish was holding on with such a force that was almost bending the pole at a 90 degree angle.

"Come on! Keep pulling until I say yank. Then you gotta tank the pole up.", Brim commanded.

"Can't we pull up now?", I asked in a frantic state.

"Shut up! You don't have the experience to decide when to pull up. Now hold on.", He said rolling back the dial on the pole.

The fish was now running on all cylinders, as the fish was damn near rocking our boat from the amount he was fighting. He had to give up eventually. Then, as sudden as could be….

"Yank Rocky Yank!", Brim roared out.

With all the strength I had, I pulled up on the rod as hard as I could. With all the force I put into it, a figure flew out of the water and into the air. Whatever I pulled, it was big, yet so weightless that it was so high up into the air. And as most things that fly up, the figure was coming down.

"It's coming right this way!", I exclaimed.

"No shit sheriff! Be ready to catch it!", Brim said standing up in the canoe.

It came flying down with such ferocity that it would almost seemed like it was an object falling from space. With open arms, I anticipated the possible catch I would have to make. As it drew closer, I prepared for the catch. And then it was there until…..

"Ow fuck!", Brim said getting hit in the face by what appeared to be a log.

"Brim! Are you okay?", I asked him.

"I was just hit in the face with a loh. I fucking knew it was too good to be true that you would get a fish.", Brim said covering his eye that got hit.

"Shit! I'm sorry Brim.", I apologized.

"Don't worry about it.God, since when are logs so robust?", Brim rhetorically asked.

"Well, I guess we have to keep going. ", I told Brim.

"Oh no not yet. I need to take a whiz by a tree. That coffee is coming back.", Brim announced.

"Can't you do that in the water?", I asked him.

"Absolutely not! How would you feel if somebody randomly pissed on you without you even knowing? Pretty pissed off right? Now let's anchor to the coast so I can take a piss.", Brim demanded.

Taking the paddle from Brim, I steered off to the side where the trees meet the bushes. I set the anchor down and got out of the canoe with Brim and followed him to a tree.

“You know, I never would’ve thought you would need to piss?”, I told Brim.

“What makes you say that?”, he asked as he started to do his thing.

“I don’t know. Something about torture and despair in hell made me think that you never had time to actually piss properly.”, I assumed.

“That’s all a lie. Only for the truly despicable are the ones that are tortured. Except Hitler, for some reason he was seen as a janitor.”, Brim explained.

“That makes no sense. How does a leader of an extremist military group suddenly get values to-”, I said before being interrupted by the sudden noise of a shotgun being loaded.

“Hold it right there city boy!”, a southern voice spoke.

I turned around to see two hillbilly looking guys, with one of them holding a double barrel shotgun. One of them had really jacked up teeth and a scar on his face. Whoever they were, they did not look friendly.

“Put them hands up boy.”, one of the hillbillies said.

“Whoa okay! Take it easy!”, I said following his orders.

“Just stay calm Rocky. I’m almost done.”, Brim said calmly finishing up slowly.

“You too piss pants. Get them hands up.”, one of them said pointing the shotgun at Brim.

“Wait what?!”, he said surprised and turned around and putting his hands up.

I was just as shocked as he was. All this time,I thought it was only me and Sunset that could see him.

“They can see you?!”, I exclaimed.

“Yes! How the hell do they se-Oh I get it now. They are on some homemade ‘Shout at the Devil’.” , Brim said realizing what was going on.

“What? Homemade? How is it homemade?”, I asked him still with my hands up.

“Moonshine? That sort of shit.”, He answered.

“Run that by me again you red son of a bitch?”, the hillbilly said cocking an eyebrow.

“Uh, nothing! It’s none of our business to know what you do!”, I frantically answered for him.

I remembered all the numerous stories about how seriously dangerous the moonshining business is from my bartender Biff. He talked about how there have been some shootouts with local militias and law enforcement due to them attempting to raid the strongholds. Biff described them as bloodbaths, like the type of messed up things you would see in car crashes.

Or as I prefer to call it, the messed up shit you see on a revolution involving dismembering innocent civilians.

“That’s right city boy. None of your goddamn business!”, the hillbilly with a gun said.

“Okay, well we can go on our way now and not mention this at all.”, I tried compromising with the hillbilly.

“Oh you ain’t gonna tell nobody what you know after this. Get your ass by the tree boy.”, he said pointing at the tree.

I followed his directions and stood by the tree next to him. He took my arms and tied them behind the tree with a rope. I was now drenched in fear about what was gonna happen. Especially if they were moonshiners, they could pull some medieval shit.

“We gon make you learn where to not stick your nose where you don’t. Red boy! Take off them pants”, he demanded Brim.

“I’m sorry?”, Brim asked with an offended tone.

“I said take off them pants before my boy blows your fucking head off your body.”, the hillbilly said.

“Wait a minute, why am I still following your direction? I’m a demon from hell. I can’t die.”, Brim said putting his hands down.

“I’m gonna count to three before I tell my boy to blow you to smithereens.”, the hillbilly warned him.

“Do it pussy!”, Brim said throwing his arms up like a challenge.

“What the hell are you doing Brim?!”, I asked him.

“Will you relax Rocky? These guys can’t do shi-”, Brim said before getting shot in the head with the shotgun.

Brim stood tall for a second, almost looking like the bullet didn’t phase him. He reached up to the small hole in his head and put his finger through it.

“Oh, they actually shot me.”, Brim said in a surprised tone.

Then, as unexpected as ever, Brim had fallen unconsciously.

“BRIM!”, I exclaimed out.

“Have fun with the dead boy, I’m gonna teach city boy a lesson.”, the hillbilly told the other one with a gun pulling out a huge knife.

He then turned to me with the knife. I began to breathe heavily in fear that this was it. I was gonna die tied to a tree after seeing my friend getting murdered by some psychopath hillbillies.

But then that would make this story a whole lot shorter than it is wouldn’t it?

“You ever been skinned alive you fucking ape?”, the hillbilly said putting the knife against my neck.

Right before he had enough strength to push it into my neck, the other hillbilly with the gun had gotten his attention.

“Hick! He’s still warm.”, the hillbilly with the gun spoke.

“Huh?”, the guy with the knife said turning around.

“I’m feeling around this bastard’s body. His rocket is still warm.”, the other hillbilly said reaching into Brim’s pants.

“Get your goddamn hands off my motherfucking junk before I rip your dick off and stuff you with it like the dirty hillbilly pig you are!!!”, Brim yelled out suddenly awakening.

“Holy hell Hick he isn’t dead! He is immortal!”, the hillbilly said in a frightened state.

“Let’s get the fuck out of here!”, the other one with the knife said running away.

“That’s right you better run! Go diddle your sister you sick bastards!”, Brim said standing up from the ground.

I was still in shock from fear to give a response to the situation. That, and I was still tied to the tree. Brim had dusted off some leaves on him, still with a hole in his head.

“Sweet Lucy that slug had some kick! Here, let me get you off that tree.”, Brim said peeling off the wound like a sticker.

He used his magic to untie me from the tree. As he approached me, I latched my arms around him in a tight hug. Brim jumped from the sudden attachment. I was so scared to death that hugging was the only response I could muster up from nearly being killed by some hillbillies.

“Um, Rocky that’s a little too close don’t ya think? It’s not even part four yet.”, Brim said confused.

“Thank you! I was so scared for my life. No more situations like this. Promise me that Brim.”, I mustered up still shaken up from the situation.

“Well, I figured you’d be used to it after the trucker attack so I can’t really say-”

“Promise me Brim!!”, I demanded.

“Alright fine. I promise.”, he agreed.

I finally let go after a deep hug with Brim unwillingly. I felt a lot better about the situation knowing he swore to not put us through situations like that again.

“Alright. I think it’s time to head back to the hotel. I think our morning was frantic enough already.”, Brim suggested.

“Yeah. Lets.”, I agreed following him back to our car.

“One thing though. Let’s keep this a secret between us only. I don’t need Sunset to bitch about it later on.”, Brim requested of me.

“Yeah. This dies with us.”, I said getting into the car.

---

We had finally made it to the hotel after a silent ride back. After all, would you be the talkative one after almost dying? I thought not. We made our way back up to our room and walked right in through the door. Sunset was awake and watching TV waiting for us.

“Oh hey! How was y’alls morning?”, Sunset asked us.

I spoke not a word and sat next to her and gave her a deep hug. She embraced my hug, but was a bit confused with my sudden embrace, much like Brim was.

“Rocky?”, she asked me sounding concerned for a bit.

I looked into her eyes, and gave a small smile.

“You missed out on a morning.”, I said to her.

“Oh really? Is that so?”, she said cocking an eyebrow.

“Yeah. Why don’t you explain why Brim?”, I said turning to him.

“I thought you’d never ask. Well…”

Author's Note:

https://youtu.be/CSmfK5rqcN8