“Yeah, y’all are probably being hunted by the Yule Man.”

Daryl grimaced at the picture, “What the hell is that thing supposed to be? Is that really what you saw Bobby?”

“Yeah Dad, I think so.”

Michael chimed in, “Well I got some good news and bad news about this creature. Bad news first! There's an 85% chance it will torture you and your wife before killing y'all and kidnapping your kid. Which it will then kill later.”

“W-What's the good news?”

“I’m here, and I can probably stop it.”

“…”

“No, I still don’t buy it. How do I know this isn’t some convoluted plan to get closer to my family?”

Michael sighed, “Look man, I’m gonna level with ya. I’m not really scared of your gun. If I wanted to hurt your family, which I don’t by the way, you couldn’t really do anything about it.”

“You’re not afraid of being shot? ”

“Not really, I’m bulletproof. Look, watch.”

Michael pulled his pistol from his holster and aimed it towards his hand.

“Wait stop, what are you doing!”

Michael didn’t answer, instead pulling the trigger, and turning translucent as the bullet went through his hand harmlessly and into the drywall behind it.

“See, now can I come in? I need to make some preparations for when this thing shows up.”

“How...how are you not hurt?”

Michael sighed, this is going to take awhile.

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It took some time, but they eventually let Michael into the house. The only condition he gave them, was that they’d need to contact the SCP foundation after he’d left so they could come retrieve the barrels of living water.

He figured if they just made a Facebook account and spammed a bunch of bullshit about SCPs, the foundation would at the very least come check them out.

Once the family learned about the soldiers he had, it surprisingly made them trust him more. They looked human enough and could communicate, so it gave more credence to his claims and made him seem a little less like a serial killer.

He had them stationed throughout the property and always patrolling, there was no telling when or where it would show up.

The house was small, only having two bedrooms and a mainroom that also served as a kitchen.

Michael figured he wouldn’t shift out of this dimension until he’d at least encountered the Yule Man. No sense in Order sending him here without any conflict occurring.

The file showed described the Yule Man as a disgusting creature, it can teleport and has a penchant for stalking and kidnapping kids after torturing their parents to death. It also has this whole Santa Clause gimmick going on.

Whatever the case, he would kill it. He had confidence in that. 

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Daryl still seemed to be a little sketched out towards Michael, but there wasn’t much he could really do about that. The guy wasn’t exactly in a position to reject Michael’s help. More importantly, he was concerned with why he got sent to this dimension before the two week safety net was up. It probably had something to do with Order, but knowing that didn’t really change the situation.

While Michael was in thought, he was also fine tuning bits of his body using his flesh that hates abilities. Although he was beginning to get diminishing returns from the improvements. It seemed he could only improve his current body so much using the influence of the flesh that hates.

Michael opened his eyes,  he could sense Bobby walking towards him.

“What’s up little guy?”

“Are you really able to stop the bad man?”

Michael put on a confident smile, “I don’t see why not. I’ll tell you what, let me tell you about some of the bad guys I defeated. This thing is nothing compared to them.”

Bobby seemed to relax a bit upon hearing this, and took a seat near Michael as he began to tell a very watered down version of his adventures.

He wasn’t too worried about leaking information, it’s not like this was his world after all.

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Sadly, his confidence in defeating the Yule Man was tested sooner than he’d thought it would, because the creature appeared in their living room several hours later without warning, crushing the soldier who happened to be closest to it.

The other soldiers immediately moved in on its position and opened fire, but it seemed to shrug off the bullets without a care. It made sense, this thing had been doing this since the early 1800’s. It’d be more surprising if it survived all its break-ins this long while not being bulletproof.

Michael tossed several flash bangs towards the monster, and just before they went off he shifted his flesh to cover his eyes and ears.

They went off with a flash of blinding light and sound, stunning the creature. Michael quickly returned his senses and swung his hammer at the beast. Up to this point he hadn’t been able to find out what the hammer actually did, but he hadn't exactly gotten to use it in a fight yet.

It impacted the creature's face, throwing it to the ground and despite not having any visible wounds on its body, a large quantity of blood shot out of the beast.

However, seconds later Michaele’s vision went blurry as he barely stopped himself from stumbling. A large quantity of blood shot from his body as well, and he could see it dripping down much of the walls.

He immediately sensed both his and the creature’s body state, and found that a large amount of blood had been forcefully removed from the two of them.

He grinned, an interesting weapon, but probably one that took a little more forethought to use. Michael pulled out his knife and lunged towards the creature, but it simply teleported away.

He could sense it teleport into Daryl and Beth’s room, but he’d prepared for this. Four soldiers had been stationed there, and their bodies immediately morphed to impale the creature and slice its flesh. He’d taken extra care when improving these soldiers, and although they'd never got close to Michael’s level of strength, they were nothing to scoff at.

Large cuts appeared all over the creature’s body as the blades of flesh tore into it. But the beast didn’t sit idly, and by the time Michael got into the room the soldiers had been ripped apart by it.

It gripped both Daryl and Beth by the throat, grinning victoriously towards Michael.

“I’m going to assume you understand english. You’re playing a dangerous game here. Not to toot my own horn, but I’m probably the most dangerous thing you’ve ever encountered. The risk reward here doesn’t really line up for you. So put them down.”

The creature only responded by broadening its smile, as It immediately tightened its grip upon the couple, tearing through both of their throats.

Michael didn’t hesitate as he rushed the creature, grabbing it and slamming his hammer into its skull.

Both their blood soaked the room, as the creature began to teleport throughout the forest, dragging Michael along with it.

Blood soaked the snow as the hammer slammed into it, and after half a dozen teleports they appeared back in the cabin and Michael was thrown across the room.

His remaining soldiers didn’t waste time and immediately rushed the creature, as Michael’s heart began to beat heavily and speak, “Is that anger I taste?”

“Not now.”

The soldiers morphed into spikes that attempted to pierce the creature. It would teleport away from most of the attacks, but many still hit, and blood dripped from its many wounds.

The rate at which it teleported had slowed as well, likely due to the loss of blood.

“We could easily kill it, you know. Simply stop holding yourself back. That's the reason those two died. Do you honestly think you're still human, just give up the body and accept greater power.”

It laughed,  “You simply can't be this ignorant. I'm sure you know you haven't been human for awhile, not since you put on that crown."

“Stop talking.”

Michael rushed forwards and swung the hammer towards the monster, sending it through the wall and out into the woods.

He rushed after it, ignoring his blood that burst from his body. He was using his abilities to rapidly regain the lost blood.

“Why do you still keep your human form? You’ve already discovered how restraining it is. Why give up on the prospect of greater strength?”

Michael ignored the heart, swinging the war hammer down towards the monster as It teleported and reappeared several feet away. Except this time it was holding Bobby in front of it. The soldiers guarding the kid hadn’t even been able to react before it’d snatched him up.

Michael stopped midswing and readjusted his stance.

The creature grinned, and Michael tried to grab hold of it, causing it to move back with a series of rapid teleports.

Michael’s heart beat faster, as it fed upon his emotions and converted it into energy. Causing him and his soldiers to speed up. The power wasn't even comparable to his battle with the demon, there simply weren't enough emotions to siphon off of, but it still helped.

They moved to grab the creature, it already had what it came for. It was very likely to leave.

Only one soldier was able to grab onto the beast before it teleported away with a flash.

Michael’s attention immediately moved to the soldier, and found it in a dimly lit cave, still gripping onto the monster.

The space was large, and several rows of tables filled the room. Several dozen kids sat at the tables and seemed to be making dolls out of flesh and hair. Many of them were emaciated, and one in a far off corner appeared to have had its skin taken off and resown on in patches. It’s eyes had also been replaced with buttons, and its breathing was obviously labored.

The soldier released its grip on the monster and moved to attack, but didn’t make it far before space began to shift around it. Space twisted and turned before enveloping Michael and all of his men, throwing them back to their own dimension.

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The shift ended, and Michael found himself back in his room. He quickly shifted his attention back to the soldier that had been in the cavern.

The surroundings were the same, with the same kids working at the same tables. The soldier began to stand, but it didn’t get far as this world's Yule Man teleported beside the soldier and violently ripped its head from its body. The soldier may have stood a chance against the injured Yule Man, but not one in peak condition.

At this point Michael was livid.

“To hell with my rules.”

The soldier turned to spores in the Yule Man’s hands, and began to dig into its flesh.

But they struggled to take hold. It resisted, and the spread all but halted. The infection hadn’t taken a deep enough hold to manipulate, but he could sense the infection in the beast, he could tell where it was.

Michael stood back up, kicking his coffee table in frustration and splintering it across the room.

“Hearthgrieve, get in here! I’m going on a field mission!”

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AN: I started up a patreon. So if you want to read ahead or support my ability to buy coffee, now you can. Also like and rate, and all that jazz. As always, thanks for reading!
www.patreon.com/hurdle

Special thanks to WickedSmike.