"oh shit dude, it's going to be dark soon..."

the dark basement, previously only illuminated by the dim glow of computer screens, burst into life (and light) as two young men jumped up, quickly gathering their things. it was their annual camping trip in the nearby woods, and there would be a wondrous weekend of drinking... and camping. and hiking. yeah, these guys didn't do much for fun.

one of the young men suddenly jerked back into his work station. he hovered over the chair, impatiently tapping his foot. the other one took notice and chided: "dude, we have to go, like right now. we're going to be fucked if the sun goes down before we get there."

the impatient one replied: "it's not saving... we can't leave if this doesn't get saved, i've been working on it all day!"

"so you didn't save the entire time?"

"yes!"

the one wearing the baseball cap suddenly gained the same expression of panic the other one gained. he jumped into a chair and began googling solutions. there was one result... from 2006 on some forum. there were no other posters in the thread, other than the op returning to say "got it working nvm". minutes flew by, as no progress was being made. base-ball cap's face changed for just a second. he had an epiphany. he began to express an answer, most beautiful to them in their haste, as if he was an oracle the gods were speaking through.

"why don't you just like, copy-paste it the code into text or something?"

and all was good. they raced out the door, narrowly remembering to lock it, as they drove off in baseball cap's cheapo sedan. the sun had began to set. their friends were waiting for them.

one broke the silence.

"dude, we wouldn't be late if you just saved beforehand"

"how was i supposed to know there was going to be an error? seriously, i do that and nothing ever goes wrong."

"okay, whatever, just help me find the right road."

the woods looked much more imposing after sundown, and much less difficult to navigate. there were several roads that branched off the main one, each, rather unoriginally, marked with a number.

"which one are we even looking for?"

"dude, i'm the fucking driver, you're supposed to navigate or something!"

"okay okay... i thing we're on the number 13 or something..."

his voice was shaky; unsure. suddenly, the car screeched to a halt, as the turn to r13 appeared before them. silently, they went on. the forest was thick as a milkshake, and just as humid. there was a sickly smell, sort of like expired milk, and a gentle white mist was visible from the moonlight snaking it's way through the treetops.

"i'm a little spooked out. are you sure this is the right way?"

just as he said it, a flickering orange light appeared in a nearby clearing. they quickly identified it as their camping spot and parked the car. they pulled out their cooler filled with mountain dew vodka chillers, and walked towards their friends gathered around the bonfire.

"hey guys!"

there was no response from the figures seated around. magenta-shirt suddenly stopped his friend. those figures... we're not their friends. suddenly, they rose up, levitating a foot above the ground, still in a ring. they moved quickly and surrounded the duo. the angle was finally right and the two realised the humanoids were all moving skeletons. they began a terrible dance, and horrific music played, seemingly coming from the forest itself.

they began their chant. "spooky... scary... skeletons... speak... with such... a screech..."

"oh god, make it stop!" magenta-shirt shouted. baseball cap attempted to run but the rapidly spinning skeletons pushed him back into the middle. their song continued, telling their tale of misunderstood murderous skeletons. suddenly it ended, just as it began, and the forest died down into uncomfortable silence. a skeleton behind them walked up to them. it began to speak in a moan: "we need... good bones and calcium. give us... your good bones. marrow is of no need for the flesh-walkers..."

the skeletons began to slowly walk towards them in the middle, chanting "good bones and calcium". the closest skeleton began to grab baseball cap with his bony hands. magenta shirt, still holding the cooler, hit the skeleton right on the head. it fell apart instantly. the circle now had an opening, as they ran towards the car, jumping in.

"holy fuck start the car!" magenta shirt screamed. predictably, the car wouldn't turn over. by this point the skeletons had reached the car and began shaking it, continuing their horrid chant. they looked at each other and knew they were doomed.

"good bones and calcium"

"good bones and calcium"

"good bones and calcium"

were the last words they heard, as their car windows shatter, and their bony goodness was absorbed.