| The Tales of Krimson Mask | |
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| Information | |
| Author | Dave Boice |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Fairytale horror |
| Publisher | LOP Forums |
| Publication date | Various |
| Media type | Online |
The Tales of Krimson Mask is an on-going fairytale horror story written by Dave Boice.
The story follows the tale of a face-mutilated serial hunter named Jack Spriggins (known better as Krimson Mask) and his psychologically-scarred companion, Little Red Riding Hood. With several fairytales weaven into the backstory, the two journey to find answers to their vandalized past after finding themselves in the real world.
Plot summary[]
The following details an accurate chronology of the story. This information does not follow the actual writing in the story.
Jack and the Beanstalk[]
Once upon a time, in "A Land, Far, Far Away", there lived a poor young boy named Jack Spriggins who lived with his widowed Mother. One day, Mother sent Jack to market so he could sell their cow, which was their most prized possession. As Jack was on his way through the forest, he was met by a Stranger who offered him four "magical beans" in exchange for the cow. Thrilled at the prospect of owning magic beans, Jack made the deal. Alas, his mother turned out to be less than thrilled when he arrived back home with "magic beans". She threw three of the four beans straight out of the window and sent Jack to bed without dinner (Jack kept the fourth bean with him in a pouch). Overnight, the seeds grew into a gigantic beanstalk. It reached so far into the heavens that the top went completely out of sight.
Jack climbing the giant beanstalk.
The next morning, Jack climbed the plant and arrived in a land high up in the clouds with a castle in the distance. Upon arriving at the top, Jack was again greeted by the mysterious Stranger. The man told Jack that the giant who lived inside the castle was named Blunderbore, and he had killed Jack's father in order to ransack all of his families' riches. Before disappearing, the Stranger told Jack to enter the castle and claim what was rightfully his.
When Jack broke into the giant's castle, Blunderbore quickly sensed a human was near and uttered, "Fee! Fie! Foe! Fum! I smell the blood of an Englishman. Be he 'live, or be he dead, I'll grind his bones to make my bread."
Fortunately, Jack was saved by the giant's wife and he escaped from the palace with several gold coins. Back home, the boy and his Mother celebrated their newfound fortune but their fortune did not last. Jack climbed the beanstalk once more in retrieve more riches. This time he stole a hen which laid golden eggs and again was saved by the giant's wife. He went down the beanstalk and showed the chicken to his Mother, and the two lived happily on the proceedings from the hen's eggs.
Despite being financially secure, Jack's curiousity eventually got the best of him and he climbed the beanstalk a third time. This time, he stole a singing Magical Harp that played by itself. The instrument did not appreciate being stolen and called out to Blunderbore for help. The giant chased Jack down the beanstalk, but luckily the boy got to the ground before the giant did. Jack grabbed an axe and chopped down the beanstalk. The giant fell to the earth, hitting the ground so hard that the beanstalk split apart. With the giant out of the way, Jack and his Mother were safe and were sure to prosper with their newfound riches.
And they lived happily ever after...or so that’s how the story went.
The Tall Tales Turn Tragic[]
Several moments after Blunderbore had crashed to the ground, a mighty tremor shook the earth and a fearful groan was heard. Jack ran to the crater where Blunderbore’s body was sure to be. When Jack arrived however, the body print of the giant was imprinted in the ground, but Blunderbore’s body was no where to be found.
When Jack returned home to warn everyone, he was surprised to see that numerous royal officers had surrounded his cottage. The Golden Harp, the golden hen, and all the gold had been seized. Once again, Jack was greeted by the Stranger, but this time the mysterious man had royal authority from King Midas to arrest Jack for theft, burglary, and attempted murder. As was later found out, the Stranger took the Golden Harp and gave it to King Midas. The soothing songs of the Golden Harp were able to temporarily subdue the King's cursed Midas Touch. Forever grateful, King Midas awarded the powerful Sword of Damocles to the Stranger.
Jack and his Mother were arrested and imprisoned in a dungeon with a twenty-year sentence. Because Jack was young and strong, he was found to be useful and ordered to do labor for the kingdom. He was taken out of the prison’s walls and given an axe where he was forced to cut wood every day of his innocent verdict. He would never see his Mother again. From that point on, he vowed revenge on the Stranger for his deception and betrayal. Jack rarely talked again.
Hansel and Gretel[]
Coming soon
Little Red and the Big Bad Wolf[]
After serving his sentence, Jack Spriggins had grown into a muscular man with impressive strength and embarked on a new life. Thanks to his numerous years in the great outdoors, Jack had become an efficient woodcutter and had excelled as a great hunter.
One night, while Jack was asleep, a Big Bad Wolf invaded his tent and stole many of his belongings, including the little pouch that contained his last magic bean. When Jack awoke the next morning, he was furious at such a discovery and set out to track the footprints of the hairy robber.
After days of searching, Jack overheard boisterous snoring close by. Curious at what it might be, he followed the origin of the sounds when he came across a log cabin. He looked inside and saw the napping Big Bad Wolf dressed in a Grandmother’s floral nightgown. Jack carefully slipped inside the home and raised his axe over the wolf’s belly. Just when he was about to lower it, it occurred to him that a Grandmother might be inside and could still be saved. Ever so quietly, Jack took a scissors and snipped open the belly. A little girl dressed in a cap of velvet red sprang out of the stomach, followed by the comatosed Grandmothers. The hunter and little girl quickly gathered large stones to fill inside the Wolf’s belly so when he awoke and tried to run away, he would collapse and quickly die. When the Wolf fell to his death, Spriggins took his trusty axe and cut off the Big Bad Wolf’s head to empty the predator’s blood for extra measure.
Krimson & Red[]
After the Grandmother had recomposed herself after such a terrifying experience, she sternly requested to Spriggins that he protect her darling Little Red Riding Hood for the rest of his life in exchange for an unknown favor. The hunter agreed. As time passed on, Little Red got sexy. Seeing this hot piece of meat, the predators of the forest preyed after her with the hope of devouring her luscious body. Unfortunately for them, Spriggins’ hunting abilities proved valuable. The hunter stalked behind any predator that came close to the girl and would quickly slaughter them if they got too close. His slaying abilities became known throughout the kingdom for his habit of decimating beasts with his savage strength and impressive axe-wielding. His slaying trademark always ended with him drawing blood from the beast’s head to cause profuse bleeding and would pour it on his face in some sort of sick, twisted ritual. Because of his fetish for facial blood, the hunter began wearing a dark red mask to symbolize his dominance and would eventually take on the name Krimson Mask. Despite their difference in age and appearance, Krimson and Red would forever be inseparable and quickly developed a father/daughter-like bond.
Blunderbore Returns[]
Coming soon
The Midas Plague[]
Coming soon
The Monster Metamorphosis[]
One of the Big Bad Wolves attacking a grown-up Little Red Riding Hood
The folktales of Krimson Mask & Little Red Riding Hood became the stuff of legend. It seemed like everyone had a story on how the courageous Krimson Mask had saved a village from the hands of a foul-odored giant, a repulsive-looking ogre, or even a fire-breathing dragon. But the success of the two would eventually come to an end when tragedy would strike.
One day, while Krimson and Red were on the road, a pack of Big Bad Wolves ambushed the popular pair. The wolf-pack attacked Krimson Mask and tried to mutilate his masked face. With her protector subdued, and herself being surrounded by several Big Bad Wolves, Little Red Riding Hood was defenseless for the first time since the traumatic experience from several years before at Grandmother’s house. All Little Red remembered is hearing the voice of an unknown man before she passed out and lost consciousness.
What happened next is a mystery. Little Red could not remember what occurred. All they knew was that they found themselves in a completely new world that was nothing like there own. Due to the encounter with the Wolves, Krimson Mask’s face had been completely disfigured. His eyes and tongue were ripped out while his eyelids and lips were sewn shut. But even without his sight and voice, Mask’s other senses seemed like they enhanced, developing a radar-like sixth sense. Ever since, he has acted like a calculated, serial-killer type of monster that only wants to make people bleed for his hideous condition. As for Little Red, she no longer resembled the sweet innocent girl she had always been. The horrors and tragedies of her life have forced her mind to shatter, making her insanely demented in an extra-extroverted way. She believes the unknown man she heard was the person who had orchestrated the attack on them.
With Little Red acting as the eyes and mouth for Krimson Mask, the two embarked on a journey to extract information and blood. Only they could be the authors of this twisted fairytale gone horribly wrong.