MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT/EASTERN RECRUITING REGION PARRIS ISLAND, S.C. -- -- As the moon struggled to peak through the clouds near Khe Sanh range on a late October night, they waited as darkness closed in around them and the haunters came out. Little did those waiting know what they were getting themselves into...Designed by WFTBn. volunteers, the Haunted Hike took scare-seekers through a trail, normally used by recruits as part of the Crucible, that had been intricately decorated and "haunted."A group of little girls was among those waiting and, as they waited with anxious anticipation, a torch-bearing guide, dressed like a vampire, approached and told them to follow him.After they stepped onto a trail marked only by chem lights, they rounded the first bend and came face to face with one of the displays."This one here, he died trying to escape an evil curse," said guide Sgt. Robert Johnson, Page Field instructor, one of the more than 20 volunteers tasked with everything from decorating the trail to dressing up and scaring visitors. "Look at the torture on his face-but not for too long or the curse may get you, too. Come now, it is time to move on."The Haunted Trail was raising money for a surprise for guests of the WFTBn. Ball and also to help make more people aware of the Key Wives/Volunteer program, said Mandy Toner, volunteer and wife of Sgt. David Toner, Starlight Range Block NCO."Any wife who signed up at the Hike for our Key Volunteer training and then attends it in November earns her husband a 72," said Toner. As the children rounded the second and third bends of the trail, the sounds of moans and screams seemed to envelop them as they left the safety of the tree line and stepped deeper and deeper into the forest where things quickly grew darker and scarier.As the children listened to the story of another victim of the forest, the coffin lid opened and out he jumped."AAAAAHHH!" Their screams echoed through the forest and they ran quickly to catch up with their guide who had already begun to move on.The "dead" man was left in the background laughing, "That was great," before he ran off to get into position to scare the group again.Along the way, hikers came across everything from a tortured soul to the living dead."Did you see them? I had them on the ground they were so afraid," laughed one of the ghosts."It really was amazing to see all of this come together in such a short amount of time," said Toner. "It's been great for the battalion and our Key Volunteer program."The girls' hike through the haunted forest left the girls half-frightened and half-giggling asking, "Can we do it again?"