Pale and Spindly libraryofshadows

Something that happened to you while you were home alone one evening.

One night, you arrive home after dark. You worked and then you stopped at the bar on your way home and had a drink or two. You park your car and climb the steps to your door.

It is fall or spring, you are wearing short sleeves. A cold wind rustles the grass and the bushes nearby and you shiver.

There is no one home. You are the only person in the house. There are no real sounds in the house, although the refrigerator hums and air moves in the ducts. You do not own any analog clocks and you find yourself thinking how this silence would be perfectly punctured by a gentle, rhythmic, ticking.

You turn on the lights. The house is still. You enter the kitchen and realize how hungry you are. You measure two cups of water and pour them into a pot. The stove heats slowly and you wait for the water to boil.

A floorboard creaks above you. It doesn’t scare you, you are used to the house settling, making strange noises.

You should have turned on the radio. The house is too quiet, too still. The silence and the stillness are filled by your thoughts, which are turned towards nightly things. You start to think about how frightening it is to live alone. You think about how if something happened to you suddenly, no one would know. You wonder, if you keeled over suddenly, how long it would take to find the body.

You think about being attacked in your home. You know it doesn’t happen often but you can’t help imagining what you would do if a violent stranger burst through the front door.

You have a vision…briefly, an image pictured so very clearly. You watch yourself open a door into a dark room. You see a naked, pale figure; spindly knees and elbows creaking like bones as he runs full-sprint at you from the shadows.

The pot hisses as water begins to boil over its sides. You curse and turn down the burner before adding a packet of instant noodles.

The image remains in your head; a skinny, pale man rushing toward you. You begin to imagine the sounds he would make, a steady, wheezing, intake of breath.

“EEEEEE-YUH. EEEEEE-YUH”, he would whine. His lips would be pulled back in a smile or a grimace, either way his teeth would be visible and very white.

You are imagining the pale man very clearly now. You can see the way he moves, jagged and shuddering, like a filmstrip skipping frames. A palpable feeling of dread has settled over you and you are sure, very sure, that if you look up at the window on the front door he will be staring directly at you.

You cannot look. You feel paralyzed by fear. The pot on the stove begins to boil over again, but you ignore the hiss of the water as it bubbles over the side.

Moments pass, you are still too afraid to move. You are holding your muscles with such tenseness, and you twitch involuntarily. Your head jerks up and you look at the door.

There is nothing there.

ou sigh and try to calm your pounding heart. The noodles are finished. You take the pot off the stove and pour its contents into a bowl, you add flavoring and stir your meal with a long-tined fork.

You feel a bit foolish, thinking about how scared you were. Maybe you even laugh a bit.

The fear has faded now. You look at the door again.

There is a face in the window above the door. He is pale, his skin stretched tight over skeletal features. You can only see his neck and shoulders, both of which are bare. His hair is black, wiry and unkempt; his eyes are wide, unblinking, grey-green with a cloudy film.

Something is wrong about his eyes. They make you feel sick. You think about a scene in a tv show you watched that took place in a morgue. You remember the dead eyes of the cadaver, sky-blue with a cloudy film.

You’re not quite sure what to do. Your eyes dart to the doorknob and you see it is locked. The man does not appear to be trying to get inside, he simply stands and stares.

You fumble for your phone, but it is not in your pocket. You think you left it in the car maybe.

You realize the man is moving slightly. His shoulders rise and fall as he takes great, slow breaths. You imagine he is making a sound that you cannot hear through the door. As you watch, still immobilized by fear, his lips curl backward until he is neither grinning nor grimacing but something in between.

You pry your eyes from the man and look toward your bedroom. The door is shut and it is dark inside. There is a window there which leads out back and also your computer, which you could use to contact someone, get them to call the police.

You look back at the door. The man has vanished. Somehow, this terrifies you more than his continued presence. You feel the hairs on the back of your neck prickle and you turn around quickly, convinced the man will be there.

The kitchen is empty. Silence and stillness fill the house.

You force yourself forward, glancing furtively at the front door as you do so. You feel lightheaded, your feet wobble and your arms tremble. You find yourself wishing this was a bad dream but you know you are awake. You can feel the cool air drying the sweat on your skin; you can smell the seasoning dissolving into the noodles. You don’t feel hungry anymore, just afraid.

You reach the bedroom door and again you feel something behind you, watching you. You tell yourself the front door is locked, you start to turn around, just in case, when you hear a footstep and the creak of a floorboard.

You know he is there, in the house. You do not want to turn around; you do not want to see him standing in the full light of your home so you move forward. You turn the doorknob and enter your room quickly, shutting the door and bolting it behind you.

The room is pitch-black. For a moment you see nothing.

You feel comforted by the darkness. You feel secure in your own bedroom with your back pressed to the locked door.

A pale, angular figure rushes at you from the other side of the room. You feel a heavy weight upon you and the twitching, wheezing man forces you to the ground.

You can see his face, even without light. His eyes are watery, unfocused. His limbs are stick-thin, like bones with flesh colored tissue paper glued to the joints. He groans, his teeth dripping saliva, and you smell his breath. It smells like pure ammonia.

Suddenly, adrenaline kicks in and you raise your arms in defense. The man is unperturbed. He bats your fists away with surprising strength and, grabbing you by the hair, dashes your head against the floor of your bedroom.

You see a flash of bright color, and the man’s wild, mindless eyes fill your vision until you black out.

---

When you wake up you are hanging upside down. You open your eyes and at first all you can see are candles. There are dark shapes moving between the lights, they are men wearing black robes with pointed hoods. Sometimes the robes rustle as the men move and you can see underneath they are wearing ties and white collared shirts.

You cannot tell where exactly you are. It is either a cave or a chapel, perhaps both. You begin to hear the sounds the robed men are making as they circle about your limp body. It is a chanting, but the language they speak would make anyone feel ill at ease. The men hiss and slurp, sounding out syllables as if they were angry growls or sighs of pain.

Something stands in the darkness behind the circle of hooded figures. It is the pale, naked man from your home. He is still, standing just inside the circle of light made by the candles. He is staring at you, directly into your eyes. Something glitters in the figure’s hand. He lifts a knife to his breast and begins to cut into his own flesh, a line of crimson arcs from just above his left nipple to an inch or two below his bellybutton. The man bears his teeth again, his lips curling back. He starts another line and you can tell he is enjoying himself.

Below you something squeaks, softly. You crane your neck and see that beneath your head is a stone altar, upon which sits a mass of gore. The thing moves slightly and you realize it was once a complete human being. You try not to imagine what has been done to it, to render it such an unrecognizable lump of blood and tissue. The thing is still alive. It mews and you know the sounds are pleas for death.

The chanting of the robed figures is reaching a crescendo. One of them approaches you, something shiny and metallic held in his hand. You twist your head and see he is holding a syringe with a thick needle, the liquid within viscous and black. You writhe and turn, you try to struggle but there is nothing to be done.

You feel the needle pierce your skin and the vein in the crook of your right arm. You try to cry but your mouth is sealed with tape. Your arm stings, then burns. The pain slowly settles until it becomes a numb, warm sensation.

The room seems to grow dim. The floor and walls fall away. You look toward the floor and see only a pit, yawning into eternal darkness.

Something moves in the dark, something the size of the sky. You can hear the stirrings of its flesh echoing throughout the cavernous space.

It reaches toward you.

With thousands of crawling feelers, it reaches toward you.

An eye, the size of a sun opens-

---

You wake suddenly in bed to the sound of your alarm. It is morning. Everything is normal. You rise and check the front door, which is still locked. You check for signs of a struggle and find none. You find an empty bowl in the sink and discarded noodle packaging in the trash.

There are no marks on your body, but you feel a dull ache in the crook of your right arm. You poke the spot where the needle broke the skin. It is sore.

You find your phone in your car and you start to call the police. You stop and put the phone down as you imagine telling them what you saw the previous night.

You imagine the reactions of your friends and family, you are able to clearly picture their looks of disbelief. You slowly realize that you will never ever be able to tell anyone about what happened to you. You wish you could believe it was all a dream. But alas, you will always know it was not.

Submitted November 02, 2017 at 05:43AM by Andy_Wiley http://ift.tt/2zbUSSw libraryofshadows

The Gourmet/ Le Gourmet libraryofshadows

In a back street in a small town somewhere in Canada, there is the Charcuterie-Boulangerie Arlene, owned by a bad-tempered and rather corpulent man called Rouvert. Many people know it, or at least the foodies and restaurant snobs pretend to. Arlene's is the only place that sells locally-sourced maple-smoked bacon, and belly of pork rubbed with a mixture of spices and ash from the maple fires, and then scorched lovingly on a grill until the fat starts to harden and roast. Its oven-cooking, though, finishes off the process and makes a ham that was said to be wholly unsurpassable for a cold-meats buffet. Half of Arlene's is empty, and the floor (though free of dust) is empty of customers. The baker who helped run the boulangerie had a cerebral stroke in the kitchens some years ago and (it is said) decided to give up his share in the business without more recompense than would allow him to live in the closest retirement home. So, the baking remains undone, and customers to Arlene's soon learn never to ask when the next batch of fresh, crusty bread or pastries will be ready. Many are surprised Rouvert doesn't let it out, but then they guess that perhaps the owner will not let him sub-let part of the shopfront, it being such a small space after all. Others wonder why he doesn't simply bring out a new line, like pickles or sauces, something that would go so well with meat. But he remains resolute when he's asked about it, and if someone ever should ask him outright he just nods and says:

"That part of the business died when Pierre Jouet did."

M. Jouet, it must be noted, has never been heard of since 1989, when he took his payment for the part of the shop and left. And so it remained, until one fateful day, when a gangly youth called Timothy Gaugon walked into the shop doorway and asked Rouvert for a job. It happened like this:

It is a warm day for September. Usually, the snow will be about a foot deep in town, and worse everywhere else, but the passage of people out shopping and walking and making deliveries around the streets have made the snow mash down to a greyish pack, something slippery to tread on as you march past each doorway. Gaugon is hungry: he can smell the pork smoking from at least halfway down the street, just by the intersection where trucks go roaring by. Diesel and bacon. More specifically, Gaugon is hungry because his last meal was about a day and a half ago, at the Youth Home. Having been kept there for five years, he is now considerably taller than when he first went in there at the compulsion of the courts and both his parents, and so his appetites have increased (despite the portions at the Youth Home remaining the same size for a seven-year old as they are for one who is seventeen). Gaugon is now a young man driven by his quite considerable appetites. Whilst other boys would have taken this as a chance to 'go straight', Gaugon feels no such desire: time in the Home has given him ample time to learn a whole host of skills he would never have learned at school. Lockpicking, burglary, arson and card-sharping are now amongst his panoply of skills. Ones that can never, for obvious reasons, be listed on a resume.

It is with this bent that after having gone to the strangely-shaped courtyard behind Arlene's and unable to gain entry to the smoking shed (that haven of dark and spicy mutable odours) that he decides the best course of action is to escape the cold and see if he can be gainfully employed for the short-term. That the short-term might only be for two or three days until he could get access to the shop safe was a trifle. Gaugon had plans, and they certainly did not include staying in Canada for longer than he physically had to. He was itching to head to a warmer climate and somewhere where the sour taste of his own failures were not around to remind him of how much he had fallen in the eyes of others. Idly, looking at his clothes, he decides to go to the front of the shop and see what kind of an effort he has to put up in order to get into Arlene's for a hot meal without a cent in his pocket (again, all thanks to the Youth Home).

Rouvert is wary. The gangly young man in his shop doorway has just asked him for a job: the truth is that yes he could use an assistant to help haul the chunks of meat out from the smoker and to move the carcasses out to the refrigerated shed, and a dozen other little jobs that he can no longer bend down to do. But this man looks hungry, and quite frankly, out of place in Arlene's. He looks as though a few good meals wouldn't go amiss. Rouvert realises with a sigh that this is probably because the man in question has had more than a few brushes with the law.

"Please, Mister. I'll work for a meal."

That pleading look. Rouvert scratches his arse and makes a decision. "If you can shift crates and don't mind about blood, I'll take you on."

Gaugon smiles. He doesn't care much for blood, but that's not something he has much to worry about as the plan remains at its best - a simple one. Get in, get a meal, take as much food with him as he can, and clean out the safe. He's no intellectual when it comes to planning, but this doesn't seem so bad as plans go.

For the rest of the morning, Rouvert has him clearing out an old freezer. It isn't so much the cold that bothers Gaugon, but the smell. Old blood. It's coppery, and old, and as he sweeps the trash out into a can it melts slightly and drips over his shoes. They're only sneakers and the liquid insinuates itself between the laces and the faux leather and the smell becomes appalling.

Rouvert sniffs as he comes back upstairs to the shop. "Here. Have these." He rummages in a little cupboard and brings out a pair of - it can't be - shoes that look very much like Air Jordans. Shoes that, nevertheless, are very new and very expensive. He looks, dazed. "For me?"

Rouvert sighs and goes to put the old sneakers, bloody and ripe, into the trash. Gaugon looks again at the newness of the shoes, and slips them on - their overly large laces flapping on the floor. A son, a nephew who had expensive tastes or who didn't have the right size? All possibilities. And these are prestigious items. A boy in the Home would have had them ripped off his feet in minutes. He decides to look in the cupboard once Rouvert goes off and has his afternoon nap, or whatever it is that old farts do when they get too tired to mind the shop.

What Gaugon has not reckoned on is the sheer force of life that Rouvert has. From 8:30 in the morning he goes on, chopping and slicing and serving until 3 PM when he stops and goes to fetch a roundel of bread from the bakery express two streets away. Gaugon is careful - he notes when he heads off, if he stops for a cigarette, how long it takes him to return. It is stupid to steal on the first day. Best to leave it to the second or third, depending on how naive the guy is about the new apprentice.

Rouvert, however, is no old fool.

Whilst he waves to the boy whom he's left in charge of the shop, he mentally totals up how much he has inside the register. He will know if the boy likes the idea of small change and a meal, or the longer game. He smiles, and deliberately saunters slowly through the streets. If the boy's genuine...who knows. He might have some help throughout the winter months for once, not like that streak of piss Vernon who claimed he was a good hard worker. He was no loss to the business, although several of his ladies commented on how much they missed his smile and his soft, fawning way with them. Rouvert hawks up a clot of phlegm at the memory. His return to the shop is much later than a short stroll to the bakery, and Gaugon rocks on his heels in his new Nikes, and makes a show of keeping his hands outside his pockets. Inside, old Rouvert smiles and makes another mental note: check the refrigerator that's inside the store-room.

Time, as it usually does, passes slowly in small Canadian towns.

September gives way to October, and Timothy Gaugon is still working in Arlene's. No, he has not stolen money from the till. (He may make a habit of short-changing the officious policemen when they pass through the region, but this is something that Rouet heartily approves of). After all, dicks paid by the government can afford however many francs a really really good piece of saucisse costs. This month, in this part of Canada, is when hog-butchering season starts; soon Gaugon is hauling animal carcass after carcass off the lorries that thunder through the snowy, frigid streets at night. Rouvert insists on making all his sausage-meats the old fashioned way, and the smoker starts to emit long and pungent breaths of charcoaly smoke into the air of the yard. It scents the shop with delicious musky odours, and soon the customers are queuing in at the door to order half a ham, saucisse de Holonne, back bacon and trotters and loin and mince.

If it hadn't been for the fact that Rouvert was an old and crotchety man who refused to pay extra for lighting down the back stairs, our tale would end here.

Instead, Rouvert makes the first real mistake he has made in years since old partner Jouet closed up the bakery. He places one foot out onto the cold stairs at five AM, and reaches for the rail. He grasps cold air instead, and the thumping noises that his fat old body makes as it tumbles down the flight of hard wooden steps onto the concrete of the shopfloor wake Gaugon from a dream of being back at the Home. His cries of pain, though, are louder and more voluble, and after Gaugon has pulled him up from the floor and mopped the blood off his shocked face, they both discover that Rouvert's right ankle is thoroughly and demonstrably broken. Curses that would make Satan blush rise from that cold and dark place, and Gaugon carefully manoeuvres the old goat into the delivery van's rear. There, amids the crates and the bacon wrappers, Rouvert is taken to the local hospital.

Two days. Two long days, as Rouvert sits in borrowed pyjamas and frets about the shop. When Gaugon appears in a bloodied apron to come and take him home, he is relieved in more ways than one. The apron means that at least the boy's been working - the blood means that he's been attempting some of Rouvert's specialities. During those two long days, Gaugon has made some discoveries of his own. After trying to find some more rusk filler for the cheaper sausage, he gives up and look inside the large freezer in the cold room. It's normally locked, but this has never been a bar to a boy of Gaugon's calibre. A quick piece of work with the lock, and he's free to rifle inside, desperate to find some cheaper fatty meat to mix in with the rich and pungent smoked pork. Instead, he places his hand on a long shank of meat that he knows in shape as intimately as can be. He draws it out. It's smooth, and shaved clean of hair, and there is a freckle just above the ankle. Nice, smooth muscle and little fat. Just above the ankle-bone, there is a tattoo of a teddy-bear and the name 'Francois' and a date of birth that means the tattoo's only about three months old. Gaugon estimates that the owner of the leg must have been perhaps twenty or twenty-one. Not old. The skin's smooth and without a blemish. He closes the freezer silently, and the leg is left in the peace of the deep-freeze.

Gaugon suspects that M. Jouet never actually did make it to that retirement home in Ontario. That is, if there really was a retirement home in the first place. His mind is alive with various thoughts, and only some of them involve running away. None of them involve running to the police, but that's just a bad old habit. If what he suspects is true, then he can imagine that there are several aged saucisses de Boulogne hanging in the shop that might well contain elements of the errant baker, like skin and thigh and hamstring. But then, that's the problem with meat. A sophisticated crime lab might be able to reconstruct the DNA of a few pigs that made one sausage up, and perhaps pick up traces of a non-pig element that made up the entire contents of a pate. Liver, after all, looks very much like any other liver. When fried up as mince, meat resembles nothing else but the constituent parts of a living creature mashed and seasoned with a little salt and pepper to taste. There is nothing to tell you what else that very heavily seasoned and herbed terrine might conceal. After all, they can make it from tofu and mushrooms these days, so who can tell, indeed? Rouvert shrugs his shoulders when Gaugon makes a lazy speculation about this. "It isn't the vegetarians that'll put us out of business, boy, it's people's tastes changing. But I very much doubt they will. Man is, after all, an omnivore."

Gaugon has to look this word up later in the local library, but he is not at all surprised when he finds out the meaning.

There is now an unspoken understanding between these two. It is now much more than just apprentice and master: Rouvert seems to be far more confident of Gaugon using the major equipment like the slicer and the mincer, and Gaugon for his part does his best work at night, moving the more unusual meats quickly to the butchery block and removing the bones to the grinder where they make and sell the bonemeal that does so well on gardens. Eventually, one evening, Rouvert places a slabby hand on his shoulder.

"Get your coat. We're taking a delivery tonight."

Imagine a long, cold night-time ride out into the forest, and you have perhaps a quarter of the journey they took that night. Mostly it wended the way through the town, with a few wrong turns, and Rouvert's crap driving making them skid on icy roads. Finally, the loaded van bumps across the gravel drive of a place Gaugon has certainly never seen before. He doesn't think he'd even be let into the front gates.

"C'mon. Get unloading, you lazy cretin." That's Rouvert for you - all love and kindness when it comes to the workplace.

What Gaugon does not know, and will not know for the next three weeks, is that the place he's visiting is rented and the cost of the rental is far higher than the salary of the judges he has met in his career as a petty criminal. What Rouvert does not know is the identities of the people they work with in the kitchens (which are all marble and granite and polished copper. You could cook for an army there and still have room free for a five course banquet.) However, after laying out cold cuts of meat and slices of the more special treats from Charcuterie-Boulangerie Arlene, they are treated to a glass or two of wine in an adjoining room. Gaugon stares and stares. Everything seems to be gilded. Tables, chairs. The carpets are thick and soft and inches deep. Rouvert looks at him eyeing up the silverware and kicks him on the ankle underneath the table. They've almost finished the excellent wine (fuck knows what it was, but the scent alone seemed to be deliciously expensive) when one of the waiters comes in with a dinner-plate. Leftovers.

Rouvert nods, and the man withdraws silently like a good waiter should. Gaugon hesitates with a fork - after all, which one is the speciality? The smell of the spiced smoked meat teases him. They've not had anything to eat since lunch, and that was just bread. This is....this is... "Delicious."

Rouvert crunches his way through rind and flesh, its salty tang gentle and fulfilling. He looks across at Gaugon. The wine's burning in his blood now, and he feels reckless. Intoxicated with the smell of meat and cheese. "Go on. Try it."

Almost without thinking, Gaugon takes up some bread and butters it thickly with white saltless butter. He stabs a large flap of freshly sliced meat, and places it delicately onto the bread. Bites, and savours. Chewing, he could be any hungry man enjoying a delightful repast. There is utterly no guilt in him whatsoever.

"Good boy," murmurs Rouvert. "Bon appetit."

It is, in reflection, that moment which changes young Timothy Gaugon's life as he has known it. Why settle for being a petty criminal when you could be a gourmet in one of the most exclusive clubs in the world? The fact that he knows exactly where the meat he supplies comes from does not bother him. After all, back in the Youth Home, there were boys and girls far younger than he who did things to and with older, richer men for money. It was the currency of life, he had decided - sell what you have, or be devoured by those who can afford it. He'd just never thought that it would be taken so literally.

Back in the charcuterie, Rouvert supplies fairly often to the rich and famous - although Gaugon can never quite say who they are. They often come disguised - some in ridiculous wigs, others in scarves and dark glasses. Occasionally their minder buys the order whilst someone sits muffled up inside a car that's deliberately a thing of understated luxury. Rouvert has the worst times with hysterical wannabes who claim that there's a special that they simply must have. He points them to the window - Saucisse de Toulouse, 8.99/lb. The worst ones shriek the place down, and he shows them the door with a resounding thump on the back: the official line drilled into Gaugon throughout that day is that the only special offer is in the window. There are no 'specials'. There is nothing in the shop and indeed nothing in the smoker that the customer cannot buy at the counter.

More evenings pass, and the club d'gourmets moves from location to location. One time, it is a flat in the most expensive part of town - the special is pate and brawn. A petit chateau somewhere besides a private lake gets a set of baby back ribs and tenderloin. An innocuous hotel du ville somewhere three towns over hosts a banquet with veal and something special as the main course. Our boys taste it all, of course. There are no other staff to eat the leftovers.

One night, a few days after the town hall (champagne and blinis, he remembers) a delivery arrives very early in the morning. On it are several wild boar, some deer, and a single white cooler packed with dry ice. It's taped shut. Rouvert motions to him to bring it all into the cold room, and then with deliberate care, lifts a tiny portion of very bloody flesh out of its bath of bubbling, witches-brew dry ice. Gaugon looks at it blankly as Rouvert waves him away from the bench and starts the mincer. Delicious, special meats. Meat that's so easy to come by for some. Meat where you don't ask where it's come from. All delicious because you know...or you think you know...

Rouvert looks Gaugon dead in the eye, cleaver in his hand. "Want to know what's more delicious? The most forbidden meat." The cleaver slams down onto the block, hard. The flesh parts under the weight and smooth slicing action of the ice-cold stainless steel.

It is six months later. Our reformed thief is still with the fat old cantankerous codger who still smokes the best meats in the whole area. It turns out Gaugon is a diamond in the rough, and learns at the hands of the other baker in town for weeks after work. Even a former sneak-thief, it seems, can be taught how to bake well. Charcuterie-Boulangerie Arlene now make marvellous meat pastries, buns, bread: the air in the morning becomes vital with the scent of baking and roasting, out onto the fresh air of the deserted streets in the small hours of the morning. Young apprentice Gaugon, however, walks with a limp. If anyone asks, it is an old athletics injury, or perhaps a slip on the ice - after all, it's no simple life being the apprentice to the most exclusive charcuterie in the area.

At night, Rouvert helps the boy upstairs. It's not easy on him, but old Rouvert feels he has something to do - after all, the kid works ten hours straight some days.He kneels down, pulls up the boy's pants leg, and slowly helps him remove the prosthesis that replaces his lower leg and foot. The trainer doesn't pull off it any more, but rather stands upright in the corner, grotesquely full whilst the other remains empty. It's suppertime: Rouvert brings in to him a small card table, and a carafe of cheap wine. It's good enough, after all - this is what Rouvert himself drinks. He sets a dish before him, like a waiter in one of those starred restaurants in the cities so far away. A single poached duck egg. A sprig of parsley, and some truffle oil. Three thick, tender slices of aged meat that smells just as heavily-seasoned pork should...

Submitted September 24, 2017 at 01:08AM by MVoltaire http://ift.tt/2fItW2w libraryofshadows

Ka La Ka Dum libraryofshadows

I

Alton Bloom walked to the edge of the path, when he noticed that his front door was open. The lights were out in the house, but the sight kept him on edge, as he entered. Alton walked into the house. He turned on the lights and saw a pair of dirty footprints. He followed them out to the kitchen, where he saw the refrigerator door open wide. A carton of milk leaked down the shelves from an opening marked with jagged edges. Everything inside the fridge was either half-eaten or torn to shreds.

“Darius!” Alton yelled. “If you’re here, tell me now. I’m bringing out the revolver!”

Alton brought the weapon out to his side, as he crept toward the dining room. Something moved on the far side of the table. He could see the silhouette of a person shrouded by shadow. Alton flicked the light-switch and it turned on with the ceiling fan. His friend, Darius, sat at the head of the table with a pool of cold stew resting in front of him. It smeared all over his face and hands, as he clawed at the pile of brown muck. He did nothing to acknowledge Alton, as he shoveled more of the slop into his mouth.

“Darius?” Alton asked. “What have you done to yourself?”

Ka La Ka Le Ka La Ka Dum His heart remains in eternal gloom

Darius turned his gaze. He lowered his head, but kept his eyes focused, as he centered his attention on Alton. He said nothing, as he pushed a book of fables along the side of the table. It fell at Alton’s feet, opening to the first page of a story called ‘The Eternal Queen’.

“She left this here, didn’t she?” Darius asked.

Alton nodded. He kept his eyes on Darius. He couldn't help but feel as if Darius would leap over the table and jab his fingernails into his throat.

“Have you read it?” Darius asked.

“She told me not to.”

“And you listened?”

“Of course.”

“Good. She doesn’t want you. She’ll come for me.”

“Is that good?”

“No, but it’s the only way.”

“This is the only way the story ends, isn’t it?” Alton asked.

“It’s how she wants it, so, this is how it has to be.”

II

It’s not the same dream every time, but it’s the same place and always the same outcome. My mind wanders into this restless slumber. I can still feel my body in our world, but my soul departs for a world beyond our comprehension. My soul tears away, because the beauty of that other world is impossible for it to deny. It wanders, until I lose control of it. My soul abandons me and enters this realm of eternal nightmare.

Beyond the shores of Apsu, dreaded sea of the eternal fate is the Island of the Endless Road. Creatures of nightmare call this world their home. During daylight, they suffer in the heat, before night returns and they retreat to the forest. They’ll follow the road, until they’ve fallen into its trap. Those who carry on, those who continue to crawl through the wilds learn to hide between the shadows.

Darkness invigorates those who follow the endless road. It is their greatest enemy. If you follow the darkness you lose more of yourself. Every day brings you closer to damnation, yet, there is only one road to follow. This is fate. There is no escape from the inevitable. Darkness calls its minions to prove their devotion in blood. They gather in orgies of sex and violence to honor their gods. Night brings the tide rolling in, which tears away at the Endless road. Those who follow darkness hunt through the storm, killing all they find, until it recedes. They assume they've done enough to appease their gods and thus, continue along the road.

The waters return every night to tear their world apart, as they rush deeper into madness. Most carry on, as the tide pulls back. In this world, there are only three ways to go. They can either return to their suffering or continue to follow the Endless Road. Some settle into their own communities, surviving through cannibalism and ritual sacrifice. Others make themselves out to be demigods and place others in shackles. Everything changes depending on the return and departure of the tide.

Always, in the back of their minds, is the specter of darkness and its inevitable return. It pushes some further along the Eternal Road. The road is quite deceiving in daylight. It looks promising and you assume your eyes are weary. After a while, you give in and accept that, maybe, in some way, you have a glimmer of hope. A little bit further out on the road and you start to think that maybe the road is carrying you along. It’s guiding you on your way. It wants you to get where you’re going, so it allows you to listen.

The Eternal Road carries this hum It goes as this “Ka La Ka Dum” For those that hear must know its glory And never tell its endless story.

They make their journey by day and hide into the night. Where they hide they set traps, for the darkness carries with it the sacred names of myriad predators. If they've learn to trust the land they’ve made a mistake. It looks so promising during the day. It's natural to accept it as your protector. Into night, the land must survive. Nothing that you experience with your senses can be trusted, because, in a way, this place is only a dream.

The trees emit a scent that allows them to control the minds of those who breathe it in. Maggots and rodents are the first of the infected. Once the scent enters their nostrils, the tree can manipulate them to fulfill its needs. It uses flies to chew into the flesh of weary journeyman, where they burrow and lay eggs. It bathes in the eggs for several days, warming them with its heart-beat. After the second day, it runs out of air. The eggs sense its death and chew through his heart. They regurgitate as they go along and eat that away after, until nothing remains. The flies then burst within the flesh to cause infection, until the creature dies. Hundreds of corpses rot into the land, which is supported by a web of interconnected roots. Each tree ties its roots with any others around it. Their roots continue to twist and become gnarled screws that push deep into the ground.

III

Ka La Re Kala Ka La Re Dum

Creatures that wander along the path don’t understand that it is, in itself, a trap. It’s meant to confuse and deter you from finding any hope or a sense of relief. You'll walk around for miles, until you realize that the path you came from is no longer there. Those who follow the Endless Road are truly lost, for by the time they realize they’ve fallen into a trap it’s far too late. The trees close in around them and form Ka La Re Kala Ka La Re Dum, which is ‘the whispering madness of the Eternal Queen’. Their cries of torment echo all around you, until your mind breaks beneath the guttural sound. Each of their voices carries an echo from beyond the wall of madness. It shatters logic and reason, until you're made into a drooling mess of fear and confusion.

For those who know the secret worship the Eternal Queen. Ka La Re Kala Ka La Re Dum. And pray for her protection from the nightmares unforeseen. And in her castle on the coast of Ka La Re La Ser She leads an army of the damned to torture the impure. And once their souls are broken and beyond the point of healing It’ll be in honor of the queen that they continue with their dealing.

The creatures feared the night and offered it sacrifice. They did the same for the queen, because she controlled their dreams. She could move within their minds whenever they fell asleep. She could manipulate their thoughts and push them into madness. Her pleasure came from tormenting those she controlled, be it the trees or flies or rats or snails. She broke them so they would obey and then tortured them some more.

And what might it have been that the Endless Queen would ask, but everlasting devotion to her cause. Those who denied her demands fell asleep and never woke up. They died after she ripped their minds to shreds. The trees ate what remained, along with the flies and maggots, before the roots consumed the rest.

Her slaves built her a castle along the coast. It looked out to the Sea of Apsu, but the coast was far too high for the crashing waves to reach. The Eternal Queen enjoyed waking up from her chamber of nightmares to see the waves receding. The sun crept over the horizon and illuminated the world in fire. She’d look out along the coast and want for nothing, as she could see that, from this vantage point, she had everything. It’s at night when her psychosis returns and she hungers for blood. Every night, she emits a howl that tears through the minds of all who have fallen under her spell. It knocks the life out of them, but their souls always return.

The Eternal Queen demands sacrifice. Her followers are more than agreeable. The forest is her playground. She moves it around for her own amusement. The Eternal Queen enjoys watching her followers spill blood. She manipulates the forest to create an arena of genocide and torture. Every creature must work to appease her. They must make who they find in the woods their victims. She doesn't want them dead, but suffering. Their nightmares become all the more potent when they're in pain.

Those who survive can’t shed a tear for the madness and depravity they’ve seen. They become master hunters. The queen enjoys their devotion, not only to her, but the purest form of insanity, Ka La Ka Dum. Savagery becomes their nature, until it’s ingrained in their being. They wear it as a badge of honor and carry out any depraved act that the queen demands.

IV

Ka La Re Kala, Ka La Re Dum.

She ordered her servants to expand her castle along the coast. They forged walls of mud and mortar to secure a retaining wall along the coastline. They built the castle up from within the ground and then extended upward. Hundreds of new rooms filled the tower, until it pushed deep within the ground and extended into the sky.

The tallest points of the castle were where the queen liked to go to send out her signal. Her followers far and wide would hear it much clearer when she reached the tallest point. She made her servants build the castle higher, until her signal was at its peak. Her powers became potent enough that she could manipulate her follower's every fear. She could make them fear nothing or everything. She could shatter their minds or make them an impenetrable wall of blind devotion and apathy.

The queen enjoyed making her followers suspicious. They turned on each, because they never shared any sense of unity. Their devotion belonged to the Eternal Queen. The world around them made them suspicious and helped feed their paranoia. She’d let them find each other. Inspired by fear and blind devotion, they fought to the death and spilled blood in her name.

Some souls no longer wanted to leave the Endless Road. They were her most devout followers. They knew the reward of keeping her happy was to inflict the same pain on the rest of the world. It became an obsession, not only to appease her, but to cause harm to anyone but themselves.

For the longest time, I was one of them. My dreams were more a glimpse into immortality. I became invincible. Terror hardened me into a beast of wrath and animosity. I felt a pain so indomitable I had no choice but to strengthen myself against it. My muscles hardened to steel and my mind centered on survival. My heart beat a single pulse and breathed within its own walls to keep them sterile. When it exhaled, a breath of poison killed everything inside me. The next inhale brought everything back to life. Thus, the cycle perpetuated itself, as I died every time, only to return to this place. I lived as one of her victims turned to a savage for her amusement, until I learned to breathe.

The Eternal Queen chose me, because I could breathe in her reality. Most could only breathe on an unconscious level. I learned to settle my heart with a simple breath and that has made all the difference. She chose me. The Endless Road opened and I found safe passage to her castle. None who received such a fate ever returned, while my fate was an ‘Eternal Return’ to her, until the end of time. Our love was a connection of broken parts that an impossible energy forged together and made to fit.

Ka La Ka Dum Ka La Ka Tet, The doomed and depraved are very well met.

I broke her down over time and she did the same to me. We were rougher around the edges, but more so around our hearts. It was impossible to love her, because I feared her. She was a monster from the pit of her soul. She’d imagined my death more times than I’ll ever be able to imagine. Still, the vapid emptiness in the dark of her eyes drove me to the brink of madness. How could any man in his right mind not push his terror aside and pull forward?

Every night, I returned to her. Every morning, I woke up with my entire body gripped with terror. It took all my strength to relax the tension in my body. The cartilage had to snap out of place and once it did it became like putty. I had a thought that this was death and waking meant I came back to life, but it meant so much more. Mine was the path of 'the eternal death'. She was pushing me further into her world, until I lost sight of my own and could never return.

It appeared that in all our meetings several days would pass me by. Yet, whenever I returned to work the next day, no one noticed that I was missing. They all claimed to have seen me. I lost track of days. Sometimes, I wake up in the middle of a meeting or walking down the road. I’m losing hold of myself in public places and it’s getting worse. I urinated on myself in the market the other day. Nobody noticed, but I have no memory of it. I remember walking into the store, but never anything beyond staring at the apples on the front end. I woke up outside the store with my receipt and a circle of piss drying between my legs.

“What do you think is happening?” Alton asked.

The Red Queen is trying to drive me mad.

“Why would she want to do that?”

Because, I was the only person she’d ever love and I broke her heart.

“I thought you loved her? Why would you do such a thing?”

I saw her as something more than she actually was. There was something humanizing in my perception. I was a monster in that world, capable of savagery on a grandiose scale. Within my heart, I'm still me. I thought I was something else after worshiping her for all this time. It turns out there was a fine grain of humanity resting in my core. It came back to life one day, when the Eternal Queen had a momentary realization of her greatest fear. You see, she fears the Water’s of Apsu. Water is her greatest fear. She never told me why, because, despite being her only love it was beyond her to set aside her paranoia.

Her servants had built her castle into a sturdy tower that looked out over the Sea of Apsu. It stood on the edge of a cliff resting high above its waters. The waves were pulling out further into the sea, as they buoyed and lost control. In our most fateful moment, the ripples that receded from the shore returned in one wave. It struck every floor of the tower at once and echoed thunder through the halls.

Terror gripped the Mad Queen and she unleashed the truth behind her mortal form. Her body unwound and her arms uncoiled to reveal thousands of strings. The arms connected, forming a new illusion to occupy my senses. She revealed her true form, and unfolded the illusion to reveal a giant spider. A lower jaw sank to reveal rows of sharp teeth. It hissed when it sensed I was afraid. Another wave crashed into the cliff and tore the tower in half, before she could kill me.

That’s when I woke up. That’s why I’m here. I’ve been having these dreams for a long time, but I’ve only recently made it beyond the forest. The Eternal Queen has me. Now, she’ll make my life into a nightmare worse than anything I can imagine and the proof of it is in this book. It has her entire story and mine wrapped together. She journeyed through time to get every detail of my life and hers to be as precise as she can. She’s leading me into a trap by crafting time into a noose that will wrap around my neck. My fate rests somewhere in this book and I don’t think I have the strength to read it. Whatever she will do to me, well, it will be done. I can’t fight, but knowing the exact time and place of my death will ruin the surprise. There’s no chance of preventing it. I’ll amuse her with my terror and hope it’s enough to appease her wrath.

“She’ll kill you because you don’t love her and she’ll kill me because I’m in the way. So, I’ll ask again, how can I help?”

You must write down everything you see.

“Why not film it? No one will believe any of this unless you film it.”

Who would ever believe such a thing, even if they saw it with their own eyes?

“Then, what good is writing it gonna do?”

Those who need to read it will. They’ll understand the true meaning of these stories and be able to stop her.

“Stop her from what?”

You’d have to read to the end of the book to find out.

Ka La Ka Re Ka La Ka Dum Where blood is written, so it must come Ka La Kala Ka La Re It is written, thus ends the day.

V

My mind wandered and I returned to that world, because she would never, ever leave me. She demanded sacrifice, as she would for all her children. My obsession led me back to her. Curiosity and desire got the better of me, as I slipped further into madness. When I awoke, I was by her side, staring out to the horizon that ended before the Sea of Apsu. The closer I came to her the further she pulled away.

Something pulled on me from another reality. One of my dreams wanted a chance at return. She gave me this as a final opportunity and I’m certain that neither of us knew what would happen at the end of that road.

I followed this other reality, which led me along the Endless Road. My mind went numb and a signal in the back of my skull led me through this place. The trees and stars offered clues. She demanded sacrifices. I killed in her honor. I ate their hearts to gain their strength and to show her that I could still be the brutal savage she desired. I used the blood of my victims to make crude markings over my face and chest. It might not terrify her, but it would at least appease her appetite.

The path aligned with the tower. The top half of the tower had fallen into the sea, but the rest remained. The days of its terror passed, but the Eternal Queen would forever control their hearts and minds. I followed through the tower, until I found the only locked room. I knocked several times and did what I could to move it. It moved for a moment and I gained some hope. I put all my strength into it. The door disappeared under my weight and I fell through the opening. I crashed and fell over a railing, barely catching myself, before I could plummet to my doom.

I pulled myself onto the side of the tower only to see that the door had returned. I was trapped on this balcony, where the Queen would keep me. I knock on the door, because it’s what pleases her. The Eternal Queen demands sacrifice, so that's what I'll do. I’ll stay here and knock for as long as it takes to make her happy.

Ka La Kala Ka La Me So much for my fate this day. Ka La Kala Ka La Dum It is what it must become.

VI

Alton awoke by a sudden bump in the night. After all he’d heard he decided to wait it out in his bedroom. It wasn’t that he didn’t care about his friend's fate, but that he knew there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t go against the wishes of his friend and keep him from meeting his fate. At the same time, he wondered if there was anything he could do to help.

Footsteps shuffled down the hallway. Someone knocked on the door. Alton remained quite still and the person knocked again. When he didn’t respond, they nailed something into the other side. It burst through for a moment, leaving a crack, nothing more than a sliver, in the door. An eye full of crimson lightning looked at Alton, before it disappeared.

The creature ran down the hall, laughing as he went. Alton left his bedroom and almost stepped in a pool of blood. A trail of blood followed down the hallway in footsteps of bright crimson. They spread out along the floorboards and up the walls to the ceiling. Several red palm-prints followed with them. They formed a circular pattern that wrapped around his friend’s room.

The lights flickered. He twisted the doorknob and opened the door. Darkness washed over everything. He held the doorknob for comfort, until the lights returned. He saw in that flash, his friend hanging from the ceiling. Someone tore him open from his stomach, through his torso and legs, all the way down to his feet and fingers. A long trail of string led out of the wounds and dangled above his solar plexus. They used his veins to make a noose, which wrapped around his throat and along a fan in the ceiling.

The ceiling fan turned on and spun Darius around, like a toy in a child's jewelry box. His veins remained sturdy, as he swung around again and again.

Ka La Kala Ka La Re All that is nightmare is sure to stay. Ka La Kala Ka La Dum To the darkest fear we must succumb.

Submitted August 14, 2017 at 08:05PM by Sin_Crow_7 http://ift.tt/2w3hgNv libraryofshadows

Ka La Ka Dum libraryofshadows

I

Alton Bloom walked to the edge of the path, when he noticed that his front door was open. The lights were out in the house, but the sight kept him on edge, as he entered. Alton walked into the house. He turned on the lights and saw a pair of dirty footprints. He followed them out to the kitchen, where he saw the refrigerator door open wide. A carton of milk leaked down the shelves from an opening marked with jagged edges. Everything inside the fridge was either half-eaten or torn to shreds.

“Darius!” Alton yelled. “If you’re here, tell me now. I’m bringing out the revolver!”

Alton brought the weapon out to his side, as he crept toward the dining room. Something moved on the far side of the table. He could see the silhouette of a person shrouded by shadow. Alton flicked the light-switch and it turned on with the ceiling fan. His friend, Darius, sat at the head of the table with a pool of cold stew resting in front of him. It smeared all over his face and hands, as he clawed at the pile of brown muck. He did nothing to acknowledge Alton, as he shoveled more of the slop into his mouth.

“Darius?” Alton asked. “What have you done to yourself?”

Ka La Ka Le Ka La Ka Dum His heart remains in eternal gloom

Darius turned his gaze. He lowered his head, but kept his eyes focused, as he centered his attention on Alton. He said nothing, as he pushed a book of fables along the side of the table. It fell at Alton’s feet, opening to the first page of a story called ‘The Eternal Queen’.

“She left this here, didn’t she?” Darius asked.

Alton nodded. He kept his eyes on Darius. He couldn't help but feel as if Darius would leap over the table and jab his fingernails into his throat.

“Have you read it?” Darius asked.

“She told me not to.”

“And you listened?”

“Of course.”

“Good. She doesn’t want you. She’ll come for me.”

“Is that good?”

“No, but it’s the only way.”

“This is the only way the story ends, isn’t it?” Alton asked.

“It’s how she wants it, so, this is how it has to be.”

II

It’s not the same dream every time, but it’s the same place and always the same outcome. My mind wanders into this restless slumber. I can still feel my body in our world, but my soul departs for a world beyond our comprehension. My soul tears away, because the beauty of that other world is impossible for it to deny. It wanders, until I lose control of it. My soul abandons me and enters this realm of eternal nightmare.

Beyond the shores of Apsu, dreaded sea of the eternal fate is the Island of the Endless Road. Creatures of nightmare call this world their home. During daylight, they suffer in the heat, before night returns and they retreat to the forest. They’ll follow the road, until they’ve fallen into its trap. Those who carry on, those who continue to crawl through the wilds learn to hide between the shadows.

Darkness invigorates those who follow the endless road. It is their greatest enemy. If you follow the darkness you lose more of yourself. Every day brings you closer to damnation, yet, there is only one road to follow. This is fate. There is no escape from the inevitable. Darkness calls its minions to prove their devotion in blood. They gather in orgies of sex and violence to honor their gods. Night brings the tide rolling in, which tears away at the Endless road. Those who follow darkness hunt through the storm, killing all they find, until it recedes. They assume they've done enough to appease their gods and thus, continue along the road.

The waters return every night to tear their world apart, as they rush deeper into madness. Most carry on, as the tide pulls back. In this world, there are only three ways to go. They can either return to their suffering or continue to follow the Endless Road. Some settle into their own communities, surviving through cannibalism and ritual sacrifice. Others make themselves out to be demigods and place others in shackles. Everything changes depending on the return and departure of the tide.

Always, in the back of their minds, is the specter of darkness and its inevitable return. It pushes some further along the Eternal Road. The road is quite deceiving in daylight. It looks promising and you assume your eyes are weary. After a while, you give in and accept that, maybe, in some way, you have a glimmer of hope. A little bit further out on the road and you start to think that maybe the road is carrying you along. It’s guiding you on your way. It wants you to get where you’re going, so it allows you to listen.

The Eternal Road carries this hum It goes as this “Ka La Ka Dum” For those that hear must know its glory And never tell its endless story.

They make their journey by day and hide into the night. Where they hide they set traps, for the darkness carries with it the sacred names of myriad predators. If they've learn to trust the land they’ve made a mistake. It looks so promising during the day. It's natural to accept it as your protector. Into night, the land must survive. Nothing that you experience with your senses can be trusted, because, in a way, this place is only a dream.

The trees emit a scent that allows them to control the minds of those who breathe it in. Maggots and rodents are the first of the infected. Once the scent enters their nostrils, the tree can manipulate them to fulfill its needs. It uses flies to chew into the flesh of weary journeyman, where they burrow and lay eggs. It bathes in the eggs for several days, warming them with its heart-beat. After the second day, it runs out of air. The eggs sense its death and chew through his heart. They regurgitate as they go along and eat that away after, until nothing remains. The flies then burst within the flesh to cause infection, until the creature dies. Hundreds of corpses rot into the land, which is supported by a web of interconnected roots. Each tree ties its roots with any others around it. Their roots continue to twist and become gnarled screws that push deep into the ground.

III

Ka La Re Kala Ka La Re Dum

Creatures that wander along the path don’t understand that it is, in itself, a trap. It’s meant to confuse and deter you from finding any hope or a sense of relief. You'll walk around for miles, until you realize that the path you came from is no longer there. Those who follow the Endless Road are truly lost, for by the time they realize they’ve fallen into a trap it’s far too late. The trees close in around them and form Ka La Re Kala Ka La Re Dum, which is ‘the whispering madness of the Eternal Queen’. Their cries of torment echo all around you, until your mind breaks beneath the guttural sound. Each of their voices carries an echo from beyond the wall of madness. It shatters logic and reason, until you're made into a drooling mess of fear and confusion.

For those who know the secret worship the Eternal Queen. Ka La Re Kala Ka La Re Dum. And pray for her protection from the nightmares unforeseen. And in her castle on the coast of Ka La Re La Ser She leads an army of the damned to torture the impure. And once their souls are broken and beyond the point of healing It’ll be in honor of the queen that they continue with their dealing.

The creatures feared the night and offered it sacrifice. They did the same for the queen, because she controlled their dreams. She could move within their minds whenever they fell asleep. She could manipulate their thoughts and push them into madness. Her pleasure came from tormenting those she controlled, be it the trees or flies or rats or snails. She broke them so they would obey and then tortured them some more.

And what might it have been that the Endless Queen would ask, but everlasting devotion to her cause. Those who denied her demands fell asleep and never woke up. They died after she ripped their minds to shreds. The trees ate what remained, along with the flies and maggots, before the roots consumed the rest.

Her slaves built her a castle along the coast. It looked out to the Sea of Apsu, but the coast was far too high for the crashing waves to reach. The Eternal Queen enjoyed waking up from her chamber of nightmares to see the waves receding. The sun crept over the horizon and illuminated the world in fire. She’d look out along the coast and want for nothing, as she could see that, from this vantage point, she had everything. It’s at night when her psychosis returns and she hungers for blood. Every night, she emits a howl that tears through the minds of all who have fallen under her spell. It knocks the life out of them, but their souls always return.

The Eternal Queen demands sacrifice. Her followers are more than agreeable. The forest is her playground. She moves it around for her own amusement. The Eternal Queen enjoys watching her followers spill blood. She manipulates the forest to create an arena of genocide and torture. Every creature must work to appease her. They must make who they find in the woods their victims. She doesn't want them dead, but suffering. Their nightmares become all the more potent when they're in pain.

Those who survive can’t shed a tear for the madness and depravity they’ve seen. They become master hunters. The queen enjoys their devotion, not only to her, but the purest form of insanity, Ka La Ka Dum. Savagery becomes their nature, until it’s ingrained in their being. They wear it as a badge of honor and carry out any depraved act that the queen demands.

IV

Ka La Re Kala, Ka La Re Dum.

She ordered her servants to expand her castle along the coast. They forged walls of mud and mortar to secure a retaining wall along the coastline. They built the castle up from within the ground and then extended upward. Hundreds of new rooms filled the tower, until it pushed deep within the ground and extended into the sky.

The tallest points of the castle were where the queen liked to go to send out her signal. Her followers far and wide would hear it much clearer when she reached the tallest point. She made her servants build the castle higher, until her signal was at its peak. Her powers became potent enough that she could manipulate her follower's every fear. She could make them fear nothing or everything. She could shatter their minds or make them an impenetrable wall of blind devotion and apathy.

The queen enjoyed making her followers suspicious. They turned on each, because they never shared any sense of unity. Their devotion belonged to the Eternal Queen. The world around them made them suspicious and helped feed their paranoia. She’d let them find each other. Inspired by fear and blind devotion, they fought to the death and spilled blood in her name.

Some souls no longer wanted to leave the Endless Road. They were her most devout followers. They knew the reward of keeping her happy was to inflict the same pain on the rest of the world. It became an obsession, not only to appease her, but to cause harm to anyone but themselves.

For the longest time, I was one of them. My dreams were more a glimpse into immortality. I became invincible. Terror hardened me into a beast of wrath and animosity. I felt a pain so indomitable I had no choice but to strengthen myself against it. My muscles hardened to steel and my mind centered on survival. My heart beat a single pulse and breathed within its own walls to keep them sterile. When it exhaled, a breath of poison killed everything inside me. The next inhale brought everything back to life. Thus, the cycle perpetuated itself, as I died every time, only to return to this place. I lived as one of her victims turned to a savage for her amusement, until I learned to breathe.

The Eternal Queen chose me, because I could breathe in her reality. Most could only breathe on an unconscious level. I learned to settle my heart with a simple breath and that has made all the difference. She chose me. The Endless Road opened and I found safe passage to her castle. None who received such a fate ever returned, while my fate was an ‘Eternal Return’ to her, until the end of time. Our love was a connection of broken parts that an impossible energy forged together and made to fit.

Ka La Ka Dum Ka La Ka Tet, The doomed and depraved are very well met.

I broke her down over time and she did the same to me. We were rougher around the edges, but more so around our hearts. It was impossible to love her, because I feared her. She was a monster from the pit of her soul. She’d imagined my death more times than I’ll ever be able to imagine. Still, the vapid emptiness in the dark of her eyes drove me to the brink of madness. How could any man in his right mind not push his terror aside and pull forward?

Every night, I returned to her. Every morning, I woke up with my entire body gripped with terror. It took all my strength to relax the tension in my body. The cartilage had to snap out of place and once it did it became like putty. I had a thought that this was death and waking meant I came back to life, but it meant so much more. Mine was the path of 'the eternal death'. She was pushing me further into her world, until I lost sight of my own and could never return.

It appeared that in all our meetings several days would pass me by. Yet, whenever I returned to work the next day, no one noticed that I was missing. They all claimed to have seen me. I lost track of days. Sometimes, I wake up in the middle of a meeting or walking down the road. I’m losing hold of myself in public places and it’s getting worse. I urinated on myself in the market the other day. Nobody noticed, but I have no memory of it. I remember walking into the store, but never anything beyond staring at the apples on the front end. I woke up outside the store with my receipt and a circle of piss drying between my legs.

“What do you think is happening?” Alton asked.

The Red Queen is trying to drive me mad.

“Why would she want to do that?”

Because, I was the only person she’d ever love and I broke her heart.

“I thought you loved her? Why would you do such a thing?”

I saw her as something more than she actually was. There was something humanizing in my perception. I was a monster in that world, capable of savagery on a grandiose scale. Within my heart, I'm still me. I thought I was something else after worshiping her for all this time. It turns out there was a fine grain of humanity resting in my core. It came back to life one day, when the Eternal Queen had a momentary realization of her greatest fear. You see, she fears the Water’s of Apsu. Water is her greatest fear. She never told me why, because, despite being her only love it was beyond her to set aside her paranoia.

Her servants had built her castle into a sturdy tower that looked out over the Sea of Apsu. It stood on the edge of a cliff resting high above its waters. The waves were pulling out further into the sea, as they buoyed and lost control. In our most fateful moment, the ripples that receded from the shore returned in one wave. It struck every floor of the tower at once and echoed thunder through the halls.

Terror gripped the Mad Queen and she unleashed the truth behind her mortal form. Her body unwound and her arms uncoiled to reveal thousands of strings. The arms connected, forming a new illusion to occupy my senses. She revealed her true form, and unfolded the illusion to reveal a giant spider. A lower jaw sank to reveal rows of sharp teeth. It hissed when it sensed I was afraid. Another wave crashed into the cliff and tore the tower in half, before she could kill me.

That’s when I woke up. That’s why I’m here. I’ve been having these dreams for a long time, but I’ve only recently made it beyond the forest. The Eternal Queen has me. Now, she’ll make my life into a nightmare worse than anything I can imagine and the proof of it is in this book. It has her entire story and mine wrapped together. She journeyed through time to get every detail of my life and hers to be as precise as she can. She’s leading me into a trap by crafting time into a noose that will wrap around my neck. My fate rests somewhere in this book and I don’t think I have the strength to read it. Whatever she will do to me, well, it will be done. I can’t fight, but knowing the exact time and place of my death will ruin the surprise. There’s no chance of preventing it. I’ll amuse her with my terror and hope it’s enough to appease her wrath.

“She’ll kill you because you don’t love her and she’ll kill me because I’m in the way. So, I’ll ask again, how can I help?”

You must write down everything you see.

“Why not film it? No one will believe any of this unless you film it.”

Who would ever believe such a thing, even if they saw it with their own eyes?

“Then, what good is writing it gonna do?”

Those who need to read it will. They’ll understand the true meaning of these stories and be able to stop her.

“Stop her from what?”

You’d have to read to the end of the book to find out.

Ka La Ka Re Ka La Ka Dum Where blood is written, so it must come Ka La Kala Ka La Re It is written, thus ends the day.

V

My mind wandered and I returned to that world, because she would never, ever leave me. She demanded sacrifice, as she would for all her children. My obsession led me back to her. Curiosity and desire got the better of me, as I slipped further into madness. When I awoke, I was by her side, staring out to the horizon that ended before the Sea of Apsu. The closer I came to her the further she pulled away.

Something pulled on me from another reality. One of my dreams wanted a chance at return. She gave me this as a final opportunity and I’m certain that neither of us knew what would happen at the end of that road.

I followed this other reality, which led me along the Endless Road. My mind went numb and a signal in the back of my skull led me through this place. The trees and stars offered clues. She demanded sacrifices. I killed in her honor. I ate their hearts to gain their strength and to show her that I could still be the brutal savage she desired. I used the blood of my victims to make crude markings over my face and chest. It might not terrify her, but it would at least appease her appetite.

The path aligned with the tower. The top half of the tower had fallen into the sea, but the rest remained. The days of its terror passed, but the Eternal Queen would forever control their hearts and minds. I followed through the tower, until I found the only locked room. I knocked several times and did what I could to move it. It moved for a moment and I gained some hope. I put all my strength into it. The door disappeared under my weight and I fell through the opening. I crashed and fell over a railing, barely catching myself, before I could plummet to my doom.

I pulled myself onto the side of the tower only to see that the door had returned. I was trapped on this balcony, where the Queen would keep me. I knock on the door, because it’s what pleases her. The Eternal Queen demands sacrifice, so that's what I'll do. I’ll stay here and knock for as long as it takes to make her happy.

Ka La Kala Ka La Me So much for my fate this day. Ka La Kala Ka La Dum It is what it must become.

VI

Alton awoke by a sudden bump in the night. After all he’d heard he decided to wait it out in his bedroom. It wasn’t that he didn’t care about his friend's fate, but that he knew there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t go against the wishes of his friend and keep him from meeting his fate. At the same time, he wondered if there was anything he could do to help.

Footsteps shuffled down the hallway. Someone knocked on the door. Alton remained quite still and the person knocked again. When he didn’t respond, they nailed something into the other side. It burst through for a moment, leaving a crack, nothing more than a sliver, in the door. An eye full of crimson lightning looked at Alton, before it disappeared.

The creature ran down the hall, laughing as he went. Alton left his bedroom and almost stepped in a pool of blood. A trail of blood followed down the hallway in footsteps of bright crimson. They spread out along the floorboards and up the walls to the ceiling. Several red palm-prints followed with them. They formed a circular pattern that wrapped around his friend’s room.

The lights flickered. He twisted the doorknob and opened the door. Darkness washed over everything. He held the doorknob for comfort, until the lights returned. He saw in that flash, his friend hanging from the ceiling. Someone tore him open from his stomach, through his torso and legs, all the way down to his feet and fingers. A long trail of string led out of the wounds and dangled above his solar plexus. They used his veins to make a noose, which wrapped around his throat and along a fan in the ceiling.

The ceiling fan turned on and spun Darius around, like a toy in a child's jewelry box. His veins remained sturdy, as he swung around again and again.

Ka La Kala Ka La Re All that is nightmare is sure to stay. Ka La Kala Ka La Dum To the darkest fear we must succumb.

Submitted August 14, 2017 at 08:05PM by Sin_Crow_7 http://ift.tt/2w3hgNv libraryofshadows

Night Shade (Chapter 1 Lights Out) libraryofshadows

As Cliche as it sounds, it was just a normal day for me. I woke up, dragged my ass out of bed and took a shower. After that, I got dressed and ate the same breakfast food as always. A fucking bowl of cereal, but today I was feeling extra fancy, so I microwaved some bacon to go with it. After I ate, I grabbed my keys, and got in my car and drove to my job at the local grocery store. I walked inside and went to my assigned lane. This was my day in a nutshell and just like my life it was completely unfair. I missed out on so much in life, I have never left the state of Kentucky, I have no kids, no girlfriend, and no family that is even halfway decent. I am almost completely alone in life.

The only friend I have is my friend James. We have been knowing each other since sixth grade and he has been there for me through thick and thin. We have made friends throughout the years but they all got married and had children. So James and I are the only ones who are still enjoying the single life. We don't see our old friends because they don't really get much time to hangout between their wives, kids and jobs. There was one thing about that night that made things different and it was that James and I were going to have a horror movie marathon at his apartment. We each chipped in on a list of horror movies that we agreed on. We ended up spending fifty dollars on horror movies. After doing the math we had about twelve hours worth of movies to watch.

I was looking so forward to it that I almost forgot to clock out when I left work. When I got to his house, he greeted me at the door.

“Whats up bro? Did you get the stuff?” he asked casually.

“Whats this look like to you? I said. “Green eggs?” I said holding up the bags of chips and other junk food.

“If you keep busting my balls like that, I’ll have your ass.” James warned.

“Yeah, right.” I sarcastically said as I walked passed him and into his apartment.

“What should we watch first?” James asked.

“I say we watch The Eye, starring Jessica Alba.” I suggested.

“I want to watch Nightmare on Elm Street.” James disagreed.

“Dude you know I’ve seen that movie twenty times.”

“Lets flip on it.” I said. “Heads.” I took a quarter out of my pocket and I flipped it into the air. The quarter went into the air and fell on the floor and it landed it on Tales.

“Shit!” I shouted.

After sitting through thirty minutes of the movie, I began to drift off into sleep. I woke up when James turned the lights on and the credits were rolling.

“Rise and shine Simon.” James said.

“What time is it?” I asked.

“It’s 11:30 am, but look outside.

I looked out of one of his windows and saw that it was still dark outside

“Why is it still dark outside?”

“I don't know Simon. Scientists are saying that the sun's light isn't shining on the Earth anymore.”

“Then why aren’t we freezing to death?” I asked.

“That is the mystery. What is keeping us warm?”

I pulled out my phone and googled the news. I then got on my local news website and saw that riots were occurring. It was downright crazy, people were breaking windows, setting cars on fire, fighting each other. The worst thing I saw was a guy bashed a woman's head in with a baseball bat. I turned off the broadcast and I saw that James was almost as pale as a ghost.

“Dude that riot is downtown. That is five miles from here.”

Suddenly my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and saw that it was my Uncle Bobby.

“Hello.”

“Simon. Take whatever you can and meet me in BeattyVille.” Bobby told me in a very frantic tone of voice.

“Wait have you been watching the news it's crazy out-

“Just do it Simon! Meet me at the address I’m about to tell you.”

I told James to hand me a pen and paper. I then wrote down the address Uncle Bobby wanted me to go to.

“I got it down,” I told him.

“Good, now when you get there ask the bartender for Dan.”

After that he hung up.

“What was that all about?” asked James.

“That was Uncle Bobby,” I replied. “He wants me to go to some bar in BeattyVille.”

“I don't know if we should trust that guy. All our lives he has been obsessed with the end of the world. Remember when we were in highschool and he paid us to help build that bomb shelter.

“Yes I do, but look-

“I’m going with you because I don’t trust that guy. Yes something really weird is going on but I doubt it's doomsday.”

“Let’s go,” I said.

I grabbed my overnight bag and we made our way to my car. After putting my bag into the trunk, I got in the car and I pulled out of James driveway. Thankfully James lived close to the freeway but traffic was terrible. The jam was worse than any that I ever been. Even worse than U Of K and U Of L basketball games. The whole freeway was a parking lot.

“Fucking Christ!” I yelled. “Where the Hell are these people going?”

“Shh, listen.” James said.

I stopped talking and listened to the radio. There was breaking news reporting that various animal attacks were occurring throughout Louisville and other cities in the country. Cats and dogs were getting loose and attacking people. Birds were swooping down and clawing at people. It was not all birds but ones that people were keeping as pets. It was only domesticated animals that were attacking people. There were no reports of zoo animals doing any harm but this whole situation seemed like a whole lot of calamity. The announcer also said that people should head to a military safe zone in Lexington.

“Maybe we should go there.” said James.

“To Lexington? No,” “Why not? It's probably a safer place than your Uncle Bobbys.”

“Look I have no idea what is going on but I think we should trust Bobby this time.”

“Oh come on Simon. Remember back in 2012 when he was convinced that the Mayan calendar was right?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Look I don't mean to be rude but-

“We are not going to Lexington!” I shouted. “I don't want to hear anymore bullshit talk about how crazy my uncle is or whats going on, got it?”

“Alright, chill out bro,” James replied, surprised by my outburst.

I didn't know if this was a temporary problem or something new entirely but I remembered one important fact that Uncle Bobby taught me about the end of the world. When civilization falls, it falls fast. Major cities looked like they were suffering pretty badly from what was going on so I knew Lexington was a bad idea. It did not take very long for traffic to die down and for things to speed back up again. I continued the drive to Beattyville, James and I kept quiet during the drive and we continued to listen to the news. After a couple of hours I turned the radio off. I knew things were getting bad and I was tired of hearing it over and over again.

When we made it to Beattyville, I put the address of the bar in my GPS and I followed the directions. When we arrived at the bar I noticed that it looked like more of an old shack than an actual building. The place reminded me of the Bootleg Barbecue restaurant in Louisville. After parking, James and I got out of the car and when we tried to go into the bar the door was locked. So I tried knocking.

“We’re closed.” A voice said from inside the bar.

I knocked again.

“I said we are closed damn it!” The person shouted.

“Bobby sent us.” James said.

The door flung open and a tall muscular, wild eyed man stood before us. He wore a pair of tattered jeans and a I heart beer T-shirt. The camouflage baseball cap on his head had seen better days in its old age.

“Bobby sent you two,” the man said in with a deep southern drawl. “Yes sir,” James replied.

“Shit, that man has a tab bigger than a horses dick.”

“I’ll pay his tab if you let us in,” I promised. “Things aren't so good out here.”

The man let us into the bar.

“Damn. This place looks more old and rundown than Bobby does,” James commented.

I gave him a dirty look.

“Yeah my dad hasn’t really taken good care of this place since grandpa died.” The man said.

“Is your dad named Dan?” I asked.

“Yeah. My name is Chad by the way,” The man said.

“I’m Simon and thats James.”

“Nice to meet you guys. Now why did Bobby send you guys here?”

“I don’t know but I think it has to do with what’s going on in the cities.”

“Well I can assure you that you guys are safe here in town because it’s always been quiet and boring here in Beattyville.” said Chad.

“Can you call your dad for us because for whatever reason we need to talk to Dan.

“No problem,”

Chad pulled out his cell phone and called Dan.

“Son of a bitch!” Chad said firmly.

“What?” I said.

“The fucking phone lines are down,”

“Great!” James remarked.

“Well he just went to run some errands about thirty minutes ago he is probably on his way back.”

“Have you been watching the news?” I asked.

“Yeah, it just seems like people are going crazy over something as usual. I don’t know if it has to do with politics or what but I have never seen riots like this before.” Chad replied.

“People’s pets are going nuts man!”

“What?”

“Yeah, dogs are mauling their owners to death and the same goes with cats.” James explained.

Suddenly the door burst open and an older guy came scrambling inside. He then slammed the door behind him. He was breathing really hard from being out of breath from running. I also noticed that he was holding a hunting rifle in his right hand.

“My truck broke down,” He said.

“Are you okay dad,” said Chad.

“No! Mrs. Davis Dogs broke loose and tried to attack me. So I had to shoot them. Next thing I know ten more dogs showed up I shot four of them but more just kept coming.”

I heard the sound of dogs barking outside. So I looked out of the window, I counted fifteen dogs outside that were barking ferociously.

“Holy fuck!” I said.

“So what do we do?” asked James.

“I don’t know,” I replied fearfully as I looked back at James. “I say we wait for Uncle Bobby to get here. He will have some ideas.”

“Who knows how long that will be,” Chad said. “I don’t want to be stuck in this bar being held hostage by dogs.”

Suddenly we heard the sound of tires squealing. I looked out of the window and saw an R.V storming into the parking lot of the bar, hitting some of the dogs in the process. The dogs began to surround the R.V. Next thing I knew the front door of the R.V burst open and someone fired a shotgun at one of the dogs. Its head exploded and blood and brain matter went everywhere. frightened by the blast the dogs backed off a little bit. That was when I saw the man that we had been waiting for, my crazy Uncle Bobby. He jumped out of the R.V holding his twelve gage shotgun and began running towards the bar. One of the dogs tried to get in front of him on his way to the door but that dog was soon made into swiss cheese by Bobby's gun. Uncle Bobby stormed into the bar and slammed the door behind him.

“We have to go right now!” Uncle Bobby frantically shouted.

James gave him a weird look

“Those dogs out there will-

“I will hold off the dogs James. All of you just get to the R.V.”

“If you think I’ going out there with those dogs Bobby your crazy,” Chad said.

“What choice do we have?” James asked. “We can't just sit here.”

“Dan is right and so is Bobby,” I told Chad. “We have to get out there.”

“Here is the plan,” Bobby said. “Dan and I will hold off the dogs while you guys get too the R.V.”

“Let’s Go!” Shouted Bobby.

We burst out of the door and ran towards the R.V. Uncle Bobby and Dan shot in the air to get the dogs away from us. I saw them move to another part of the parking lot as the dogs went in their direction. As we were heading in the direction of the R.V one of the dogs saw us and barked to get the other dog's attention. I spend up and made it to the R.V, I then opened the door and jumped inside. James and Chad followed behind me. I could hear the dogs barking outside the R.V as I fired up the vehicle. I then heard the sound of the dogs screaming as gunfire invaded the air. I looked out the window and saw Uncle Bobby and Dan making their way too the R.V.

The fired shot after shot as they ran but out of nowhere Dan ran out of ammo. He began to run as fast as he could to the R.V but it was no use. The dogs surrounded him and within seconds they we all over him. I watched in horror as they tore him apart, they ripped chunks of meat from his body as they rounusly dug into his torso.

“DAD NO!” Chad yelled.

I heard the R.V door open.

“Drive, Drive, Drive!” Uncle Bobby hollard.

I put the R.V in gear and drove away from the bar as quickly as possible without killing us. Uncle Bobby walked over and say in the front seat next to me.

“Where to?” I asked.

“The Bomb Shelter. It’s safe there.”

We continued to drive down the dark back road with Bobby telling me where to go but without warning a girl jumped in front of the R.V waving her arms. I slammed on the breaks hoping to god I would not hit her. When the R.V stopped. She ran to the side of the R.V and got in. I heard the sound of Dogs barking so I literally put the pedal to the metal and floored it out of there.

“Thank you,” said the girl.

“Who are you?” asked Chad.

“I’m Sarah.”

“What happened to you?” I asked.

“My Uncles hunting dogs just went berserk and next thing I know they mauled him to death. So I ran out of there. They chased me all the way to this road and here I am now. I just need to know what they hell is going on here. Why hasn’t the sun come up? It’s 2:30 in the afternoon.”

“We don’t know,” I said. “Cats and dogs are going nuts. The sun hasn’t come up.”

“None of this shit makes sense,” said Uncle Bobby

“Turn on the radio,” Sarah said.

When we turned on the radio all we got was static. We tried changing the stations and after so many we finally found a news station. It was telling people which cities were falling and how bad the catastrophes were. New York City had fallen and so had Louisville Kentucky. Omaha Nebraska had fallen as well. After we heard that we turned off the radio.

“It’s like total anarchy out there.” said James.

“I know,” said Uncle Bobby. “Civilization is falling and it’s falling fast.”

Uncle Bobby gave me directions to the bomb shelter and I followed them. I must’ve driven for at least an hour on this back road before finally I was told to drive down this dirt road. I drove down an isolated dirt road for a few minutes then Uncle Bobby told me to stop. We all got out of the R.V and we began walking into the forest. He must’ve walked at least a mile before we found the bomb shelter. It looked like a manhole in the middle of the woods with a small window on it. After Uncle Bobby moved leaves and dirt off of the door, he unlocked it and we climbed inside. We had to climb down a twenty foot ladder before we were actually inside. When we made it inside, I saw that the place looked like a big apartment. It had shagged carpeting, there was a flat screen on the wall. As well as a couch that sat in front of it. In the next room was a kitchen and a sink with running water as well as a refrigerator filled with food. There was also a table to sit at in the kitchen and chandelier above the table.

“This shelter has four bedrooms so since there is five of us one of you has to share a room.” said Bobby.

“I don’t mind sharing a room with James,” I said.

“Good,” Bobby agreed. “You two get the twin beds. Anyway. I’ am going to go find the rest of the family.”

“Are you crazy?” asked Sarah.

“Sort of,” Uncle Bobby joked. “Look I want to make sure the rest of my family is safe and maybe bring them here. So I’m going to be gone for a few days.”

“A few days!” Chad reacted.

“It’s your job to take care of eachother while I’m gone. So don’t leave the shelter, don’t let anyone in unless it’s me and do not under any circumstances touch the gun container. I don’t need any missing limbs or splattered brains all over the place.”

“How will we know it is you Uncle Bobby?” I asked.

“I will knock three times and then stop for five seconds and then knock two more times. So be listening for me. If I am not back in three days, don't come looking for me. It will only get worse out there.”

“I’m out of here,” Uncle Bobby mused as he walked away from us. “Be safe.”

We heard him walk over to the latter and start climbing. We then heard the door slam and not long afterwards he locked it. We were now alone in the shelter as the world continued to fall to pieces.

End of Chapter 1

Submitted August 09, 2017 at 02:22AM by AmazingLover96 http://ift.tt/2vBfUJe libraryofshadows

Night Shade (Chapter 1 Lights Out) libraryofshadows

As Cliche as it sounds, it was just a normal day for me. I woke up, dragged my ass out of bed and took a shower. After that, I got dressed and ate the same breakfast food as always. A fucking bowl of cereal, but today I was feeling extra fancy, so I microwaved some bacon to go with it. After I ate, I grabbed my keys, and got in my car and drove to my job at the local grocery store. I walked inside and went to my assigned lane. This was my day in a nutshell and just like my life it was completely unfair. I missed out on so much in life, I have never left the state of Kentucky, I have no kids, no girlfriend, and no family that is even halfway decent. I am almost completely alone in life.

The only friend I have is my friend James. We have been knowing each other since sixth grade and he has been there for me through thick and thin. We have made friends throughout the years but they all got married and had children. So James and I are the only ones who are still enjoying the single life. We don't see our old friends because they don't really get much time to hangout between their wives, kids and jobs. There was one thing about that night that made things different and it was that James and I were going to have a horror movie marathon at his apartment. We each chipped in on a list of horror movies that we agreed on. We ended up spending fifty dollars on horror movies. After doing the math we had about twelve hours worth of movies to watch.

I was looking so forward to it that I almost forgot to clock out when I left work. When I got to his house, he greeted me at the door.

“Whats up bro? Did you get the stuff?” he asked casually.

“Whats this look like to you? I said. “Green eggs?” I said holding up the bags of chips and other junk food.

“If you keep busting my balls like that, I’ll have your ass.” James warned.

“Yeah, right.” I sarcastically said as I walked passed him and into his apartment.

“What should we watch first?” James asked.

“I say we watch The Eye, starring Jessica Alba.” I suggested.

“I want to watch Nightmare on Elm Street.” James disagreed.

“Dude you know I’ve seen that movie twenty times.”

“Lets flip on it.” I said. “Heads.” I took a quarter out of my pocket and I flipped it into the air. The quarter went into the air and fell on the floor and it landed it on Tales.

“Shit!” I shouted.

After sitting through thirty minutes of the movie, I began to drift off into sleep. I woke up when James turned the lights on and the credits were rolling.

“Rise and shine Simon.” James said.

“What time is it?” I asked.

“It’s 11:30 am, but look outside.

I looked out of one of his windows and saw that it was still dark outside

“Why is it still dark outside?”

“I don't know Simon. Scientists are saying that the sun's light isn't shining on the Earth anymore.”

“Then why aren’t we freezing to death?” I asked.

“That is the mystery. What is keeping us warm?”

I pulled out my phone and googled the news. I then got on my local news website and saw that riots were occurring. It was downright crazy, people were breaking windows, setting cars on fire, fighting each other. The worst thing I saw was a guy bashed a woman's head in with a baseball bat. I turned off the broadcast and I saw that James was almost as pale as a ghost.

“Dude that riot is downtown. That is five miles from here.”

Suddenly my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and saw that it was my Uncle Bobby.

“Hello.”

“Simon. Take whatever you can and meet me in BeattyVille.” Bobby told me in a very frantic tone of voice.

“Wait have you been watching the news it's crazy out-

“Just do it Simon! Meet me at the address I’m about to tell you.”

I told James to hand me a pen and paper. I then wrote down the address Uncle Bobby wanted me to go to.

“I got it down,” I told him.

“Good, now when you get there ask the bartender for Dan.”

After that he hung up.

“What was that all about?” asked James.

“That was Uncle Bobby,” I replied. “He wants me to go to some bar in BeattyVille.”

“I don't know if we should trust that guy. All our lives he has been obsessed with the end of the world. Remember when we were in highschool and he paid us to help build that bomb shelter.

“Yes I do, but look-

“I’m going with you because I don’t trust that guy. Yes something really weird is going on but I doubt it's doomsday.”

“Let’s go,” I said.

I grabbed my overnight bag and we made our way to my car. After putting my bag into the trunk, I got in the car and I pulled out of James driveway. Thankfully James lived close to the freeway but traffic was terrible. The jam was worse than any that I ever been. Even worse than U Of K and U Of L basketball games. The whole freeway was a parking lot.

“Fucking Christ!” I yelled. “Where the Hell are these people going?”

“Shh, listen.” James said.

I stopped talking and listened to the radio. There was breaking news reporting that various animal attacks were occurring throughout Louisville and other cities in the country. Cats and dogs were getting loose and attacking people. Birds were swooping down and clawing at people. It was not all birds but ones that people were keeping as pets. It was only domesticated animals that were attacking people. There were no reports of zoo animals doing any harm but this whole situation seemed like a whole lot of calamity. The announcer also said that people should head to a military safe zone in Lexington.

“Maybe we should go there.” said James.

“To Lexington? No,” “Why not? It's probably a safer place than your Uncle Bobbys.”

“Look I have no idea what is going on but I think we should trust Bobby this time.”

“Oh come on Simon. Remember back in 2012 when he was convinced that the Mayan calendar was right?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Look I don't mean to be rude but-

“We are not going to Lexington!” I shouted. “I don't want to hear anymore bullshit talk about how crazy my uncle is or whats going on, got it?”

“Alright, chill out bro,” James replied, surprised by my outburst.

I didn't know if this was a temporary problem or something new entirely but I remembered one important fact that Uncle Bobby taught me about the end of the world. When civilization falls, it falls fast. Major cities looked like they were suffering pretty badly from what was going on so I knew Lexington was a bad idea. It did not take very long for traffic to die down and for things to speed back up again. I continued the drive to Beattyville, James and I kept quiet during the drive and we continued to listen to the news. After a couple of hours I turned the radio off. I knew things were getting bad and I was tired of hearing it over and over again.

When we made it to Beattyville, I put the address of the bar in my GPS and I followed the directions. When we arrived at the bar I noticed that it looked like more of an old shack than an actual building. The place reminded me of the Bootleg Barbecue restaurant in Louisville. After parking, James and I got out of the car and when we tried to go into the bar the door was locked. So I tried knocking.

“We’re closed.” A voice said from inside the bar.

I knocked again.

“I said we are closed damn it!” The person shouted.

“Bobby sent us.” James said.

The door flung open and a tall muscular, wild eyed man stood before us. He wore a pair of tattered jeans and a I heart beer T-shirt. The camouflage baseball cap on his head had seen better days in its old age.

“Bobby sent you two,” the man said in with a deep southern drawl. “Yes sir,” James replied.

“Shit, that man has a tab bigger than a horses dick.”

“I’ll pay his tab if you let us in,” I promised. “Things aren't so good out here.”

The man let us into the bar.

“Damn. This place looks more old and rundown than Bobby does,” James commented.

I gave him a dirty look.

“Yeah my dad hasn’t really taken good care of this place since grandpa died.” The man said.

“Is your dad named Dan?” I asked.

“Yeah. My name is Chad by the way,” The man said.

“I’m Simon and thats James.”

“Nice to meet you guys. Now why did Bobby send you guys here?”

“I don’t know but I think it has to do with what’s going on in the cities.”

“Well I can assure you that you guys are safe here in town because it’s always been quiet and boring here in Beattyville.” said Chad.

“Can you call your dad for us because for whatever reason we need to talk to Dan.

“No problem,”

Chad pulled out his cell phone and called Dan.

“Son of a bitch!” Chad said firmly.

“What?” I said.

“The fucking phone lines are down,”

“Great!” James remarked.

“Well he just went to run some errands about thirty minutes ago he is probably on his way back.”

“Have you been watching the news?” I asked.

“Yeah, it just seems like people are going crazy over something as usual. I don’t know if it has to do with politics or what but I have never seen riots like this before.” Chad replied.

“People’s pets are going nuts man!”

“What?”

“Yeah, dogs are mauling their owners to death and the same goes with cats.” James explained.

Suddenly the door burst open and an older guy came scrambling inside. He then slammed the door behind him. He was breathing really hard from being out of breath from running. I also noticed that he was holding a hunting rifle in his right hand.

“My truck broke down,” He said.

“Are you okay dad,” said Chad.

“No! Mrs. Davis Dogs broke loose and tried to attack me. So I had to shoot them. Next thing I know ten more dogs showed up I shot four of them but more just kept coming.”

I heard the sound of dogs barking outside. So I looked out of the window, I counted fifteen dogs outside that were barking ferociously.

“Holy fuck!” I said.

“So what do we do?” asked James.

“I don’t know,” I replied fearfully as I looked back at James. “I say we wait for Uncle Bobby to get here. He will have some ideas.”

“Who knows how long that will be,” Chad said. “I don’t want to be stuck in this bar being held hostage by dogs.”

Suddenly we heard the sound of tires squealing. I looked out of the window and saw an R.V storming into the parking lot of the bar, hitting some of the dogs in the process. The dogs began to surround the R.V. Next thing I knew the front door of the R.V burst open and someone fired a shotgun at one of the dogs. Its head exploded and blood and brain matter went everywhere. frightened by the blast the dogs backed off a little bit. That was when I saw the man that we had been waiting for, my crazy Uncle Bobby. He jumped out of the R.V holding his twelve gage shotgun and began running towards the bar. One of the dogs tried to get in front of him on his way to the door but that dog was soon made into swiss cheese by Bobby's gun. Uncle Bobby stormed into the bar and slammed the door behind him.

“We have to go right now!” Uncle Bobby frantically shouted.

James gave him a weird look

“Those dogs out there will-

“I will hold off the dogs James. All of you just get to the R.V.”

“If you think I’ going out there with those dogs Bobby your crazy,” Chad said.

“What choice do we have?” James asked. “We can't just sit here.”

“Dan is right and so is Bobby,” I told Chad. “We have to get out there.”

“Here is the plan,” Bobby said. “Dan and I will hold off the dogs while you guys get too the R.V.”

“Let’s Go!” Shouted Bobby.

We burst out of the door and ran towards the R.V. Uncle Bobby and Dan shot in the air to get the dogs away from us. I saw them move to another part of the parking lot as the dogs went in their direction. As we were heading in the direction of the R.V one of the dogs saw us and barked to get the other dog's attention. I spend up and made it to the R.V, I then opened the door and jumped inside. James and Chad followed behind me. I could hear the dogs barking outside the R.V as I fired up the vehicle. I then heard the sound of the dogs screaming as gunfire invaded the air. I looked out the window and saw Uncle Bobby and Dan making their way too the R.V.

The fired shot after shot as they ran but out of nowhere Dan ran out of ammo. He began to run as fast as he could to the R.V but it was no use. The dogs surrounded him and within seconds they we all over him. I watched in horror as they tore him apart, they ripped chunks of meat from his body as they rounusly dug into his torso.

“DAD NO!” Chad yelled.

I heard the R.V door open.

“Drive, Drive, Drive!” Uncle Bobby hollard.

I put the R.V in gear and drove away from the bar as quickly as possible without killing us. Uncle Bobby walked over and say in the front seat next to me.

“Where to?” I asked.

“The Bomb Shelter. It’s safe there.”

We continued to drive down the dark back road with Bobby telling me where to go but without warning a girl jumped in front of the R.V waving her arms. I slammed on the breaks hoping to god I would not hit her. When the R.V stopped. She ran to the side of the R.V and got in. I heard the sound of Dogs barking so I literally put the pedal to the metal and floored it out of there.

“Thank you,” said the girl.

“Who are you?” asked Chad.

“I’m Sarah.”

“What happened to you?” I asked.

“My Uncles hunting dogs just went berserk and next thing I know they mauled him to death. So I ran out of there. They chased me all the way to this road and here I am now. I just need to know what they hell is going on here. Why hasn’t the sun come up? It’s 2:30 in the afternoon.”

“We don’t know,” I said. “Cats and dogs are going nuts. The sun hasn’t come up.”

“None of this shit makes sense,” said Uncle Bobby

“Turn on the radio,” Sarah said.

When we turned on the radio all we got was static. We tried changing the stations and after so many we finally found a news station. It was telling people which cities were falling and how bad the catastrophes were. New York City had fallen and so had Louisville Kentucky. Omaha Nebraska had fallen as well. After we heard that we turned off the radio.

“It’s like total anarchy out there.” said James.

“I know,” said Uncle Bobby. “Civilization is falling and it’s falling fast.”

Uncle Bobby gave me directions to the bomb shelter and I followed them. I must’ve driven for at least an hour on this back road before finally I was told to drive down this dirt road. I drove down an isolated dirt road for a few minutes then Uncle Bobby told me to stop. We all got out of the R.V and we began walking into the forest. He must’ve walked at least a mile before we found the bomb shelter. It looked like a manhole in the middle of the woods with a small window on it. After Uncle Bobby moved leaves and dirt off of the door, he unlocked it and we climbed inside. We had to climb down a twenty foot ladder before we were actually inside. When we made it inside, I saw that the place looked like a big apartment. It had shagged carpeting, there was a flat screen on the wall. As well as a couch that sat in front of it. In the next room was a kitchen and a sink with running water as well as a refrigerator filled with food. There was also a table to sit at in the kitchen and chandelier above the table.

“This shelter has four bedrooms so since there is five of us one of you has to share a room.” said Bobby.

“I don’t mind sharing a room with James,” I said.

“Good,” Bobby agreed. “You two get the twin beds. Anyway. I’ am going to go find the rest of the family.”

“Are you crazy?” asked Sarah.

“Sort of,” Uncle Bobby joked. “Look I want to make sure the rest of my family is safe and maybe bring them here. So I’m going to be gone for a few days.”

“A few days!” Chad reacted.

“It’s your job to take care of eachother while I’m gone. So don’t leave the shelter, don’t let anyone in unless it’s me and do not under any circumstances touch the gun container. I don’t need any missing limbs or splattered brains all over the place.”

“How will we know it is you Uncle Bobby?” I asked.

“I will knock three times and then stop for five seconds and then knock two more times. So be listening for me. If I am not back in three days, don't come looking for me. It will only get worse out there.”

“I’m out of here,” Uncle Bobby mused as he walked away from us. “Be safe.”

We heard him walk over to the latter and start climbing. We then heard the door slam and not long afterwards he locked it. We were now alone in the shelter as the world continued to fall to pieces.

End of Chapter 1

Submitted August 09, 2017 at 02:22AM by AmazingLover96 http://ift.tt/2vBfUJe libraryofshadows