"She"
by Fiza Joseph
And it was at this point that I realized, something was incredibly wrong.
My palms were sweaty and my throat was dry. I felt the hairs on the back of my neck standing up and I couldn’t help but think about who, or more importantly what, was breathing down my back.
“Alyssa, run. Alyssa, run. Run as fast as you can!”
I heard all these voices in my head and I saw a light beaming from across the room. I felt like I was running towards the light except my feet were frozen. I hadn’t moved a muscle and yet I felt my nerves running. I finally gathered myself and I noticed movement. It was so sudden. I didn’t know if anything really even moved but I know I caught a glimpse of something. My fear began growing and my heart was pounding. I noticed a shadow hovering behind me. And second by second the shadow was coming around my side… to... face me... I noticed the shadow from the corner of my eye and as it got close to my left shoulder, I darted.
I don’t recall my feet touching the wooden floor and almost instantly I was already in the room across the hall. I stood right under the low beaming light and I looked at the entire room. I looked back at my room and this is when my fear, my thoughts, my nightmare came to life. Old, wrinkly and discolored fingers grabbed a hold of the corner of my door and slowly, the door began to close. The creek of the door resembled the high pitch of a scream and I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I couldn’t see them but they could see me. The thought of looking so weak, mortified and vulnerable sent shivers down my spine. I didn’t want to feel like this anymore. I was done being the victim and I was done being scared of something I hadn’t fully seen. I don’t know what came over me and I ran back. Those few seconds left before that door shut and I didn’t know what had taken control of my room, my life and now, me.
I grabbed the door as it was inches away from closing and I stared down at the fingers wrapped along the corner of my door. I knew this wasn’t my imagination because I felt the presence of whatever was on the other side of this door. It wasn’t happy. And, it didn’t like my interference. Those gruesome fingers grasped the door tighter and I felt the nails sink into the door. I didn’t know if this was the worst decision I had ever made considering this is what I feared all my life. All my childhood I couldn’t sleep peacefully in my room and as a child, I couldn’t have sleepovers because there was an uninvited guest living my room. But, this had to come to an end. And this was when I placed my other hand on top of this monster. I had never felt something so cold yet at the same time something so hot because it was burning from anger. I couldn’t do this anymore. I was done.
I yelled yet nothing came out. My throat was still dry and my voice was gone. I realized why this was such a bad mistake and I let go and attempted to run back when I realized it was too late. I turned and something was holding on to my wrist. I didn’t want to look and I didn’t want to know. I felt the cold dry skin digging into my flesh. And I felt the overgrown nails grazing my hand. I screamed as loud as I could yet no one helped. Tears rolled down my face and I knew this was the end of it. The door swung open and I was pushed onto the floor facing my room. All I saw was darkness. But this time, I heard something. It wasn’t quite like anything I’ve heard before, it was more like a monstrous growl that resembled breathing. I waited... It was all I could do.
The same hand came out and I slowly began to crawl backwards. Then, the other hand came out. The breathing turned to crying and it sounded like a little girl asking for help. I sat, horrified, at what was happening. Her head came out, hair covering her face. It seemed like she was trying to crawl out to me. It seemed like she needed my help or like she needed to convey something to me. I was numb. I didn’t know what to say and I didn’t know what to do. Again, all I could was wait for this to be over and for her to leave me alone. She slowly and slowly came towards me. Her skin was pale white and ghostly gray. With the breathing and crying, I heard chains. Like, someone was dragging chains along the floor.
And this was when it all made sense. She was chained to the room. Her ankles were chained to something that trailed back to my closet. She tortured me because she needed my help. My help to escape this prison. She was being held there against her will and she couldn’t help but suffer there, alone. I wanted to help but I couldn’t. My fear was at its peak and I was crawling back as she was crawling forward. She grabbed my foot and let out a screech before she was pulled back by the chains with her nails digging into the floor and the door slammed shut. … I woke up the next morning, in my bed, and I looked around.
Everything looked normal. Everything looked perfect. My closet was closed and my room was tidy. I heard birds outside and I felt a cool breeze coming in through the window. It was then that I realized it was just a dream. It took me a minute to get myself together and as I headed downstairs and opened my door, I shook down to my core. There were markings of nails digging into the floor leading to my room. My knees were weak and I turned around to look behind me and it hit me. I fell to the ground unconscious.
"Lost and Found"
by Amy Daskilewitz
Jake Bell and Dan Bright had been missing for quite some time. With no leads or solid evidence, their case was about to go cold. That is why Detective Kevin Pitt was rather eager when a call came in from a man saying that he had some pertinent information.
It was the very end of the day. Everyone else had already gone home. Shortly after his last co-worker left, the man he spoke to on the phone earlier arrived.
“Thank you for seeing me so late,” he said. “I wasn’t able to come any sooner.”
“That’s all right,” Kevin replied. “Now, come with me to our conference room and we’ll get started.” The two entered the room and sat down at the table. Kevin pulled a recorder from his pocket, turned it on, and set it on the table.
“It’s October 22nd, 2018 at 6:19 PM,” he began. “This is Detective Kevin Pitt. What is your name?”
“Arius Dart,” the man replied.
“Mr. Dart called the precinct earlier saying that he has information in regards to the Bell/Bright case,” Kevin continued. “Is that correct?”
“Yes,” answered Arius. “I have a video camera. I watched what was on it and I figured that you’d want to see it.” Arius pulled the video camera out of the messenger bag he had with him. He set in on the table, and pushed the playback button. Dan Bright appeared on the small screen. He appeared to be in a parking lot.
“Hey, everybody,” Dan greeted. “I’m Dan. That’s Jake behind the camera. Welcome to another Bell and Bright adventure! Today, we’re right here in Michigan. We’re at TPM Mall which has been abandoned for almost half a decade now. Let’s see what we can find!” The scene then cut to inside the mall. It was dark except for the light coming from the camera and Dan’s flashlight. It was hard to see what was around, but what could be seen was a mess. Water dripped from the ceiling; and the was from the pieces of ceiling that were still intact. The tiles on the ground were broken and dirty. Mold was everywhere As the footage progressed, not too much happened. Dan pulled on a lot of gates, but they were locked.
“There’s no too much here,” Jake complained off camera. “I don’t think that this one’ll be too interesting for our viewers.”
“Yeah,” replied Dan. “Let’s keep looking a little while longer. If we can’t get anything soon, we’ll call it.”
Suddenly, Jake’s face then crinkled “Ew!” he shouted “Do you smell that?”
“Oh, gross!” said Jake. “I do. What is that? It smells like something rotting; like a dead animal.”
“If we find them it that should make for some good content,” Dan offered. “I’m going to try to follow the smell.” The two boys continued to walk as Dan occasionally sniffed the air. They followed it until they were in front of a store simply called, “Welcome.” The oddest thing about it was that it didn’t have a gate. They boys were able to just walk right in. “I wonder what kind of store this was,” said Dan.
“It’s really small.” Jake pointed the camera at a door and said, “We could check in the back room. Maybe there’ll be some cool stuff in it. The two went over to the door and opened it. However, the door didn’t make a normal sounds. It sounded more like someone saying, “Shhh…” They didn’t seem to notice though. They were too distracted by the huge back area. “Whoa, this is so weird,” said Jake.
“Yeah, “ agreed Dan as he looked around. “I still can’t tell what kind of store this is. There’s not much back here; just corridors. It’s kinda like a maze.”
As Jake walked around, he got a shot of a book with a blank cover. “Dan, come look at this book,” said Jake. “There might be some interesting material inside.” Dan came over and picked it up. Immediately, he shouted and dropped the book. “What happened?” questioned Jake. “It was hot!” Dan said in shock.
“You’re kidding me,” said Jake, incredulously.
“I’m serious!” insisted Dan. “Wait. Do you hear that?”
The two boys were quiet as they listened. It was incredibly faint at first, but then there was the undeniable sound of whispering. The sound was coming from behind a nearby door that said, “Office.”
“I’m so scared,” whispered Jake. Just then, Dan pointed off screen, towards the floor, and went as white as a sheet. Jake pointed the camera to what Dan was looking at. When Dan dropped the book, it had opened. Written on the two pages were Jake and Dan’s names. Just then, there was the sound of a door opening. Jake swung the camera and now it was pointing at the office door.
Standing in the doorway was Arius.
“Welcome,” he said. “I’ve been waiting for you.”
The boys screamed and then the video ended. As the reality of it all sunk in, Kevin looked at Arius, terrified. “Why are you in the video?” he asked meekly.
“You know why,” replied Arius. “Did you murder them?” asked Kevin.
“No,” answered Arius. “I was merely collecting them. It was there time to go. They both had such a sense of adventure. It was decided that they should die while on an adventure together. That’s also why the bodies have been withheld. Their corpses will show up soon.”
With that, Arius waved his hand and made the video camera disappear. Then, he picked up the recorder and crushed it.
“Why are you telling me this?” Kevin wanted to know. Arius was silent as he went into his messenger bag to retrieve a book with nothing on the cover. He opened it up and showed it to Kevin. It said, “Kevin Pitt.”
“I figured you’d want to know the end of the story before it was time to go,” he replied evenly. “Welcome. I’ve been waiting for you.”
by Emily Cullen
A young man and his family move into a new home listed as 1020 Main Street. The young man’s parents bought the house with such excitement and didn’t look into its history. This was a grave mistake that would change their lives forever. 2 weeks after moving into their new home the young man noticed a change.. His father became more reclusive and his alcoholism brought so much anger and hatred towards the family. As the months flew by the young man and his mother grew distant from the father as if he wasn’t himself anymore.. It was as if something has taken him over. The truth would soon be answered when one night, Precisely at 2 am the young man woke up in fear, not only could he not scream but he was held down to his bed, Flat on his back as if he was being held down by an unknown force. With all his might He looked towards his bedroom window “only able to move his neck” And what he saw next would haunt him for the rest of his days. Outside his window was a menacing figure shrouded by a light blue like haze and a face of what seemed to be an owl, That was the last thing he saw before losing all conscious. The very same night the mother heard a blood wrenching scream and ran out to the backyard, She watched as her husband was lifted into the sky by a beam of light. The force broke his back in two and he was killed while being raised into the unknown. The next morning the young man woke up as if nothing happened last night except...one thing, He lifted his shirt and found a scar in the shape of a pentagram lashed on his chest and a pain coming from his head. Once the man found his mother crying outback and seeing only his father's shoes lying on the ground, The boy realized the house was not haunted but they were indeed visited and abducted by aliens. The young man was left speechless and amazed but things still weren't adding up. Because weeks prior to these events, The young man knew the house had a dark energy to it. He went to the local library and found some very disturbing facts. The house was used to home the homeless and it was also a place where people used drugs.. the house did not have an original owner for at least 100 years. Upon more research he found out that in the late 1800’s early 1900’s The land was buried over native ground and people have practiced satanic rituals right at the very spot the house was built on. The most disturbing information, a child lived there and slept in the very same room as the young man but mysteriously disappeared around the early AM hours. The only thing left was his shoes and sadly...his severed head was found in the valley a block away from the house which is now the local playground. So much disgust filled with the young man's head he said to himself “how could they even sell this home to us without telling us about that boy” just when he thought things couldn't get any worse..He walked up his street and seen a figure walking towards his homes driveway. As he got closer, he dropped his backpack in fear.. His father was back. His father however had a different feeling.. it was as if he was just a shell, a mindless zombie. His father couldn't open the door and could barely walk straight. He acted as if he was a puppet on strings. The young boy yelled at his father “what happened!?” His father turned to look at the young man. The young man could not believe his eyes when his father faced him. His father's eyes were completely scooped out and tongue was removed.. All he could here was his father moan and gurgle. As quick as the young man could, he grabbed his backpack and ran into the backyard to get his mom safely out of the house. The young man yelled “Mom we need to leave, NOW” without question the mother and young man ran out to the backyard in an effort to escape the house. As they ran, the lifeless father yelled/growled and ran at speeds that are not human. The young man got his mother to safety, His mother entered their minivan and hoped the young man can escape the deranged creature that was once his father.. Luckily the young man and the mother escaped and never returned to the house again.
Will Rodebaugh
It’s almost that time of year Halloween. The time where you see people all around dressing up and trying to scare others. Well, I know something very scary that can probably make Halloween even scarier -- anxiety. In fact, I know about someone who really got anxiety to scare him on Halloween. There was a college student named John who always tried to get all of his work done on time. He never missed an assignment in his life. His professors were so impressed that he always got everything done before the deadline. Did I mention he used his diligence to help him do this? When an assignment came, his worries that he wouldn’t get things done on time would come as well. Diligence was the tool to fight anxiety and get stuff done on time. One time his two younger brothers, Andy and Joseph, really wanted to test him. With permission from his parents, they got in contact with his accounting professor. His brothers told the professor to give John five assignments to get done by Halloween. All the assignment would be on the topic of cash flow statements. To add more pressure, they planned at random times to put holograms of Halloween symbols like ghosts on the walls. They would set them up in his bedroom and in the campus lobby. This was a very strange form of motivation. John got the assignment from his teachers, and he was startled. He knew what he had to do. It was now the morning of October 30th. As soon as John got to the campus he got to work. He still had forty-five minutes before his first class. Within that time he got two of the five assignment completed. “Good timing”, he thought to himself. However, as soon as he got done, the lights went out and a booming voice said, “John, if you don’t get the three remaining homework assignments done by midnight tomorrow you will face an undecided consequence”. John was extremely frightened after hearing it. John was very pressured by that sound. He really was convinced that the booming voice he heard was real. It wasn’t just an extreme fear to him it was an extreme motivation. The third assignment had been the most pressuring and time consuming one. He spent four hours of doing it on campus. Throughout those hours he noticed images of ghosts, monsters, skeletons, and other Halloween symbols flashing all over the walls of the lobby. Every time they appeared the room would get darker. At home, John did his work in his bedroom on his special large orange desk. After John completed the third assignment, it was midnight, and it had just turned Halloween. He noticed that as he was getting through his assignments more of his anxiety went away. However, when he was halfway through, it got dark again. Also, really loud sounds came from the background of screaming, yelling, and loud piano and electric guitar sounds. Something was certainty going on, and instead of getting to the bottom of it, he kept doing his work regardless of how dark it was or how loud the music was. As he got deeper and deeper in to his cash flow statements everything was beginning to go back to normal. Finally, John got the third assignment completed. However, to his dismay he would have classes all day and other events and not be able to get done till ten. That meant that starting at ten he would have to hustle to get the two more assignments completed before something really bad could happen to him. When ten hit he went right back to the desk in his bedroom. There the darkness and loud noises had returned. The final hour had come and he had one more cash flow statement to fill out but this one was the hardest. He had noticed the more anxious he got the more intimidating the noise was. He heard the booming voice call to him again “Time is almost up, one more hour left, you will never get it done it time. The doom will belong to you”. John then replied back to the voice, “ yeah, that’s not going to happen, diligence is my defense”. With that said he got the statement written with twenty-six minutes left. John then found out that the booming voice was his brother Joseph. He also learned that the noises, symbols and darkness were programmed by his tech savvy brother Andy. They explained to him that they wanted to see how well he could beat the deadline with a high amount of homework and distraction at the same time. This was a test that John had passed with flying colors. John also realized the diligence is a great defense when fighting anxiety.
Nicholas Altomare
Death Valley Funeral Parlor
This is the story of the Death Valley Funeral Parlor, which has been around for centuries. It all started when Mark was a child. He grew up in a funeral parlor with his brother Glenn. They would always play around in the parlor, for they didn't have a care in the world. The most peculiar part was that they never actually knew what their parents did for a living because, as children, they were alway out of the house either going to school or playing with their friends. One thing that stood out for the boys was that their parents always seemed to be “party hosts.” You see, there was always this door that they, as children, were told that they were never allowed into under any circumstances. They never paid any attention to that door anyway since they were busy playing with other kids and doing the fun things that kids like to do. One day, Glenn and Mark saw that the aforementioned door to the basement set of rooms was open. Mark said," Glenn,” we shouldn't even think about going down there because our parents said that it was off limits. Glenn replied to Mark," It doesn't even seem like anybody is down there. Plus, Mom and Dad are sleeping. It won't hurt to take a peek." Being reluctant, Mark agreed. As they were walking down the stairs slowly, the electricity went out in the whole place. Mark said," Oh, Heck no, Glenn. We definitely should not be doing this. Mom and Dad are gonna wake up to take care of the electrical, and, if they see us, they will kill us.” Glenn just ignored him, and they both kept going down the steps. As they were walking down those steps, the door was slammed shut behind them so loudly that they both jumped and tumbled down the rest of the steps. Suddenly, both of them were scared for their lives. They then heard whispering sounds coming from all around them. They had no clue as to what they were actually hearing. Glenn said to Mark nervously," This could be some prank or something like that, right?" Mark looked at him and said," Are you kidding me…? We could be in some huge trouble, and Mom and Dad are trying to scare the crap out of us!" Both being suddenly scared for their lives, they continued forward, staying close together, practically holding on to each other for dear life. As they were walking, they both noticed that was was getting colder. " Ow, I just bumped into something really hard and cold.” They pulled out a flashlight and looked around, and they saw that it was a block of ice. Mark was confused and asked Glenn," Why would they need huge blocks of ice?" Glen laughed," For all the parties they have here." Mark understood. They looked around at the blocks of ice, and what they saw was something that they had never before seen in a house. It was a dead, naked body. They both screamed and tried to run for the stairs. They kept coming back to the same block of ice. At this point, they felt such fear and confusion and began to panic. All of a sudden, Glen seemingly vanished and was then nowhere to be found. Mark was scared for his life. He put up his fists and screamed," WHO IS THERE?!?!" Now Mark, fearing for his life, called for help, but the only response he got was the howl of the wind and the crackle of electrical fire as flames shot up, and the house was suddenly reduced to a pile of charred ruins. Apparently, no one was there to hear Mark’s screams. This was frustrating to Mark, who now felt more afraid and more alone than at any time in his life. The only thing that could be heard was the roar of the storm. As this was happening, the basement started to fill with water that was seemingly coming in from outside. As he looked up to the skies, he was struck with a terrifying bolt of electricity that fried his insides and instantly turned his body to ashes. The ashes then blended into the water and were swept away in the water that filled up the basement. After that, nothing was ever heard from the family again. Now, as travelers pass through The Death Valley Desert, the soul of Mark, who died that night in the funeral parlor, practically haunt them, as they are able to almost feel what Mark went through. One tiny question remains: Whatever happened to Glenn? Have you seen him…………………….?
