Dr. Creepen's Dungeon - S5 Ep288: Episode 288: Shocking Horror Stories

Episode Date: November 5, 2025

Use the promo code SUPERBAD for 10% off all T-shirts! https://dr-creepens-vault.creator-spring.com/listing/the-devil-is-in-the-detail Tonight’s terrifying opening tale of horror is ‘Do Not Let the Ghosts of Chernobyl Touch You’, a wonderful original work by Screwaudi, kindly shared with me for the express purpose of having me narrate it here for you all.  https://www.reddit.com/user/screwaudi/ https://www.reddit.com/r/DrCreepensVault/comments/nff5bj/do_not_let_the_ghosts_of_chernobyl_touch_you/ Today’s next offering of the macabre is ‘Let Me In’, an original story by Will Rayne, kindly shared directly with me for the express purpose of having me exclusively narrate it here for you all.  https://www.reddit.com/user/WillRayne/ Today’s third tale of the macabre is ‘On the Road to Nowhere’, an original story by Will Rayne, kindly shared directly with me for the express purpose of having me exclusively narrate it here for you all.  https://www.reddit.com/user/WillRayne/ Our penultimate tale of security footage horror is ‘The Strangest Security Tape I've Ever Seen’, a story credited to Powerhawkmash and read here under the conditions of the CC-BY-SA license. https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/The_Strangest_Security_Tape_I%27ve_Ever_Seen Today’s final story is ‘We Built a Portal Gun’, an original story by Will Rayne, kindly shared directly with me for the express purpose of having me exclusively narrate it here for you all.  https://www.reddit.com/user/WillRayne/

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We believe OCT scans are so important they're included with every standard eye exam. Book an eye exam at Spexsavers.cavers.cai.c. Eye exams are provided by independent optometrists. Visit Spexsavers.com to learn more. Welcome to Dr. Creepin's dungeon. Shocking horror stories fascinate us because they jolt us out of the ordinary and confront us with the unthinkable. They push past the boundaries of comfort and morality, forcing us to peer into the darkest corners of human nature and imagination. In that moment of terror or disbelief, our sense is sharpened.

We feel alive even as we recoil. Beneath the horror lies curiosity. I need to understand what drives madness, cruelty. or the supernatural. When the story ends, we're left shaken but safe, having explored the abyss without falling in. A thrilling reminder of just how fragile and precious our own reality is, as we shall see in tonight's collection of stories. Now, as ever before we begin, a word of caution.

Tonight's tales may contain strong language as well as descriptions of violence and horrific imagery. That sounds like your kind of thing. Then let's begin. Do not let the ghost. of Chernobyl touch you. I always wondered why ghost hunters never went to Chernobyl. I see movies where they have monsters or mutated animals there, but I've never seen anything on ghosts. You think with the nuclear meltdown and the amount of deaths that happened there, they'd have some activity going on. It piqued my interest so much that I planned a trip there. Well, I've been on small

ghost hunts all over the country before, so I was no stranger to this stuff. And I've been to the supposed most haunted places, but never really found anything interesting. Yeah, I've seen some weird stuff on my journeys, but never anything like what I came across in Chernobyl. The ghosts are completely different there. I'm not sure if it's the radiation before their death or after their death that completely mutated them. For the trip, I had to make sure I went alone. That was my thing. I noticed you get more paranormal activity when you go alone. Maybe they feel that they have more power over one person than a group of people. But by choosing to go alone, it made the trip extremely difficult and much more dangerous. After months of planning and studying

the land, I was finally there. I drove as far as I could, and walked a few hours more to get there. I arrived early on in the day hoping to hit all the landmarks, the ferris wheel, the Azure Swimming Portland, the iconic rows of abandoned apartment buildings reclaimed by nature. When I finally arrived, I immediately started setting up my gear. I set up my camera and started live streaming the event online. I had a few dying hard fans that watched me live, but I mostly did the live stream as a type of insurance. If anything bad happened,

I was hoping someone watching would call for help or alert the police. The first few hours were uneventful. They didn't hear or see anything. My supposed voice box was not picking up anything. I was honestly about to start packing up my gear when I noticed a comment on my live stream. Who's that following you? Is that a cameraman?

Following me. Nobody's following me, I assured them. I came here alone. It's just me. I panned around and retraced my steps, but nothing was there. I thought for sure someone was trolling me, but more comments kept popping up from different people. Who's that behind you?

They asked. I always made chills run down my spine, but I had to keep my composure. I mean, this could be a local, or worse, someone looking to rob me. I did have a few thousand dollars worth of gear on me. Being all alone in an abandoned city made me a very vulnerable target. If anything went wrong, I was screwed, but I had to find out who was following me.

Okay, and let's see how close we can get to it. I remembered entering a room with a mirror immediately adjacent to the door. Maybe I could catch a glimpse of whoever was. following me using that. I circled around, I made my way towards that door. When I'd left, the door was opened, but upon my return, it was closed and locked shut. Oh fuck, this is going to take some time, I told my viewers. I left my camera facing the door and tried to force it open, but it felt like this door was nailed shut, even though I'd just been through here. I decided to give it all my strength in three pushes and then give up.

I mean, I should probably be heading back soon anyway. One, two, three, bang. It flew open. I landed a few feet in front of the mirror, laughing, brushing the dust off myself when I remembered why I'm here in the first place. The follower? I looked up into the mirror and saw a pitch black mass floating behind me. I should have run, but I was completely frozen in fear.

This didn't seem like a ghost, but more like a black hole had appeared behind me. Suddenly the mass reached out towards me. Before I could flinch or even close my eyes in fear, everything went black. I don't know how long I was passed out for, but when I woke up, I was in a completely different place. Everything felt different. The air was warm with a slight noticeable draught blowing in one direction. I stood up and noticed that the room was now covered in it. an inch of dust.

The room also looked like someone had moved everything around, searching for something. I went to grab my camera and saw that it was gone. I reached from my backpack and that too was gone. Oh, great. Someone freaking robbed me, I let out in anger. I was trying to piece together what had happened, but I could only recall black mass, not a person. Sadly, my head was throbbing with a headache.

I couldn't recall anything clearly at that moment. I started to make my way out of the building when, in horror, I noticed the sky was now dark, red and orange. The first thing that came to my mind was that the reactor had somehow exploded again. I could faintly hear a siren going off in the distance, but it sounded odd. It was broken and not repeating properly like it had been running for years. I started making my way towards the exit and my rental car, which I could not be any further from. I had to make my way through the entire town and pass, God knows what, with all this hell going on.

If this was another nuclear meltdown, I was fucked. I was right in the exclusion zone with no protective gear, nothing to defend myself with, and I still had a long way to go. As I got closer to the town centre, I started hearing the strangest animal noises I'd ever heard. I thought for sure the radiation was slowly torturing whatever animals were left here today. I kept walking and I noticed the whole town looked different now.

I don't know what happened when I was passed out but everything was different. It was like people were still here ravaging through everything. It was so different that I decided I should just retrace my steps so I wouldn't get lost in all this new junk. But I couldn't shake the feeling that something was following me, maybe that same follower from before. I entered into a hospital I'd walked through earlier. In here those ungodly noises were not as loud and terrifying. I swore that something or someone was out there in agony, and I didn't want to find out who or what it was.

At this point I was feeling woozy. My head was throbbing, and I decided I needed a break. I entered into a room with windows, so I could keep an eye on whatever the hell was going on out there. I was sitting, staring out the window, and I noticed even the trees looked different, the closer I got towards the reactors. They were now bare and deformed.

They looked like large bat wings curled in, but all the trees and branches were being blown away from the reactor towers, almost like a continuous wind was pushing them away. God, I wonder how long I was out for. Could I have been passed out a whole day and all this happened? I tried to ease my mind. This felt like a living hell. Could I be dead?

As all these horrible thoughts were racing through my mind, a mother holding a small child on her shoulder staggered past the window. Hello, I shouted, but to no response. She just kept on limping by in what looked like a great amount of pain. I ran outside in a desperate attempt to get her attention. Please, stop, I can help. I get running towards her and yelling and waving my arms. When I finally got close, she slowly stopped,

but just stared straight forward. They stopped me dead in my tracks. As I was closer I could make out the details of her. She was horribly burned. Her ears were nothing but holes in her face was a blank canvas of melted skin. The constant wind blew away the blanket covering her baby to reveal a large mass of flesh and small body parts half mutated into her body. Her child was dead.

As I was now close enough for her to hear, hear me. I could also now hear her. A whimpering cry was coming from inside her skin-covered mouth. I was petrified in fear. A mutated monster stood in front of me, and I didn't know what to do. In what felt like an eternity, she slowly turned her head towards me. She started motioning her head upwards in a sniffing action like she could smell me. Well, that was enough for me to turn back towards the hospital and run as fast as I could without looking back. I could hear her muffled crying getting louder and louder as she'd chase me. It was almost like she wanted my help.

I dashed inside and slammed the door behind me as hard as I could, standing, staring at her. And that's when I heard it. Screams of agony started howling from everywhere. The mother immediately ran towards the woods in fear. I was anxiously waiting to see what made that creature. Then suddenly from behind the building, horrific flesh-looking creatures started running and limping in my direction. I knew I couldn't hide from these things if they could smell me, so I ran towards the roof. I closed as many doors as I could behind me and quietly sat in an air vent as these creatures searched through the building.

I tried to breathe as little as possible, but that was hard when you were terrified beyond belief. Well, the building was so decrepit and old. I could peek through where I was hiding. I wanted to see what I was running and hiding from. The smaller ones had already left the building, only the big ones remained. As I was peeking through, a huge man in a hazmat suit stumbled by. He was bloated. He looked like he could pop at any second.

His suit was sewn shut like human flesh, like it was a part of his body. Well, he was either terribly burned or mutated. I couldn't tell. Their flesh looked like melted candle wax. They all finally left, and I was alone with my fear. I felt like prey here. I needed to escape whatever this was. I needed to get back to my rental car.

Well, now I'd had quite enough. I left that building and slowly made my way towards the exit trail. As I was walking, I noticed it felt like, like time wasn't moving here. It had been the same time of day as when I'd woken up. It had surely been a few hours, but the sky was still the same red and orange, and this gave me an uneasy feeling. While I was walking, I noticed a normal-looking house, far off in the distance. It wasn't old and abandoned-looking. It had a lit torch on the front porch like someone was currently living there. Finally some good news, I thought. But this was towards the reactors,

a place I didn't want to go to. I decided that the house was my best bet, so I carefully made my way towards it, not wanting to alarm any more creatures on the way. As I was walking, I could still hear the out screams and howls off in the distance. I could hear the pain these creatures were in. As I walked towards the house, I looked up at the tall reactor towers. They looked enormous.

I lifted my hand to shade my eyes from the glow that seemed to emanate, from them. That's when I realized I could see the bones through my skin. This caused me to quicken my pace. I started to jog since I was finally getting closer to this house. As I arrived, I could see a fire lit inside the house. Someone was definitely living there. Hello, anybody home? I need help. Please, I let out desperately. At that moment, a deformed dog came running out from beneath the deck. I ran back and stumbled as the dog was halted by a chain, just barely keeping it away from me. The dog was missing all its fur and constantly was scratching itself, staring me down a few inches from my face,

growling and snarling at me. Suddenly, behind him, the door flew open. Who's there? Why are you here? said a man as he walked forward. He was old and looked like a priest. He was wearing a torn robe and some kind of necklace around his neck. Who is there?

He repeated, but loud at this time. Um, me, I'm here, I responded, confused. Can you not see me? I asked. No, I cannot see. Come in, quickly now, he said, while motioning his arms towards the house. His dog seemed to calm. I walked past the beast and into the house as he shut the door behind me. Well, his place looked old. Everything in here looked like it was from a century ago.

Who are you? Why are you still here? I asked. Why are you here? You should not be here, he responded. I'm lost, I think. Well, I don't know how I ended up here exactly. I was exploring the city when somehow I just ended up in this place. You don't just end up here. What were you doing exactly? asked sternly. Well, I was looking for someone. Someone was following me and I tried to see where it was, and they touched me, and I ended up here. I see. So you were why all those things were riled up then. I heard a group of those things dragging something up to the church. I'm guessing it was you.

Me. What do you mean? I'm right here. You are here, yes, but they took your body up to the church. he said as he walked towards a window and pointed outwards. They sacrificed something every chance they get those dirty bastards. I'm sick of those things. He said in anger, I wish they would go away so I could rest in peace. What are you? Are you one of them? I asked slowly.

But Noah used to be a priest. I stayed back as long as I could held the people pass on in peace. long after the army had left everyone behind. But I guess I stayed too long because somehow I ended up stuck here. I can't leave or move on. So I learned to live with these monsters. But I stay near the towers

because it's the one place they seem to hate. Is there any way I can leave this place? I asked. I don't know. Maybe if we get your body before they're, tear it apart we can, but I've never tried such a thing. Most who come here never make it out. People have been here before.

A few, yes, lost souls like you. A few government scientists came here once, but never returned. I think the monsters scared them away. Those creatures, the monsters, what are they exactly? Were they always here? No, they were people like you. They were left behind or chose to stay behind. Some tried to help.

Some wanted to take advantage of the situation with greed. In the end, the radiation was too much for us all. The government hid from us how bad this situation really was. Am I dead? I asked, suddenly. No. Not yet. But I am.

Right now you are in between both. We must hurry. I don't know how much time you have. We'll clench your body and try to put you back. He grabbed a walking stick, put a few vials of some liquid into his pocket, and we were off to the church. As we were leaving, he untied his dog and asked him what that thing was.

Man's best friend, he responded. I used to leave him a bed outside my house. He seemed scared of those things out there. Eventually we gained each other's trust and have been following each other ever since. Not all the things here are like him, though. Almost all those things out there will try to rip you to shreds, given the chance. They take the limbs off of anything and leave them at the altar, like a gift. A gift for who? I asked.

There's one out there who stays hidden, but all those creatures fear him, so they leave him gifts hoping he won't go after them. What is he? I don't know, but he was close to the reactors when everything went down. I think he is the most mutated of his all. As we were walking along a path, I noticed a body mutated into the ground. His legs were cut off and he was slowly flailing his arms about, like he was trying to get unstuck, but he was cemented into the ground.

The old man walked past it without noticing. I wanted to try to help, but I'm sure it would have attacked me the second I would. was too close. As we got closer to the church, I noticed bones were scattered everywhere. Be careful, he warned. How can you see the way? I asked. I have been here a very long time,

so long that I barely remember my life before the disaster. My memory slipped away more and more every day, and I fear that soon I will become one of these creatures. I felt pity for this man, and wished I could help him. We walked towards the back entrance of the church. The windows were all broken and the front doors were barricaded shut. We slowly entered and as we ran to the corner I could see my lifeless body laying on the ground.

I felt odd looking at my own body. I ran towards myself. I was cold to the touch. I'm dead. I let out in worry. No, you are not. and be quiet we are in its den now said the old man now lay down inside your body he instructed i followed along and lay beside myself no lay in your body he angrily responded as he was gathering candles and some

cloths i moved over a bit and somehow i was able to lay inside myself it was an odd sensation i was cold and i could feel a wetness all around me. Now what do I do? Nothing. You wait. He placed lit candles around me, started soaking some pieces of clothes with a liquid and placed it on my body. Stay quiet, and whatever you do, don't move.

He took a few steps back and began to speak in a language I did not recognize. As he was doing this, I noticed the statue behind him begin to move. It was the one he was speaking about, the one who they fed. He yelled to warn him when the beast attacked from behind, launching both of them to the ground. His dog immediately jumped to his aid, but the creature threw him against the wall, leaving him lying motionless. He was terrifying looking, in long, skinny arms with legs that were backwards at the knee. Blood was leaking from its fanged mouth, while its bloody,

finger tips wrapped around the arms of the priest. Don't move, he shouted. I was frozen in fear being near this creature, but I wanted to help. While the priest was holding back the fangs from digging into him, he pulled out a vial and threw it into the monster's huge mouth. It released its grip from him and staggered backwards, coughing a green glowing substance that released smoke from anything it touched. I thought for sure it was radioactive.

The monster retreated outwards while the priest stood up examining his wounds. Oh, the son of a bitch dug into me deep, he said. Are you okay? I asked. I should be able to finish this, but just in case they come back, I'm going to make sure I get the last hit. He stood up and walked over to his dog. Don't worry, buddy. I'll be seeing you on the other side, he said, while petting his head. He then walked around the church pouring something onto the ground,

saving most for the entrance that we'd come in by. What's that? I asked. You'll see, he responded. He then walked back over to me and started chanting again. Are you going to be okay? I asked. He ignored me and kept speaking in that unknown language. He was not even a minute into his ritual when screeching roar came from outside the building. He started chanting louder while pulling something out of his pockets. I could see through the holes and broken windows that a mob of those creatures were coming directly our way. There was a lot of them, I shouted. He then lit a match and threw it onto the substance on the ground. The purple flame erupted and lit our entire surroundings on fire.

Arms and heads then started reaching into the building trying to grab at us. I felt helpless. I could feel the threat of certain death on the other side of the walls. He took a step closer towards me as the fire grew and climbed at the walls. A strange glow began to form around me. I pull my hand up to look closely at my fingertips when I realized that my physical body moved with me now. It's working, I shouted. At that moment, more and more of those creatures began ripping open the building. The glow around my body grew brighter and brighter, when the roof started falling down, nearly hitting us.

He then knelt down while continuing his chant. I started feeling sick. My body suddenly felt extremely cold. As the light around me grew too bright to look at, the monsters broke through the walls, stormy inside at a great pace. The priest ignored all of this and kept with his chant. The roof then completely collapsed. It was falling closer and closer, and the creatures were with an armed length of both of us, and I blacked out. I was surrounded by darkness. When I awoke, I was in a dark room.

The sun was down, and I was freezing. I sat up and realized I was back in that room with a mirror. My camera's sitting on the ledge, and my backpack laying next to me. God, was that all just a dream? I asked myself. I stood up and looked at the time. It was 3.15 in the morning. What just happened?

I gathered my stuff and walked outside. It was deadly quiet. No sound except the wind rustling the leaves on the trees. I started my way back and everything looked normal. I was back in the world of the living. I noticed a collapsed church on my walk back and stopped to look at it. It looked to have been burned, graffiti covered one remaining warm. I stood there wondering if I'd imagined everything that had happened.

As I was looking through the debris, I noticed old priest rose, completely shredded to pieces. I turned around and walked as fast as I could towards my rental car, not wanting to think of everything that had just happened. The car started fine. I made it home with a few bruises, but nothing to do that. bad. I looked over my footage the following week and, to my disappointment, it didn't capture anything, just me collapsing to the floor with nothing standing behind me. Did all that really happen? Or did I just hit my head hard enough to think that it happened? Well, I have no idea. I still have nightmares of those creatures and that place. Hey Ontario, come on down to bed MGM casino and

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There's not something I'm proud of, but I was just a scared kid at the time. I was often left home alone when I was a child. I won't say my parents didn't love me or anything so dramatic, but they had priorities, and oftentimes I was not high on that list. Still, I enjoyed the solitude. I had the run in the house, and could pretty much get away with whatever I wanted while they were gone.

Well, as long as I made sure to clean up after myself. It was early February when it happened, while my folks were out on a part-valentine's part-anniversary date. They'd married at this time of year, around 15 years ago, so they'd make a big deal out of it annually. It was snowy outside. I wanted to go play in it while they were gone, when I had the biggest fear about inadvertently getting myself locked out of the house and freezing to death before anyone arrived to save me. It was close to 10 o'clock when my mom called, and told me, they wouldn't be home until morning. This would neither be my first nor last night alone in the house,

so I assured her I keep the doors locked and get to bed at a reasonable hour. Surely what I considered reasonable and what she did were far different times. Were I being responsible, I would likely already be in bed, but when I was happily in the middle of binging horror movies when she called. Now, I won't say they never gave me nightmares, as my mother warned, but I still loved them. We had a great assortment of channels on our unlocked cable box, so it wasn't hard to track down movies to suit my late-night tastes.

I was growing closer to midnight, and I felt my body began to crave my bed when the commotion began outside. I peeked through the living room window to see a man screaming and running across the street. He was yelling out for anyone to help him. He even ran to some of the neighbouring houses and pounded on their doors. "'Help! For God's sake! Somebody help me!' he cried out into the night, while he slammed his fist against doors and walls. Well, most houses just turned their lights off when all this began, but I couldn't look away. What could have got this guy worked up so?

It's a typical suburban street I lived in as a kid. Little to nothing ever happened, aside from the occasional car pulled over for one reason or another. and finally the man arrived at my door. He beat his hands against the wood and shouted out, begging me to help. I was a kid. What the hell was I supposed to do? Please help me.

They're coming, he yelled out from the other side of the front door. I pulled a chair up to the door, and I stood up on it to look out through the peephole. The man looked young, maybe in his early twenties, though to my perception at the time, he might as well have been in his 60s. He had dark beard stubble and wore a thick blue hoodie, a knit cap and gloves. It was really cold outside, so I knew he had to be freezing.

Oh, please, just let me in, he whimpered softly. Just help me. I'm begging you. I felt bad for the guy, but I couldn't invite a stranger into the house, even if I believed he was truly scared. I can't help you, mister. I called out to him. I hoped he would just move on to the next house after he heard that I was just a child,

but it made him beg even harder. Please, kid, I won't hurt you. I just need to get off the street. He whined. Sorry, my dad says I can't have people over, I said, hoping to rationalize with the man. Just let me in, please, he asked softly. I'm sorry, mister.

I just cared. My dad had killed me. I reasoned. And suddenly the man turned around, and I felt him push his back to the door. His head was right in front of the people now. I couldn't see what was happening. Oh, God, he said. I jumped down from the chair and ran to the living room window again.

By the time I made it to the glass, he'd started screaming out and pounding on the door again. I heard the knob jiggle. as he attempted to force his way in, that I had locked it and deadbolted it. Jesus Christ, just let me in for God's sake, please! He was wailing in his voice, a given way to high-pitched shrieks.

As I glared out through the window, I saw three dark shapes speeding across the road in front of my eyes. They were almost blurry, as if I was looking at an unfocused camera lens. I couldn't even make out where they were, they darted off the road and towards my house. while I whipped the curtains closed and sat down on the floor under the window. Suddenly the man's yells changed into blood-curdling squeals.

I heard more pounding against the door as well as the walls of the house, along with the sound that reminded me of when my dad would cut the turkey at Thanksgiving. The yells turned to gurgles, and I heard something wet spray into the ground and the siding of my home. I heard snapping and crunching sound. along with something like fabric being torn. After the man's gargling scream stopped, there was a chorus of shrill squeals

that did not resemble anything I'd ever heard before. It reminded me of when I'd pinched the mouth of a balloon while letting the air out, only much louder and more guttural. After a moment, everything fell silent again, but I would not get off the floor until some time later. When I finally did emerge from my safe spot, under the window, I ran up the stairs to my bedroom, locked the door, and hid under my blanket

until I fell asleep. I was awakened the next morning by the sound of police sirens out front, accompanied by a loud knock on the front door. I peaked out of my bedroom window to see several police cars and a black SUV parked on the road in front of the house, although I was too scared to answer the door since my folks had not arrived back home yet. I just stayed up in my room and ignored the hammering on the front door. After a while, the knocking stopped, but the police stayed out there until my parents drove up an hour or so later. My mom came flying through the front door

and up the stairs. She tried to get in, but my door was still locked. She just pounded and shouted for me to let her in. Her words, along with a knocking, sent a shiver up my spine after the previous night's events. I swung the door open, and she pulled me into a hug. After a few minutes of holding me in place, she started grabbing at my arms, checking for injuries. Once she was certain I was okay, she asked me if I'd heard anything last night. I'm not entirely sure why I lied to her and said I hadn't heard anything.

Maybe I felt guilty about what I assumed had happened to the yelling stranger. Could have just been as simple as I didn't want my folks to know. I'd stayed up so late. Or sometime later, my father came inside after. for the swarm of vehicles in our street had thinned out. One of the cop cars and the black SUV stayed out front for a while, and two officers went to each house in the neighbourhood. Well, it had been a bizarre series of events,

but I paid it no mind after a couple of weeks past. Sure, kids at my school spun many a rumour about the murder that had seemingly occurred on my street, though a body was never found. It was a great deal of blood that spread across the front of my parents' house, and onto the driveway. Some were theorised it was way more than the human body was capable of holding, but there had been a lot of exaggerated stories over the first week.

For several months after, the man had begged to be allowed entry into my home. My parents refused to leave me at the house on my own. It was actually quite nice from being honest. Though I missed having the run of the place a bit, my folks were more attentive than they'd ever been. And again, I would never accuse them of being overly neglectful, They just never saw the danger in leaving the house with me as its only occupant until then. Of course, their new outlook didn't last for long.

It was mid-December before I would be left alone again. My parents had a Christmas party to attend with some friends, so they asked if I'd be okay on my own. Given the fact I had no desire to be left with some babysitter, it was only a few years older than me. I said I'd be fine. Truthfully, how I enjoyed them being more attentive these days. I did miss my solitude.

As was usually the case, my mum checked in around tenish, to which I informed her all as well. She told me they would likely be home around one, and recommended that I tried to go to bed soon. Of course, I didn't plan on hitting the sack until I saw the lights of my parents' Honda rolling into the driveway, but she didn't need to know that. After successfully riding my makeshift Captain America Shield

down the stairs several times in a row, I decided just to hunt for a good, I'd R-rated movie to buy my time until I had to head up to my bedroom. It was right around midnight, when the knocking on the front door pulled my attention away from Jason steadily strolling after a fleeing, topless girl. Let me in! The voice called from outside. I instantly tensed up as my mind revisited the stranger who was left as nothing more than a

bloody pool across the front lawn. My dad had ended up having to repaint the front of the house as the stain. would not wash off. Even the concrete driveway still wore a few marks that would not clean up. Come on, kid, let me in, echoed from behind the door. I turned the volume up on the movie to attempt to block out the sounds. Help me, save me, let me in, the voice called out, growing louder with every word. It wasn't like he was shouting. It was more like his vocal tones, elevated in the same way I turned up the sound on the TV. Hesitantly, I crept over to the window to peer outside.

I saw no evidence of anyone or anything. The whole neighbourhood appeared to be at rest, but I still heard the man behind the door. Just let me in. I won't hurt you, I promise. He called out again. I quietly carried the same chair over to gaze through the people. And I froze in place,

after I accidentally bump wood to wood while attempting to position my prop. I know you're there, kid. Just let me in, please. Climmed up to glance through the small circular hole to see nobody out there. Come on, kid, you can save me, you know that right? The invisible stranger asked.

Certain that I'd eaten way too much candy or just not myself senseless while sliding down the steps, I decided to just turn off the TV and head to bed. Even after I turned on the box fan I used to provide ambient sound to help me sleep, I could still hear the voice, which now sounded like it was coming from directly behind my second floor window. I sandwich my head between two pillows,

but it made little difference in the volume of the cries for help. Don't go to sleep and leave me out here, kid. All you have to do is just let me in, it begged. It wasn't until I saw the light, trace across the far wall of my bedroom that signified my parents' arrival, that the voice went silent. For years it carried on like that, always around midnight, and only when I was alone. I got to the point of practically begging my folks not to leave when they be inevitably heading out for the night, and even requested a babysitter when they would. They agreed to my

request for someone to watch over me while they were gone, but that ended when I turned 12. Sometimes I was able to arrange a sleepover with a friend, but there would be times I couldn't weasel my way out of being alone as the hour approached. Regardless of how often the voice would return, I was never able to just ignore it, or push it to the recesses of my mind while I focused on other things. When my folks would be gone all night, the voice wouldn't stop until I finally drifted off to sleep, which always required quite the struggle to achieve. As the years progressed

And my school days ended I went off to college Where I'd have a roommate for a time Well I'd involve myself In any activity that would keep me from being alone In my dorm room after hours There were still those times I'd once again be at the mercy of the voice behind the door

No matter where I went in life The stranger would follow That there would never be evidence of his presence Aside from the begging plea and knocks on the door after college I still maintained a roommate to avoid as many late-night visits as I could though it wouldn't keep them away entirely I couldn't exactly forbid my housemate from having a life after all for some years I would only have to worry about the cries for help around the weekends

unfortunately when my roommate decided to move in with his girlfriend I was shit out of luck I'm sure I attempted to get another roomy but my erratic and desperate behaviour your freak most interested parties out. So every single night after my housemate moved out, the knocking and screaming came. No matter how hard I tried to ignore it, the volume would crank up higher and higher.

I even tried checking into a busy motel for a night, hoping that the crowded hallways will keep it away. But no, as long as I was alone in my room, the pounding will begin again around midnight without fail. For months I fought against my slipping sanity I could never block it out Ear plugs, nope earphones with blaring music

No Nothing will keep the man's begs for help from reaching my ears Eventually After way too many sleepless nights to count I couldn't take it anymore Just as many times before I gazed through my people to reveal Nobody there

at the calls and knocks still bellowed through. At the heavy sight and a racing heart that felt as though a crack through my sternum, I wrapped my trembling fingers around the doorknob and pulled it open. My jaw practically fell onto my chest when my eyes met the shredded figure in front of me. Half of his face had been torn away,

leaving a reddened skull with strips of meaty tissue where skin once lay. His left arm had been ripped from his shoulder, and it was hard to differentiate the bloodied muscle and bone from the clumped threads of the shirt and hoodie that remained. His guts were spayed open, leaving oozing intestines hanging on the floor in a scarlet pool, and both of his legs were a gruesome combination of moist ground beef and bone, with little holding them in one piece. Somehow his right arm was the only part of him free of any manner of injury,

which he still held out in front of him with his bald fist, in preparation to knock once more. Thanks, man, he said, trying to smile with the one side of his face that still had the ability to do so. You're a lifesaver, he continued, before he collapsed to the ground. In a series of snapping and squishing sounds,

his body twisted and contorted as it smoked, bubbled and popped, shrinking down and dissolving into the fuzzy welcome mat and concrete pavement. Within seconds, that remained of the stranger, who was only visible through the open door, was no more than a charred, crimson stain on the ground. I kicked at the damp mat that still were marks of many dirty feet, combined with the new red and burnt black, to find nothing hidden underneath it. But my mind was reeling, my mouth still hung agape. I strolled across the pathway that led away from my house,

nudging the mat was the garbage can that stood at the end of my driveway. I picked up the carpeted sheet that now read, Well, um, on either end of the grisly stains, by one of the untouched corners, and dropped it into my trash bucket. I stood outside, staring back at my house with my head in the days. Could that really be all I had to do to put an end to this madness?

When my nightly visits finally be over? I began to cackle like a crazy person, while I paced back to my open door, Feeling like my remaining marbles may indeed be rolling out of the confines of my noggin for good. But before I could reach the entry to my home, I heard what sounded like a pack of wild animals, thundering their feet across the ground behind me. I whipped around to see three, hideous and deformed dog-like creatures scampering across the road towards me.

Thick, flammy, slobber drip from their gaping mares as they sprinted at me on muscular legs, covered in matted dreadlocked fur. I screamed at the top of my lungs and hauled ass back through my doorway and slammed it shut behind me. I quickly flipped the deadbolt latch and pressed my back to the door

while the beasts rammed into it from the other side. Whaling, barks and growls blended with something that resembled the sound of a woodchipper might make if you threw 50 pounds of frozen food into it was squalling from outside. They did not attack the actual door again after the initial slam from the quickly ceased high-speed pursuit.

I had no doubt that were they to attempt to force their way in, my simple locks would not keep them at bay for lock. I glanced through the people again, to see the trio just pacing back and forth, still dripping that noxious drool with every whimper of their awful sounds. Each of them were quite large, easily twice the size of the largest dog I'd ever seen. Their bodies and limbs bulged with rippling muscles, and their mouths were filled with jagged and misshapen yellow teeth. Every one of the six enlarged eyes glowed a vibrant orange beneath their furrowed brown. Accepting that another sleepless night was ahead of me, I drew my largest kitchen knife from the rack beside my stove

and sat on my couch trembling from head to toe. Of course I had no doubt that a poultry blade used for preparing a meal would provide little defense against the horrendous beasts, but I just gripped onto the hilt like a safety blanket and prayed they wouldn't try to force their way inside. At some point, I must have fallen asleep, and by the time the sun rose, the beasts had moved on, as far as I could tell anyway.

I slowly pulled my door open to reveal nothing but the staying concrete behind it. I felt on edge for the rest of the day, but nothing else appeared out of place while I went about my daily grind. It wasn't until I was on my way home, after dining with some friends after work, that I understood the new troubling situation

I'd be forced to endure some began to set on my drive back to my house something that had never made me nervous before not until midnight anyway for the time I arrived on my street the world was now lit by the subtle glow of the moon where it was then that I heard the barking and growling again I darted my eyes to my rearview mirror

to see the three matted creatures speeding at me from behind I slammed my foot to the floor, causing my Nissan to speed faster across the road to my house than I would have ever dared before. I was terrified at the idea of kids playing on the street, or absent-minded drivers drifting into my lane, but I had to outrhod those things and reach the safety of my home. I skidded into my driveway and felt my right tire lift from the ground as the left one spun to a halt, tearing into the grass and dirt of my front lawn. My heart was hammering against my chest again while I sprinted to my front door. Oh, I could practically feel the foul breath of the demonic hellhounds on the back of my neck

as I fumbled my key against the knob in my attempt to gain entry. I dared not look behind me until I'd finally achieved success and tripped onto the floor, kicking the door shut with my heel. I rolled over and reached up to latch my lock when I heard and felt the hard slam of the monstrous creatures, beginning another night of their atrocious whales calling from outside. So this is how I live now. I never stay out after dark, no matter what. I feel a panic attack building up whenever I see the sun begin to receive for the night,

whether I am safely behind my walls or not. I don't date. I don't socialise. Those things only lead to the inability to put a door between me and my stalkers when night falls. I can't say mine is a happy existence, but I am alive. I wonder sometimes if I'd allowed that stranger entry the first time he begged for it, would I be where I am now, or would he have transferred this curse to me sooner? Somehow I doubt I'll ever have answers. But there has to be a way out of this, right?

Well, if you take nothing else from this tale, just remember this. Should I ever come knocking on your door after dark? No matter how hard I beg, no matter how much I cry, do not even acknowledge me. And for God's sake, don't let me in. The road to nowhere by Will Ray. My old Toyota was barely hanging on during my trip to work that day. I probably should have asked around to maybe arrange a carpool, or even had just called in sick. But I was hoping it wasn't too far gone.

It was approaching the end of the month, and the last thing I needed was to miss a day of work when rent was coming due. The job paid pretty well. I still mostly live paycheck to paycheck. I managed my money well enough, but things weren't always easy for the working man who never managed to achieve any further education after graduating high school. My home life hadn't been the most stable over those years, so I'd never been the most attentive student. There were times I never even believed I'd see the other side of those times, with my sanity intact. but life got considerably easier when I was able to move out in my childhood home. My old beater of a car was struggling like hell when I pulled into the parking lot at my job,

but I kept my fingers crossed that it still get me home after my eight-hour shift ended. I've been ignoring the check engine light for a while now, but it hadn't been struggling so much until that Thursday afternoon. I live a good 40 minutes away from my job, but the money was decent enough to warrant the commute. Still, I shouldn't have continued to procrastinate in getting my car looked at. It was my lifeline, after all. I suppose I was hoping to avoid the likely high cost of whatever repairs it would need,

or having to take any time of work to arrange getting it fixed up. And so I just continued to cross my fingers and roll the dice. Naturally, of all, the days for this to happen, my relief called in a little after ten to let me know he'd be a few hours late. Caleb, a friend who works in another department, who had already offered to give me a ride home if my car wouldn't crank, since he lives out my way. Unfortunately, Jackson running late guaranteed that my only option would be to put my faith in my ragged old Toyota to get me home at two in the morning, where my now elongated shift would come to an end. I snuck out to the parking lot to check things out during my break times, but I wasn't the most well-versed in automotive problems. I looked up a few videos to narrow down what could be causing the engine to store, smoke and backfire from time to time,

but most of my research indicated I'd need a replacement part or two, which I currently had no access to. I told myself that I wouldn't procrastinate any longer on getting someone to look at it, if I could just make it home safely that night. As was almost entirely too predictable. Jackson didn't stroll in until a little after three. Yeah, he apologised for the inconvenience, but it felt more of an obligatory statement than a genuine one. Maybe I was just pissy about having to work over, while frustrated about my uncertain trip home so late. Regardless of my irritation with the situation, I was finally ready to approach my near-death sedan and hope for the best.

It didn't help my circumstances that it was the middle of November, and the 32-degree temperature and bitter wind was already biting into my skin by the time I reached my vehicle. Between the cold, causing my goose flesh to shiver, and the uncertainty of whether or not my car would crank, making my back tense up, I was far from a happy camper. My hand was shaking like hell when I attempted to slide my key into the ignition switch,

but I finally made contact and gave it a turn. I took a few tries, forcing me to worry I'd flood the engine, but before too long my rust bucket was humming, to which I let out a great time. sigh in return. Hopeful that my journey back home would go smoothly. I took advantage of the deserted roads and pushed my pedal down to make my trip in my iffy vehicle as short as possible. Well, if nothing else, pushing past the speed limit got me a little closer to my destination before the engine let out a loud popping sound, followed by a high-pitched squeal, while steam

bellowed out from beneath the hood. I'd love to tell you that I handled this with dignity, but that was far from the case. As I guided my deceased piece of shit to the side of the road with a complete absence of power pushing the wheels, I yelled out every single variation of the word fuck that my brain could conjure. I slammed my fist against the steering wheel and the ceiling of the car, still screaming obscenities with every single swing. By the time I was done with my rant, my face was flushed and my hands were swelling. If nothing else, it warmed me up considerably. I popped the hood, which caused more steam to burst out into the frigid night air. I slipped on my work gloves to be able to flip the latch to release it all the way,

but it was hard to see anything through the fog that was erupting from my engine. The cold weather only served to make it even thicker. After feeding the radiator some water, wiggling a couple of hoses, kicking the shit out of my bumper, leaving a new fresh dent to add to my aggravated state, I gave my ignition another try. It wouldn't even attempt to turn over. I just sat in my driver's seat for a while, coming through my contacts in search of anyone who might be up this late,

while puffing away on a freshly lit cigarette. I had never tried Uber or any other such services in the past, so I was unsure if they still operated at this hour. Naturally, my service was sketchy in the middle of nowhere where I now sat parked in my broken to-o-to-o. No Wi-Fi, no mobile data, one bar of service. Yeah, the fates were not in my corner this bitter cold night.

With a heavy sigh that made my breath mimic the steam that still drifted out from under my now-closed hood, I snatched my backpack from the passenger seat and began my long walk home. It was around four in the morning and I'd already be in the warmth of my house, had my car not decided to delve into the deepest recesses of my asshole with its favorite brand of, fuck this guy. while I was still muttering curses under my breath over the first couple of miles on my trip. I had my hands buried in my jacket pockets

and I wished I thought to wear something thicker when I headed out to work some twelve hours ago. I stopped for a moment to light another cigarette while checking on my phone to see if my access to the internet had returned yet. Of course not, I said to myself with another sigh. My feet were already throbbing. I stretched my back out, causing a series of cracks and pops to echo from the lower half of my spine. I looked around at the empty road, feeling like it appeared far less familiar than the one I traversed twice a day for the last few years.

There were woods on either side of me, which I always knew to be there, but they still looked almost foreign to me. Perhaps they just seemed different because I stood in place as opposed to the 60 miles per hour I'd normally be speeding past the mat. maybe I just hadn't paid much attention to them before. It was still a strange sensation, to be honest. Everything felt a little off somehow. The air was cold, but the wind did not appear to be moving much. It didn't smell like frosty grass and leaves. Maybe it had just been some time since I last took the time to appreciate such sense.

It's almost as though the oxygen I breath tasted news in some way, if that makes any sort of sense. The world around me was almost completely silent, while I sat on the curb, taking a deep drag on my smoke, while allowing my exhausted feet to stop throbbing for a moment or two. The trees on either side of the road appeared to harbour no life, no rustling, no crickets chirping, nothing. Could be that many forest creatures were hibernating or otherwise at rest, again something I never paid much attention to before. Rarely was I out this late, and this would be the first. time I was forced to trudge a good 20 miles back to my home. Before I started moving again, I decided to dig through my bag to find my earbuds. Perhaps some music would make the time pass by at a quicker pace.

Luckily my phone had a vast library of downloaded tunes, so I'd have no desperate need of internet access to enjoy my own personal walking soundtrack. I tapped on my 90s playlist and continued my straw with the gin blossoms guiding my path. Well, maybe 45 minutes after my trip resumed, while Gavin Rostale was insisting that he has a mushy head, which is better than the rest, I decided to give my phone an obligatory glance to check on the time. "'Fourth 30!' I exclaimed to the deserted highway. "'Well, sure, I've been walking for at least an hour before I stopped the first time. There's no way I'd only been travelling for half of that.

I glanced around to see nothing more than the trees and the empty road. There was nothing that could differentiate where I started from where I now stood, aside from the ragged piece of ship Rusbecket that I had left in the breakdown lane many miles back. Part of me almost wanted to travel back to where I'd come from, but I didn't want this trip to take even longer. Surely my phone was just glitching from the cold. Maybe service was just so bad out here that I wasn't able to get a solid reading of the time. Yeah, that made sense.

It was a reasonable enough theory anyway. far more sensible logic than the last couple of hours of walking that had only spanned a quarter of that time. So, once again, I began my saunter with a freshly lit cigarette and told the wet sprocket in my ear holes. The chilly air was still biting into my skin, and now my shoulder was so tensed up, I may as well have left the coat hanger in my jacket

when I threw it on before leaving my job in the dust. Every few minutes I glanced back at my phone to see the time remained unchanged. I kept going, regardless of the unmoving digits on my screen, assuming that this only proves my theory that it was nothing more than a technical issue. I continued to glare at the phone until another minute finally passed by on its face, which felt like it had taken a good quarter of an hour to my internal clock. After many more miles and only a handful of minutes having supposedly passed by, I knew that the sun should have risen by this point. according to my mental chronometer, it should be creeping up on seven, but my phone insisted it was only a little after five. I was sure that dawn had to be just around the corner, but I couldn't see the slightest indication that the sun would be rising any time soon.

It didn't surprise me to see my phone's low battery light flashing either. I was growing steadily more skeptical about the possibility of ever getting back to my home, when the road finally showed me signs of life beyond my own. The world was so dark around me that the headlights approaching from my rear practically lit up the entire highway. I turned to face the vehicle that sped in my direction and extended my thumb out to the sides.

I could only hope this lone traveller would take pity on my freezing ass. Well, I may have been seeing things, but as the car drew closer, it looked as though it was bellowing almost as much steamer. as my own had been before it spluttered out. Still I maintain my outstretch, pleading thumb, and hope to God they would pull over. As the long and wide 70s model Lincoln slowed down and drifted over to the curb where I stood, I practically left for joy in the back of my mind, and I stashed my phone and earbuds in my jacket pocket,

and jogged over to meet the veritable land-jot that appeared to shudder wildly as it idled. The rear window behind the passenger door I approached had a transparent, tarp in place of the absent glass, and the faded green paint was chipped and speckled with blotches of rust, but I was still excited to have a ride nonetheless. Thank you so much, I exclaimed after pulling the door open to allow a cloud of cigarette smoke to erupt from inside. As soon as I got the words out of my mouth, a foul smell leaked out from within. It almost made me think of mouldy bread dipped in spoiled milk.

The seats were covered by large sweatshirts that appeared to represent one football team or another. They were a similar green to the exterior, and had what almost looked to be numbers sewn into them in huge white patches, sustained with yellow and brown splotches. They were more like symbols and actual numbers, though. Perhaps the shirts represented a foreign team, bearing a less recognizable numerology. The woman at the steering wheel didn't so much as a glance in my direction when I slid into the vehicle and closed the door.

She was incredibly thin, with heavy wrinkled and darkly tan skin. It looked far from a natural tan, and she appeared as though she'd been the wrong end of many hard drugs in her time. Her bushy and knotted hair at a faded purple dye job, with dark roots and streams of grey and white running through it. She were a faded blue and pink flower dress that revealed her bony and withered arms. As soon as I snapped the seatbelt latch, she hit the gas without a word.

Though the interior of the car was quite massive, I had little legroom as my seat was pushed up close to the glove compartment. Choosing not to take a glance into the mouth of my gift horse, I thought it best to not push my luck by adjusting the setting. It was quite awkward to be sharing a car with someone who wouldn't so much as acknowledge me, but the fact that we were moving considerably faster than the couple of miles an hour I may have previously been going. made it easier to tolerate a bit of discomfort. I really can't thank you enough for picking me up, I offered in an attempt to ease the tension. Eh, ain't nothing, she spoke in a gravelled and worn voice.

Um, what brings you out this way so late? I asked, try my hand at a bit of small talk. Driving. I just nodded in my head while deciding it may be best to remain silent after all. as the woman to my left reached into the centre console and pulled out a packet of moorly cigarettes. I had to double take at the riding across the wrinkled soft-shore pack as it was designed to match the style of Marlboroughs,

which were my go-to brand. I recall watching several movies over the years whose characters would smoke mollies, as this would avoid the producers having to pay an actual cigarette company to allow their name to be displayed on film. Could this have been some sort of? of novelty pack? Was I reading way too much into a simple pack of smokes?

Likely so. One held the open crumpled box up to her mouth, and pulled a cigarette out with her lips, tracing thick saliva across the remaining butts in the pack. She offered me one with her outstretched hand, while she lit the one in her mouth, letting over the steering wheel and causing the car to drift quickly to the left. No thanks, I replied,

to the splayed open pack in her hand. gripping my right hand tightly around the old shit handle above the passenger door. "'Ah, suit yourself,' she said, wrapping her bony fingers around the steering wheel again, while taking an unnervingly long, deep drag from her cigarette. I tried to make my glaring eyes as inconspicuous as possible, while I watched half of the lit smoke between the old woman's dried and chap lips burn about halfway down over the course of that single drag.

The solid inch of cylindrical ash still protruded from the remaining cigarette that still hung out of her mouth, falling to her chest moments later. That was when I noticed that the front of her dress was covered in grey, sooty ex-nicotine and paper. I had momentarily been tempted to fish out my own smokes after she'd offered me one of her spit-moistened ones, but I found my appetite for the habit waning. By the time the woman snuffed out her molly in the cluttered ash tray, before lighting another, it was getting harder and harder to see much of anything through the thick plume of fog that filled the cabin of the old Lincoln. Well, do you mind if I crack the window? I asked, hoping this request would not offend my chauffeur. Beavours broke, she replied, taking another incredibly deep inhale of smoke.

The more I heard her speak, though it had only been short. replies at most. Well, what I could make out from her accents sounded southern almost, but more likely a parody of what some may assume a country accent should sound like, if that makes any sense. It reminded me of an actor putting on a southern draw for a role, having never really heard one in person. Can you roll yours down a little? I continued, hoping I wasn't pushing my luck with the strange old bird. This one's broke, too, she said, jiggling the handle for confirmation. "'Oh!'

"'You can get out if it's bothering you,' she stated, with the shirk. "'And in all honesty, I considered it. We'd already been driving for a good ten minutes or so. Surely I wasn't far off now. Still, I thought of getting back out into the freezing air versus just a little while longer of muffling my coughs and trying my best to avoid breathing in that awful smell would remain an inner debate for a while longer.

No, it's okay, I replied, still unsure if this was the right call. It didn't mean any offence, I really do appreciate the ride. She shook her head from side to side while muttering under her breath. We sat in silence for some time, while my driver chain smoked one after the other. I could hardly breathe after another ten minutes had gone by, but I knew we had to be getting closer to my destination. This road was a straight shot to the town I lived in My home was only a few miles past the city limits

Though I couldn't see a damn thing Through the smoke that engulfed the speeding car I was certain I should be with intolerable walking distance Of my house by this point I was beyond ready to get away from that foul stench And breathe in some fresh air Not to mention, everything felt Just a little bit off

From the cigarette pack to the phony accent I was sure I could be overreacting to easily explainable things, especially with how exhausted both my body and mind have grown, but I wanted nothing more than to get out of this car and away from this woman. Oh well, if it's cool, I think this should be close enough, I said, breaking the silence that was almost as suffocating as a thick fog. No, reply. Yeah, I can just get out right here,

you don't mind pulling over. Still, not a word. I sincerely can't thank you enough for getting me this far. Was she still even awake? Ma'am? Nothing. All I could see was the flicker of light when she'd take another deep drag of a cigarette.

All I could hear was the rumbling of the engine, the tarp flapping in the wind behind me, and the tires occasionally bump over the reflectors in the center line of the road. I wave my hand back and forth in an attempt to clear a line of sight through the cloud. Suddenly the woman's face emerged

through the smog as she let go of the steering wheel and charged towards me. Within seconds her whole body was on top of me in the passenger seat and her wrinkled and bony fingers were wrapped around my wrists, pinning me to the door. You ain't going nowhere.

Her foul breath hit me like a careening truck. Apparently that was the very thing that was causing the spoiled milk odor that worked its way through the car, but that was only the diluted version. What struck my nose this time was so much more intense and stomach churning. I had to fight against the lump forming in my throat, as well as the considerable strength of the frail old woman. You had your chance to leave, she said softly. I didn't have to offer you that. I could feel the car gliding from left to right as we could feel.

still sped across the deserted road. I had no idea how this was possible, as the foot that was previously on the pedal was now pushing against the dashboard, as she continued to scream at me. I picked you up. That means I own your ass now. Damn's the rules, boy. Her eyes were wide and maniacal,

as was her menacing grin, which was filled to the brim with yellowed and rotten teeth. Get off me, you crazy bitch! I squeaked out after her fingers let go of my wrist and wrapped around my throat. I grabbed onto the door latch with my now free hand and hoped to be able to throw it open. Surely rolling out into the concrete wouldn't be much worse than whatever this insane hag had in store for me. But of course, the door wouldn't give way. She cackled madly while I attempted to fumble around for the lock.

You ain't getting back out that door, she sneered. digging her fingers harder into my neck. Well, I was trying everything I could to break free from her grip, but it just made her laugh harder. This road is mine, you simple shit. Get your fucking hands off me, you fucking psycho. I squeezed out through a strained breath. I started thrusting my fist into her ribs

after giving up on my attempts to open the door. She didn't so much as wince from my punches, regardless of the complete lack of any padding around her frail bones. Every one of my jab's photos, though, they were striking little more than her solid rib cage, but she gave absolutely no reaction to my assault. I felt the wrinkled and leathery-textured skin of her cheeks slide across my own as she moved in closer. You was mine, too. As soon as she set foot on it, she whispered directly into my ear.

She'd get one hand gripped around my neck while the other grabbed onto the top of my head, slamming it against the window. At first it almost knocked me out cold, immediately making me feel dizzy and queasy. The second was worse, causing my eyes to cross and my body to feel weak and devoid of life. I didn't feel the third. Not before everything went black. The darkness behind my eyelids showed me no momentary escape from my chest. rolling prison. I found myself back on the deserted road, frantically running from the speeding Lincoln as it chased after me, spilling thick plumes of smoke, while cackling madly through the

grill that was filled with yellowed and jagged teeth. White and purple hair, which spouted now from the roof, blew in the wind as it sped towards me. I veered from the road and into the trees, in hopes of evading the pursuing land-yot, but it crashed through the trees as I darted between them. one by one it splintered through the thick bark while losing no momentum as it charged at me I passed through the tree line and into a clearing which would be where I would make my final stand against this beast I stood my ground facing back at the menacing red glow of the headlights I bore my fist and straightened my back in preparation for my impending doom when my eyelids sprung open and I found myself

still pressed against the door of the passenger seat. The crazy old bitch had returned to her seat, and I could vaguely make out her outline in the orange glow of the tip of her lit cigarette through the fog. I try to remain silent and still, to not alert her to my being conscious while I felt the pushing pain in my head with every beat of my heart. I adjusted my neck slightly,

and I could feel the dry blood tearing from the vinyl of where the door met the window. I inhaled shallow, shallow, breaths in my attempt to keep my awareness unnoticed, while I tried to come up with a plan on how the hell to get out of this tomb on wheels. As I noticed the old lady's silhouette moving through the smog again, I closed my eyes, hoping to God she hadn't realized I was awake. I could smell her breath in my face and felt her only inches away from me, while the tires began to veer to the left again. She wrapped her hand around my brow and gently turned my eyes.

head to the left. I felt my back stiff and I thought to keep from wincing at the pain as a bony finger dug into the wound on the back of my head. I heard the gut-wrenching sounds of her licking the finger after she drew it back, and drips of slobber that fell from her mouth onto my chin, almost causing me to give in to the burning stomach acid in my throat. Three more time she dug her finger into the gaping hole that now streamed fresh blood onto my shoulder. Of course it could have been her thick slobber leaking from her fingertips down my neck, but whatever it was felt sticky and moist, which, combined with the smell of her breath,

to make the growing nausea even harder to battle against. God damn, you taste good, she moaned, before running her tongue from my jawline to my temple. I was taking every bit of self-control I could muster to not audibly gag while the wretched harpy continued to sniff my hair and lick my face. The trails of saliva she left in the wake of her slurbs reeked as much as the smoky plumes of foul breath she kept panting. Finally, she moved away from me,

presumably back to her seat to the steering wheel, as I felt the car reposition itself into the proper lane. I slowly cracked my eyelids before committing to opening them fully. Once again I could see her shadow through the, fog and the burning cigarette in her mouth. She was still uttering light moans and smacking her lips together in between them. I darted my eyes from side to side in search of any means of escape. I closed my eyes again when I heard the old back shift in her seat, but she didn't seem to move in close to me this time. While I sat in the darkness behind my eyelids, I listened to the

sounds around me again. The hag's borderline orgasmic groans were accompanied by the humming of the engine and the tyres thumping across the reflectors. But it was that other sound that caught my attention, the one that had been part of the soundtrack of my journey into hell from the start. Why hadn't I thought of this sooner? The tarp that still flapped in the wind would be my best chance of getting out of here. The biggest hiccup in my burgeoning plan was how in the fuck was I going to get into the back seat? I gently guided my hand down the side of the chair that I sat upon.

This land yacht I rode in had a long cab, and my seat was pushed up close to the glove compartment. If I could recline the seat back as far as it would go, I might be able to access the plastic-wrapped window without having to climb into the back. My heart was hammering, and it was growing more difficult to keep my breast shallow, as my fingertips hooked onto the reclining latch of my seat. I still sat sideways from the previous attack, so I braced my back against the door and prepared for the impending battle for my freedom.

I slowly reached my other hand to the seatbelt clasp in hoax of being able to release both at the same time. Before giving myself a chance to reconsider, I poured the lever at the base of the seat, allowing the back to flop down onto the rear bench while popping the seatbelt loose. Immediately the old hag wailed out and I saw her face push through the thick cloud towards me again. With my shoulder blade still pressed against the passenger door, I whip my right leg around and slam my heel into her nose.

I heard and felt a crack behind my boot as she whimpered and muffled, The lit cigarette fell from her mouth and onto the carpeted mat on the floor. As I shuffle my body up the reclined seat back, I reached out. out to the plastic tarp and clawed my fingers into it, almost instantly forming the first tear. The wailing old bat charged at me again, and I tried to slam my foot into her mouth, but she caught it in her outstretched hands. I kicked at her with my other foot, while my hand still tore at the makeshift window. I felt her bone snapped behind my kick, she appeared unfazed as she yanked the work boot off the foot she still held. Finally, I tore away enough of the tarp to easily slide my body through, but her skeletal fingers

were still gripped around my ankle while she pulled my sock away. While I continued to wage war on her face and chest with my other foot, she would not be distracted from her task, even when a small flame began to crackle from the floorboard her lit smoke had landed on. I screamed out in sheer terror when the Haggard's old mouth fell unnaturally wide open, tearing the flesh of her teaks and spilling dark ooze down her neck. When her jagged and rotten teeth slammed down, around the front half of my foot,

I cried out again in horrific agony as she bit into the flesh of my appendage. Feeling my heart rushed with panic, I beat harder on her face with the heel of my one remaining boot. More darkened pus was leaking down from her torn cheek from my attacks on her brow, but it wouldn't break her focus. She pulled her head back and peeled away the skin and meat from my foot,

leaving bare bone and gushing muscle tissue behind. I fought against the shock that threatened to paralyze me when the blood that spewed from the grizzled fibres allowed me to slip my ankle free from her grasp. Everything became a blur as my senses began to betray me, but somewhere in my cluttered mind I knew I had to continue my efforts to free myself from this horrendous beast of a woman. With one final kick directly to her mouth That still chewed on my dismembered footmeat

I pushed myself further up the reclined seat Refusing to allow her another chance to swoop in I wrap my arms around the top of the open back window And pull myself out of the speeding lincoln My right shoulder was the first thing to slam onto the hard concrete I felt it dislocate While my collarbone snapped like a dry twig The side of my face scraped a great one.

the ground before my hip crashed down, bringing my knees cascading behind. I was aware that more bones were breaking, as my body spun and rolled across the rough and gravely surface, until I finally came to a halt where the road met the grass. I blinked rapidly against the morning sun, shining down into the eyes which had only looked into shadows and foggy darkness for so long, before my mind faded into the black once more. By the time I came back to my senses again, I found myself strapped down and speeding across the road once more. I was momentarily terrified that the mad bitch would swerved back to retrieve my broken body from the ditch, but my heart settled back into place when I realized

I was in an ambulance. I'd find out some time later that a passing driver had noticed my beaten body on the side of the highway and called in some help. For the most part, my injuries could have been a lot worse. I had cracked ribs, a shattered collarbone, a dislocated shoulder, and my left arm and leg were broken in multiple places. The scrapes across my face were mostly just surface wounds, and the split on the back of my head had required about a half dozen stitches to seal shut. Other than that, my hip was bruised up pretty good, as were my elbows and knees. The doctors had a lot of questions about the front half of my foot that was missing its flesh, I wasn't about to tell them what had really happened.

I highly doubted that they'd believe my account of what had actually occurred, and I didn't want to risk adding a stay in a mental institution to my physical recovery. Eventually they chalked it up to the possibility of a wild animal, munching on my toes while I lay unconscious. It wasn't all that far from the truth, really. The bite had left a pretty nasty infection, which had already grown gangreness by the time I arrived at the hospital, They ended up having to lob it off at the ankle, but it wasn't as far gone as it could have been.

I'm supposed to get fitted for a prosthetic soon, so that's something at least. I imagine it will take some getting used to, but nothing I can't handle. Between that and the months of recuperation that lay ahead, I shouldn't have any reason to get on that goddamn road any time soon. But honestly, I'm just happy to be alive, even with one foot, officially in the grave. It's only been a few days since that long trip back to the home I have still yet to reach. There's no telling when they'll allow me to get back to my house, but my sister brought a few necessities by.

Amazing, my phone didn't receive too much damage from my leap from the speeding land yacht, so once I was able to feed it some energy, I was able to type all this shit out. I think I may delete my 90s playlist, though. I always amazed me how music can thrust your. your mind back to certain events in life. I don't need any extra encouragement to revisit these memories in the future. I can't say I'm entirely sure where my car led me that night. I'd love to believe it was as simple as a glitch on my phone

that made time appear to trickle by at a snail's pace, but that logic leaves a lot to be desired. Is that rancid old harpy still speeding across that highway somewhere? Maybe so. Was I in her neck of the woods, or was she in mine? Who knows? I'd like to think that the cigarette that hit the carpet ended up engulfing the car in flames by the time the ragged old hag got done with her snack.

Speaking of which, I think I may be officially done with smoking. Damn, psychotic bitch may have inadvertently saved me from future lung cancer. Stick that in your freaking pipe, you cackling sack of wrinkle shit. I still have to make some calls and see if my rust bucket can be recovered, but I honestly have no idea if I'll be driving anywhere in the near future. It'll be strange to get used to operating the pedals with my left foot, when I do get back behind the wheel, that is, but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it soon enough. I'm not sure if I'm going to keep my job or search for something closer.

Maybe some sort of office work would be more to my lone foot's liking. It would likely be a while before I'm going to be a while. need to worry about that though. Fortunately the company I work for has fantastic insurance, plus a solid disability plan. Perhaps I can ride this out for a bit and enjoy some relaxation for a while. Surely I've earned that much after all this. So, um, just do yourself a favour yeah. Don't ever just ignore that check engine light like I did. There's no telling where you may find yourself stranded if you do. The strangest, secure. security tape I've ever seen. I work at a gas station in rural Pennsylvania. It's a boring job,

but it's pretty easy. It pays all right. A few weeks ago, this new guy started. I'll call him Jeremy. Now Jeremy is weird. He's about 25, 26, and he hardly speaks, but he's got the creepiest laugh I've ever heard. My boss and I have both noticed this, but it's never been a problem. there's not much we can do about it. Customers have never complained about him, and he's always done his job fairly well. Up until a few weeks ago, anyway, that's when things started going missing.

Employee theft can be a problem at any business that sells consumer goods, and there's only one person working at a time at this gas station. It's a pretty small place. About two weeks ago, my boss started noticing that we were short on motor oil. At first, it was a few containers at a time, the entire shelves and boxes from the back room.

Pretty soon entire shipments would be gone the day after we got them. It'd always be right after Jeremy shifts. My boss has checked the security camera tapes from every single night he worked, but he could never catch him in the act. Jeremy would lock up at closing, and the motor oil will be gone the next day. My boss usually takes the tapes home with him to try and catch Jeremy stealing, but his daughter had a softball game like that.

night so he asked me to watch the tape for him he offered to pay me overtime under the table so obviously i took that offer there were three cameras so he gave me three different tapes to check i figured it'd be a long night but i'm trying to save up for vacation so i really needed the money took the tapes home pop them in an old vCR and sat back two days ago the last time he worked jeremy started at four p m everything seemed pretty normal at first counted up his drawer, switched off with the girl who was working before him, and waited for a customer. The first person who came in was Mrs. Templeton. The timestamp on the video read 403, a regular.

She picked up her cigarettes and a newspaper, and paid with a 20. Nothing unusual there. The next customer was some local guy named Ron. He drives a motorcycle, usually comes in every few days. He filled up his tank, got a bag of beef jerky, paid with his credit card and then left. Next was some guy with a cowboy hat. I'd never seen him before, but he had plenty of strangers passing through,

just like at any gas station. He got $40 worth of diesel fuel, paid with a $100 bill, and went on his way. Oh, I sat back and sighed. The only thing more boring than doing this job is watching someone else do it. My boss's offer was enough to keep me watching, though, so I left the tape on. Everything seemed pretty normal.

I had a feeling that if Jeremy was stealing motor oil, he knew we were suspicious of him by now. I didn't expect him to be dumb enough to let us catch him on camera. Things stayed boring and routine till about five o'clock. 503 Mrs. Templeton came back in. She must have forgotten something. But she didn't. She bought the same pack of cigarettes as before,

and the same newspaper. She paid with another 20. That's odd, I thought, but then again she is a little absent-minded. I thought Jeremy should have told her she already got her smokes, but it's not against the rules to sell somebody the same thing twice. That's when Ron came in again. He bought another tank of gas for his motorcycle again. I later checked the outdoor camera because I thought maybe he had another car he wanted to fill up,

and the same pack of beef jerky. He paid with his credit card again. Well, no big deal. I figured this was just a weird coincidence. Mrs. Templeton is forgetful, and Ron probably owns more than one Harley. That's when the guy in the cowboy hat came back. I felt a chill run down my spine.

Don't get diesel. Don't get diesel. I found myself whispering to my empty living room. But he did. He got $40 worth of diesel fuel and paid with another $100 bill. Every movie made was identical to his first visit, right down to the way he scratched his nose before he walked out. Either this guy is rich, owns a lot of trucks, and just moved into town,

or something really bizarre was happening. I kept watching. Every customer for the next hour was the same as before, every single one. I was seriously freaked out, and then at 603 Mrs. Templeton walked back in. She bought her cigarettes and newspaper again, and paid with a 20 again. I thought I was going to lose it. I only watched another half hour before I started fast-forwarding through the rest. It was all the same.

every customer would come in at at the exact same times, exactly one hour apart. Yeah, I know what you're thinking. That sneaky mother, Jeremy, had messed with the tapes. He'd run a loop with the first hour of business over and over. That wasn't the case. I mean, they're at windows around the cash register area that the camera covers, and I watched the sunlight fade as time ran on.

Jeremy's routine didn't loop over. No, he swears. I slept, mopped, restocked and did all his duties exactly how you'd expect. But the same customers kept coming in. Well, I was panicking at this point. Something was seriously wrong with what I was seeing, and I had no explanation for it. I skipped ahead to when he locked up and walked out to his car. He hadn't stolen anything, but I kept watching just to make sure.

I fast forwarded one last time to about midnight. exactly twelve o three out of nowhere jeremy's face pops up on camera i don't mean he moved his head into view i mean that one second the store was empty the next his face was all i could see he wasn't looking at the camera he was looking at me i was sure of it i screamed and fumbled for the remote by the time i grabbed it he was gone just as soon as he'd left one frame he was was there the next he wasn't my hands were shaking like crazy but i popped in another tape the other indoor camera shows the back area by the cash register and i'd be able to see how he got up and put his face in the camera like that i skipped ahead to 1203 but there was nothing i mean i would have been able to see him standing on a chair or something on this tape but he wasn't there i didn't see him enter the store at all after he left. It's like you really wasn't there. It doesn't know the

security code and no alarms were triggered that night after he locked up. What I did see, however, was that at 1203, the motor oil vanished off the shelf. I mean, all of it, same as Jeremy's face. One second it was there and the next it wasn't. I turned that tape off and went to bed, but I didn't get a wink of sleep. My body's exhausted. right now, but my mind is racing. That tape was undoubted of the creepiest, most disturbing thing I've ever seen in my life. Well, I work in a few hours. My boss has asked me to bring the tapes back in and let him know what I found, but really, what the hell am I going to say? Jeremy works the night shift tonight, directly after me, and the plan is for my boss to come in

just before I leave and confront him with me, as I'm supposed to be the one. who caught him stealing. No idea what I'm going to do. I suppose I'll have to show my boss the tape, but I don't want to watch them with him. I never want to see something like that again. I can't get the image of Jeremy just smiling directly into the camera out of my mind.

It was the creepiest look I've ever seen on another human being's face. Anyway, I'm going to try and get some last-minute sleep before I have to go in and deal with this. I'll let you guys know what happens. Update. 249 p.m. Updating from my phone.

Apologies in advance for errors. My boss just finished watching the last of the tapes. I told him what to expect, but you really can't prepare someone for something like that. Well, he's scared shitless, and I still am too. And Jeremy's due to come in at fall. We've got a little over an hour to get our shit together, but neither one of us knows what to say.

to him? Is he just some fucked up guy who likes to steal motor oil and scare the shit out of people? Or is he something else? I don't know if this is crazy, but could he have anything to do with the time loop? My boss said he never noticed anything like that in the other tapes, but the way he popped up in this one made me think he knew I'd be watching. It's like he wanted me to see what he could do, like he was showing off or something. The way he smiled into the camera. was like a little kid showing you a sandcastle they just built or something i don't know i probably sound crazy i sure feel the part i'm going to talk to my boss some more we have to calm ourselves down and figure out how to handle this i'll update again tonight but i have a really bad feeling about how this is going to play out

update 433 p m no sign of jeremy tried calling him but his full phone has been disconnected. We're calling the police. Update 5.33 p.m. No sign of Jeremy. Try calling him, but his phone has been disconnected. We're calling the police. Update, 6.33 p.m. No sign of Jeremy. Try calling him, but his phone has been disconnected. We're calling the police. Update. 7.33 p.m. No sign of Jeremy. Try calling him, but his phone has been disconnected.

We're calling the police. Update, 8.33 p.m. No sign of Jeremy. Try calling him, but his phone has been disconnected. We're calling the police. Update, 10.58 p.m. "'Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit, holy shit. I just got home and saw my previous updates.

Things make less sense now than ever. Oh, here's what I can tell you. I went to work. Jeremy never showed up. My boss and I decided to call the police, as you're well aware. When I picked up the phone to call, though, the sun went out. I mean, I shit you not. That's what I thought happened.

Apparently I blacked out for exactly five hours because when I looked at the clock it was 933. I think I got stuck in Jeremy's time loop and then I snapped out of it at the exact point I blacked out if that makes sense. But that's when things got really weird. My boss was right next to me when I blacked out, ready to corroborate my story to the cops. When I came to the phone was in my hand, but it was dead, not even a dial tone. My boss was still right there, but he wasn't moving. He was standing up, but frozen. I looked at the clock again, and it wasn't moving.

The second hand was stuck on the 12. It was exactly 9.33. The clock on the register, the computer screen, wasn't moving either. My phone was frozen. There was even a customer at the register, waiting for my boss to get him cigarettes. I'm betting that would have been his fifth pack of the day. Well, I got the fuck out of there.

Didn't lock up, didn't turn the lights out, and sorry guys, I didn't grab the security tapes to upload on the internet. Believe me, that was the last thing on my mind. The gas stations on a major highway, and cars were parked all along it. They simply weren't parked, but they were frozen. The people inside were sitting still as wax statues. I got in my car and prayed it would start, and thankfully it did. But halfway home, time started up again. The static from the radio turned into music, like it was supposed to be.

From what I could tell by listening to the host talking between songs, no one had noticed the time freeze or whatever it was. I was the only one. Well, I'm sure Jeremy noticed as well. I still have no clue where he is or what he's doing. I'm hiding in my room and calling the police again in the morning. I don't know if I ever got through to them before, or if I did, whether they took me seriously.

I'm scared for my life at this point. I'll update tomorrow, if I can. Final update. 10.33 a.m. I finally fell asleep last night around four. No idea how I did it. I guess exhaustion finally got the best to me. This morning I woke up to my phone ringing.

It was my boss. He'd been calling me since about six. He woke up when time. turned back on last night and immediately called the cops. They came by to see what was wrong and he told them everything. The police around here are all small-time guys. They were more concerned with the missing motor oil than anything. But my boss figured as long as he had their attention that he'd take it. They decided to go looking for Jeremy. We keep all our employees' applications on file and since Jeremy had just started working here, his was easy to find.

They checked the address on it and headed over to his house. Well, you are not going to believe what they found. The address Jeremy listed on his application was an empty lot, or at least now it is. There used to be a house there, but it burned down in 1993. Being a small town, almost everyone remembers that fire. A family of four used to live there back then. Rumour has it, they had an estranged son who they never really talked about. But I can't say for sure that that's true.

What I can say is true is that after an insurance investigation, the fire was ruled an arson. The entire house was soaked in oil and torched with a Molotov cocktail. The whole family was sleeping when it happened, and none of them survived. They never caught the person who did it. Rumour has it that when they tried to contact the estranged son, no one could find him. Anyway, when boss called and told me this, and I freaked out. Then he asked me to come to the gas station. What?

Are you crazy? I said. But he assured me that the cops were there with him. Then he dropped the bomb. The FBI were also in town and they were going to talk to me one way or another, so I might as well come in. It was about 7.15 and I wanted to go back to bed. But I figured I wouldn't be able to sleep much more anyway.

So I went down. Four men in suits greeted me and taught me. me to have a seat. We went over everything two or three times until they get all the details down. I told them about Jeremy, the security table, the last night at work, everything. Finally, after I'd finished, one of the agents said, Oh, Christ, we've got another one on our hands. Then they made me sign a bunch of papers saying I wouldn't tell anyone about what had happened, and so I can't say much more.

might be breaking the law by just posting this. So, now I'm home. Not sure what I do with myself. That agent's words when I told him the story are going to haunt me for the rest of my life. Anyway, I have to go. I have some errands to run today. Then I have to go into work to pick up some tapes.

Yeah, my boss and I think this new guy, Jeremy, he's a complete creep. Stealing motor oil. I have to watch the security footage to see if I can catch him doing it. Well, I have better things to do, but my boss is paying me overtime, under the table, and I'm trying to save up for vacation so I could really use the money. Yeah, it should be pretty simple. It always goes missing right after his shifts.

I figure I'll just watch the tapes, catch him in the act, and that'll be that. We built a portal gun. The whole thing was Ray's idea. Yes, I had a hand in it, but I swear I had no idea what his plans were. Hell, I'm not even sure he knew, to be honest. It was probably a year ago, if I'd take a month or two. I had a hard time making out his words at first, because he was just so excited,

to the point of barely being able to form a legible sentence. The main thing I got from the phone call was to get to his house as soon as possible. He's usually a pretty composed guy, but something had him riled up something serious. We've been friends since we were kids, ever since I helped him with a burgeoning bully problem, in sixth grade. Ray was really shy, quite small for his age, so the bigger kids would lay

into him pretty good. I didn't know anything about him at the time, but he always sat alone at lunch. When Ronnie Blige and his goon started harassing him one day, I couldn't let that shit slide. I wasn't especially strong or outgoing myself, but I never could stomach the bigger kids hustling the smaller ones. As soon as they swatted his lunch off the table and pushed him to the ground from his chair, I ran over before taking the time to consider my actions. Now, I'm not going to lie. I got my ass handed to me, but I stood my ground until Mr. Norris stepped in.

He was a social studies teacher, I was about as intimidating as a half-flattened grasshopper, but he was still an authority figure. I ended up being suspended along with Ronnie and his friend. but it was enough to make them think twice about pushing Ray around anymore. After all, I did get a couple of good swings on him, too. When I got back to school the following week, Ray couldn't thank me enough for stepping in when I did.

We became pretty tight from then on. Jess was Ray's sister, and I developed a crush on her soon after my friend introduced us. I out of respect for my friend, I never acted on my feelings, but the friends own knot me out of the running anyway. The three of us spent a long time together over the high school years, and we managed to hold on to that friendship after they left for college. I never went to university myself. I was never the best student, drew in part to my fairly erratic life at home.

I won't go into specifics, but my parents' relationship was always rocky at best. Of course, I wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed either. When we learned the National Anthem back in kindergarten, I wondered what a don't know. I was. Of course I didn't ask anyone, no, I just assumed it meant really bright and started using that shit in sentences. Wow, the sun sure is dancely today. Can I close the curtains? It's way too dancely outside. Don't call me stupid. I'm don't solier than you. Yep, I was about as donselie as a cave in the middle of a moonless night. I wasn't particularly smart. I was always pretty mechanically inclined,

so I ended up working at a garage after school. Working on vehicles paid well enough for me to get my own place, far away from my folks, and carve out a decent life for myself. Ray dropped out of college after a couple of years, or Jess worked on her law degree for many years after. She always did like to argue. He was always quite the intellectual,

but he claimed that school was just. attempting to dumb him down. Worried anyone else who claimed that, I would have thought them way too arrogant for their own good, but not Ray. As soon as I pulled into the driveway, the garage door opened with my friend standing behind it. His house was nothing especially big or fancy,

but it sat alone on a wide open area, with a long road that led directly to the huge carport that sat next to the house. Ah, this is going to be the big one, brother, he said as he ran up to my car, before I even had the chance to get out. What's going to be the big what? I asked, chuckling at his childlike enthusiasm.

Two words, he began to say, before being cut off by his sister pulling into the wide driveway. Jess was with her husband, Elijah, who was riding shotgun. He was a pretty good guy, but I can't say I didn't hold just the slightest bit of jealous contempt for him. I'm fairly sure he knew I felt about his wife, but he was cool enough to let it slide. Ray walked towards his sister and pulled her into a hug as soon as she got out of her car.

He smiled at Eli and gave him an acknowledging nod, to which his brother-in-law returned the gesture. He weavered us all to follow him into the garage and where he already had some fairly professional-looking blueprint spread across his work-table. You're not serious, Jess exclaimed after glancing down at the prince. I wooded it all out last night, Ray replied, with glee in his eyes.

Okay, you've officially watched entirely too much Rick and Mordy, I said, laughing out loud after I looked at the mapped out sketch of what was labelled Portal Gun. Eli laughed with me while Jess appeared to be trying her best to keep her composure. Look, I know it sounds crazy, but I swear to Christ, it'll work, Ray said, looking between us. His voice sounded a bit pitiful, as we clearly heard. his feelings. Just trust me, guys, he pleaded. I'll make sure we're all partners in this. Just have faith in me. Ray, you're my closest friend, I said. You know I've always got you back, but this is science fiction of not actual science. Now, to call my friend a genius would be

dramatically underselling his intellect. Though I had endless faith in his brilliant mind, I just couldn't wrap my far more simple mind around it. Well, after dropping out of college, he had started working on a variety of entrepreneurial ventures. I can't necessarily speak to what said work involved, since it is as above my pay grade as my understanding. By the time he was 25, he had, well, several patents and was worth more than $20 million, and that's with only two years of college. So for him to call this ridiculous idea, the big one, well, I couldn't help but wonder what he considered big. this is exactly what motivated my next question.

Are you sure you want to risk your reputation on something like this? I asked. I seemed to consider what I'd said for a moment. He was generally very quick-witted, and rarely lots of words. Well, with us anyway. Even with all his success, he was almost painfully shy and introverted. I was usually the only one he could confide in, which made this whole ordeal even more shocking. I was always close with his sister, and he even took to Eli pretty quickly. I tried to share his wealth with all of us, but Jess was already a very successful lawyer, and I was just too hard-headed to accept any form of charity.

I did allow him to invest in my own garage, though. I couldn't rationalise just taking his money as a handout, but he was happy to be a partner in my maintenance shop. This isn't about the money, Ray said, breaking the silence that had begun to consume his garage. He looked at each of us with his eyes wide. There was a strange sort of desperation on his face that I'd never seen before. Nothing I've ever done has left a mark on this world, he continued. But this, he said, patting his hand on the blueprint,

this is my legacy. This could change the world as we know it. My mind was made up before I looked at Jess and Eli for confirmation. I still thought this was completely nuts. but I always had my friends back. I wouldn't change that now, even if I thought his genius was giving way to a touch of madness.

Okay, I said, giving him a half-smile. What do you need me to do? Ray lit up like a kid on Christmas morning, while Eli and Jess nodded their acceptance of whatever this plan held for them. Though mine would be the hands that would assemble this thing, according to my friend's instructions, I was unsure what role Jess or Eli would play.

For the most part, they had little to no involvement. I assume Ray just invited them to be a part of it since they were part of our small circle of friends and family. The design was far simpler than I ever could have thought, but my friend had absolutely no doubt it would work. Some parts took some time to get our hands on, and others cost Ray an insane amount of money. He claimed he didn't care about the financial aspect.

but I wasn't entirely sure I bought that. Still, I couldn't believe how much he was willing to pay out for this ridiculous venture. I'd never seen him so blindly driven before. Honestly, he scared the hell out of me sometimes. My friend had always been a calm and composed individual, but he completely lost his shit at times during this process. I'd never seen this side of him before. I even began to fear for his sanity.

I was several times during those first few months where he would throw parts across the room or pound on the work table until his knuckles bled. There was something in his eyes at those times that caused me to feel very uncomfortable. It was like a man possessed, more so than one driven by a goal. After three months we finally had our first attempt finished.

When Ray aimed it at the wall and pulled the trigger, he did little more than lightly scorched. the wood, and he flipped out. He screamed at the top of his lungs and launched the gun at the concrete floor. He stamped his foot on it, yelling, swearing so much that his words didn't even sound like any form of recognisable language anymore. He proceeded to beat and kick anything in sight. He punched the wall until the wood splintered from his blows. As soon as this legendary tantrum started, I got the hell out of there. I just walked around to the back of his house and lit up a cigarette while he tore his garage apart.

After a while, his guttural bellows didn't cause me to wince anymore, but it was probably a solid hour before he calmed down. What the hell was that man? I asked when Ray finally walked out of the demolished garage. I'm sorry, he replied, staring at the ground to avoid any eye contact. I've just put so much time and money into this, he continued. I can't fail. Maybe you should just walk away from this for a bit, I suggested.

No, he screamed out as soon as the words had left my mouth. Oh, now, I said, backing away from my friend. I'm sorry, Ray said. I just, well, I mean, well, I can't stop now. They won't, I asked. Who are they? Ray continued to stutter, but he wouldn't. give me a straight answer. He told me he wasn't feeling very rational at the moment and not to listen

to any of his crazy words. I finally got him settled down and he agreed to take a few days off to clear his head. I was trying to get him to just drop this whole thing but he wouldn't hear of it. We didn't talk for a couple of weeks after that day. It was probably the longest I'd ever gone without talking to him, but he'd freaked me out quite a bit. I'd gotten back into my regular schedule and resign myself to just wash my hands with this whole ordeal. I felt bad for ditching out of my friend, but I wasn't going to take part in his dissent into madness anymore. Just two weeks after his meltdown, Ray contacted me again.

He apologized for the way he'd acted and practically begged me to come back and help him. I worked it out, he said in a trembling voice. I couldn't tell if he was just nervous about making his apology, or if he was getting himself worked up again. After we talked for a while longer, I agreed to give him one last chance. I can't say I was excited about the prospect of taking part in this endeavour further, but he was my friend. After another two months' race, a portal gun was ready to be tested again.

My whole body was shaking as he aimed the gun at the wall of his garage one more time. My heart was racing. The device was simple in its design. It was almost shaped like a hairdryer that had cables that ran to the heavy backpack. It made me think of a bad cosplay attempt at Ghostbusters' proton packs. There were blinking lights and a couple of switches on the pack, while the gun itself had two knobs and a trigger. One knobbed was to adjust the diameter of the portal,

while the other was to switch between entry and exit points. The toggles on the back were just to power up and activate the thing, and I'm pretty sure the LEDs were just for sure. my friend asked me to flip the switches while he aimed the gun at the wall. Well, here goes nothing, he said with his eyes wide and manic. As soon as he pulled back on the trigger, a small glowing circle of orange light appeared on the wall. He turned the first knob and the light widened before my eyes. After he let off the trigger, the circle of light changed to a perfectly round hole in the wall.

He then turned the second knob and aimed at the first knob and aimed at the door. the opposing wall, leaving another equally round hole. There was nothing special about how the openings looked. There wasn't exactly an enter here indicator, but Ray expected that. He told me to just be sure I kept track of which portal came first. My friend grabbed a basketball from a box to the side of the workbench. He gave me a strange look with a crooked half-smile before he tossed the ball through the first hole. Sure enough, as soon as the ball went through the left wall, it came bouncing out of the right.

Holy shit, I said in a monotone voice. A shock would allow me no more than that. After closely examining the basketball, Ray gave me a wink and ran towards the first hole. No, wait, I yelled out, but he was running back through the right wall before I could even suggest that we run more tests first. He yelled out in a frantic and excited shriek after he arrived back on the other side of the room. We both laughed quite a lot

when he thrust his arm through the left side and it popped right out of the opposing wall. You really did it, I said with a surprise smile. We did it, Ray replied with glassy eyes. He asked me to call his sister and to get her to come by. While we awaited her arrival, we conducted a few more tests.

I tossed the basketball at the exit portal to see what would happen. Somehow it couldn't even go through. It just bounced right back at us. We lobbed a variety of things through the origin hole. We didn't need to prove that worked anymore. Honestly, we just had fun watching them and go through one and pop out of the other. After a while, Ray flipped off the backpack switches, and both walls returned to their previous state.

still in complete disbelief I smacked my hands against both walls to find them completely sealed and solid It'd still be a few hours before Jess arrived So my friend and I just kicked back And celebrated our success with a couple of cigars That he'd bought for this very occasion He wanted to hold off on the champagne

Until his sister arrived But we still cracked open a couple of beers And clinked them together before chugging down The deliciously cold brew It was getting dark out when and Jess and Eli finally pulled into the driveway. They didn't seem overly amused about coming out here, but they changed their tune after we gave them a demonstration of our accomplishment.

They both just stared on with wide eyes and slack jaws, as Ray strode through one wall and out the other. They wrote a complete loss for words until we popped up in the champagne and passed around glasses. I can't believe you actually pulled it off, Eli said, barely aware of the drink in his hand. I always knew you'd change the world, little brother, just said with a wide smile. Ray was wearing a proud look on his face,

as he admired his own work. Well, it's like they said, you ain't seen nothing yet, he remarked, halfway to himself. That's the second time you've mentioned they. Who the hell are they, actually? I asked. Huh?

"'My friend replied, seemingly poured from his own thoughts. "'Ah, figure of speech,' he continued dismissively. "'I studied his face for a moment. "'He didn't look like himself at that moment. "'His eyes were somewhat manic again, "'and his lower lip appeared to be twitching. "'You're okay, man?' I asked. "'H' he replied, not taking his eyes away

"'from the portal gun that lay on the table. "'After a few minutes of an incredibly awkward silence that had encompassed the room. Ray reached out and flipped the switches back to the on position. He slung the pack across his back and clutched the gun in his hand. He turned to meet Eli's curious stare. Do you trust me? He asked.

His whole body looked as though it was shivering slightly. I had no idea what had gotten into him all of a sudden. I'd assisted him on a number of projects over the years, from juicing up the turbo on his Mustang to helping him convert a simple and cheap drone into something with an incredibly long range. He'd had so many projects over the years. I couldn't even guess how many different ideas he'd had, but I'd never seen him like this. Eli looked at his wife, and then over at me. He seemed uncertain and appeared to be looking for confirmation that he should indeed trust his brother-in-law. Or just a shrugged, but I shook my head. I wouldn't even trust my friend

with how he was acting right now. I, um, I guess, he said, suddenly very unsure whether this was the best response at the moment. Without another word, Ray quickly switched the gun's knob to the exit position. His expression grew even wilder when he held it outstretched in front of him, aiming the barrel at Eli's midsection. What are you doing, man? Elijah asked, backing away from Ray.

Ray. This is going to blow your mind, my friend said in a voice that had grown high-pitched and frantic. Ray, stop, I yelled out, but he pulled the trigger before I could attempt to stop him. Jessica screamed out in terror as her husband's eyes went wide and blank. I just stared in shock as the portal appeared to wrap around the center of his body that left the upper and lower sections detached, held in place by the opening that glowed with a vibrant green light.

I didn't see the room behind Eli through the hole, but what looked to be a completely alien landscape? With the neon light hues emitting from the void, it almost resembled gazing through night-vision goggles. Jess tried to run to her husband, but I grabbed her arm and held her back. She beat on my chest while screaming out. What did you do to him?

She yelled as much to me as to her brother. I don't know. "'No,' I stuttered, completely lost of words. "'I don't know what this is.' "'I needed her to know that I was not a part of whatever the hell this was, "'but that I was incomplete, horrified shock myself. "'Ray let the gun drop to the ground beside him, "'and he held his arms outstretched to his sides

"'as something began to appear from within the portal in Eli's torso. "'Jesus Christ,' I said, as I watched two thin skeletal arms reach out and grip onto Eli's chest and upper thighs with six-fingered, elongated hands. As the creature forced its way out of Jessica's husband, the pressure from its limbs bent in light his chest and legs backwards into a horrifying sort of reverse sitting position. He appeared to float in mid-air while the portal held the two halves of him together. Oh, I heard bone snap and tissue tear as a screeching face worked its way out of the hole. The head looked like a deformed human skull, with a greenish-grey skin tightly wrapped around it.

The face split in the centre to reveal long and widened teeth. As it shrieked its whole head halved in the middle, making it look like a nightmare version of a Pac-Man. It had no eyes, only the wide mouth and stretched skin, that continued down to the emaciated and sunken chest that now forced through the void in Eli's body. My senses finally seemed to recover, while the thing was still attempting to escape into this world. I picked Jessica up and ran towards my truck. No, Ray screamed out, while I was attempting to force the frantic Jess into the passenger seat. There has to be too, he yelled as he came running towards us.

Behind him, I saw the beast fall to the ground, after escaping through Eli's body. though it lay on the concrete seemingly exhausted from its transition it looked to be quite tall the eerily thin frame was mostly humanoid but each limb looked twice the length of my own its whole body looked like an elongated skeleton with that grayed green skin wrapped around the bones ray got to the side of my truck and was pulling on the door handle i had locked it as soon as i got in but he just kept yank on it until it broke off his hand. He screamed out again, and he barely sounded human anymore. He pounded on the window, instantly causing cracks to spiderweb across it. I kicked it into reverse and shot back out of the driveway, leaving my friend to fall to his knees. I took one final glance back to see the portal disappear, and the two halves of Eli fall to the ground. Clearly, flesh does not recover as well as brick and mortar with such things. Ray attempted to run after me as I sped away from this house,

but even if he hadn't still been wearing the heavy backpack, I had the pedal pushed to the floor. Once I was sure I put enough distance between us, I called 911. I had no idea what to tell them, so I just reported a possible homicide at Ray's address. I didn't stop rolling until my truck was running on fumes. Jessica being catatonic since she watched her husband quite literally fall to pieces before her eyes, but at least she was alive.

I considered driving home, but I was certain Ray would go there first if he was searching for his sister and I. I pulled off the interstate to find gas stations and hotels right off the exit. My passenger was still out of it, so I checked us into one of the roadside motels after filling up my gas tank. I went ahead and just got one room with two beds so I could keep an eye on her through the night I didn't want her to creep out or make her feel like I was holding her hostage but my head was still spinning from the evening's events I still couldn't believe my friend had gone so far off the deep end

had this been his plan all along had he just been using me to bring whatever the hell that was into this world just laying the bed across from me still shaking all over her. I'd have to try and get her help soon. Hell, I have to get myself help for that matter. Her body was faced away from me, so I walked over to where she lay to check on her. She was out, thankfully. I could only hope that rest would help her troubled mind. It was just then when I was about to attempt to lay down myself, that my phone rang. I was apprehensive at first, I'm sure if it may be Ray attempting to contact me, but no.

Given the bizarre circumstances, the police found when they arrived at my friend's house, I'd have to make a statement as to the events that took place. The detective told me that they found some video footage at the scene, and I'd be required to make a statement. He sounded confident that I wouldn't be facing any charges, but they needed to hear my account of what had happened. I couldn't help but wish I'd taken the time to locate a pay phone before placing the 911 call,

but I wasn't exactly thinking straight. I made arrangements to have someone pick up Jessica in the morning, at which point I'd make my way to the police station. I was still very uncertain as of what to expect, but I knew Jess was going to be in need of some serious psychological care. The investigator was actually far more understanding of my apprehension and concerns than I would have expected. An ambulance arrived at the motel just a couple of hours later.

Jessica was still out of it, but the paramedics assured me they get her the care she needed. After they took off, I headed back towards the city I fled from only a handful of hours before. Having driven for longer than I realised the previous night, it took me a while to arrive back at the station back in Ray's neck of the woods. My thoughts were all over the place, but I just wanted this nightmare to be over. Detective Leary was waiting for me in his office when I arrived. It was an older guy, but I think he was.

he appeared more aged than he really was. He had thin brown hair that had receded back a good bit. He wore a thick moustache and rimless glasses. He spoke in a friendly tone, but his expression appeared quite stern. There were two other individuals in the room when I walked in, but they showed no motivation to introduce themselves. They both wore dark suits and had a similarly cold expression on their faces. They were both maybe in their mid-thirties. The shorter of the two had a shaved head, or the other sported a blonde buzzcutt. Neither of them said a word while they just stood at the back of the room. The detective told me the two men were in charge of the investigation,

though he'd be the one asking the questions. I knew nothing about any of the room's inhabitants, but Leary came off a little intimidated by the duo in the nice suits. It's very possible he was just one of those particularly skittish people, but given the pictures on the walls of seemingly very important individuals shaking the detective's hand, I had to assume it was just these particular men that made him nervous. At the officer's request, I recounted the events of the previous day, along with the details of the project we'd worked on these past three months.

It was a grueling conversation, and retelling these facts caused me to physically wince multiple times. I don't think I'd allow myself to really take in everything that had happened, until this very moment. By the time I was finished with my story, I found myself just staring at the desk I sat in front of, barely holding on to my own sanity. Nobody said anything after I told my side of things

until Leary asked me to step outside for a moment. I shook my head to snap out of my vacant stare and just nodded to the man before walking out the door. A good 30 or 40 minutes passed before I was invited back in. As soon as I strolled through the open door, the two silent men walked quickly past me without so much as glancing in my direction. They seem friendly, I remarked to the detective

before the two were out of earshot. You have no idea, he replied. Leary went on to explain that the men in the finely tailored suits were against the idea of me seeing what he wanted to show me. He told me he thought I had the right to view the video footage they'd found. "'This may be tough to watch, and I'm sure you're going to need a truckload of therapy out of this. "'So it's completely your call,' he said, holding the remote control to the monitor that sat on the other side of the desk. "'I considered his words for some time before I reluctantly agreed to watch the tape.

"'I wasn't quite ready to face the reality of everything that had occurred, but I had to know what happened next. As the video began to play, I wondered when exactly Ray had begun recording. I asked the detective to fast forward through the events I'd witnessed firsthand and basically cut to the chase. I stared on with wide eyes as the video spared through the horrific act that had been forced on Elijah. Poor guy didn't even have a chance. I have no doubt that even if he had denied Ray's question of trust, he would still have met the same fate. Leary started playing the tape again, and I watched my truck speed away from the house with my friends screaming out after me. The skeletal creature still lay on the concrete at the garage, while Ray erratically paced back and forth.

There has to be too. He was muttering over and over to himself as he walked from side to side across his lawn. There's no time, no time for more, no time at all, he continued, sounding more maniacal with every word. I just wanted to share Share with them But no They wouldn't No time Has to be too

No time now We went on and on Just repeating the same thoughts Each time more harried than the last No time He said somberly As he came to a halt In front of the grey and green thing on the floor

Has to be done No time left Here he marked one last time Before he picked the gun back off the ground. It had been dragging behind him as he darted back and forth, still wearing the heavy backpack. He stared back into the camera that had apparently been mounted close to the rear of his garage. He didn't say another word. He just raised the gun up slowly and planted the barrel into his own mouth. Since he directed the portal into his own throat, I couldn't see

the opening fall. He just stood there with his head tilted back while both of his arms dropped to his side, and the gun fell to the ground. For minutes he just stared motionlessly up at the sky. I audibly gasped when the long, bony fingers reached out of his mouth. They gripped at the size of his face and forced the opening wider, splitting and tearing the flesh. I fought against the lump forming in my own throat as I looked on while Ray's face was ripped and his skull cracked and splintered. his neck bulged and thaw open or sharp twigs of rib bones pierced out of his chest what was left of his head gave way as the thing forced its way out chunks of bloody meat and scarlet tissue fell to the ground each part sounding more moist and sticky than the last but the time the creature fell to the ground beside the other which had only now begun to move my friend was completely split apart from the abdomen up He still stood in place

With his hands almost touching the ground As what remained of his shoulders Now hung by his waistline Leary turned off the tape after that last part But I still just glared blankly at the screen He wouldn't give me any insight into the investigation Nor would he tell me if the creatures were still there When the police arrived

I was asked to sign an agreement That I would not speak of this But I assumed nobody would believe me anyway I kept my word until now. It's been about a year since that awful night, and I've been attending regular therapy since. Jess is still in the mental institution, but she finally started speaking again a few months back.

I make sure to visit her at least once a week, and she's slowly coming back to herself, though I highly doubt she'll ever be the same as she was before all of this madness. I have no way of knowing what ever happened to the monstrous beings that were birthed through my friends by the way of the portal gun that I helped create. I can't speak to the location of said invention either. Whether it's connected or not, I've been receiving calls from Ray's phone the last few days.

I finally broke down and answered it last night. I don't know how, but it was my friend's voice on the other end. He sounded different, which is not surprising as his head was fragmented into bony and bloody chunks. but somehow I believe it was him I have no idea how that could even be possible two more it said has to be two more

and I immediately hung up the phone and threw it to the ground I stomped the damn thing with the heel of my foot until it was just a scattering of plastic and glass I can't be sure of what those words meant but I'm not sticking around to find out I'm packing up my shit and getting the hell out of dodge. Hopefully I can convince Jess to come with me

if I can even get her out of the institution she's in. Either way, I won't wait around to see what happens next. I can't know what my friend's true motivation was behind all of this. Just, please, understand. I never would have let it get this far if I could have known what he intended. He said, We change the world together. And so once again, we reach the end of tonight's podcast.

My thanks as always to the authors of those wonderful stories and to you for taking the time to listen. Now, I'd ask one small favor of you. Wherever you get your podcast wrong, please write a few nice words and leave a five-star review as it really helps the podcast. That's it for this week, but I'll be back again, same time, same place, and I do so hope you'll join me once.

more. Until next time, sweet dreams and bye-bye.