Above or Love, Hope, Hate, or Fear,
It lives all passionless and pure:
An age shall fleet like earthly year;
Its years as moments shall endure.
Away, away, without a wing,
O’er all, through all, its thought shall fly,
A nameless and eternal thing,
Forgetting what it was to die.
When Coldness Wraps This Suffering Clay, Final Paragraph.
Lord Byron, 1815
~
A growl from the depths of Hell roared from the creature’s throat as it charged at me. I lost sight of it as a hand slammed the door.
“Hold that closed! I’m going to lock it in.” Lenny said, throwing a pack onto the ground.
His voice seemed to snap me awake and I braced the door. The wood moaned and creaked as I felt the thing ramming into it, echoing that terrible growl. The static on my phone squealed at a pitch.
“Sweetling– Sweetling! Come and play.”
“God damn it–” Lenny said, throwing things from the pack to the side.
“What do you have that could hold this thing?!” I stammered.
“Not hold it, just– Ah, here it is. Okay listen to me Megan. When I tell you to open the door, do it, okay?” Lenny said.
“O–Okay.”
“Good. Now ready? One, two, three!”
I pushed open the door then put myself against the wall. I saw a long, spindly arm fling out with a claw. It nicked Lenny in the face before he used his device.
“Get back, you asshole–” He said. Lenny flung salt at the monster, but it only stared at him, uncomprehending as the crystals hit it to no effect.
“Is that a fucking salt shaker?” I said incredulously. Lenny slammed the door in its face again.
“Well, that usually works.” He said.
A thought came to me. I took the salt shaker. “When the suited man came to me at the hotel, he said that it’s about intent. I could release him if it was my intent.”
Lenny bounced away from the door as it was shoved open by the thing. I unscrewed the cap and flung the salt with rage.
The thing screamed like a shriveling spider, skin bubbling where the crystals made contact. It retreated into the room, and when it was back in the dark, Lenny pulled out something else. It was an old book of some kind. He began to read from it while the thing writhed.
“Remember, focus your intent.” I said. Lenny swallowed and started to read.
“Mors certa, hora incerta, mors vincit omnia. Or in my words, go back to Hell you son of a bitch.” Lenny said.
We both watched as the thing swayed back and forth in the darkness. It careened over to the wall, bumped into one of the curtained windows, then seemed to settle to sleep.
“Mors Infra…” Its voice echoed quietly.
Lenny leaned in, slowly closed the door, and turned to me. “You didn’t think to warn me that you had something hiding in this bedroom?” Lenny whispered furiously. He put a line of salt in front of the door.
“How was I supposed to know?” I said.
“What do you mean you didn’t know?”
“I mean that this is the first time I’ve seen it. I was looking for–” I paused. That’s right, May, where was May?
“Can you lock this door?” Lenny said.
“No, my keys don’t work for some reason.”
“Well, this salt should seal it here, but we need to tell everyone to stay the hell away from this door.”
“Agreed.”
We walked partly down the hall.
“What’s the plan now?” Lenny said.
“My sister is missing. I need to keep looking for her. Can you go outside and give everyone a rundown?”
“Sure.” Lenny said.
“All right. If you find her out there, have Carol call me.”
Lenny went downstairs as I looked for May.
“May? Come on, now’s not the time to mess around.”
What if that thing got her? What if she’s… I stopped that thought. I didn’t want to think about it.
When Lenny left the house, it was too quiet. Soon I heard only the distant clicking of a clock somewhere. I came to the railing overlooking the entryway. The chandelier creaked as it gently swayed.
I heard a giggle and looked up. I saw a small form in a purple coat dart up the stairs and out of sight. Towards the third floor.
“May? Don’t go up there.” I said, and followed.
I tentatively walked up to the third floor landing. Across the walkway was a sitting area right in front of the central tower’s flowery window. There were two hallways here, one to my right, and one to my left. The left side was where my nightmare hall resided. Being this close made me uneasy.
I heard the giggle again, and saw May run down that left hallway. My stomach fell. I had seen this shit in movies before. That wasn’t May. May wouldn’t try and lead me to that hallway. As if to confirm my suspicion, the song started to play. I saw May, or what was pretending to be May, peek around the far corner. Her eyes were covered by the hood of her purple jacket.
I tried to control my shaky breathing as the floorboards creaked below me. ‘May’ giggled. She disappeared around the corner as I walked all the way to the end, and stopped just before the turn. It was just on the other side of this wall. I hadn’t been this close to it in years. My heartbeat pulsed in my head.
Despite it being noon, the sky outside the windows seemed dark.
“May?” I said.
No response. So what if it was trying to lead me here? If May was really in trouble, I had to help her.
I’ll just look. Just look, and it’ll be fine. I thought.
I peeked around the corner.
The hallway ahead was the same as it had always been. A length of rot. The wallpaper peeling, the wood curdled and dry, the potted plants long dead skeletons and the paintings of grim tales. My nightmare.
Everything else I had been scared of as a child faded away with time. Heights, deep water, spiders, all worked on and conquered. This was the only thing that I couldn’t shake. It made me feel so small and helpless, as if I had just been a child yesterday, and this fear still new and fresh.
I saw May at the end of the hall.
Her back was to me. She was still in her purple coat, staring up at the golden moon on the black door. I could hear the music muffled behind it. Every instinct told me to leave, run away and don’t look back, but how could I? I couldn’t leave May.
Stepping past the corner was like wading through water. Everything in my body fought to be away from here.
“May, is that you? Are you all right?” I said.
“Megan?” She turned to look at me and seemed dazed.
“Get away from that door, okay?” I said.
“But I’m in trouble for hurting the suited man.”
I took another step into the hall. The walls seemed to whisper to me. They seemed to melt in my peripheral vision. Like quicksand, the farther I went, the harder it would be to get out.
May, save May.
May reached for the door handle. I froze at the thought of seeing the monster behind it.
“May, you were going to rake leaves with David, remember? He’s waiting for you outside,” I said, voice shaking. May paused. “If you ask nicely, he might make you your favorite dinner too.”
She put her hand back down and turned towards me. She rubbed her eyes.
“Megan?” She said again. “Where am I?”
I wanted to run down there and get her, but it was like pushing against a wall.
“Magdalene…” The monster said. Its voice turned into the suited man’s as it continued. “Let me out. Come and play the little song for me. My arm grows tired.”
It was him. That monster behind the door was him.
“May, come here.” I said.
She watched me with confused eyes. She was falling back into that trance. It wasn’t working. I took a few hyperventilated breaths, then ran towards her.
“Let me out, Magdalene.” The suited man said. He pounded against the black door.
I scooped up May and ran. When I turned, the suited man was standing at the end of the hall, blocking our exit.
“I’ve asked you nicely so many times. I suppose if you won’t free me, you will join me.” He said.
The door flashed open behind me. It cracked against the plaster of the wall and I felt something grab my shoulders and ankles. I screamed and fought against it, but it pulled and pulled. I thrashed as much as I could, but it felt like I was underwater.
I didn’t look at the open door. I knew the fear of what I saw would be it for me. I watched my ankle turn gray as I was partly pulled into the room. I fell to the ground with May still in my arms.
“May? Please, wake up.” I said through tears.
Darkness seeped from the windows behind the suited man. He leaned over us like a creaking beam.
“Oh Magdalene,” He tsked. “You should have listened to me. I offered you the world, and now you will lose it all in your foolishness.”
He laughed like an all-knowing god. It was a horrible sound. My legs felt like ice as I was dragged further in. That was when May’s eyes opened. She reached up and grabbed the suited man’s face. Another ancient cry. Purple light fluttered over the suited man like fire. He writhed like a puppet in the wind and tried to shake free.
There was a burst of light and May fell limp.
Everything slowed. The darkness fled. I caught my breath. May was pale and seemed asleep. I was sitting at the end of the hall now. The black door was closed.
“Megan? Are you with me?” Carol said, standing where the suited man had been.
“Carol?” I said.
I glanced out of the hall windows. It was night. I saw a pile of leaves where David had raked them, a peeking moon in the sky and overcast clouds. Rain gently fell.
“I called you, I called May, I even tried to call your mom. I almost called the police until I heard you screaming up here.”
“That’s the hall right there, don’t go down there.” I said.
She glanced down the hall, but didn’t look afraid, just worried. She seemed like she would say something, but instead pulled me up and we walked away.
~
Carol took me down to our rooms. I put May in her bed. Lenny caught us in the hallway.
“There you are. Jesus, what happened? We couldn’t find you two when we came back in.” He said. They both looked at me expectedly.
“I found May. She was in the third floor hall. The suited man tried to take her, then me, and I–” I sniffled and glanced at May.
“I told David and Carol about the thing in the master bedroom.” Lenny said after a moment.
“Yeah. It was hard for us to believe, but Lenny showed us a glance. I guess it’s a relief in a way. You’re not crazy after all. There really are monsters.” Carol said.
“Where’s David?” I said.
“He was cleaning up the kitchen last I saw. I guess that’s his way of taking his mind off things.” Lenny said.
“What about Grant?” I said.
“We never found him. All of the cars are still here, so I’m not sure where he went,” Carol said. “But that’s enough interrogation. We can talk about it in the morning and make sure May is all right. You’re about to fall over.”
“One last thing,” Lenny said. “Since Grant was brought up, we should say it now.”
“Now?” Carol said.
“It’s important.” Lenny said.
“Is someone going to tell me what you mean?” I said.
Carol had a worried and afraid look as she spoke.
“Megan, Grant is missing. David told us about how you were talking about him, and all the odd things he’s been up to, and he could be– gone.”
“Remember how I told you about my friend John? I think it’s the same thing going on here. One of these ‘things’ got to Grant somehow, used his face to gain your trust to watch you. Report to the suited man.” Lenny said.
I thought of all the odd things I’d seen regarding Grant. Of what David said yesterday morning. “Last night I found him at your mother’s bedroom door, staring at it all off like…”
It started to make sense. I hadn’t seen Grant much since we got here. I thought of my encounter with that thing. Something had been dripping from its mouth. What had that been?
Carol placed a hand on my shoulder. I leaned against her. This was getting to be too much. Lenny went off to his room. I felt May’s forehead while we sat there. It was too warm. Carol put a cool rag on her head, and she seemed to settle easier.
“We’ll check on her in the morning. If it’s bad, we’ll go to the hospital.” Carol said.
Myles will be here tomorrow, then there will be help. I thought.
I didn’t know exactly how May had hurt the suited man either. These thoughts drifted as I laid in bed, but I was asleep before I knew it.
“Let me out, Magdalene.” The suited man whispered. “I will help your mother, alleviate your nightmares. All of your worries will float away.”
“So you’re the one trapped behind the door?” I said.
The suited man snarled.
“I didn’t want to have to do this, but it seems you will not listen. If you do not free me, I will take her too.”
An image of the black door flashed before me, a purple coat laying on the ground there.
“Let her go.” I said.
“Let me go, I let her go. Simple, isn’t it? You know what to do.”
“Or else, or else…” Countless voices whispered in my ear until I–
“Megan?”
I awoke from thunder outside. Carol was shaking my shoulder too. It was still the middle of the night. The curtains were dark.
“Megan? It’s May, something’s wrong.”
I got up right away. May laid in her bed, pale, eyes open but sightless. She wheezed slow breaths.
“May? May?” I waved my hand in front of her, nudged her shoulder, but I already knew what was going on. This was all going too fast.
“He has her. The fucking suited man has her, somehow.” I said. Carol nodded.
“He wants you to play the song.” She said. Carol and I watched May.
“What do we do?” I said. “If we try to bring her to the hospital, I don’t know what will happen.”
“This Myles guy knows his business, right? We should get Lenny to talk to him.” Carol said.
“Already did,” Lenny said, looking in. “Myles is almost here. We just have to hold out.”
“Am I supposed to twiddle my thumbs until then? What if she needs a doctor?” I said.
“We can’t leave this house. If we do, it might damage her for good. Any cops we bring here will just be fodder for these monsters too.” Lenny said.
“Let me talk to Myles.” I said.
“Fine. It’s the first button on speed dial.” Lenny handed the phone over. I hit the speed dial.
“Make it quick, we’re about to land.” Myles said.
“This is Megan Audlin.” I said.
I heard a sigh. “What do you want?”
“I’m sorry that you’re so put out, but that thing has my sister now.”
“You went up to the hall didn’t you?”
“If I didn’t, she’d be gone for good.” I said.
“So you’re telling me that you’ve already interacted with those things, and now they have your sister?”
“Please, we need you here.”
I heard that feminine voice in the background again.
“Myles, we need to get there now.” They said.
“Fine. We might be able to get there tonight, we just have to be careful. If Headquarters finds us, we’re as good as dead.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
“One thing. Whatever you do until I arrive, do not interact with those things again, and you can’t leave the property. That’s one reason they escaped their little cave in the first place. Just hang tight. We’ll be there soon.” click.
“What did he say?” Lenny asked.
“He’ll try to hurry, and don’t interact with those things.”
“That seems like a given. Should David and I brew some coffee then?” Lenny said.
“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.” I said.
I sat on May’s bed and held her hand. We sat with her for an hour or so, letting the time idly pass. The rain had picked up considerably by then.
“This is all so crazy.” Carol said.
“Yeah. It feels like we’ve been here for so long, but we were just home a few days ago.”
“I’m sorry that I didn’t know about all of this, I wish I could have helped you from the beginning.” She said.
“If anyone should be sorry, it’s me. I should have told you sooner. I should have been there when May needed me.”
“It’s okay. We’ll figure it out. I’ll protect you two, no matter what.”
“Things feel like they’ve changed forever. I hope we can come back from this, live a normal life.” I said.
Ding dong. The doorbell again.
Carol and I exchanged a glance and left May’s room. Had Myles gotten here within an hour? We went down the hall, and saw David and Grant below walking into the lobby.
“It might be Myles, we should open it.” Lenny said.
David went to open the door as Carol and I made it downstairs.
There were two people outside, hidden in the shadows. An odd smell wafted in.
“Can we help you?” David said. He looked closer. “Grant?”
One of them was Grant. He looked sickly pale. The second man was decayed, heavier set with thinning hair, and wore a security uniform. One of his eyes was cloudy and scared.
“That’s–” Lenny said.
As Grant moved to the light, we all froze. The light revealed that his other half was gone. Chewed off, leaving only bloody mulch where his arm had been.
“Too bad I didn’t read that flash drive, eh Lenny? I might have learned to smile more.” The second man said.
“Shut that door! It’s the–”
Grant flung his arm forward. It stretched from him like a fleshy cord and pierced David. He grunted in pain as ‘Grant’ smiled.
“Grant was a delicious sweetling.” It said.
“David, no!” I said.
Lenny tried to shut the door, but Grant and John charged the rest of the way inside to send it flying open. David went flying off to the side as Grant flung him.
Carol acted quicker than me, and before ‘Grant’ or whatever this thing was could reach us, she picked up a coat rack and swung. It cracked in half when it hit the thing’s head, and caused its neck to twist sharply.
Lenny pulled out a gun and aimed at ‘John’.
“You had a gun this whole time?” I shouted.
“Yeah well– gun’s aren’t very useful against these things.” Lenny said.
“It doesn’t hurt to start shooting!” Carol said.
Lenny’s hands shook as he stared at John. John cackled and crept towards Lenny.
“Little Jonny tried his best in the museum. He fired his little gun too, and yet could not leave a scratch behind.” John said.
John’s back cracked and bubbled until a burst of fleshy limbs pushed out like a thousand spiders. The body of John became limp as a head pulled out from the mass of limbs, dangling John’s body like a puppet. It was at least ten feet tall now, and knocked over furniture and other objects as it moved.
Carol pushed me out of the way as Grant lunged. Carol used a broken half of the coat rack to hold him back as his mouth snapped like a rabid dog. Lenny hadn’t been able to shoot, and was pinned by its tendrils.
I looked between the two. Lenny’s gun slid from his grip.
“Help Lenny– Quick!” Carol said.
The thing above Lenny opened its mouth wide. Saliva dripped onto his face. I grabbed the gun.
“Megan–” Carol stammered.
I moved the gun between both of them. Where do you shoot at a thing with that much body? I stared at Lenny as he screamed.
That’s when I saw someone in a purple raincoat, May. She stood next to me, pointing up at the chandelier.
“Drop that, then go for the eye, okay?” She said.
May held out her hand, and purple butterflies streamed from it. Grant began to writhe as the butterflies landed.
I took a few steps to the side, aimed, and shot the chandelier’s rope like a cowboy at a noose. The chandelier fell with a squeal and crashed into ‘John’.
The creature released a demonic screech before falling back, away from Lenny. Purple blood bubbled out from where the chandelier had pierced. Lenny was frozen on the ground, but I pulled him up. May was gone again.
“You’re supposed to be the fucking professional here. Wake the hell up. That thing isn’t John, remember?” I said. Lenny nodded and seemed to collect himself.
“Think you can distract this thing for a second?” Lenny said. “I’ll get my stuff to seal it like we tried upstairs. Do you know how to use that thing?”
“Yes.” I said, leveling the pistol.
Lenny nodded and ran off. Carol was playing baseball with the coat rack and ‘Grant’s’ head. Looked like a few home runs to me. I turned my attention back to the other one. The thing before me, ‘John’, recovered after a few moments and turned its bloody gaze to me. It wore the chandelier like a bloody crown.
“Um, hi.” I said.
Its bloody smile grew wide and bright. Pointed teeth dug into its lips as it growled. “Smile. Smile.”
I fired at it over and over. She said the eye, the eye, right? I backed up slowly as it crawled towards me. I fired as many times as I could, trying to hit the eye with the same accuracy I had hit the rope with. My ears were ringing after it was over. Soon all that came from the gun was a click click.
“Shit,” I looked around, but I didn’t really know what I was looking for. The creature leaned in close.
“Smil–” I interrupted it by throwing the gun at its face. It seemed more surprised than hurt, and that moment of confusion was just enough time.
“Megan, catch!”
Carol tossed me the other half of the coat rack. I fumbled, but caught it, and rammed the broken wood into the thing’s eye. It squealed and flailed as blood streamed from its face. One of its arms hit me hard and I flew into a side table. My vision blurred and my ears still rang. My side hurt like a bitch. All I could do was lay there. I couldn’t catch my breath until Carol was at my side.
“Megan, are you okay? Megan?”
I began to cough. Carol helped me sit up. She had knocked Grant across the room, but it had recovered now. John yanked the pole from its eye. Blood splashed out like a hole in a soda can.
Neither looked too happy now.
“Carol? What do we do?” I coughed out. Lenny finally came up to us.
“Did you fix your makeup too? Maybe get a haircut while you were at it?” Carol snapped.
“Quiet, I need to concentrate. Intention, my intention.” Lenny muttered.
He began reciting that mantra again, the same lines that he had used by my mother’s bedroom. ‘Grant’ was torn up, and collapsed, as if the body had given up. Only ‘John’ was left standing.
There was dark blood all over the place. My mother was going to need a new entry rug… and chandelier.
“What is Lenny doing?” Carol asked, voice on the edge of panic.
“We did it earlier to seal Grant.” I said. Carol glanced at ‘Grant’.
“And how did that work out for us?” She said.
“Quiet please.” Lenny said.
‘John’ cried out in pain as Lenny used that salt shaker and Latin again. Its legs curl like a black widow’s as its skin darkened red. It huddled into one of the nearby rooms.
“Throw Grant in, quick.”
Carol did as Lenny asked and he slammed the door.
“Get unbroken lines salt near all exits, that includes windows– That’s probably how Grant got out of the master bedroom.” Lenny said.
He tossed each of us one of those shakers from his bag. Carol went into the hall, I went outside. The night was dark, only disturbed by occasional street lights around the lane. I unscrewed the salt and stepped over the perfectly arrayed flowers.
“Sorry David.” I said, and dumped salt on that room’s window sills. The window canopy just barely kept it out of the rain.
I could see ‘John’ inside. It seemed to have recovered somewhat, and charged at the window I was putting salt on.
“Come on, come on.”
I cried out as I finished the line and stepped back. A flash of light sent it backwards without so much as a scratch on the glass. It turned to the doors and charged, but the odd, blue light shoved it back. It began throwing furniture in anger. I stepped back as I watched it thrash.
“So, I see that you’ve made your choice.”
I turned to where the voice had come from. The suited man stood outside the front doors, blocking my path.
“What do you even want from us?” I said, adrenaline overpowering my fear.
“I only want to be free. That is all. All of you are so afraid, but we are no more monstrous than you.”
“Fuc–” A gunshot interrupted me.
A bullet punched right through the suited man’s skull and created a light shaft in the front doors. He bent backwards at an unnatural angle, swinging down like a punching bag, then stood.
“I’ve still got it.” A woman said from down the driveway.
“Don’t get too cocky. The night is just beginning.” A man said, standing next to her. I knew the voices right away.
Thanks to the lamps outside, I could see them. The man was older with short, dark hair. Blue eyes like cold winter. He wore some kind of military jacket. The woman looked similar, but younger. Same dark hair, cropped short, and the same blue eyes. They wore tactical gear and had rifles.
They closed in on the suited man as they fired. The suited man’s torso bounced every which way until he fell in a clump on the ground. They continued shooting until he was a pile of cloth and purple blood.
They paused for a moment, watching, then the woman walked over to me, placing a hand on my shoulder.
“Hey, sweetie, you with us? Myles, get over here.” She said.
“Sweetling…” That thing’s word echoed in my head.
Myles watched the corpse for another moment before jogging over.
“Hey, you’re okay now. We’re here. This is Myles, I’m his niece, Alison.” She said.
Myles shone a flashlight in my eyes. “She looks fine. I don’t see immediate head trauma.”
“What’s your name?” Alison said.
“M–Megan. Is it really you? You’re not one of those things just pretending, are you?” I said. The two exchanged a glance.
“So you’ve seen what these things can do then?” Alison said.
“Wait, are you saying that the suited man transformed? Or are there Instance 75D46s present?”
“Cool your jets, Myles. She’s clearly been through Hell. It’s nice to meet you, Megan. We heard that you were in need of some pest control.” Alison said.
The man sighed. It was that sound alone that confirmed it was Myles.
“We need to know the situation,” Myles said. “Wait, it’s moving again.”
Both of them fired a barrage at the ground. The body of the suited man flung about like mincemeat until the two of them stopped. The pile steamed.
“Megan, tell us everything quick-like.” Myles said, still looking down his sights.
“Yeah, okay, they have my sister May. It’s keeping her hostage unless I let the suited man out. Uh, there are multiple of these things. Three total? The suited man, my mom’s house butler Grant, and someone Lenny called ‘John’.” I said.
“The suited man?” Myles asked.
“That’s what my sister called the red suit monster.” I said.
“John? That was the museum employee wasn’t it?” Alison said.
“If that thing is here then this is worse than I thought. What about the other one? ‘Grant’ you said?” Myles said.
“Yeah, we think it was taking Grant’s place to trick us. I saw it hiding in my mother’s room. It kept muttering something about, ‘Mors Infra’.” I said.
Myles glanced at Alison.
“Shit.” She said.
“Looks like there’s one for each of us.” Myles said.
“Head count by the way is my sister May, my wife Carol, Lenny, and my mom’s other house butler David,” Saying his name made me remember. “David was hurt really bad. He’s inside.”
“Okay, take it easy. Just stick behind us and everything will be all right. We should get inside, Myles.” Alison said. Myles nodded.
They urged me behind them. I stood by them as they watched the suited man’s body, still in-between us and the front doors. We crept closer to it, closer, and stopped about ten feet away. The night was silent. Not even crickets were near.
“How did it get your sister?” Myles said.
“There’s a hall on the third floor,” I said. “It’s where my nightmares take place like I said on the phone. I found May up there hours ago, and even though I got her away from the black door, she didn’t wake up this morning.”
“Is she still breathing?” Alison asked.
“Yeah, she is.”
“You said something about a music box, right? Can you describe it to me?”
“It’s a silver–”
“The music box is none of your concern.” The suited man interrupted.