- 3 months ago
The Keeper narrates several Lovecraft inspired stories that will have your mind whirling in fear.
story credit: All stories were written by The Keeper. You can find them at https://www.reddit.com/user/Electronic_Round441/
Thumbnail credit: From the artists at https://nvrcaredstudio.com/
For story submissions or inquiries contact us at asktimsbertales@gmail.com
No A.I was used in the production of this video. Thank you for supporting REAL human art.
@keeperofficial
#creepypasta #cosmichorror #scarystories
story credit: All stories were written by The Keeper. You can find them at https://www.reddit.com/user/Electronic_Round441/
Thumbnail credit: From the artists at https://nvrcaredstudio.com/
For story submissions or inquiries contact us at asktimsbertales@gmail.com
No A.I was used in the production of this video. Thank you for supporting REAL human art.
@keeperofficial
#creepypasta #cosmichorror #scarystories
Category
🎈
FunTranscript
00:00Not every star should be wished upon, and not all water is life-giving.
00:05I am the Keeper, he who speaks the tales that seep through the veil.
00:10Tonight, we will delve together into the cosmic whores that reign from the heavens and lurk below.
00:17When I try to explain it, I have to wonder if I'm being stalked, or just going crazy.
00:23I've never had a hallucination before, but my experience has me now believing in things.
00:30I used to scoff at.
00:31This all started last October, during my drive through northern Connecticut.
00:37I was returning home from visiting my brother who had been dealing with some unresolved trauma.
00:43Both of us had been.
00:45My visit had dragged on longer than I intended, and by the time I was on the road, it was
00:51almost midnight.
00:52I had a seven-hour drive that would take me meandering through the scenic countryside.
00:59I had been traversing past old towns for about an hour when a deep fog rolled in.
01:05This was not unusual for this time of year, so I didn't initially think much of it.
01:10I slowed my car down to a safer speed, about thirty miles per hour.
01:15The thickness of the fog was demanding on my eyesight, forcing me to lean forward in my seat as I
01:22attempted to peer through the obscured ambiance.
01:26At last, I began to see more than just the dispersed water, but my heart dropped.
01:32Through the canopy of mist, I saw the tree trunks.
01:35They were gnarled and twisted in an inexplicable manner, like an AI tried to render a scene of nature, but
01:43phoned it in halfway through.
01:45I shook my head violently, attempting to convince myself that I must be getting tired, but the trees became no
01:52less surreal.
01:53The changing of the sky arrested my bewilderment and forcefully exchanged it with shock.
01:59Below the shimmering black rays of sunlight, which began to part the fog beneath them, a being floated.
02:06It was majestic and uncanny.
02:09Humanoid in appearance, yet monstrous in its aura.
02:13Its proportions were off in a way that tingled the parts of the brain responsible for both disgust and admiration.
02:21I pulled over as my car engine began to sputter and go silent.
02:26My heart was pounding as I got out.
02:29I don't know entirely why I did.
02:32Part of me was stricken with fear over seeing more of that being,
02:37but that same part of me had more fear of not seeing it fully.
02:41Finally, the entire forest grew silent.
02:45Fog was now almost entirely gone.
02:48The only evidence of its evanescent presence being the humidity that clung to my car's window.
02:54I looked up in the sky where the being should have been.
02:58What I saw buckled me to my knees.
03:01It was a giant circular shape.
03:04The formation of the shape was slightly bent, giving it an eye-like appearance.
03:10Inside the ring of floating steel was an eye of vapor.
03:16I then understood what happened to the mist, and the sound.
03:20A vacuum was gently pulling the noise toward it, and beckoning my soul to behold it.
03:27I remember whispering,
03:29What the hell?
03:30Under my breath, but the words fluttered noiselessly from my lips,
03:34as they were fished through the air by this floating structure.
03:39Immediately after, the noise started.
03:42This was not a return of the noise that I should have been hearing,
03:46but a new noise being born from this magnificent machine.
03:50A deep, reverberant hum that rippled through the ground.
03:55It traversed through my shoes and my spine violently.
03:59It was so low that I felt it more than I heard it.
04:04The trees reacted to its utterance,
04:06their leaves shaking off their branches from the unrelenting vibration.
04:10The eye in the sky began to rotate slowly, accelerating in speed.
04:16Suddenly, beams of light brimmed from it,
04:20and cascaded beyond me,
04:22until they returned and bent around the structure supernaturally.
04:26The symphony of luminance blinded my vision.
04:30When my eyesight returned,
04:31I saw the beams shifting in their patterns,
04:34creating living shapes.
04:36like long-forgotten symbols of antiquity,
04:39crawling about the air.
04:41I stumbled backward and tripped on the berm of the road
04:44as my heart began pounding thunderously.
04:47I scrambled to get back into my car
04:49as I became more coherent of the danger I was in.
04:52I started slamming my car as I attempted to start it.
04:55Had the vacuum not been pilfering the sound,
04:58I think I would have gone deaf from my car horn
05:01with how hard I was slamming it.
05:03Finally, the car started,
05:04but I was not in control.
05:07The colors of the light on my dashboard began to warble
05:10and form similar shapes to those in the air.
05:13I began shaking in fear and frustration
05:16as I felt my entire world was glitching.
05:18I then heard a whisper
05:20that both soothed and terrified me.
05:22It wasn't in my ears,
05:24it was inside my skull,
05:26like someone had spoken directly into my soul.
05:29A single, fragmented word.
05:33Found.
05:34The slamming on my steering wheel ceased
05:37as I was gripped by fear.
05:39The hum around me turned into a rhythmic thudding,
05:42like a creature was taking enormous steps
05:45somewhere deep within the earth.
05:47The eye above me constricted,
05:50and all the beams of light receded
05:52into a sharp snap.
05:54In a brazen flash,
05:56the being returned.
05:57It slithered out of the eye
05:59in a chaotic yet majestic cadence.
06:02It began to lower itself
06:04to the ground
06:05as if it were dangling from invisible threads.
06:07It was tall.
06:09Far too tall to be of this earth.
06:12Its arms were the length of its standing body.
06:15Its fingers were gnarled in their shape,
06:18but smooth in their glossy complexion.
06:20What fascinated me most
06:22was the face it lacked.
06:24Where this body feature should have been
06:27was displayed only a featureless oval
06:30that reflected white light like wet clay.
06:33I could feel all the organs in my body
06:36began to pulse in rhythm with the thudding
06:38as I realized it was beckoning to me.
06:41With all my might,
06:43I shook off the pool of its allure
06:45and slammed my foot down the gas.
06:47To my amazement,
06:49my car began accelerating.
06:51Frantically,
06:51I made the most ugly U-turn of my life
06:54as I began careening down the road
06:55in the opposite direction I had arrived.
06:58My car's radio turned on
07:00and began blaring in angry refusal
07:02as I created distance between myself
07:05and the entity.
07:06Only,
07:07there was no melody of music from the radio.
07:10It was a cacophony of sounds,
07:13too irreverent of earthly origin to describe.
07:16They wailed and thralled in my ears
07:19so viciously I had to wonder
07:21if it was actually from the radio
07:22or from the growing madness of my own mind.
07:25The trees of the forest
07:27joined the protest of my escape
07:29as they bent inward toward the road
07:31as I passed them.
07:33Some snapped viciously
07:35as they proceeded to ooze out
07:37a black, dark fluid.
07:39A fluid that matched
07:41the luxurious sheen of that being.
07:44The pedal beneath my foot
07:46must have been scraping
07:47into the floor of my car.
07:49However,
07:49to my relief,
07:50I could see the hellish scene
07:52behind me growing smaller
07:53in my rearview mirror.
07:55The sound around me
07:57didn't properly return
07:58for another 15 miles.
08:00I could no longer see the being,
08:03the eye,
08:04or any misshapen trees.
08:06But I was being followed.
08:08I could feel it.
08:10The radio had long since
08:12returned to normal,
08:13broadcasting the rock station
08:15I generally listened to.
08:17Despite this return to normal,
08:20I was shaking.
08:21My nerves were a wreck
08:23and I was desperately trying
08:24to process what I had seen.
08:26And why,
08:28despite being so shaken by it,
08:30I wanted to see it again.
08:32For days afterward,
08:34I tried to persuade myself
08:36that nothing had happened.
08:37That this was all either
08:39from sleep deprivation
08:40or being spooked by the dark.
08:43Any irrationalization
08:44sounded better
08:45than admitting
08:46it could have been
08:46something vast,
08:48intelligent,
08:49and looking for me.
08:50I had almost fooled myself
08:52into this facade of security,
08:54but a week later
08:55that faith was shaken.
08:57As I was walking my dog,
08:59something I do most nights
09:00before going to bed,
09:01I was wrestling
09:03with a sense of melancholy
09:04I couldn't quite put into words.
09:07My reflection was shuddered
09:08when I noticed white clouds
09:10swirling above my house
09:12in a circular pattern.
09:13They created a shape
09:15eerily similar to
09:17the eye.
09:18Then,
09:19it blinked.
09:21I was buckled to my knees again
09:23as I heard a loud
09:24FOUND YOU
09:25from deep inside my soul.
09:28I don't think it was
09:29an eye in the sky.
09:31I think it was something
09:32looking through it.
09:34It was that being.
09:36It knows where I live.
09:38Yet this time,
09:39I don't know
09:41if I will run.
09:45There's no easy way
09:47to describe the events
09:48at Lake Mithral.
09:49Mostly because now,
09:51the lake no longer exists.
09:53At least,
09:54not in the way
09:55it once traumatized us.
09:57Not in the way
09:59it once sounded.
10:01Yes,
10:02this lake
10:03uttered a sound.
10:05Let's start
10:06with the beginning.
10:08Last summer,
10:10my friend Josh
10:10decided to convince
10:11our friend group
10:12to do an outdoorsy activity.
10:15Initially,
10:15they wanted to go
10:16rock climbing.
10:17I don't hate
10:18rock climbing,
10:20but I felt a strong
10:21urge to go to the lake.
10:23It was easy
10:24to persuade our friend group
10:25to change their minds.
10:26I don't know why
10:28I felt so strongly
10:29to reroute our plans,
10:31but in hindsight,
10:32I wish I didn't.
10:34Lake Mithral
10:35wasn't a tourist destination.
10:37It wasn't on any maps
10:39Josh had.
10:40His friend Luke
10:41had discovered it
10:42through some old
10:43hiking post.
10:45The kind of post
10:46where people upload
10:47grainy pictures
10:48of creepy events
10:49they claim
10:49to have experienced.
10:51The post revealing
10:52the lake
10:53had clear instructions.
10:55The poster
10:55wanted to share it,
10:57but also wanted
10:58to ensure
10:58it was kept clean
10:59and relatively untouched.
11:02It took us
11:03a long, lonely hike
11:04to reach it.
11:05The forest around it
11:06was heavy and damp
11:08from the humidity
11:08the lake produced.
11:10The earth
11:11we trudged through
11:12was wet
11:13and uneven.
11:14It was not muddy,
11:15but sponge-like.
11:17Every step we took
11:18sunk into the ground
11:19and gave you
11:20an awkward,
11:21bouncy feel
11:21as you pressed forward.
11:23Despite how laborious
11:25it was to travel,
11:26I was enjoying
11:27the scenery
11:27of the Massachusetts
11:29wilderness.
11:30As we reached the lake,
11:31I was expecting
11:32moonlight to be
11:33shimmering on the water.
11:35I learned quickly
11:36that Lake Mithril
11:37does not shimmer.
11:38It absorbed
11:40the splendorous moonlight
11:41around it
11:42and trapped it
11:42in its mirror,
11:44dark sheet of algae.
11:45This canopy of algae
11:47was so black
11:48it looked like obsidian.
11:49It was also
11:51barren of noise
11:52or any signs of life.
11:54There were no ripples,
11:55no insects
11:56flying over it,
11:58no fish
11:59disturbing its depths,
12:00not even the faintest
12:02gust of wind
12:03to produce a sound
12:04from this vast
12:05body of water.
12:06There was only
12:07the eerie silence.
12:09About thirty yards
12:10from the shoreline
12:11we started setting up
12:12our camp.
12:13Josh,
12:14Luke,
12:15and Sally,
12:16my girlfriend,
12:17were all in high spirits.
12:18We talked about
12:20the crazy hike
12:20it took for us
12:21to get there
12:22and began enjoying
12:23some drinks,
12:24but our friend
12:25Cassandra
12:26kept looking at the lake
12:27like she was shaking
12:28the feeling
12:29of being watched.
12:30The first sound
12:32came sometime
12:33around midnight.
12:34It did not originate
12:36from the trees
12:37or any animals
12:38but from the water
12:39itself.
12:40It was a low groan
12:41that rolled
12:42across the surface.
12:43It was deep
12:45and vibrated
12:45our tent poles
12:46and shook our bones.
12:48It was a sound
12:49no wave
12:50should be able
12:51to produce.
12:52It was a sound
12:53that had me wondering
12:54if something
12:55was stirring
12:56deep below.
12:57We all scrambled
12:58within our tents
12:59to grab our flashlights
13:00and makeshift weapons.
13:02Josh aimed
13:03his flashlight
13:04at the lake.
13:05Just as the lake
13:06had done
13:06with the moonlight,
13:08the beam
13:09of his flashlight
13:10was absorbed
13:11and denied.
13:12There was no reflection
13:14and there was
13:15no revelation
13:16of what had
13:17made the noise.
13:18Do lakes
13:19make noise
13:20like that?
13:21Luke whispered.
13:23No one
13:23dared answer.
13:25Movement in the water
13:26clutched our focus
13:27firmly.
13:28All of us
13:29stared dumbfounded
13:30as a bulge
13:31began to rise
13:32from the center
13:33of the lake.
13:34The bulge
13:35caused a ripple
13:35across the water
13:36disturbing the algae
13:38and sending rays
13:38of light
13:39bursting from them.
13:41The light
13:41was blinding
13:42but captivating.
13:44As soon as
13:45my eyesight
13:45was recovered
13:46I pried my fixation
13:48back onto the lake.
13:49More ripples
13:50were being produced
13:51and more light
13:52was escaping
13:53the darkened
13:54aquatic sheet
13:55but the light
13:56was diminishing
13:57in luminance
13:57with every ripple.
13:59I wish I could say
14:00we did the smart thing
14:01but we didn't.
14:03We stood there
14:04transfixed
14:05at the lake's
14:06ominous performance.
14:07The return of silence
14:09broke the spell.
14:10We looked at each other
14:12worriedly
14:12as if about to
14:14ask each other
14:14if we should run
14:15into the dark forest.
14:17Another ripple
14:18in the water
14:18denied that conversation.
14:20This ripple
14:21was louder
14:22and more surreal
14:24than the others.
14:25It did not ripple
14:26outward
14:27it rippled inward.
14:29It was accompanied
14:30by a voice.
14:31A voice so unique
14:33and magnificent
14:34I will never forget it.
14:39The word it uttered
14:41sent shivers down
14:42our spines.
14:43It didn't feel mortal
14:45but like hearing
14:46something talk
14:47in a dream.
14:48But so visceral
14:49and pain inducing
14:51we knew we had
14:51the misfortune
14:52of being awake.
14:54Run!
14:55I shouted
14:55taking initiative.
14:57More cascades
14:58erupted in the water
14:59as something began
15:00to rise from its depths.
15:01I had no intention
15:03of finding out
15:04exactly what it was.
15:05I wanted to get us
15:06the hell out of there.
15:08No one argued.
15:09They began sprinting
15:10behind me.
15:11As we entered
15:12the forest
15:13I grabbed Sally's hand.
15:15Her pulse was raging.
15:16Our feet began
15:17to trample
15:18the spongy dirt.
15:19But now
15:20now it was different.
15:22This spongy dirt
15:23began to ripple
15:24and vibrate
15:25in such a manner
15:26it felt alive.
15:28The vibrations
15:29drilling into us
15:30through our shoes
15:31felt like a foreign
15:32heartbeat
15:32pacing to a dark
15:35malicious rhythm.
15:36Eventually
15:37we reached a fork
15:38in the trail.
15:39We had two options
15:40take the left
15:42which we had taken
15:43to arrive there
15:43which was shorter
15:44or the more scenic
15:46route to the right.
15:48The sound
15:48of crunching forestry
15:50behind us
15:50reinforced the need
15:52to decide quickly.
15:53We're moving left!
15:54I shouted
15:55thinking the choice
15:56was obvious.
15:57I suddenly felt
15:59a sense of dread
15:59after shouting that.
16:01That path
16:02would lead us
16:02past a small pond.
16:04Would that water
16:05be problematic?
16:06Was all the water
16:08here infested
16:09with whatever evil
16:10was chasing us?
16:11No.
16:12You're making
16:12the right choice.
16:14Lead them.
16:15Lead them all.
16:16I thought.
16:17I don't know why
16:18I felt so reassured.
16:20It was a silly
16:21trail of thought
16:22to begin with
16:22but also a silly
16:24almost foreign way
16:25for me to reason
16:26with myself.
16:27But I forced
16:28all thought
16:29from my mind
16:30as I kept up
16:30a pace
16:31for my friends
16:32to follow.
16:33We were almost
16:34beyond this pond
16:35when I heard
16:36a scream behind us.
16:37Help!
16:38Josh screamed
16:39as tendrils
16:40from the pond
16:41wrapped around
16:42his feet
16:42and pulled him
16:43into the water.
16:45What?
16:45I said as I
16:47turned around
16:47but to my horror
16:49the pond
16:49was now bubbling
16:50crimson.
16:51The sound
16:52of our pursuer
16:53grew louder.
16:54The tendrils
16:55began to loosen
16:56and writhe
16:57within the pond
16:57as if losing
16:59interest
16:59in their fresh catch
17:00and hungry
17:02for another.
17:03Keep going!
17:04I shouted
17:05horrified with myself
17:07for not doing
17:08anything to help
17:08Josh
17:09but unwilling
17:10to lose
17:10another friend.
17:12If we could
17:13reach our cars
17:13maybe we could
17:15be safe.
17:16Maybe we could
17:16live to get help
17:17to find out
17:18what it was
17:19that just killed him.
17:20Finally
17:21we reached
17:21our vehicles.
17:22Our hearts
17:23were pounding
17:24and the noise
17:24behind us
17:25became eerily
17:26non-existent.
17:27Despite the
17:28cessation of the noise
17:30we frantically
17:30got inside our cars
17:32and sped down the road.
17:33We met up
17:34at the parking lot
17:35of the nearest
17:36gas station.
17:37Sally and Luke
17:38were hysterical.
17:39Cassandra and I
17:40tried to reason
17:41with them
17:41that we couldn't
17:42go back.
17:42Not until
17:43we found help.
17:44I called 911
17:45and was assured
17:47that help
17:47would be on the way.
17:49Shortly after
17:50my call
17:50with the police
17:51I received
17:52a text from
17:52Josh.
17:53You led him
17:54well.
17:55I almost dropped
17:56my phone
17:57when I read this.
17:58How is this
17:59possible?
17:59Was Josh
18:00still alive
18:01or was something
18:02texting for him?
18:04What did
18:05leading him well
18:06mean?
18:07Would he have
18:08survived
18:08if we had
18:09gone right?
18:10I am almost
18:11certain now
18:11that he would have.
18:13Guilt was etched
18:14inside me
18:15as I wondered
18:16why I was so
18:17adamant to go
18:17left.
18:18So adamant
18:19to do this
18:20trip at all.
18:21I then remembered
18:22the thoughts
18:23that made me
18:24make those choices.
18:25Were they even
18:26mine?
18:27The flash of
18:28blue and red
18:29disrupted my
18:30internal reflection
18:30as the police
18:31arrived.
18:32We gave them
18:33our story
18:34and the officer
18:35started coordinating
18:36with the forest
18:37rangers to search
18:38for Josh.
18:39The search party
18:40did not find
18:41Josh
18:41and they did not
18:42find a pond
18:43or a lake.
18:45The forest
18:46they said
18:47was as dry
18:48as a bone.
18:49We were questioned
18:50for weeks.
18:51Josh's parents
18:52were furious.
18:53The police
18:53were certain
18:54we were abusing
18:55stimulants
18:55but our tests
18:56came back clean.
18:58They were
18:58contemplating
18:59charging us
18:59with murder
19:00but Josh's
19:01phone started
19:02getting triangulated
19:03by the police
19:04showing up
19:05at random places
19:06throughout the state
19:07but moving
19:08too quickly
19:08to be caught.
19:09No murder
19:10charges were
19:11brought against us.
19:12I showed the
19:13police the text
19:13I had received
19:14from Josh's phone.
19:16This now has
19:17them believing
19:17that someone else
19:18killed him in the forest
19:19and has hidden
19:20his remains.
19:21They still don't
19:22believe us
19:23about the lake
19:23deciding for us
19:25that we may have
19:25witnessed a murder
19:26in the dark
19:27and that the trauma
19:28has warped our memories.
19:30Weeks later
19:31I received another
19:32text from Josh.
19:34Next
19:35you will lead Sally
19:36then you will
19:37become my voice.
19:39You will herald
19:40my return.
19:41You will describe
19:43my glory
19:43to the masses.
19:45I was shaken
19:46when I read this.
19:47I don't know
19:48what kind of sick joke
19:49was being played on me
19:50but I was not amused.
19:52I showed this
19:53to the police.
19:54They urged me
19:55to be careful.
19:56I have given
19:57that phone
19:58to the police
19:59and have started
19:59a new plan
20:00with a new number.
20:02I have also
20:03it hurts to write
20:04this out
20:05I have broken off
20:06things with Sally.
20:08I didn't tell her why
20:09I made up some
20:10bullshit reason
20:11to be mad
20:11and to end things.
20:12I can't stop
20:13thinking about
20:14how I led us
20:15into the forest
20:16and down that path.
20:18I don't know
20:19if I can trust myself
20:20and if
20:21whatever the hell
20:22this thing is
20:23wants Sally
20:24I can't risk it.
20:26I can't risk
20:27my mistakes
20:28putting her in danger.
20:30If I ever find out
20:31what is going on
20:32I will ask her
20:33to forgive me
20:34but for now
20:35I think it is better
20:36that I stay alone
20:37or as alone
20:39as I can be.
20:40I wish that was
20:41the end of this story
20:42as bitter
20:43and depressing
20:44as it would be
20:45but it isn't.
20:47After relocating
20:48and getting a new life
20:49together
20:49I received a new text
20:51from a number
20:52I wish I could forget.
20:53Your number may change
20:55but my plans do not.
21:01My father never believed
21:03our planet was alone
21:04in the dark.
21:05He didn't mean aliens
21:07in the strictly
21:08sci-fi sense
21:09but in a more ancient
21:11and primordial degree.
21:13He believed
21:14there was something ancient
21:15something that slept dormant
21:17within reality's core
21:18waking only to bring
21:20its designs to an end.
21:23grief can be an alluring
21:25gateway to madness.
21:27He worked as an astrophysicist
21:30at a small observatory
21:31in eastern Rhode Island.
21:34Growing up
21:35I used to visit him
21:36during his late shifts.
21:38His work environment
21:39reeked of old
21:40degrading electronics
21:41and long neglected dust.
21:44The one piece of equipment
21:46he did keep in good repair
21:47was his state-of-the-art telescope
21:49the Leviathan
21:52aptly named
21:53for how it towered
21:54over everything
21:55and everyone
21:56in the room
21:58it was housed.
21:59After mom died
22:00I stopped seeing him
22:02at work.
22:02I hardly saw him
22:04at all anymore.
22:05A nanny was hired
22:06to take care of my brother
22:07and I.
22:08Father became cold
22:10and distant.
22:11I slowly gave up
22:12trying to have
22:13a meaningful connection
22:14with him
22:15as every conversation
22:16I attempted to have
22:18was dulled
22:19by his apparent
22:20distracted attention.
22:21He would nod
22:22through my stories
22:23of my personal life
22:24and I could tell
22:25his focus was on his work
22:27on what the
22:28Leviathan
22:29was showing him.
22:30All this changed
22:32two years ago.
22:33Inexplicably
22:34he texted me
22:35asking me to come
22:37to work with him.
22:38I was hesitant
22:39and a little resentful
22:41knowing he wanted
22:43to see me
22:43but the focal point
22:45of this reconnection
22:46being his work
22:47felt hollow.
22:49I didn't have the heart
22:50to turn him down though.
22:52It had been hard enough
22:53losing mom.
22:55Maybe
22:55I could pull dad back
22:56from his grief
22:57and salvage
22:58our failed relationship.
23:00When I arrived
23:01the laboratory
23:02was spotless.
23:03My father's eyes
23:04were bloodshot
23:05and he was grimly pale
23:07moving erratically
23:08as he greeted me.
23:10I was shocked
23:11to see no evidence
23:12of a single speck
23:13of dust
23:14throughout the laboratory.
23:16It was as if
23:17he had been intent
23:18to rid even
23:19the smallest
23:19of distractions
23:20from the purity
23:21of his work.
23:22Come here
23:23you have to look
23:25he whispered
23:26aggressively.
23:27His emaciated hand
23:29clutched my arm
23:30and dragged me
23:31behind him.
23:32He led me
23:33up a flight
23:33of metal stairs
23:34to the leviathan.
23:36You need
23:37to see it.
23:37He said flatly
23:39gesturing
23:40to the enormous
23:40telescope
23:41before dashing
23:42away from me
23:43and fiddling
23:44through the room.
23:45I could hear him
23:46cleaning compulsively
23:47as I leaned
23:48into the eyepiece.
23:50I expected
23:51to see celestial
23:52but predictable
23:53scenery
23:54perhaps a cool
23:55combination of colors
23:56from a gas planet.
23:58What I saw
23:59perplexed me
24:00I was beholding
24:01a star
24:02unlike any
24:03I had ever seen.
24:04It was pulsing
24:06in rhythm.
24:07A slow pulse
24:08a fast pulse
24:10followed by
24:11three pulses
24:12of such blistering
24:13speed my eyes
24:14almost failed
24:15to discern them
24:15as a singular
24:17burst.
24:18Each pulse
24:19corresponded
24:19with a change
24:20in color.
24:21Is the
24:22telescope broken?
24:24I asked
24:25bewildered
24:25trying to think
24:26how a celestial
24:27body could be
24:28changing color
24:28so rapidly.
24:30No.
24:31The leviathan
24:32is perfect.
24:33I keep it perfect.
24:34It will always
24:35be perfect.
24:37My father
24:38said as he
24:38rubbed his hand
24:39against the metal
24:40casing of the
24:40instrument.
24:41His eyes
24:42were fierce
24:43and protective.
24:44His gaze
24:45pierced into me
24:46like he wanted
24:47to accuse me
24:47of heresy
24:48for doubting
24:49the proficiency
24:49of his sacred
24:51object.
24:52Before I could
24:53protest at how
24:53this would be
24:54impossible
24:55outside of
24:56atmospheric
24:57scintillation
24:57which I had
24:58presumed the
24:59leviathan had
25:00been modified
25:00to account for
25:01he threw down
25:03a thick stack
25:04of paper.
25:05He began
25:05scattering the
25:06papers about
25:07suddenly disinterested
25:08in his fascination
25:09for cleanliness.
25:10My edification
25:12of his grand
25:13discovery trumping
25:14any other sense
25:15of reason.
25:16I could barely
25:17keep up with
25:17his cascade
25:18of firmly
25:19asserted facts
25:20as he detailed
25:21his years
25:21of meticulous
25:22documentation.
25:23The pulses
25:25they match
25:26binary.
25:27The star
25:27is alive.
25:28The star
25:29is speaking
25:30to me.
25:31It is now
25:32speaking to you.
25:33This was the
25:34first statement
25:35of his rambling
25:36I could properly
25:36understand.
25:37I was doubtful
25:39and hurt
25:40to know he had
25:41spent so much
25:42time away from
25:43the family
25:43that needed him
25:44only to be pulled
25:46into such a delusion
25:47over what could
25:47only possibly
25:48be explained
25:49from a faulty
25:50telescope
25:51struck my soul.
25:53However I bit
25:54my tongue.
25:55Hopefully
25:55in time
25:56I could get him
25:57to see the error
25:58of his ways.
25:59For the next week
26:00I continued to visit
26:01him at the laboratory.
26:03The pattern
26:03of the star's
26:04pulsing remained
26:05consistent
26:06but it grew
26:07in intensity.
26:08I was surprised
26:09that there were not
26:09any other variations
26:11in the sequence.
26:12Assuredly
26:13a broken telescope
26:14would eventually
26:15have more variance
26:16in its faulty readings.
26:17This question
26:18became an afterthought
26:19as I began
26:20to have the dreams.
26:22I was floating
26:23listlessly
26:24over a vast
26:25crimson landscape.
26:26The scenery
26:27below me
26:28had thick
26:28massive crevices
26:30filled with
26:30black
26:31shadowy depths
26:32separating
26:33the red
26:34landmasses.
26:35These now
26:36cracked stretches
26:37of scarlet
26:38sheen and reflected
26:39like polished clay.
26:40The crevice
26:41below me
26:42grew in its
26:43well of darkness
26:44the red land
26:45being thrust
26:46in every direction
26:47with the clamor
26:48of unholy sounds
26:49as the darkness
26:50conquered it.
26:51Something stirred
26:53in the expanding
26:54darkness
26:54a shape
26:56like a serpent
26:56made of white
26:57whispering fire.
26:59It circled around
27:00in an oval shaped
27:01pattern
27:01as if it was
27:02racing to see
27:03its tail.
27:04Its movement
27:05was elegant
27:06but jarring
27:07like it was
27:08sleep slithering
27:09but with
27:10baleful purpose.
27:11I awoke
27:12with the taste
27:13of burnt metal
27:14in my mouth
27:15and a bloody nose.
27:16My father
27:17had a similar
27:18dream
27:19as did some
27:20of his astronomer
27:21colleagues.
27:21My father
27:22was delighted
27:23that the star
27:24was speaking
27:25to me
27:26as it had
27:27for him.
27:27I was worried
27:29worried
27:30that there was
27:30far more likely
27:31some kind
27:31of foreign
27:32substance
27:32being exposed
27:33to us.
27:34Was it
27:35the lubricant
27:36he used
27:36to maintain
27:37the leviathan?
27:38Was it
27:39the cleaners
27:39he used
27:40to keep
27:40the workspace
27:41spotless?
27:42I could not
27:42explain how
27:43his colleagues
27:44working from
27:45other laboratories
27:46in other states
27:47would have
27:48the same dream.
27:49I pressed
27:50my father
27:50on this
27:51trying to discern
27:52if they had
27:53the same leviathan
27:54as I was curious
27:55if they would
27:56be exposed
27:57to the same
27:58glitchy sequence
27:58of light.
28:00My father
28:00was disinterested
28:01in my inquiry.
28:03His sole focus
28:03consumed with
28:04deciphering what
28:05the star
28:06was speaking
28:06to us.
28:07Three days
28:08later
28:09the color
28:09in the star
28:10sequence
28:10changed.
28:11Shortly
28:12after
28:13the leviathan
28:13broke.
28:15Its sensors
28:15had been fried
28:16from the luminance
28:17of the star
28:18it attempted
28:18to perceive.
28:20A luminance
28:21it was sharing
28:21to the peering
28:22eye of my father
28:23who had leaned
28:24into its eyepiece.
28:26My father
28:27started screaming
28:28in a mix
28:28of torturous
28:29pain
28:30and cathartic
28:31delight.
28:32It beheld
28:32me!
28:33It spoke
28:34my name!
28:35My father
28:36rasped.
28:37My tolerance
28:38for this madness
28:39expired abruptly
28:40as I ripped
28:42my cell phone
28:42from my pocket
28:43and dialed
28:44911.
28:45The ambulance
28:46had to wrangle
28:47my father
28:47into the stretcher.
28:48He was half-blind
28:50but fully defiant.
28:51He writhed
28:52and pleaded
28:53not to be taken
28:54out of range.
28:55Whatever the hell
28:56that meant.
28:57The laboratory
28:58is now defunct.
29:00My father
29:01is not getting
29:03better.
29:04The doctors
29:05have informed
29:05me that,
29:06even sedated,
29:08that he whispers
29:09numbers,
29:09sequences,
29:11and indiscernible
29:12codes of information.
29:14He will do this
29:14for hours on end
29:16until his throat
29:16begins to bleed.
29:18He colors
29:19his walls,
29:20the craftsmanship
29:21of his madness
29:22being an oval shape
29:23with a misty
29:24composition.
29:25He laments
29:26that the color
29:27is off.
29:28It should be
29:28colorless.
29:29It would be
29:30so beautiful
29:31colorless.
29:32He rambles.
29:34The thing is,
29:36he paints
29:36with white paint.
29:38On my last visit,
29:40his madness
29:40had magnified.
29:41He clutched
29:42my wrists
29:43with his bony hand
29:44and screamed to me,
29:46It wasn't a star.
29:47It was far more,
29:49far more glorious.
29:50It is the perfect
29:51being,
29:52the perfect
29:53state of existence.
29:55His pupils
29:56were hardly visible
29:57as he said this
29:58to me.
29:58I was stunned,
30:00and in my moment
30:01of hesitance,
30:02he leaned forward
30:03and pressed his skull
30:05against mine.
30:06It didn't choose me.
30:08It chose you.
30:10I didn't stay
30:11to hear the rest
30:12of his madness.
30:13My father died
30:15a few days later.
30:17With his death,
30:18my dreams have become
30:19more intense.
30:20They are always the same,
30:22but their vividness
30:23varies.
30:24After experimentation,
30:26I have discovered
30:27that this vividness
30:29correlates with how
30:30close I sleep
30:31to the now-defunct
30:32laboratory.
30:33I can't explain this.
30:35I can't explain
30:36any of this.
30:38The only thing I know
30:39for certain is,
30:41I am moving the hell
30:42out of this state.
30:46My dog began barking
30:47at the cloudy eye.
30:49It whimpered
30:50and pressed its paws
30:51against my leg,
30:52trying to get me to move,
30:53but I was done running.
30:55I had lost my father,
30:57my friend,
30:58and was on the verge
30:59of losing my sanity.
31:00I needed answers,
31:02and as I saw the misty eye
31:04form images
31:05inside its cloudy ring,
31:07images of a circling dragon
31:10and a bubbling pond,
31:11I knew.
31:13I knew this would end today,
31:15one way or another.
31:17I let go of my hold
31:19on my dog's leash,
31:20and it bolted away.
31:22Slowly,
31:23I walked to my door
31:25and entered my house.
31:27As I stepped inside,
31:28I could hear a whoosh
31:29of noise,
31:30and the mist began
31:31sailing through the chimney.
31:33The fireplace rattled
31:35as the mist violently
31:36traversed across it.
31:38The mist then swirled
31:39around me for a few moments
31:41before shooting
31:42to my left and right.
31:43There was a bright flash,
31:45and finally silence
31:47as two dark figures
31:48stood before me.
31:50Their bodies were uncanny,
31:52dark, shimmering black
31:54with inhuman proportions
31:55and a bubbling nature.
31:58It was as if they were comprised
31:59of a suspended liquid,
32:01a liquid eager to ripple away.
32:04Yet their faces,
32:06their faces horrified
32:08and delighted me.
32:09I saw my father's face
32:11to the left
32:12and Josh's face
32:13to the right.
32:14These bodies attached
32:16to them,
32:17seemingly under their control,
32:19somehow providing them
32:20a second chance at life.
32:23Son,
32:23I am glad you are here.
32:25I am so glad
32:27you are listening.
32:28You have been chosen
32:29by the deep greatness.
32:31Soon,
32:32his eminence
32:33will take final form
32:34in this world,
32:35and he will reshape it.
32:37He will make it beautiful,
32:39far more beautiful
32:40than we could have
32:41ever imagined.
32:42My father's voice
32:44was off.
32:45It lacked his calm,
32:47pleasant demeanor
32:47before Mom died,
32:49but also the erratic sanity
32:51from after she died.
32:52It was cold and distant,
32:54but in a persuasive
32:56and alluring manner.
32:57My heart was unswayed
32:59by these seemingly frivolous details.
33:01It was good to hear
33:03his voice again.
33:04What happened to you?
33:06I said weakly
33:07as my eyes bounced
33:08from looking at him
33:10and at Josh.
33:11We have been given life.
33:14Soon,
33:15no human will be able
33:16to live on this earth,
33:17but we will.
33:19We have been blessed
33:20with beautiful bodies,
33:21and soon,
33:22so will you.
33:23You will help us find others
33:25that recognize the magnificence
33:27to serve him.
33:28We will rule this world
33:29under his careful watch.
33:31Don't you see, son?
33:33Don't you see the blessings
33:34that we are about to enjoy?
33:36We will finally rid this world
33:38of its most offensive corruption.
33:41My father continued,
33:43his voice suddenly venomous.
33:45Oh,
33:46what is this corruption?
33:47I asked
33:49as I slowly moved
33:50across the room.
33:51I noticed
33:52a small trail of mist
33:54drifting around
33:55the feet of my two visitors
33:56and wafting
33:57up and through
33:58the chimney.
33:59Were they still connected
34:01by this trail
34:02to the eye?
34:04Fire!
34:05That blasphemous element
34:06must only exist
34:07by the craftsmanship
34:08of the Master.
34:10Humans dare
34:11to harness it
34:11on their own,
34:12and for that,
34:13they will be punished.
34:14My father seethed.
34:16I nodded politely,
34:18scared as to what
34:19any other action
34:20would have incurred.
34:22Son,
34:23there is something urgent.
34:24Our lord is hungry.
34:27Preparing for his arrival
34:28will take energy,
34:29and he needs more
34:30to fully transition.
34:32We will need you
34:33to lead again.
34:35Perhaps you still know Luke?
34:37Don't worry.
34:39He will still get
34:40a beautiful body.
34:41He will be okay.
34:42My father said,
34:44his voice
34:45now almost pleading.
34:46His eyes were sullen,
34:48but determined.
34:49As they awaited
34:50my answer.
34:51Yes,
34:52let me text him.
34:53I said as my adrenaline
34:55began throbbing.
34:56I shifted my pace
34:57forward nonchalantly
34:59as I opened my phone.
35:01Slowly,
35:01I began typing
35:02random inputs
35:03into it.
35:04I just needed
35:05a few more seconds
35:06of distraction.
35:07Good,
35:08good.
35:09You have no idea
35:10how great a blessing
35:11you are bestowing
35:12on him.
35:13My father said
35:14with a disturbed cadence.
35:16Oh,
35:17I know exactly
35:18what kind of blessing
35:19you have in mind.
35:20I hissed
35:21as I was now
35:22in range of the switch.
35:24With a violent snap
35:25of my hand,
35:26the fireplace was flicked on.
35:27I could hear
35:28a roaring wail
35:30from deep inside
35:30my skull.
35:31Fire flashed
35:33from the fireplace
35:33and upward,
35:34but also inward.
35:36Josh and my father
35:37were now ablaze,
35:39looking at me horrified.
35:40Why?
35:41Why would you do this?
35:44My father asked
35:45as he crawled
35:46on the ground
35:46in agony,
35:47the black body
35:49of his steaming
35:50and hissing
35:51as the flames
35:52enraged throughout it.
35:54Because you cannot
35:55tempt a man
35:55who has already
35:56lost everything,
35:58I barked.
35:59Images flashed
36:00through my mind,
36:01images of my brother
36:02and I in grief
36:04over losing
36:04both our parents.
36:06Images of the horror
36:07my friends endured
36:08near Mithral
36:09and images of Sally.
36:11The heartbreak
36:13on her face
36:13and the broken trust
36:14in her eyes
36:15have haunted me
36:16for so long.
36:18Now,
36:18I finally had a reason
36:20to justify that pain.
36:21If I could stop
36:23whatever this thing was,
36:24if I could keep
36:25this world safe
36:26for a bit longer
36:28for Sally to enjoy,
36:30it would be worth it.
36:31There was a loud explosion
36:33and I was thrust back
36:34against the bookshelf.
36:36The recoil
36:37tipped it over
36:37and the shell
36:38fell on me.
36:39I am pretty sure
36:40my left arm
36:41was broken,
36:42but luckily
36:42that was the worst
36:43of it.
36:44After several
36:45agonizing minutes,
36:46I crawled
36:47from underneath
36:48the wreckage.
36:49My front room
36:50was a wreck.
36:51The chimney
36:52was charred black,
36:53but there was
36:54no mist.
36:55I almost puked
36:56when I noticed
36:57the bodies.
36:58They were still
36:59emanating smoke.
37:00Two skeletons
37:02dry of flesh
37:03aside for the heads,
37:05which almost
37:06looked to be
37:07still living.
37:08I walked over
37:09to the face
37:10of my father.
37:11His eyes
37:12were vacant.
37:13I realized
37:14then
37:14that the last
37:15conversation with him
37:16was not in this room.
37:18It was years ago.
37:21I shuffled around
37:22my room
37:22until I found
37:23my phone.
37:24The screen
37:25was cracked
37:25and its body
37:26was bent,
37:27but somehow
37:28it still worked.
37:29With my right
37:30hand I dialed
37:31a number
37:32I had tried
37:32so hard
37:33to forget,
37:34but I knew
37:35I never could.
37:36Sally,
37:37we need to talk.
37:39I found Josh.
Comments