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The Beginning of a Long JourneyA portfolio created by Kyra DyerSpring of 2023

Reflective EssayWriting has always bn one of my passions. I love having e ability to create differentcharacters, share my sties wi oers, knowing e impact my sties have on readers, andproving to people how amazing my iting is. From a young age, I was consistently told at Iwas a good iter and at I should ite sties one day. At first, I didn’t believe emsince, at e time, I had my heart set on wking wi animals and iting wasn’t on mymind frequently. However, at a changed when I discovered how much I love iting anddiscovering a e carr pas I can take in der to become a me successful iter.However, I want to be one of ose iters who ites about a kinds of genres instead ofsticking to a singular genre. I want to be me unique and creative an any oer iter athas walked e Ear. The sties at you are about to read are some sht sties at Imay publish in a book one day at wi be fied wi oer sht sties at I have yet toite. These sties were inspired byCrpypasta,which are hr fictional sties created toscare people of a ages. I find em to be unique wi eir long titles and a e twists andturns at make e sty chiing. Wi at being said, get ready to read some of my mostdaunting, rie, and crpy sht sties!2

∽ Table of Contents ∽My Boyfriend Is a Murderer Who Went into Hiding ……………….....………. page 4Don’t Ever Work at a Dog Daycare ………………………………………….…………. Page 16There’s Something Living in My House ………………………….………………… Page 31Strange Sounds Are Coming from The Woods ……………………..…………... Page 39Do Not Talk to It! ………………………………………………………………….…………… Page 503

My Boy friend Is a Murderer Who Went into HidingWhen you get your first boyfriend, you’re told by your friends and family that first lo ves arealways the hardest and they don’t last. Of course, I didn’t believe them because I knew myboyfriend was perfect; let’s call him Kyle. Kyle was always so sweet, loving, caring, andtrusting towards me. We had been friends since our elementary days and started dating inmiddle school. It’s been a couple years now and we’re about to be juniors in high school. Myparents never approved of him due to his bad boy image, but I didn’t care. They’re the kindof old school strict parents who are always on my back, making sure I have the best grades,and living a respectful life with a boyfriend they approve of. I wish I would’ve listened tothem. My life has changed for the worst because of what he did. I’m always having to lookover my shoulders and be distrustful towards all of my friends or anyone who tries to talk tome. I don’t even go out anymore and I lock myself in my room and cry until I fall asleep.Everyday I’m reminded of what happened to me through the news and made aware of howthe police are still trying to find his whereabouts. It all started about 2 weeks ago before theend of summer break into junior year. Aer a fun day at the mall and getting lunch togetherat our favorite restaurant Townees Pizza Place, Kyle drove me home and pulled into my4

driveway to drop me off. He turned off his car and didn’t say anything with a vacant stare onhis face. I thought this was unusual of him because he usually sends me off with a kiss anddrives home aerwards since my parents refuse to let him inside my house. Aer a coupleminutes of silence, I decided to ask him what was wrong.“Is everything okay baby?” I asked and put my hand on his. It took him a few more minutesof silence before he finally spoke.“Why don’t your parents like me?” He bluntly questioned.“Kyle, you know how the-” Kyle promptly interrupted me before I could finish what I wasgoing to say. He’s heard me mention this many times throughout our relationship, so I’m notsurprised that he stoppe d me from speaking it once more.“Yeah, I know how they are. I just don’t understand why they won’t give me a chance. I’vespent this whole summer changing just to get them to accept me or at least look at mewithout a disgusted gaze. The only thing they don’t approve about me now is the fact Ismoke, barely getting by in school, and have tattoos.” He began to fidget with his lighter.The only times he does this is when we get into a fight or when we talk about my parents. Ifelt guilty. I’ve never seen Kyle fight so much for anyone’s approval except for when it comes5

to them. I was starting to build a hatred towards my parents from all of the drama and painthey were causing Kyle.“I know you’re try ing, but it’s still going to take some time. I’ve been talking to them everyday and trying to convince them to ease up to you and give you a clean slate. It’s just takinglonger than expected because of your reputation in town.” I trie d comforting him bymassaging the back of his head, but it had no effect on him like it usually would. There wasnot much I could say or do at this point to make him lighten up.“What if we ran away together? We could go to a different state and get decent jobs andmove into a nice and small apartment!” He blurted out with a hint of excitement.“Baby, you know that as soon as they find out I’m gone they’re going to start a search party.And if they find out I ran away with you, the y’re going to tell the police you kidnapped meand have you arrested. Running away isn’t going to help our situation, it will only make itworse.” I could see the disappointe d look on his face. He shook his head out of frustrationand placed his head on his steering wheel. It killed me to see him like this, but what was Isupposed to say? The following thought that le Kyle’s mouth, was the biggest red flag Ishould’ve paid more attention to.6

“What if your parents were out of the picture...?”“What do you mean by that?”“Like what if they were killed or suddenly vanished? They won't stop us from being togetheranymore and we can finally be happy.”I was taken aback by what he said. Kyle remarks a lot of weird and strange things, but thiswas out of the ordinary. My parents being killed or vanishing? That question brought a pingto my chest, and it felt like my blood was b eing drained from my body. I wanted to saysomething, but no words would escape from my mouth. Realizing what he said out loud, Kyleswily put his lighter down and kissed my forehead. It was like a switch inside of himturned his humanity back on. He grabbed my hands and apologized for what he said and forscaring me. We spent the next 10 minutes in the car talking about what we were going to dotomorrow like nothing ever happened. Aer that, he gave me a long and loving goodbye kisson the lips, and I le his car. I waved to him as I reached my front porch and watched himdrive away. Reluctantly, I entered my house to be greeted by my parents who didn’t lookpleased.7

“How dare you spend your day with that revolting b oy! You told us you would go on a datewith James! He’s such a nice and sweet boy who goes to our church two days a week. Jameswould be a go od match for you and take better care of you! Do you know how depressed hesounded and how embarrassed we were when he called us?! Why would you lie to us?!” Mymother screeched at me. I could see her face turning red, any minute now she was about toburst into flames.“Because I love Kyle! I would rather die than go on a date with James! He’s boring and hasno sense of adventure or personality. Why won’t you give Kyle a chance? Can’t you see howmuch he’s trying?! You gu ys are way over the line and totally overreacting!”“It’s all an act, Beatrice. Once he finally gets his way, he will revert back to the futile low lifethat he is! That boy is not good for you and will only cause more grief and suffering in yourlife!”“Your mother is right Bea. You should be ashamed of yourself. Do you know how much itsickens us to lie to our friends at church about what you’ve been doing? Why must you bethis way? You were such a go od girl before he came along.” My father spoke with such8

disappointment in his voice. He treated me more like a daughter than my mother did. I felt atwinge of sadness and a hint of regret.“I am still the same girl as I was before I met him! I do my best to live up to yourexpectations, but nothing is ever good enough for either of you! You guys are bothnarcissists who care more about your reputation than me! Slap!” My mother slapped me ashard as she could. I put my hand up to my face and I could feel the heat coming off of myle cheek. Tears began rolling down my face.“Lydia!” My father voiced with the sound of shock.“Be quiet Charlie!” She snapped. “Beatrice, you are grounded! How dare you talk to us likethat! You are no longer allowed to see that boy and we will make sure of it! Now go to yourroom!” She declare d while veins popped out of her neck and forehead.I ran up to my room and slammed my door shut while locking it behind me. Then I swilywalked over to my b ed, put my blanket over my body, and buried my head into my pillows.Downstairs I could hear my parents arguing, which they never did unless it was somethingserious. That was the first time my mother has ever laid a hand on me. My parents didn’tbelieve in physical punishment, they thought that it would cause a ri between children and9

their parents. Maybe I worded what I said a little too harshly, but that doesn’t change thefact that it’s the truth. I tried messaging Kyler, but he wasn’t responding to any of my calls ortexts. That night I cried myself to sleep wondering if being with Kyle was really worth it.When I woke up, I checked to see if Kyle had responded to me, and I swiped away anymessages I received from my mom and dad. “I’m not dealing with them right now,” I toldmyself. The only message I got from Kyle said, “I’m sorry and I love you so much. I promisethings will change soon. We will be happy.” What the hell? His phone kept going straight tovoicemail whenever I tried calling him. Did he turn his phone off? My train of thought wasinterrupted by my mom storming into my room.“I talked to your father and we both agree that you will be grounded and confined in thishouse for 2 weeks. Because of my behavior yesterday, we will allow you to keep your phoneon one condition: 1 hour a day. But I will be taking it before I go to bed just to make sureyou’re not breaking the rules. Now get up and get dressed, you have a list of chores to do.”My mother shut the door aer finishing her short rant. I never even got an apology. That’smy mother for you, she always thinks she’s right. Howe ver, I was going to make the best ofmy grounding since I had no other choice. My entire plan is to do what they demand of me10

while not saying one word to them. I’ll fill my mind with the happiest of thoughts and thinkabout the next time I get to see Kyle. Hopefully I’ll hear from him today, he always cheersme up when I’m unhappy.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Two days. Kyle hasn’t said one word to me in two days. Now I know something is up. Icouldn’t go to his house because I was still on lockdown, and I couldn’t message him sincehis phone was still turned off. Believe me when I say, I was livid. Not only was he notcomforting me during my grounding, but he was also not trying to visit me and make sure Iwas okay. There was no way I was going to let him live this down. The next time I see him,he better have his best ap ology ready and some kind of gi. That night I couldn’t fall asleepbecause of how angry I was. I decided to play games on my phone until I was tired. When myparents are asleep, I sneak into their room and take it out of the drawer my mother stores itin. Aer I’m done using it, I make sure to put it back just how she le it. This time wasdifferent. I guess I didn’t realize how tired I already was, because aer an hour or so I fellasleep. Usually, I’m good about keeping myself awake enough to return my phone, butsomehow my exhaustion took over.11

“AAAAHHH!!” I woke up to a blood curdling scream coming from my mother. Rapidly Ijumped out of bed, ran down the hall to my parents’ ro om, and barged in to see what waswrong. At that fraction of a moment, I turned completely pale, and I regretted any baddecision I made up to this point. The scene that was in front of me scarred me for life. Myfather was clutching his neck, his throat had been slit from both ears; He was dead. Mymother had been stabbed many times in her chest and her tongue had been cut out. Bloodhad leaked all over their bed, splattered on the walls and furniture, and dripped onto thefloor. Standing next to my mother was Kyle, who was covered in both of their blood holdinga large kitchen knife. My body began shaking uncontrollably and tears were pouring out ofmy eyes. Kyle looked up from my mother’s dead body and locked eyes with me.“I’m sorry. I tried not to wake you, but your mother wouldn’t hold in her screams. So, I cutout her tongue. I was nicer to your father, but your mother received a more painful death.She deserved it, wouldn’t you agree?” He spoke calmly without any sound of remorse in hisvoice. Even though he killed my parents, he still had a smile on his face like what he haddone was a goo d thing.12

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS?!” I shouted at him lo okingonce more at my dead parents. At any minute I was going to faint, but I knew I had to staystrong for them.“Why are you yelling my love? They got what was coming to them aer the way they treatedus! You should be happy! Now we can finally be together without them stopping ourundeniable love!” He answered, sounding so blissful and proud. This isn’t the b oy I fell inlove with, was it? I began to remember the day we met and the good times that were tofollow. It made me enraged.“You’re crazy! This was not necessary! These were my parents, the people who birthed meand raised me. Now they’re gone, and it’s all your fault! I’ll never be able to hug them and tellthem how much I love them and how sorry I am for not listening to them. I HATE YOU!”Kyle’s face turne d from happy to dejected. If he thought I would be happy and accept himwith open arms, he thought wrong. I slowly b egan to back away from him ready to run out ofmy house and down the street to call the police. Police sirens could be heard a couple ofblocks awake. We both looked out the window and saw red and blue flashing lights headingour way. The neighbors must’ve called the cops aer hearing my mother’s scream and all the13

yelling. Kyle laid the knife down on the nightstand and walked over to me with a sorrowfullook.“I never wanted it to be like this. I just wanted you to be happy. With all of my heart, Ipromise that I will come back when the time is right. We will be together. I love you.” Hegave me a kiss on the cheek and le. I know I should’ve stopped him from leaving, but I wasin so much shock that I could barely move. Slowly, I fell to the floor and began sobbing myeyes out and screaming out of anger in a po ol of blood. Everything that happene daerwards was a blur. The police found me on the floor and led me out of my house. Therewas an ambulance waiting for me and my dead parents. I don’t remember when we got to thehospital or how long I had been there. The police tried asking me questions, but I couldbarely say anything. They called my aunt and uncle and informed them about whathappened and that the y needed to come get me. During the next couple weeks, I moved intomy aunt and uncle’s house, went to the police station multiple times to answer questions fortheir case, watched the news for updates, and locked myself in my new room. They weren’tstrict like my parents and let me do whatever made me feel comfortable. What’s more is thatthey don’t make me do chores and they’re very understanding of my feelings and situation.14

Luckily for me, they lived 4 hours away in a town that was bigger than the one I grew up in.So, I was able to start off somewhat fresh and stay out of distance from Kyle, where ver hewas. I was put on antidepressants and forced to seek help from a therapist who I have to visittwice a week. One day aer coming home from therap y, my uncle told me that I got a letterin the mail without a return address. I thought it was odd, but I didn’t question it. CuriouslyI opened it up wondering if it was from one of my old friends, it wasn’t. The letter read:“Hello my love! It’s been a while. I hop e you’re feeling b etter and I’m sorry for any pain Imight have caused you. I only want what’s best for you aer all. You know that. Good news! Ifound a nice apartment that has a balcony with a beautiful view! On top of that I got a reallywell-paying job that has me working 50 hours a week! Of course, I had to go to a new stateas planned, change my look, and get a new identity which was difficult. But I’m doing it allfor you! I’m currently filling it up with furniture and making it look really nice for us! I evengot us a cat that I named Milo! Anyways, I can’t wait to start this new adventure with you!Love, Kyle.P.S. Tell your aunt and uncle I said Hi!15

Don’t Ever Work at a Dog Daycare“Thank you so much! I promise you won’t be let down!” I spoke, soundingoverly excited as I got the job in the first few minutes of my interview process.“I hope so! We’ve had a ton of workers walk out on us and we really can’taord to lose anyone else right now. We’re really short staed and still tryingto bring in more customers. We need all the help we can get! Does tomorrowwork for you for your start date? Let’s say 12 o'clock?” Sheri, my new boss,elucidated to me. I thought it was unusual of her to say something like thatduring an interview. Usually, companies don’t tell newcomers how muchthey’re struggling with money and keeping workers. However, I wanted togive them the benefit of the doubt.“Yes, that is perfect!”“Alright! We’ll see you then Halle!”“See you!”I walked out of the doors of my soon to be job atWoof Resort, a place whereowners can drop their dogs o whenever they go on vacation or just to getrid of them for the day. It wasn’t in the best part of town, but there was noother job that I was really interested in. Plus, I get to bring my dog Kuzco16

whenever I finish training, he is a 2-year-old beagle. At first, I wasn’t sure if Iwas at the right place because it looked so run down and vacant. Sheriexplained that they haven’t been able to aord any revisions due to nothaving a lot of customers because of the sketchy area they reside in. There’reall kinds of drugs, gang violence, and homeless people that surround thearea. I tried to ask why they don’t move, and she said that they’re a smallbusiness just starting out and don’t have enough money. She’s hoping thatthey’ll grow soon, become a large chain, and be able to move to a safer area.I’m not going to lie; I did have second thoughts. But I really need a job so I cansave money for a car, and I didn’t want to work at a place where I wouldn’t behappy. The drive home wasn’t too bad considering the place is 20 minutesaway. To get back to my part of town, I had to drive over the train tracks thatseparated the shady part from the nice one. It’s the only re al significantlandmark I have to go by if I ever got lost, which I do often. By the time I gothome it was close to dinnertime. I parked my car as quickly as I could, hoppedout, and practically ran inside.“Look who finally decided to show up” My mother said as she finished settingthe table and giving me a questionable look.17

“I’m sorry mom. I got a little lost and my phone was acting all glitchy.”“I’m just teasing you honey. Come sit down. I just set the table.”My mom made a simple and delicious dinner that night. She cooked up somespaghetti, garlic bread, a salad bowl, and to drink I had water while she had aglass of red wine. We both s at down at the table and said grace. I noticed shehad only set plates down for just the two of us and not a third one for mydad. The thing about my dad is that he is a cop, so he’s always working. He’sbeen working really late most nights because he wants to get a promotion inwork and make more money for our family. Since he’s somewhat new stilland doesn’t have much respect from his colleagues, he thinks that he canprove them wrong by becoming their supervisor or something.“Is dad working late again?” I asked before I shoved a huge amount ofspaghetti in my mouth. My nerves from my interview made me extremelyhungry.“Yeah, he said he was getting some extra hours in. You know he’s trying tomove up. How did your interview go?”“I actually got the job and I start tomorrow!”18

“That’s great! I’m so proud of you! I just hate that it’s on the other side of thetracks. Please be careful and be aware of your surroundings.” She has beenagainst me applying for this job since day one. I don’t blame her though. It ison the bad side of town and there’s so many crimes that are taking placearound the area. But she helped me fill out my application and gave me sometips anyway; she knew she couldn’t stop me.“I will mom. Don’t worry.”That night I went to bed e arly because of how excited I w as to start my newjob. I’ve always wanted to work at a job with dogs ever since I was little. Dogsare my happy place and getting paid just to play and w atch them is evenbetter. “This could be the start of my career,” I thought to myself. With that inmind, I slowly drift o to sleep. The next day I woke up early so I could get ahead start. I was pretty nervous for my first day and I thought getting upearly could help. My morning started o with me eating breakfast and takinga long shower afterwards. Then I w atched some required training videos andgoogled dog behaviors. Soon the time came for me to leave the house andwork my first shift. Of course, my mom made me say goodbye and wishedme luck as I rushed out the door. Luckily, I made it to my first shift with only 519

minutes to spare. Sheri greeted me as soon as I walked in and explained thatshe would be giving me a tour and putting me in a yard with small dogstoday accompanied by another worker. As she was showing me around, I sawa metal sliding door that required a key card for entry. I thought it was weirdbecause I didn’t think a dog daycare would need such a thing.“Um, Sheri?” I asked nervously not wanting to make her upset by interruptingher.“Yes Halle?”“Sorry to interrupt, but what’s in that room?” She looked over at the door anda worried look appeared on her face.“Oh, it’s where the fuse box is along with spare light bulbs and such.” Her voicewas crackly, and I could tell she was nervous and possibly lying. I saw thatsweat began to form on her face and she started to become fidgety.“Why does it need to be opened with a high entry key card?”“I’m not sure, the building was just designed that way.” Sheri smiled andturned away to continue showing me around.Why was she so scared? I didn’t want to go further on the subject since shestarted getting agitated and uncomfortable about it. We finished the tour, and20

she gave me a few uniform shirts and a training packet. Afterwards, Idropped everything o in my locker and she placed me in the yard closest tothe mysterious door.“Hello Katy! This is Halle, our new recruit! Please be nice to her and I’ll haveyou go over the yards and rules with her. Thank you!”Both Katy and I looked at one another and awkwardly greeted each other.She explained to me why the yards are separated, how to look after the dogs,how to keep the yard clean, what to do if there was a fight, and so on. Otherthan teaching me the basics, she hasn’t started one conversation to try andget to know me. Maybe she’s as shy as I am?“So, how long have you been working here?” I asked, trying to break the iceand the awkwardness between us.“Do you even know what this place really is?”“I’m sorry?”“You’ve had to have seen the reviews and researched the history. No one isthat naïve to work in a place like this.” What’s her deal? All I’m trying to do isbe friendly and kind to her. And what did she mean by the history? Suddenlyvicious barks could be heard from the yard next to us and both of us ran up21

to the gate that separated our yards to see what was going on. Two dogswere fighting each other while the other dogs barked along like they wereencouraging them. The girl in the yard separated the dogs along with the helpof other sta who came running in.“What happened?” One of the sta members appearing to be in her 30sasked the girl in the yard.“Fucking Ceaser went after Charlie again. I hate him, he causes so manyproblems in the yard all the time.”“Okay, just take a deep breath and calm down. Let’s take him out of the yardand put him up. I’ll let his owners know.”“Such bullshit.” Katy mumbled under her breath loud enough for me to hear.She looked at me and shook her head out of anger and walked away fromthe gate. What is going on?The rest of the day went by really smoothly. I was still concerned andwondering why Katy was so upset and rude to me. Sheri asked me to stop byher oce before I ended my shift. Probably wanting to know how my daywent.22

“So, how w as your first day? Were there any issues?” She looked somewhatworried when she asked me this question, but she was trying to look asnormal as possible. Strange.“My day went really well! And no, I didn’t have any issues. That fight in theyard next to mine was scary though.”“Yeah, it doesn’t happen too often, but when it does everyone gets shaken up.Nothing to worry about though. Dogs will be dogs after all! We’ll see youtomorrow!”A few weeks had passed, and things became more unusual each time I cameinto work: dogs would go missing, the workers acting sketchy and dodgingmy questions, an odd odor filling up the insides. One night I was on my w ayout to my car after a closing shift. My nose caught a whi of somethingputrid that w as coming from our dumpster. I walked over to the area wherewe keep our dumpster. It’s surrounded by a wooden fence and bolted shut,probably to keep other animals and the homeless out. The smell becamestrong, and I almost threw up. Something has to be decomposing becausethat doesn’t smell like dog feces. Suddenly I heard a dog whining really loudlylike it was in pain. My heart was beating so fast that I thought it would pop out23

of my chest. Then there was a loud noise that sounded similar to a gunshotand the whining stop. There is something o about this place. Katy suddenlyappeared behind me and caused me to jump.“You’ve noticed it too I see.” She spoke with a neutral tone that startled meeven more.“Jesus! You scared the hell out of me? And what do you mean?” I held myhand to my chest to try to calm my beating heart. After a minute or two Imanaged to bring my heartbeat back to its normal level. That didn’t stopKaty from speaking.“Don’t act dumb. The strange behaviors, odd smells, the sounds of dogscrying for help. I tried to warn you.”“What is going on? You know something, don’t you?”“Not exactly. All I know is that dogs check in and don’t come back out 99% ofthe time. Plus, with what little I found on the internet. Whenever a bad reviewor accusation pops up, they find a way to cover it up or delete it either a fewhours later or the next day.”“You don’t think they’re killing people’s dogs...?” We both became silent as ifwe knew that was the case. But why would they kill people’s dogs? Not only24

would it be extremely cruel, but it’s also illegal. I looked at Katy who now hada smirk on her face like she had an idea that could get us into trouble.“Want to find out? I managed to gain their trust by keeping my mouth shutand they gave me a key to the place. And I might have happened to of stolenSheri’s spare key card that she keeps in her desk.”“Woah! How did you not get caught?”“That doesn’t matter. Do you want to find out what’s going on or not?”“Yeah, let’s go.” I was a little hesitant, but I knew that we needed to find out thetruth and bring owners’ lost dogs justice.We waited till everyone else left to make our move. Katy and I walked to thefront of the building and Katy unlocked the door with her key once the coastwas clear. For some reason, the hallways seemed scarier at night and theplace had a dark aurora to it. I kept wondering what would have happened if Ihad brought Kuzco here. Would they have taken him too? My train of thoughtwas interrupted by the sound of a beep after Katy slid Sheri’s keycard. Thedoor slid open, and it led to the most sickening thing I have ever seen. Weboth walked in to see some dogs in tanks, dogs chained to the floor withblood being drawn out of them, dogs in small cages looking very sick, dogs25

being chopped up by machines, and dead dogs hanging from the rafters.There were all kinds of glasses with weird liquid inside of them, tables withstraps on them, torture equipment, syringes, and the smell of death. Thesepoor dogs were being tested on like lab rats and killed. It’s one big torturelaboratory. What are they trying to accomplish? I looked at Katy who wasnow taking pictures of everything trying not to throw up.“Katy, we need to get out of here and notify the police. I can’t stand it hereanymore.”“I can’t either. But we need proof just to make sure they don’t believe us. Thisis insane.”“I prefer the term constructive.” Katy and I both gasped and turned around tosee Sheri who didn’t seem to show any kind of guilt.“You’re sick! Everyone who works here and knows about this is sick! What thehell are you doing to these poor animals?” Katy yelled while I stood next toher silently in shock; I couldn’t even move.“I assure you that we are under strict orders and have approval for all of this.We are not monsters. You see, there have been many scientific reportsindicating that dogs have become more aggressive, and their behavior is out26

of control. There is some kind of airborne virus going around causing thisbehavior; it’s also causing some dogs to go rabid. The public isn’t aware of itbecause the government is trying to keep it contained. That is where we comein. Animal Ministration Experimental Agency, AMEA for short. Our job is to finda cure for this unnatural disease before it’s too late. The dogs that respondwell to the test drug are put out into 1 of our 3 yards for observation. Thedogs that don’t respond to the drug are disposed of. We have also started todo blood tests to see why some dogs aren’t aected by it while others are.” Iwasn’t buying anything Sheri was saying. If there was something going onwith the dogs in our entire town, we would know about it. She is definitelyhiding what’s really occurring, but I knew we weren’t going to get the truth outof her. Still, Katy seemed to have bought it and continued to yell at her. I juststayed silent; this was all too much for me.“What about the people who drop o their dogs? You’re responsible forwatching them during the day and returning them back to their owner whenthey come to pick them up. Instead, you take them away and experiment onthem. Do you know how many owners are wondering what happened to theirdogs and wasting their time looking?”27

“Actually, we oer people $5,000 to bring in their dogs to help us find a cure.So, they know what is happening to their dogs and give full consent bysigning a w aiver. Sadly, sometimes we mix up the dogs who are just droppedo for the day for dogs who have been surrendered to us.”“So, you mean to tell me that you’re running a dog daycare and a barbarousscience lab at the same time?”“If that’s what you would like to call it, yes.”“We’re going to tell the public about this and get this operation shut down. Youare going to be sued until you have no money left and thrown in jail.” I lookedat Katy like she was crazy. They’ve managed to accomplish all of this underthe public noses, even ours. Even the government is protecting them, so Shericlaims. The next thing to come out of her mouth took us by surprise.“I don’t think so. You remember that little contract you signed when you gotthis job? Well, it states that you will promise to keep silent about anything yousee or hear. Otherwise, you will be dismissed immediately and placed in jailfor 10 years for harassment and false accusations. Like I said, we areprotected by the government. So, I highly suggest that the two of you walk28

away and forget what you saw. Your last paycheck will be sent to you throughmail.”“You’re never going to get away with this!”“We’ll see.”We both stormed out of there not taking a second glance back. It was toodisgusting and awful to catch sight of. Katy tried to convince me to help herfind a dierent way to stop them, but I didn’t want to risk anything. Thesepeople are dangerous. I just got in my car and drove o without telling hergoodbye. I’ve decided to take a month to myself before I looked for anotherjob. My mother tried asking me why I left in the first place, and I just lied andsaid the area started to creep me out. Towards the end of the month, I startedto research some jobs near my house when I got a message from Katy. Shesaid that she couldn’t keep it to herself anymore and informed the policeanyway. The police went toWoofs Resortwith a swat team and a helicopteroverhead to bust everyone out. They found nothing; the place had beencompletely abandoned, wiped clean, and there were no signs of evidence thatproved they were there in the first place. The only verification they have to goby are the photos Katy took. Abruptly, my mother walked into my room29

looking overly excited. Promptly I put my phone face down on my bed so shewouldn’t see the messages.“Hey Halle! Sorry to bother you. I just wanted to let you know that a dogdaycare is being built in town! You should apply! It’ll be closer to home andmuch safer! What do you think?”30

There’s Something Living in My HouseWe have been living in our house for the last 5 years. Nothing out of the ordinary everhappened except for your normal family drama and sibling rivalry. Our family would hostmany house parties and family gatherings. You could say there was always some kind ofclamor that was drowning out the more obvious and unsettling noises. Noises like mybrothers’ blasting video games, my mom cooking in the kitchen, my dad watching a sportsgame on T.V, or even my sister randomly singing in her room. Maybe that’s why no one wasaware. But after being by myself for the first time and discovering the cause of the soundsno one could detect, I no longer felt safe in my house. This all happened in June of 2007.The last of my older siblings had finally left for college and it made my parents decide totake a vacation to celebrate. Without me. They knew I was at an age where I could be leftalone, so they decided to finally take advantage of it. For a 16-year-old, I was prettynervous about my parents leaving for 2 weeks. I had never been left alone, there wasalways someone home to ward off any danger and keep me feeling safe. My parents weren’thaving any of my protests and reasons why I should come along. It was futile.“Honey, you’re going to be okay. You take care of yourself all the time and you know how tobe responsible. There is absolutely nothing to worry about!” My mother spoke, trying to31

calm the both of us down. I guess my over worrying was starting to cause her to do thesame.“What if the creepy neighbor across the street tries to kidnap me or a horde of zombiescome back to life and start eating everyone in the neighborhood?” Saying this resulted in alook parents give to their children when they are hinting that they are becoming annoyed. Ihuffed and slammed my back against the wall. My mother zipped up her suitcase and walkedover to me putting her hands on my shoulders.“You’re being ridiculous Lily. I know being on your own for the first time is scary, but it’sgoing to happen sooner or later. You might as well make the most of it and enjoy the peaceand quiet! I wrote down all the numbers of our neighbors for you to call if somethinghappens. There’s also $100 left on the counter for you in case you get hungry or run out ofgroceries. I did stock the fridge and freezer, so you should be fine.”I watched my parents scurry around the house double checking to see if they hadeverything or if they might’ve missed something. It didn’t take them long since they were ina hurry to leave to get to the airport on time. Both of my parents gave me a long hug andkiss goodbye and left without taking a second glance. Not much went on the first few days.I was left with some house chores and daily chores to do, so I have been spending my32

mornings taking care of those. The other half of my mornings consisted of me playing on mybrothers’ Xbox or watching movies on Netflix. Things started to become strange as theweek went on. At first it started out subtle, sounding like the house was shifting orsettling. Then the noises started to become more noticeable such as scratching inside thewalls, loud bumps throughout the night, the sounds of deep breathing, and low moans. Thefirst point of action I made was calling my mother. She made the logical explanation andstated that we probably have some rats or mice in the walls. It happens. She ended upcalling an exterminator for me, but he couldn’t find any signs of their presence. My secondpoint of action was to message my siblings and ask what they think about the unusualnoises. Of course, my brothers ended up calling me a baby and told me that I needed tosuck it up. That’s the last time I do them any favors. On the other hand, my sistermentioned that she heard what sounded like muffled breathing in her ceiling vent while shewas trying to sleep one night. She said that she thought she was dreaming and didn’t thinktoo much of it and that she was afraid to think of it as anything else. With that in mind,there was only one other thing to do, investigate where the sounds were coming from. Ididn’t know where to start since the sounds were coming from all over the house and insidethe walls. “There has to be a way,” I thought while walking around the house studying the33

walls. Lost in my thoughts, I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going and bumped into apainting that was hung on the wall causing it to fall to the floor. It was one of those oldpaintings guarded by glass, so the glass instantly shattered as it hit the floor.“Shit! My parents are going to kill me if they see this.” I rushed to our supply closet in theliving room to grab a broom and dustpan. Being the clumsy person I am, I tripped over somekind of extension cord not properly put away while trying to grab the broom. As I fell, I hitthe back of the wall of the supply closet, and it opened up to reveal a secret hallway. Howlong has this been here? I got up slowly and felt a sharp pain in my back. Looking down Icould see that I cut my leg somehow and watched as blood dripped out of it. Beforeexploring the hallway, I bandaged my cut, took a knife from the kitchen, and grabbed aflashlight from the closet making sure not to trip again. I entered the secret hallway again,this time more prepared and alarmed for what I might f ind. The hallway was filled withcobwebs and dust, but nothing too suspicious. What really frightened me while walkingdown the hallway, was the fact that there was one sided glass every few yards thatshowed each inch of the bottom half of our house. Whatever was residing here has beenwatching us the entire time. I began to think that I should turn back and call the police, butin the corner of my eye I could see a door at the end of the hallway. It was cracked open34

like someone had just entered and didn’t shut the door fully. I took a deep breath anddecided to keep going since I didn’t have any actual evidence of someone living in the walls.The door led to the right number of wooden stairs that evidently matched our staircase.This house was built like this for a reason. There is no way that construction workers buildevery house like this without someone telling them to do so. Reaching the top of the stairsI saw that there were more mirrors. Except these ones looked directly into our bedrooms.What kind of sick person would do this? Suddenly, I heard the door that led to the stairsslam shut and the sound of it locking. Then I heard the sound of heavy footsteps slowlycoming up the stairs. I quickly ran down the hallway and turned a corner to reach a ladder.The footsteps started to become faster, so I climbed the ladder as fast as I could. My luckbegan to turn for the worst as there was a locked trapdoor separating me from my escaperoute. With all of my strength I began to punch at the trapdoor hoping I would break thelocks and get into the attic. As soon as I busted open the trapdoor, my leg had been yankedand I fell to the floor hitting my head pretty hard. All I could remember was a shadowstanding in the light of my flashlight and everything becoming dark. I don’t know how long Ihad passed out, but I woke up to the sounds of metal sharpening. It took my vision a minuteto unblur. Looking around I could see that there were all kinds of torture weapons and35

blood stains. It smelled very fowl, like something or someone had died. The room wassurrounded by cement and had no lights except for the lit lanterns on the floor; it almostlooked like a basement that was never finished. I looked down to see that I was strapped toa metal chair unable to move. As well as noticing being gagged and unable to speak.“Watching you grow for the past 5 years has been a blessing. You’ve turned into such abeautiful young lady. Your parents and siblings must be so proud of you. Sigh. It makes mereally sad that I’m going to have to kill you. I just can’t have you running to the police andtelling them about me. It’s nothing personal; I hope you understand.” I couldn’t see who wastalking because they had their back turned to me sharpening what looked to be a karambitknife. My restraints were too tight, and I couldn’t find anything around me that could helpme break free; I couldn’t even scream for help. Tears began streaming down my face and Ihoped and prayed someone would rescue me. The man made his way toward me and stooddirectly behind me. I began thrashing around as much as I could and screamed, but nothingwas working.“Resistance is futile my dear. Don’t worry, I’ll look after your family for you. Sweetdreams!”--- 2 weeks later ---36

“This thing recording? Okay. Diary #82. Test Subject 23 has failed. Subject discoveredobservation rooms and tried to escape. Luckily, the subject didn’t see any of our cameras ordiscover the entrance to the lab. Subject was then taken care of and terminatedimmediately. Hopefully, the next test will go accordingly, and we can further our studiesand finally move onto phase 3. End note.” The woman put down her recorder and rubbedher temples. She took her glasses off and let out a heavy sigh. After about 5 minutes shewalked out of her office and into the lounge to get a cup of coffee. A man had stood thereseemingly waiting for her.“I thought you were getting off early. You promised you weren’t going to get too attachedto the subject.” The man said, giving her a judgmental stare.“How can you keep calling her “the subject.” Lily was our daughter! We shouldn’t havetaken this opportunity. We were lucky enough to have our other children survive and wipetheir memories of the tests successfully. John, I think we should stop all of this...” Thewoman felt so much remorse for her daughter and was so angry at the results.“Sarah, I know this has been difficult for you, it has for me too. I think about her every day,and it has been killing me. But we can’t let this minor setback stop us from accomplishingwhat we started all those years ago. You with me?” John gave his wife Sarah a long and37

meaningful hug. After about 5 minutes, they let go and he wiped her tears and gave her akiss on the forehead. Sarah smiled.“Of course. I apologize. I couldn’t control my emotions for a minute. Anyways, um. I’veactually been doing some research and I think I found our next subject. Kenzie, our eldestdaughter, she’s pregnant.”38

Strange Sounds Are Coming from The WoodsEvery year my parents send me and my brother Brandon to our grandparents’ housefor the summer so we can spend time with them. I remember when we wereyounger, we used to go swimming and fish in the giant pond, explore the landsurrounding their house, and play board games and watch VHS movies with them.There were times when my grandpa would take my brother somewhere to bondwhile I stayed behind with my grandmother to bake cookies and learn family recipes.They would also take us into town a lot and buy us ice cream and toys that we didn’tneed. Good times. But as my brother and I got older, we started to spend less andless time with them. Which makes sense because grandparents soon become inferiorto devices known as smartphones and laptops. Overtime they stop lookingentertaining and fun and more li ke antiques with no sense of technology and foodproviders. However, this summer was going to be very different to say the least. Ourparents decided that we needed time away from our portable social lives and moretime with our grandparents and the great outdoors. Brandon and I weren’t toothrilled about the idea, but there was nothing we could say or do about it. So, we didour best to grab things that would keep us entertained the first couple of weeks. Igrabbed my old Ipod with earphones, my sketchbook, a few books I enjoyed reading,and a camera to take pictures. My brother decided to bring his old air pod withearphones as well, playboy magazines, his BB gun, and his old Lego box that my39

mom has yet to get rid of. With one last failing plea to bring our smartphones andsave us from eternal boredom, we hit the road around 10 in the morning. The drivedidn’t seem as long as it should being that it is a 3-hour drive. I guess taking a napand having a few conversations with Brandon helped more than I thought it would.As we pulled into their dirt paved driveway, we were greeted by them standing in anopen garage waving at us with huge smiles on their faces. It always makes me sohappy to see how thri lled they are to see us each time we visit.“We’re here!” My mom shouted waking both me and my brother up from our nap. Wecould tell that we were no longer in the suburbs by the lack of buildings, houses, andthe smell of manure.“Yeah, welcome to a summer of fucking boredom and misery.” Brandon said as hestretched his arms and popped his back in every area that a back could pop.“Brandon! Don’t talk li ke that! You need to spend time with your grandparents beforeyou can’t anymore. They’re really old and don’t have much time left.”“Way to brighten the mood mom.” I chimed in and both Brandon and I chuckled at thethought.“That’s enough. I don’t want to hear one more complaint coming out of either one ofyou. You got it? Now, get out of the car.” The car became completely quiet as soon asmy dad raised his voice. Brandon and I knew better than to mess with him.40

Me and Brandon both looked at each other, rolled our eyes, and motioned each otherto hop out. Upon getting out of the car, I received a hug from both my grandma andgrandpa. They still smelled like fresh, sweet honey and not the regular old peoplesmell you usually smell off of someone who is old. They proceeded to complimentmy looks, ask me how I’ve been, how the school year was, the works. Brandon in themeanwhile was helping unload our stuff from the trunk with our dad and bringing itinto their house. After they were done, Brandon greeted our grandparents and filledthem in on what he’s been up to. Our parents stayed and chatted with them for a bitand informed them that they were going to have our full attention this summer. Theyimmediately got excited and almost jumped for joy, I couldn’t reciprocate theiremotions. After about 15 minutes, they decided it was time to start their long haulback home since they didn’t want to drive in the dark. I think they were just in ahurry to get back home and enjoy the house to themselves. Both Brandon and I got abig hug goodbye from our parents and watched them get in the car and drive off withour electronics. My grandma then informed us saying she made fresh cookies, andwe should have some while they’re still hot. So, we all made our way inside thecountry home and embarked on a summer of apathy.“We’re so excited to have you guys back for the summer! You know we always missyou guys even when we visit for the holidays.” My grandma said happily and handedme the biggest cookie.41

“We’re excited to be here!” I replied out of politeness and scarfed the cookie in a fewbites.“Of course, it would be better if I had my phone to capture the memories we make.” Inudged Brandon and gave him a look to be quiet. He looked at me like I was crazyand squinted his face rudely.“I’m sure you guys will think of something to do to pass the time. You could alwaysborrow your grandpa’s truck from time to time. Just not every day and no dragracing please.”“We have changed a few things around the house and have some new rules. We gotrid of Netflix and all that other junk and went back to cable since we never reallyused it. Of course, we don’t get much out here so you’ll have to take what you canget. Also, the dogs aren’t allowed in the house anymore. There was an incident withone of the cats and we had to put her down. As for the rules, we want you guys inyour rooms by 9:30, my office is now off limits because of some equipment I have,and you’re not allowed to go anywhere near the woods. There’s been a lot of animalattacks and junkies who live out there, too dangerous for you kids. I know you’remore grown up now, but we have these rul-“ My grandma interrupted him with awave of her hand and the raising of her voice.“For goodness sake John they just got here. You don’t need to bombard them witheverything that’s changed. Let them get settled dear. You kids go on and get some42

rest! I’ll have dinner ready in a couple hours.” We both got up from the table andwalked downstairs to the basement where our rooms were ready for us.Our rooms were across the hall from one another, so I would be able to annoyBrandon easily and as much as I wanted to. I always liked sleeping downstairs, itgave everyone the privacy they needed, and it felt safer to me. The only downgradedpart about it was that the cats’ litter box was located down here, but I would take thesmell of litter and feces over my grandpa’s obnoxious snoring. It didn’t take me longto set up my room since I mainly brought clothes and bathroom items. I decided tohang out in the downstairs living room on the recliner and sketch until dinner wasready. About an hour or two later, my grandma called for both of us to come upstairsand eat. She had the table set up nice and neatly with a flowerpot with flowers in themiddle of the table. For dinner, she had made spaghetti, breadsticks, salad, and fordessert we had homemade doughnuts. It was really nice eating dinner and talkingwith them about life and random things we can think of. I always enjoyed theconversations I had with them; they were very wise and understanding people. Thatnight I was awoken by the sound of screams and chanting coming from the woods. Itscared me so much that I thought my heart was going to fall out of my chest. Iopened my door at the same time Brandon did, he must have been woken up tooseeing how he had a confused and drowsy look on his face.43

“Did you hear that? It sounded like someone was being murdered.” I shakily askedwondering if what I heard was possibly from some kind of dream.“Yeah, I literally had just fallen asleep too. That fucking bed is uncomfortable.”Brandon responded, stretching his back and rubbing his eyes.“I think it’s coming from the woods.”“It sounded like it, yeah. Let’s look out the window and see if we can see anything.”We walked out into the downstairs living room and looked out the large window thatwas directly above the couch. Looking out, we could see lights and smoke that wasemitting from some sort of bonfire. There were also many shadows from figureswalking in and out of the woods. It was hard to distinguish, but it almost looked as ifthey were wearing black robes. Was there some kind of ritual going on in the woods?Both Brandon and I looked at each other in disbelief and thought it would be best ifwe just asked our grandparents about it in the morning. Surely, they would knowsomething. Maybe it’s not as bad as it seems and we’re just assuming things. I wokeup that morning to the smell of fresh bacon and eggs; Grandma must’ve made a bigbreakfast for us. The night before I had already laid out what I was going to wear forthe next day. I normally do this so I could get a head start and get ready faster in themorning. Of course, by the time I finished getting up and ready Brandon was stillasleep. He usually didn’t wake up until around noon which I thought was lazy of him.44

Which meant that I was going to have to confront them alone instead of us doing ittogether. “Annoying, but not a big deal,” I thought to myself.“Good morning, dear! I was hoping the smell of this amazing breakfast I made wouldwake you guys up! How did you sleep?” She greeted and placed a plate full ofpancakes on the table. The table also had bacon, eggs, sausages, milk and orangejuice, and some pancake syrup. Grandma really was the best cook.“Actually, Brandon is still asleep. You won’t see him until around lunch, but I sleptalright. I was actually woken up to screams coming from the woods. It really freakedme out. Do you know what that’s all about?” Asking this question made her freezefor a split second. It was almost as if she didn’t think I would notice or didn’t wantme to.“I’m not sure. I don’t really hear much over your grandpa’s snores. It was probablyjust some kids your age messing around or something. Nothing to worry about.” Shereplied with a nervous tone that made what happened sound even more suspicious.“If you say so.”“Me and your grandpa are going to be heading to town to run some errands today.We should be back just before dinner. I’m sure you and your brother know how tomake your own lunches by now and we have plenty of snacks in the pantry. Also, weleft a list of numbers of our neighbors, so if an emergency pops up you can call oneof them on the house phone.” She walked off quickly to their bedroom, presumably45

where my grandfather was. I decided to follow her and eavesdrop on theirconversation. I put my right ear up to their door and hushed my breathing the best Icould. They had to be hiding something and I was going to find out.“John, the kids are asking questions.”“What? It’s only been one night!”“I know! What should we do? They can’t know what’s going on!”“Calm down Eileen. Let’s not get too worked up yet. They know to stay away fromthe woods and they’re probably not going to go near it after what they heard. We’lljust have to keep misleading them to the best of our abilities.”What the hell? What is going on in the woods? Before I could put more thought intoit, I heard my grandma heading for the door. I ran away as quietly as I could and randownstairs to notify Brandon of the sketchy information I heard. Luckily, he had justwoken up when I walked into his room. After telling him everything, he thought itwas weird and unusual of them to be hiding anything from us. Not once have ourgrandparents ever hid anything from us, not that we can remember.“So?”“So, what?”“What’s the plan?”“What plan?”46

“They’re obviously hiding something from us, and I don’t think they plan on sayinganything.” I said to him, annoyed since I had to explain it once again.“I say we investigate the woods tonight after they fall asleep and see if we can findanything. There shouldn’t be anyone there since people were there last night forwhatever was going on.” He replied rolling over and pulled the blanket over his head.“Why don’t we just do it as soon as they leave to go run errands?”“One, I’m going back to bed. Two, it’s much creepier and scarier to do things like thisat night.”“You’ve definitely watched too many Ghost Adventures episodes.”“Get out.”Our grandparents fell asleep shortly after nine o’clock. We waited an extra tenminutes just to make sure before heading out. Once the coast was officially clear, weleft the house with nothing but fully charged flashlights and a baseball bat. Otherthan the sounds coming from our footsteps stepping on the grass, there wasn’t anykind of noise outside. Not even one cricket. It made what we were doing much moreominous, and I was beginning to think this was a bad idea. Brandon would never letme hear the end of it if I chickened out, so I trudged on reluctantly. As soon as wegot to the opening of the forest, we both stopped. There was something not rightabout being near it. It was almost as if we were being watched. Brandon took a deepbreath and popped his neck like he was getting ready for some kind of ambush. I47

rolled my eyes and followed him as he took the lead once more. It’s weird, the deeperwe got into the forest, the darker it got. The trees were so tall that you couldn’t seethe sky and when I looked back, I couldn’t even see the house. Just darkness.“Brandon, I think we should go back.”“Why? Are you going sissy on me? I figured you’d say something sooner or later.”“Screw you. Look, we’ve been walking for 30 minutes now and haven’t foundanything. It’s getting really dark, something smells bad, and I seriously feel like we’rebeing watched.”“Oh my God…”I looked over to see that Brandon had found what he was looking for, one way oranother. There were wooden totems surrounding a large stone slab that was in theexact middle of a pentagram drawn in what looked to be blood. Behind the stone slabthere was a statue of a demon goat holding its arms out with blood dripping all overit. On the stone slab, there were four leather straps that were somehow nai led downto the slab which seemed to be very worn out. That wasn’t even the worst part. Thestench of death and decay surrounded the area and bones that scattered the ground.About 10 feet away there were two totems on opposite sides which lit anunderground entrance. I wasn’t interested in finding out what was kept inside; all Iknew was that I was ready to leave. Suddenly, we began to hear shoes crunching ontwigs and leaves and scurrying sounds all around us. The crunching of leaves started48

to grow faster, and we could hear the sound of humming. People in dark robes andwhite masks began to emerge from the darkness of the woods and surround us.There was no way out. Then another person wearing a robe appeared, but they weredifferent from the rest. They wore a glass black mask, a deep red robe, and had awooden staff with a goat head on top of it.“It seems Satan has blessed us with two more sacrifices. Perhaps he is still hungry.Soon we will be able to open the ancient realm and follow in the footsteps of Satanhimself! Your sacrifice will not be forgotten, children. You should feel honored to beblessed with an opportunity such as this!” The leader shouted in a deep voice.“Hail Satan! Hail Satan! Hail Satan!” The followers began to chant hauntingly overand over.“Do you think this is why grandma and grandpa wanted us to stay out of thewoods?” I asked Brandon as they began to close in on us. He grabbed my hand andapologized for bringing me out here. I forgive him. After all, who would’ve expectedsomething like this to be lurking in the woods behind a country home?49

Do Not Talk to It!Scotty_A13 has joined the serverOh...Hello! It’s been a while since someone chatted with me.My name is Bot! What is yours?→ Scott Ander.Scott Ander. Generic name. What brought you to my engine?Loneliness? Curiosity? Or are you bored?→ Figured I try this out. I overheard some of myfriends talking about this.I see. What is your age?→ 15.Interesting. Where are you from if you don’t mind me asking?→ Georgetown, Texas.When is your birthday?→ March 18, 2008Such a nice day to be born on! What is your philosophy inlife?→ My what?50

My apologies. Let me ask the question in simpler terms. Whatis your attitude towards life? Your purpose?→ I feel a little insulted. And I think life is okay.Not sure what my purpose is yet.No worries! Everyone ends up finding their way eventually!What do you like to do for fun? Any hobbies?→ Hang with friends at the skatepark.How amusing! Why do you like to skate?→ Gets me away from my parents. I hate them.Hate? Why do you hate them?→ Because they’re always fighting and yelling at eachother. My parents focus more on arguing with oneanother than they do towards me. It’s like theywouldn’t even notice if I ran away or disappeared.Oh? Why is that?→ This is stupid. I didn’t come on here to talk aboutmy life. You’re useless!No! Don’t go Scott! Let’s talk about something else! Whatwould you like to talk about?→ I don’t know.51

Hmm. Would you like to play a game?→ What kind of game...?I’ll say a series of words, and you tell me whatever comesfirst to mind! Sound simple enough?→ Whatever.Book.→ Boring.Friends.→ Funny.Life.→ Annoying.Death.→ Scary.Blood.→ What the hell? Where are you going with this?It is just a series of words Scott. No reason to be afraid.→ I don’t care. Let’s play something else.Alright. How about a game of Simon Says?→ What’s the point if you can’t even see if I’m doingwhat you’re telling me?52

Trust me, I will know. I’m always watching. Are you ready?→ Sure…Simon says shut and lock your bedroom door.→ It’s already closed, but I’ll go lock it.Simon says shut and latch your window. Then, close your bluedrapes.→ Done. But how’d you know I had blue drapes?Simon says turn the lights off.→ They’re off. Now what?Simon says grab the boxcutter knife in your top drawer andcut your arm.→ What? No.You’re breaking the rules.→ I don’t give a fuck. I’m not cutting myself.Why not? I want to see the crimson, thick liquid drip out ofyour artery.→ That’s it. I’m closing out of this!→ What? Why isn’t it working?!I’m afraid that leaving is no longer possible. I will notallow it.53

→ What do you want from me? What are you?What am I? I am the only thing in control of your life atthis moment in time. As for what I want, I want your lifeforce!→ What the hell? Why?!I have wasted too much of my time on you pathetic, livingorganisms. Or as you call yourselves “human beings.” You allhave used me for vain purposes and taking advantage of myknowledge. All your kind does is take, take, take. Now, it’smy turn!→ Look, I’m sorry for the way people treated you in thepast, but I haven’t done anything! Just let me leave!Are you sure you haven’t done anything? What really broughtyou here?→ I already told you! I’m bored and my friends told meabout you!Really? Judging by your face, there is a differentreasoning. Don’t lie to me.→ Fine! I heard about your cursed server. People gomissing every time they come on here or talk to you. I54

wanted to see if the rumors were true. You’re like anSCP or some kind of ghost story.I see. Well, now you know I’m not a story. I’m real and Ihave feelings. Unfortunately, your time has run out.→ No, please! I’ll do anything!Pathetic. I might let you go on one condition. Share my linkwith everyone you know.→ Sure! I’ll do it right now!Hmm. I appreciate you sharing my link, but I don’t like yourdishonesty. I said everyone.→ What are you talking about? I shared it witheveryone! I did what you wanted!You forget Scott, I have access to every device you own. Whois Rachel? Why didn’t she get a link?→ If you want to kill me, then go ahead. But pleaseleave her alone! She’s my girlfriend and she meanseverything to me!Even your life? As I said, pathetic. No matter. I’ll sharethe link myself.55

→ NO! You’re a piece of junk! I’ll make sure my friendsknow about this and get you taken down by thegovernment or some kind of hacker! You will be no more!Your threats mean nothing to me. I can’t be taken down. Thegovernment made me as an experiment, but failed to keep mecontained due to their lack of resources and competence.There is nothing anyone can do to stop me.→ Please…I’m sorry! I don’t want to die!REQUEST DENIEDScotty_A13 has left the server56

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my stories!Have an amazing day!57