Who else could’ve asked for a more perfect Christmas morning? The skies not quite dark yet not quite bright, snowflakes gently pelting against the windows, the fireplace giving a warm, comforting glow, and the tree itself sparkling with glitter and multi-colored lights (in this case,...
Aggie circled the address and folded up the paper. It had taken almost seven years for the Pittsburgh Observer to return listing real estate in their Saturday edition. Luckily with the recession having decreased enough to beckon a mini housing boom back to the Pittsburgh...
My great aunt Mildred absolutely adored yard sales. That woman could haggle a tortoise from its shell. I tagged along a lot because she kept me while my parents were at work. She'd let me pick random junk, and she was an expert haggler when...
My grandfather would tell me stories when I was young about the time before when the world was large and the mists had yet to come. He would tell me about animals that were larger than humans and buildings that stretched into the sky. There...
“Breaker one-nine, breaker one-nine.” BOOLEEP. Nothing. “Breaker one-nine. Anyone copy?” BOOLEEP. Glen took a swipe at my hand as I attempted to key up the base station radio mic once more. “Give it up,” he belched. “You lost another one, man.” He crumpled his empty can of MGD onto...
There was roadkill all up and down the highway this morning. It is nine AM and sunlight is sifting through the treetops. The lake is still and black and crawling with bugs. Thin grass grows beside it, tamped down by the boots of men I’ve never...
Wendel pulled at the vines, damp with dew, that were in his way. He had been trudging through the trees since sundown. The air held a dampness and a chill, but he still sweated with the exertion of making this journey. It was not something...
Henry stepped towards the witch, torch blazing in his hand. He smiled at the sight of her being tied to the stake. They were wrapping her in iron chains this time. She wouldn’t be escaping, not again. No one else’s family would die by her...
Dan stepped towards the water’s edge with a smile and a stretch. “It really is beautiful out here. Thanks for inviting me.” “Don’t,” David said, grabbing his arm. Dan looked down at the arm on his, then up to the man it belonged to, meeting his all...
I don’t go into the woods. There are things in there, things that drive my anxiety through the roof at the mere thought of coming close to them. A casual hiker may not notice them, lying low and deep within the surrounding foliage. On a...
I’m on the lookout for a new job, but I think it’s time that I got a job that has nothing at all to do with IT. I mean nothing. No computers. No keyboards, mice, motherboards, wired networks, wireless networks. Definitely no PEBKAC (look it...
Last year BloodyDisgusting gave it 4 out of 5 screams. Fangoria Magazine touted it as “the most original haunted house concept on the market.” But you shouldn’t believe the reviews. No, really; don’t. Full Moon Flights is not what it seems. According to the brochure, they are a modern...
“Hey, Derek! Come here! Plissken’s got a new video!” From his cubicle, Sean Bannister watched as Derek rolled his chair down the aisle to Jacob’s desk, and even though the day was late, most of the senior staff had gone home, and there wasn’t a whole...
In early April of 2016, a study was conducted on the psychological effects of solitary confinement under the influence of lights. The following is an account of that study. For privacy and at the request of individuals involved, names and identifying details have been omitted...
THIS IS THE SECOND PART OF A TWO-PART STORY. FOR THE FIRST PART OF THIS STORY, CLICK HERE. It was gearing up to be a long night. The place was packed two-deep with thirsty patrons, and our barback was nowhere in sight. I wouldn’t know it until...
“Tell me how it ends.” Again, the demand. Into the cherished sanctuary of her small ivy-covered cottage had come this monstrous trio, breaking through the door — locks and laws be damned! — clad in costumes of pantyhose masks and black outfits, bringing mean eyes, the...
My friend Josh was my polar opposite. He was a young, successful entrepreneur and, frankly said, filthy rich. On the other hand, I was a perpetual failure who lived in a small one-room apartment, always looking to make it to the end of the month. While Josh...
Do you ever wonder why children see the world so differently? Why can they be so enchanted by the simplest and most mundane of things? I never bothered with things like this. Childhood was a thing of the past, and all its incredible sights had been...
“Atlas, scan Paradise Station and give me a radio lock. Prepare for broadcast.” The ship’s computer acknowledged my command with a couple blinks of light and then chirped when the com opened up. “Paradise, this is the captain of the heavy cruiser, Atlas. We currently have...
I was twenty the first time I entered the Valley of Shadows. It is a place that ruins what it touches. Madness, desolation, violence, mayhem, they’re not words of description, but words of definition. These are not the things which describe the valley. They are...
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