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The Legend of Camp Jellywitch Part I
Nell sat around a fire, the cool breeze of a late summer night nipping at his neck. As he waited for the children to settle, he added another log to feed the flames. “Gather round,” Nell said. “And prepare yourself for a frightful tale.” He felt the shiver of anticipation pass across the minds of the unknowing campers. “What is it?” Faust asked. “Who here is afraid of jellyfish?” Eyes rolled, and minds lost faith in Nell and his ability to wend a story. Of course these children, many Pixies, were not afraid. Nell raised an eyebrow. “That’s because you haven’t heard the Legend of Camp Jellywitch.” Nell waited until…
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A Thousand Memories
Warning: This Spooky is for adults (18+). The main character is drugged but she is unharmed. Li woke, her head aching with an epic migraine. She’d last been at a concert, the heavy beat of Eddie’s drums carrying the band through each song with effortless fervor. It had been an amazing night. Li woke up in a tent. How she’d gotten there made no sense. She hadn’t gotten drunk; she hadn’t been drinking. She looked for the person beside her. Instead of a hot anyone, there was an old woman draped in blanket-like fabrics. Her hair was a mix of dreads and tangles. Her teeth were crooked, blackened, missing,…
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The Lake
Trigger Warning: The following [Supposedly] Spooky Story includes a suicide attempt. If you are uncomfortable with or triggered by suicide or self-harm please skip this story. POV: Jace Birky (alias: Jace Nygaard) Timeline: Pink It was a dark and lonely night. The cold winter air was bitter cold, nipping at Jace’s exposed flesh. He stood in his boxers at the edge of a despairing moat that was once a stunning lake. Winter promised depths, but as the years wore on, the legend of what Falkhus had been had faded into the past. Jace flopped on the rocks, a half drained bottle of akvavit in hand. Above him the…
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The Girl from the Caves
It was a dark and stormy night. Probably-maybe. Hamish hadn’t left the barn in a couple of days, so he wasn’t entirely sure on the weather, but it may as well have been dark and stormy. Hamish felt dark and stormy, deep in his soul. An ominous scraping sound pulled his attention away from the baby rabbits he was nurturing. They scattered to the four corners of the pen and then immediately squished into the space between Hamish and the wall he leaned against. “I have to get up,” he apologized. He could hear more scraping — a wood crate sliding across a rough-hewn wood floor —…
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The Haunted Birthday
Moonlight sparkled through the glass panes of Acheron and Nell’s bedroom. For once Nell and Ach had enjoyed a night of peace and quiet. It was Nell’s birthday, and so the other parents had ensured they got a full night’s rest. They had tucked the children in before bed, and the ones sneaking out were being monitored by the other parents. It was, for lack of a better analogy, the eye of the storm. The storm — the hundreds of children that occupied Nell’s life (not all his, but more than he had ever expected) — were the storm, and this precious moment with Ach in his arms was absolute…
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Flight of an Untamed Beast
Spence startled awake. His mind struggled to catch up with his racing heart. When he settled his breathing he could hear it: Outside, something growled deep in the night. He worked to even his breaths. Beyond their bedroom, a field of sheep bleated urgently. He leaned over the edge of the bed and pulled his small dagger off of the end table. On his other side, Hannah stirred. He turned to her, his ear fixated on the window at his back. “Did you hear that?” Hannah whispered. She looked out the window, into the thick fog of night. Spence growled, a mockery of the sound he’d heard earlier. The sheep…
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Journey of an Undone Man
About 13 years ago… Endings have a strange, circular way of feeling like beginnings. This was the beginning of an end. I lay in what some call final repose. Was I at peace with my death? In many ways, yes: I believed I deserved it, for having ruined the lives of so many I loved. Conversely, my loves lived on. My son would be alone without me, and the world continued its inexorable march toward an unknown destination: The end of times? The final solar showdown? Stardust? Whatever it was, I would no longer be part of the journey. Some of the dying feel peace, they say.…
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The Frost
It was a dark night, early in the winter season. The sun had set long before the table had been filled with fruits and platters of holiday meats — most notably the large gold-rimmed oval lined with the boney shanks of a lamb slain for the holidays. Sometimes the slaughter bothered Nell, but as the family gathered around the table to feast, he could sense the nourishment their lives would be filled with. Their table lacked one thing: a bowl of sweetened berries, stewed into a sauce and thickened on a bed of snow. Nell rose from the table. He glanced at the children and other members who were about…
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Bookworm
Nell turned back to look at Ach. He was no where in sight. His mind felt near. Nell searched for him. “Acheron?” He called out. There was no reply. “Ach!” Nell yelled. He was gone. “Hello? Acheron Alandrial!” He channeled the thoughts this is not funny in hopes Ach would hear him, but there was nothing there. More than Ach being gone an emptiness crept over Nell. “Acheron!” Something stirred. It’s mind felt like sludge. It was fixated on Nell. Hunting Nell. Nell fluttered his wings and looked for what wanted him, but he couldn’t find it anywhere. Just before he gave up the round collapsed. Something had wrapped itself…
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The Flight
Dusk came with a waxing crescent, twinkling stars, and the hoots of animals from all around. Nell walked beside his son, Oisin, as they ensured the livestock (monsters) were situated for the night. The two redheads with wings, Oisin with his bright red-orange hair, and Nell with his dusty ginger hair, were investigating a broken chain in an enclosure for an animal that seemed like a kangaroo crossed with a jackrabbit. Nell gleaned a passing mind, something intelligent and aves (bird) like. “Something is coming,” Nell warned Oisin. “I know,” Oisin replied. “It likes you.” “You can’t know that,” Nell insisted, though he could sense the same wave of intrigue.…