Nightmare Turned Reality

Everyone has their demons.

The last rays of the evening escaped over the horizon, retreating behind the broken sky line, safe and sound.  With it went the lingering warmth, as if the earth had been sucked dry of all things light and human.  Remnants of homes crumbled to both sides of me, broken windows revealing the blackened interior, while shadows squirmed, coming to life at the awakening of their masters.  Ominous, a wind as cold as death stalked through the empty streets, lifting stray scraps of paper and fabric.  It brought with it the stench of bloodshed, its foul scent lingering unwelcomed in my nose.  I wrapped my arms tighter around my stomach as I picked up my pace, my bare feet numb against the damp, cracked asphalt.  My teeth clamped together against the stomach churning nausea, my eyes determined not to linger on the ghosts of the destroyed neighborhood.  I already knew what I’d see.  My ears began to pick up the low rumble and hyena like howls of the predators, and my heart picked up in pace with my scrambling feet.

Don’t run.  Don’t run.  Do not run.

I repeated the chant in my head like a mantra, trying to calm my racing blood.  If I ran, they’d chase.  And if they chased, I’d be dead within minutes.  Seconds, even.   I turned the corner onto what used to be Fourth Street, sucking in a breath as my shelter came into view.  The only remaining building that was not ransacked by them, it drew me in like a beacon.  My breath began to come out in puffs, white clouds that used to be a whimsical presence.  Now, it brought with it a sense of fear that shook me to the bone. 

As I faced off against the door, I ran my fingers its exterior.  The gouges were deep, impressive but terrifying.  It meant that they were getting more determined, more dangerous.  Pin pricks tortured the back of my neck, my instincts screaming at me to run.  I fought every nerve ending in my body, calmly unlocking the single lock, slipping open the door, and then sliding through.  No sooner had I flipped the lock in place, when the door shook in its jam.  It rattled and creaked, the beast outside snarling and trying its best to rip the wood to shreds.  I lifted myself onto my toes, daring a peek out of the peep hole.  A single, glowing red eye watched me, as if it knew I was looking.  I stumbled back as it strengthened its assault on my poor, pitiful door.

My entire being shook with a fine tremor.  I lifted my hands, watching as they quaked with raw fear.  It was thick in my throat and chest.  My heat throbbed with it, my heart and soul looking for anywhere else to hide, other than the frail body that was me.  With a forced breath, I climbed to my feet and began flipping the assortment of locks that lined the inside of the door.  From top to bottom, the chains and thick bars gleamed in the light of the hundreds of candles that remained lit constantly.  When I finished with the last deadbolt, I slid myself away from the door on hands and knees, listening to the chaos outside my house.  Snarls of the predators that stalked the night haunted every dream I had.  Screams, blood curdling and paralyzing, would stay with me for the rest of my living days on this planet now known as hell.

I forced myself to my feet, eyes stubbornly refusing to look back at the doors, or to the boarded up windows.  The beats of my heart did not falter in its rapid cadence as I slipped through the flickering lights.  The entire first floor of the house smelled of wax and smoke.  The leftovers from previous candles strayed across my carpeted floor, an odd feeling beneath my feet.  The flames lent warmth to the building which tried its best to sink into my bones.  It only went so far; nothing could thaw the eternal ice that rested deep within my soul.

I crossed the threshold of my bunker, picking up the flashlight just outside the door.  Inside, the lights of more candles danced and played, chasing away the shadows.  The screeching of claws against wood and metal rang through the night, confirming that more than one creature was outside my house.  The fear of them entering froze my blood.  My skin broke out in violent shakes, bumps chasing the quivers gaily, finding fun in my torment.  I stepped into the doorway and shut the door firmly, locking yet another series of top to bottom locks.  The way down to the basement sent me through two more doors, armed like their comrades.  When all four doors were locks and barred, it was only then that I allowed myself to relax slightly. 

My eyes scanned the room, looking passed the thickly fenced in cage to the single bed and shelf.  My body lagged with fatigue, sluggishly doing up yet more locks as I sealed myself inside the massive enclosure.  I didn’t bother with food or water, or relieving myself in the bucket as far away in the corner as I could get it.  I threw myself in the bed, relatively safe in the center of the cell.  I stared up at the ceiling, where the howls sang and the snarled rumbled like thunder.  I closed my eyes and cried, the tears trailing hot down my temples and into my hair.

There had to be others who were immune, like me.  Surely, I was not the only human left on Earth, who did not answer to the siren songs of nightfall.  I remembered the time before the Shutdown, when the monsters remained in the books and movies.  Now, they haunted my reality.  I used to think it would be a fantasy come true; to feel the bite of a bloodsucker’s seducing fangs, or to howl at the full moon with a pack full of family.

How wrong we all were.  As I listened to the nightmare outside, I laughed.  It started out quietly, feminine, before turning dark.  I opened my eyes, listening to the chilling sounds around me. 

With the nightfall, our darkest demons arise.  There was no escaping it.  No running and hiding.  Those monsters outside wanted me.  But I was immune to their beautiful howls and captivated eyes; but they, in turn, were not immune to me.  I threw my head back, and eyed the bag in the corner.  I was immune to their calls…  I laced on a pair of boots, and geared up with the stakes and chains, twisting my curls on top of my head.  But they were not immune to the call of the Huntress.  I would kill them all, every single one of them, until it was their blood than ran in the streets. 

The demon in me rose to the bait.  It was time for vengeance, for their nightmare to begin.