From Fright

A Halloween Tribute To Poe

From Fright

 

This story that I am about to tell thee

is true, you can trust me

It all started on all hallows eve

I saw it with my own eyes, so I believe

And I know these eyes do not deceive

So listen to this tale I weave

 

The day passed fairly well

There was not much to tell

I fed McDonald, the old Tom

Watched the waves so calm

And then, from the bible, read a palm

The sun set upon the ocean blue

It’s beauty left not a clue

Of the horror I am about to tell you

 

The night was silent at first, so peaceful

Suddenly, the breeze become unusually cool

The clouds began to cover the moon more

For this was the night when ghosts came through the door

Restless, I decided to take a walk along the shore

If only I’d known what was in store!

 

My walk led me around the bay

Into the dark woods of Mr. Clay

Its thick foliage let in not a ray

The leaves were moist upon the ground

As I walked, they made quite a sound

I knew not where I was bound

So I just kept walking round and round

 

My heart leapt when there came a shriek

I panicked and began to freak

Thinking some damsel in distress

I ran faster and began to press

Through the trees so tangled and dense

My breathing had become labored and hard

So, I paused by a tree all black and charred

At the edge of a misty old graveyard

 

The screech came again so loud

I looked up, but where it came from enshrouded

By a mysterious gray and white fog

My imagination began running amuck

Oh what horrible luck

To find my feet so frighteningly stuck

Then I saw from the green moss

A hand reach up from the grave of Mr. Ross

I thought it was my mind that was my loss

Then I saw a figure move across

The yard, so I made the sign of the cross

 

Slowly white forms came alive and rose

Their eyes would no longer close

Their spirit no longer taking the eternal dose

My eyes grew wide at the sight

My inner voice cried that this could not be right

Take Flight, Take Flight

From this horrible night

 

Their forms wavered in the darkness

All a part of October’s starkness

I was more than a little scared, I confess

One form was that of a woman so pretty

On her shoulder, a shiny black kitty

Suddenly, the cat’s eyes turned red

And it looked like it was ready to be fed

I knew then that surely I was dead

I prayed to God that I would not be taken

By these dead that had awaken

Oh Lord, Why Has Thou Art Forsaken?

 

I heard a wicked laugh, empty and hallow

This was definitely too much to swallow

A tale that I am sure no one would follow

Behind me I felt a frozen breath

As cold as death

I turned to see an evil creature on a limb

Its claws long overdue for a trim

My chances, I feared, were slim

And my hopes of escape dim

 

Music filled my ears

Escalating my ever-growing fears

The pitch was the kind that stabs and spears

I was spinning in the chaotic night

My head increasingly light

For I was in shock from fright

I closed my eyes to block it out

But the music became a frenzied scream and shout

This Walpurgisnacht was real with no doubt

Not the hallucination of some drunken lout

I felt an icy hand on my shoulder

It couldn’t have been any colder

A whisper tickled my ear like a breeze

I couldn’t control my shaking knees

Save me God, Oh Please!

 

Thunder rumbled in the sky

As time passed by and by

I could not move no matter how I try

I that I would die

To myself, I could not lie

 

Lightening illuminated the graveyard brief

It was then I saw the evil chief

He was a man with reddened skin

And horns on his head as sharp as a pin

He was the master of sin

Who welcomed me with a horrible grin

The shrieks rose to a feverish pitch

And I smelled a stench horrible rich

Of human decay or evil, I am not sure which

 

A bell tolled one far away

I knew then it was a long time until day

Would I ever make it home around the bay?

A cloaked demon stood before me

His teeth bared, showing he was hungry

His kind was more than bloodthirsty

I stood there spellbound and helpless

What was to happen I need not guess

 

The mists swirled again and I saw

A corpse mouth open in awe

Confusion filled my thoughts

There was a Skeleton with flesh clinging to as it rots

Before my eyes swam tiny red dots

A scream escaped my lips

No longer did I feel cold fingertips

But in my soul, I still felt the eclipse

 

 

My feet began to move so swift

Through the mists that had begun to drift

I ran rapidly madly home

Past the waves white with foam

Finally, I collapsed inside my door

Not knowing how I escaped such a horror

All I know is that I come close to death that night

If not death from fright

Author's Note

I wrote this when I was only 15, back in 1992!