HORROR HAIKU I

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LONELY PERSON WALKS
ANOTHER LONELY FOLLOWS
MURDER NEVER SOLVED
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HALLS LINED WITH MEATHOOKS
DECORATIONS OF THE DAMNED
SCREAMS DO ECHO ON
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DARKNESS DURING DAY
ALL MEMORIES OF A LIFE
ETERNALLY CAGED
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GRAVE SOUNDS FROM NEXT DOOR
MURMURED SCREAMS THEN SUDDEN HALT
SHOVEL DIGGING NOW
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AN UGLY MAN SITS
HE PICKS AT HIS FINGERNAILS
THE BLOOD WON'T COME OFF
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THE WIND WHISTLING HARD
THROUGH THE CRACKS IN WOODEN SLATS
THE COLD WILL SOON KILL
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PLEASE, JUST LET ME GO!
PLEASE, WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS??
(PLEASE SHIELD THE CHILDS EYES)
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TOO OLD TO GO OUT
TRICK OR TREAT MOTHERFUCKER!
HALLOWEEN IS FUN
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A GRASSY FIELD SWAYS
THE ESCAPEE DASHES THROUGH
BLOOD TRACKS ON THE BLADES
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QUEEN OF ARCADE BAR

Molly woke up in Hangover Land. It is the exact same land as the normal Planet Earth that we all wake up in, but she was fucking hungover. Her eyes could barely pry themselves open through her day old makeup and eye crust, but her alarm had now been going off for 15 minutes. The communication between ear, brain, and muscle functioning systems had finally succeeded in getting the messages sent. Eyes - open. Arm - stretch to turn off alarm. Vocal chords - "Goddamnit" she mumbled. From that point Molly seemed to regain power over her husk of a body. She reached over to hit the 'SNOOZE' button reflexively. The noise would return in 15 minutes, and she had better not be there when it did. Molly had to get to work. It was only Wednesday. With her body still nestled under the covers, her head on her cozy pillow, she wondered, "Why the fuck did I go out on a Tuesday night?"

While Molly went for a new record in getting ready and out the door (under 10 minutes) she noticed her apartment had some clues about last night. She surveyed the living room area. A half-eaten pizza on the coffee table, something yellow smeared on a shoe, 3 crumpled up pieces of paper (upon further inspection: 1- a phone number from someone with no name given. 2- a wet booze smelling receipt with ink smeared to oblivion. Damn. That would have at least solved the mystery of where exactly she drank so much. 3. another receipt for a frozen pizza at Safeway down the street), on the floor a roll of quarters on top of a spread of 10-15 loose quarters, a scepter laying on the couch, and finally her cat staring directly into an empty food bowl. "Shit! Sorry Chino!" She rushed passed him with a pat on the head over to the kitchen and found the cupboard to grab a can for the poor starving beast. While the electric can opener did it's job she pondered these clues. Wait- A scepter!!?

She peered over at the full size beautiful staff. Completely golden except for a gleaming green gem cradled in what looked like talons at the top. It all came rushing back.

Her day job is reviewing sex toys. It is not as exciting or pornographic as you would think. She has a corner office with a view of her city that is nice, and everyday a few boxes of new merchandise arrive at her desk for review. She writes her general opinions on a very popular sex blog, and gets paid a modest hourly wage. It's much more monotonous and dull than she ever thought it would be when she accepted the position. But it is interesting, and it keeps her writing. Sadly, she never actually gets to tests the majority of them due to the high volume that rolls through. There is just not enough time in the day to test all of the worlds dildos and nipple clamps! From time to time she'll get permission from her manager to spend a couple days with some choice products that she deems worthy.

There is a bar nearby where Molly works. Everyday when she drives home she drives past it. It's just called Arcade Bar. And it is exactly that. A bar with an arcade. Outside there is a life sized, wood carved, Pac-Man. This is where last night's impulse had brought her. By herself while driving home she had the sudden urge to play arcade games. Something she had fond memories of with her brothers when they were little kids. The booze was also an added bonus that drew her in. After playing for a couple hours she was taking a break at the bar and looked up. To her amazement was the glorious golden scepter. She pointed at it and screamed over the loud electronic arcade noises to the bartender, "What do you have to do to become Queen of Arcade Bar?!" and without a hint of humor or jest the barkeep barked back, "Get your ass eaten out by Pac-Man!"

The memories flooded back now. She immediately remembered waltzing outside the establishment. So ready. A few geeks who were already clinging at a few arms length to the beautiful girl that chose their home away from home to come for the night followed the excitement outdoors. The bartender kept the door open to the bar to keep one eye on what was happening inside and be sure to see his brave patron complete the challenge. Molly stood next to the wooden mouth agape Pac-Man in all his iconic beauty. She said, "Alright, so I just like stick my butt in it's mouth?" - "Almost - no pants or underwear of course!" - "Easy! That fucking scepter is miiiine!". And with that she unbuttoned her jeans and swiftly pulled them down along with her thong to offer her ass up to the childhood hero of many children across the land. Indeed, he was seemingly 'eating out her ass'. The bartender clapped and gestured with his arm up to the golden rod glowing above the bar. It was time for Molly to claim her prize.

"What the fuck was all that about? The Queen of the Arcade Bar? Ok." she thought as she plopped the cat food into Chino's dish. It was time to go. She dashed out the door to see what this day would have in store. A moment later her alarm went off again. And it would not stop until later that night when she got home to find it still blaring, her cat more annoyed than this morning, and her scepter resting comfortably on the couch.

ON THE UPSWING

It was just the common cold. That's it. Nothing life threatening or catastrophic. 3 days of real sickness at max. Starting with a scratchy feeling somewhere in the throat, and ending with globs of clear goo shooting out of dry rubbed raw nostrils. In those 3 days I felt like I was all of mankind. I was experiencing all of the struggles to get through this life that came with having a human brain. The despair, agony, gloom, and cruelness of being alive was on full display within. In the swimming thoughts of day 2 I had a thought that to have the so called 'common cold' is to tap into the 'common consciousness' of all human beings. I felt slightly off, completely confused, and ready to accept whatever fate had in store for any given moment. Then suddenly and miraculously, while shuffling to my car after a nightmarish day at work, I felt slightly better. The throat scratch had left my feeble mortal shell, and most likely moved on to some other poor soul. I was on the upswing. From that moment forth it was a glorious 3rd act to a gruesome play. Where I was the star and it was time to conquer the pesky antagonist that had been plaguing the townspeople. Food started to taste like tastes again, the air that was everywhere for the taking was finally able to reach my lungs freely, and the continuous throbbing in my skull had finally quit its ebb and flow. I was free to go back to casual life among the healthy masses. That is the glorious and heartbreaking truth about the common cold. It's just a glimpse at a diagnosis. Then the cure comes along just as the sickness did and the body realigns its chemical composition. Now I am realigned. And for this fleeting moment this morning I can really appreciate the lack of a sickness within. Taking nothing for granted. There are many who have to live every day in sickness. Those who will never see an upswing until it is all over. It is my hope that their end will feel more like hitting a screaming line drive home run to the right field corner to win game 7. Swift and free of all pain.

  

A DARK FIGURE APPROACHES FROM A GREAT DISTANCE. PT 1

A dark figure approaches from a great distance. You can't make out any physical characteristics of the being as it is so far away, but oddly you feel comforted by its impending arrival. How long will it take? In your mind you have plenty of time to contemplate the scenario and what the future may hold. Perhaps an old friend that has been searching far and wide for you has finally reached a successful end to their quest, but are too weary to speed up their progress? Or maybe it is a villain looking for their next victim to prey upon? Yet, you feel no danger as the figure is getting closer. Close enough to make out small details. Around the edges. Flowing fabric? Hair? You wonder if it is even human. A slowly advancing blob of flowing parts that is without a doubt taking steps(?) directly towards you. There is still no color to be seen on the advancing mass. Only endless depths of black and blacker that give no hint of a shadow, and those flapping wisps stretching and recoiling wildly in all directions around the perimeter of the shape. What shape is it? Your eyes strain to see more. But before your pupils can focus on any new details it is your ears that pick up something. A low hum. You become entranced by the drone as its volume increases perfectly in time with your incoming still unknown and unidentified guest. The hum reverberates within you. Down to the muscle and bone. To the core of you. The noise intensifies to a wall of sound that floods you with a warm calm feeling from head to toe. The light you once were naturally bathed in just a few moments ago dims to a darkness that matches the figure that has suddenly and mysteriously arrived within your reach. If only you could get a grip on your own being to make a gesture of greeting! The anomaly of darkness, with its flapping extremities, is presented before you in all its glory. Towering over you with nothing but the deafening hum vibrating your innards that you are sure have turned to mush by now. You focus hard to stay alert and grasp what it is that has come to you. Why has it made this journey and why have you even lingered to get to this point? It's so dark. Vibrations. Trembling. You hope silently for a drop of blue or violet or green or any color from the spectrum to get through the enveloping darkness to give the scene life or meaning. Suddenly, the hum gives way abruptly as complete and utter quiet rushes in. You see a change at the center of the monstrosity. A piercing bright yellow light sears out of a miniscule opening and lands directly on your forehead. Cold and with force. It is a pin hole of hope for understanding. The yellow light expands as the hole opens wider like zippers expanding in all directions until you are bathed in the cold light streaming directly onto you. From the brightness within a small face emerges. The most generic human face, and no distinguishing features to be concerned with. The light is too bright behind the face to see if it connects to some sort of body within the outer endlessly flailing vessel. Or even if it has a neck to support the bland eyes, nose, and mouth. Nevertheless, the face snakes it's way through the air and stops across from your own. The face slowly moves forward while folding in on itself. You prepare for a kiss. But feel nothing and with perfect alignment it attaches itself like a sealant covering your own eyes, nose, and mouth. Like a human sticker that is planted face first onto your own. Soft and seamlessly becoming part of you. At this point it is impossible to fathom what you resemble now, but you don't care because through the reverse eye holes all is revealed. 

To be continued...??