Bogleech.com's 2017 Horror Write-off:
Every Saturday
Submitted by Hisham Hasan
I was walking around, thinking about grabbing a bite to eat, when I notice this strange glittery power raining down. It makes my eyes water and my nose tingle.
And suddenly everything goes bonkers.
People collapse, sobbing.
Others sink to their knees, weeping.
Still others are frozen in place staring at nothing, or holding their hands over the faces.
One man in a business suit falls over and wails in grief.
I look around, bewildered. I am surprised to hear chuckling.
Something glides down into the middle of the plaza.
It was a giant humanoid moth, patterned in cream and brown, its bushy antennae held in a way that made it look like had a enormous and luxurious curly mustache.
It stood upright on its back pair of legs.
And it seemed to have a huge, papery-skinned plant bulb, like an onion, for an abdomen.
With a theatrical flourish, it introduced itself.
"I am Mournmoth, the Tearjerker! Sadness is what make humans weak! Grief is your undoing! My ability Dolores sows the seeds of grief in your weak hearts! Drown in your sorrows!"
It cocked its head. "But YOU! You are different from the others! I see you have not succumbed to my power at its weakest setting! Good, the resilient ones are the tastiest!"
It flapped it wings. "Now taste my true power!"
It sent a glittering cloud of powder at me.
Grief flooded my heart. Long-buried memories, sad ones, bloomed in my mind.
But luckily, I didn't forget a giant insect had just called me "tasty".
Self-preservation overcame self-pity. I turned and ran. There was a loud and indignant "HEY!"
As I ran, I felt the sorrow drain away from my mind. As long as I avoided the powder I shoud be safe.
I looked back. I saw it climbing up a building.
Good, I thought. He's already given up.
But then I saw it leap.
And it glided torwards me flying-squirrel style.
It was smart enough to always land a bit ways up so it always had the elevation to glide. And it was doing a good job at keeping up.
Great.
People were parting for me, barricading themselves into the nearest doorway. No place for me to hide.
I tried to lose it by turning abrupty down alleys. No such luck; the thing could turn on a dime.
I saw a long alleyway, flanked by tall buildings.
I saw a garbage can at its other end.
I dashed torwards it.
I looked over my shoulder.
As I thought, it decided that I was trapped and this was the time to swoop down.
It dipped below the rooftops.
I ran. I started to panic; maybe I wasn't fast enough.
I heard it cackling triumphantly just behind.
I ran past the trashcan.
I hooked my fingers under the rim as I ran past.
I whirled around and bashed it with all my might.
It shrieked. I lost my balance and fell.
It glided onwards and faceplanted in front of me.
I sprang and took extra care to kick it in the onion butt and stomp on its thorax and head as I ran out the alley.
Right straight into another monster.
It's a primate of some sort. It's covered in bristly purple-black fur.
It has four arms and four legs.
Its hand and feet are huge. And bright blue. As is its face.
"I am Taranturilla of the Big Feet!" It roared as it pounded its chest with one of its fists, "My special ability, Happy Feet, forces my foes to dance to exhaustion, rendering them unable to fight or escape!"
It hips start to gyrate, and I feel a strangle tingle as my own hips start to sway.
"Why do you guys keep explaining your abilities?!" I shrieked, hoping to distract it.
The ape pauses, releasing its hold over me. "Wait. Did you say, 'you guys'? Have you alrea-"
"Now hold on Taranturilla," the moth monster staggers out of the alley, brushing off bits of trash, "Do you not see the sign of my ability? Dolores has already marked the human as mine!"
"Hah!" The gorilla boomed, "Evidently your feeble power was not enought to prevent its escape! You have already lost any claim you had over it!"
Suddently, five guys wearing solid-colored full-body suits, each a different color and with matching helmets, jumped out of nowhere and started beating up the monsters with martial arts and assorted weaponry.
I took advantage of the chaos to escape.
What a weird day.
And suddenly everything goes bonkers.
People collapse, sobbing.
Others sink to their knees, weeping.
Still others are frozen in place staring at nothing, or holding their hands over the faces.
One man in a business suit falls over and wails in grief.
I look around, bewildered. I am surprised to hear chuckling.
Something glides down into the middle of the plaza.
It was a giant humanoid moth, patterned in cream and brown, its bushy antennae held in a way that made it look like had a enormous and luxurious curly mustache.
It stood upright on its back pair of legs.
And it seemed to have a huge, papery-skinned plant bulb, like an onion, for an abdomen.
With a theatrical flourish, it introduced itself.
"I am Mournmoth, the Tearjerker! Sadness is what make humans weak! Grief is your undoing! My ability Dolores sows the seeds of grief in your weak hearts! Drown in your sorrows!"
It cocked its head. "But YOU! You are different from the others! I see you have not succumbed to my power at its weakest setting! Good, the resilient ones are the tastiest!"
It flapped it wings. "Now taste my true power!"
It sent a glittering cloud of powder at me.
Grief flooded my heart. Long-buried memories, sad ones, bloomed in my mind.
But luckily, I didn't forget a giant insect had just called me "tasty".
Self-preservation overcame self-pity. I turned and ran. There was a loud and indignant "HEY!"
As I ran, I felt the sorrow drain away from my mind. As long as I avoided the powder I shoud be safe.
I looked back. I saw it climbing up a building.
Good, I thought. He's already given up.
But then I saw it leap.
And it glided torwards me flying-squirrel style.
It was smart enough to always land a bit ways up so it always had the elevation to glide. And it was doing a good job at keeping up.
Great.
People were parting for me, barricading themselves into the nearest doorway. No place for me to hide.
I tried to lose it by turning abrupty down alleys. No such luck; the thing could turn on a dime.
I saw a long alleyway, flanked by tall buildings.
I saw a garbage can at its other end.
I dashed torwards it.
I looked over my shoulder.
As I thought, it decided that I was trapped and this was the time to swoop down.
It dipped below the rooftops.
I ran. I started to panic; maybe I wasn't fast enough.
I heard it cackling triumphantly just behind.
I ran past the trashcan.
I hooked my fingers under the rim as I ran past.
I whirled around and bashed it with all my might.
It shrieked. I lost my balance and fell.
It glided onwards and faceplanted in front of me.
I sprang and took extra care to kick it in the onion butt and stomp on its thorax and head as I ran out the alley.
Right straight into another monster.
It's a primate of some sort. It's covered in bristly purple-black fur.
It has four arms and four legs.
Its hand and feet are huge. And bright blue. As is its face.
"I am Taranturilla of the Big Feet!" It roared as it pounded its chest with one of its fists, "My special ability, Happy Feet, forces my foes to dance to exhaustion, rendering them unable to fight or escape!"
It hips start to gyrate, and I feel a strangle tingle as my own hips start to sway.
"Why do you guys keep explaining your abilities?!" I shrieked, hoping to distract it.
The ape pauses, releasing its hold over me. "Wait. Did you say, 'you guys'? Have you alrea-"
"Now hold on Taranturilla," the moth monster staggers out of the alley, brushing off bits of trash, "Do you not see the sign of my ability? Dolores has already marked the human as mine!"
"Hah!" The gorilla boomed, "Evidently your feeble power was not enought to prevent its escape! You have already lost any claim you had over it!"
Suddently, five guys wearing solid-colored full-body suits, each a different color and with matching helmets, jumped out of nowhere and started beating up the monsters with martial arts and assorted weaponry.
I took advantage of the chaos to escape.
What a weird day.