Halloween scary stories.

[Bosch]

Ok it’s nearly Halloween and you know what that means trick or treaters and getting drunk while dressed as a Pirate. It also means scary stories!

So let’s gather round the digital camp fire and tell some. Post your own terrifying tales of bowel voiding, pant filling horror or maybe we’ll get a dialogue going about horror as a Literary genre.

I sure we’ll all have a spooktacular time. (See what I did there?)

I’ll go first.

This is the first time I’ve written this story down and I don’t really dwell on it that often. First though some background.

I’m a Security Consultant who specialises in Close Protection. What this means is I am employed to keep clients safe as part of a team of Close Protection Operatives. In pop culture we are often referred to bodyguards although within the industry the term Close Protection Operative or CPO is preferred. I had one client who would absentmindedly call me his C3PO so don’t worry I’ve heard the shiny gay robot jokes. The perception is we are all muscle bound mountains of men but the reality is the job is more about forward planning and blending in.

I tend to work with people in business that need protection for whatever reason. If you met me odds are you would think I had a boring office job and I guess that’s true in a way. At least it is these days.

My first job was working in rural Scotland for a wealthy businessman who was receiving threats from a third party. I’m sorry I can’t go into any more detail due client confidentiality but the nature of my employment isn’t pertinent to the story.

The bottom line is he used his millions to buy a Seventeenth Century Mansion in Scotland for himself and his wife. He had grown up children who lived all over the UK so the two principals were the client and his wife.

My role was to be a part of the RST or Residential Security Team, that means I had to ensure the property was secure and acted as a CPO for the client’s wife. She was a nice woman although one could safely describe her as eccentric.

Anyway I was just the junior man on the team which meant I got lumped with the worst duties. It’s the nature of the game unfortunately. The worst task on this job was easily night duty, a twelve hour overnight shift spent patrolling the grounds while the biting Scottish wind chilled you to the bone. Not exactly kicking it in LA with Pop Stars but that’s the job.

Still the money was good so I had no complaints.

The house it’s self was really weird and had been built in stages starting in the Seventeenth Century although the site had been a dwelling since the 12th. Every owner of the house had made some kind of augmentation to the house even my client made modifications to the place. The constant renovations and extensions to the property gave the place a patch work feel. Corridors led to nowhere, some doors opened to brick walls and the like. It was just a really weird floor plan which, as you can imagine, I had to study as part of the job. The randomness was bizarre but a lot of houses in the UK are old and kind of feel like that.

My shift was 2000 to 0800, seven days a week, and for the first few weeks it was pretty easy. The client had put us up in a hotel and I’d spend half the day asleep and the rest reading, exploring the local area or in the hotel restaurant talking to locals then I’d go do my shift.

We had a small security office set up in the East Wing of the house and that’s where I spent the majority of my shift. The team leader had made many additions to the general security of the house like better locks, reinforced windows etc. The one that affected my job the most was the CCTV system which monitored the outside of the house. The control station was in our East Wing office and consisted of two screens showing black and white images of the house and the perimeter. I’d go out a couple of times every hour and wave a flash light about while on patrol so any would be attackers would be scared off.

The CPO team had all agreed early on that the job was a bust and unlikely to result in any attempts being made on the Client. Still as long as he felt he needed us we remained, it was an easy way to make a quid or two. You find that in the industry, we call it toy soldiers. You get these guys who kind of get off on having a CP team. It’s like they get to be the General of their own little army. It’s how James Bond villains are born. This Client had a bad case of it, he collected models of soldiers and his wife once told me he liked playing war strategy games on his computer. Guys like that can be a pain in the ass but very lucrative if you know how to play them.

Anyway things started getting odd after my first month. It snowed pretty steadily and there was no warmth in the old house. I mean gloves on when you were inside sort of cold. The wind around the place picked up so easily and just howled through the place. At first that’s what I put the noises down to the wind moving through an old house.

I guess it was around two or three in the morning when I heard footsteps on the landing above me. I grabbed my torch and ran up the stairs thinking I was about to catch an intruder. I checked the floor and found nothing amiss. Again I put it down wind in an old house.

It happened a few more times but I could never found anything out of place or amiss when I went up there. I even spent a couple of shifts in that corridor to see if I could catch whatever it was but so long as I was in that corridor nothing ever happened the second I went down stairs though the footsteps would start again.

It was weird but not enough to freak me out, at least on its own there were a lot of other little weird things. Like the lens of the camera nearest the house would steam up every night at around midnight. We had the CCTV guys come out to fix it a couple of times but even when they replaced the entire unit the camera still steamed up. They said it was due the low temperature but it didn’t affect any of the other cameras, just that one.

On Patrol I’d notice weird stuff as well. For example they had this hedge maze that was kind of feeble really, it took maybe ten minutes to get through first time and on patrol to cover the whole thing would take about the same. I didn’t go in there though because it dropped visibility too much and I always liked to keep the house in view at all times in case I was needed.

Nevertheless every time I went near it I could hear footsteps inside the maze. I called in but there was no response and when I went in to investigate there was no sign of anyone being there. I figured it was a fox or something. Every time I was near though I’d hear the gravel crunching under foot.

It this went on for a couple of weeks. I think it was a combination of things, first the cold started to get on my nerves. It was just impossible to get warm. Sleeping during the day also wasn’t helping as the hotel was pretty loud and I found it hard to sleep. A few times I’d go outside instead of sleeping just to see the sun. I was also seeing less people. I only really saw other members of the team during shift changes and principals at 2000hrs to inform them I had commenced duty.

I didn’t hear voices or anything but I did start to feel kind of depressed which isn’t something I normally have happen to me. I couldn’t really speak to anyone about it because it would have a one way ticket home and ended the gravy train so I toughed it out.

The weirdness kept coming though. The Client’s wife was convinced something was watching her during the night and had asked the patrols to be stepped up. Which I was glad for because it was warmer outside than it was in the East Wing. One night I was out on patrol when the kitchen light in the main house went on. I watched was the client’s wife grabbed a container of salt and walked to the back door. I went to meet her and see what was up, by the time I’d got to her she had poured a small pile of salt on the door step. She explained this was an old trick her grandmother had taught her to keep evil spirits away. She then asked me if I’d noticed anything strange going on. I said I had not as it wasn’t really my job to scare her further. I then accompanied her around the house as she salted every entrance to the house. This became a nightly ritual, she said it made her feel stupid but until she started doing it she had been unable to sleep and when she did fall asleep her dreams were troubled.

I don’t know if it worked or not but she kept salting as long as I worked there.

I kept noticing weird things in the East Wing, random hot and cold spots, small items moving around, one time my torch light batteries were inserted the wrong the way even though the torch had been working perfectly before, cracking branches on the grounds and the footsteps. The Client and his wife left over Christmas for the holidays leaving me in charge of the grounds and their beloved pet dog. I figured it would be easiest to keep the dog in the East Wing with me where I could keep an eye on it. The dog was nice enough, I like animals so I figured it wouldn’t be too much of a big deal.

I got it on the lead and led it out to the East Wing and at first to refused to go in. When I finally dragged her in it just whimpered and lay in the corner. Every time I stood to go on patrol or make a coffee or something the dog would follow me. I had to leave it in the East Wing while I patrolled and it would howl constantly until I returned. It really hated being in the East Wing.

The team was beginning to notice signs we would be going soon the client’s business wasn’t doing very well and there was talk of legal troubles. We knew we’d be the first to go as we were very expensive. It was during this time that things started to get really weird. The lights started flickering and the power supply to house could go out for days at a time again this is par of the course when owning an old property. The footsteps continued and on patrol I started catching things out of the corner of my eye. Shadowy things. I’m not going to say they were people but they sure looked like people.

Then there was the feeling. It’s hard to explain but I’ll try, you know when you come home after work and you just know the house is empty, it’s like you can sense the presence of other people or sense their absence? I never got that feeling when I’d enter the East Wing it always felt like someone else was in there, just in the next room. It felt like when you know someone is watching you but you can’t see where they are. I had that feeling constantly for the last few weeks.

I lost weight and became pretty introverted which is not my personality type at all. I tried to sleep when off the job but it never came. I was cold and irritable all the time and I could recognise these traits in myself which made me worry that others saw them in me.

I wasn’t the only one feeling the strain. The client and his wife would fight and argue a lot which turned him to drinking which lead to a few really brutal arguments. I mean brutal slanging matches.

Then we got fired.

It sounds brutal but that’s the nature of the game, we don’t really have contracts and the understanding was always there that we could go at any moment. We were told our finish date and the client even paid for the flights home. We only had to work one more week.

All the weird stuff kept up but it was the second to last shift that I can’t explain. The power failed in the house again. Of course it had no affect on the Client or his wife as they were asleep, they wouldn’t notice the power was out until their toaster wasn’t working the next morning. From me though it just ratcheted up the creep factor.

I went outside on a patrol, at least that’s what I told myself, the real reason was the creepy vibe the place gave me. I checked the doors and windows to ensure the power failure was normal and not due to a security breach. I was making my way round the grounds and passing the East Wing when I saw another shadowy figure out of the corner of my eye. I looked towards where I had seen the motion and saw a Woman standing in a second floor window of the East Wing.

Her skin was porcelain white and despite the entire house being bathed in darkness I could see her perfectly. Like it was a bright summer’s day. She was attractive with dark hair and dressed in black dress that contrasted with her impossibly pale skin. She looked normal apart from her eyes which were a pair of black pits. Her lips were moving and she was looking at me but the rest of her was stock still. She looking right at me with such intensity that I’ve never felt in my life. Such utter hate toward me and everything I represented. I spent many nights wondering where the fury came from.

Then I heard a twig break behind me, by the time I had turned back to the window she was gone. I returned to the East Wing and again I got the feeling that the place was full. I was about to start searching the house when the power came back on.

The CCTV system rebooted and I accessed the files from that night. I weird thing was the cameras had recorded as normal like they had never been switched off. I scrolled to the point where the power cut off but the camera’s just kept rolling. I followed myself on the patrol out round the grounds and nothing happened on any of the screens. It was like the power cut had never happened. I got the point where I were I saw the figure and watched as I stood stock still of nearly a minute while looking at the East Wing then watched myself run to the East Wing to do my search and eventually sit behind the CCTV system to review the video.

There was nothing. As far the CCTV knew there had been no power cut.

And that was it. The Client cancelled the last night shift and gave us the night off. The team absolutely emptied the hotel bar and then we got our flights the next day. I’ve seen a few of guys since the conclusion of the job but nobody ever mentioned the lady in on the second floor. From what I heard the Client’s business folded and he had to move out a couple of weeks after we left. I don’t know if he’s still with the wife, probably not.

As for me I spent the money I earned hiring the best therapists’ money can buy, Doctors Bushmills, Daniels and Morgan. Then I took the whole gang on a two week bender somewhere warm.

I pushed what I had seen out of mind and went back to work.

This is the first time I’ve ever told this story, I'm not saying what happened was supernatural. Maybe it was just being cold, alone and tired twisted my melon a little.

I know what I think though.

So anybody got any freaky tales of terrible scariness?

[Angelofthursday]

Every one of the stories I'm about to tell starts with a little girl. Too bad for her. This one in particular was named Grace. She was a beautiful, sweet little girl, who wouldn't harm anything. Until she was taken. She was getting off the bus after school and started walking home. Usually her friend Natalie was with her, but today, Natalie was home sick. Grace didn't mind. She loved nature, the birds, the trees. It was autumn, so everything was changing colors. Grace had stopped to reach her hands up to a tree, when she felt something. Something... Watching her.

She looked over and saw a man, easily 7 feet tall, with dark eyes and a twisted smile. Like Fred, from Courage the Cowardly Dog. Grace wasn't afraid though, because she was friends with everyone. "Hello, sir." The man didn't answer. Just stared at her with his cold, dead eyes. But the worst thing was, he spoke. His voice was cold and chilling, deep and rumbling. "Where are you going, little girl..." "I'm on my way home, sir. School just let out." He nodded slowly. "Do you like animals, little girl..." Grace nodded excitedly. The man held out his hand for her to take. "What's your name, sir, so I can tell mommy about you when I get home?" The man twitched. "...Lucifer..." He hissed. Grace tilted her head. "Like the cat, from Cinderella!" The man looked at her oddly. Then he nodded, and led her down the street.

He led her to an old, run down house, that all the kids in the neighborhood said was haunted. Now, Grace was beginning to get a little scared. "S-sir? This place is h-haunted, and I'm scared." "Don't be scared, little girl... I'm with you..." Grace gulped and nodded. He lead her in and Grace couldn't believe her eyes. The inside was beautiful! It was Victorian, with red walls, a plush red velvet couch, and everything you could imagine. Grace gasped, for she loved the Victorian era. "Sir, may I go sit on the couch?" Lucifer nodded. "Are you hungry, little girl..." She nodded enthusiastically. By now, all her fear was gone. Poor Grace. Lucifer clapped his hands twice. "Matilda, bring this little girl some food..." A few seconds later, a large, robust woman appeared, with a tray, laden with all kinds of food. Meats, breads, soups, sweets. Grace gasped in wonder. Her family was relatively poor, so she had never even seen a feast like this. "Dig in, little girl..." Lucifer turned around and walked down a hallway, disappearing. Grace didn't wonder where he was going, for she was too interested in the food.

Poor Grace.

A few hours later, Grace awoke from where she had fallen asleep on the couch. She gasped in horror. The room had changed dramatically. This room was a square room, with cement walls and cobwebs everywhere. She gasped as she saw spiders and other thing crawling on the floor towards her. She screamed, "Lucifer! Help me!" She heard a low rumbling chuckle. "I have helped, little girl... I have..." She screamed again in horror, because she saw him clearly now. He didn't look like a man. He looked like a beast, with a black head, horns and all kinds of other things she could only see the outline of. "W-what are you g-going to do to me..." Lucifer smiled cruel and gleeful smile. "Train you, little girl..."

Grace never made it home that day. Her mother spent the next week frantically calling, searching for her baby girl. But there was no such luck. A few witnesses said they saw Grace, walking down the street, talking to someone that wasn't there... About a month after, some teens were goofing around in the haunted house, and found her body. If it could still be called that. I won't even describe it, but let's just say that the kids who found it were scarred for life.

There isn't really an end to her story... People say that if you walk past the old house... You'll hear a little girl giggling... And every once in a while... Another little girl goes missing... Just. Like. Me.


Ok, I hope you like my story :D Basically the little girl turned into a demon. This is like a fanfic for demons known as Acheri. They're demons in the form of a little girl. If you haven't see the episode of Courage the Cowardly Dog with Fred, he has a huge, satanic looking smile that shows probably all the teeth in his mouth. Bye! I will be posting more. :)