<div>Night of the Living Darkness<br>Author: PEJA<br>Email: <a href="mailto:makebelievearchive@gmail.com">makebelievearchive@gmail.com</a><br>Author's websites: <a href="http://peja1956.livejournal.com/">http://peja1956.livejournal.com</a> and <a class="snap_shots" href="http://www.squidge.org/~peja/cgi-bin/search.php?action=recent">http://www.squidge.org/~peja/cgi-bin/search.php?action=recent<img class="snap_preview_icon" id="snap_com_shot_link_icon" style="BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; BACKGROUND-POSITION: -1158px 0px; MIN-WIDTH: 0px; DISPLAY: inline; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; MIN-HEIGHT: 0px; LEFT: auto; FLOAT: none; BACKGROUND-IMAGE: url(http://i.ixnp.com/images/v3.32.0.2/theme/silver/palette.gif); VISIBILITY: visible; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; MAX-WIDTH: 2000px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 0px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; WIDTH: 14px; MAX-HEIGHT: 2000px; LINE-HEIGHT: normal; PADDING-TOP: 1px; BACKGROUND-REPEAT: no-repeat; FONT-STYLE: normal; FONT-FAMILY: 'trebuchet ms', arial, helvetica, sans-serif; POSITION: static; TOP: auto; HEIGHT: 12px; BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent; BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; TEXT-DECORATION: none; cssFloat: none" src="http://i.ixnp.com/images/v3.32.0.2/t.gif"></a><br>
Fandom: Nope<br>Pairing: nope<br>Category: general; horror<br>Rating: FRT<br>Status: complete<br>Spoilers:dah<br>Series/Sequel: no<br>Brief Summary: a traveler takes a wrong turn on a midnight dreary<br>Warnings: nobody can hear your screams<br>
Notes/acknowledgments: to Kate R who sent in a Prompt (Shadows) to the ten minutes list<br>General thanks to all of you folks who are requesting short fics and improvs in the various fandoms. You're keeping the words flowing.<br>
Disclaimers: mine, all mine <br>Archive: Yes, but ask first, include the complete story and provide a URL to the archive<br>Forwarding to other lists: Okay, but keep my name and headers attached. A heads up would be nice as well.<br>
<br><a name="cutid1"></a><br><br>His car sputtered and coughed its life away a mile down the twisted, winding snake of a side-road he'd detoured onto. Mere moments after he'd climbed out of the corpse of his BMW, the first crash of thunder applauded followed by a great ripping streak of silver forked fire and the skies had ripped open to dump a torrential rain on his head. <br>
<br>Cold and wet from the chill rain he hastened his steps, stumbling over twigs and rocks that seems almost to slid under his feet with the sole purpose of landing him on his ass. And still he pressed on, forever stumbling...tumbling, ripping great tears in his expensive tailor-made cloths. Painful cuts and scratches filled with dirt and twigs, marring his perfectly groomed skin. <br>
<br>It can to his mind that the road itself was laughing at him as it dwindled to little more than a cow track. And still he pressed forward, bent over from the force of natures fury unleashed over his head. With each unsure step, the road seemed to reach out and snatch at his cuffs. Still he scrambled along in the mud and the rain, almost afraid to stop for fear the road might turn into quicksand and suck him down to drown in the dirt and the mud. Onward, always onward he pressed until the trail lead to a dead end driveway for the paintless grey and dry rot cripple of a falling in on itself motel.<br>
<br>Uncaring of the building's feeble ppearance now that he had found some semblance of shelter, he rushed head-long inside, nearly tripping in his haste to get out of the freezing rain.<br><br>A single dim kerosene lamp on the check-in desk drew him forward even while it cast a frightening eerie illusion of midnight figures creeping across the floors of the desolate weathered motel. He could almost imagine he saw raven will-o-the-wisps darting here and there with no solid form to comfort the superstitious, brought to life by the forked lighting streaking across the moonless sky.<br>
<br>His hands shook as he reached out to tap the little, rusted, silver colored bell. The ting it made was a hollow lifeless thing, but it brought a short gnarled looking man with the look of antiquity to him. <br><br>"Room?" the ancient asked. "Twenty five dollar."<br>
<br>"No, I ..I'd like to use your phone." he explained quickly. "My car broke down and I want to call Triple A."<br><br>"Phone?" the clerk shook his head. "No phone." he cracked a toothless grin. "Twenty five dollar." He shoved the register book at him.<br>
<br>Too cold and wanting nothing more than to have a hot shower and dry off, the traveler snatched up the pen and began to write.<br><br>He was half-way finished with his entries when he noticed that the room was filling up with silent people. People with a look that sent a shiver up his spine. All pale and bloodless. With eyes that seemed to burn with the very fires of hell.<br>
<br>And they were all moving in on him.<br><br>"Dinnertime." the clerk announced grimly.<br><br>SCowling, he turned his attention to the grinning scarecrow of a clerk. "Not hungry."<br><br>"No?" he chuckled, nodding toward the others in the room. "But they are."<br>
<br>The traveler whirled around as the first hand fell on his arm. His screams rent the air even before the first set of dagger sharp teeth found a home in his throat.<br> </div>
<div><br>end</div>
<div> </div>
<div>come on, guys, what cha think?<br clear="all"><br>-- <br>PEJA<br>The wwomb archive <a href="http://www.squidge.org/~peja/cgi-bin/index.php">http://www.squidge.org/~peja/cgi-bin/index.php</a> accepts all fandoms, all genres. Come create your personal page with us<br>
Need a plot bunny? <a href="http://community.livejournal.com/adoptaplotbunny/">http://community.livejournal.com/adoptaplotbunny/</a> </div>