According to the official police reports, there was never a rescue team searching Blackridge Forest the night my friends disappeared. No park rangers. No volunteers. No emergency dispatch calls. Nothing. But something found us out there. And it knew exactly how humans were supposed to look. My name is Jason […]
I Followed the Wrong Rescue Team in Blackridge Forest Read More »
Shaleville Police Department Date: July 15th, 2025 Lead Case Investigator: Detective Lance Giles Evidence: A brown leather bound journal with a number of diary entries by one Jamie Trench. Case Notes: In relation to the missing persons file reported by one Sherry Trench, for her son Jamie and his fiancé
The Bones Under Greyveil Read More »
I don’t remember why I went into the forest. There was no clear starting point. No moment when I stepped off a path or made a choice. It was just where I found myself. Trees reached endlessly upward, and the light felt soft but wrong. Everything seemed paused for too
The Cave of still machines Read More »
Martin pressed the record button on the handheld unit and held it close to his mouth as he ducked under the rope the patrol officers had strung between the trees. “October fourteenth, 1972,” he said. “George Washington Park, Centralia. Arrived on scene at approximately nine forty-five in the morning. Initial
A Speaker Of The Trees Read More »
I stepped out into the quad, salted caramel latte in hand to savour the brief moment of peace between my lectures. The air smelled faintly of salt and seaweed that drifted in from the bay and a light fog had settled overhead leaving droplets of condensation on benches and the
I’m about to dive into a cave filled with screams of the dead. It’s insane. Even after the complete upheaval of everything I thought possible, the most pressing thing on my mind are two words: I told you. She’s going to hate reading this, but that’s why I’m doing it.
Henry Callum had made this drive so many times he could have done it half asleep, and on some of the earlier mornings, he nearly had. Forty miles out of Centralia on roads that stopped being roads about twelve miles in, just packed dirt and gravel cutting through the Douglas
A Ritual In The Forest Read More »
Tow truck driver isn’t traditionally a job you would associate with gruesomeness but let me tell you, I have seen things that would send you into shock. I’ve seen a woman impaled through a rod and was still trying to call her work to say she would be a little
Thunderstorms yielded a surprising amount of rain, slowing the immediate progression of the wildfire to a dull advance. It sulked through the understory as if it were pouting, greedily gobbling dead grass but hesitant to touch the heavier fuels. It was biding its time and snatching chance like a spoiled
I don’t know what I saw in that damn chapel. I don’t even know if it was real or not. I sure as hell hope not. So, I came here to tell my story. Maybe someone could help me. Maybe just telling it will make me feel better – help
Twelve missed calls. My eyes never shifted as my phone continued vibrating on the old oak counter. My hands softly gripped the wet glass of my sixth pour. Thirteen. I’m tired of this. Tired of the noise, the fighting. I’m tired of holding onto this chaotic thing my wife and
A degree in wildlife management. It sounds so exciting, and the $70,000 piece of paper has certainly ensnared many bright, nature-loving youths with the allure of grand vistas and endless adventures, and I am one who heard the sirens call. From a young age, I knew people weren’t for me.
The Thing behind me wants me to turn around Read More »
I was pedaling as hard as I could, the tires thumping on each new slab of wood on the railway track. The railway was a clear cut through the woods, separating a once thriving forest into two distinct parts. Though summer break had only started a week ago, we already
Music in the Branches Read More »
Prologue – Past I’ve always felt like I was playing a part. Since my earliest years, I was just a mediocre actor in a family drama, playing the role of the son or the brother. I never felt close to them or cared about their feelings, but I pretended otherwise,
I Lost My Heart To the Sea Read More »
“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” – James Baldwin The road narrowed until it was no road at all, just mud and ruts that might have been paths once. The GPS had given up hours ago, but I kept
Where Trespassers Fade Read More »
The truck’s heater blasted hot air. Wipers squeaked across the windshield, clearing away the snow that melted on contact. The Deputy hummed along with the radio as it blared a familiar tune. Wind whistled beneath the radio’s drone. The desolate road before him was covered with several inches of snow
What Hunts in the Snow Read More »
The fallen leaves tell a story…They tell of our sacrifice, the pledge we must make for our survival…Our offerings of worship, our offerings of life…Through our planes it drove. The shrilling cool wind of the coming autumn. With its passage came a change in the trees, and the slow fall
The Fallen Leaves Tell A Story Read More »
“Delta squad, clear that building!” The command ripped from Tim Brinley’s throat, echoing through the blistering desert air, a phrase so familiar to him it was more reflex than speech. This was his second deployment, and he knew with weary certainty it would be his last. The monotony of military
A lot of questions have been asked of me lately by many different parties. My parents want to know why I almost refuse to leave the house anymore. My doctor wants to know what has been causing my insomnia. The police want to know my whereabouts and actions on the
The Wood Witch’s Ritual Read More »
This was in the early 2000s. A group of marine biologists, myself included, were in the Philippine Sea to study the effects of global warming on local marine wildlife. This was exciting to me for two reasons. One is that I was born in the Philippines and never had the
Read Part One here We both drove back to the station and handed in our gear and changed. I could still smell the faint odor clinging to my uniform. I suppressed the urge to gag as I threw it back into my locker without any finesse, just wanting to get
Just Another Summer in ‘95 Part Two Read More »
At some point during the infancy of humans on Earth, they pushed past a point of no return. They saw the signs, heard the scientists, but like humans do, they insisted that things were fine. They persisted, despite it all. They continued to grow, and work, and waste, pushing through
All Hallow’s Eve Circa 4047 Read More »
I want to say this happened in the early summer when our park was full of hikers, campers, and tourists. Montana had its beauty in those summer months, so I couldn’t blame them.A lot of the tourists hadn’t spent a day camping or even been backpacking. A lot of them
Just Another Summer in ‘95 Read More »
Kai couldn’t remember the last time he’d caught himself feeling truly frightened. He had watched all of the scariest movies he could find, devoured countless ancient tales of mystery and macabre, and even researched real-world accounts of ghostly sightings and unexplainable encounters. All of it bored him. Of course, he
