OUR GAMES HAVE JUST BEGUN --- THE DEAD GAME --- PART 40

What lies hidden beneath End House?
Familiar faces and bony countenances.
A cacophony of moans and sounds.

A community of creatures living in the tunnels.
Friends who might be returning to the living,
Or the living who might be joining The Dead.

David grabs hold of Tom's hand,
One of his long lost friends.
Tom stands stiff and tall, not responding.

Howard shuffles forward.
Howard had been the daring one,
The one who had saved Tom from the dark pool.

The town looks like Oasis,
With its beaches, stores, cafes, parks, and hotel.
In the distance, the forest looms dark and forbidding.

But where are the people?
The stores stand empty.
"There, they are!" Linda calls out.

A large group walks down Main Street.
No smiles crossing their deathly pale faces.
No emotions from these sad replicas of humanity.

Something is wrong.
No one is happy to see us.
"Let's get out of here!" Linda yells.

The group before them lurches forward,
Arms extended like bare branches in the winter cold.
Her friends back up in fear.

"But they're our friends!" Mike says,
"We can't leave them here,"
His eyes pleading for help.

Linda drags him away from the red-eyed mob.
"Our friends are gone.
These aren't are friends any longer."

A man grabs hold of Louise's long hair.
She lets loose a heart-wrenching cry,
Frightening the pale creature away.

Linda takes one last look at Oasis.
They look like members of our town,
But yet they don't.

The door slams shut,
Separating them from the empty shells.
Linda follows her friends out of the dark.


Goodbye to Wolf and your demented band of followers.
I can't believe that I had been tempted by you.
Thank god we escaped in time.

OUR GAMES HAVE JUST BEGUN

THE DEAD GAME

THE DEAD GAME -- DAY 92

     Linda said, “Since we’re both being honest with each other…I believe I should also tell you about my attack on Friday morning by a masked swimmer. I had swum out too far by myself. Luckily, Todd was there to jump into the water to scare away this person and save me from being drowned.”

    “Did you see who the attacker was?”

    “No…but it appeared to be a big strong man, who seemed very intent on drowning me.”

    “How did Todd happen to be in both places at the exact times that you needed help?”

    “I don’t know,” replied Linda. “He always seems to know when I’m in trouble.”

    “He’s almost superhuman—just like Sam. For instance, just last night I found myself balanced on ledge of the church’s bell tower. Fortunately, Sam found me and not some stranger.”

    “Why on earth would you climb to the top of a tower if you’re terrified of heights? And why would you think of jumping? You’re not suicidal or depressed? Are you?”

    “No, of course I’m not! Somehow…but I can’t figure out how…I’d been hypnotized. I don’t even remember climbing up there. I would never climb to the top of a tower—even in the daylight. But this was much worse—this was the middle of the night when it was dark outside with strong winds blowing. It was much more than just sleepwalking. When I heard Sam’s voice calling me, I woke up to find myself balanced on the narrow ledge.”

    “These awful events can’t all be coincidences. Maybe we were supposed to be have been killed or scared off even before the deadly party.”

    “There has to be some kind of pattern to all these supposedly random events. Let’s start doing some research on our own.”

     Linda said, “Come to my apartment and we can begin right away.”