Latest / Dr. NoSleep Animations / 3 Lockdown Horror Stories Animated (Compilation of May 2023)

Transcript

3 Lockdown Horror Stories Animated (Compilation of May 2023) · Dr. NoSleep Animations

• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Talk to nicely. He's fast, and I can't move quick
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: enough to dodge the slap. My head jerks sideways as
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: my father's hand collides with the left side of my face.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: But this time, I keep to my feet. He releases
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: a long, wordless wail as he brings his hand back,
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: as if to hit me again. His brown eyes are
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: brimming with tears above his bushy black beard. Damn it, boy!
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: He says, voice raw with emotion. Damn it! I told you!
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: I told you! I stand defiant next to the boarded
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: up window. I managed to get one nail out before
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: my father snuck up behind me. I thought he was asleep.
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: I was wrong. You gonna hit me again? I shout.
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: Come on!
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: He jerks forward, grabbing the base of my neck with
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: his large, calloused hands. I think he's going to throttle
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: me at first, but he yanks me toward his chest,
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: pulling me into a too tight hug. What can I
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: do to make you understand? He whimpers. Tell me what
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: I can do. Over his shoulder, I see my sister
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: appear in the hall outside the den, drawn by the
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: resounding slap. She runs up in her sock feet, short,
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: brunette hair bouncing as she rushes into the room. What happened?
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: She asks. Dad doesn't answer. He just shifts and pulls
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: Amy in with one arm, hugging us both tight. I
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: know this is hard, he says to us. Hardest thing ever, really.
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: But I need you two to understand that you can't leave.
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: You can't. It's not safe out there. It's the same
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: story we've been told for the last two years, and
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: it's getting old. I push away, slipping my head out
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: of his arm. I wasn't going to leave, I say.
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: I just wanted to look. I just wanted to see
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: the trees and the sun for a change. Dad shakes
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: his head, letting go of Amy. That's how it starts,
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: he says.
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: First, you'll only want to look. Then you'll want to
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: venture into the yard. Then you'll want to head into
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: the woods. Best to just not start. I'm sorry, but
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: that's the way it is. It's been two years, Daddy,
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: Amy says.
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: Can't we just look out? Just for a few minutes?
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: I mean, you get to go outside. Why can't we?
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: Dad shakes his head again, wiping tears away.
• 2:26
  Speaker 3: I know you're both at an age where staying cooped
• 2:28
  Speaker 3: up in here seems like the worst thing possible. I
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: remember being 17, but I can't imagine how hard this
• 2:35
  Speaker 3: is on you both. I never had to go through
• 2:38
  Speaker 3: anything like this when I was your age. But the
• 2:41
  Speaker 3: fact is, you need to be mentally prepared to go
• 2:44
  Speaker 3: out there. Because they'll try to trick you.
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: They will. Who will, I ask. Them, he says.
• 2:52
  Speaker 3: They're the ones out there now. There are no more
• 2:56
  Speaker 3: people like you or me. That's what you keep saying,
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: I say. But how are we supposed to believe you
• 3:03
  Speaker 3: if we haven't ever seen them?
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: This is not up for discussion. You're not ready.
• 3:09
  Speaker 3: And if I find you trying to pry another board
• 3:11
  Speaker 3: off a window or open a door, I'll be forced
• 3:14
  Speaker 3: to institute a strict lockdown.
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: Stricter than this? I say, nearly shouting. But my dad
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: is already walking out of the room. A few moments later,
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: he returns with a hammer and several nails. He repairs
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: the damage I did. and adds an extra nail to
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: each side of the board covering the window. It's about
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: time to start dinner, he says. You two better get
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: to it. Amy and I share a look. Then we
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: walk out of the den, heading for the kitchen. I
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: heard a plane again. I tell her when we're out
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: of earshot. Her eyes widen. You did? Smiling at her excitement.
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: She's only a year younger than me, but she'll always
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: be my baby sister. Sure did. That's why I was
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: trying to get the board off. I thought Dad was napping.
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: I wish I could hear a plane, Amy says. Or anything, really.
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: I thought I heard an engine tune the other day,
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: I tell her. But it might have been thunder. It
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: was so distant, I couldn't tell. We fall silent as
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: we reach the kitchen. Dad spent a couple of hours
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: outside today, harvesting vegetables from the garden and slaughtering a
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: chicken for our next few meals. What I wouldn't give
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: to go outside with him. even for just a few minutes.
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: But no. He says I'm not ready. Thinks I'm still
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: just a kid. We start preparing dinner, working in silence.
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: Dad comes through the kitchen with the hammer and heads
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: down to his room on the first floor. When dinner
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: is almost ready, I head downstairs to tell Dad. As
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: I approach his room, I pass the back door, which
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: is locked from the inside with a metal chain around
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: two metal hasps. One fixed to the door, and the
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: other to the wall. Dad keeps the padlock key around
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: his neck. The other door to the cabin is so
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: boarded up that it would take me hours to get
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: it open. As always, I check to see if the
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: lock is securely fastened.
• 5:12
  Speaker 4: It is.
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: I notice Dad's door is closed, which is only the
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: case when he's drinking, something that's been happening more and
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: more recently. I don't know how much liquor he managed
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: to stow away before we went into lockdown, but he
• 5:25
  Speaker 1: must be getting low. Pausing outside his room, I press
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: my ear to the door. Every day they keep pushing
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: me and pushing me, I hear him say. And it's
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: getting harder and harder for me to resist them.
• 5:39
  Speaker 3: Sometimes I just want to give in, to let them
• 5:42
  Speaker 3: do whatever they want.
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: At least it would end the turmoil. I wouldn't have
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: to feel like this anymore. There's a pause, and I
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: hear the sound of liquid gurgling from a bottle. It's
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: my dad taking a swig of liquor. I knock on
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: the door even as I turn the knob and walk in. Startled,
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: my dad quickly puts the bottle of whiskey down beside
• 6:03
  Speaker 1: the recliner he's sitting in. He has a framed photo
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: of my mother in his left hand. Dinner's about ready,
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: I say. Okay, he says, sniffling.
• 6:13
  Speaker 4: I'm coming.
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: We don't talk much through dinner. When we're done eating,
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: Amy and I do the cleanup. Then she heads to
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: her room just down the hall from mine on the
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: second floor. I go to my room and collapse onto
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: my bed. As I lie in my bed, staring at
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: the board over my window with nails every two inches,
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: I hear a strange murmuring from outside. At first, I
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: think it's the wind, but it seems to get louder
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: or closer, and I realize it's people. I can't hear
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: what they're saying, but the conversation seems casual, judging by
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: the tone. Sounds like a couple of girls walking by
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: in the woods, chatting. I jump up from my bed
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: and rush to Amy's room. Did you hear that? I ask.
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: She sits up in her bed, setting her book aside.
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: Hear what? People, I say. Outside, I hear them talking. Really? Yes,
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: I say. Just be quiet for a minute. We stay still, listening.
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: I even hold my breath, but I can't hear the
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: people anymore. I don't hear anything, Amy says. They must
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: be gone. But they can't have made it far. If
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: we can get out there... You're kidding, Amy says.
• 7:27
  Speaker 4: How?
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: You heard what Dad said. He's been drinking, I tell her.
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: I bet I can get the key from around his neck.
• 7:34
  Speaker 1: Amy's eyes go wide as her mouth drops open. It's unthinkable.
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: You wouldn't.
• 7:40
  Speaker 4: Why not?
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: I say. Dad goes out there every couple of days.
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: Why the hell can't we? If he comes back fine,
• 7:47
  Speaker 1: then we can too. Amy bites her lip, considering. You
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: really hurt people? And a plane? I really did, I say.
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: I mean, what if this is all just made up?
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: All this stuff happened right after mom died. What if
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: it's completely normal out there? Amy shakes her head. You
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: saw the news reports back then, she says. Something happened,
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: even if they didn't know exactly what. Yeah, I know
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: something happened, I say. But that was two years ago.
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: What if everything is fine now? I mean, why else
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: would there be planes flying around and people hiking through
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: the woods? Maybe, Amy says. And why would it be
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: safe for Dad to go out, but not us? Does
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: that make any sense to you? No, I think Dad
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: has just gone off the deep end. Since Mom died,
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: he's terrified of losing us. So he's kept us cooped
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: up in here, even though whatever happened is cured or
• 8:42
  Speaker 1: solved or whatever. Amy looks like she's coming around, but
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: she's not quite there yet. So I push on. Listen, Amy.
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: I heard Dad talking to Mom's picture again tonight. He
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: feels guilty. He was saying how he wanted us to
• 8:56
  Speaker 1: just do whatever we want so he could stop feeling guilty.
• 9:01
  Speaker 1: He said that. I nod. Yeah, in so many words.
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: Amy takes a deep breath. Okay, she says. See if
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: you can get the key. But if you get caught,
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: I didn't know anything about it. I smile. Deal. I
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: can hear my dad snoring as I creep down the stairs.
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: His door is open, as it usually is, because he
• 9:24
  Speaker 1: likes to be able to hear if we start messing
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: with the chain on the back door. As I get
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: to his door, I look inside. He's passed out in
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: the recliner next to his bed, my mom's picture in
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: his lap, and I can see the padlock key on
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: the leather strap around his neck. Moving closer, I stop
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: and wait.
• 9:44
  Speaker 4: Dad?
• 9:45
  Speaker 1: I whisper. Nothing. He's out. Using just the tips of
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: my fingers, I twist the necklace so I can see
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: the metal clasp. I unhook the clasp and then pull
• 9:57
  Speaker 1: the necklace off. My dad doesn't make a move. I
• 10:00
  Speaker 1: head back over to the stairwell to find Amy there,
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: her shoes on and my shoes in her hand. She
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: gives them to me and I put them on as
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: quickly as I can. I'm shaking with excitement. She also
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: has a flashlight. I probably would have forgotten about a
• 10:15
  Speaker 1: flashlight in my excitement. Moving as slowly and as gently
• 10:19
  Speaker 1: as possible, I undo the padlock and remove the chain,
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: setting it down next to the doorway. Then I unlock
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: the two dead bolts and the knob. Amy and I
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: look at each other in the dimly lit hallway. We smile.
• 10:33
  Speaker 1: The smell of pine trees and fresh earth overwhelms me
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: as I open the door. Amy and I slip out
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: into the darkness. I shut the door gently behind us.
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: Amy clicks the flashlight on and shines it around. Our
• 10:46
  Speaker 1: yard is fenced in. and there are several raised garden
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: beds within the chain-link fencing. The chicken coop is on
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: the other side of the cabin. We can hear the
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: chickens clucking every so often. She turns the beam outward,
• 10:59
  Speaker 1: shining at the pine trees around the property. There's nothing
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: much to see, just trees. But it's still the thrill
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: of a lifetime for me, being outside after so long.
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: The sound of a young woman's laughter splits the air
• 11:13
  Speaker 1: from off in the woods. Did you hear that? I
• 11:16
  Speaker 1: ask Amy. She nods, smiling. When I look back out
• 11:20
  Speaker 1: into the woods, I notice the glow of a fire
• 11:23
  Speaker 1: illuminating the trees just over the low ridge. Suddenly, I
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: can smell the fire on the wind. Let's go check
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: it out, I say, heading toward the gate without waiting
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: for an answer. Amy follows, lighting the way. As we
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: approach the crest, we slow down, looking over. Sure enough,
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: there are three teenage girls sitting around a campfire, joking
• 11:45
  Speaker 1: and laughing. Amy and I look at each other with
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: wide eyes. As we're about to discuss our next move,
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: one of the girls calls out to us. Hey, don't
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: be scared. Come join us. She's a very pretty girl.
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: In fact, all of them are. I can't believe my luck.
• 12:03
  Speaker 4: Okay.
• 12:04
  Speaker 3: I say.
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: I start forward and Amy follows a few steps behind.
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: All three faces are turned toward us, smiling and easygoing.
• 12:13
  Speaker 1: I'm Jenny. The one who already spoke says. Do you
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: guys live in that cabin down there? Yeah, I say.
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: I'm Brandon, and this is Amy. Nice to meet you, Jared,
• 12:24
  Speaker 1: Amy says. I turn to look at her. Jared, I think.
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: What is she talking about?
• 12:30
  Speaker 4: No!
• 12:31
  Speaker 1: A scream cuts the air from behind us. My dad!
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: Amy and I flinch, turning around at the same time
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: to see dad running toward us through the woods, his
• 12:39
  Speaker 1: shotgun in hand. Get away!
• 12:41
  Speaker 2: Get back!
• 12:43
  Speaker 4: What?
• 12:44
  Speaker 1: I say, turning back around to face the teenagers. Jenny,
• 12:47
  Speaker 1: the nearest one, lunges at me. As her hands touch
• 12:50
  Speaker 1: the skin of my neck, reality seems to rip before
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: my eyes. No longer is there a pretty teenage girl
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: in front of me. There's a creature with wide, deep-set
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: eyes and a craggy, blackish-gray face. A crooked grin with
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: cracked teeth sits on the bottom half of its face,
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: under red slits for nostrils. Its tendril-like fingers wrap around
• 13:08
  Speaker 1: my throat. I can feel something entering my skull, but
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: I'm not sure if it's something physical or more of
• 13:14
  Speaker 1: a psychological invasion. They'll try to trick you, my dad
• 13:17
  Speaker 1: said earlier. His words repeat in my head as terror
• 13:21
  Speaker 1: freezes my bones. After a moment, I feel a terrible,
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: unending crack form in my mind. A world too awful
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: to comprehend suddenly becomes my reality. I can feel billions
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: of other minds locked in with mine, all half insane
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: and gibbering, pleading for release. I can feel all their
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: pain and their sorrow and their fear, and it's never ending.
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: And I can feel them, the creature's, feeding on it.
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: I understand them, suddenly. Time folds in on itself, and
• 13:51
  Speaker 1: I can see them, taunting my father on the days
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: he came outside to work in the garden or get eggs.
• 13:56
  Speaker 1: I can see them, taking the form of my mother,
• 13:59
  Speaker 1: telling him things that only she could know. They tried
• 14:01
  Speaker 1: to get him to come out into the woods, into
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: their territory, but he resisted. Until now. Until I drew
• 14:08
  Speaker 1: him out here. I'm vaguely aware of the sound of
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: a shotgun going off. The creature screams. I notice out
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: of the corner of my eye a creature pouncing on Amy,
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: and I can feel it as her mind joins the fray,
• 14:21
  Speaker 1: adding her darkness to the infinite turmoil. The shotgun fires again,
• 14:25
  Speaker 1: and another creature screams, but it's not dead. They can't die.
• 14:30
  Speaker 1: Not with violence. Only starvation. My dad comes into view.
• 14:35
  Speaker 1: I see him look from me to Amy and back
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: as he pumps another shell into the chamber. Then he
• 14:40
  Speaker 1: turns the barrel on himself. The shotgun fires again, And
• 14:44
  Speaker 1: then I'm pulled out all the way out of reality
• 14:46
  Speaker 1: and into hell. But before my world becomes nothing but agony,
• 14:50
  Speaker 1: my last coherent thought is for my dad. At least
• 14:54
  Speaker 1: he escaped this fate.
• 14:57
  Speaker 5: Also, it turns out that most of you guys who
• 14:59
  Speaker 5: watch me aren't actually subscribed. So if you like the
• 15:02
  Speaker 5: content and want to support the channel, go ahead and
• 15:05
  Speaker 5: hit the bell. It's free and you can always change
• 15:07
  Speaker 5: your mind later.
• 15:13
  Speaker 1: My turn. The room in the boutique hotel was simple enough.
• 15:18
  Speaker 1: It had a bed and a bathroom and a television.
• 15:21
  Speaker 1: But best of all, it had a window looking out
• 15:24
  Speaker 1: onto a pristine sandy beach in turquoise water. It wasn't
• 15:28
  Speaker 1: like we'd be spending much time in the hotel anyway.
• 15:31
  Speaker 1: Abby and I had all kinds of fun activities planned
• 15:33
  Speaker 1: on the remote island. And we'd paid a small fortune
• 15:37
  Speaker 1: for this vacation. So we were determined to make the
• 15:40
  Speaker 1: most of it. But as we arrived at the three-story hotel,
• 15:44
  Speaker 1: we were feeling the effects of jet lag from flying
• 15:47
  Speaker 1: halfway around the world. So our plan was to get
• 15:50
  Speaker 1: some serious sleep. I'm gonna take a shower, Abby said
• 15:54
  Speaker 1: when we settled in. Ugh, please do, I said from
• 15:58
  Speaker 1: the bed, waving a hand in front of my nose.
• 16:01
  Speaker 1: Abby smiled, but her eyes narrowed. I was going to
• 16:04
  Speaker 1: suggest we fool around once I got out, but I
• 16:07
  Speaker 1: don't know about that anymore. I take it back, I
• 16:10
  Speaker 1: take it back. I said, pleading. We both laughed, and
• 16:14
  Speaker 1: then she went to take her shower. I flipped on
• 16:17
  Speaker 1: the television. There was a popular superhero movie on, but
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: it was dubbed in the local language. At least there
• 16:24
  Speaker 1: were subtitles. Zoning out, I closed my eyes for a
• 16:28
  Speaker 1: few minutes. But when the building started shaking, I jumped
• 16:32
  Speaker 1: up from the bed, looking around in confusion. The television
• 16:35
  Speaker 1: shorted out, along with the lights. I ran into the
• 16:38
  Speaker 1: bathroom as the shaking continued. Abby was shouting and the
• 16:41
  Speaker 1: water suddenly shut off. Grabbing a towel, I ripped open
• 16:45
  Speaker 1: the shower curtain and helped her out. Then we both
• 16:47
  Speaker 1: crouched in the bathroom doorway. We had the shades open
• 16:50
  Speaker 1: on a beautiful sunny afternoon, but something had happened to
• 16:53
  Speaker 1: the sunlight. The room was totally dark. After about a minute,
• 16:58
  Speaker 1: the shaking stopped and things settled. Still, we stayed in
• 17:02
  Speaker 1: the doorway. Abby's blonde hair was still dripping as she
• 17:05
  Speaker 1: clutched the ends of the towel to her chest. Earthquake?
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: She asked. Must have been, I said. The room was
• 17:13
  Speaker 1: still dark. I couldn't see anything. Stay here. I went
• 17:17
  Speaker 1: over to the window, seeing nothing but darkness. Like a
• 17:20
  Speaker 1: black blanket had been thrown over the window's exterior. I
• 17:23
  Speaker 1: reached around on the nightstand for my phone. When I
• 17:26
  Speaker 1: lit it up, it showed I had no service. What
• 17:30
  Speaker 1: the hell is happening? I whispered. Did you close the
• 17:33
  Speaker 1: shades earlier? Abby asked.
• 17:36
  Speaker 4: No, I.
• 17:37
  Speaker 1: Suddenly, the lights in the room came back on. The
• 17:40
  Speaker 1: sound of water hitting the shower basin came from the bathroom.
• 17:43
  Speaker 1: The television came back on, but there was only a
• 17:46
  Speaker 1: blue screen, and the window remained dark. I swallowed hard
• 17:51
  Speaker 1: and moved back over to Abby. No service, I said,
• 17:55
  Speaker 1: showing her my phone. I helped her up, and she
• 17:58
  Speaker 1: went to check her phone. Stepping to the door, I
• 18:01
  Speaker 1: tried the knob. It moved, but I couldn't open the door.
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: Then I remembered the deadbolt. I unlocked it and then
• 18:09
  Speaker 1: tried again The door didn't budge. So I leaned forward
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: and peered out through the peephole. The hallway looked normal.
• 18:18
  Speaker 1: There was no one out there. The door across from
• 18:20
  Speaker 1: us was closed. Then, from the left, someone came into view,
• 18:26
  Speaker 1: distorted by the fisheye lens. No, it was two people.
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: A sliver of dread stabbed through me as the people,
• 18:33
  Speaker 1: a man and a woman, walked right up to our door.
• 18:36
  Speaker 1: As the man looked up, I jumped away from the peephole,
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: producing a frightened grunt. What's wrong? Abby asked from further
• 18:43
  Speaker 1: in the room. It's us, I said, not really believing
• 18:46
  Speaker 1: the words myself. What? I shook my head, trying to
• 18:50
  Speaker 1: come back to my senses. I stepped back to the peephole.
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: The hall was empty again. What did you see? Abby said,
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: coming up next to me, grabbing my hand. I saw
• 19:01
  Speaker 1: us in the hallway, walking up to the door, just
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: like when we got here. Abby shook her head, brows furrowed.
• 19:10
  Speaker 1: Then she moved forward and looked for herself. There's nothing there.
• 19:15
  Speaker 1: You're right, I said.
• 19:16
  Speaker 2: You're right.
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: See if you can open the door. I sat on
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: the bed while Abby tried, to no avail, to open
• 19:23
  Speaker 1: the door. I kept looking from my phone to the
• 19:26
  Speaker 1: black window. I couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible
• 19:29
  Speaker 1: was happening. Abby tried to phone the front desk, but
• 19:33
  Speaker 1: she didn't even get a dial tone on the landline.
• 19:36
  Speaker 1: We were stuck. I'm sure someone will come check on
• 19:39
  Speaker 1: us soon. We can't be the only ones in the hotel,
• 19:43
  Speaker 1: Abby said. We tried our best to pretend like everything
• 19:46
  Speaker 1: was okay. We even tried to sleep, but it was
• 19:49
  Speaker 1: no use. Our phones still kept time, so we watched
• 19:54
  Speaker 1: as the hours dropped away. There was still electricity, so
• 19:58
  Speaker 1: we were able to charge our phones and computers, but
• 20:01
  Speaker 1: we couldn't access the internet or call anyone. We couldn't
• 20:05
  Speaker 1: communicate with the outside world. 24 hours passed and nothing happened.
• 20:10
  Speaker 1: We banged on the door and the walls. We ate
• 20:13
  Speaker 1: the few snacks we had and we drank water out
• 20:16
  Speaker 1: of the faucet. The blackness outside the window never changed.
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: Every so often, I would try to open the door again.
• 20:24
  Speaker 1: When I decided I tried to break it down, Abby
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: talked me out of it. She was certain someone would
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: be coming soon. I wasn't so sure. On the second night,
• 20:35
  Speaker 1: Abby was snoozing lightly when I heard something from out
• 20:37
  Speaker 1: in the hall. I jumped up and rushed to the peephole,
• 20:40
  Speaker 1: looking out. The door across from us opened, and an
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: Asian couple walked out, rolling their suitcases behind them and
• 20:47
  Speaker 1: chatting in a language I couldn't understand. I banged on
• 20:50
  Speaker 1: the door and screamed, waking Abby, but the couple made
• 20:53
  Speaker 1: no sign that they even heard me. And by the
• 20:55
  Speaker 1: time Abby got to the door, they were gone. I
• 20:59
  Speaker 1: could tell she didn't believe me. After all, I was
• 21:02
  Speaker 1: the only one who had seen anything out the peephole.
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: I'm telling you, There were people there. I heard them talking,
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: I said. Fine, I believe you. Is that what you
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: want to hear? I guess they were deaf, even though
• 21:14
  Speaker 1: they were talking. You don't f * * * ing
• 21:16
  Speaker 1: believe me! I shouted. Don't lie to me! Don't shout
• 21:20
  Speaker 1: at me, Abby said in a low voice. Remember what Dr.
• 21:24
  Speaker 1: Shelton said about yelling.
• 21:26
  Speaker 3: F * * * Dr.
• 21:27
  Speaker 4: Shelton!
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: Don't you see that we're screwed here? If we don't
• 21:30
  Speaker 1: get out of here, we're going to starve to death!
• 21:33
  Speaker 1: Abby stormed past me and into the bathroom. slamming the door.
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: Another day passed. We didn't speak much. Our hunger and
• 21:41
  Speaker 1: fear took up our thoughts and energy. We just laid
• 21:44
  Speaker 1: on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. We kept
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: the light on, unable to bear the pitch dark. Finally,
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: sleep came to me, but it didn't last long.' Josh!'
• 21:56
  Speaker 1: Abby called, jerking me awake.' Josh!' She was in the
• 22:00
  Speaker 1: little hallway next to the bathroom. I stepped to the
• 22:03
  Speaker 1: foot of the bed and saw the box. sitting just
• 22:06
  Speaker 1: inside the door. What the hell is that? I asked.
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: Did you get the door open? No, Abby said, almost crying.
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: It still won't open. The box was just sitting here
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: when I came to use the bathroom. I skirted the box,
• 22:20
  Speaker 1: careful not to touch it. It looked like cardboard, but
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: not quite. The texture was wrong, like it was slicker
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: than cardboard, slightly shinier. After looking out the peephole and
• 22:32
  Speaker 1: seeing nothing but the empty hallway, I tried the door.
• 22:35
  Speaker 1: It still wouldn't open. Come on! I screamed, banging on
• 22:39
  Speaker 1: the door. After a minute of this, I'd worn myself out.
• 22:43
  Speaker 1: Are you done? Abby asked. You really think that's going
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: to help anything? I ignored her and turned my attention
• 22:50
  Speaker 1: to the box. It was closed. The two long flaps
• 22:54
  Speaker 1: pressed together on top. But there was no tape holding
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: them in place. And when I touched the top of
• 23:00
  Speaker 1: the box, the two flaps opened. Working carefully, I opened
• 23:05
  Speaker 1: the box and looked inside. I think it's food, I said. Abby,
• 23:10
  Speaker 1: who'd been standing back with a blank look on her face,
• 23:12
  Speaker 1: seemed to snap out of her daze.
• 23:14
  Speaker 4: Really?
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: Inside the box were small rectangular bars. They were the
• 23:19
  Speaker 1: same color as the cardboard, but they had a different texture.
• 23:23
  Speaker 1: I could smell them. They smelled like those all-natural granola
• 23:26
  Speaker 1: bars you get for five bucks a piece at health
• 23:28
  Speaker 1: food stores. My stomach rumbled. I reached in and grabbed one,
• 23:33
  Speaker 1: lifting and taking a bite out of it while Abby
• 23:35
  Speaker 1: yelled for me to stop.
• 23:37
  Speaker 2: Are you kidding me?
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: She said. You're just going to eat it just like that?
• 23:42
  Speaker 1: It was the best thing I'd ever tasted. I closed
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: my eyes and made a small moan as I chewed.
• 23:48
  Speaker 1: What do you want me to do? Send it off
• 23:50
  Speaker 1: to the lab to have it tested? I said. But
• 23:53
  Speaker 1: my heart wasn't in the fight. I scarfed the rest
• 23:56
  Speaker 1: of the bar down and had to stop myself from
• 23:59
  Speaker 1: eating another one. It's not like there wasn't plenty in
• 24:02
  Speaker 1: the box. There was, probably 48 or more of the things,
• 24:06
  Speaker 1: but I wanted to wait to see if there were
• 24:08
  Speaker 1: any ill effects before eating more. Abby made it about
• 24:12
  Speaker 1: an hour, asking me how I felt every five minutes
• 24:16
  Speaker 1: before she ate one. With some food in my stomach,
• 24:20
  Speaker 1: I finally fell asleep for a little while. Two more
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: days passed. Even though we now had food to eat,
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: it gave us little solace. The stress Combined with the
• 24:31
  Speaker 1: close quarters meant Abby and I were yelling at each
• 24:34
  Speaker 1: other for what seemed like once every two hours. Finally,
• 24:38
  Speaker 1: in the middle of another fight, I stormed to the
• 24:41
  Speaker 1: bathroom and slammed the door, locking it. Abby came to
• 24:44
  Speaker 1: the door and started tapping on it, egging me on.
• 24:47
  Speaker 1: She wanted to keep fighting. So I turned on the
• 24:50
  Speaker 1: shower and sat under the warm water, not even bothering
• 24:53
  Speaker 1: to take off my clothes. I sat there for a
• 24:56
  Speaker 1: long time. At some point, I turned off the water
• 25:00
  Speaker 1: and took off my wet clothes. After drying off and
• 25:03
  Speaker 1: hanging my clothes, I unlocked the door and headed out
• 25:06
  Speaker 1: of the bathroom to find the hotel room door open.
• 25:11
  Speaker 1: I froze, looking out the open door and into the hallway.
• 25:15
  Speaker 4: Abby?
• 25:16
  Speaker 1: No answer. Holding the towel around my waist with one hand,
• 25:20
  Speaker 1: I moved into the room. It was empty. Abby was gone.
• 25:24
  Speaker 1: I ran into the hallway, looking frantically left and right.
• 25:27
  Speaker 4: Abby! Abby!
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: The hallway lights were on, and I could see a
• 25:31
  Speaker 1: window at the end of the hall to my right.
• 25:33
  Speaker 1: It was pitch black on the other side of the glass,
• 25:35
  Speaker 1: just like the window in our room. Running to the left,
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: I rounded the corner toward the stairs and the elevator.
• 25:41
  Speaker 1: No sign of Abby. I hit the elevator button, but
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: nothing happened. It didn't light up, so I tried the
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: door to the stairwell. It wouldn't budge. I ran back
• 25:51
  Speaker 1: the other way, passing the room and stopping when I
• 25:53
  Speaker 1: got to the window. I screamed, punching the window. A
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: sharp pain shot through my hand, and I knew I'd
• 26:00
  Speaker 1: broken something. The window remained unmarred. Clenching my teeth and
• 26:05
  Speaker 1: gripping my right hand below the wrist with my left,
• 26:07
  Speaker 1: I stumbled back to the room, tears streaming down my face.
• 26:11
  Speaker 1: And as I came to the door, I noticed something
• 26:13
  Speaker 1: on it. There was a small device fastened over the peephole,
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: almost like a little version of those doorbell cameras people have.
• 26:21
  Speaker 1: I couldn't remember if it was there when we came
• 26:23
  Speaker 1: to the room, but as I looked around, I saw
• 26:26
  Speaker 1: that every door had one. I went across the hall
• 26:29
  Speaker 1: and banged on the door. There was no answer. I
• 26:32
  Speaker 1: did the same with three other doors.
• 26:35
  Speaker 4: Nothing.
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: I turned back and went into my room, leaving the
• 26:39
  Speaker 1: door open about halfway. I stepped behind it and looked
• 26:43
  Speaker 1: through the peephole, and I saw the hallway as it
• 26:45
  Speaker 1: would have been if the door had been closed. But
• 26:48
  Speaker 1: it wasn't closed all the way. I should have seen
• 26:51
  Speaker 1: the door jam and only half the hallway, but I didn't.
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: Whatever the device was on the other side of the door...
• 26:58
  Speaker 1: It was playing a recording of the hallway. As I
• 27:01
  Speaker 1: was contemplating this, the sound of movement came from inside
• 27:04
  Speaker 1: the room.
• 27:05
  Speaker 4: Abby?
• 27:06
  Speaker 1: I said, hair standing up on my neck. I crept
• 27:09
  Speaker 1: past the bathroom and into the room. I could see
• 27:12
  Speaker 1: the back of Abby's head just beyond the bed, as
• 27:14
  Speaker 1: if she were sitting on the floor with her back
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: against the bed. I rushed over toward her. Abby, baby, I...
• 27:20
  Speaker 1: The words jammed in my throat as I saw my girlfriend.
• 27:23
  Speaker 1: Her parts were all mixed up. Her mouth was on
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: her forehead, her tongue hanging limply out. One of her
• 27:29
  Speaker 1: eyes was on her left cheek. The other one was
• 27:32
  Speaker 1: where her mouth should have been. Her nose had been turned,
• 27:35
  Speaker 1: her nostrils pointing to the left instead of down. Her
• 27:38
  Speaker 1: left leg had been swapped with her left arm. She
• 27:40
  Speaker 1: looked up at me with confused eyes, then tried to
• 27:43
  Speaker 1: get up. She managed to get to her right leg,
• 27:46
  Speaker 1: but when she tried to walk, she stumbled into the window.
• 27:49
  Speaker 1: I moved back, watching as her left leg twitched and
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: worked where it came out of her t-shirt at her
• 27:54
  Speaker 1: left shoulder. She kept trying to get up, her eyes
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: rolled in desperation. My mouth wanted to work, but there
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: was nothing to say. I was sure I'd gone insane.
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: Back in the real world, my blubbering body was a vegetable.
• 28:09
  Speaker 1: Maybe I'd been in an accident, severe head injury. As
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: I backed toward the hall, I passed the television, which
• 28:16
  Speaker 1: suddenly switched on. This time, there was an actual program on,
• 28:20
  Speaker 1: instead of a blue screen. It was a news program,
• 28:24
  Speaker 1: in English. There was an aerial view of a pristine
• 28:28
  Speaker 1: beach and turquoise water, but the tranquility of the scene
• 28:31
  Speaker 1: was in stark contrast to the mess of rebar and
• 28:34
  Speaker 1: plumbing and wiring that stuck out of the ground where
• 28:37
  Speaker 1: a building had once stood. The building I was in now.
• 28:41
  Speaker 1: The hotel.
• 28:42
  Speaker 4: Still no explanation for the mysterious disappearance of an entire
• 28:45
  Speaker 4: hotel on this remote Pacific island. It has been five
• 28:49
  Speaker 4: days since the structure simply vanished, leaving experts to scramble
• 28:52
  Speaker 4: for explanations that don't involve extraterrestrials. The family members of
• 28:57
  Speaker 4: those staying and working in the hotel say that.
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: The words were drowned out by the blood rushing in
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: my ears. Abby stumbled toward me, reaching out with her
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: right hand as she balanced on her right leg. She
• 29:08
  Speaker 1: grabbed my left hand and jammed it up to her throat.
• 29:12
  Speaker 1: It took me a moment to realize she was asking
• 29:14
  Speaker 1: me to kill her. I shook my head and yanked
• 29:17
  Speaker 1: my hand away as panic closed in. Backing toward the door,
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: my only thought was to run. But I couldn't go anywhere.
• 29:24
  Speaker 1: There was no escape. And as I backed up to
• 29:26
  Speaker 1: the doorway, I felt the strong, cold grip of hands
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: with too many fingers around my arms and legs. Something
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: slimy clamped around my face, keeping me from shouting out
• 29:36
  Speaker 1: or seeing the culprits. I fought as they dragged me
• 29:39
  Speaker 1: down the hallways. but it was no use. The observation
• 29:42
  Speaker 1: portion of the experiment was over. Now, they were going
• 29:46
  Speaker 1: to take me apart and put me back together. It
• 29:49
  Speaker 1: was my turn. Story 3 Here Comes the Night The
• 29:56
  Speaker 1: line of cars ahead of me curves around and down
• 29:59
  Speaker 1: toward the parking garage's exit, two floors below. I'm on
• 30:03
  Speaker 1: the third floor of the five-story garage. It's the end
• 30:06
  Speaker 1: of another long day. When I first started working here,
• 30:11
  Speaker 1: I tried to duck out of the office early so
• 30:13
  Speaker 1: I wouldn't have to wait 10 or 15 minutes just
• 30:15
  Speaker 1: to get out of the poorly designed garage. But I
• 30:18
  Speaker 1: quickly realized that it didn't matter what time I left.
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: I would always get stuck. waiting as the line slowly
• 30:25
  Speaker 1: dwindled down. Of course, if I wanted to stick around
• 30:29
  Speaker 1: in the office until seven or eight, I could get
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: out of the garage in a matter of minutes, but
• 30:35
  Speaker 1: that wasn't an option. So here I sit once again.
• 30:39
  Speaker 1: The skyscrapers outside are painted with the last rays of
• 30:42
  Speaker 1: dull orange sunshine as the night expands into its fullness.
• 30:46
  Speaker 1: The car ahead of me inches forward. I follow suit,
• 30:50
  Speaker 1: moving no more than two feet, Cars, trucks, and SUVs
• 30:54
  Speaker 1: choke the narrow aisle. Some poor suckers are sitting in
• 30:58
  Speaker 1: their cars, still in their parking spots. They won't be
• 31:01
  Speaker 1: able to get out for a long time. Not unless
• 31:04
  Speaker 1: some good Samaritan stops and lets them back up. But
• 31:08
  Speaker 1: it won't be me. Not today. There's some kind of
• 31:11
  Speaker 1: commotion ahead, where the line of cars curves to the left,
• 31:14
  Speaker 1: down the ramp to the second level. I hear the
• 31:17
  Speaker 1: faint squeal of tires over the podcast I have playing
• 31:20
  Speaker 1: in my vehicle. followed by the muted crash of a
• 31:23
  Speaker 1: fender bender. Oh, great, I say. Just what we need.
• 31:28
  Speaker 1: Then there's another, louder crash, and more tires squealing on
• 31:31
  Speaker 1: the concrete. A young man in an off-the-rack suit comes
• 31:35
  Speaker 1: running around the corner, huffing from sprinting up the ramp.
• 31:38
  Speaker 1: His eyes are wide, and he's looking at the people
• 31:40
  Speaker 1: in the car as he passes, yelling something. I roll
• 31:44
  Speaker 1: down my window as he approaches. Run! He screams.
• 31:47
  Speaker 4: Run!
• 31:47
  Speaker 1: Run! Beyond him, I see several other people run around
• 31:51
  Speaker 1: the corner. There are men and women, all dressed in
• 31:54
  Speaker 1: business casual. One woman with glasses and a tangerine dress
• 31:58
  Speaker 1: trips just as she's rounding the concrete pillar that blocks
• 32:01
  Speaker 1: my view of the ramp. She lands with her upper
• 32:03
  Speaker 1: body visible to me. And just as she's getting to
• 32:06
  Speaker 1: her hands and knees, she's yanked backwards so fast her
• 32:09
  Speaker 1: glasses fly off. Bright lights flare from the car in
• 32:13
  Speaker 1: front of me as the guy puts his sedan in reverse.
• 32:16
  Speaker 1: Before I can react, He hits the gas and slams
• 32:19
  Speaker 1: into the front of my Nissan Rogue. I look in
• 32:21
  Speaker 1: my rearview mirror and see that the car behind me
• 32:24
  Speaker 1: is right on my tail. I'm not going anywhere. Not
• 32:27
  Speaker 1: in my vehicle, anyway. I put it in park, panic
• 32:30
  Speaker 1: expanding in my chest like a terrible balloon. No more
• 32:34
  Speaker 1: people are running up from the lower level, but I
• 32:36
  Speaker 1: can hear screaming from down there. I grab my phone
• 32:39
  Speaker 1: out of the cradle, open the door, and jump out.
• 32:42
  Speaker 1: And I sprint back along the line of cars, heading
• 32:44
  Speaker 1: toward the stairwell. If I can get to the ground,
• 32:47
  Speaker 1: I can get help. But just as I reach the stairwell,
• 32:50
  Speaker 1: which is next to the two elevators, I nearly crash
• 32:53
  Speaker 1: into a balding guy who works in my office. He's
• 32:55
  Speaker 1: coming up out of the stairwell. Todd, I say, looking
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: into his eyes. I can't look for long. There's something
• 33:02
  Speaker 1: about them. Something haunting. And as I glance down, I
• 33:06
  Speaker 1: see blood on his black shoes and brown pants. Fresh blood.
• 33:10
  Speaker 1: Don't go that way, he says. Why? What's happening? I
• 33:14
  Speaker 1: was down there, Jamie.
• 33:15
  Speaker 4: I saw.
• 33:16
  Speaker 2: Something.
• 33:17
  Speaker 1: What? What the hell is going on? Can't we get
• 33:20
  Speaker 1: out that way? Todd shakes his head. It's all locked down.
• 33:24
  Speaker 1: The metal gates came down. The pedestrian doors are locked.
• 33:27
  Speaker 1: There's no way out down there. I run over to
• 33:30
  Speaker 1: the nearest side of the parking garage and look down
• 33:32
  Speaker 1: at the sidewalk below. As I'm watching, I see a
• 33:36
  Speaker 1: man jump out from the floor below, screaming. He lands
• 33:39
  Speaker 1: hard on his feet and curls into a roll. He
• 33:41
  Speaker 1: comes up and sprints into the street without so much
• 33:44
  Speaker 1: as a glance either way. The driver of a city
• 33:47
  Speaker 1: bus hits her brakes, but it's too late. The man
• 33:50
  Speaker 1: is lost from view as he's slammed to the ground
• 33:52
  Speaker 1: and pulled under the bus. Eyes wide in disbelief, the
• 33:56
  Speaker 1: bus driver looks around frantically. Her eyes land on the
• 33:59
  Speaker 1: parking garage. She sees something there, on the floor below me,
• 34:03
  Speaker 1: and she screams. I can hear it even though her
• 34:05
  Speaker 1: window is closed. She jams on the gas and the
• 34:08
  Speaker 1: bus streaks away. Meanwhile, other traffic has stopped on the
• 34:12
  Speaker 1: one-way road. People step out of their cars. Cell phones
• 34:16
  Speaker 1: to their ears as they call the police. Then something
• 34:19
  Speaker 1: large and dark soars past overhead. I look up only
• 34:22
  Speaker 1: to see a brief glimpse of what looks like a
• 34:24
  Speaker 1: large shadow disappearing around a building. The sound of metal
• 34:28
  Speaker 1: distorting and glass breaking draws my attention back into the garage.
• 34:32
  Speaker 1: People are now screaming as they ditch their cars, heading
• 34:35
  Speaker 1: past me up the ramp between the third and fourth floors.
• 34:38
  Speaker 1: I look back at the little alcove with the stairwell
• 34:41
  Speaker 1: and elevators. It's jammed with people, pushing and shoving. trying
• 34:45
  Speaker 1: to escape. A car comes flying into view like something
• 34:48
  Speaker 1: out of the movies, tumbling through the air. It smashes
• 34:52
  Speaker 1: into the alcove. I turn away on instinct before I
• 34:55
  Speaker 1: see the carnage and run up the ramp to the
• 34:57
  Speaker 1: fourth level. As I run, I call 911. I'm greeted
• 35:01
  Speaker 1: with a recording telling me that all call takers are busy.
• 35:05
  Speaker 1: Once again, I make it to the side of the
• 35:07
  Speaker 1: structure and look over the concrete railing. Only this time,
• 35:10
  Speaker 1: I'm looking down from the fourth level. Half of the
• 35:13
  Speaker 1: cars on the street below look to have been abandoned,
• 35:16
  Speaker 1: their doors left open, drivers nowhere in sight. As I watch,
• 35:20
  Speaker 1: several cars try to work their way through the abandoned vehicles.
• 35:24
  Speaker 1: They crash into each other at low speeds, reversing and
• 35:27
  Speaker 1: hitting the gas again as they frantically try to leave.
• 35:30
  Speaker 1: What the hell is happening? There's a whoosh sound from
• 35:33
  Speaker 1: above me. I look up but see nothing, just the
• 35:37
  Speaker 1: last of the fading twilight and the darkening sky. Meanwhile,
• 35:41
  Speaker 1: They're still screaming and crashing from below. I decide to
• 35:44
  Speaker 1: run up to the top floor of the parking structure
• 35:46
  Speaker 1: to try and see what's going on. Huffing, I reach
• 35:50
  Speaker 1: the fifth level, which is open to the sky. Buildings
• 35:53
  Speaker 1: of various sizes crowd the view. There's a group of
• 35:56
  Speaker 1: people huddling in one corner, looking fearfully up at the sky.
• 36:00
  Speaker 1: I glance up, trying to see what they're seeing. There's nothing,
• 36:04
  Speaker 1: just a sky going from dark blue to black. But
• 36:07
  Speaker 1: then I see something. It doesn't look like much more
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: than a dark shadow, detaching itself from the side of
• 36:13
  Speaker 1: a building, some 200 feet above. At first, I think
• 36:17
  Speaker 1: it's a black tarp, the way it floats. But then
• 36:20
  Speaker 1: it changes shape, like a bird narrowing its wings to
• 36:24
  Speaker 1: dive-bomb its prey. It streaks toward the group of people
• 36:27
  Speaker 1: at the corner, its inky blackness morphing as it goes.
• 36:31
  Speaker 1: The people see it coming. Some of them scream, others shout.
• 36:35
  Speaker 1: Others pray to God. The smart ones scatter, diving under
• 36:39
  Speaker 1: nearby cars or simply sprinting in any random direction. My
• 36:43
  Speaker 1: eyes are locked on the thing, my mind grappling, searching
• 36:46
  Speaker 1: for some explanation and coming up short. The shadow swoops
• 36:50
  Speaker 1: down onto the remaining people, tentacles made of the darkest
• 36:53
  Speaker 1: night shoot down, grabbing a half dozen of them and
• 36:56
  Speaker 1: yanking them off the ground. Then the shadow is airborne again,
• 37:00
  Speaker 1: turning on giant wings that aren't really wings at all.
• 37:03
  Speaker 1: The thing streaks toward me, the six screaming and pleading
• 37:06
  Speaker 1: people hanging beneath it. Without thinking, I reach up and
• 37:10
  Speaker 1: grab a woman by the leg, trying to save her,
• 37:12
  Speaker 1: to rip her away from the thing. My feet leave
• 37:15
  Speaker 1: the ground, and before I know it, I'm fifteen feet
• 37:18
  Speaker 1: in the air and quickly approaching the side of the
• 37:20
  Speaker 1: parking garage. But my eyes are still locked on the thing.
• 37:23
  Speaker 1: I watch as the tentacles pull the people up into
• 37:26
  Speaker 1: the pool of midnight that is the creature's body. As
• 37:29
  Speaker 1: they're pulled up, the tops of their heads touch the underside.
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: Little tendrils of night creep down, shooting into their eyes,
• 37:36
  Speaker 1: turning them pure white. The people stop screaming as they're
• 37:39
  Speaker 1: pulled further in, their mouths lost to the black void.
• 37:44
  Speaker 1: Realizing the same fate awaits me, I finally wrench my
• 37:47
  Speaker 1: eyes away and look down past my feet. The cars
• 37:50
  Speaker 1: below are the size of hot wheels. The parking garage
• 37:53
  Speaker 1: is several hundred feet under and behind me, but I
• 37:56
  Speaker 1: see that we're approaching a skyscraper. My hands are sweaty
• 37:59
  Speaker 1: around the woman's ankles. My shoulders scream from holding my weight.
• 38:03
  Speaker 1: The people are now up to their waists in the creature.
• 38:06
  Speaker 1: Just a few more moments and I'll be sucked in too.
• 38:09
  Speaker 1: I look toward the skyscraper. Yes, the creature's going to
• 38:13
  Speaker 1: fly over it. My hands are slippery. Just another couple
• 38:16
  Speaker 1: of moments. Just as I'm about to let go, the
• 38:18
  Speaker 1: creature changes direction, skimming over the corner of the skyscraper.
• 38:22
  Speaker 1: I have no choice. I let go and slam into
• 38:26
  Speaker 1: the edge of the building, hooking my arms over the side.
• 38:29
  Speaker 1: My feet scramble for purchase on the vertical exterior. With
• 38:32
  Speaker 1: a loud grunt, I pull myself over and collapse onto
• 38:35
  Speaker 1: the flat roof. On my back, I look up at
• 38:39
  Speaker 1: the sky, breathing hard, processing what just happened. I can
• 38:44
  Speaker 1: see a couple of bright stars coming out despite the
• 38:46
  Speaker 1: city's light pollution. From far down below, I hear a
• 38:50
  Speaker 1: symphony of sirens. Finally, I get up to my knees
• 38:54
  Speaker 1: and look out to the west. From here, I can
• 38:57
  Speaker 1: see far enough to spot the western horizon, where the
• 39:00
  Speaker 1: sun is still setting. But what I see sends a
• 39:03
  Speaker 1: spike of pure terror into my chest. The entire western
• 39:07
  Speaker 1: horizon is crowded with black shadows. They undulate and swoop
• 39:12
  Speaker 1: and dive, like massive predatory birds in a flock large
• 39:16
  Speaker 1: enough to blot out the sun. You can also check
• 39:25
  Speaker 1: out some more of my animated horror stories right here.