Victor

Well, this sucked. I was in the middle of the woods hunting down a rabbit. It was sprinting off deeper into the forest. Keeping pace I was just going to tire it out. Holding the bat that always felt kind, I closed in on the poor creature.

It ran, dodging and sprinting through the underbrush, making a beeline back to its home. Sadly, I expected this and headed off at the pass. I grabbed its ears, jerking it swiftly. A brutal snap echoed for a moment. I stared it down looking deeper into the dying eyes. I was jealous of it, to simply be killed. The moment I had to just think to be alone with my thoughts was damn painful. My time in the void had left me wanting things that shook my core.

In the dark part of my head, I started to enjoy things. Things I would never describe. That I could never face. Coughing, I looked back at the forest. Everything seemed foreign, and those colors strangely annoyed me. The natural beauty of the forest offended me the greens of the leaves the soft shimmering yellow of sunlight all of it was an insult. I yearned for the peace of darkness. Scowling I turned, looking for a way out of the forest. It would ruin the secluded if I could head back in time. Someone cleared their throat behind me.

Sighing, I turned to face the stranger. The idiot looked like they time-warped out of the 50s and got lost in this forest. They tried to approach me with a dusty fedora and plain brown jacket. Before this would have scared me, but now it was far too familiar. Now it just pissed me off. Those swift blundering footsteps crushed anything on the ground as they came at an inhuman speed. I held up my rabbit, and it came to a halt before me.

“What are you doing?” I growled.

“Just approaching you. You're not picking up your phone.”

“You sound like a drowning puppy, on the phone. Plus it has been at least three months, where would I goddamn go?”

“Perhaps thy attitude has not changed.” It muttered. “At least you can stand without running away.”

“Yeah, I guess. Did I get the right one?” I gruffed, holding up the damn corpse. It was a brown rabbit with dead eyes that seemed to accuse me of sins. It was right.

“Now then,” the stranger poked my cheek. " Call me that nickname you decided on.”

“Sure, Mordues. God that name does not roll off the tongue.”

“You are welcome. Come now, Mother is waiting. “Mordues spoke with a swift turn and wave.

Then he walked to that place, pointing his thumb at me. “Knave use my human name”

“That is even worse. It was damned annoying. Why Robert?” I whined, following it.

“ It is quite common. Now let us go.” Robert spoke as the world bent around it.

Quietly raging I moved along with an inhuman monster. It was wrong. I was no longer scared of the power displayed at least. We appeared at the damn house which didn’t even have the decency to clean up the damn yard. The chairs were out covered in trash still wrapped in plastic. Or what seemed to be plastic. What at first glance appeared to be plastic chairs were just a mockery made from the living flesh of the house. That party was annoying as hell as I had to plan it. Who knew eldritch nightmares loved neighborhood parties?

“Two damned months since you guys got me. So why must I clean this up?” I bitched.

“Calm down. You are especially grumpy today. Is it that school starts tomorrow, or that we stopped you from having another five energy?” Robert quipped. .

“It is couldn’t be more clear. Want a better mood give me an energy drink. “ I growled.

Apparently, I had self-destructive tendencies which annoyed the gaggle of dark gods. Those things had a meeting about my lifestyle and decided on some changes. The first thing they decided was that I needed less drugs. The second was even more draconian.

“Not cool by the way. Fucking wonderful.” I muttered waddling through the mess.”I’ll get on that after this is delivered.”

“Naughty-Naughty. You only have one more for the day.” Robert spoke from the porch that was filled with trash.

He didn’t even bother to wave at his sister, who I passed on my way inside. So far I learned two things, the entities were far too weird to truly fully understand. But what I could understand was far too mundane. A middle-class family dynamics with a strange hierarchy that was spit between the father and mother. It was strangely fun to annoy the younger sister, her fashion sense made it so easy. Sure at any moment she would kill me but that would be admitting defeat. That hot pink mess sat on the porch with those pop art sunglasses with shitty gloves and high heels.

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

That hot pink tub top with that strange skirt covered most of her body giving only a glimpse of the shoulders. She looked mostly human with a pallid skin tone and slight acne. But she still couldn’t hide it all, as her neck had a goth necklace that had an owl skull that glowed a faint blue. Her hair was too textured and looked a bit too close to rows of scales. And her gloves had graphics of a striking snake and a biting crocodile. Still, she had improved a bit but she still couldn’t look like anything at least two decades ago.

“Sup, doll.” I began, fully expecting death.” How is the porch? Should you be cleaning that up?”

She grunted, tilting her sunglasses down at me. Then she pointed at her chest and pulled down her top slightly. She flashed me with her breast and had a strange bra that looked like enclosed wings. Then in that serene voice, she retorted,” No. Go do that. This should be right as you are a filth degenerate?”

“I am not a scaly, and you are not as hot as your sister,” I retorted, stepping onto the porch. “Plus, I’m busy. Got the rabbit for your mother, and your lipgloss set won’t be here till tomorrow. And yes, hot pink as always.”

“Thank darling. Would you explain why you're draining that into the house? You realize you're making it hungry?”

“Your mother. You want to be the reason this is later than it is?” I strode past her into the den of insanity.

“You are getting a bit too big for your station. Should I take a finger to remind you of your place ?” she mused with the flicker of a serpent’s tongue.

“Please do. Make sure you take my thumbs, I wouldn’t rather be doing this.”

I pushed the door open. A whip-crack rang out, followed by my yelp of pain. She hit me with her damn tail but if I reacted any harder it would amuse her, so I limped forward, to her sugary laughter. Walking as lightly as possible I moved to the damn back of the house. Every step bent slightly as the blood awaked the ground, and it attempted to take the prey. Of course, I smacked down every misshapen form, and the weird out-reaching tendrils on my path to the kitchen. Then I met the mother.

I still couldn’t fully withstand her nor identify her foreign existence. That being of unknown qualities grabbed the rabbit, devouring it, as I was forced to kneel to this higher power. I could feel the pressure like I was under a great waterfall that seemed to stretch forever. There were no words, never just words. Her thoughts engraved themselves on my very soul leaving brutal ragged impressions on my soul.

I had pleased it and then with a massive gust of wind it tossed me back to the entrance. At least this time I was not in a puddle of my blood. Standing slowly, I turned to the door. Then like clockwork, I felt something unsettling. It was a throbbing dull pointing in the back of my head as my mouth dried. Odd feelings danced around my mind as lust sparked within my chest. The air became a caress and my breathing felt strangely pleasurable.

My eyes darted around looking for the cause. The eldest daughter was watching me from her perch with a sick grin on her face. Unlike the other younger siblings, she had hidden her inhumanity with the facade of beauty, but the little things gave her away. The dimples on her face were a bit too unformed and her skin had slightly misshapen lines like a mix of stretch lines and tattoo ink. Her clothes at least were within the 2000s — simple jeans and crop top hoodie combo that had a very appealing fit. Well, she could wear a literal monkey suit and somehow make it appealing.

Sadly, that was the annoying side effect of her being around. It inflamed the lust and other emotions of the mere mortals around her. Of course, those idiots would do or be anything at a word. Like a constant jezebel, she knew this and made slaves of all those fools who followed like fish to bait. But never to be the face of the group, simply the shadow who was in control. I hadn’t yet gotten used to her presence, but I had a simple coping mechanism. True contempt.

“Sup Witch. What do you want?” I sputtered looking down. “I am kinda recovering from your mother. Can you come back later?”

“How goes it, thrall? I need a favor,” she spoke with that seductive tone.

“Don’t call me that.”

“I will and make it quick I need to nap.”

I sputtered It was too much, so I moved to step two. Pain. Pinching my leg as. I was reaching my limit and she was always taxing.

“How are you able to handle this? I need to know. Come to me.” She mused like a siren.

“Hm hm... Later,” I spat, opening the door back to the younger sister.

She smiled, her fang points glittering in the midday sun. She chuckled at me, looking from her simple book. I sighed as I was stuck between two massive loaded guns. I leaped forward to the younger forcefully slamming my head into the ground. The pain was the roaring river that cleaned away the madness that this hell hole always brought. Grumbling, I pushed myself from the ground only to see the younger sister laughing at me.

That was my struggle, a hell of my own making. Grunting, I got up, limping back over to my house. The world faded as I merely moved over hoping for death. Every step was agony, a painful struggle forward to a soft bed. I imagined Sisyphus felt this way after every push of that damned rock.

I did the basic pattering bullshit to my parents and all that they were talking about. All of it was absent mildly I couldn’t care. It wasn’t important. Only my room was where he sat waiting. Like a prisoner to the gallow I shuffled toward the bastard.

Every evening once a day the father would appear in my room and we would talk. Well, talk if I could manage to open my mouth. Sometimes he would just invade my mind read through the day, and then try to day something that would never really stick. So like any other day in my wonderfully enslavement, I flopped onto my bed.

That man those entities father sat on my chair reading a book. His brow raised as he saw me on the bed. With a slight smirk, he began “You seem more glum than normal. What was that today?”

Sighing, I turned to face the father of the monsters next door. The bastard always had that annoyingly calm voice. Every word sounded like a doctor prescribing medication, despite his ever-shifting features. Still, the only constant on that face was a smug smirk. Slowly lifting my head I looked at the living void and began my report. Every evening I had to start at the beginning, for some reason. I felt like a lab rat that was being cataloged during an experiment.

“Do your females have a concept of restraint?” I grumbled.

“Oh dear, what makes you say that ?”

“Both your daughters are hitting on me. Can they stop? I am already trying not to betray humanity more than I already have.” With a simple turning in my bed, I had hoped to find that bat.

True enough, I fought it again. That strange bat that always seems to hold a level of awareness. It felt kind despite it being a bat. Sometimes in the lonely night, it seems to hum a strange song from a prehistory before the existence of civilization. That sorrowful dirge seems to end the same an eternal wave and the sick laughter of hateful gods. Along with that weirdness, it seemed to alway appear beside me and gave me resolve. It made the months relatively bearable. Sure it clearly had a catch but beggars can’t be choosers.

“Ah, the Elephant tusk is still there.” The father mused.” How does it make you feel ?”

“Wait, you know its name? Does it have a name? Well.. it is kind. Can you give a little info please?” I begged.

“Sure you have earned that much. That you hold is a bone of a race creature that was fond of humans. They have long reincarnated into your species but what remained had some power and perhaps some will. Their bloodline is more connected to your.. Asian subrace? species ever you call that. Still, they would have already come to confront me if they were anywhere near here. Ah, It is time for this talk to end. I must thank you again but be aware. It attracts its own demons.” He gently spoke leaving something on my table. “ I trust you will survive but my dutiful servant I fear others may want to use you. “

With a cryptid and random warning, he disappeared leaving my room in a strange blur. Of all the things that annoyed me the most were the cryptic warning and that disappearing. I glanced by at the setup that led me to this situation sighning. Dispute my better judment I moved towards it, and began to document what was happening. Someone had to keep this record.