A Far Greater Horror
The eldritch nightmare awaiting every injured man
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***
There was only one rule: don’t open the door.
Sounds reasonable, I thought, continuing down the hall.
Later, my knee had finally settled down enough that I could feel sleep coming at last.
Of course, that’s when something else decided to intrude.
Hey, a voice whispered.
I cracked open an eyelid to find a black mass with the slightest suggestion of a human form floating above the bed.
“Why don’t you fuck off?” I muttered as I turned onto my side.
That stunned the shadow into silence for a moment.
Aren’t you…
“Scared?” I finished its thought. “What’s the point of the forbidden door if you’re just going to come harass me if I don’t open it?”
It’s just that, usually humans aren’t so, uh, disciplined.
“You ever had a meniscal tear?”
No knees, so… no.
“You want disciplined? If I take a step wrong, it fucks up my whole day. I miss a stretch and it bites me in the ass.”
Yikes.
“Yeah,” I said, rolling onto my back as I warmed to the subject. “And that’s just the day to day. You ever go to a specialist?”
Specialist?
“You know, a doctor.”
No body, so… no.
“Well, let me tell you, they are not cheap. You’ve never known fear until you’ve been stuck wondering if this service is covered by your insurance.”
Wow, I may be an afterworld specter, but that’s just evil.
“Yeah, so believe me when I say, I got enough horror in my life without pissing off some entity ‘beyond the veil’ or whatever nonsense created you.”
Fair enough.
The shadow drifted toward the wall.
“Hey,” I called after it.
It paused its otherworldly glide short of the wallpaper.
“Thanks for listening.”
It was the first time I had smiled in a long time.
About the Creator
Stephen A. Roddewig
Author of A Bloody Business and the Dick Winchester series. Proud member of the Horror Writers Association 🐦⬛
Also a reprint mercenary. And humorist. And road warrior. And Felix Salten devotee.
And a narcissist:
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Author’s Start Note: Set in an alternate timeline from Parts 1 and 2, “Operation Walleye” explores another deadly consequence of the Cold War that lingers today well after its conclusion: the collapse of the U.S.S.R. and the thousands of Soviet weapons engineers suddenly unemployed and desperate for cash (see end note).
By Stephen A. Roddewig2 years ago in Horror
Comments (9)
great work
Talk about an unconventional horror!!! I love this Stephen!! Very clever!!
Hahahahahahahaha that was hilarious! Life sure has enough horrors!
This is genius! had a feeling I knew what it would be about and love the heavy sarcasm and peaceful end with a smile! really really good, pal!
“Thank for listening” 😅 Looks like you made a friend or fiend. Something tells me he won’t be back though, he’d rather be out scaring someone than listening to valid gripes from humans. Nice entry, Stephen.
I love this way more than a non-sarcastic entry. Gettin’ at the REAL fears ;) (But really though.) nice touch with the ending btw.
Great story, Stephen and it touches on some of my issues. I have a torn meniscus so no more pickle ball or anything else that involves strenuous knee work. As for medical visits, no mater what you may have been told, Medicare is not free. It's skimmed from your social security check every month. Besides all my bitching, I really did enjoy your story!
Oh, I loved this to bits, Stephen!! The humor, the flipped (although, sadly to true to reality) horror and then that smile at the end. Wonderful work :)
free market man is balking at the notion that the healthcare system is imperfect.