The Owl Menace

It was a brisk, cold autumn sunset in the small New England town of West Chesterford, Massachusetts when my wife and I walked down the street toward a local coffee shop. We looked around at the many colorful reds, oranges, and yellows that filled the sky from the many trees around us whose leaves had changed colors and revealed their full splendor. Many people in the coffee shop sat around talking excitedly and sipping hot cocoa. But then we turned our heads to the right and saw something unsettling.

A middle-aged, disheveled man dressed in worn-out, dirty clothing began yelling angrily at something nobody else could see or hear. He yelled, “You will not take my life!” The coffee shop patrons gasped and stared at the man whose outbursts upset their peaceful afternoon. Soon afterwards, he picked up rocks and other objects nearby and threw them toward the thing he believed was threatening him. However, nothing was there, and all he did was dent a few cars and break some windows. The people nearby cowered in fear.

Within moments, a few police cars arrived, and the cops entered the scene. They grabbed the man's arms and handcuffed him. He continued shouting at the air, “No! I must stop the monster! His white mask and glowing yellow eyes! That beak and those sharp talons are coming for us all!” The cops pushed him into one of the police cars and drove away.

Finally, peace and quiet returned to the town, and everyone's pulses returned to normal. My wife remarked, “It's a shame they're not adequately treating those who have mental health issues.”

I agreed, “Delusions and hallucinations can be very disturbing, and I hope finds the help he needs.”

One of the baristas at the coffee shop said to me, “Good to see you here, William. That man has been driving away my customers! Good riddance!”

My wife asked him, “How can you be so callous?”

The barista said, “Look, there's more to worry about than some madman who talks to himself. There's a growing number of people who are succumbing to a strange illness. They first start out weak and gradually lose energy until they fall asleep and never wake up! We don't know how they catch it! The only thing we know is that they were all out late at night when they were hit. I'd go home right now if I were you.”

After drinking our coffees, my wife and I left the café startled and concerned. She said to me, “We could be next. We'd better turn in soon.”

I answered, “I agree. We've seen enough drama for one day.”

Suddenly, my wife received a call from her brother's wife. “Constance, what's up?”

“Lynette! Something terrible has happened! Edward has fallen into a coma!”

My wife began to cry. “What? Why?”

Constance spoke frantically, “We were out last night, and saw something very strange and scary. We escaped, but when we got home, and throughout the next day, Edward slowed down and now he's in a coma. I'm afraid we're going to lose him!”

I said, “Calm down. We'll be there right away!”

When we arrived at their house, I spoke to her, “Tell us what you saw.”

Constance took a few deep breaths and then recounted her experiences. “At 9 pm, we were walking past the cemetery on our way home. Some of the path lights had burned out, making the path much darker than usual. We saw two glowing yellow dots that looked like a pair of eyes watching our every move. When we got closer, we saw that the eyes belonged to a small barn owl. I let out a sigh of relief and looked away. However, Edward saw the barn owl morph into something bigger and far scarier – a large creature with a white mask, glowing yellow eyes, sharp beak and talons, and black feathered wings. It stared at Edward directly in his eyes as if peering into his soul. Then it lunged toward him. I grabbed Edward and pulled him aside. Together we ran and didn't look back. Fortunately, we haven't seen it since.”

Lynette gasped, “Oh my God. I'm glad you're alright.” I remembered the description uttered by the madman as well.

I asked Constance, “Why did it only go after Edward? Did he remember anything about what he saw?”

Constance answered, “I have no idea why it chose him. Strangely, he did not remember a thing.”

I surmised, “I wonder why. Could it be targeting only specific people? And you only saw it because you were there with him when it revealed itself. The victims themselves must not remember anything.”

Lynette suddenly realized something. She said to Constance, “Let's be real here. You and Edward were there to satisfy your curiosity for the paranormal and the occult, right?”

Constance nodded, “Guilty as charged. But it wasn't worth the trouble.”

I said, “No time for regrets now. If we can figure out how to save Edward, we may be able to save the others.”

Constance answered, “You're right. We were there because we were exploring the local historical lore that we found at the oldest library in town – the library on Dead Creek Road.”

Lynette asked, “Dead Creek Road? That part of town is all but forgotten. Nobody goes there anymore.”

Constance said, “But it's been very interesting. One entity in particular has fascinated us. The creature known as The Owl Menace.”

I gasped, “You were trying to meet this creature?” Constance looked down and shook her head.

I answered, “Let's go to that library. We must learn whatever we can about the Owl Menace and see if there's a way to stop it.”

Once we arrived at the library, we searched for all books about the Owl Menace. Before long, it was midnight, but we shrugged off the fatigue in favor of working to bring Edward back.

Eventually we found an ancient text that fully described the Owl Menace. It said “Its victims succumb to a mysterious disease in which they wither away with no known symptoms. The Owl Menace is invisible to mortal eyes. However, it reveals itself in the presence of its intended victim when it strikes. Afterwards, the victim has no memory of the encounter.”

We continued reading. “Some people have a gift that allows them to see the Owl Menace, even as he remains invisible to everyone else.”

I gasped, “That might be the madman outside of the coffee shop! Let's get some rest and try to talk to him tomorrow.”

The next day, I contacted the police department and talked to the madman. “Hello, I am William Peter Franklin, and I'm investigating the Owl Menace. I found that only a few people can see the Owl Menace. Are you one of them?”

The man shouted elatedly, “Yes! My name is Bob Marshall! I know I'm not crazy! I've been tracking this owl creature and the victims he's claimed for a long time. You're the first who has ever listened to me.”

I answered, “Good. I need your help to find this creature.”

He answered, “I thought you'd never ask. I'm only here on a temporary hold. We can talk later.”

Once Bob was released, he said, “The local clairvoyant and paranormal expert, Martha Sullivan, can help us too. She has been trying to communicate with the Owl Menace.”

Later in the day, we met Martha. She said, “I'm pleased to meet you all. I understand that this very urgent, but so far I have been unsuccessful in contacting the Owl Menace. But with our combined efforts, it may work.”

I asked, “Combined? What can we do?”

Martha said, “I'll guide you. Then we can focus on him and communicate together.”

I asked, “How can you prevent him from attacking us while communicating with him? And how can we fight him?”

Martha answered, “The ritual will shield us from his psychic attacks. It's not about fighting or defeating a supernatural force. It's about understanding it and working with it to make sure it doesn't conflict with what you value.

She then led us through the rituals. Once we were connected, the room went cold. Martha whispered, “He's here.”

The Owl Menace growled, “Who has summoned me?”

Martha answered, “It is I, Martha Sullivan. Why you are targeting individuals and silencing them?”

The Owl Menace said, “I fight against the sins of man and all who oppose my master. Humans are corrupt and evil and must be stopped.”

Bob exclaimed, “You can't decide that! We deserve to decide for ourselves and work out our own conflicts.”

“That hasn't worked out well for you with all of the wars and destruction your kind brings. Many other mortals say the same things. But big words aren't enough to save the human race from itself.”

Martha asked, “So why do you target individuals?”

The Owl Menace said, “My master found several individuals that he believes are harmful and will seed calamity and destruction everywhere if allowed to do as they please. He has sent me to purge them from this world.”

I exclaimed, “Who gives him the right to do this!?”

The Owl Menace turned to me and my anxiety spiked. “You don't say.”

I asked, “Just who is this master anyway?”

The Owl Menace said, “Glad you asked. Master.” I jumped back in my seat and looked around quizzically. “That's right. I'm doing this on behalf of your former self.”

Martha then looked into my eyes as if to read my soul and said, “It seems that he is correct. In a past life, you used to be a powerful warlord who dabbled in the supernatural and aided kings and set many events in motion for better or worse. Unfortunately, your adversaries multiplied over time, and it wasn't long before someone near you betrayed you. You called upon this owl spirit to protect you by striking them down in the future so they would not harm you any further.”

The Owl Menace chimed in, “And indeed I have done as you have requested, my master.”

I responded, “But these people are totally different now and have no memory of what happened back then. Some of them are even friends and family in this life, like my brother in law. I can't ask you to keep doing this. You must stop.”

The Owl Menace answered “You've learned your lesson. You can't just wish away all conflict and pain. Sometimes you have to learn how to deal with those that may harm you. See the humanity in others and know that most people have been growing and are very different now than before. How about I instead work with you and protect you on a case by case basis as you go through life?”

I said, “Not sure I trust you. This could all be a trick.”

The Owl Menace answered, “I am what you have made me out to be. Let go of the vengeance and we can begin a new path together.”

I said, “Alright.” As I did this, the Owl Menace's imposing features transformed into less-intimidating ones, and he took on the appearance of an ordinary barn owl.

Shortly afterwards, Martha brought us out of the session, and we awakened to a new day. Edward called Constance and said, “Honey, where have you been?”

Constance began crying and said, “It's a miracle!” We turned on the news and found that all of the others who had been affected likewise had returned to normal. When we went back to the coffee shop, we saw the homeless man Bob wandering around and waved to him. We had not seen the owl spirit since then, but we do get reminders of his presence. Sometimes when we're at home, we hear the owl hooting in our yard to remind us that he is watching over us and helping us out in more ways than one.