Seven Roads To Hell
Seven Roads To Hell
Antarctica
“Captain Hoover, the observation satellite has been showing some weird symbols 1.27 miles North West of our current location. It seems to be like a hut.”
“A hut! Here? Who would want to live here of all places?”
“I don’t know but the satellite has never been wrong before. It would be a good idea to check it out.”
Captain Hoover; It felt nice to be called that. I had been assigned to this location two days ago. My promotion had been due for quite some time now. I felt no small amount of pride. It had last a full of 2 minutes before I was told that the location would be Antarctica.
I needed to go and confirm the presence of the hut. I packed supplies for one week before setting off. The biting wind sliced my cheeks as I made my way towards the hut. After waking a mile or so, I could make out the silhouette of the thatched roof. There were footprints leading inside.so I called out, “Hello?”
I didn’t really expect a response over all the noise. I was ten steps away from the entrance. As I started walking, I made out five different set of footprints. They did not walk towards the opening that I assumed as the door. They ended near the walls. I tried to look around but they had vanished without a trace. After some scouring, I found those very same footprints- three on one side and two on the other starting from the walls.
They led towards the 2nd laboratory north west of his station. Deciding to look into it later on, he turned back towards the hut. There were people talking inside.
“I can’t stay here anymore. I am slowly dying out. We need to leave.”
“We can’t. Don’t you see the eye of the storm? It is almost at our doorstep.”
“Yeah, do you have a death wish?”
I froze up. There was no storm here. Not at least for 2 months. The footsteps made no sense and neither did their conversation. Deciding not to linger anymore, I gently backed away and started my journey towards the observation centre.
Seeing my confused expression, I decided to explain what had happened. The decision was made to go and resolve this anomaly the very next morning with a tactical team.
The next morning, we set out. There were six of us including me. I showed them the hut from afar. Nobody had noticed this before. With a shrug, I began my slow trudge through the snow. I was grateful that it was summer or I would have fallen in the first snow bank that I came across. The footprints were there and so were the voices repeating the same nonsense.
Highly unnerved, I entered only to find no one. After looking about for about an hour, Zachary found a faded piece of paper.
"March 2, 1912
Every day we have been ready to start for our depot 11 miles away, but outside the door of the tent it remains a scene of whirling drift. I do not think we can hope for any better things now. We shall stick it out to the end, but we are getting weaker, of course, and the end cannot be far. It seems a pity but I do not think I can write more. R. Scott. Last entry. For God's sake look after our people."
“Sir, there is a problem.” It was Zachary.
“What is it?”
“There is a snowstorm formed outside the hut.”
(Based on Captain Robert Falcon Scott's Entry found)
-Anonymous
North America
This story is about a girl in a red dress. Even now, as I write, she waves at me. I always have been a rebel, ever since I was a child; a pain for my parents and a disgrace to my family .My Papa had always forced me to join up courses and studies from which I could become a great civil engineer like my brother, him, Pépé, Maman. It had been a legacy to be followed by all in the family. But I hearted for working up in a research of nature and behaviour of people and become a criminologist. So I ran away! Yeah I did, maybe I'm serving just its punishment right now. It all began then, when I escaped to Toronto a classy part of whole Canada to find my path. I enrolled myself into a college with the money I stole from Papa. I didn't have much cash on me so I didn't know where to stay, Toronto had a lot of fancy hotels but they weren't an option for me, so I decided to rent a place in a cottage near railway subway. It was quite cheap but shabby as hell. The smell of rotten meat was all lingering over the place. The window showed the whole beautiful view of drains and garbage trash bags near the railway junctions. Well I couldn’t help it though. It was getting late in the night already but I was very excited to see the new city so I took a ticket to the first fancy place I could find up on the internet. l boarded the train, it was supposed to be running along a underground route .I was really excited to see the Toronto subways as my Pépé had worked to construct them back when he was young. The compartment was relatively empty so I chose the seat with the best view. I had my all eyes out on the platforms and tracts but in the midst of all that I got a hunch of something standing behind, when I turned around to have a look, my eyes glued to what I saw. I saw a girl dressed in red in a floor touching dress. She was a real beauty. Oh right, I didn't mention that I was a lesbian yeah that's why I was moving to an urban area, and staying with my Papa wasn't an ideal situation for me. The girl wanted to say something to me but I flustered and got out. Not knowing where I was and embarrassed, I decided to get out the subway and take a cab back to my perfect villa!
So, I went home took a nap, woke up and got ready for my first day at college. I reached my college and in the first lecture the same girl from subway wearing the same outfit turned out to be my partner for first lecture. That was odd I didn’t know that girls wear ball night dresses and come to college in Toronto .If I were at my hometown the girls would've made a joke of it all after the conversation I had with her, I came to know that she was Marie, a shy girl who didn't like to open up much and I assumed that, the red dress was her favourite.
I asked her, “What were you doing in a rail at such a night time?"
She said, “Enjoying the mystical screams".
When I asked her to elaborate on it, the students started shouting out loudly in my class after seeing a boy who just walked in casually.
She said, “He’s Robbie, the seniors spread up a rumour about him being dead in accident, but he actually survived it in the nick of time which nobody knew till now "She added, “It’s his first day in the college after the rail accident, so the mobs are in a shock."
I asked her if she knew him. She denied it.
Later that day I tried to be kind to Robbie, even though he seemed a little weird as he was carrying with him a book, ‘Spooky & Ghostly’. Still I started a conversation with him and asked him if he was well after the accident. He said he was fine and finally out of that state. I asked him about' his escape from the accident. He said, "l sold my soul to her" in a serious tone. Surprised, I stared at him for a moment. He blew a laugh when he saw Marie approaching us. He clearly wanted to make a fool of me in front of her. That day Robbie suggested a plan to go to an abandoned building near my cottage to me and Marie. I didn't want to go there; nobody would with a joker go to a creepy place. But Marie was all okay with it so I gave up and agreed to tag along after an hour of badgering. I didn't want to be a spoilsport after all. We agreed to meet near the gates of the building at 12p.m.
That night, the scene of the building was disastrous, the huge Maple trees giving me signs that I should just leave but Marie's smile helped me all the way, so we all met up outside and got into the building. I don't know what gets into peoples’ brains to do all this spooky shit on Halloween's. I was shivering that night. My heart beat was thumping louder and louder with every second .Marie and I both were alone in a room. Robbie had disappeared into the darkness, there was a creaking sound near the piano, I mustered all my courage to see who was there near the piano, I took heavy breaths and step by step carefully with my guard up went there as the creaking sound was all the more increasing .I approached that wall and nearly lost my mind after realising that we were shivering over a fat cat tumbling over the seat. I told Marie all about it and we had a great laugh over it. But it was short lived as Marie exclaimed, “I swear I saw something at the end of staircase ".I played extra and confidently walked up to brag above the staircase and yelled to Marie down "There's nothin' up here!" .Well that was a huge mistake cause something dressed up in a white flowing garment came behind me and yelled, "BOO!" I was petrified and had a break down and I started crying almost every last tear in my body was pouring out in galore .Then I heard a familiar voice saying "GOTCHA GIRL!" It was Robbie! I was so mad at him that I stormed out of that building off on my own. Later I stood outside, took a deep breath turned behind to glare at the building's structure and took a maple tree's support. Suddenly somebody threw a giant rock at me on my head from the branches of the tree. My vision blurred and that's all I remember. Maybe I fainted. The next thing I see when I open my eyelids is Robbie. I knew he was trouble, and he had done it all. I screamed at him with a shrivelled voice
"Who do you think you are? That's no fun- throwing rocks at people!"
He said, "I'm not an Olympic like you to run so fast and climb a tree and do this troubleshooting. You were lying here when I arrived here."
"Then how did you go on the staircase so quickly", I said.
"Cause you both were fooling around down", said Robbie.
I just decided to leave that place and walk back to my apartment.
I went home thudded on my bed looking out at the window yearning to go back to my parents. I don't remember when did I fell asleep. I woke up nearly around 4 a.m. and hear some voice in a hoarse voice 'Aidez-Moi' something I knew it was something in French but couldn't comprehend what it was as I had never shown any interest in learning new languages. I followed the voice and I noticed that it was coming from next door. Now, I was in such a state of mind that I couldn't go search for someone scary blindly at 4 in the night so I returned to my room and waited till the sounds were gone. Next day I see that Robbie was the person who lived there. When I asked Robbie with a frown regarding what was he doing there, he said that he had rented that place as after the accident he didn't want to live alone in a large house.
I didn't know what to do then. A part of me wanted to kill him for being such a trouble-maker but my heart felt really pitiful for him. So I just went back to my room and got ready for my second day at college .I got out of my room and I thought I could give company to Robbie for college but he had already left, so I just got down and went to the railway station. I had missed my train for the college, so I thought I could take another train which goes from subway as it was quite fast compared to another trains. I entered the train and again no one was there in the rail, it was all empty. As the doors of the train closed there I tried to take glimpse of the view outside I realised that there was blood draining from above the window. I was so shocked I froze there still mean while the train started to move. From another window I tried to take a glimpse of what exactly was happening out. The train was moving very fast but I happened to observe that there was Robbie out the window covered in blood.
The train stopped directly to the platform at which I had to get down for college. I got down collected my calm and ran straight headed towards my college's principal to tell him all of the mess that happened to me last night but he thought it was all a Halloween bluff on my mind and recommended to go back and rest. I told him about Robbie to which he replied "He is present right next door doing the research I told him to do, you could check on him.” I went to the place he directed me and saw that Robbie was really there! I believed what principal said to me and went to my classroom to collect my notes from French teacher. While I was in the classroom I realised that Marie wasn't present that day and I asked my teacher about her she angrily shouted at me "Now who is this Marie? Is she someone from another class, don't make up stuff just to make a fool of your teachers.” I was hurt hearing that so I headed to leave the college but then as I was about to leave Robbie came at me and said with deep seriousness and terror “I know I have harassed you but this book will help you get over it. Take it”. I had never seen that terror in Robbie's eyes before. I decided to read that book immediately. Robbie left after handing over the book to me. As I opened the book instead of a bookmark I saw a rail ticket, blood covered with 'Aidez-Moi. It's killing me.' written on it. I had by this time become resistant to all of Robbie's tricks so I just went left the college went home and took a nap .I went down outside the cottage to stroll around. I felt better there. Later on I stared on to the sky in the twilight and lied down at the ground while wind grazed my cheeks and I heard a sound saying, "Why don't you come up at the subway to meet me!" .I knew that was a familiar voice I looked up but there was no one there! I thought that I should go and see who had called who there. I saw that it was Marie standing there almost moving towards me in that red dress as if she were floating in air. She came near me and said that she had been waiting for me. I would have been pleased to see her there. I wanted to tell her all that had happened that day in the morning. But something stopped me. She was floating!
But she said me to recall if I knew who made those subways. "Yeah I know it's my Pépé". Why, what happened?"
She replied "People died here while construction, do you know that?"
"Ummm...nope. Why are you acting so odd?”, I exclaimed.
"Revenges are left.” She said.
Suddenly I heard that a person was running from behind and coming closer and closer to us. I saw that it was Robbie with a knife in his hand yelling "I’m going to end it all for once and for all today".
I ran as fast as I could from there towards the exit but I looked over my shoulder while running simultaneously that he had grabbed Marie and tied her and was coming towards me.
I went from there to the cottage, he was still chasing me through the corridor yelling something about "I need you, Aidez-Moi " but I managed to get inside and I called out for cops from my mobile saying to the operator," My...my... friend had been kidnapped and the kidnapper is outside the door waiting for me with a knife " I mentioned my location and name to the operator. Robbie was still out yelling something in French. I got out of the room when all the noises were gone and cops arrived, I saw Robbie was lying on the floor with his both legs chopped off. I was surprised to see him lying there. His eyes seemed to be looking directly at me. After a minute of standing there, I realised that he was dead.
I inquired to the cops about Marie saying "She was my friend in the red dress, she was standing near the subway. Did you find her?"
The policemen gave me a look and said "Child do you even know the legends?"
He told me that there was a legend that a legless lady dressed in red moves here from time to time in the subway seeking revenge. Nobody knew why.
After having a word with the police, I tried to ask him what ‘Aidez-Moi’ meant. He said that it's help me in French. After the cops left and said you try and stay away from that place. Everything fit right into its place...Why did no one but Robbie and I ever see Marie? Why did she want revenge? Who threw that rock on Halloween? Why did Robbie bluff away when Marie heard that he spoke about the trade of souls with a girl in the rail accident? Why did Robbie carry spooky ghost busting books? Why she never wore anything else but a floor touching dress. That note in the book Robbie gave wasn't a bookmark.
I feel terrible for not helping Robbie. But what scares me the most is that while I'm here in my room sitting writing this up she is gleefully waving at me as though nothing has happened through the window standing near the track... This is the last note that I will be able to write as she has stopped waving and is rubbing her hands together. I will not be able to escape in time. I want to go back to my home town and live with Pépé. I want people to know about what happened; especially my family. If you are reading this note, you will have retrieved this from my pocket. Help me reach my family. Aidez-Moi!
Rtr. Shree Joshi
Rotaract Club of NM College.
South America
In the San Juan province, in the southern parts of Argentina, lays a small village called Pocito.
This singular name which means 'little pit' arose from a legend, extremely popular among the people; the legend of Mariana- the indigenous woman.
Legend had it, that every summer without fail; the place was visited by a woman, thin but not quite tall. With skin wrinkled and thin like paper, but glowing bronze. Her appearance was dark and mysterious and spooky. Looking at her one could tell that her beauty had been weathered by the passage of time even if she may have been pretty when she was younger. Her mannerisms spoke of hidden aggression she didn't seem capable of. Her watery but intense eyes changed colours with the times of the day.
She always turned up on the side of a road beneath a Carob tree which magically bloomed and withered with her arrival and departure.
Wearing a big layered skirt, a Dusty turban, ragged 'rebozos' wrapped around her shoulders, she was accompanied by an old dog. She smoked cigars and told stories to the local children. The little ones would always be lured to her, listening with rapt attention to her fascinating tales.
She spoke about worlds full of superstitions and about centuries long gone. She spoke as if fondly reminiscing about her childhood.
She knew each of the children by their names but always steered clear of all adults, fixing them with a malevolent stare. The only time she spoke with them was when she wanted to sell her golden nuggets which she always carried with her when she came. When asked she would say she collected them from a "little pit" nearby which they lay. She warned the villagers could only ever be found by her.
One day, a group of Spaniards arrived in the city. Deeply intrigued by the legend of Mariana, they followed her into the dark with hopes of finding the little pit she got her riches from.
However what awaited them at the pit was shocking. Instead of the old dog they came across a hellhound with eyes red as blood and a fiery breath. The Spaniards scrambled to run away. Their journey out was accompanied by the cackling laughter of a witch.
The very same day Pocito was hit by a massive earthquake. It brought terrible destruction the likes of which had never been seen before. Mariana was never seen again and neither was her dog or the much sought after golden nuggets.
The Spaniards never returned. No one knew what had become of them. Weeks later, one of them was found drinking away at a bar. His appearance was crazed. His mind haunted by the supernatural experience he been part of. He was rambling on about ancient legends, demonic dogs, and shiny magical caves and of course about a queen-the most beautiful he had ever seen. He claimed to have seen it all and would walk barefoot back to her if it meant that he could be with her forever.
From that day on many looked for the pit where the golden nuggets could be found but all their efforts were in vain. The city was named after that same “little pit”. Many still dream about finding it and becoming rich. Even today this legend is quite spoken of in the city. The city is after all named after that legend. Who knows maybe one day someone will find the little pit. Till then we can only pass on this legend to the coming generations. Like any gold-digger, I ventured to see this cave in hopes of either finding the gold or putting to rest this rumour. It turned out to be a disappointment. The cave was just that- a normal cave. However just as I was leaving, I heard the scraping of gold.
I desperately started looking for the source of the noise. There was nothing visible. The noise started growing louder and my vision started to get hazy. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a carcass covered in gold. I scrambled away from it.
All I managed to do was bang into the wall. I started losing consciousness rapidly. Sweat trickled down my brows. The last thing I remember seeing was the skull turning towards the entrance of the cave. I may have been awake then, but I don’t remember anything except cackling. When I opened my eyes, I saw a man sprinkling water on my face.
“Where am I?”
“You are at the hospital at San Juan. We found you unconscious near the outskirts of the next village.”
“How…I was at the cave of the indigenous woman.”
“What nonsense! That cave has been closed for many years now. There was a cave-in. It is closed to the public.”
“But I was at Pocito, looking for the gold in Mariana’s cave.”
“It has been 2 days since we found you. There was an earthquake in Pocito yesterday.”
Rtr. Prachi Babar,
Rotaract Club of NM College.
Europe
This horror story is by Mr. Natters, who was spending his holiday in Spain. On reading the same, you will be left intrigued, and an air of spookiness might seem to surround you.
I live in the UK but this story happened when I was on holiday in 2001, aged 11, in Gran Canaria (a Spanish island off the Moroccan Coast).
Being 11 and it being summer, I remember spending a lot of time in the apartment complex outdoor pool. My parents bought me a child's snorkel and eye mask set and I remember spending a great portion of the holiday hunting for treasure at the bottom of the pool! My brother, who was also on the holiday, was 7 and had not yet learned to swim efficiently without rubber inflatable arm bands.
The pool was fairly large and had a man-made island in the middle containing palm trees and sun loungers. Parts of the pool were fairly secluded by palm trees, rockery and other shrubbery. I guess to give the impression that we were in some kind of tropical oasis! It was fairly posh.
Anyway, one day I was snorkeling in the pool late afternoon. Our parents were around but at the other side of the pool area (it was fairly big as I have mentioned). The pool and the loungers were fairly empty as many people had gone back to their apartments to get ready for the evening. I was in a secluded area of the pool. All of a sudden, I heard an almighty splash and felt a bump to my head as my brother dived on top of me from the side. Being 7, boisterous and full of energy, he had forgotten to put his arm bands on. Immediately he began to struggle as his feet wouldn't reach the bottom. My feet wouldn't touch the bottom either and so I tried to drag him to the side as he gripped onto me in panic pulling me under.
I would say we were around 6 feet from the side but this seemed like 6 miles as I tried to drag him while attempting to doggy paddle to the side. Because he was struggling this was extremely difficult and I remember swallowing quite a bit of water. Past splashing, I don't think either of us could shout for help as our heads were in and out of the water.
After the initial struggle, I felt us both propelled to the side as if someone had pushed us to help us out. We both managed to grip onto the side coughing and spluttering. The whole thing must have only lasted 15-20 seconds but felt much longer.
I turned around to say thank you to whoever had pushed us but no one was there...
Didn't think much of this at the time but now I wonder if it was "something" helping us? Or if my adrenaline kicked in and I swam to the side by myself out of sheer panic and managed to drag him with me?
“Thank You!” I exclaimed to no one in particular. I couldn’t get the words out of my mouth. I believe it was the water in my lungs. However, I heard a faint whispering.
“No help is without a price.” My throat felt constricted. No air left my lungs as I tried to shout.
Rtr. Maushmi Wagle,
Rotaract Club of NM College.
Australia
"I can't tell you how excited I am for this trip!"
"Yeah, we're going to have a blast. It's your first bachelorette after all, "Vivaan winked, while going through a range of wallets at a store.
We were at the airport, the four of us, waiting for our delayed flight to Queensland, Australia.
Yes, it was my bachelorette; I was getting married to the love of my life in 2 months. My closest buddies decided on this trip the moment my wedding date was fixed. They were as enthusiastic about this trip as me, probably even more because I was the first person from the gang to be getting married. The destination had been on our bucket list since long, so we decided to cross that off the list by making it our bachelorette destination.
So there we were, eagerly waiting for the journey to commence.
We were four of us, me, Vivaan, Akshay and Sudhir.
The two hour delay soon ended and we were in Australia even before we knew it. This is what always happens. Whenever you want time to pass slowly and cherish each and every moment, time seems to fly all the more faster.
Queensland was our exact port of destination. It was a two week trip, wherein we intended to spend most of our time discovering new things and seeking adventures we'd never even thought of undertaking before.
A major chunk of the first week was spent in enjoying the beauty of Queensland, trying out the various lip-smacking delicacies, clubbing and dancing our hearts out.
In short, the first week was so enjoyable and ecstasy-filled, that it all went by in a blur.
Our true adventures began in the second week. The first thing we tried was bungee jumping. To be extremely honest, it scares me out of my wits. I didn't even have the guts to look down from such a great height. But that's what we were there for. Overcoming our fears and rediscovering ourselves.
Unbelievably, it turned out to be one of the best moments of my life. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Next we went shark diving, kite surfing, trekking etc.
Last but not the least was, the Devil's Pool, also known as Babinda Boulders.
Babinda Boulders took on this spooky name thanks to a runaway bride named Oolana who leapt to her watery grave when she was separated from her would-be husband. Indigenous legend has it that she’s been luring men into the dangerous swimming hole ever since. The Devil’s Pool has claimed 17 lives since 1959.
When we heard this, we dismissed it as a fake myth, considering all the deaths to be an accident caused due to sheer recklessness. Also, our conscience would've certainly felt guilty if we backed out from this last adventure. Come what may, we bravely decided to take the plunge, taking care to stay within limits. Little did we know what destiny had in store for us.
So the next day, we changed into our nylons and submerged ourselves into the pool. The water was cool and refreshing. We were soon splashing water on each other, reliving our childhood days. But unfortunately, Sudhir was soon desperately crying for help. At first, we didn't understand what had come over him. But realization soon struck us as we saw him trying to swim against the unseen force which seemed to be pulling him deeper into the pool. There was nothing we could do but watch helplessly as our dear friend was lost among the waves. We tried desperately searching for him, rather his 'body', but to no avail. The tears in our eyes could no longer control themselves, as we left the now gloomy place.
In the end, all we could find was an eerie epitaph,
"He came for a visit....and stayed forever."
The next morning, when we woke up, we realised what had happened the previous day. Vivaan said that he was going once more to look for Sudhir. We tried to dissuade him but he was adamant. In the end, we only agreed because he promised to be careful.
When night fell, we waited for him to return. There was a knock on the door. I ran towards the door.
“Do you have any idea how worried we were?”
I then realised that there was no one at the door. There was a soaked letter lying on the ground.
‘Nothing survives alone. Even in death.
Rtr. Zalak Sanghavi,
Rotaract Club of NM College.
Asia
If you ever find yourself alone on a quiet, foggy street after dark in Japan, you should probably beeline for the nearest populated place because you might just encounter Kuchisake Onna.
At first, you probably won’t be too upset about running into the woman who seemed to just appear out of thin air right in front of you. She’s gorgeous and demure, wearing a white surgical mask over her mouth. It might not be a very normal thing in other countries but it is very normal in Japan to wear a surgical mask when one is infected with cold etc. But then she comes over and.......
Once, an American exchange student, Clyde and his sister, Isabelle had to shift to Japan with their single mother due to transfer to the Japanese branch of an international bank. Clyde was 17 and Isabelle 13. Their father had passed away two years after Isabelle's birth in an overseas accident. They were not only completely unfamiliar to the areas, but also received living quarters away from the town. Clyde used to work part time as a helper in the school library for some extra income. Isabelle used to come home with Clyde who used to stay an hour extra after school so that they could return together and save money.
Once when it had gotten really late due to some extra workload, Clyde's regular bus had already left. Since there were no taxis to be found, they had to go home walking. They were not very familiar with the routes but knew of a shortcut on foot told by a friend.
They started walking and it was through a dark alley. The winters in Japan are quite foggy. They could barely see anything owing to the streetlights.
Just then, a beautiful woman approached them with a surgical mask on from around the corner. It was very normal for people to wear surgical masks in Japan. She had mesmerising blue eyes, a weird glow on her face and bright pink cheeks. She was enchanting. Just then she approached them with a piece of paper in her hand. It looked as if she was looking for an address.
She stopped the children and asked them in a sweet voice, "Am I beautiful?” It was a weird question but as a common courtesy, Clyde said, "Yes". To the brother and sister's horror she removed her mask. Her mouth was slit from one ear to another. "What about now?” she asked. Isabelle was too scared to say anything, but Clyde in a state of panic said, "No." She took out a pair of scissors from her pocket and slit Clyde's face from ear to ear and slit his throat. He started bleeding really fast. It was only a matter of seconds before he fell to the ground choking and he died on the spot.
Isabelle froze up due to the shock of seeing her brother die, but owing to the thoughts of their mother, she started running. But in whichever alley she would try to run, the monster would corner her. After running three alleys, Isabelle hid behind a car. However, Kuchisake managed to catch up with her. She then asked Isabelle, "You. What do you think?" Isabelle said, “Yes." Kuchisake stopped advancing towards her. Thinking she got off the hook, Isabelle ran back home when the monster met her in front of her house and slit her throat with the scissors. Even Isabelle died on the spot. The mother of two who was looking from the window for her two children was heartbroken.
She ran towards her daughter. Holding her hand, she faced Kuchisake in the shadow. Kuchisake asked the same question to her. She did not even get a grunt of acknowledgement much less an answer. As the monster approached her, she answered, “You may be pretty but you are certainly not beautiful.”
Blood dripped from the scissors. Too much already for one night but she would not stop. Not until she got someone to question herself. Not until a traveler could give her the answer she needed.
Maybe she would find him tonight. Maybe. Who knows?
According to the Japanese folk, if they had said “Maybe”, this would confuse her. They would have run; she’d be so flummoxed that she wouldn't give chase and they would escape.
Do you think you would be composed enough to trick her? Or would you fall victim to a scissor-wielding maniac?
Rtr. Nitansh Shah
Rotaract Club of NM College.
Africa
After spending a night or two at the town and collecting the necessary items for their adventure they set out on their exploration drive. They encountered the soldier on guard duty at the city gates who warned that a significant amount of territory was still under the control of the locals who could be dangerous. But our heroes decided to ignore his warning and continued-on with their travel. The town gradually went out of their sight as they walked deeper into the forest.
After traveling for few days, they came across a lake and debated as to what they should name it. As they were engrossed in their debate while having their bread, a local noticed them sitting by the lake. They had not sensed his presence but as the people watching them increased they noticed them. They at first seemed quite scared of these locals for they were huge but after they conveyed that they meant no harm through the desperate and ambiguous use of hand signs, the tension between them calmed down. The locals in a similar fashion tried to invite them to their camp but it was accompanied by some weird noises.
They rested at camp and were provided food. They packed resupplied themselves with food and fresh water and in exchange of the generosity of the locals they gave them a bottle of wine. They set out early in the morning and entered a weird portion of forest. Unlike the lush green forest bustling with wildlife this portion was extremely quiet, so quite that it was that only sound was that of their breathing and the twigs that they occasionally stepped on. They were not feeling quite so they decided that Lucas would wait there till Nicholas would contact the locals and ask for help and directions.
Lucas waited there for 2 hours the in that creepy place and humming songs to downplay his fear. He smelled a sweet fragrance and was drawn towards it. He saw tree which was hideous in appearance but had some beautiful bright pink flowers. He thought of plucking them for these beautiful and fragrant flowers deserved to in his hand rather than this tree which had thick, green branches with long spikes and no leaves and instead of spreading up in the air, had drooping branches on which these flowers were situated. And as he approached the tree, the all branches of the quickly moved and pierced Lucas with its spikes at multiple spots and then quickly tore him apart with his body parts on multiple branches it. The tree then started to devour this flesh of his by putting these pieces into what seemed to be the mouth of the tree in its centre.
Nicholas had returned to their decided spot with some locals who were ready to be their guide. But surprisingly he did not find Lucas at their rendezvous point and cautiously traced the footsteps of his friend. He reached the same tree and saw an incredible amount of blood on the ground and on looking up saw an eye and some dismembered limbs on the blood-soaked branches of the tree. Before he could grasp the situation, he was pushed by the locals towards the tree, which killed him in that very brutal way without even giving the chance to let out a scream to its victims. This was the holy tree of the locals and Lucas and Nicholas were the sacrifices offered by them to their deity. The tree continued to munch on its victims as the locals laughed in the background.
-The story is inspired by the Madagascan folklore of the man-eating tree. /
Rtr. Tanish Dhami
Rotaract Club of NM College.
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