Kauai was called "the Garden Isle" for its beautiful landscapes and vegetation. But all gardens had to be watered, and so rain poured down in sheets.

Victoria whistled happily. The rain pitter-pattered on her yellow slicker and white umbrella. Ordinarily, she'd be kept inside during the rain, but seeing as her father had the flu, she was off to her friend Lilo's house. So much the better.

A cloud of thick fog filled the air, so there were few other people out. And very few cars. It gave off a feeling of solitude, but no loneliness. It felt nourishing to be alone as the rain fell around her.

She crossed Main Street and skipped along Poplar Street. The local church was at the corner, a beautiful little brick building. Just looking at the church or the large statue of the Creator made Victoria feel warm and safe.

An elderly man hobbled along the church's lawn, though his legs looked too thin and twisted to support his body. He didn't carry an umbrella and was not wearing a raincoat despite the pouring rain. His skin was yellow, and looked waxy. White hair clung to his scalp like sheets of wet linen. A giant snaggle tooth protruded from his lower jaw like a gravestone, and would have looked goofy were it not for its sharpness. His hunchback was of Quasimodo proportions. The grass beneath his feet died and turned brown as he shuffled along.

Victoria knew it wasn't polite to stare, but the man looked so bizarre, even freaky, she couldn't help it. He looked like something out of a Lemony Snicket book. And there was something bizarre about him. Something she couldn't quite figure out.

The man made no acknowledgement of Victoria's presence. He just moved toward the giant statue of the Creator, Walt Disney.

The statue exploded. There was no better word for it: thousands of pieces of marble flew in every direction. There was no sound or boom, the statue simply blew apart like a clay pigeon in a shooting gallery. Victoria flinched as Walt's head landed at her feet, as if it had been a real severed head.

One by one, the church's beautiful stained glass windows broke. Once again, there was no sound.

The man laughed, and it was a horrible, grating sound. With one final cackle, he stepped back and faded into the thick fog.

Tears welled up in Victoria's eyes as she stared at the broken bits of stone and colored glass. "Why?" Should I go to the police? No. What are they going to think? That a poor old man broke the statue without any dynamite or a sledgehammer? Heh, he probably can't even lift a sledgehammer! They'd think I did it. The thought of being accused of such desecration was worse than witnessing the act. The police wouldn't believe her, a little girl. Not to mention the members of the Kokaua Town Police Department were notorious for sneaking off to go surfing on duty.

Victoria looked up at the sky, the cold rain spilling onto her face and getting in her eyes. It wasn't just her imagination. The midday sky had gone from gray to black.

The rain just didn't feel safe anymore. Indeed, Victoria felt the temptation to run the rest of the way to Lilo's house. But then, something else might chase her, maybe even the old man. So she settled for walking fast.

Author's Note: Apologize for the shortness. I just felt it'd be ruined if I added more.