Chapter One


Emery Waterman stared at the green stem against his black glove, a constant reminder of the horror that had been Rose Red. Red like blood. Red like madness... like fury. The pain of his lost fingers was all but gone, but the feeling lingered. When he closed his eyes at night he returned to the castle. Trapped. Bleeding. Demons with eyes of red. Rose red...

"Mom..." The crimson flower landed at his feet on the ground. Remembrance. Regardless of the person she had turned him into, and the thing that she had become, that strong connection between mother and child had not faded.

He glanced upward and could have sworn he saw a flash of white in the tower. 'Not there.' He shook his head. It was gone, but the sense of being watched remained.

Usually, the survivors of the Rose Red incident visited the castle together or in pairs. No one wanted to take the risk of being drawn in again, but Emery was confident in his powers, which he had recently gained full control of. Of course, he wasn't half as powerful as he *had* been... in that house. What was horrific reality to everyone else was merely a nightmare to him.

He had only been a child when his psychic powers had first made an appearance. He and his mother had just moved to a new house, which he had taken great pleasure in exploring. Upon entering one of the rooms, he had been taken aback. The paint was peeling off of the walls. Furniture from centuries ago occupied much of the space. Then he had felt a large, cold hand on his shoulder.

He had spun around, only to see the horrific face of something... someone... that was either inhuman or without life. The thing... man... before him had been dressed in the finest of clothes, but they, too, were obviously from another time. The entrance and exit to the room were blocked by his bulky presence. Being only 8 and very, very afraid, the young psychic had rushed over to a corner of the room and promptly curled into a ball, rocking back and forth, his arms around his knees. The person had not approached him, choosing instead to stand in place and observe.

"Not there..." Young Emery's voice rang out over the room, over and over, as he tried to convince himself of his mindless mantra. "Not there not there not there..." Then he had felt something... a kind of freedom... and upon opening his eyes, he had discovered that the creature and the peeling walls were gone.

In later years he was found to be post-cognitive, a skill that few wanted and many feared. Fortunately, as he grew from a young boy into a chubby, odd man, thanks to his mother, he grew accustomed to his 'gift' and learned to use his own will to 'send' the demons that haunted him. Yes, life had been relatively good when he had received the call about Rose Red.

Oh, what he would give now to have heeded the warnings and refused the venture. Yet, would he be half the man he was now without Rose Red? What would life be like back under the control of his overbearing mother? What if he had never met Annie? What if he had killed her? There were answers to those questions that he didn't wish to acknowledge.

And so, sighing and glancing up at the tower for the final time, he turned and made for his car. It wasn't one of those flashy sports vehicles, but it was nice. Something his mother would never have allowed him to have. He paused for a moment in the awkwardness of holding the wheel with 6 fingers, but quickly accustomed himself to it once more and backed the car out past the gates. Those fingers had been a small price to pay for his new life.

No one saw the rose as it wilted, its brilliant red fading to an ugly brown. No one noticed the shrouded white figure in the window of the castle, watching as the large man left. The house wanted him... and it would have him yet...

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Author's Note: Not terribly long, but it's a start. Ahhh... what brought this on? Well, I just sat down and started writing... and this is what came out. Odd, I know, and I'm not sure where I'm headed with it... but it's kind of interesting. Obviously, I'm taking several liberties with the storyline. May take a while for me to post another part... but look for the other survivors to make their appearances soon enough... :) Comments?