The full-moon was an old ally of mine. It glowed luminously in the pitch-black sky and helped light up any path in the darkness. It was cold tonight as a chilly wind blew through the tree-branches. My cape billowed with the wind as I carefully made my way through the woods. After making sure Karen was safely tucked into bed and that Kevin was watching over her, I waited until my parents went to bed before putting on my vigilante outfit and sneaking out my bedroom window. Time to go to work… I had to go back to that church and explore its secrets. But before reaching the church, I was on my tracfone talking with Stan about my plans.
"Kenny, are you sure you want to be doing this?" Stan was saying. "Two police officers were killed. Maybe you should stay away from that place. God only knows what hellish being is lurking inside there."
"I know. But I can't ignore this, Stan." At last I've finally reached the church. I hid behind a tree and stared warily out at it. But the church looked abandoned as usual. "I have to figure this out. The police weren't able to handle it." Stan was quiet on the other end and I could sense his concern. "Don't worry, I'll be careful," I reassured him. "I won't take any unnecessary risks."
I reached down to feel the gun tucked safely in the holster strapped to my thigh. "I brought my handgun with me this time," I told Stan. "I'm not taking any chances tonight." This seemed to make Stan feel a little bit better.
"Alright… Just try not to get yourself killed," Stan said firmly. "I don't know what's going on around here but it definitely has something to do with that screwy church. When you're done checking that place out, text me to let me know that you're okay. Will you do that?"
"Of course…," I agreed. Hearing Stan's voice was such a big comfort to me. It always gave me the courage to do the dangerous stuff. "I love you, Stan," I whispered tenderly.
"I love you too, Kenny," Stan said softly. "Try to come back in one piece, ok dude?"
Then I hung up the phone and prepared myself as I stepped out from behind the tree and began to slowly make my way over to the church. It was eerily quiet around here. And yet when I got closer to the church, that old feeling came back. It was like an unseen force was trying to scramble my brain. I ignored the feeling. Can't lose my nerve now… I started toward the front entrance but I stopped when I noticed the footprints in the snow for the first time. Footprints that led right up to the church's door…
Perhaps I wasn't as alone as I thought. I decided that going through the front-door was too risky so instead I went around and decided to see if I could peek through a window. Most of the stained windows were colored black but I was able to find one with a crack in it. Peering through the hole, I was in for a big surprise. The church has changed. Before it had looked abandoned and dusty but now it looked cleaner and more occupied. It was still dark inside but lots of lit candles provided light. From here, I could see people inside the church.
I don't know who they were. They wore black robes and hoods. I counted twenty of them. Some sat in the pews, while others gathered around the podium and appeared to be worshipping something. That strange symbol could be seen at the church's center. If I didn't know better, I'd say they were cultists. It made perfect sense now. This church was being used to worship some eldritch deity. I realized the situation was worst than I thought. These cultists are dangerous and South Park was in danger. But what should I do? Should I call the police? Would the police even be brave enough to come back here?
Unfortunately I never got the chance to figure out what to do because I felt a rough hand grab my shoulder from behind. Like reflex I jammed my elbow into the cultist's gut to make him let go. But there were four of them and the other three all grabbed me at once and easily overpowered me. Now they began to forcefully frog-march me around to the church's front entrance. Soon I was entering the church and being marched down the aisle.
"Oh crap…," I murmured to myself. This was not good. This was exactly what I'd been trying to avoid. No choice now. They had me and they weren't about to let me slip away that easily.
Somehow I managed to keep myself calm as the cultists dragged me up to the podium where above I could see an old-fashioned chandelier glowing with candlelight. Looking up at the podium, I saw something that I hadn't noticed before. The podium had a door attached to it. I watched as one of the cultists came forward and opened the door wide open. Then I felt it. A powerful aura seemed to come seeping out. Darkness so deep that no light could ever penetrate it. A few candles flickered out as something dangerously powerful and cosmic started to approach.
Then deep within that dark podium, I saw it. Three-lobed eyes, red as fire, seemed to stare into my very soul. For the first time, I felt pure fear. My first thought was that the cultists were going to sacrifice me to this eldritch abomination. Those alien-like eyes seemed to burn a hole into me. Suddenly I felt like I was under a microscope. This eldritch-being was studying me as if doing some silent judgment. I could hear my own heart slamming in my chest that I practically forgot to breathe. Was I about to die? Those three-lobed eyes stared curiously back at me. And then it spoke directly to me.
"Throl are jalu? Edsam sas'h on'sr jklk?"
I stared blankly back as I didn't understand the alien language at all. The eldritch being seemed to realized this and began to speak in a human-language. Only it didn't sound human to me at all. The voice was uncanny and sent cold shivers down one's spine. "Forgive me… I'd assume you understood the R'leyhian language but clearly I was mistaken. However I sense eldritch power in you. How interesting…"
I didn't know what to say. It disturbed me that an all-powerful eldritch-abomination was talking to me. When I said nothing, the eldritch-being went on talking in that unnatural voice. "Ahhh… Now I see. You were the sacrifice used long ago to conjure a portal for Cthulhu's Kingdom. It was a failure. And yet you gained an eldritch-soul in the process. I haven't seen the Great Old One in five aeons. How is Cthulhu?"
It must have read the offended look on my face and realized that I wasn't exactly a Cthulhu fan. Those ungodly red eyes still seemed to peek into my brain. Soon the eldritch deity was speaking to me again. "You're an unusual case. Your eldritch abilities have not fully evolved but I am willing to help with that. Come… Join us. Embrace your eldritch powers and become a god."
"No fucking way!" I finally found my voice and snapped back. Again I tried to break free from the cultist's grips on me but they refused to let go.
"I see. So that is your answer? You have so much potential. Can you not see that?" the mysterious eldritch being said, those red eyes glowing amusedly. "Then you are not here to join our church. How very disappointing. You still cling to your humanity?" I shuddered at the sound of its cruel laughter. "Humans are as predictable as ever. It's a shame you choose not to ascend. Your kind has always enjoyed pain and suffering…"
"What the fuck are you!" I cried, my voice echoing in the large church.
There was silence. And then the eldritch being finally gave me its name. "Nyarlathotep…"
"Nyarla…what?"
"I'm surprised you don't know me, Mysterion. Or should I call you Kenny McCormick?" So it knew my name. Is it possible that it could read my mind?
"Why are you here?" I demanded. "Why did you come to South Park? Why here?"
The eldritch-being called Nyarlathotep chuckled at my questions while lurking in that deep darkness with its eerie three-lobed eyes gazing back at me. "I'm here because you summoned me, Kenny. The Shining Trapezohedron…"
When I turned my head to look at what Nyarlathotep was staring at, I recognized that angled black-crystal in the hexagonal box sitting on the altar. And that's when it dawned on me. I realized by gazing into that crystal, I'd inadvertently summoned an eldritch-abomination to our town. I did this. Jesus Christ, what have I just released?
"The Shining Trapezohedron serves as a window on all of space and time. It was originally created on the planet Yuggoth and brought to earth by the Old Ones before the emergence of the human race," Nyarlathotep explained. "The Shining Trapezohedron is capable of summoning other Outer Gods as well. It can reveal other worlds and grant arcane knowledge in exchange for sacrifices."
Then Nyarlathotep turned those piercing red-eyes back onto me. For a split moment, I curiously wondered what he looked like and why he needed to be shrouded in darkness like that. Then again, I didn't want to know. "The church you see before you is known as the Church of Starry Wisdom. See how my worshippers seek boundless wisdom from the universe. But in order to obtain cosmic knowledge, sacrifices must be made."
"You're not getting away with this," I said defiantly. "Whatever the hell you're planning here, I won't let you get away with it! Fuck you and this warped church!"
One of the cultists stepped forward and gave me a good punch to the gut. I dropped to my knees while pain exploded in my stomach region. Those three-lobed red eyes blazed angrily at me. Looks like I finally pissed him off. "What a pity. If you won't embrace your eldritch-power, then perish with the rest of the doomed species." But Nyarlathotep's laugh made every hair on me stand up. "Nevertheless, I look forward to seeing you go mad, Kenny. Your eldritch power will only continue to evolve. Even you won't be able to fully grasp its full power."
I didn't know what he meant by that. It's true that nobody could ever remember my death. I recalled Patrick Dugan once telling me that my power was eldritch in nature that no ordinary human could understand it let alone remember it. But now it scared me that my power was probably getting stronger. This power was curse but I've tried to use it for good. I tried my best to live a normal life. But what if it wasn't enough? What if this power becomes too much that I'll end up losing my humanity anyway? I didn't have time to angst over it because Nyarlathotep was already finding my presence here annoying.
"If you reject my offers, then there is no reason for you to be here," Nyarlathotep said in a bored voice. "Normally I'd kill you myself but you know the rules. Only an immortal can kill another immortal. Consider this the kindest thing I can do for you."
I was confused at first. Until one of the cultists came forward, took out the handgun I had in my holster, pointed it at the back of my head and pulled the trigger. Everything went black. My body slumped lifelessly onto its side before a pool of blood began to form from my head. The Starry Wisdom cultists stared emotionlessly down at the now dead body before them. Nyarlathotep also gazed pitilessly down at the dead kid that had the nerve to invade the sanctity of their church. But then he began to sense it. The eldritch-soul emanating inside Kenny McCormick's body has left it and whisked away before their eyes.
Nyarlathotep was fascinated. How interesting… Kenny McCormick's unnatural ability to resurrect and maintain immortality. Did the eldritch-soul resurrect out of compassion or self-preservation? It certainly was a rare ability. And yet Nyarlathotep couldn't resist having a little fun with it. How long would it be before Kenny succumbed to the eldritch soul's negative influence? If there was one thing the Outer God took enjoyment in was watching those be driven to the brink of insanity.
"Keep an eye on this Kenny McCormick," Nyarlathotep ordered his faithful worshippers. "I want to keep tabs on him. Let's see if Kenny McCormick chooses to resist his power or embrace it."
