After a few hours of scouring the Internet for information, I decided to head back home. It was past eleven when I finally turned everything off and started the long trek through the woods. As I walked along the nearly forgotten path, I felt a chill run down my back. I pulled my jacket closer to my body and picked up the pace. The woods were dark and quiet… Too quiet. I looked up to see the moon covered in thick clouds, which was common in this part of Ireland. I found myself chanting to keep my mind off of the darkness.
"Top of da mornin' to ya laddies. My name is…."
I looked up to see my house in the distance, but, something was wrong. My dad should be asleep by now, so why were all if the lights on? I picked up a sizable rock and hefted it over my shoulder, ready to face whatever was inside.
As I made my way to my bedroom window, I wondered if it was some kind of dream, but this felt more real than any other nightmares I had. I glanced behind me at the backyard, where the woods I just emerged from were gently swaying back and forth. I shook off the feeling of being watched and opened my window slowly, still holding onto the rock tightly. I crawled into my room as quietly as possible and made my way to my door, listening for any sign of life on the other side. The only sound I heard was my own heartbeat, pounding furiously against my chest. I reached for the doorknob, my hands shaking in fear.
"Dad? Are you out there?" I called out.
No one answered. I opened the door and peeked out into the empty hallway. All of the pictures that used to be on the wall were smashed and torn up, laying dejectedly on the floor surrounded by broken glass. I reached down and picked up one where my family went on a camping trip. Someone had scratched out our eyes and wrote 'always watching' over the photo. I was too scared to be certain, but the letters looked like they were written in blood.
The sound of the TV turning on brought me back to reality. I dropped the photo and tightened my grip on the rock. I stepped around the scattered glass and made my way to the empty living room, where the TV, the only source of light in the room, was blaring static. I moved to the front of the couch, where blood was splattered on the couch and floor. My own blood turned cold at the sight, and I jumped when a piercing, menacing laugh came from the TV dropping my rock.
The screen glitched green, and I thought I saw a face, then a high-pitched voice came from the the TV. "Įn t̵his ͟wo̵rl͟d, i͡t's KILL or̛ ̧BE ̡K̕I̶L̴LED! ̸ ."
I stared at the television in horror, my whole body shaking. i couldn't move
"͢C̷o͘me ͝and͠ f̕ind̡ ͏uş, b̸o͜y.͏ ̶W͟e'͢ĺl ͘b̶e͏ wa͢itįn͟g."
The TV shut itself off, and all the lights came back on, nearly blinding me.
"DAD?!" I shouted, running through the whole house, "DAD, WHERE ARE YOU?! DAAAAD!"
In my search, I only found more blood in the master bedroom, and one untouched picture of me and my parents, but he was nowhere to be seen. I turned on the TV again, but it only showed the local stations with zero signs of static. I tried to convince myself it was just a dream, but I knew this was real.
My mind was racing again, this time with questions: who took my dad? Why did they take him? And why did the voice on the TV sound exactly like him?
I looked at the blood again, my resolve strengthening. Someone took my dad, and now I had to find him. I considered calling the police, but what could they do? My phone pinged in my pocket, and I read the text message.
EMERGENCY MEETING ASAP! GET ONLINE NOW!
After a moment of consideration, I began to pack a small suitcase. Whatever took him, they were probably after me too, and I had to get away from here. I hoisted the bag over my shoulder and crawled out of my window again, heading back into the woods once more.