horrors2

The_Bananana.Deja_Vu.tex

  1\chapauth{The Bananana}
  2\chapter{Deja Vu}
  3
  4
  5Luke awoke in a bed.
  6
  7He stared at the ceiling; his head ached, pounded as he struggled to sit
  8up. He was in a clean white room.
  9
 10There was a noise. Familiar. Welcome.
 11
 12The window, with drawn curtains yellowed with age, easily let light into
 13the room. The sun flooded the room, bouncing off the floor with a soft
 14mahogany glow, and gave the entire room a hospitable warmth. The
 15blanket, worn and frayed with use, was nonetheless comfortable, and only
 16added to the rooms ivory radiance. Beyond the tarnished brass rail
 17footboard was the only other thing in the room that wasn't. A black
 18door, defiant and bold, contrasted the pearlescent efforts of the rest
 19of the room.
 20
 21Beneath the door drifted the smell of home. Of warm bread. Of eggs. The
 22sounds and clatter of morning seeped through as well; of voices
 23murmuring, talking, laughing, accompanied by a symphony of pots and
 24pans.
 25
 26Luke swung his legs over the side of the bed. His head still ached, but
 27it was lessening; he still couldn't remember a thing, everything before
 28waking up just felt like a hazy dream. He searched the room for his
 29personal affects to no avail. No shoes or clothes, no wallet or keys,
 30and most importantly, no holster.
 31
 32He didn't like any of it but, at least for now, he felt in no real
 33danger, and decided to take a look around and see what he could find out
 34about\ldots about everything.
 35
 36He stood.
 37
 38He savored the feel of the sun warmed floor. He stretched, reaching for
 39the speckled ceiling before he lost his balance and feel back onto the
 40bed. He lay there, basking in the light, when he began to listen more
 41closely to the sounds behind the door.
 42
 43That voice. He recognized it! The other too! He knew them both.
 44
 45No, he thought. He had to be dreaming. There was no way he had heard
 46right.
 47
 48He got up and turned towards the door. Behind him, through the window,
 49the trees began dancing lightly in a sudden fresh breeze.
 50
 51He stepped to the door, and reached for the knob. He felt a warm heat
 52radiating from the door. But the voices persisted. He had to know who
 53was just beyond the door. He grabbed the knob, and instantly recoiled in
 54pain as the burning hot steel bit into his hand.
 55
 56``What are you doing'' asked a young boy from the corner of the room.
 57
 58He had startled Luke, and was lucky the cold steel of his Berretta wasn'
 59t weighing against his chest like it normally did. The child, no more
 60than 10 years old looked pale and unwell. He looked as though his mother
 61had dressed him for church, black Sunday suit, shined black shoes, even
 62his jet black hair looked as though it had been slicked back by an
 63overbearing mother.
 64
 65``Wha\ldots who are you? What am I doing here? Do\ldots Do you live
 66here, is this your home''? Luke said, studying the strange child.
 67
 68``That wasn't part of the deal'' the boy replied eerily un-phased by
 69Luke's questions.
 70
 71Deal? Luke didn't know what the kid was talking about.
 72
 73``Don't open the door'' the boy warned.
 74
 75Luke knew what was on the other side. The voices he had heard, the
 76voices he could hear right now, were of his family. His wife. His
 77son. Sitting, waiting. He could hear them now, as he listened, he could
 78see them in his mind. Her red locks swaying and bouncing as she prepared
 79their breakfast. His boy, sitting at the table, his feet dangling from
 80the chair, smiling and laughing.
 81
 82The young boy continued.
 83
 84``Don't open the door.'' He said again.
 85
 86The room grew dark.
 87
 88Luke looked outside, and watched as the trees now shook and swayed
 89violently amidst an angry grass sea, heaving beneath the dark sky, as
 90rain began to pelt the glass.
 91
 92``What are you doing here? Who are you?'' Luke tried again.
 93
 94``You're not listening.'' the boy's eyes narrowed and he carried on,
 95``Enjoy it. Lay back down this time. Stay and enjoy it.''
 96
 97The kid must be sick, Luke thought to himself, he's not making any
 98sense.
 99
100``I've got a son about your age, he's right in there'' Luke said
101pointing to the door, trying to distract the child, ``Do you have any
102friends? I'm sure my boy will play with you. Do you like pancakes? My
103wife, she makes the best pancakes.''
104
105``Luke'', the boy cut him off, ``Your son and wife are dead. They've
106been dead, since the fire. You know that. You know the deal. Stay
107here. Enjoy it.''
108
109``What do you know about my wife and son? What do you mean they're
110dead.'' He stared at the child, ``Boy, I know your sick but you can't
111talk like that, it's not right. Listen, listen to them, can't you hear
112them, they're in there right now, look I'll show you'' Luke turned to
113the door.
114
115``Please Luke,'' The boys face was unchanged, his voice placid but
116firm. ``Don't open the do\ldots{}''
117
118``Hey!'' Luke yelled interrupting the boy, ``now I don't know what in
119the hell you're going on about, but it ends right now. Get out of here
120you sick freak, get out! Get ou-'' Luke searched for something to
121threaten the boy with, grabbing a lamp that had been behind him, but he
122turned back only to find the boy had disappeared, he was gone.
123
124Luke rubbed his eyes. Had the boy really just vanished? It was
125impossible. As he stood there wondering what had just happened, he
126noticed that his head didn't hurt any more. He turned to search the
127room again, search for the boy, search for his belongings. He looked out
128the window. Outside the air was now enraged, thrashing about flinging
129rain and debris everywhere. It made Luke more even more uneasy, but he
130remembered the door, and he shook the feeling off. He reached once again
131for the knob, as the roar filled his ears.
132
133He grasped the knob tightly preparing for the searing pain when suddenly
134it was deafeningly quiet. He turned and looked back outside. It was
135bright, very bright out, and the trees and sky were calm. The door was
136cool to the touch, and Luke pulled open the door, eager to see his
137family.
138
139Black. Charred wood. Everything, all of it, consumed. He steeped through
140the crumbling doorway.
141
142A burnt frame stood in place of former walls; the ghastly skeleton now
143surrounded all the ash and rubble that had been a home. Outside,
144surrounding the house were people. Fire crews, emergency personnel,
145neighbors, all of them just standing around the house, all of them just
146silently, chillingly starring. Luke was standing in what used to be a
147kitchen, when he recognized it. This was his house, this used to be his
148home. Where the sink had been rose a pair of pipes, jagged and singed,
149but sturdy and resilient. And then he saw them. Across the blackened
150room lay the dark remains of a woman clutching a child.
151
152He couldn't breathe, he couldn't swallow. Grief and sorrow were
153throttling him, and suddenly he let loose in heaving spasms as he ran to
154his family. He knelt, sobbing, over what was left of them.
155
156``No'' he uttered
157
158The crowd erupted in a bellowing barrage of whispers that come from
159everywhere and nowhere at once. Not on person's mouth was moving and
160yet their voices were infinite, filling the air with an angry accusatory
161heat.
162
163``You did this''
164
165``This is your fault''
166
167``They came for you''
168
169``Why did you let them die?''
170
171``They came for you''
172
173``No\ldots {\bf no!}'' Luke screamed, ``I couldn't stop them\ldots{}''
174
175``I tried to save them'', he continued.
176
177Amidst the churning crowd suddenly stood the boy again.
178
179``I asked you not to open the door this time. I asked you to stay on the
180other side.''
181
182``I\ldots I tried to save them'' Luke sputtered out.
183
184``No'' reasoned the boy, ``no, you damned them. You dug too deep into
185our affairs; you stuck your nose in our business. When we sent our men
186here to fire the house, we sent them for you. It was you that did this
187to your wife. To your son. You are responsible.''
188
189``I tried\ldots{} I came home\ldots{} the flames, they were everywhere'' Luke carried
190on, distantly.
191
192``But don't worry. There's more.'' Said the boy, ``We have much more
193for you''
194
195``No,'' Luke said sitting up, looking at the boy. ``it doesn't matter
196now''
197
198The child stared back with hollowed eyes and an emotionless gaze that
199should have terrified Luke.
200
201``You can't do anything to me now\ldots just kill me. Kill me''
202
203The boy's brows furrowed, his face twisted, pulled and broke. He
204smiled, and then began to laugh.
205
206``Kill you?'' He said regaining his composure, ``Why? Why would I kill
207you? No. We have something much worse for you.'' The crowd's maddening
208chants began to bleed through the boy's speech. They seemed to scream
209now, everyone of them and none of them at once. Angry, haunting howls
210pierced through Luke's hands as he covered his ears.
211
212``No, {\bf noo!}'' he screamed as he began to beat his head against the
213rubble. But it did nothing to lessen the shrieking crowd. He had to end
214it. He looked around and saw the pipe sticking out of the foundation. It'
215ll do he thought.
216
217He stood, the cries and screams still pursuing and punishing him. He
218struggled over to the pipe, rusty and charred. He'd have to be
219quick. He'd only get one chance. He took a breath and slammed his head
220down.
221
222Luke awoke in a bed.
223
224He stared at the ceiling; his head ached, pounded as he struggled to sit
225up. He was in a clean white room.
226
227There was a noise. Familiar. Welcome.
228
229
230
231