Weird Halloween
THE ‘GREAT THING’

Autumn Rose
HELLO FRIENDS OF
THE ORANGE MOON

[First Published: October 15, 2022]

And greetings to any newcomers! For those just droppin' in, I'm the precocious Autumn Rose, your host and storyteller extraordinaire.

And boy! Do we got a real treat for y'all. Now, I know there's a whole bunch of yuns out there what never have ever believed in the supernatural. But whether you believe in it or you don't, ain't nothin' wrong with enjoyin' a good ol' story plucked straight from the eerie unknown, am I right?

That is so long as such isn't done to death.

And after all, 'tis the season! So why don't y'all kick back and lend an ear. For yet another gravely frightening tale. One I got here called, “The ‘Great Thing.’”
* * *
I cannot count the number of times I've crossed that bridge over lookin' the Cumberland River. I mean, after all, the river had been on my daily commute, so how could I miss it? But that's the thing about somethin' being so apparent, so pervasive in your life, you never really think twice about it.

That was my first mistake.

My second was goin' down to water that one day. Some friends recommended it, said it would be good for me to get out, get fresh air and back to nature and all, which wasn't untrue, y'know? I had been workin' from home since the pandemic started and cooped up for a real long spell, even after everything began to let up. So, I agreed, and figured I go out tomorrow at midday.

Well, there I was along the shores of the Cumberland. It was peaceful at first, really. Simply beautiful scenery and real quiet too. And, after years of basically barely leavin' the house, I begin to relax.

And, strollin' the riverside, that's when I saw an old discarded canoe. It appear to be lost, like it had come untied and drifted a ways to the opposite shore. Wooden, beautifully crafted, hand-made, intact, and all with the oars still inside. I couldn't believe my luck.

I knew nobody would've placed it so far outta the way, so I didn't think nothin' if I took it out for a spin. Ain't quite stealin' if it no longer has an owner, I thought. So I pull it out to water.

And that was my third mistake.

Though, I didn't right know it at the time. See, I was enjoyin' myself quite a bit there, the towns with their structures began to fade away, and I found myself surrounded by nature's embrace.

It was right after the sun had began to disappear over the mountains that my mood started to change. See, I had paddled out further and further until I kind of lost my way. Well, I was in a bit of a fix when a fog started to set in and cover everything, shownin' a strange orange under the light of the settin' sun.

But at any rate, I didn't despair, I was plenty confident I could find my way on back. Ain't too many places one could go or so I thought.

So I pull myself and the canoe up to shore. Phone had no reception, and so I starts lookin' for some sign of civilization, but the oddest thing, nothin' seemed to look right. The plants, the trees, even the mountains in the distance, they all looked different.

And even the sun appeared to shine a bit differently and was a little higher in the sky then what I last remembered.

I didn't like it one bit. But, y'know, ya can't just give up in these kinds of situations. Well, I walk on quite a bit, and I'd be lyin' if I said I wasn't worried, 'cause I was plenty nervous.

Well, all a sudden, I start to hear a noise, like someone a-drummin'. And, thought, y'know, I was finally gettin' some whereabouts.

Now, at that point, I didn't know what to expect, but I follow the sound, figurin' there must be people nearby. But what I saw next was one of the few things that ever really shook me in life.

I saw a city, a walled city, cut clean into the middle of a large woods. But, not like a modern city, more akin to somethin' straight outta a text book, with huge pillars of piled rocks and stone houses with giant stone figures.

It was all so surreal, almost more than I had the stomach for.

But I could no longer follow my trail back, and there didn't seem like no way out but onward.

So I continue towards the sound of drums, towards the strange structures up to a huge pair of gates. Now, I don't see anyone, at this point, but I swear to you the second I got to those giant gates they begin to part lettin' me on through.

Now, I'm pretty skeptical about the supernatural myself, but you didn't need to tell me twice, we ain't got nothin' like this back home, and I wasn't in Kentucky anymore.

Now, the place was huge with crude cobblestone streets, markets, churches of some sort, but all around throughout it looked pretty abandoned.

But then I came to a large town square and in the center stood a large statue and underneath sat an old man beatin' on a drum.

His hair was pure white, skin a dark olive complexion, his gray eyes peered up underneath a large brow. He was evidently human but unlike any kind of person I've ever seen. He was dressed oddly in furs and skins fashioned like a tunic.

"Hey, where am I?" I ask.

He did not speak but rather he pointed his finger right up at the sky and proceeded to continue to bang on a crudely made drum.

I took it he did not speak English, but, before I could get another word out, a roar between a maddened wildcat and hissin' of a snake rings through the air.

I turn and I can hear the giant footfalls of some huge animal making its way towards us.

But there the man remained, unperturbed, apparently, awaitin' death.

The footsteps were followed by screams then an older woman, similar in dress and appearance to the man, ran by me with a little girl cryin' in her arms.

I begin to shiver as the sound nears. The bellows of "the great thing" still nearin', all accompanied by the drummin' of the old man, the screams of the woman and cryin' of the child.

So then I throw my hands up in the air and sit beside the old man.

I understood him now. There was no escape, no way out, only death.

I look at him and he looks back at me. He motions his hand over his face closin' his eyes. I follow his cue. I shut my eyes.

This was it. This was the end.

All is dark, the monstrous screams are right on top of me. I can smell the thing, like decay in an old swamp. I hear the topplin' of buildings and crack of the earth. I feel a sudden warmth of the air what could only be the creature’s breath. I prepare myself for whatever is to come.

Then I feel a nudge on the side of my face by what seems to be a foot. I try to grab it but I am too late. I pull off the leg what feels like a bracelet of sorts. Next, I hear moans of pain directly above. The old man evidently uplifted into the sky by the 'great thing.'

I dare not look. I keep my eyes shut. The cries of the creature are now deafening.

Despite the screams of the beast, I hear the man gasp his last. And just before the sound of every bone being cracked, he says, "Gorgahra." My blood runs cold. I am next. And then, and then—

And then silence.

I lie still but open my eyes to find myself back on banks of the Cumberland down in the grass, my back against a tall pine tree.

Was it all a nightmare? Did I dream it?

I looked down at my clinched hand, still shakin' from the encounter. I open it and see what appears to be a torn bracelet with a string of animal sinew, small bones attached.

I get up and find my way back home—never to be the same again.
* * *
B'gosh! Now, that's gonna keep me up all night. But, don't y'all get me wrong here. Curiosity is a fine thing, ’less you in a horror movie... or are a cat.

But, anyway, that does it for tonight's story. But don't worry there's still more to come. So just y'all stop on by later this month. And remember, I'm Autumn Rose sayin'—
’Til we meet again—stay together... keep nigh unto the fire.
Copyright © 2022 Thrill Land

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