By Mordicia Dewise
Tony Johnson sat comfortably in his favorite recliner as
night fell. It was holloween; Tony despised holloween. He hated the stupid
haunted houses, the damn television adds, the pointless holloween specials
and he especial hated the little children that came to his door begging
for candy every year. The little fools, in their pathetic little costumes
with their little knapsacks full of free candy; full of sweets that would
turn their teeth purple and their brains to cinders. Tony hated them.
Each and every year on holloween
night Tony would turn off all the lights so that no one could bother him.
He would hear the occasional "trick or treat" in the distance, but he very
rarely would hear it at his doorstep. And if he did hear it he would ignore
it. He would fall asleep in the darkness of his living room and dream vivid
and peaceful dreams until dawn.
So far tonight, he had not
heard any shouting from his doorstep. There had been no unwelcome interruptions.
All was going well.
Tony had only begun to doze
off into the carefree world of his dreams when the door bell shrieked and
a was followed by a blissful "TRICK OR TREAT!!" His eyes fluttered open,
burning with deep anger and hatred. He was not fond of such disturbances.
He took a deep breath to calm his rage and waited in the unnatural silence
for the little beggar to realize that nobody was home and to move along
to the next house.
He had no such luck.
The doorbell rang out again
and again. Tony’s eyes darkened and he rose dangerously to his feet. He
strode slowly to the front door, his loathing building with every step.
The doorbell continued its’ cacophonous shrieking as he reached for the
doorknob. Tony’s eyes became slits of malevolence.
He yanked open the door.
The doorbell fell silent.
Tony looked down to see
a little boy dressed in red tights, in a red T-shirt, with a red cape flowing
down his back. In his left hand he held a plastic pitchfork and a pair
of cheap plastic horns were strapped to his head. He smiled, "TRICK OR
TREAT!!"
Tony forced himself to smile
through the thick fog of hatred that clouded his mind, "I’m sorry but I
don’t have anything for you." His voice showed not sign of emotion.
The little boy cocked his
head, "Why not?"
Tony’s fists began to clench
as he fought his rage. "Because I don’t. Now move along. I am sure that
you can get plenty of candy from all the other people in this town."
The little boy frowned.
Tony slammed the door in his face. He stood there in the darkness and caught
his breath. The doorbell was suprisingly silent. He forced a smile and
stalked back over to his recliner. He collapsed into its soft arms and
sighed with relief. He closed his eyes.
The doorbell shrieked from
out of the silence.
Tony sprung from his chair
and stormed angrily to the door. He swung it open and was greeted by a
"TRICK OR TREAT!!" from the same little boy he had just dismissed.
"I told you already, I don’t
have any fucking candy!" Tony growled.
The little boy giggled as
though Tony had just said a joke. "You do too!"
A very dark thought suddenly
passed through Tony’s’ mind. It was a thought that any sane man would ignore.
But Tony held onto the thought. He played it out through his head and smiled.
Yes. He had something for
the little beggar.
"You’re right," he said.
"I do have candy... And lots of it."
The little boy grinned.
"But," continued Tony. "It’s
all in my basement and I couldn’t possibly carry it up myself..."
"I can help!!" sputtered
the little boy.
Tony acted suprised, "Could
you really?"
The boy nodded enthusiastically.
Tony stepped aside, "Come
on in."
The little boy practically
dove through the door, "Where?! Where is it!!?"
Tony closed the door and
locked it securely. "Follow me!" he said happily. He then led the boy through
the kitchen and to the basement door. The darkness of the house did not
seem to bother the little boy. He followed eagerly behind Tony.
When they reached the basement
door Tony stopped and said, "Go on, the light switch is on the far wall.
I’ll be right down."
The little devil darted
down the stairs and vanished into the darkness. Tony whirled around and
raced into the kitchen. He pulled open a drawer and fumbled through it.
He managed to pull out a rather large cleaver. A demonic grin spread across
his face as he dashed back to the basement door.
The lights in the basement
had been flipped on. Tony carefully concealed the cleaver behind his back
and trudged down the stairs. His heart was racing, his adrenaline pumping.
He would relish this moment for the rest of his life. Or so he thought.
The little boy stood silently
in the center of the basement, his expression clearly revealing his confusion.
He saw Tony coming and looked up sadly, "There is no candy."
Tony pulled out the cleaver,
"Oh but there is."
The little boys’ eyes widened,
he began to whimper softly. Tears were already streaming down his pale
cheeks. The fear in his eyes gave Tony great pleasure. A feeling of power
swept over him; he was God here. He was in charge. It felt very good.
He raised the shining blade
above his head and froze in midswing.
The little boy was laughing.
Not in the way that little boys laugh and giggle, but in an unnaturally
deep tone. His voice was writhing with power when he spoke, "Tony Johnson
you are weaker than I thought."
The cleaver slipped from
his numb fingers and landed upon the cement floor. Tony’s’ jaw hung open
in a speechless maw of fear. What was going on here?? His mind spun about
in confusion. Not one clear thought passed through his mind.
The little boys’ eyes began
to glow a deep yellow. His frail little body suddenly expanded into a powerful
hulk of muscle, his clothes tore off with an eerie ripping sound. His naked
flesh rippled into gleaming red scales. His visage became wider, darker
and reptilian. The plastic horns on his head morphed into blood-stained
bone. A pair of leathery black wings slid out from his back. The plastic
pitchfork in its left hand melted and reshaped into a massive sword with
a thick jagged blade. The powerful beast looked down upon Tony and cackled
darkly. "I have come for you, Tony. You are mine."
Tony’s’ entire body began
to quiver. He wanted desperately to run but he could not remember how.
He opened his mouth to cry out but no sound escaped his lips. His entire
body had frozen up. The pure terror that he was feeling could not be ignored.
The beast raised its’ mighty
sword and brought it down upon Tony’s’ skull. Blood, brains and skull fragments
exploded in every direction. The evil blade continued its descent through
Tony’s’ torso. Sparks flew through he air as the blade rammed into the
cement below him. Both halves of Tony landed upon the cement floor, splashing
blood across the nearby walls.
The beast vanished.
Tony’s’ bisected corpse
burst into flames, his blood unnaturally igniting like gasoline. The flames
spread quickly through the house. It was completely consumed within minutes.
The End
