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Message Delivered to Darkness

Lokesh
HORROR
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Submitted to Contest #5 in response to the prompt: 'You send a message to the wrong person. What happens next?'


The road twisted endlessly through the forest, every mile drawing Jessica and her friends deeper into silence. They’d driven for hours, the city long behind them, replaced by towering trees and dense underbrush. The rented cottage sat in the middle of a forest reserve, a place so remote there wasn’t another soul for six or seven miles in any direction.

Perfect, they had thought.

It was dirt-cheap, rundown, and isolated but there was something enchanting about it too. The wooden porch creaked but held, the smell of old wood, it had a vintage charm, like a forgotten storybook house. Spooky, yes. But that only made it better.

Inside, it had three bedrooms—tight, but enough for the five of them to share. A dusty kitchen, a cobwebbed storage room filled with chopped firewood, a basement door they decided not to open just yet, and an attic that groaned at the slightest breeze. The house seemed to breathe.

They set up camp just outside the porch as the sun dipped behind the trees. A crackling fire roared to life. Meat sizzled on skewers. Vodka passed from hand to hand. Laughter echoed through the clearing as they played truth or dare.

Jessica, needing more firewood, ducked into the store room. It was dark and cold, the air thick with age. As she rummaged, a shadowed corner caught her attention. Something was buried beneath the wood pile - flat, square, and ancient. Curious, she pulled it out.

An Ouija board.

She stared at it for a moment, a strange chill crawling up her spine. Then she grinned and brought it outside.

Ryan squinted. “Where the hell did you find that?”

“In the store room.”

“This is a bad idea,” Vikram muttered. “You don’t mess with that stuff.”

But no one listened. Not really.

They lit more wood, circled around, and set the board between them. At first, they giggled as they moved the planchette in slow, exaggerated motions. Then, on Jessica’s prompt, they asked:

“Is anyone here?”

The planchette shifted.

Yes.

They went quiet. Eyes darted to each other. No one laughed now.

“What’s your name?” someone asked.

The glass moved faster this time.

A-M-O-N.

Vikram snorted. “Like... the demon?”

Jessica, already tipsy and grinning mischievously, leaned over the board.

“Well then,” she purred, “wanna come over and hang out?”

No movement.

She smirked. “Don’t be shy. You can share my bed. I’m a great cuddler.”

Vikram, visibly unnerved, frowned. “Jess, stop. It sounds like you’re flirting with your boyfriend.”

She chuckled. “Yeah, but at least this one’s consistent. Leaves me on read, just like him.”

They all laughed nervously.

Then, without warning, the planchette moved. marked S-O-U-L

Jessica's smile froze.

Jessica rolled her eyes, though her stomach turned. “What do you want?”

The answer came slowly, letter by letter:

I – W-A-N-T – Y-O-U-R – S-O-U-L.

I – W-I-L-L – K-I-L-L – O-N-E – B-Y – O-N-E.

The fire popped. A log cracked. No one said a word. Tara gave a nervous laugh and stood.

“Okay, creepy. Sorry, Wrong number" joked Jessica

"We’re done. Game over.” stood up Vikram

They put the board away without finishing the session. Everyone tried to pretend it didn’t shake them, that it was just a joke.

Later, back in the house, Jessica climbed into bed. The night pressed against the windows, heavy and still. She grabbed her phone and texted her boyfriend.

"Omg. Just played with a Ouija board. Said it's going to kill us one by one. lol. Creepy af."

She hit send.

Seconds later, her phone buzzed.

A message appeared.

“The message wasn’t meant for you.
I’m coming for the rest.
You found the board. You woke me. You gave me them.
I will spare you.
But you must leave.
Now.”

From her Bf's number. She was confused. She called him immediately. An eerie voice, like a static sound and then phone went dead.

Jessica’s mouth went dry. Her skin prickled. For a second, she considered waking the others. But no they’d think she was messing with them, or worse, just drunk.

She locked her phone, tucked it under the pillow, and pulled the blanket over her head.

At exactly 3:12 a.m., the floorboards creaked.

Jessica's eyes flew open. She sat up, heart thudding. Another creak, closer now. From the room next door.

She slid out of bed and tiptoed to the door. Just as her fingers reached the handle—

A scream tore through the silence.

Blood-curdling. Raw. Human.

She stumbled back, breath gone, knees weak. But something stronger pushed her forward. She flung open the door and ran to the next room.

Tara and Vikram lay sprawled across the bed.

Dead.

Their bodies slashed open. Heads twisted at impossible angles. Deep claw marks raked across their chests, like something had torn through them with monstrous hands. Blood painted the walls. The bedsheets. The floor.

She screamed, then heard footsteps. From the other side of the hallway.

Jessica turned and saw it.

Towering. Muscular. Its legs were hooved. Its torso human. And its head—its head was that of a goat, twisted and grinning, black eyes glistening like wet stone.

It was heading toward Ryan and Zara’s room.

She screamed again. “Zaraaaaa!!! RUN!!!”

It paused. Turned. Looked at her.

Jessica bolted. She slammed her door shut, threw herself against it. The wood groaned behind her as heavy steps approached. Claws scratched.

The door cracked behind her. A claw burst through the wood.

Jessica threw open the window, leapt out, scraped her arms on the stone path below, and ran to the car. She jumped in and leaned on the horn, yelling for the others.

The front door burst open. Ryan and Zara ran, wild-eyed.

The beast lunged from the shadows and grabbed Zara mid-sprint. It tore her in half like paper.

Ryan screamed but kept running. He dove into the car. Jessica hit the gas.

They sped down the forest road, the beast crashing through the trees beside them.

Then—nothing.

The moment they crossed the reserve’s boundary, it was gone.

Jessica’s lungs burned. Her hands shook on the wheel. Ryan sobbed, muttering prayers through gritted teeth.

Just when they thought they were safe, a figure appeared in the middle of the road.

Tall. Horned. Grinning.

Jessica screamed. Swerved.

The car slammed into a tree.

Everything went black.

She woke up in a white room, lights humming above. A hospital.

A nurse leaned over her. “You’re lucky. The crash was bad. but you survived.”

Jessica stared. “Ryan?”

The nurse frowned. “There was no one else in the car.”

Her phone buzzed on the table beside her.
One message. No contact name.

“One soul spared.
The rest are mine.
You brought me back.”

Jessica began to scream.

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Beautifully written! I really enjoyed the depth and emotion in your story — I have given full 50 points to your well deserved story! Would love your thoughts on my story too—Overheard at the Edge of Goodbye: https://notionpress.com/write_contest/details/6116/overheard-at-the-edge-of-goodbye

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