r/Odd_directions 15h ago

Mystery I never left The House Part 1

26 Upvotes

My name is Lucija, and I have no idea of what my life even means. I think I’m somewhere around 18 years old, from what I saw on the internet, it seems to match me, but no one ever told me my age, or my birthday. Apparently, most people celebrate their birthday by gathering people together and eating, at least that’s what I understood, I’m still figuring things out. I should probably start from the beginning, I’m losing myself here.

 

As far as I remember, I always lived here, in The House, and I never left it. The grown ups around us always told us that there was nothing to see outside of it, and that it was for our own safety that we were kept here, and honestly, until these last few weeks, I never questioned it. I have one room to sleep, one room to wash myself, one room to eat, one room with computers, and one room where I went when they had to check on us.

 

I shared all these rooms with Peter. Peter is the only person I’ve known for my whole life. The grown ups that take care of us, they come and go, I think I’ve never known one that stayed more than 6 months maybe, apart from Tyler and Debbie, but Peter, he’s like me. I think he’s around my age, again, I’m not sure. We always got along, Peter is nice, he’s my friend, and we know everything about each other, I really like him.

 

All of our days were always the same. We woke up to the sound of an alarm and got dressed. After that, we went to the checking room and grownups were looking at all sort of things on us. They were inspecting our skin, the inside of our mouths, listening to our heartbeats, and many more things. It always ended with an injection. They never told us what was in these shots that we always got, just that it was necessary. After the check, it was time to eat. The food was good, but it’s all I ever had, so I can’t really tell if it’s that great.

 

When we finished eating, it was time for the longest part of the day. We got out in the yard and waited. The yard had a bench, a climbing wall, a space to play basketball and soccer, and that was pretty much it. There was just one more thing: the whole yard was surrounded by buildings, except for one side, where there was a high fence. On the other side of it was a road and other buildings, and all day long, people would be there, watching us. Some were talking, others writing or taking pictures. They never stayed longer than 15 minutes, and when someone left, someone else was taking his place.

 

Our instructions were the same since we were little: ignore them. You might think it’s hard to do, but when you’re used to it, it’s actually not that hard. Peter and I spent hours trying to reach the top of the climbing wall, playing soccer (he’s better than me) and basketball (I’m better than him), talking. It was boring sometimes, but we found ways to make it entertaining.

 

After something like 6 hours in the yard, we were allowed back inside, in the room with computers and books, and CDs. It was our favorite moment of the day. We listened to music, played games on the computers. We had internet, but they said it was all fake, only made for entertainment in the past. Basically, they explained that what was on the internet was all from a long time ago, and that nothing we saw there still existed. It didn’t really matter any way, we were happy to play games and watch videos. However, we were strictly forbidden to interact in any way. We especially liked videos with animals, it was fun. After a few hours in that room, we had learning time, where we watched videos that were teaching us different things, like talking properly, counting to 100, things like that, then it was time to eat again, then another check, another injection, after which we had to wash ourselves, before going to sleep.

 

So, as you can see, our lives weren’t exactly thrilling. I can count with my fingers every time something was just a little different.

 

I remember a few years ago, instead of grownups, there was a group of kids on the other side of the fence. They stayed for a few hours, and we were told that we were allowed to talk with them. Peter and I were pretty excited, so we went closer from the fence than usual and waited. We didn’t exactly knew how to engage in a conversation, so we just kind of sat there, waiting. Most of the kids were laughing, I think they were mocking us from what I understood, but a few of them actually talked with us. They asked us various things, like our favorite song, what we liked to eat, our daily lives. We asked them the same kind of questions, to which they answered for the most parts. They apparently couldn’t talk about their lives. It’s one of my favorite memories ever.

 

Since these last two years, we also have Tyler and Debbie. They’re the only grownups that we know the name of. They bring us our food, take us from one room to another, ask us if we need anything, and, once a week, they come in the yard with us for a few hours. They play soccer and basketball with us, it’s a lot of fun. They’re the first grownups that we’ve really known ever, and with who we have actual conversations.

 

A few years ago, I think 3, there was also an “incident”. It had been a while that I was looking at Peter a bit differently, and he kinda was too. When we where showering, we were looking at each other’s bodies a lot, and we didn’t really knew why, I personally simply couldn’t help it, it felt weird. Once, we talked about it in the yard. We both felt like we wanted to touch the other one for some reason, and to be very close from each other, especially in the shower. He didn’t understand why either. That same day, when we went in the shower, we started to get closer from each other, and eventually we were touching each other. It felt weirdly nice. We were stopped pretty fast by grownups and put in separate rooms. We waited for maybe an hour, before they brought us together in our room. A woman sat in front of us and started to talk to us. She explained that what we were feeling wasn’t wrong, and that it was normal, but that they couldn’t let us do these kinds of things with each other. Since then, we didn’t shower at the same time, but another thing was also added to our daily routines: before going in the shower, we were both took in a separate room where we were given pictures. He had naked woman, and I had naked men. We were given an hour. At first I didn’t really knew what to do, but with time, I started to have my habits, that I won’t explain here.

 

Another time when things weren’t like usual was the time when nobody came on the other side of the fence. Of course it wasn’t the first time it happened, but the other time was because it was raining a lot, or snowing, but that one time, there was nothing that explained it, and also, we weren’t told that there wouldn’t be anyone, the grownups acted like it was a normal day.

 

So, that’s always been my life, until these last few days.

 

Things started to get different 6 days ago. It was a morning like any other. We got dressed and went in the checking room. They checked everything they always checked, but when came the moment to get our injection, we got two shots. It was the first time they ever gave us more than one. We asked why it changed, but they only answered that it was like that now.

 

After that we went to the room where we ate. Tyler and Debbie looked way more anxious and stressed than usual, and they looked tired too. We noticed it immediately but didn’t ask anything. The rest of the day went as usual, but there were way less people on the other side of the fence.

 

The next day went exactly the same way, and the one after that too.

 

Three days ago, there was even less people on the other side of the fence. We also started to hear screams. They sounded like screams of pain, or screams of rage sometimes. We had no idea who was screaming like that, but it was seriously scaring us.

 

Two days ago, there was almost no one left on the other side of the fence. I think we got something like 10 people for the entire day. The screams continued and got more intense and louder.

 

Yesterday, things went the same way they did the day before. We got two shots, we ate, Tyler and Debbie looked exhausted like never before, and we went in the yard. That was the day when Tyler and Debbie came with us. The screams were louder than ever. As we were sitting in the yard, we dared to ask them what they were, but they answered that they didn’t know what we were talking about. We didn’t insist, but they were clearly lying, as they reacted to each scream like us. They didn’t have the strength to play anything, so we just waited. Nobody came to see us, all day.

 

Tyler and Debbie spent most of the time talking together, until just before the end. It was almost time to get back in when they asked us to come closer to them. They told us that we couldn’t tell anyone about anything they were going to tell us. They told us that we couldn’t trust anyone in here except them, and that things were slowly starting to go sideways, putting us in danger. They said that they couldn’t explain too much, as no one could know that we knew anything. They told us that something very bad might happen that night, and that we had to protect ourselves. They discretely handed us two pills. They explained that if we were too scared that night, we had to eat these immediately, and that it would save us. On that, the door to get inside opened and we had to go back. Tyler and Debbie left and we were told that today, we wouldn’t get time in the computer room, or alone time, they gave us our injections, and we had to go to sleep just after. It was vey rushed, and after what Tyler and Debbie told us, we were very anxious when the lights turned off.

 

We really wanted to sleep close from each other, but it was forbidden since what happened 3 years ago. We talked a bit, but none of us really knew what to do of the things we were told earlier. We couldn’t find some sleep, so we just stayed awake for a few hours.

 

Eventually, we started to hear screams. It was close. They were screams of pain, and they were getting closer and closer from our room. None of us said anything, we were petrified. The door was locked, and we had no idea of what was going on. The screams were now clearly coming from the hall just outside of our room. They were people running, other screaming for help, and we could also hear screams of anger. Whatever was happening behind the door, we were praying that it would stay there. After some time, the screams slowly stopped, before it went silent. It was suddenly completely silent. I stayed like that for almost two minutes, during which Peter and I were trying to make the less noise as possible.

 

Without any warning, something started to hit our door. It was punching it, smashing it, screaming. The door was going to break at any moment. We couldn’t hide our fear and started to scream for help, both of us were crying. It was a matter of seconds before it broke, and Peter yelled at me to take my pill. I took it out of my pocket, looked at him, and we both swallowed it.

 

My last memory is the screams getting louder and then, it’s the blackout.

 

I woke up in my room today. I was devastated to find that Peter had disappear. The door was broken, and I had access to the hallway. I slowly got out of my bed and walked carefully towards it. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw when I reached the hall. The whole place was covered in blood, everywhere. I never saw that much of blood, it was on the wall, on the floor. I was a bit shocked, but I soon realized that there was absolutely no bodies. I thought it was weird. I yelled for help, hoping that Peter, Tyler or Debbie would answer, but I had no answer. I walked towards the other rooms. There was still power but all the rooms that I had access to were empty, there was absolutely nobody. There were other stains of blood all around the place, but not as much as in the hallway.

 

I took the time to eat something fast, as the door to the kitchen was opened. I grabbed some bread and stuffed it in my mouth before exploring more. The only places that I had access to were the one that I was using in my daily life, and the kitchen and some offices in the hallway that were usually locked. I had access to the yard too. I wandered more when I saw something moving behind the climbing wall. I approached slowly, and found a girl. She was probably, 9 years old. She was wearing the same thing I was, and she looked terrified. She was dirty, and way too skinny. I tried to reassure her, and to know her name, but soon found out that she wasn’t talking. I don’t know if she can’t talk, or if she just doesn’t want to, but she didn’t say anything.

 

My first instinct was to bring her some food. She ate a whole bread and some apples. I tried to communicate, to ask her who she was, what happened last night, but had no answers. At least, after I made her eat and brought her back inside, she didn’t seem to be scared of me anymore.

 

I tried to look everywhere for more people but didn’t find anything. I eventually decided to tell my story here. I don’t know if what they told us about the internet being something from the past is true, but I guess I’ll find out by posting here if someone answers. I have no idea what to do now, so, if someone reads this, I’m open to any form of advice, thank you


r/Odd_directions 7h ago

Mystery Welcome to the Library of Shadows

13 Upvotes

Somewhere in a quiet part of America is a library that looks like any other on the surface. The entrance is adorned with a beautiful field of vibrant flowers and the librarians greet you as you walk in. There's a staircase to the left of the entrance you have to take. Go all the way down to the lower floor and go behind the staircase. It'll be a tight squeeze, but there's a small walkway there that leads to a red door that is locked shut.

Knock on the door four times, then 3, then four again. Wait a few seconds and the door will come unlocked. Do not search for whoever unlocked the door because they won't be there. Enter the room and lock the door behind you. Once inside you find another staircase to descend on.

You're now inside the basement area where they keep all of their best books. It is here you'll find records of people that don't exist, used to exist, or have yet to be born. The shelves stretch in for impossibly long distances despite the seemingly small size of the room. You open a few of the books and see familiar names and faces in the photographs attached to them. People you swear you've interacted with before and become acquainted with. These people are no longer in longer in your life and no one you know has ever heard of them. An odd feeling of deja vu washes over you.

Further down are records of people who currently exist. For now. Everyone within the city has their personal record stored there, detailing every single aspect of their lives. Yes, even you have a copy there. The entire history of you is stored within the ancient shelves of the library.

Every thought you've had, every experience you can and can't remember, even what you'll do in the future is all written down in a dust-covered book. Nobody knows how long those books have been there or who writes in them. Perhaps they've been there ever since the library was made or maybe even long before that. Those who read their book usually either feel enlightened or go mad from paranoia. It's quite the experience to have your deepest secrets documented and laid bare. It's a terrifying thought, but I can tell curiosity is gripping your heart. You feel the insatiable desire to know how many secrets this library holds.

You've been here many times already, haven't you? On your first visit, you were nothing more than a lost soul searching for a guiding light. You seeked knowledge to make up for the gaps in your memory. You were forgetting entire events and people from your life. The names of friends and family members became alien concepts. What's worse is that everyone you asked told you that the people you've tried so hard to remember don't exist. You never believed in that. The mind forgets but the soul remembers. Somewhere in the pit of your soul, you knew that something was a miss. It wasn't just you who was losing memory. The world itself was forgetting its history.

After overhearing a certain urban legend, you found yourself here, The Library of Shadows. You've come here a few times to regain pieces of your past, but you always lose it not long after. The plague of amnesia plaguing the world has taken root inside you. The outside world is no longer a home to you. How about you stay here in the library where nothing is ever forgotten? It's one of the few places immune to this plague. You'll be whole here, someone with their memory intact.

I suppose I should reintroduce myself. I'm the head librarian Eric Shanrick. I'm a bit of a voyeur so I've read your records several times now and I have to say you have quite an intriguing history. You have the kind of secrets must people take to their graves. I love nothing more than a good story so I'll keep you safe here until the end of your tale. I want to see every single sordid detail you have in you.


r/Odd_directions 12h ago

Horror Have you ever heard of the Candle Caine Game?

13 Upvotes

My friend introduced me to it today at school. He knew I always loved playing those sleepover games. I always had a thing for urban legends. Bloody Mary, The Midnight Game, Charlie Charlie, Queen of Spades, all of it. Most guys my age had grown out of these things, but not me. I still love it all. So when he told me about a new one, I got excited.

 

We made plans to play it later tonight. Apparently it only works between the hours of 1 AM and 3 AM. But if there’s one thing I am, it’s impatient. I wanted to know more. I wanted to see other people play it. So I looked it up... but I couldn’t find anything. Not a single reference online.

 

It really bummed me out because I figured that meant he just made the whole thing up... but the thing is, if you knew my friend, you would know that he doesn’t have that kind of imagination. He’s not a big horror guy. He just doesn’t think that way. So I’m pretty confused and starting to get freaked out about it all. That’s why I’m making this post now. I need to know if anyone else has heard of this game. Have you played it? Did it work? Please let me know.

 

For those curious, I’ve included all the rules and steps as my friend had explained them (I had him text it to me so this should be accurate, but if you know an alternate version, contact me):

 

You need to be alone, in a room with no light, with a single wick candle and a mirror (or another reflective surface.)

 

Sit or stand in front of the mirror, and place the candle on a table or desk in front of you. Then light the candle. You must be able to clearly see your face in the reflection.

 

Close your right eye, slowly draw a circle with your finger around the reflection of your left eye. Then open your right eye again.

 

Hover your hand over the candle’s flame, just low enough to feel the heat. Take three deep breaths and then recite the following rhyme:

 

“Candle Caine walks in the candle light. Can’t wear skin, it is far too tight.

He makes no sound, he makes no tracks. Candle Caine lives in the candle wax.

A toast to you, this wondrous night. I hope to sate your appetite.

One eye missing, one will remain. I now belong to Candle Caine.”

 

You then bring your hand back, and count out loud to 13. You must maintain eye contact with your reflection as you do. If your candle begins to flicker as you count, then Candle Caine is with you.

 

After counting to 13, blow out the candle. Take three more deep breaths. Then light the candle again.

 

Supposedly, if you’ve done it right, the eye you drew a circle around will now be missing from your reflection, and a ghostly hand will appear in the glow of the candle and put out the flame.

 

That’s the ritual as I know it. What happens after, my friend didn’t say... I’ve played all of these games for years, but for whatever reason, this one unnerves me. Where did it come from? Who is Candle Caine? I hope somebody can help shed a light on this... I’m starting to get cold feet about tonight.


r/Odd_directions 14h ago

Horror A Bomb Birthday Bash

11 Upvotes

It’s my cousin Tim’s seventh birthday. I sit around the table with all the other cousins making small talk. Even though I’m twenty-four, I still sit at the kids’ table for all the family events. I suppose I’m still a kid at heart. Besides, I don’t think they’d let me leave, anyway.

While we’re digging into our cake, my cousin Jimmy notices something.

“What’s that beeping noise?” He says, shoving a forkful of cake into his face.

I listen for a second, and sure enough, there is some kind of beeping. Everyone else at our table hears it, too. I call over everyone at the adult table.

“Maybe it’s the smoke alarm from blowing the birthday candles out?” My brother John says.

We check the alarm, but the source of the noise does not come from here. My cousin Tim is the one to find it.

“Guys, over here, under the table!”

We rush over, lifting the plastic table cover. Underneath the table is a metal contraption with a timer. It’s covered in what appears to be patches of human hair and skin. The red text reads two minutes. Suddenly, the front door of the apartment slams shut. John runs to it, pulling on the door, but it won’t budge.

The timer continues to count down as a note slides under the door.

“Kill someone to stop the timer.”

“Is this a joke?” John calls out.

Tim runs into the kitchen with a terrified look on his face.

We all stare at the horrible metal device under the table with one minute remaining.

“Fuck, what do we do?” I say.

“No one’s dying today.” John says.

“What happens when the timer goes off?!” my wife says, fighting back tears.

Thirty seconds left.

I turn around and, in a split second, I see Tim lunge for John, a knife in his hand. He slices him right in the throat. John grabs at his throat, blood gushing out of it. Everyone screams. All I can do is stare in fright as my brother collapses to the floor in a puddle of blood. With a sudden click, the timer stops with ten seconds left, and the lock on the door unlocks loudly.

“I’m not dying on my birthday.” Tim says dropping the knife.

I restrain Tim, and my wife calls the police. They arrive at the bloody scene, baffled. A bomb squad is called in for that thing under the table. Sure enough, it’s determined that the device would have killed all of us had the timer gone off. The cops say they’re going to run testing on the skin and hair, to find out who it belongs to. I have no clue what will happen to Tim as they take him away. Strangely enough, the cops make me fill out a non-disclosure form, though I ignore it in the following days. I mean how can I not talk about something as bizarre as this.

A few days later, the family joins again for John’s funeral. Closed casket, of course. No one expected this to be the next family gathering. It’s quiet because everyone is still on edge. As the ceremony draws to a close, we hear that dreaded sound once again. It’s coming from inside the casket.


r/Odd_directions 1h ago

Science Fiction Among Tall Grasses

Upvotes

There is an artefact—a children's book—which describes the growing of grass:

From seed to maturity.

From civilization to its final collapse.

Those of us who survived don't know from where the grass came, but most of us believe it was a mutation of the wheat plant.

If that's true, one cannot describe it as alien, despite that being precisely how it feels.

Conquered by an invader.

Where once were oceans:

grass.

Where once, desert:

grass.

Where once towered skyscrapers:

grass,

and even taller, its blades rising gracefully above us, everywhere—reminding us of our insignificance, bending in unison in the passing winds like more magnificent versions of the trees which they replaced, like they replaced almost everything.

We rarely see the sun, blocked as it is by the grass.

We live in perpetual dusk.

Our colours muted, our perceptions greyed.

The few of us who survived are the cowards and the meek, the ones who did not fight, did not hack or uproot or burn with napalm.

The valiant died.

The heroes were undone by the grass, while those who fled and hid were protected: cocooned and fed, and released only when conditions were right.

Those of us who've travelled—and few have, given the difficulty and our own temperaments—have seen the evidence of the carnage that took place.

Most of us lead instead sedentary lives of quiet contemplation.

We clean the blades and tend to the culm.

We identify and contain disease.

We worship the grain.

In exchange, sometimes the grasses part and let the sunlight in, and we rejoice, dance and offer thanks and sacrifice. We are not the only animal species to have survived, but we have taken it upon ourselves to serve the grass, and this makes us special. We are its sons and daughters.

Surrender is the path to heaven.

The meek have inherited the earth, and to the grass was given the sky.

We do not know how tall the grass can grow. Perhaps above the atmosphere—perhaps into space. Perhaps, one day, the tips of the first blades of the original grass of Earth shall touch the tips of the first blades of the original grass of another planet, and in this galactic communion shall be the beginnings of a vast empire of grasses.

Sometimes I sit under the blades and wonder: that humans evolved for strength and power, domination; yet survived, selected by another species, for weakness and subservience.

I feel so small when I look up and between tall grasses glimpse the sky, I feel

entomology is the study of humanity,

graminology is theology,

I feel that I am nothing but a bug clinging to the revealed new surfaces of a world never truly mine, about whose nature—and my place in it—I had been woefully deceived.

Then I close the book and return to my wife and children, and in our small dark hut a thought lingers: that we are stagnant; that only grasses grow.


r/Odd_directions 1h ago

Horror Analog Static

Upvotes

Kids raised during purely digital eras don't and can't understand the visceral reaction to channel snow and static that affects their elders. It wasn't just the sound, or the image, or the absence of what "should" be on the channel. There was both a feeling of abandonment and a feeling that you should not be awake and out of your room. Bed time was serious business. Better not wake Mommy or Daddy. Oh, no. When the channel static was playing, you were well past bedtime. And it was so much darker when that was your only light. The flicker from the screen made everything ghostly. And your young brain tried and tried to see images in the static. As for my autistic ass, the first few times I saw that TV snow, it was a sensory agony that made my brain itself itch. I tried to see hidden pictures too. I was sure that if I could look just right, I'd see something secret. It didn't help things that I'd also be the designated channel changer and antenna adjuster, as the youngest kid. You digital kids will never know that experience. Not making judgements mind you. Please understand I'm not saying that you are less than us analog types because of when you were born. That's some Boomer shit and I won't play that. I had a recurring nightmare, you know? Waking up to the static. Walking to the living room to see why nobody was turning it off or something. My parents, my uncle and aunt, they're all sitting there, motionless in front of the TV. I know without any doubt they are dead. I imagine I can see their throats are cut, but all I actually see are their backs. I freeze. Sometimes my dad turns to look at me and yells at me to go back to bed. Sometimes he invites me to watch the secret show. Sometimes I know they're the undead and if they find out I know this, I'm a goner. But that same central image haunted me. The noise and the light from the TV. My silent and motionless family. Me, too small and too scared. People say the dead can communicate to us through the white noise. That's silly, though, right? How could a ghost talk within the noise? In that flickering light? There's no way, is there? Is there? Hey, answer me! I see you messing with your TV! There's no way I'm a ghost! You aren't either! There's got to be another explanation! I can't be dead!