futurephantoms

The Clear Pool

It was a warm spring day when the man first arrived at the cave.
He saw her here for the first time, light flickering in the droplets of water that hung in on her face like ornaments. She had straight dark hair, bright blue eyes, and skin that was perfect and white.
It was then that he knew he would find out who this girl was; it was his duty now, as any man would agree, to at least find out a name.
So that day, he followed her into the cave.
She was almost spectral in the way she glided through the dark, light from the bioluminescent creatures on the ceiling springing off her face like moonlight.
He knew that the girl was not like him. He had rough brown stubble covering his worn and patchwork skin. His tough hands dark with the years of earth he had felt in his small stone house in the hill.
She was something different. Something amazing, enthralling, something he wanted with all he was. They came to a pool of perfectly clear water, lit from a crack in the ceiling of the cave.
The girl had noticed him, she turned and faced the man, and he spoke.
He asked who she was, and she did not respond.
He asked why she was here, and she did not respond.
He considered asking further questions, but he could feel that it was futile to push further.
He left the cave in time to return home before dark.

His days were now spent thinking of the girl.
His small, cobblestone house became decorated with fanciful portraits of the girl, composed with watery dyes and a bone and hair brush he had used to dust off the small precious stones he would find in caves and rocky hills.
He had to return to the cave.
The man worked into the night, preparing a charm made from a verdant gem, strung on a long thread he had spun, made to be worn around the neck, what he thought would be an appropriate gift.
He headed out in the morning, the winding path of the forest leading him through foliage and over rivers, until he arrived at the cave once more.
There was no girl the lead him through this time.
He made his way through the rocky path, lit by the small bugs above him, and found himself once again, at the clear pool.
But there was no girl.
He walked over to the side of the pool and looked in. It was as clear as it looked, and the pool went down for what looked like forever. The light could not push through the water despite its clarity, and everything was in shadow as it went down deeper.
The man blinked. Did he see something moving in the shadows beneath the water? He looked closer. There was something moving up towards the surface of the water, and the man stumbled back, surprised.
After a minute or so of waiting, a lithe body emerged from the clear pool, dripping with shiny drops of water. It was the girl. The man stood up, and stepped towards her, pulling the necklace he made, from inside his jerkin, and held it out to her.
She beckoned him closer with a finger.
He walked slowly towards the girl, not daring to make a sudden movement, as though he thought she would frighten and run, like the tiny mice in his house.
He made it to her, and lowered the pendant over her head, and it sat against her bare chest, reflecting the light from above. He looked to her eyes, and smiled.
She smiled back, showing a mouth full of keen teeth, what looked like hundreds of tiny spikes, gleaming in the light.
The man’s eyes widened, and he tried to step back, but she had a grip on him, and pulled him closer to her, into the water. He tried to scream but no sound came out, as he felt the water reach his knees. He had no choice but to keep moving forwards.
Every step he was deeper, and deeper, and deeper into the clear water, until he was under completely, struggling to open his eyes. When he managed, he saw the illusion of the girl completely shattered. Where her beautiful face had once been, a picture of pure horror now showed. Bloated skin, like that of a drowned person, surrounded two sunken eyes, a flat nose, and thin lips, that no longer hid the sharp teeth that grinned at the man.
His vision became unclear, as he was dragged further and further down into the shadows under the water, until the light was no longer visible from above.
In complete darkness, he let out his last breath in a laugh, thinking to himself that he’d had no idea of the perils of love.

Insanity and Tears

The fuel of nightmares, fueled by fear,
He glows in the darkness, watching near. 

Clockwork soldiers give rigid chase,
They once made joy in this desolate place. 


Stained floors, bad memories, line these walls,
As laughter echoes through the halls. 

White and blue and blue on white,
His eyes give watch, burning bright.

Mad, hungry and full of fright,
You run, to escape and survive the night. 

The fuel of nightmares, fueled by fear,
He’s always with you, always near. 


Since that one night, it’s looped inside
Your mind reducing, fear justified. 

He laughs as you run, tears on your cheek,
He finds you, crying, growing weak. 


He’s at you now, in the manic cry,
No sympathy or pity, no hope nearby. 

But arms reach out, arms cold and bright,
Arms that yearn to touch, but not to fight.

For he didn’t know how to be anything but
The fuel of nightmares, heart cold shut.
But now lonely and crying, they both become,
You embrace the shadow that once made fun. 


Mixed through twisted, insanity and tears,
A love is found, a love for fear.
Outward appearing both cold and mad,
But inside, he feels nothing else but sad.

But found now, he sobs, and starts to grow warm,
As fear itself has become your home.