Poetry competition CLOSED 8th March 2022 3:30am
WINNER
Noble_Incubus
Noble_Incubus
RUNNER-UP:
Grace
Crypts and secrets
Poetry Contest Description
You're at the cemetary. There is a small chapel. Door is open, you go in. The door to the crypt is also open, so you go down to explore....
Poem up to fifty lines or a short story, maximum 3,000 words. Make the story as weird, poignant or gruesome as you like. Are you encountering the ghosts of your past? Do you happen to fall on some terrible secret? Go wild, have fun.
Creature from the Abyss (competition entry)
“That is not dead which can eternal lie,
And with strange aeons even death may die.”
“So spoke the mad poet Abdul Alhazred,
And I pondered it’s meaning for a time,
Then by chance strange events unfolded,
And now I too speak in rhyme.”
“These simple rhymes give me comfort,
Against a backdrop of perverse reality,
Where chaotic infernal aberrations live,
That destroy all logic and sanity.”
“What we call our everyday normal lives,
Is but a facade, a web of lies,
True horrors exist beyond our reckoning,
I have witnessed such, with my own eyes.”
“One night when the wind held its breath,
And the gibbous moon hung eerily,
I ventured into that dark evil crypt,
Cautiously. Fearfully. Warily.”
“Down ancient steps of darkened stone,
Into an abyssal hole, deep and dark,
By flickering candlelight I found it,
A flagstone stained by infernal mark.”
“With great effort I moved the stone aside,
To reveal a darker more dreadful pit,
And a horrid keening rose from below,
Of some vile frenzied thing, leaping in a fit.”
“What horror lurked in that shadowy hole,
I raised my lonely candle to better see,
And swiftly regretted my foolhardiness,
The horror of it’s visage, rent my sanity.”
“I screamed, an unearthly falsetto,
That in the darkness, echoed dreadfully,
Magnifying the spine chilling terror,
To an indescribable cacophony.”
“Such creature could not be natural,
Not made from bones and skin and meat,
But what most terrified me, in the end,
It appeared to be unfinished, incomplete.”
“Then by some weird quirk of fate,
Something gathered on that fell night,
Although the crypt was still and quiet,
Something extinguished my candlelight.”
“Darkness. Absolute and unbearable,
I floundered, terrified, as panic swelled,
But by some good grace I keep my nerve,
Relit the candle, and my panic quelled.”
“When at last my courage returned,
I gazed down into that abysmal place,
Of that dreadful, unnatural abomination…
No sign.
Gone.
It had escaped!
And with strange aeons even death may die.”
“So spoke the mad poet Abdul Alhazred,
And I pondered it’s meaning for a time,
Then by chance strange events unfolded,
And now I too speak in rhyme.”
“These simple rhymes give me comfort,
Against a backdrop of perverse reality,
Where chaotic infernal aberrations live,
That destroy all logic and sanity.”
“What we call our everyday normal lives,
Is but a facade, a web of lies,
True horrors exist beyond our reckoning,
I have witnessed such, with my own eyes.”
“One night when the wind held its breath,
And the gibbous moon hung eerily,
I ventured into that dark evil crypt,
Cautiously. Fearfully. Warily.”
“Down ancient steps of darkened stone,
Into an abyssal hole, deep and dark,
By flickering candlelight I found it,
A flagstone stained by infernal mark.”
“With great effort I moved the stone aside,
To reveal a darker more dreadful pit,
And a horrid keening rose from below,
Of some vile frenzied thing, leaping in a fit.”
“What horror lurked in that shadowy hole,
I raised my lonely candle to better see,
And swiftly regretted my foolhardiness,
The horror of it’s visage, rent my sanity.”
“I screamed, an unearthly falsetto,
That in the darkness, echoed dreadfully,
Magnifying the spine chilling terror,
To an indescribable cacophony.”
“Such creature could not be natural,
Not made from bones and skin and meat,
But what most terrified me, in the end,
It appeared to be unfinished, incomplete.”
“Then by some weird quirk of fate,
Something gathered on that fell night,
Although the crypt was still and quiet,
Something extinguished my candlelight.”
“Darkness. Absolute and unbearable,
I floundered, terrified, as panic swelled,
But by some good grace I keep my nerve,
Relit the candle, and my panic quelled.”
“When at last my courage returned,
I gazed down into that abysmal place,
Of that dreadful, unnatural abomination…
No sign.
Gone.
It had escaped!
Written by Noble_Incubus
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Reccuring Nightmare
As I go down the stairs, down into its concealing darkness. The air gets thicker. Its getting harder to breath. I follow the stairs further down, further and further, deeper and deeper. I can’t go back now. What will I find? What will I discover? Where will it lead me? I want my answer, I need my answer. Obsessed by my curiosity, driven to a place I don’t belong. Desecration, violation, unforgivable. Voices, I hear voices. Is anyone down there?! Answer me, please respond?! The voices get louder and louder. But I can’t understand a word. It’s like whispering, loud whispering. Long and unintelligible words forming sentences.
“Follow us,
Hear our voices silent and sweet.
Come down here, come to us,
Please find us, and make us complete.
Follow Us,
Hear our plea, true and sincere.
Come and save us, come to us,
Please save us, before we disappear.”
“I can hear you! Where are you! Answer me now!” Silence, suddenly a deafening silence. I stop descending an try to listen for any form of sound. But there was nothing. Hello! I mean you no harm! I yelled through the staircase. But again no answer. I take two more steps down and I hear footsteps behind me. Farther up the stairs. But they stop as soon as I stand still. One step at a time, something is following me. Not drawing closer, but skulking in the shadows. Do I dare to go back up to find out? Do I dare to go further into the abyss to find the origin of the voices? Do I have a choice? I can’t stay here. So I decide to descend even further. The voices, I can’t hear them anymore. But the footsteps are getting louder and louder. So I try to speed up my pace. But they are coming closer, and the steps have hastened. I suddenly shudder, a cold creeps up my spine and in an instant the footsteps are in front of me. Going down, faster and faster. All of the sudden I hear another voice, it’s not a whisper, It's not one of the voices I heard earlier. This time, it is more threatening.
“I will find you,
You’ll get what you deserve.
Don’t try to fight this, don’t resist.
Face me if you got the nerve.
I will hunt you,
You’ll be my little prey.
Don’t try to hide, don’t try to flee.
You will face your maker today.”
I try to get down the stairs, but they seem endless. I must have taken a 1000 steps already. I take another 100, 200, 300, but still there is no end. Faster and faster, deeper and deeper I go. I running out of breath. I need a break. “HELP US! HE IS HERE!” A loud scream not far from where I am. “COME HERE YOU LITTLE ROADENT! LET ME TASTE YOUR FLESH!” I go even faster and almost lose my balance. But in that moment I hear the voices again. “You were too late, you were too late again.” Again? What are they talking about. “Go back to where you came from.” “You failed again.” Confused and scared, I take a few steps back up the stair and to my surprise I am back at the top of the stairs. Back in the old chapel. In my arms the body of a small girl. Torn flesh, and blood dripping on the floor. My heart begins to race and I see the face of the girl. Tears still wet, and running down her face I cannot tell who she is. Who is she? What have I failed to do? What is happening to me?!
“Follow us,
Hear our voices silent and sweet.
Come down here, come to us,
Please find us, and make us complete.
Follow Us,
Hear our plea, true and sincere.
Come and save us, come to us,
Please save us, before we disappear.”
“I can hear you! Where are you! Answer me now!” Silence, suddenly a deafening silence. I stop descending an try to listen for any form of sound. But there was nothing. Hello! I mean you no harm! I yelled through the staircase. But again no answer. I take two more steps down and I hear footsteps behind me. Farther up the stairs. But they stop as soon as I stand still. One step at a time, something is following me. Not drawing closer, but skulking in the shadows. Do I dare to go back up to find out? Do I dare to go further into the abyss to find the origin of the voices? Do I have a choice? I can’t stay here. So I decide to descend even further. The voices, I can’t hear them anymore. But the footsteps are getting louder and louder. So I try to speed up my pace. But they are coming closer, and the steps have hastened. I suddenly shudder, a cold creeps up my spine and in an instant the footsteps are in front of me. Going down, faster and faster. All of the sudden I hear another voice, it’s not a whisper, It's not one of the voices I heard earlier. This time, it is more threatening.
“I will find you,
You’ll get what you deserve.
Don’t try to fight this, don’t resist.
Face me if you got the nerve.
I will hunt you,
You’ll be my little prey.
Don’t try to hide, don’t try to flee.
You will face your maker today.”
I try to get down the stairs, but they seem endless. I must have taken a 1000 steps already. I take another 100, 200, 300, but still there is no end. Faster and faster, deeper and deeper I go. I running out of breath. I need a break. “HELP US! HE IS HERE!” A loud scream not far from where I am. “COME HERE YOU LITTLE ROADENT! LET ME TASTE YOUR FLESH!” I go even faster and almost lose my balance. But in that moment I hear the voices again. “You were too late, you were too late again.” Again? What are they talking about. “Go back to where you came from.” “You failed again.” Confused and scared, I take a few steps back up the stair and to my surprise I am back at the top of the stairs. Back in the old chapel. In my arms the body of a small girl. Torn flesh, and blood dripping on the floor. My heart begins to race and I see the face of the girl. Tears still wet, and running down her face I cannot tell who she is. Who is she? What have I failed to do? What is happening to me?!
Written by Vortex32167
(Stephan van Pinksteren)
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The Monster in the Mirror
The hunt is on,
the monster must be found,
a murderous creature killing in our sleep.
Yet with trepidation,
I am haunted by something deep,
an evil growing day by day,
drawing me toward this crypt,
where shadows play in games arcane,
Their mocks both evil and profane,
for within this dark domain,
wicked thoughts are all that remain.
Hungry now for this evil abyss,
dreams of pain become my bliss,
in madness I lose control,
covered by the blood of my dreams.
Hearing shouts of fear and vengeance,
At last! The monster has been found,
But what joke is this,
as they wrap chains around my wrists.
I scream my innocence
and lift my hands in prayer
and scream again,
seeing claws that once were hands.
A searing pain as a spear is thrust,
a thousand times these cuts draw rust,
crying, "I am not a monster, don't you see?"
as I'm driven to my knees
and then in slow creeping darkness,
I am finally set free
the monster must be found,
a murderous creature killing in our sleep.
Yet with trepidation,
I am haunted by something deep,
an evil growing day by day,
drawing me toward this crypt,
where shadows play in games arcane,
Their mocks both evil and profane,
for within this dark domain,
wicked thoughts are all that remain.
Hungry now for this evil abyss,
dreams of pain become my bliss,
in madness I lose control,
covered by the blood of my dreams.
Hearing shouts of fear and vengeance,
At last! The monster has been found,
But what joke is this,
as they wrap chains around my wrists.
I scream my innocence
and lift my hands in prayer
and scream again,
seeing claws that once were hands.
A searing pain as a spear is thrust,
a thousand times these cuts draw rust,
crying, "I am not a monster, don't you see?"
as I'm driven to my knees
and then in slow creeping darkness,
I am finally set free
Written by APissPoorShaman
(Ryszard)
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Rest, ye Children of Chaos
shuffling on
on cemented path
meandering on flower garden
roses red pink and white
on wire arches
unnoticed unseen unappreciated
hallowed ground unhollowed ever more
they moved on unheeding
of glamour glitz around
ignoring neons focused on colourful beauty
sealing tired countenance
of overused whores
they shuffled on
for home they knew
was calling
prompted by dark call
come home children of the night
spawns of demons and crossroad souls
into the abyss
they descended
to rest until they're called
again to mischievous
prank on unsuspecting world
Written by Grace
(IDryad)
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Mirage
I am but hardened.
a plaster mirage but I
heard something.
over there, concrete alleys to
that gate.
muffled I can't, I can't
I descend.
I look.
I cry.
I am the one in this crypt.
a plaster mirage but I
heard something.
over there, concrete alleys to
that gate.
muffled I can't, I can't
I descend.
I look.
I cry.
I am the one in this crypt.
Written by jessica_orr
(Jessica Orr)
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