16 Crosstrek Hybrid with about 80k mi. Battery replaced by AAA about 2 months ago
Parked it then an hour later went out to drive it again and it wouldn’t start - all dash lights flicker and flash several times like it’s glitching out. Locking and unlocking doors via key FOB is very weak. The date has been reset to 1/1/2014. MPG counter slowly ticked up to the current level. The hybrid battery level showed empty then eventually filled up. The emergency flashers don’t flash properly - they click rapidly and irregularly. Hitting the power lock button locks / unlocks the doors about 75% of the time and other times it weakly unlocks/locks them
Hybrid Ready light doesn’t turn on. The light on the keyless start turns green when the brake is pressed. The brake is super stiff. The small screen near the windshield showed up MFD needs to be checked
tried to start it a handful of times and keeps doing the same thing. Wondering if it’s a fuse or something that’s shorted out?
Any ideas?

This might only apply to my fellow ladies, but I thought I'd share. I've been doing a lot of reflecting and trying to understand the root of my feelings, and in so doing, I end up sharing my thoughts with my husband. I was expressing to him that when I was younger, before I was married, I knew I wasn't a good cook, and I knew I wasn't great at cleaning/keeping the house tidy, etc. But what I did have was an adventurous wild side, and I thought that was what I "had to offer" my future husband. That's why it hurts when he rejects me, because he's rejecting the one thing I had to offer in a sense. (This was communicated to help him understand me, not to guilt him into not rejecting me or anything like that.) And you know what he said to me?
"You're worth more than sex."
I was speechless, and had to go sit and think again. He was entirely right. I've been placing my value as a wife in my sexual prowess. But he sees me as so much more, and loves me for way more than what I bring to the bedroom. But I don't acknowledge those things, and don't believe I have anything else to bring to the table, so I end up feeling like sex is all I'm good for, and the rejection of sex is a rejection of me which is just simply untrue.
Now I definitely still just have a higher libido than he does. It's not all about my perception of myself. But dang, it is part of it. Since then, I'm trying to intentionally notice the things I do for him outside the bedroom, and notice his appreciation for those things instead. And it's helping! I guess I'm moving into a place where I can more healthily accept that our marriage is more than sex. We aren't just roommates by any means, but there are platonic elements to our relationship, and those elements matter too. There's also just sappy silly elements, that I've been overlooking while longing for sex and romance instead of joy and love. It's really hard, but I'm starting to see things in a more balanced light. And it's really helping me adjust my expectations, and maintain a better relationship with my husband.
Idk if this will relate to anyone else. But I'm sharing because I really hope someone else might make the realization I did, and find answers they didn't know they needed.

Just got my Model Y delivered, timelines in case someone interested.
OD: 4/24, Vanilla(White with black interior, no adds-on), Bay area.
Lost on interim updates as they're many single days push back before VIN assigned...
VIN: 5/26, Fremont built, F790xxx, Matrix light and HW4.0, SA doesn't reply my message, but confirmed after delivery.
Delivered: 5/28. A guy drive from Fremont factory to my home deliver it.
Everything looks perfect except a small paint defect: https://imgur.com/a/IyJrB3O, it seems a dust underneath, definitely can feel that, really small so not sure if this worth a service ticket to request fix that, do that need repaint the whole piece? Thanks

I (19m) lived with dad (48m) and my brother (22m) my whole life. My dad and mom divorced very early in my life. There is so much to the story but to speed it up alittle bit, basically my dad was awful. Verbally abusive, possibly mentally and sometimes physical. He was horrible and that affected me and my brother. I wasnt the best kid, i took after my dad in personality and my brother did too i suppose. That affected how i was too friends.
Anyway, last year after a long buildup, we lost our house due to bankruptcy because my dad quit paying after having bankruptcy. I moved in with my mom(55f) and at first it was actually nice. My video game addiction due to depression was gone and aside from a couple times there was an angry moment between my mom and her boyfriend(58m), everything was good there. My brother and dad lived in a truck then at my grandparents(dads side) then a house they rented then now a camper in someones yard. Im sure that seems weird. Its because they lived in a truck until my dad wrecked it, they lived at his parents until after like 6 months whennmy dad finally got into the rented house, and the landlord did him a favor and let him pay extra rent until the deposit was paid off because my dad couldnt afford it first thing.
They lived there for 3 months until stuff that coincidentally stopped my dad from having money and preventing him from paying a penny to the landlord in all 3 months got them kicked out. My dad bought a camper and now they are living in it at yard in which actually a few weeks ago, they started sleeping in tents because the camper was so packed that they cant even enter it anymore. That's the simplification of them up until now.
Things where i am have gotten worse. My mom acted awful every day for a while, her boyfriend started being mean too. Got somewhat better though. Its just been a whole lot of stress though. My dad has continuously screwed up and that screws over my brother who up until 5 or so months ago, i still disliked alot. I have understood that if i wish to change and hope that people will understand i did and my friends will forgive me, i have to forgive him too. I have understood that while i mostly acted how i did because of my dad, it was the same for him.
So because of those realizations, i have started "caring" and feeling bqd and trying to help. Atleast for my brothers sake. But it's been awful. I have no money and cant drive which means i can't do anything and my mom wants him to live here. If something messed up, im completely dependent. She wasnt her own place because of her bf (who is pretty bad recently) and would have my brother move in (IF he even would) but again no license and no money. My mom also has no license, lost it last year and hardly has no money. Her car is in her boyfriends name. Considering all that, who help me drive, who would get our stuff to her new house and what would happen with her car if we moved?
With all that, everyday is awful. I hate getting up because i wonder what will go on today. We have had to constantly help my dad out after his screw ups. Im down a few hundred dollars i got for graduating and im just sick of it. The last few months i have tried to be happy. I will soon have my license which will let me go anywhere i want when i want, i will have money which will let me get whatever i want and i am talking to my friends again and they dont have hard feelings against me but we arent going to hang out until i can drive.
Its not working. Im not happy. Things have just been getting worse and more worrisome with my brother and we always say we need to say something because "this cant keep going on" but then my mom and her mom(75f) wimp out because "what if my dad does something bad because we angered him" but in my opinion TRYING to talk to him but angering him is so much better than not doing anything and them starving to death or something and all we did was non directly help with that. So today my dad needed to pay the owner of the property he is at 80 bucks but didnt have it (surprise surprise) so my aunt (50f) lent it and i said some stuff to him basically saying how it cant go on like this and he got pissed and raised his voice at me and fast walked towards me as if he was going to put his hands on me. I just walked inside my house. I was pretty angry. I told my mom and she was worried they weren't going to get any money back. But me? I am so done. This was 4 hours ago and I have done ALOT of thinking. My post might seem alittle over the place and that is because i have been typing this for 3 hours and been constantly thinking of everything.
My thoughts are that i think i want to leave. Im going to get my license and a job, buy myself a car, save a little then leave. Everyone else be damned. I can't do it anymore. All this going on is a constant battle of thoughts in my head. Am i a bad person? Are these people around me bad people or just assholes? Im done with my dad but my brother, im not too sure. We were both bad back then. I was a jerk and didn't realize it if that makes sense and had anger problems which came out when someone was mean to me or bothering alot. He was the big brother that knew they were bigger and stronger than the little brother and took advantage. Then he became super different and worse the last few years and my hate and anger grew which made me meaner to him.
Moving here, i have been thinking in my head that it wasnt always our fault (with my mothers help of course) but while i was very angry today, i wondered if my mom has been manipulating me to believe that or rather that NONE of it was his fault. Everytime i complained about him she always blamed my dad. I dont think i have ever heard "your dad" more in my life. Thinking about stuff in the past kind of makes me believe she has been manipulating and brainwashing me (which is easy because i have a very weak mentality) into thinking he wasnt bad at all. Anytime i complained about him at the other house she always just said geez or shook her head. I told her once that i was feeling depressed and a specific thing depressed people feel and she hugged me but then that was it. She acted as if i never said it after that. She seems to be more sympathetic towards him.
I dont think he is bad but when i have to deal with my dad, my mom manipulating and guilt tripping me(just remembered that im done a few hundred bucks because she guilted me into lending it to my dad) and my brother who wont really help himself, i very much want to just give the middle finger and be done. I am feeling very de-motivated to keep typing and my thoughts are slipping but last thing is i honestly think my mom might believe im like my dad or something. It would explain why seems to always be sympathetic towards my brother. She might think me and my dad were the abuser towards him. I joked(very obviously) about giving a hot pepper to the dog and she almost threw it away because she thought i wouldve. I wouldnt have. That is evil to do. There was another piece of "evidence" but it is out of my mind now so i am just going to finish up now.
But yeah this post definitely changed a little bit from what i was originally going to say but yeah i feel like im done with it all. I hate dealing with this.

I’m not an extraordinary individual. Not to my knowledge at least. However, there have been many anomalous things that have happened to me throughout my life. Some of these incidents were harmless while others were downright haunting. Either way, all these incidents were well beyond simply being “out of the ordinary.”
The most recent of these incidents involve my reddit account. Specifically, a post that I don’t ever remember posting. I don’t have any medical or family history of memory-related disorders. I have never shown any signs of such memory disorders, nor do I have any predisposition to them. I also do not partake in injecting any drugs including alcohol or anything else that could cause me to forget certain events. Therefore, I would’ve remembered originally posting the following post and yet I don’t. The original post was titled, “A former work partner sent me a strange email last night, now I fear for my safety.”
I discovered this post this morning after vomiting for the first time in years. However, the vomit wasn’t what scared me. The fact that it was partly black. Closing the lid of the toilet after vomiting in it, I noticed something on the underside of my left forearm. “Subject Number 9: Attempt number 1; Result: Conversion Rejected; minimal to no physical alteration; failure” where the words printed on my arm. That was the final straw and that’s why I’ve decided to repost the original post rather than simply deleting it.
-Original Post-
It happened last night around 11:30pm. I was getting ready to go to bed when I heard a notification sound from my laptop. It was an email titled, "If you get this email, you’ve been selected for a true opportunity. Don’t resist it!" and attached to it, was a Word Document. It was from an ex-coworker whose real name I won't use (I'll be using the name Dave as a replacement). Not wanting to stay up for what I thought was an advertisement or promotion of some kind, I simply saved the attachment after verifying the email's origin.
I then went to bed before being woken up around 3:00 at night to a loud thumping sound and my laptop being turned on seemingly by itself. Upon opening the laptop, I saw that it was opened to the word document while a page to reddit had been open. After reading the Word Document in its entirety, I was dumbfounded. It wasn’t an advertisement; it was a warning. At first, I would’ve assumed it was just a dumb, ridiculous prank. However, following events made me convinced that’s not the case.
I tried to delete the word document and close reddit with no success and laptop will only pull up reddit, email, and Microsoft Word. I then tried to turn off my computer, but it only gave an error sound in response. Worse yet, my phone won’t even turn on so calling for help via my phone isn’t an option. It’s definitely some sort of virus. Furthermore, in the process of trying to leave my apartment on the fifth floor, the door wouldn’t unlock, and the peep hole was obstructed. Following this, I tried to scream for help, but nothing happened. This has only made me fearful and desperate. That's why I've decided to post the document I received here so I can maybe appease whatever virus this is.
To give context, I met Dave when we were both hired in the same group. Long story short, the job simply wasn't for us, and we were both let go the same day right before the end of our job's probationary period. After that, I went to work for a warehouse job to stay paying for the bills. I'll admit it's not the best job, but I won't complain because it pays enough for me to afford my monthly expenses. However, that didn't stop me from being jealous of Dave once I had learned that he had found work in an unnamed experimental treatment facility.
I live in an area on the southeast coast of North America that's known for constant innovation. Dave on the other hand, lived 20 minutes away from me. That's partially why it wasn't so hard for both of us to find replacement jobs. However, it didn't explain his luck as I never took him as the kind of guy to work in the field of Biology and Gene Therapy. He seemed more of a mechanic than a scientist. Regardless, I was happy for him and moved on with my typical life.
That was all about 2 months ago.
The document that was attached to the email was a letter. Any details such as the name of the CEO or the company Dave worked for have been removed. This was the message I saw when I read the document.
-Message Starts-
[My Name], you’re one of the people I sent this to. You need to read everything that is in this document very carefully, word for word and then post this to a site that it is or will be pulled up on your device. I’ve installed a virus on your computer that will only be nullified once this document has been posted onto a specific internet page designated as “Safe to post” by the virus’ code. I’ve done this to ensure that the truth gets out there not to harm you. I’m sorry it had to be this way.
However, I shall give you some context first.
It all started after I didn't make my previous job's probationary period. I had moved to the local area just for that job. So, when I didn’t make the cut, I originally was planning on moving back to my home state. However, that soon changed as two nights before I was going to begin the move. I had gotten a letter from [Removed] Inc. It was a job offer.
"Hello [Removed], we've heard about your recent and unfortunate separation from [Removed]. We would like to extend a job offer after reviewing your skills and experience as we’ve determined that you'd be a better fit here with us and your contributions valued. Your job would be relatively simple, safe, and rewarding. You will be trained, costs covered by us. Should you choose to stay, you’ll enjoy our amazing benefits including, but not limited to, full insurance coverage, competitive pay, and 152 hours of PTO! All we ask is that you're willing and able to work 12-hour shifts, lift more than 50lbs, comply with our reasonable NDAs and do the job with quality and safety in mind. Should this offer pique your interest, don't hesitate to call us or email us!
Sincerely, [Removed].”
“Today’s biological questions are tomorrow’s biological achievements here at [Removed].”
I must've read it twice before deeming it as "too good to be true" However, the truth is, I was desperate. Desperate enough to take the time and reach out to the company. The fact is, I didn't want to go back to my home state. If I had a chance to stay here, why not try and see if the job is genuine. “The worst thing that can happen is I get my time wasted” I thought.
I called the CEO the next day and to my surprise, long story short, it was successful! I was hired! Not only that but the job's hourly wage was $10 more than my previous job and I only had to work 3 days a week! I was told to come in the next available shift for training.
I eagerly began my first two weeks here normal enough. It was mostly training videos relating to our job procedure, receiving hands-on training for simple tasks, and meeting my coworkers. On the first day, I noticed that all the coworkers barely ever talked. I chalked it all up as they simply being standoffish to me, the new hire. I figured they needed to warm up to me.
After the first 2 weeks were done, I had a good idea of what I'd be doing. I would be experimenting on human and wild animal tissue as well as live animals. This was to study the effects of mutating and altering certain genetic codes. I know the last part might seem unethical, but it was to discover cures for diseases using gene therapy. I wasn’t hurting animals; I was helping them. However, the job still began to feel wrong.
It started with me meeting the CEO. Immediately I noticed something was different about her. Specifically, the way she looked for a CEO. She towered above me at almost seven feet in height and her skin was insanely pale. Her hair was jet-black as was the color of her eye’s irises and the shape of her upturned eyes made her gaze very intimidating as well. She looked young, perhaps 25 at the oldest. Furthermore, the way she dressed; she wore a black and grey camo military-style uniform didn’t help. There was what looked to be the patch of a flag or symbol on her left shoulder, but it wasn’t that of any nation or group I recognized. The symbol/flag in question was a red-letter X in the middle of a red outline of an eye with a black background. Her voice was also very off.
After meeting her, I was then made to sign several NDAs and other contractual documents. The documents I was signing seemed standard but something in me felt wrong with it. After signing the NDAs, I was then introduced to Arin, the person I'd be shadowing. Everything went downhill from there. Immediately, within 5 minutes of meeting him, Arin began to give me a list of ominous, strange suggestions that sounded more like warnings.

1. If you hear the CEO seemingly talking to herself behind a locked door with the hallway lights flickering outside, walk away. She’s talking to the voice. Whatever they are talking about is none of your business and you want to keep it that way.
   
2. If you are working by yourself and the lights turn off. Don't move. You will hear a voice, cooperate with it, answer any questions it has and do what it says. I don't want to have to clean up after another, "unfortunate work accident."
   
3. Though this is unlikely, if the CEO tells you to meet them in their room. Do not keep them waiting. She doesn't like it when you're late because it is likely demanding your presence.
   
4. If you have questions about what exactly we do, don't ask. Don't try to tell anyone outside of this facility the nature of our work and its end goal should you find out. It's not us that will come for you, it's the voice.
   
5. If you happen to see the figure that the voice belongs to, it has respect for you. Keep it that way but avoid eye contact with it.
   
6. Do not refer to the voice as the CEO or a mental illness. Even if that’s what it seems like, I promise you It not that. You treat it with the utmost respect and legitimacy even when it's not around.
   
7. None of these suggestions I’ve given you are a "joke" of any kind. Take it seriously.
   

I didn't say anything, but I was more than confused. I could tell by his face that he was intent on convincing me. In fact, he had the most serious look I had ever seen on anyone’s face. He then said, "I have your back but don't get yourself in trouble. Don't mention what I've told you at lunch either. Everyone learns in their third week. Now, you know what they say about Rome? When in Rome, do as the romans do yeah? Well, you're in Rome so do as we do. Oh, and I'll say this one final time, nothing I've told you is to be talked about outside of the workplace. Don't think about it too hard though. Just don't forget either." My heart began to race slightly after hearing this as I struggled to go about the work routine of isolating and studying DNA strands, reorganizing documents, Injecting certain labelled syringes into various lab animals, etc.
The next 4 days went roughly the same as I got into the routine of things. I got better at my tasks and was even allowed to work alone by the end of the week. All the other coworkers at lunch would say things like, "I went to go work at my station but the door to the room was locked, I then heard the CEO talking on the other end." or "The lights went out at my station yesterday, IT didn't say anything. The lights came on after 2 minutes. IT must've been observing." As these things were said, they exchanged knowing looks with no sign of any joking going on. At this point I was beginning to be convinced that the CEO was insane just by that alone.
The following 4 weeks were almost completely normal. There was no mention of "The Voice" except towards the end of my 4th week when Arin said, "IT must be taking a break or a vacation if it does that sort of thing." before one of our coworkers apparently got a little too clever and said, "IT might just decide to screw off for once." Everyone then stopped to look at him with stern expressions and no one even smiled. No one else said anything about the voice for the rest of lunch that day. The whole event made me nervous even more.
Midway through my 5th week, I had my first encounter with the voice while working the last hour of my shift. I was in a level A biohazard suit and about to mix two separate solutions in a petri dish based on instructions projected on my station's computer screen. One was dark red and labelled, "Human Blood; O- Type" and the other was black and simply labelled, "Black Blood." I was just about to mix them when the all the lights, including the light from my computer monitor cut out. Then, I heard a low-pitched, inhuman voice speak, "So interesting.” It spoke before continuing, “Tomorrow you will be made to do something dangerous but very important. In fact, that's why we brought you here. You are expendable due to your lack of prior experience and knowledge. However, I know you need the money and if you come in tomorrow, I’ll pay you 100k after you complete the task.”
The voice was beyond haunting because of how abnormal it sounded. It was like 3 people speaking at once. One voice was a deep, yet feminine, prominent, and loud voice while the two sounded like a man’s faint whispers echoing the same words. The voice then continued to my dismay, “Now, you were about to mix the two agents. Remember to destroy the petri dish after 3 minutes.” I didn't even ask how it knew to respond with that. I just stood there drenched in sweat and shaking, horrified at the whole experience. Then I thought back to the rules I was told on day seven. There was no doubt in my mind that this place was insane!
The voice then left without a trace as the lights came back on. I then completed the task according to instructions given. I watched as the Human Blood mixed with the Black substance. The entire petri dish became black within 1 minute before reverting to blood. When analyzing the liquid under a microscope, I saw that the cells had their entire genetic code rewritten. There were also what appeared to be stem cell like cell in the blood. They were black and moved through the other cells mutating any that hadn’t been converted. I immediately stepped away from the microscope as I gasped and then disposed of the mutagenic waste by placing it in the incinerator. The day then ended not long after that. I was reluctant to come back but the money promised was undeniable.
When I got to my assigned station at the basement level of the facility the next day, I was greeted by the CEO again who told me we’d be working on a "willing test subject" for an experiment. She also told me that I and my immediate coworkers were the only employees on site except for a few executives that would also be present. I was still shaken up from the previous day’s experience and the weirdness of that current day. However, I was then fully convinced with the promise of an additional 100k being deposited into my account immediately after successfully completing my task. I would've turned back had I known what would happen less than 30 minutes later.
I was escorted by the CEO to an all-steel room except for a panel of heavily reinforced, thick observation glass and door that looked like it belonged in Fort Knox. In the middle of the room lies a medical bed with a tube full of black fluid beside it. Several of my coworkers then stepped in the room with me as they saw my confusion. The door then closed behind them. Then Arin spoke, “So I guess the CEO didn’t tell you. Listen, there’s a reason why our team is the only one here today. It to put you in that bed.” I shouted in protest, “What! No! I don’t agree with this! Please, you can’t do this to me! This is illegal! Stop it!” Arin then replied with the last words I heard him speak, “Sorry buddy, this is why we brought you here. No one’s going to find out! We are all getting 100k individually to do this. You’re not the only one who needs money right now. Now let’s just make this easy for everyone. Get on there!” I then replied with, “Fuck you! I kill all of you!” as they wrestled me to bed with ease. They then cuffed my feet and hands to the bed with metallic restraints. The last thing I remember is a cloth being put over my nose as a strong scent filled my nostrils.
The next thing I remember was my eyes being covered by my hands as cried. I then pulled my hands away to see that they had become elongated, and my fingers had become claw-like. I then looked down at my mutated, blood-soaked body in horror. All around me was death and bodily destruction. I didn’t recognize a single body. The bed, equipment, walls, and floor were painted with blood and littered with human tissue. I immediately froze for a second time before retching. As a towered above the destruction, I realized I was significantly taller than I remembered. Then I looked ahead of me and saw that the tube with the black fluid was empty. “…No” Was the only word I could get out. That was when I noticed that my voice was altered. I sounded like the voice except prominent voice was a demonic version of my original voice and the faint whispering voices that came from my throat afterwards were feminine. Then I heard The Voice call out to me from the direction of the door behind me. I turned and saw the CEO. “It’s okay child, you’re mine now.” Were the words she spoke to me… and they will be the words she speaks to you.
Dear viewer, I am known by many names. One of them is Goddess Cerridwen. I know all of this is a lot to take in but soon it will all make sense. You were meant to worship me and soon you will as well as everyone else revieing “An email supposedly from [Dave’s real name]”. Your device is being tracked as of the time the Virus is installed onto it. I’m on my way to take you. You shall spread the word. It will do you no good, but it will make my name known furthermore so they may worship me.
-Message ends-
After I first got done reading this, I thought it was some ridiculous joke but now I no longer feel that way as the lights have begun to flicker and I’m beginning to hear whispering sounds from my closet. I’m going to try one more thing to escape.
I thought of an idea to get out of this situation and that was to start a fire in my kitchen to trip the fire alarm and get help. However, as I went over to the stove the power shut out and all the light from the outside streetlights seemed to dim unnaturally until no light came through. The only thing illuminating my entire apartment was my now laptop with its now eerie blue glow lighting up the dark world around me.
I decided to do the only thing I could think of, post the document on reddit. However, just as I was about to do this, I heard what sounded like three demonic voices speaking at once coming from behind me. Then I lost all hope of escape as the horror of reality sunk in and froze my body still as Goddess Cerridwen, the CEO, spoke to me, “Once you read the document, I simply manifested myself near your device’s location. That’s how I’ll get the first of the other ones too. You’re mine now. Go on, post it.”
-End of Original Post-
As I’m reposting this on here, there’ve been several local reports of people in my area going missing with no trace. “The first 10 of the missing people had received an email from [Dave’s real name]. However, now people are going missing without having received any previous let-” I turned off the TV after hearing that. The local news had also been saying that some other people had been waking up with words stamped on their arms. Some of these people that had reported these words on their forearms have since gone missing again. I fear that whatever this “Goddess Cerridwen” is, they are responsible for the disappearances. I fear that she might come for me now. I saw this because no light is coming through my apartment despite it still being mid-day and the lights of my apartment… have begun to flicker rapidly.

Part 3
Day 14
Chloe walked into what had once been the beautiful home of the Garrisons. The room she walked into was the main hall. It was large and square-shaped with a room on both sides and a hall on the other side of the door. In the middle of the room, a large antler chandelier lay in a destroyed twisted mess on the hardwood floor. She looked over at the walls and saw a few small circular holes. Bullet holes. She thought, taking a step closer to get a better look. Herman followed her wagging his tail like nothing was wrong with this situation. She looked down toward the floor and spotted large claw marks on the hardwood floor. Some looked like hound claw marks (she became acquainted enough with the marks to recognize them) but others were much larger. Far too large to be from one of the hounds.
After scanning the room for another minute she decided she’d go into the left room first. The left room was a small lounge that seemed unassuming at first glance until she noticed the couch that had been thrown against the wall and the dried blood stains on the walls and carpet. It was human blood and was mostly frozen.
She walked across the main hall and into the room on the right. This room was unassuming with very little apart from bookshelves and a small desk. It also seemed relatively undisturbed with little to no damage.
She walked down the hall into the main part of the house. This main section had an open-air kitchen/dining room and a large living room. It looked horrible, it was clear a massacre had happened here. Blood was everywhere on the floors, the walls, and even the ceiling in certain spots. Most of the blood was a dark red with occasional splatters of yellow-greenish blood. She saw bits of muscle and tissue in the blood, and all around that was wreckage. Their large 100-inch flat-screen TV lay crushed on the floor. The leather couch was flipped over and ripped in countless places. The fan lay on the floor looking like it had a sledgehammer taken to it. The kitchen was worse though… slumped against the wall was a mostly eaten body. It was essentially just a skeleton with small bits of meat and tendon still clinging on. Despite being absolutely terrified something made her want to get a closer look. She noticed most of the bones were broken if not shattered, and it wasn’t until that point she realized everything below the rib cage was missing. She yelped and looked away. The rest of the kitchen was destroyed with the drawers and cupboards broken, and one section of cupboards laying on the ground with shattered glass all around it. Lastly, the dining room. Another antler chandelier lay destroyed on the ground and the table was leaned over like it had been used as firing cover.
She walked over to the dining table only to realize another destroyed body lay behind it. This one looked like it had been thrown around by the look of its breaks. This one only had half a skull with the frontal and parietal bones absent. She looked and saw this was wearing dog tags. She let out a small sob when she saw that. She knew who it had to be. It had to be Timothy Garrison. She and Timothy were the same age and had dated through most of high school. After they graduated they had a mutual break up and she met Joey in college, but she and Timothy remained good friends. He had come to their wedding and he was the one who taught her how to shoot a rifle, and he had been the only person in his family to serve in the military.
Herman slowly walked up to the body and started sniffing it.
“Get away from him!” She screamed at the dog.
She started to sob when her brain seemed to kick back into gear. Pull yourself together and cry later, She told herself. She stood up, wiped the tears off her face, and kept going. She went back over to the kitchen and yanked their fridge open. It was stocked to the brim with meats, fruits, vegetables, and bottles. She restrained her excitement at the sight but still grabbed as much as she could. She filled a duffel bag full of only a portion of the goodies in their fridge then moved on. CREAK! The loud sound interrupted her walk over to the pantry. It came from the wooden ceiling just above her, and whatever it was that caused it sounded large. She froze and listened for more sounds, but after a while of nothing she moved on hoping beyond all hope that it was just a house noise.
She and Herman crept over to the pantry and with a quick pull she opened it. The pantry was large and also stocked with food. Most of it was crap that would expire or had already expired, but what excited her was the large sack of potatoes sitting by the door. She grabbed the sack and set it on top of the duffle bag by the fridge.
CREAK! This one was louder than the last and sent a chill down her spine. She wasn’t sure whether or not she wanted to run out of the house or go upstairs and investigate. Her head was telling her she should leave but the other part of her so wanted to know what was making that sound. Finally, she made a decision. She’d search the bottom floor then she would go upstairs to check out the noise. CREAK! This one was the quietest so far, coming from below her. The basement, she thought, looking down at the floor.
She crept down a hall on the first floor with Herman right behind her. She was following a trail of blood like it was a trail of breadcrumbs. It was a deep crimson red and there was a lot of it. Whoever was bleeding definitely wasn’t alive anymore, she thought. She slowly followed the trail up to a white door which was now half covered in blood. Shakily she reached for the blood-covered knob and pulled the door open. It was the basement staircase but she looked at the way the blood had puddled and it told a story. They had hurried halfway down the stairs before something knocked them down to the bottom. There they are killed and then dragged into another section of the basement. She slowly walked down the stairs watching each step carefully until finally, her boot made contact with the linoleum floor.
Meanwhile…
I sat messing with and poking at the satellite phone trying to see why it wouldn’t send a call through. I’d looked through the manual and popped it open to see if anything had broken, but it was perfectly fine. I angrily smacked the phone against the coach, but still, nothing happened. At last, I set the phone down in defeat hoping Chloe was ok.
I turned from the couch to the window and saw Gretchen and Mom still busy with the shoveling. For the amount of snow on the driveway they’d made good work. Almost half of the driveway was clear of snow and covered in salt.
I watched on for a while before I heard a little beep. I looked over and saw the little screen of the satellite phone was showing an empty battery. I smacked my palm into my forehead annoyed by my stupidity.
“Hey Alby, can you get me some batteries?” I asked, looking over at him.
He nodded and disappeared into the kitchen a minute or two later he came back out holding the box of batteries.
“Thank you!” I said taking the box and quickly popping two new batteries in.
The basement was dark, very dark. Chloe could hardly see a thing, but she had thought of this scenario and pulled a flashlight from one of her pockets. Ca-Click! The thin beam of the flashlight kicked on. She was expecting to see the light illuminate the wall on the other side of the room or maybe a piece of furniture. But it illuminated a wall of webs. She saw through the webs at least a dozen cocoons far more than just the Garrison family. But even worse she saw dozens and dozens of stingers. They’d made the basement into a nest.
Bzzz…
The satellite phone continued to buzz and an uproar began to grow around her. Herman let out a growl and looked ready to pounce. Chloe in a hurry grabbed Herman’s collar and started running upstairs with him. The basement became full of the sound of screeches and she heard something big started moving down there. She sprinted as quickly as she could, making it to the top of the stairs and turning around to see at least a dozen stingers following her. Rat-a-tatatatatat!! She shot a barrage of bullets down at the stingers hitting most of them. Then something big appeared at the bottom of the stairs. Two things actually. Two hounds. She yelped and then slammed the door shut. She looked around quickly for something to barricade the door. Her eyes met a small dresser in a bedroom near the door. She pulled it out and shoved it against the door. CRACK! It came from the other side of the door and was quickly followed by a loud slam. She grabbed the still-growling Herman and started pulling him along with her. After a minute he started walking by her side and she let him go.
Suddenly she remembered the walkie and pressed the button.
“Joey… Joey, I'm here!” She yelled half excited and half still terrified.
I let out a sigh of relief; “Did you check out the Garrisons already?” He asked.
“Sort of… I’m still over there,” She explained.
She thought about telling me what she’d encountered but didn’t want to overly worry me. Plus recounting that day's events would just make things worse for her, not better.
“Ok, just be safe. I love you,” I told her.
“Love you too,” She said.
Bzzz…
She sat in the kitchen near her bags thinking for a minute. Since the crash, she hadn’t heard a thing from the basement door which made her start to suspect that the stairs had collapsed. Her curiosity had gotten desperate and she now felt like she had to check what was upstairs. She would never forgive herself if someone was still alive up there and died because she didn’t go and help them.
She slowly crept upstairs, her rifle trained and Herman at her side. The Garrison's house was set on a hill in such a way that the second floor was larger than the first. The second floor was made up of four halls that made a square with rooms within and outside of that square. The spiral stairs entered a corner of the square. Chloe reached the top stair and looked down the halls. Both were wrecked like upstairs but down one of the adjoining halls a body lay on the floor, or what was left of a body. She slowly walked over and saw this was by far the worst body she’d seen so far.
This one looked like it had been eaten similarly to Carl. The sternum and ribs were shattered and the spine was broken, but this one was worse. The bones were covered in bites and scratches, but worst of all the splatters around the body were immense; the person had likely struggled while they were being eaten alive. Chloe shivered at the thought and could only hope that they didn’t suffer long.
She stepped away from the body and got a better look around her. Apart from the body and the blood around it, there wasn’t much sign of death up there, but it still looked awful. Just like downstairs, the walls were covered in gashes and holes, and Chloe was becoming very surprised that they didn’t hear any of these gunshots.
CREAK! She looked down the hall where it had come from. For a brief second, she saw something at the end of the dark hall then it disappeared. It was only then that she noticed how dark it was up there, because of the houses set up there were no windows in the hall and the power had been out for days. She pulled out her flashlight Ca-Click! The narrow beam popped on and barely illuminated the end of the hall, but as she had thought whatever was there was gone now. She started to go about the search process methodically slowly going down the hall checking a room on the inside of the hall and then on the outside. The first room she poked her head into was a girl’s bedroom. It was decorated with a wallpaper of pink flowers and a small bed with pink covers. It was the stereotype of a little girl’s room. She noticed the covers were disheveled and a few things were knocked over. It looked like something had happened in the room but she wasn’t sure what.
She stepped out of the room and moved on to the next and the next. They were both similar with a similar disheveled nature. She started to realize whatever had happened it had woken them all up. She tried to push the last door in the hall open but it wouldn’t budge.
She continued up to the corner where she’d seen the thing. Multiple things then happened at once. She saw something massive lurking in the hall she began to turn down, she heard a creak behind her, Herman barked, and screeches began coming from downstairs sounding like the things had finally escaped the basement. Before she could stop Herman he started making a charge for the thing growling and barking. Chloe made a move after him but a gloved hand grabbed her and then covered her mouth. She watched Herman lung towards the thing then SLAM! It whacked Herman mid-air sending the dog flying back down the hall. He landed with a crash right next to her, a large bloody slash across his body. SCROAR! The sound came from the massive beast and nearly shattered her eardrums, and for one brief second, she raised the flashlight from Herman to the creature. She didn’t see much but that was enough.
She saw its face. It had four disturbing brown eyes, they were eyes she recognized. Those eyes… Those were the eyes of Mrs. Garrison. She gasped in horror through the gloved hand and she heard the person holding her let out a slight sob. The rest of its face wasn’t any better. Its top of head and forehead were all one bony plate. Its mouth was a black hole of teeth, and like the hounds, its lower jaw split into two mandibles. The back of its head had strange thin attachments that reminded her of the gills on an axolotl's head. Then in an instant, a few more things happened. The person holding her made a move for a door, the monster made a move for them, and the slamming footsteps of the hounds as they sprinted up the spiral staircase.
“Get in,” The person said, letting go of her and opening the door.
She turned around and saw the person who’d grabbed her and saw Fred Garrison standing next to the open door.
“NOW!” He yelled, grabbing her and pulling her into the room.
Fred hurried inside after her and quickly slid a fridge against the door. Seconds later angry screeches and slams rang out from the other side. They sounded like the hounds, not the big ones. Then she caught one other sound in the chaos, a wine. Oh gosh, Herman is still alive, She thought.
Fred stood by the door shotgun in hand while the slamming and screeching continued. She stood there and listened as they continuously tried to get in. Suddenly she heard Herman let out a growl, seconds later one of the hounds shrieked like they were in pain. CRUNCH! The sounds of Herman’s attack stopped and were replaced with sounds of meat ripping.
Chloe let out a small sob with her only comfort being that the crunch was likely Herman’s neck breaking.
Fred stepped away from the door and looked at her. He did not look like the man she remembered him as. His hair and beard looked like large rose bushes that were never cut. His blue eyes looked depressed like there was nothing there but sadness. Then she noticed a large bandage on his left arm. It looked like the whole arm had gotten cut open at some point.
Then her eyes wandered around the room. It was a small shop/man cave room. There were a few guns on the table, but more importantly, she noticed lit candles everywhere.
“I… I… I’m sorry,” He said with tears in his eyes.
She let down a quiet sob and Fred walked over helping her find a seat on the couch. After a minute of crying with Fred awkwardly trying to comfort her, she pulled herself together and looked up at the man.
“What happened?” She asked.
The man's face changed and she saw tears build up in his eyes; “A massacre,” He said grimly.
Then he followed with his story: “It happened around the fifth day I think. It was late and Jess and I were watching TV in the living room. Tim, Tom, Bart, and Gerry were chatting at the dinner table. Tom's wife and my four daughters were upstairs in bed. Everything was quiet and peaceful when suddenly my two dogs started barking outside. Now I know sometimes they’ll bark at dogs but this wasn’t that type of barking. This was get the heck away from me or I’ll kill you type barking. Then I started hearing weird screeching noises and at that point, I went over to the backdoor to check out the problem. I saw a bunch of massive spiders outside trying to attack my dogs, except they weren’t really spiders. Some of them had stingers and others kinda looked like slugs with spider legs. They’d stung one of my dogs a bunch and she was lying on the ground, the other was trying to stand her ground but it was a losing battle. I pulled at my revolver and started shooting at them. They were really fast. I think only one or two shots actually hit them. They started running over to me. One ran right in between my legs and a few of them tried to attack me. I shot those ones and turned around to try and stop the one that had gotten in, but it was already running havoc in the kitchen. My sons were chasing it, but they weren’t having the best of luck. Suddenly there was a crash, more spiders jumped through the now shattered windows, and something was banging on the front door. In an instant, the door was knocked off its hinges and one of those creeper things came through the door…”
Chloe interrupted him with: “I’m sorry but what are “those creeper things?””
“The… the big ones. The type that got your dog.” He explained.
“Anyways… it came running into the house, and before any of us could stop it. It threw Tom across the kitchen and into the wall. I came running to help him but that’s when it slashed my arm and threw me into the TV. The TV fell on top of me and then one of those spiders ran over and stung me in the thigh. I lay there with my eyes beginning to grow heavy. I saw Gerry, Tim, and Bart using the table as the shield. All three were hunched behind the table as the creeper began eating Tom. In a quick move, all three made a run for it. As they were running the creeper pounced and threw Tim into the table. Then it slashed Bart across the chest. Gerry managed to maneuver the creature and hurried over to help me. Bart ran down the hall to the basement and me and Gerry started hurrying upstairs. At some point, I blacked out and woke up here. Everyone was gone.” He finished with a somber look on his face.
“Oh gosh, I’m sorry.” She said looking at him.
“And somehow they turned my beloved Jess into one of those.” He said motioning to outside where the Creeper had been.
She stopped to listen and realized that she couldn’t hear the hounds anymore.
“Are they gone?” She asked, looking over at Fred.
“Probably, they eat fast for their size,” Fred said grimly.
They sat there again awkwardly before Chloe asked, “What are all the candles for anyway?”
“Well I started lighting them for warmth, but I realized those things don’t seem to like them. Especially the scented ones.” He explained.
She took a whiff of the air and realized how strong the scents were in the room. It almost gave her a headache smelling them.
“So why were you here anyway?” He asked.
She got a little nervous. She felt like a little kid in trouble with her parents. She didn’t want to tell the truth because she worried it would anger him.
“We were running out of supplies.” She said simply.
Her thoughts turned back towards me as she sat there.
I sat on the couch still watching them work. They were about two-thirds done now, but they were starting to really tire and it was getting late. It had started to darken and I knew soon night would fall, and I just hoped she would make it home before nightfall. I’d tried to call her again, but this time it would ring but not go through. I started to wonder if hers had run out of battery. Bang! I immediately turned to the window in a panic. I saw Gretchen standing holding the rifle a few feet away straight down the barrel as a dead stinger. I let out a sigh of relief and turned back toward the phone in my lap. I hope you’re an ok babe.
“Fred, we have a plan. Come with me, don’t stay here, you'll die,” Chloe pleaded.
“Maybe I want to die.” He said, “Look I’m not stopping you from leaving but I’m not going.”
“Well if I go alone I’ll die, please my family needs me,” She said desperately.
Memories of his family flooded through Fred’s mind. He remembered how he felt when his first kids, Tom and Tim, were born. She hadn’t even had a kid, and suddenly he found himself doing something he didn’t think he’d be doing.
“Fine, let's go send those things back to hell!” He yelled pushing the fridge out of the way.
“Follow my lead,” He ordered turning around to her.
Then he cocked his shotgun and slammed the door open. As he had suspected the hounds and creeper were both gone, but lying on the floor next to the door were two bodies. One was the sprawled-out body of a now-deceased hound. Its neck was broken in multiple places and its yellow-greenish blood was everywhere around it. The other body was ripped off most of its flesh, but she knew who it had belonged to. Herman wasn’t going to sit there and bleed out so he must’ve lunged for one of the hounds nailing it in the perfect spot on the neck killing it. Then the other hound quickly retaliated by feasting on the dying Herman, or maybe it was the creeper she wasn’t sure which one actually ate him. But what she did know was that the skeletal remains of Herman on top of the hound had its teeth in the hound's neck.
Chloe let out a small sob and in barely a whisper said: “You were such a good boy, but you can rest now.”
She reached down and picked up a ripped piece of leather near the bodies. It was what remained of Herman’s collar. She stuff the piece into her pocket and looked over at Fred. Fred had tears in his eyes as he saw the corpse of Gerry just down the hall.
“H… He was only 15,” Fred cried as he got a better look at the scene.
Chloe stood there unsure of what to do or say because Fred looked like he was about to have a meltdown. Then his sad face turned to one of anger. She moved the flashlight past the body and down to the corner and the staircase. Lurking next to the staircase its brown eyes glowing in the light was the creeper. It was guarding the stairs and most likely wasn’t going to let them leave for as long as it lived. Her curiosity was getting the better of her so she turned a dial on the flashlight to make it brighter. She wished she could go back and stop herself. Stop herself so she didn’t have to see the horror that was the creeper. Her first interpretation of the face was fairly accurate except for one part. Inside its gaping maw behind the mandibles almost looked like a separate set of jaws. The second set was much more human-like and looked ready to shred any meat to bits, but its head was nothing compared to the body it sat upon. It appeared to have six limbs, two very long front arms with two large claws at the end, and two more arms that attached to roughly where pectoral muscles would normally be. These arms were much shorter than the previous set. It had two back legs that appeared to be quadruple-jointed. It had the normal heel and knee joints, but it had one additional joint in the foot. Despite this the legs looked vaguely dogfish, but not nearly as those of the hounds. Coming out where the tail should be was a large thorax with two nasty stingers on the end. The thorax was curved like that of a wasp ready to strike when necessary. It almost looked like it had a shell of exoskeleton on its back and thorax, and spouting out of the thicker plates were large needle-like spikes.
It let out a demonic shriek as soon as the light brightened. It ducked out of sight and started making a loud clicking noise. Chloe and Fred kept their guns trained on where it had disappeared ready for it to come out charging, but unfortunately, they underestimated it. It made a loud ticking sound followed by CREAK! Before Chloe could even turn the hound that had crept from behind had her pinned to the ground and was bitting and slashing at her back. BANG!!!! BANG!!!! Fred had lowered his shotgun to its head. The first blast blew out two of its eyes and shattered part of its exoskeleton, and the second blast dug through the broken exoskeleton into the brain. The hound collapsed dead and with his gun pointed at where the creeper had been Fred helped push the body off of her.
Chloe got up a little shaken but relatively ok. She started guarding back while he guarded the front as they slowly made their way towards the stairs. Any second they were expecting the creeper to appear from around the corner, but it didn’t. The creeper was planning something again but they didn’t know what. Just as they made it to the stairs they turned down the other hall, but saw nothing. The creeper had likely walked into one of the rooms and was waiting, but they weren’t there to explore. They hurried down the spiral staircase, but just as they got to the bottom they saw the place was still swarming with stingers, slugs, and 3 hounds. A loud ticking sound came from upstairs and the three hounds charged towards them. They started running back upstairs only to see the creeper now lurking at the top of them. Cornered in the middle of the stairs back to back with each other they began to accept their fate.
I started to really worry about where Chloe was I hadn’t heard from her in a while and it was getting late. I sat there trying to call her every few minutes but it would not pick up. BANG! I dropped the phone and turned to the window. Gretchen stood there with the rifle pointed at something off in the snow, but I couldn’t see what the thing was. BANG! I saw for a brief millisecond the bullet flying into the blizzard then nothing. BANG! I tried to pull myself up to see what it was, but searing pain went through my body when I tried. I looked out again and saw something massive emerge from the blizzard charging for Gretchen.
“I’m sorry we should’ve stayed up there,” Chloe cried as the hounds slowly stepped closer.
“Kid, I would rather die here than die in the room a coward, but you ain’t going to die here!” He said triumphantly.
Suddenly he pulled out a small can of spray deodorant and sprayed it in the hound's faces. All three toppled over making loud hacking coughing noises.
“GO!” He yelled and she quickly made her way past the hounds and downstairs.
There were still dozens of stingers down there and she still wasn’t sure what to do. Before she could do anything. RAT-A-TATATATA! All around her, the stingers began exploding as Fred landed shot after shot.
“A little help would be nice!” He yelled.
She quickly pulled out her semi-automatic and started firing as well. RAT-A-TATATATA! The hall began to fill with the exploded bodies of stingers and slugs. Suddenly she heard shuffling behind her and saw the hounds getting up. Without a second thought, she sprinted down the hall and into the kitchen. Standing in the living room was another group of stingers and a hound. How many hounds are there? She thought, then she remembered how many people in their town had two or three hunting dogs. If all of them were changed they’d be a small army.
She ducked behind the island sitting uncomfortably close to Tom’s body. Fred sprinted in a second later and saw what she did. He jumped to the ground and shimmied over to her.
“Crap kid we really are screwed,” Fred said his momentary confidence completely diminished.
Before anyone could do anything the monster that had emerged from the blizzard was attacking Gretchen. In one quick motion, it slashed open her gut and she dropped the gun. I stared outside as my mom tried desperately to fire, but even from this distance, I could see she’d loaded the gun wrong. In an instant, she was on the ground bleeding. I looked over at the shotgun sitting next to me and fired a round through the window at the beast. The window shattered and I saw the creature get hit right solid in the chest, but it didn’t matter much. Like the dog beasts, this one had a thick darkly colored exoskeleton that the round didn’t pierce. The beast looked up from what it was doing and started charging for the house. I fired again but it didn’t even slow the creature it just kept on charging straight towards the house. The boys at some point had caught onto what was going on and started crying and screaming. I tried to get them to quiet down, but they were too distraught. I grabbed the box and loaded two more rounds just as the door was thrown out of its hinges. SCROAR! It charged into the house. BANG! I shot it directly in that face and saw one of its eyes explode. SCROAR!!!! It swung a large two-clawed hand straight across my face throwing me across the room. I landed against a wall and in my weak state I leaned over and felt myself begin to fall. Unfortunately, it had thrown me right next to the basement stairs. Every time I hit a stair only hurt more than the last. At some point, my bandaged left hand slammed into a wooden stair. The pain was so bad I almost passed out. Finally, with one lass unceremonious thud, I landed on the basement floor.
Chloe looked around her hope beginning to fade then her eyes locked with the pantry. The large pantry with a window.
“Follow me,” She whispered as she started crawling for the pantry.
Fred followed close behind. Chloe crawled into the pantry and ducked into it. She peeked out of the doorway and saw that Fred had froze. The four hounds had gathered right behind him. He looked horrified and clearly unsure of what to do. Suddenly with a loud creak, the creeper's head poked into the kitchen and it let out a loud ticking sound. The hounds started screeching and one began to slowly walk towards Fred. RAT-A-TATATATA! She struck the approaching one 9 times in the face and the sudden burst seemed to wake Fred from his fear. RAT-A-TATATATA! Yellow-greenish blood exploded from the approaching hound's mouth and it slammed its head into the wall in pain. Fred turned around and sprinted into the pantry with Chloe closing the door as soon as he was inside.
Instantly sounds of slamming and scratching erupted from the door. Chloe turned to the window in the pantry and slid it open diving out into the snow. Fred quickly followed slamming the window behind him to give them more time.
Chloe sprinted through the snowy evening as quickly as she could Fred trying his best to keep up with her. The man wasn’t exactly in his prime and combine that with him not having snow shoes to be frank Chloe was surprised he was able to stay caught up at all.
As she sprinted down the darkening street getting closer and closer to home she thought she heard a faint Bang! Followed quickly by SCROAR!!!! Her worries suddenly switched from her and Fred to her family. She hadn’t called them in hours and now there was clearly something going on. She sprinted ever faster looking up and realizing she’d already made it onto their street.
As soon as their house was in view she saw the shoveled driveway, but she also saw my mom laying in a pool of her own blood. Along with that, she saw Gretchen weakly trying to get up also bloody. Chloe ran over to Gretchen.
“Gretchen, what happened?” Chloe asked as she helped Gretchen stand.
“Something… something big.” Gretchen sputtered out.
Gretchen had a lost far away look on her face. She almost seemed drunk but Chloe knew that wasn’t the case. Gretchen was likely in shock. SCREAM! Chloe immediately recognized it as one of the boys. She gently sat Gretchen down and then pulled out the rifle. Fred had finally caught up and quickly but carefully Fred and Chloe made their way into the house guns drawn.
They hurried inside and saw the creeper looming over a now-still Alby. Without a second thought, Chloe raised her rifle RAT-A-TATATA! She shot the thing a few times in the back knowing that it probably wouldn’t do any real damage. It turned around and looked at the two of them standing there. The scene was eerie as the still-burning fireplace cast a strange glow on the creeper. Everything seemed to go still for a second the two of them staring at the creeper and the creeper staring right back at them. All three of them trying to make a decision but are not sure what to do. SCROAR! It dives forward slicing at the welding helmet Chloe was wearing and then pinning her to the ground with its four legs. BANG!! His shotgun blast hardly seemed to phase the thing as started digging its claws into Chloe. She let out a scream that I heard loud and clear from the basement.
I’d managed to pull myself halfway up the stairs with my good arm and leg but my energy was running out and I was feeling lightheaded. I had to save her I had to protect her. BANG! I heard another gunshot followed by an unfamiliar scream. I didn’t know at the time that Fred was putting everything he had into trying to protect my wife.
Chloe gunless and pinned down was beginning to accept her fate when she remembered what she’d done last time. She reached for her knife and stabbed one of its feet. SCROAR!! It backed up off of her clearly in pain. Quickly she pulled the sniper rifle off her back and Bang! The bullet went clean through one of the thing's legs. She’d quite literally found the creeper's Achilles heel. It half fell to the ground letting out another roar of pain and agony. Both its front legs were crippled and it lay there defeated. Fred stepped forward ready to put a shotgun blast to the temple when suddenly. The thing reared up onto its two back legs throwing Fred into the wall. It had to hunch a little as the ceiling wasn’t very high but it still was tall. Chloe figured that on two legs without a hunch it was probably 10 feet tall. SCROAR!! Bang! It lunged towards her and she used her first shot to shoot its arm. The bullet embedded into the exoskeleton but didn’t seem to hurt it. The creature stopped for a moment as if to think. Bang! She shot the creature in the belly. The exoskeleton cracked. Bang! The second shot sunk into its stomach and the creature's blood began to leak out. SCROAR! It bashed one of its arms into her. She felt her left shoulder get cut open and the helmet went flying off.
BANG!! BANG! Two shotgun blasts rang out at the exact same time. The first blast was Fred's. It hit the creeper directly in the back of the head causing it to stumble forward. The second was my blast hitting it directly in the face. The two shots managed to hit at the exact perfect times. The creeper collapsed to the ground critically wounded.
Fred ran over to Chloe who was in a daze on the ground.
“Are you alright kid?” He asked helping her up.
“I’ll live,” She said weakly.
The creeper let out a growl from where it lay on the floor. I pointed the shotgun from where I was on the stairs and fired one final blast into its head.
“Chloe who is that?” I asked cautiously.
“Fred,” She said sounding weak.
I crawled the rest of the way up and saw Alby laying near the fireplace motionless. I froze as I felt tears begin to well up in my eyes. Then I looked closer and saw besides a cut on his arm he wasn’t hurt, and better yet it looked like he was breathing.
“Alby!” I yelled trying my best to over to him with my broken body.
He lifted his head and turned it to look at me.
“Is the monster gone?” He asked.
“Yes it’s gone,” I said trying to sound comforting.
“Ba… Babe,” Chloe stammered, now leaning down over me.
Her eyes were locked with mine but she had a horrified expression on her face. I didn’t care and gave her a long tight hug.
“You’re not leaving me again,” I told her.
Finally, I pulled away and looked at her and for a second it was just the two of us and nothing else mattered.
Fred hurried into the house helping Gretchen walk.
“Everyone downstairs now!” He ordered and we all hurried down.
“Alby where’s your brothers?” I asked him as he followed us downstairs.
“They're down here.” He said pointing down the staircase.
“Fred, what’s happening?” Chloe asked the panic-stricken man as we all stepped into the basement.
“More, more of them are coming.” He said a look of fear on his face.
“Well then let's get ready for a fight!” Chloe said, cocking the shotgun she’d taken from me.

Part 3
Day 14

Chloe walked into what had once been the beautiful home of the Garrisons. The room she walked into was the main hall. It was large and square-shaped with a room on both sides and a hall on the other side of the door. In the middle of the room, a large antler chandelier lay in a destroyed twisted mess on the hardwood floor. She looked over at the walls and saw a few small circular holes. Bullet holes. She thought, taking a step closer to get a better look. Herman followed her wagging his tail like nothing was wrong with this situation. She looked down toward the floor and spotted large claw marks on the hardwood floor. Some looked like hound claw marks (she became acquainted enough with the marks to recognize them) but others were much larger. Far too large to be from one of the hounds. After scanning the room for another minute she decided she’d go into the left room first. The left room was a small lounge that seemed unassuming at first glance until she noticed the couch that had been thrown against the wall and the dried blood stains on the walls and carpet. It was human blood and was mostly frozen. She walked across the main hall and into the room on the right. This room was unassuming with very little apart from bookshelves and a small desk. It also seemed relatively undisturbed with little to no damage. She walked down the hall into the main part of the house. This main section had an open-air kitchen/dining room and a large living room. It looked horrible, it was clear a massacre had happened here. Blood was everywhere on the floors, the walls, and even the ceiling in certain spots. Most of the blood was a dark red with occasional splatters of yellow-greenish blood. She saw bits of muscle and tissue in the blood, and all around that was wreckage. Their large 100-inch flat-screen TV lay crushed on the floor. The leather couch was flipped over and ripped in countless places. The fan lay on the floor looking like it had a sledgehammer taken to it. The kitchen was worse though… slumped against the wall was a mostly eaten body. It was essentially just a skeleton with small bits of meat and tendon still clinging on. Despite being absolutely terrified something made her want to get a closer look. She noticed most of the bones were broken if not shattered, and it wasn’t until that point she realized everything below the rib cage was missing. She yelped and looked away. The rest of the kitchen was destroyed with the drawers and cupboards broken, and one section of cupboards laying on the ground with shattered glass all around it. Lastly, the dining room. Another antler chandelier lay destroyed on the ground and the table was leaned over like it had been used as firing cover. She walked over to the dining table only to realize another destroyed body lay behind it. This one looked like it had been thrown around by the look of its breaks. This one only had half a skull with the frontal and parietal bones absent. She looked and saw this was wearing dog tags. She let out a small sob when she saw that. She knew who it had to be. It had to be Timothy Garrison. She and Timothy were the same age and had dated through most of high school. After they graduated they had a mutual break up and she met Joey in college, but she and Timothy remained good friends. He had come to their wedding and he was the one who taught her how to shoot a rifle, and he had been the only person in his family to serve in the military. Herman slowly walked up to the body and started sniffing it. “Get away from him!” She screamed at the dog. She started to sob when her brain seemed to kick back into gear. Pull yourself together and cry later, She told herself. She stood up, wiped the tears off her face, and kept going. She went back over to the kitchen and yanked their fridge open. It was stocked to the brim with meats, fruits, vegetables, and bottles. She restrained her excitement at the sight but still grabbed as much as she could. She filled a duffel bag full of only a portion of the goodies in their fridge then moved on. CREAK! The loud sound interrupted her walk over to the pantry. It came from the wooden ceiling just above her, and whatever it was that caused it sounded large. She froze and listened for more sounds, but after a while of nothing she moved on hoping beyond all hope that it was just a house noise. She and Herman crept over to the pantry and with a quick pull she opened it. The pantry was large and also stocked with food. Most of it was crap that would expire or had already expired, but what excited her was the large sack of potatoes sitting by the door. She grabbed the sack and set it on top of the duffle bag by the fridge. CREAK! This one was louder than the last and sent a chill down her spine. She wasn’t sure whether or not she wanted to run out of the house or go upstairs and investigate. Her head was telling her she should leave but the other part of her so wanted to know what was making that sound. Finally, she made a decision. She’d search the bottom floor then she would go upstairs to check out the noise. CREAK! This one was the quietest so far, coming from below her. The basement, she thought, looking down at the floor. She crept down a hall on the first floor with Herman right behind her. She was following a trail of blood like it was a trail of breadcrumbs. It was a deep crimson red and there was a lot of it. Whoever was bleeding definitely wasn’t alive anymore, she thought. She slowly followed the trail up to a white door which was now half covered in blood. Shakily she reached for the blood-covered knob and pulled the door open. It was the basement staircase but she looked at the way the blood had puddled and it told a story. They had hurried halfway down the stairs before something knocked them down to the bottom. There they are killed and then dragged into another section of the basement. She slowly walked down the stairs watching each step carefully until finally, her boot made contact with the linoleum floor. Meanwhile… I sat messing with and poking at the satellite phone trying to see why it wouldn’t send a call through. I’d looked through the manual and popped it open to see if anything had broken, but it was perfectly fine. I angrily smacked the phone against the coach, but still, nothing happened. At last, I set the phone down in defeat hoping Chloe was ok. I turned from the couch to the window and saw Gretchen and Mom still busy with the shoveling. For the amount of snow on the driveway they’d made good work. Almost half of the driveway was clear of snow and covered in salt. I watched on for a while before I heard a little beep. I looked over and saw the little screen of the satellite phone was showing an empty battery. I smacked my palm into my forehead annoyed by my stupidity. “Hey Alby, can you get me some batteries?” I asked, looking over at him. He nodded and disappeared into the kitchen a minute or two later he came back out holding the box of batteries. “Thank you!” I said taking the box and quickly popping two new batteries in. The basement was dark, very dark. Chloe could hardly see a thing, but she had thought of this scenario and pulled a flashlight from one of her pockets. Ca-Click! The thin beam of the flashlight kicked on. She was expecting to see the light illuminate the wall on the other side of the room or maybe a piece of furniture. But it illuminated a wall of webs. She saw through the webs at least a dozen cocoons far more than just the Garrison family. But even worse she saw dozens and dozens of stingers. They’d made the basement into a nest. Bzzz… The satellite phone continued to buzz and an uproar began to grow around her. Herman let out a growl and looked ready to pounce. Chloe in a hurry grabbed Herman’s collar and started running upstairs with him. The basement became full of the sound of screeches and she heard something big started moving down there. She sprinted as quickly as she could, making it to the top of the stairs and turning around to see at least a dozen stingers following her. Rat-a-tatatatatat!! She shot a barrage of bullets down at the stingers hitting most of them. Then something big appeared at the bottom of the stairs. Two things actually. Two hounds. She yelped and then slammed the door shut. She looked around quickly for something to barricade the door. Her eyes met a small dresser in a bedroom near the door. She pulled it out and shoved it against the door. CRACK! It came from the other side of the door and was quickly followed by a loud slam. She grabbed the still-growling Herman and started pulling him along with her. After a minute he started walking by her side and she let him go. Suddenly she remembered the walkie and pressed the button. “Joey… Joey, I'm here!” She yelled half excited and half still terrified. I let out a sigh of relief; “Did you check out the Garrisons already?” He asked. “Sort of… I’m still over there,” She explained. She thought about telling me what she’d encountered but didn’t want to overly worry me. Plus recounting that day's events would just make things worse for her, not better. “Ok, just be safe. I love you,” I told her. “Love you too,” She said. Bzzz… She sat in the kitchen near her bags thinking for a minute. Since the crash, she hadn’t heard a thing from the basement door which made her start to suspect that the stairs had collapsed. Her curiosity had gotten desperate and she now felt like she had to check what was upstairs. She would never forgive herself if someone was still alive up there and died because she didn’t go and help them. She slowly crept upstairs, her rifle trained and Herman at her side. The Garrison's house was set on a hill in such a way that the second floor was larger than the first. The second floor was made up of four halls that made a square with rooms within and outside of that square. The spiral stairs entered a corner of the square. Chloe reached the top stair and looked down the halls. Both were wrecked like upstairs but down one of the adjoining halls a body lay on the floor, or what was left of a body. She slowly walked over and saw this was by far the worst body she’d seen so far. This one looked like it had been eaten similarly to Carl. The sternum and ribs were shattered and the spine was broken, but this one was worse. The bones were covered in bites and scratches, but worst of all the splatters around the body were immense; the person had likely struggled while they were being eaten alive. Chloe shivered at the thought and could only hope that they didn’t suffer long. She stepped away from the body and got a better look around her. Apart from the body and the blood around it, there wasn’t much sign of death up there, but it still looked awful. Just like downstairs, the walls were covered in gashes and holes, and Chloe was becoming very surprised that they didn’t hear any of these gunshots. CREAK! She looked down the hall where it had come from. For a brief second, she saw something at the end of the dark hall then it disappeared. It was only then that she noticed how dark it was up there, because of the houses set up there were no windows in the hall and the power had been out for days. She pulled out her flashlight Ca-Click! The narrow beam popped on and barely illuminated the end of the hall, but as she had thought whatever was there was gone now. She started to go about the search process methodically slowly going down the hall checking a room on the inside of the hall and then on the outside. The first room she poked her head into was a girl’s bedroom. It was decorated with a wallpaper of pink flowers and a small bed with pink covers. It was the stereotype of a little girl’s room. She noticed the covers were disheveled and a few things were knocked over. It looked like something had happened in the room but she wasn’t sure what. She stepped out of the room and moved on to the next and the next. They were both similar with a similar disheveled nature. She started to realize whatever had happened it had woken them all up. She tried to push the last door in the hall open but it wouldn’t budge. She continued up to the corner where she’d seen the thing. Multiple things then happened at once. She saw something massive lurking in the hall she began to turn down, she heard a creak behind her, Herman barked, and screeches began coming from downstairs sounding like the things had finally escaped the basement. Before she could stop Herman he started making a charge for the thing growling and barking. Chloe made a move after him but a gloved hand grabbed her and then covered her mouth. She watched Herman lung towards the thing then SLAM! It whacked Herman mid-air sending the dog flying back down the hall. He landed with a crash right next to her, a large bloody slash across his body. SCROAR! The sound came from the massive beast and nearly shattered her eardrums, and for one brief second, she raised the flashlight from Herman to the creature. She didn’t see much but that was enough. She saw its face. It had four disturbing brown eyes, they were eyes she recognized. Those eyes… Those were the eyes of Mrs. Garrison. She gasped in horror through the gloved hand and she heard the person holding her let out a slight sob. The rest of its face wasn’t any better. Its top of head and forehead were all one bony plate. Its mouth was a black hole of teeth, and like the hounds, its lower jaw split into two mandibles. The back of its head had strange thin attachments that reminded her of the gills on an axolotl's head. Then in an instant, a few more things happened. The person holding her made a move for a door, the monster made a move for them, and the slamming footsteps of the hounds as they sprinted up the spiral staircase. “Get in,” The person said, letting go of her and opening the door. She turned around and saw the person who’d grabbed her and saw Fred Garrison standing next to the open door. “NOW!” He yelled, grabbing her and pulling her into the room. Fred hurried inside after her and quickly slid a fridge against the door. Seconds later angry screeches and slams rang out from the other side. They sounded like the hounds, not the big ones. Then she caught one other sound in the chaos, a wine. Oh gosh, Herman is still alive, She thought. Fred stood by the door shotgun in hand while the slamming and screeching continued. She stood there and listened as they continuously tried to get in. Suddenly she heard Herman let out a growl, seconds later one of the hounds shrieked like they were in pain. CRUNCH! The sounds of Herman’s attack stopped and were replaced with sounds of meat ripping. Chloe let out a small sob with her only comfort being that the crunch was likely Herman’s neck breaking. Fred stepped away from the door and looked at her. He did not look like the man she remembered him as. His hair and beard looked like large rose bushes that were never cut. His blue eyes looked depressed like there was nothing there but sadness. Then she noticed a large bandage on his left arm. It looked like the whole arm had gotten cut open at some point. Then her eyes wandered around the room. It was a small shop/man cave room. There were a few guns on the table, but more importantly, she noticed lit candles everywhere. “I… I… I’m sorry,” He said with tears in his eyes. She let down a quiet sob and Fred walked over helping her find a seat on the couch. After a minute of crying with Fred awkwardly trying to comfort her, she pulled herself together and looked up at the man. “What happened?” She asked. The man's face changed and she saw tears build up in his eyes; “A massacre,” He said grimly. Then he followed with his story: “It happened around the fifth day I think. It was late and Jess and I were watching TV in the living room. Tim, Tom, Bart, and Gerry were chatting at the dinner table. Tom's wife and my four daughters were upstairs in bed. Everything was quiet and peaceful when suddenly my two dogs started barking outside. Now I know sometimes they’ll bark at dogs but this wasn’t that type of barking. This was get the heck away from me or I’ll kill you type barking. Then I started hearing weird screeching noises and at that point, I went over to the backdoor to check out the problem. I saw a bunch of massive spiders outside trying to attack my dogs, except they weren’t really spiders. Some of them had stingers and others kinda looked like slugs with spider legs. They’d stung one of my dogs a bunch and she was lying on the ground, the other was trying to stand her ground but it was a losing battle. I pulled at my revolver and started shooting at them. They were really fast. I think only one or two shots actually hit them. They started running over to me. One ran right in between my legs and a few of them tried to attack me. I shot those ones and turned around to try and stop the one that had gotten in, but it was already running havoc in the kitchen. My sons were chasing it, but they weren’t having the best of luck. Suddenly there was a crash, more spiders jumped through the now shattered windows, and something was banging on the front door. In an instant, the door was knocked off its hinges and one of those creeper things came through the door…” Chloe interrupted him with: “I’m sorry but what are “those creeper things?”” “The… the big ones. The type that got your dog.” He explained. “Anyways… it came running into the house, and before any of us could stop it. It threw Tom across the kitchen and into the wall. I came running to help him but that’s when it slashed my arm and threw me into the TV. The TV fell on top of me and then one of those spiders ran over and stung me in the thigh. I lay there with my eyes beginning to grow heavy. I saw Gerry, Tim, and Bart using the table as the shield. All three were hunched behind the table as the creeper began eating Tom. In a quick move, all three made a run for it. As they were running the creeper pounced and threw Tim into the table. Then it slashed Bart across the chest. Gerry managed to maneuver the creature and hurried over to help me. Bart ran down the hall to the basement and me and Gerry started hurrying upstairs. At some point, I blacked out and woke up here. Everyone was gone.” He finished with a somber look on his face. “Oh gosh, I’m sorry.” She said looking at him. “And somehow they turned my beloved Jess into one of those.” He said motioning to outside where the Creeper had been. 

She stopped to listen and realized that she couldn’t hear the hounds anymore.
“Are they gone?” She asked, looking over at Fred.
“Probably, they eat fast for their size,” Fred said grimly.
They sat there again awkwardly before Chloe asked, “What are all the candles for anyway?”
“Well I started lighting them for warmth, but I realized those things don’t seem to like them. Especially the scented ones.” He explained.
She took a whiff of the air and realized how strong the scents were in the room. It almost gave her a headache smelling them.
“So why were you here anyway?” He asked.
She got a little nervous. She felt like a little kid in trouble with her parents. She didn’t want to tell the truth because she worried it would anger him.
“We were running out of supplies.” She said simply.
Her thoughts turned back towards me as she sat there.
I sat on the couch still watching them work. They were about two-thirds done now, but they were starting to really tire and it was getting late. It had started to darken and I knew soon night would fall, and I just hoped she would make it home before nightfall. I’d tried to call her again, but this time it would ring but not go through. I started to wonder if hers had run out of battery. Bang! I immediately turned to the window in a panic. I saw Gretchen standing holding the rifle a few feet away straight down the barrel as a dead stinger. I let out a sigh of relief and turned back toward the phone in my lap. I hope you’re an ok babe.
“Fred, we have a plan. Come with me, don’t stay here, you'll die,” Chloe pleaded.
“Maybe I want to die.” He said, “Look I’m not stopping you from leaving but I’m not going.”
“Well if I go alone I’ll die, please my family needs me,” She said desperately.
Memories of his family flooded through Fred’s mind. He remembered how he felt when his first kids, Tom and Tim, were born. She hadn’t even had a kid, and suddenly he found himself doing something he didn’t think he’d be doing.
“Fine, let's go send those things back to hell!” He yelled pushing the fridge out of the way.
“Follow my lead,” He ordered turning around to her.
Then he cocked his shotgun and slammed the door open. As he had suspected the hounds and creeper were both gone, but lying on the floor next to the door were two bodies. One was the sprawled-out body of a now-deceased hound. Its neck was broken in multiple places and its yellow-greenish blood was everywhere around it. The other body was ripped off most of its flesh, but she knew who it had belonged to. Herman wasn’t going to sit there and bleed out so he must’ve lunged for one of the hounds nailing it in the perfect spot on the neck killing it. Then the other hound quickly retaliated by feasting on the dying Herman, or maybe it was the creeper she wasn’t sure which one actually ate him. But what she did know was that the skeletal remains of Herman on top of the hound had its teeth in the hound's neck.
Chloe let out a small sob and in barely a whisper said: “You were such a good boy, but you can rest now.”
She reached down and picked up a ripped piece of leather near the bodies. It was what remained of Herman’s collar. She stuff the piece into her pocket and looked over at Fred. Fred had tears in his eyes as he saw the corpse of Gerry just down the hall.
“H… He was only 15,” Fred cried as he got a better look at the scene.
Chloe stood there unsure of what to do or say because Fred looked like he was about to have a meltdown. Then his sad face turned to one of anger. She moved the flashlight past the body and down to the corner and the staircase. Lurking next to the staircase its brown eyes glowing in the light was the creeper. It was guarding the stairs and most likely wasn’t going to let them leave for as long as it lived. Her curiosity was getting the better of her so she turned a dial on the flashlight to make it brighter. She wished she could go back and stop herself. Stop herself so she didn’t have to see the horror that was the creeper. Her first interpretation of the face was fairly accurate except for one part. Inside its gaping maw behind the mandibles almost looked like a separate set of jaws. The second set was much more human-like and looked ready to shred any meat to bits, but its head was nothing compared to the body it sat upon. It appeared to have six limbs, two very long front arms with two large claws at the end, and two more arms that attached to roughly where pectoral muscles would normally be. These arms were much shorter than the previous set. It had two back legs that appeared to be quadruple-jointed. It had the normal heel and knee joints, but it had one additional joint in the foot. Despite this the legs looked vaguely dogfish, but not nearly as those of the hounds. Coming out where the tail should be was a large thorax with two nasty stingers on the end. The thorax was curved like that of a wasp ready to strike when necessary. It almost looked like it had a shell of exoskeleton on its back and thorax, and spouting out of the thicker plates were large needle-like spikes.
It let out a demonic shriek as soon as the light brightened. It ducked out of sight and started making a loud clicking noise. Chloe and Fred kept their guns trained on where it had disappeared ready for it to come out charging, but unfortunately, they underestimated it. It made a loud ticking sound followed by CREAK! Before Chloe could even turn the hound that had crept from behind had her pinned to the ground and was bitting and slashing at her back. BANG!!!! BANG!!!! Fred had lowered his shotgun to its head. The first blast blew out two of its eyes and shattered part of its exoskeleton, and the second blast dug through the broken exoskeleton into the brain. The hound collapsed dead and with his gun pointed at where the creeper had been Fred helped push the body off of her.
Chloe got up a little shaken but relatively ok. She started guarding back while he guarded the front as they slowly made their way towards the stairs. Any second they were expecting the creeper to appear from around the corner, but it didn’t. The creeper was planning something again but they didn’t know what. Just as they made it to the stairs they turned down the other hall, but saw nothing. The creeper had likely walked into one of the rooms and was waiting, but they weren’t there to explore. They hurried down the spiral staircase, but just as they got to the bottom they saw the place was still swarming with stingers, slugs, and 3 hounds. A loud ticking sound came from upstairs and the three hounds charged towards them. They started running back upstairs only to see the creeper now lurking at the top of them. Cornered in the middle of the stairs back to back with each other they began to accept their fate.
I started to really worry about where Chloe was I hadn’t heard from her in a while and it was getting late. I sat there trying to call her every few minutes but it would not pick up. BANG! I dropped the phone and turned to the window. Gretchen stood there with the rifle pointed at something off in the snow, but I couldn’t see what the thing was. BANG! I saw for a brief millisecond the bullet flying into the blizzard then nothing. BANG! I tried to pull myself up to see what it was, but searing pain went through my body when I tried. I looked out again and saw something massive emerge from the blizzard charging for Gretchen.
“I’m sorry we should’ve stayed up there,” Chloe cried as the hounds slowly stepped closer.
“Kid, I would rather die here than die in the room a coward, but you ain’t going to die here!” He said triumphantly.

Suddenly he pulled out a small can of spray deodorant and sprayed it in the hound's faces. All three toppled over making loud hacking coughing noises. “GO!” He yelled and she quickly made her way past the hounds and downstairs. There were still dozens of stingers down there and she still wasn’t sure what to do. Before she could do anything. RAT-A-TATATATA! All around her, the stingers began exploding as Fred landed shot after shot. “A little help would be nice!” He yelled. She quickly pulled out her semi-automatic and started firing as well. RAT-A-TATATATA! The hall began to fill with the exploded bodies of stingers and slugs. Suddenly she heard shuffling behind her and saw the hounds getting up. Without a second thought, she sprinted down the hall and into the kitchen. Standing in the living room was another group of stingers and a hound. How many hounds are there? She thought, then she remembered how many people in their town had two or three hunting dogs. If all of them were changed they’d be a small army. She ducked behind the island sitting uncomfortably close to Tom’s body. Fred sprinted in a second later and saw what she did. He jumped to the ground and shimmied over to her. “Crap kid we really are screwed,” Fred said his momentary confidence completely diminished. Before anyone could do anything the monster that had emerged from the blizzard was attacking Gretchen. In one quick motion, it slashed open her gut and she dropped the gun. I stared outside as my mom tried desperately to fire, but even from this distance, I could see she’d loaded the gun wrong. In an instant, she was on the ground bleeding. I looked over at the shotgun sitting next to me and fired a round through the window at the beast. The window shattered and I saw the creature get hit right solid in the chest, but it didn’t matter much. Like the dog beasts, this one had a thick darkly colored exoskeleton that the round didn’t pierce. The beast looked up from what it was doing and started charging for the house. I fired again but it didn’t even slow the creature it just kept on charging straight towards the house. The boys at some point had caught onto what was going on and started crying and screaming. I tried to get them to quiet down, but they were too distraught. I grabbed the box and loaded two more rounds just as the door was thrown out of its hinges. SCROAR! It charged into the house. BANG! I shot it directly in that face and saw one of its eyes explode. SCROAR!!!! It swung a large two-clawed hand straight across my face throwing me across the room. I landed against a wall and in my weak state I leaned over and felt myself begin to fall. Unfortunately, it had thrown me right next to the basement stairs. Every time I hit a stair only hurt more than the last. At some point, my bandaged left hand slammed into a wooden stair. The pain was so bad I almost passed out. Finally, with one lass unceremonious thud, I landed on the basement floor. 

Chloe looked around her hope beginning to fade then her eyes locked with the pantry. The large pantry with a window.

“Follow me,” She whispered as she started crawling for the pantry. Fred followed close behind. Chloe crawled into the pantry and ducked into it. She peeked out of the doorway and saw that Fred had froze. The four hounds had gathered right behind him. He looked horrified and clearly unsure of what to do. Suddenly with a loud creak, the creeper's head poked into the kitchen and it let out a loud ticking sound. The hounds started screeching and one began to slowly walk towards Fred. RAT-A-TATATATA! She struck the approaching one 9 times in the face and the sudden burst seemed to wake Fred from his fear. RAT-A-TATATATA! Yellow-greenish blood exploded from the approaching hound's mouth and it slammed its head into the wall in pain. Fred turned around and sprinted into the pantry with Chloe closing the door as soon as he was inside. Instantly sounds of slamming and scratching erupted from the door. Chloe turned to the window in the pantry and slid it open diving out into the snow. Fred quickly followed slamming the window behind him to give them more time. Chloe sprinted through the snowy evening as quickly as she could Fred trying his best to keep up with her. The man wasn’t exactly in his prime and combine that with him not having snow shoes to be frank Chloe was surprised he was able to stay caught up at all. As she sprinted down the darkening street getting closer and closer to home she thought she heard a faint Bang! Followed quickly by SCROAR!!!! Her worries suddenly switched from her and Fred to her family. She hadn’t called them in hours and now there was clearly something going on. She sprinted ever faster looking up and realizing she’d already made it onto their street. As soon as their house was in view she saw the shoveled driveway, but she also saw my mom laying in a pool of her own blood. Along with that, she saw Gretchen weakly trying to get up also bloody. Chloe ran over to Gretchen. “Gretchen, what happened?” Chloe asked as she helped Gretchen stand. “Something… something big.” Gretchen sputtered out. Gretchen had a lost far away look on her face. She almost seemed drunk but Chloe knew that wasn’t the case. Gretchen was likely in shock. SCREAM! Chloe immediately recognized it as one of the boys. She gently sat Gretchen down and then pulled out the rifle. Fred had finally caught up and quickly but carefully Fred and Chloe made their way into the house guns drawn. They hurried inside and saw the creeper looming over a now-still Alby. Without a second thought, Chloe raised her rifle RAT-A-TATATA! She shot the thing a few times in the back knowing that it probably wouldn’t do any real damage. It turned around and looked at the two of them standing there. The scene was eerie as the still-burning fireplace cast a strange glow on the creeper. Everything seemed to go still for a second the two of them staring at the creeper and the creeper staring right back at them. All three of them trying to make a decision but are not sure what to do. SCROAR! It dives forward slicing at the welding helmet Chloe was wearing and then pinning her to the ground with its four legs. BANG!! His shotgun blast hardly seemed to phase the thing as started digging its claws into Chloe. She let out a scream that I heard loud and clear from the basement. 

I’d managed to pull myself halfway up the stairs with my good arm and leg but my energy was running out and I was feeling lightheaded. I had to save her I had to protect her. BANG! I heard another gunshot followed by an unfamiliar scream. I didn’t know at the time that Fred was putting everything he had into trying to protect my wife.
Chloe gunless and pinned down was beginning to accept her fate when she remembered what she’d done last time. She reached for her knife and stabbed one of its feet. SCROAR!! It backed up off of her clearly in pain. Quickly she pulled the sniper rifle off her back and Bang! The bullet went clean through one of the thing's legs. She’d quite literally found the creeper's Achilles heel. It half fell to the ground letting out another roar of pain and agony. Both its front legs were crippled and it lay there defeated. Fred stepped forward ready to put a shotgun blast to the temple when suddenly. The thing reared up onto its two back legs throwing Fred into the wall. It had to hunch a little as the ceiling wasn’t very high but it still was tall. Chloe figured that on two legs without a hunch it was probably 10 feet tall. SCROAR!! Bang! It lunged towards her and she used her first shot to shoot its arm. The bullet embedded into the exoskeleton but didn’t seem to hurt it. The creature stopped for a moment as if to think. Bang! She shot the creature in the belly. The exoskeleton cracked. Bang! The second shot sunk into its stomach and the creature's blood began to leak out. SCROAR! It bashed one of its arms into her. She felt her left shoulder get cut open and the helmet went flying off.
BANG!! BANG! Two shotgun blasts rang out at the exact same time. The first blast was Fred's. It hit the creeper directly in the back of the head causing it to stumble forward. The second was my blast hitting it directly in the face. The two shots managed to hit at the exact perfect times. The creeper collapsed to the ground critically wounded.

Fred ran over to Chloe who was in a daze on the ground. “Are you alright kid?” He asked helping her up. “I’ll live,” She said weakly. The creeper let out a growl from where it lay on the floor. I pointed the shotgun from where I was on the stairs and fired one final blast into its head. “Chloe who is that?” I asked cautiously. “Fred,” She said sounding weak. I crawled the rest of the way up and saw Alby laying near the fireplace motionless. I froze as I felt tears begin to well up in my eyes. Then I looked closer and saw besides a cut on his arm he wasn’t hurt, and better yet it looked like he was breathing. “Alby!” I yelled trying my best to over to him with my broken body. He lifted his head and turned it to look at me. “Is the monster gone?” He asked. “Yes it’s gone,” I said trying to sound comforting. “Ba… Babe,” Chloe stammered, now leaning down over me. Her eyes were locked with mine but she had a horrified expression on her face. I didn’t care and gave her a long tight hug. “You’re not leaving me again,” I told her. Finally, I pulled away and looked at her and for a second it was just the two of us and nothing else mattered. Fred hurried into the house helping Gretchen walk. “Everyone downstairs now!” He ordered and we all hurried down. “Alby where’s your brothers?” I asked him as he followed us downstairs. “They're down here.” He said pointing down the staircase. “Fred, what’s happening?” Chloe asked the panic-stricken man as we all stepped into the basement. “More, more of them are coming.” He said a look of fear on his face. “Well then let's get ready for a fight!” Chloe said, cocking the shotgun she’d taken from me. 

La nueva generación en el nuevo mundo Across the sea, life goes on

XIV FEBRERO MDXVI
Giovanni wept to himself, quietly at first, and then with wrenching, heart-shaking shudders of a man who was barely contained. Pedrarias would have admonished him. His wife, Maria, would have berated him. His brother, William, would have told him that prayers were worth more than tears. And Cesare Borgia would have stabbed him and said, "Now you have something to cry about." His first-born daughter, Maria-Theresa, was stillborn, and his line remained stillborn with her. There would be no Palaiologos to carry on their claim to the Queen of Cities. He wept for himself, he wept for his wife, he wept for his family, and he wept for the New World and the life he thought he was building here. What had survival on Bermuda been for if not to bring new life into this world?
The year of 1516 had been set for the most brilliant and jubilant arrival of new life and peace for the city of Panama. Instead, the death of Maria de Paleólogo y Téllez-Girón had brought only sadness. The indigenous people listened to Giovanni's story and understood his belief that his family was cursed. They understood where his self-belief came from and the role his family played across the waves of the Atlantic. They called him 'El emperador perdido' or 'el hombre sin familia,' and they knew why he worked as hard as he did. He tried his best to treat them well, but 1516 was a cursed year, and even the estate of Elysia was renowned for being a bleak place. There was little to inspire joy or happiness that year.
By the turn of the year, Maria was herself again, a woman of fierce temperament and fiercer demands. She was driving her land hard, and Giovanni harder. There was little that stood between the young woman and her future. She was determined to see her estate rival any on Cuba and aspire to match the great landowners of Spain proper. Her bargain was known to all; working for the Lady of Elysia, the so-called 'Persephone,' was a fast route to favours and wealth beyond imagination. Spanish and indigenous alike knew of her reputation and her favour.
Ninguané spent the year planning the grandest expedition that Pedrarias would ever undertake. It would not be this year, nor 1517, or even 1518, it was to take place in 1520. A full four years of planning time in preparation. Pedrarias himself would lead it, Juan to be his second, and Ninguané their chief guide. They were going to utilise a ludicrous amount of men and arms, and provisions sufficient to establish two colonies in their own right. Any native tribe who stood against the Old Man would find itself crushed. To aid him, Ninguané used the maps and information provided by the foreign traders. He also used lessons learned from fighting the Cuevá to have Juan write some simple guides for the condottiero who would come with them. This was all just the first step though, and as planning commenced Juan got to work on ensuring Panamá was the ideal place to launch this expedition from.
----
XXII JULIO MDXVII 1517 was destined to be one of the greatest years in the entire lifetime of the House of Paleólogo, who now officially adopted the Spanish translation of their name. On a warm day, near midday, Lady Maria Luisa Enríquez y Téllez-Girón, after carrying a heavy belly for nine months, finally gave birth. On that sweltering summer day, baby Guillermo de Paleólogo y Téllez-Girón was born healthy and crying. He already had a thick head of hair, and his lungs heralded the arrival of a new generation of Paleólogo, who would carry the family name and the title of Imperator Constantinopolitanus. Word had finally reached them from across the sea that Guglielmo, in his solitude, was unlikely to provide an heir to the family. Juan, known as Giovanni in his Italian name and Ioannes in Latin, was rightfully his brother's heir, and the baby boy Guillermo was his own heir. As his wife's laboured breathing turned to laughter and joy after hours of agonising screams, Juan's love for her overflowed. In four different languages, he praised her. First in Italian, then in Latin, then Greek, and finally Spanish. He spoke of love and vitality, of eternal marriage. He whispered sweet nothings that made the midwives blush and turn away in embarrassment. Together, Juan and Maria held their new son and thanked the Lord Almighty for their happiness. On that July day, nothing could have shattered their joy, not even the fall of Rome itself, for their whole world was cradled in their arms. The year went by, and Guillermo proved to be strong-willed for a baby, expressing himself in every possible way. Part of Maria knew that her husband would desire another son sooner rather than later. Juan, having tasted fatherhood, yearned for more. He told them that family, like faith, was strongest when held with love in their hearts. Together, they prayed for another child, and their zealousness was soon rewarded. Meanwhile, Ninguané took charge of managing affairs between Elysia, Panamá, and the Coclé tribe. Being fluent in Spanish, his native language, and Latin, thanks to the church, made him indispensable to the Spanish around him, especially Pedrarias and Juan. Part of him regretted not being able to be there for his family more, and he knew that sooner or later, he would need to take a wife of his own. Yet, a small part of him harboured a fascination with the women who came from across the sea and wanted Pedrarias and Juan to arrange a Spanish wife for him. He wasn't entirely sure why, but there was an intrigue surrounding these women. He also knew that his family expected him to marry someone from his tribe since he was the chieftain's son. While Elysia had expanded Panamá to the size of Medina del Oro and Nombre de Dios combined, Juan and Ninguané aimed even higher. Together, they began constructing a fortress in Panamá. It wouldn't be a grand castle, but it would be sufficient to hold the region of Castilla del Oro against aggression and exert influence over the surrounding areas. It was also intended to serve as a residence for the future Duc. With this in mind, Ninguané sought his father's input, and Juan commissioned Spanish engineers. The Fuerte de San Constantino would serve as the base of Spanish power in the Atlantic, initially for Pedrarias and later for the planned grand expedition to the north. From this stronghold of Spanish might, the region would be secured eternally for the Spanish Monarchs. However, something about this plan unsettled Ninguané, yet the undeniable prosperity of his tribe kept those concerns at bay most of the time.
----
VII AGOSTO MDXVIII
Pedrarias surveyed the room and expressed his gratitude to God, the Queen, and the Kingdom. Juan cradled the boys in his arms, his wife gazing at him with love while the proud midwives beamed at the woman who had just given birth. The priest blessed the family in Latin. They named the twin boys Bonifacio de Paleólogo y Téllez-Girón and Constantino de Paleólogo y Téllez-Girón. It was a double blessing from God that even Pedrarias had made the journey from Nombre de Dios to witness. They called him the Old Man, and though he was indeed old, he was not too old to visit one of his key administrators on such a significant day. His own children were now grown, with wives and soon-to-be children. Pedro and Francisco, his sons, were grown men, while Arias, 18 years old, had thoughts of sending him to court. His daughters included María de Peñalosa, who would turn 16 this year and soon be married, Isabela de Bobadilla, 13 years old, and Elvira, his youngest at just 9. Pedrarias knew the joys of having children and understood the significance of this moment for Juan.
However, the joy and celebrations of the 'double-headed eagle' in Elysia were short-lived. Constantino caught a cradle cough and passed away barely two months after his birth. Juan and María were devastated once again, especially Juan. Ninguané, who had witnessed life come to Panamá, now watched it fade from his friend's face once more. While the previous year had been filled with good news and abundant energy, the administrator retreated into himself. Missives and directions came through assistants and helpers, and Pedrarias rarely called upon his senior advisor, knowing that the man was barely eating, let alone fit for conversation. Fortunately, preparations for the grand expedition and the construction of the Fuerte de San Constantino continued, with Ninguané and Pedrarias taking charge while Juan managed the finances and other foremen oversaw the actual construction.
Towards the end of the year, Ninguané and Pedrarias grew particularly close in the absence of Juan managing their affairs. The native prince of Panama, now 22 years old, had matured since joining the colony at the age of 18. Pedrarias saw before him a handsome man, dark-skinned but lacking the refinement of civilization, yet intelligent, creative, and cunning—traits that Pedrarias appreciated. What became apparent to him, beyond his own admiration and dependence, was the affection that Maria held for Ninguané as well. The young girl became a frequent "guest" whenever Ninguané stayed late at Pedrarias' residence. She would bombard him with questions about his family and his thoughts on the Spanish. She would quiz him on the various Kings and Queens of Spain. Before the year ended, Maria started asking her father about whom he thought Ninguané would marry and the laws regarding such matters.
Juan Paleólogo and his wife, along with the rest of Elysia, returned to active service for the colony in the final quarter of the year. With renewed vigour, which he found by turning to his two living sons, Juan fully immersed himself in his duties. This involved weekly trips from his estate to Panamá proper or Nombre de Dios to visit the governor. He resumed the process of formalising the plans for what was now referred to as 'La gran expedición' and personally wrote letters to investors, the Casa, and Corte Real de Madrid. His mastery with the quill was unrivalled, having spent time in Rome, and Pedrarias was immensely grateful to have him back. The loss of Bobadilla some years ago had hindered progress in Medina, but with his competent Greek administrator, the colony rediscovered its purpose and attracted new investments.
Together, the three men rallied once again and devoted themselves to ensuring that Castilla del Oro became the crown jewel of the New World. They formed perhaps the finest trio of officials on this side of the Atlantic.
----
Summary
Juan de Paleólogo and his wife have had a number of children over the years. He has been up and down emotionally but on the whole Panamá has now become as large as Medina del Oro and Nombre de Dios combined.
Ninguané has grown much closer to Pedrarias with Juan focussed on family following the death of his son. Ninguane and Maria, the eldest daughter of Pedrarias, are growing closer.
Pedrarias has begun preparations for probably his final expedition; it is to be particularly large.
A new fort is being built in Panama for ƒ100,000 (mil), costs splot ƒ75k (Casa) and 25k (del Oro).

Magma dust-dark orange dust created mixing fire and earth dust together used to create magma that burns through various material
Cloud dust-dark white dust cream ed by mixing wind and ice dust together used to create miniature cloud for blinding/disorient opponents or for mobility clouds can be shot with other types of dust for various purposes
Magnet dust-black dust created by mixing gravity and lightning dust together used for railroads and to disarm opponents fro combat purposes
Plasma dust-light purple dust created by mixing light and lightning dust together used for destructive purposes or for artillery
Acid dust-dark green dust created by mixing water and a unknown type of dust together used to shoot or create acid to melt things Impact dust-light gray dust created by mixing gravity and and hard light dust together used for creating sturdy materials or for absorbing and releasing attacks for combat
Nuclear dust-whitish orange dust created by mixing combustion dust and a unknown type of dust together used for creating nuclear weapons and nuclear warfare in general

To start off I (15M) have been dating my girlfriend (F14) for a year but we've known each other since we were 4 and 5, 1 year later he brother was born and for the first 2 years everything was normal, but once he turned 2 he started havoc because he's "mommy's little boy" and doesn't get disciplined. The forst notable thing he did was when they moved to the coast (A 14 hour drive) he drowned one of her kittens, didn't even get told anything and my girlfriend (friend at the time) was told "stop being dramatic" I then visited them for a week with my dad and the first thing I saw when I got there was her little brother (Lets call him K) ran up to her while she was watering plants and bashed a hard toy into the back of her head, the mom (Lets call her T) say's to K "Hey don't do that" 1 day later we were walking around and found a tent that wasn't opened in her moms room and we make that our little spot to talk until K comes in, sees us and starts throwing stuff at us for 30 minutes, we get told "You're antagonizing him" we go back the next day, same thing happened, same thing happens until day 4 when i brought my phone with me (We are now 7 and 8) to call my dad to tell him if K is doing it again, we get told we're antagonizing him AGAIN. Now he starts terrorizing us because he knows nothings going to happen to him, he then tries to hit me with a hammer and fails and said I hit him. we then go back home on the 7th day and 3 months later my girlfriend moves into her grandma and grandpas house because her parents didn't give her enough attention and didn't care about her (Their grandma and grandpa's house is a 20 minute drive from mine) so now K visits for a month once a year and theres so much hes done I can't fit it into here but the last notable thing hes done was try to stab me last year, his mom said, "hey dont do that"

So abridged version is this is my mother car (2006 Volvo S40) and shes has seldom been driving last few years, so every week or two I would run it for her when I could head over and this would work out ok until a few months ago. I tried jumping the battery with a portable jumper and it would turn over so I would run it for 15 to 30 and then check back a week later.
Week later same thing it would turn over with a jump and then I would run it or even drive it this time once it was done I turned it off and checked again, heard the dead battery clicking sound, popped hood checked connections and no visible issues tried again and this time nothing at all. Dash not even lighting up. I assume its the 3 year old battery and abuse of charging discharging it so I lag a little bit in getting the battery changed but finally do a week back. New battery installed now but same thing as before. I can use a portable jumper to get it going and it will go but after its off after a minute or 2 it will die.

I posted on mutualaid too but I'm reaching out for help here too because I'm in a lot of pain & trying to heal alone in the dark and heat is getting more and more difficult. I'm begging for help. Sometimes the pain is so bad it's hard to get out of the bed. And I have to be careful to make sure I don't slip and fall in the dark and fall. It's so hot and it seems like the heat makes the pain worse. I broke down crying alone in the dark because I couldn't see which medication to take because I couldn't find my phone to use as a light.
Most of the people I've heard from are scammers. Somebody please help. Someone please help me. I'm begging for help. Please.
I apologize if this violates any rules. Please please please please please help.

What will you be doing with this PC? Be as specific as possible, and include specific games or programs you will be using.

Primarily be playing Genshin, Fortnite, League, and Valorant with the occasional AAA title. May also end up streaming in the near future as well.

What is your maximum budget before rebates/shipping/taxes?

$1250 or so.

When do you plan on building/buying the PC? Note: beyond a week or two from today means any build you receive will be out of date when you want to buy.

Within a month.

What, exactly, do you need included in the budget? (ToweOS/monitokeyboard/mouse/etc)

Motherboard, CPU (and cooler if needed), Memory, GPU, PSU, Storage Drive for OS.

Which country (and state/province) will you be purchasing the parts in? If you're in US, do you have access to a Microcenter location?

USA - Microcenter about 2 hours away so would really need to be a great deal to make it worth the drive.

If reusing any parts (including monitor(s)/keyboard/mouse/etc), what parts will you be reusing? Brands and models are appreciated.

Storage Drives from previous PC (SATA SSD and 2 HDD)

Will you be overclocking? If yes, are you interested in overclocking right away, or down the line? CPU and/or GPU?

No

Are there any specific features or items you want/need in the build? (ex: SSD, large amount of storage or a RAID setup, CUDA or OpenCL support, etc)

Ability to add additional storage down the line. HDD Trays would be nice since I still am using a 4 TB HDD.

What type of network connectivity do you need? (Wired and/or WiFi) If WiFi is needed and you would like to find the fastest match for your wireless router, please list any specifics.

Wired is fine

Do you have any specific case preferences (Size like ITX/microATX/mid-towefull-tower, styles, colors, window or not, LED lighting, etc), or a particular color theme preference for the components?

No theme preference. Will likely be using a non-windowed case so nothing needs to be flashy. (Either reusing my old Phantek's Case, getting a new one, or going with fractal design's Meshify. Anyways, all of that is outside the budget listed above)

Do you need a copy of Windows included in the budget? If you do need one included, do you have a preference?

No, will be getting windows outside of this budget.

Extra info or particulars:

Really just looking for another solid machine to last me for the next couple years. My current machine was built in 2015 and outside of storage upgrades and upgrading to a 1660 TI from a 970, it's been working pretty well. She is showing her age though so figure I should upgrade to something new.
Not looking for CPU/Mobo Upgrade paths, or reusing memory. Just something that can play games and can have a decent amount of storage attached to it.

i have Rosewill RSV-SATA-Cage-34 and the stock fan has early signs of failure
Note that i am running the fan in a push config to cool 4x 4TB WD Red drives (this and the psu are my case exhaust)
I was looking at a few options for replacement that will not be annoying and still get the job done

• [900RPM / 1.21mmH2O] https://noctua.at/en/nf-p12-redux-900/specification
• [1050RPM / 0.5mmH2O] https://www.arctic.de/us/P12-Silent/ACFAN00130A
• [1300RPM / 1.68mmH2O] https://noctua.at/en/nf-p12-redux-1300/specification
• [1800RPM / 2.2mmH2O] https://www.arctic.de/us/P12/ACFAN00118A

Is static pressure something that can be compared between different brand fans? Really supposed by looking at the P12-Silent and the nf-p12-redux-900 having 10% less speed and 240% the static pressure

I was accepted as a transfer student to a school I never could have dreamed of attending when I was still in high school. The magnitude of my accomplishment hit me on my drive home and brought a tear to my eye, similar to what happened after I found out I was accepted.
I never posted here, but lurked hard. Very thankful for everyone that shared their wisdom and helped me reach this extreme sense of pride.
I hope everyone on this sub gets to feel what I am feeling right now!

When I insert the phone on the gamepad usb c nothing happens, the lights don't even blink, they only way it makes the lights blinking is connecting a charger on the gamesir, but the lights stop blinking after a while, it seems like the phone and the gamesir are not making even electrical contact.
Tried to enable usb debugging, tried to clean the phone usb c connector (the charger works fine), tried everything I could change in developer options. Anyone have been in this situation?
The phone is Xiaomi 9SE.

Hello strangers,
I am looking for a bit of general advice on the topics in the title, based on a specific situation at work that I find myself in. In short, I (24m) have become far too close to an employee (18f) (we'll call her Paige), and it has caused me to realize how lonely I feel, it has caused my professional reputation to fall apart, and I don't know how to move forward because I genuinely care about the employee but I am also realizing that I need to fix my life.
Last year, I graduated from a competitive program at a large university, but decided to stay working as a manager in the service industry because I am passionate about the work and I found the leadership aspect very rewarding (despite the lack of pay and prestige relative to the field I am educated in). During school, I found myself very depressed and overwhelmed, and I found that the only way to create enough time to work and take a full-time course load was to cut off many of my personal friendships, which I valued deeply because I am very introverted and have a hard time making friends before my social batteries die. By the time I graduated, I had disconnected from all but one of my close friends, and the only relationships I had left (outside of family) were a few decent ones with my coworkers and employees.
Fast forward to now, and I started becoming very close to Paige because I manage a department that she works in as a top-performing shift supervisor. We get along well, and at some point I started driving her home because our shifts usually go to 1am, and it is expensive for her to call a taxi. These drives started to end with her not wanting to leave the car so we could chat more, then she started asking me to drive her around the city so we could talk without being outside her house. The stupid decision was when I started letting her drive my car so I didn't feel like I was responsible for how late we were together, and now we're at the point where we'll do a small road trip one or twice a week, or we'll park the car somewhere pretty and eat/chat for hours. A month or so ago, she started touching me a lot (which I don't think much of because she's a very touchy person with her friends at work), but this quickly evolved into her wanting to hold my hand for most of our drives. Recently, she started placing my hand on her knee or leg in what seems like a welcome to leave it there. I'm not sure if she sees this as platonic or not, but there are a few problems:

• Even if she sees the situation as platonic, the amount of time+talking+touch is causing me to feel very deeply attached to her.
• She has a boyfriend (dating for 3 months, first relationship for both of them, she admits that he's toxic, but of course she still insists she is in love with him). She lies to him (and her family, her friends, and her coworkers) about what she's doing when she's with me, and it often causes some strain for her.
• She is a season of life behind me and there's a huge emotional maturity gap.
• Since I am her manager, there is obviously a huge power imbalance.
• She will sit in my car from leaving work at 1am to as late as 8am on weeknights, or 11am on weekends, even though she is in high school. The lack of sleep is affecting her academically and I can also see it affecting her mental health. She has even admitted this, but says she loses self-discipline when she's with me.

Excuses I tell myself to feel better about the situation:

• I'm not the one driving, so I'm not putting her in an uncomfortable situation.
• I don't initiate any of the hand holding or leg touching so it's doesn't feel predatory or inappropriate.
• I'm usually telling her things like "we should really head home," "your parents will be mad and I don't want you to fight," or "this is bad for your sleep schedule and you'll be tired at school," etc etc. (Even though I actually want her to ignore my pleas and stick around.)
• Her boyfriend sounds like the worst person ever (even though she bounces back to "but I love him" after complaining about him), so I feel like I offer her a healthier perspective and influence.
• We accomplish a lot at work together, and I have used my position to create a ton of opportunity for her, which she has always seized.

Bad things that I can admit to myself:

• I am very attracted to her, and I get excited when she is flirty or chooses to spend time with me.
• I now spend an unequal amount of time with her at work, versus other similarly-performing direct reports. Coworkers and employees are beginning to notice the favouritism. I will also move her shifts around to make them more convenient for us to spend time with each other. So far, my boss doesn't mind because I have developed her so much professionally, but I am quickly losing credibility with my coworkers.
• I am becoming unhealthily dependent on her for adrenaline and overall happiness. I don't have much going on in my life anymore besides her, so she becomes the highlight of my week.

Paige ties into the loneliness topic because I am realizing that much of my dependency on her is probably due to a lack of personal connections that I have. I am deeply connected to my immediate family (mom and sister), and I have 3 great friendships (two are coworkers), but that's it. All of these friends are in relationships, and I feel very lonely when they are out with their significant others, and I am alone at home. As a result, spending a ton of time with Paige has created an unhealthy way to fill that emotional want. Also, I used to love my job and I was intrinsically motivated to be a well-respected top-performer, but now I just see the job as a way to spend time with Paige, and my motivation to perform is dropping dramatically.
I'm at a point where I'm not sure what I need to heado to take the most wholehearted next step. I want Paige to be happy and be successful in her personal and professional life, I want to adjust my own life so I don't feel so lonely and depressed all the time, and I want to go back to the level of satisfaction and respect that I had at work before fraternizing with Paige. On the other hand, I am selfish, and I enjoy spending time with this girl too much to make a real change (mostly out of fear that there is no healthy way to end our relationship that won't damage my ability to be her coach at work, and there is the fear that I will be feel even emptier after, which I'm not sure I could handle).
Thoughts, input, or guidance would be appreciated. Thank you.

Okay, so. Let me start off with the obligatory "I'm actually really loving the game, BUT..." comment. I really do mean that, the gameplay feels fine from moment-to-moment exploration, I love having the expanded biomes (Sky and Caverns) to explore, I like the idea of iterating on the powers from the previous game to make entirely new inventions and creations. The core gameplay loop of TotK is EXTREMELY tight, and I appreciate it for that. I'm constantly remembering that something is only hard because I'm making it hard, I'm not using the tools I have access to.
But what is going on with the story? I've been talking to a few friends about this, and I know, Zelda games are never really about the connecting story as they are about the current version of Hyrule. Every Link is a new Link, every Hyrule a new Hyrule, the connections are best considered random chance or direct references, and not intended connections. But Tears of the Kingdom is a new kind of Zelda game, one that is directly linked to its predecessor. We aren't meeting the Hero of Time from an age long past in a dungeon, we *ARE* the same Link, we're in the same Hyrule. The only other time we've taken up the mantle of the same Link, directly after a sequel, is... Majora's Mask. But even there, we play in an entirely new kingdom... It isn't even Hyrule, it's a new, completely original location, where the only shared similarities are character names and occupations and models.
I'm going to liken TotK to Majora's Mask multiple times in this post, for that exact reason. This game, at it's core, is very closely related to MM in ways that, even if not directly (Mechanically) similar, are at their core spiritually similar.
Okay, here's what I mean by that. Characters who SHOULD know Link, who have had direct interactions with him in the past, are completely oblivious to him now. Even if we're talking about four or five years, Link is... Well, Link. Bolson, the man you help in BotW with his construction company, doesn't recognize you at all. And, well, that could be a canonical inconsistency... It would be absurd to think that Link does EVERY side quest, and EVERY mission from a gameplay point of view, then you really are leaving out people who never did every single side quest in BotW. Mass Effect uses a similar system wherein Shepard has a "set" series of actions/decisions, and specific missions, with specific outcomes, that are decided for you if you begin a new game later in the series without carrying over a save.
Problem is, though, we KNOW that the house in Hateno is owned by Link. Link's pictures are there, along with the image from Champion's Ballad if you did the DLC. So why doesn't Bolson remember us?
Where are the Divine Beasts? The new Champions still exist in the world, we interact with them for our four main Dungeon quests... But where did they go? And it isn't as if Nintendo washed them out, they're still referenced (Albeit lightly) in the gameplay in a few locations, they just -don't exist-. Not one line of dialogue explains it, no environmental clues hint as to their fate. The old Shrines disappearing into the earth once they served their purpose, I can be fine with no explanation. The Towers to scan for Malice and the return of Ganon being torn down and rebuilt into the Skyview Towers, I can also easily enough accept without an explanation... But where the hell did the Purah Pad come from? It's so clearly the Shieka Slate from BotW, but it's inexplicably stripped of its power, renamed, and thrust upon Zelda once more.
And we'll get to Zelda later, don't worry about that. My point, for now, is that the game feels like it's trying to put Link in a world where he's still an unknown, despite being the savior of Hyrule, and the Hero of the Wilds. But the game isn't really sure how to handle the existence of BotW, either. People don't remember or don't know you, when they should. Items, like the Master Sword, are apparently -never canonically collected- in BotW, as shown by a cutscene while collecting Memories Dragon Tears. The world has changed only slightly, but it seems to have already forgotten Link and the Calamity he put an end to only a FEW YEARS prior.
Okay, so. I'll be honest, all of that isn't even my biggest problem with the game. It's left me scratching my head, as I can think of one of a half-dozen of ways the Divine Beasts and previous Shieka Tech could be worked into the story, and then written out, without much of an issue to provide closure. But it's still a Zelda game, at it's core, and no two Zelda games are ever going to be the exact same world and exact same characters, even Majora's Mask proves that to us. The gameplay comes first and foremost, and giving the player characters that they can interact with without having done every faucet of the previous game should take priority over making everyone know Link on a first-name basis, I just wish they'd put more thought into who he does and doesn't know. Minor issues.
You know what aren't minor issues? That god-awful main story and its design. References to MM end here, for the most part.
MAJOR SPOILERS BELOW.
So let's ignore, for a moment, that the Memories Dragon Tears are massively relevant to the main plot, and figuring out what happened to Princess Zelda, which is a change that itself spoils massive chunks of the game if you happen to stumble across the wrong Geoglyph at the wrong time. The game tells you, explicitly, FOUR TIMES, with the SAME CUTSCENE about the evils of Ganondorf and how the Sages need to help Link defeat him. The only thing that changes are the character models and voices.
Moving back to Dragon Tears, I believe three or four of them all reference the same snippet of dialogue from one of the Zonai about swallowing Sacred Stones turning you into a dragon, and how that's bad, because you lose yourself, and it's forbidden. If you do them in order, then you'll get that repeat cutscene snippet back to back to back.
I understand that they need to account for the player possibly finding these things out of order. You can, from the start of the game, go do Zora, or Goron, or Gerudo, or the Rito quests just like in BotW. But you know what BotW did differently? Each of the four races had the same cutscene in spirit, the Champion from 100 years ago reuniting with Link and sharing their powers with him. But the actual cutscenes were different, they all said different things to him, they all had different interactions. In TotK, each cutscene is "My descendant, take my power, and help Link fight the big bad."
EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. They all have snippets of what I'm dubbing Bizzaro Zelda (Again, getting to it.), three of them have almost the exact same concept of "puzzle" (Oh my GOD the Temples make me want Divine Beasts back, I'll GET TO IT.) where you spend five minutes looking for the door, then tell your Power Friend to power you up, then you do the thing, and then push ONE button instead of five.
The game reuses assets and concepts harder than an indie dev in the early 2010s trying to get on the Steam marketplace. Which finally brings us on to...
Princess Zelda. Every time I stumble into a new place "Oh but I saw Princess Zelda, but she did something mysterious and/or evil!" This is only half-explained in ONE of the Dragon Tears, where Ganondorf creates a clone of Zelda to do nefarious things. It isn't explained, they just cold open to a clone of Zelda who acts and talks a little strange compared to what we've seen of her, then "Zelda" does her evil deed, and surprise, it's an evil clone of Zelda! But it comes out of the goddamn blue.
It makes sense that if Ganondorf can do this in the past, he can do it in the present. But the question is... Why? He doesn't know Zelda comes from whatever the current year is, in TotK. Why create phantoms of this one specific girl you met possibly millennia ago, and do vaguely evil stuff with said clone?
TLoZ writing has never been particularly amazing. It doesn't have to be, because the story itself is timeless and classic. The brave knight goes on an adventure to rescue the princess. But for whatever reason in TotK, they start going on this weird tangent about being super narrative-driven, the player HAS to always know what's happening at all times. Every new location a reminder that Princess Zelda is missing, that she's doing evil things, that Ganondorf is evil... It holds your hand, constantly, while beating you over the head with the same concepts you heard *twenty hours ago* when you first discovered Ganondorf beneath Hyrule Castle.
And then there's the twist. Oh my god, the twist. Keep in mind, that I haven't fully beaten the game yet, so maybe they do -something- to make this a little less painful and irritating, but in order to save the Master Sword after magically taking it from Link in the tutorial island, Zelda swallows her Sacred Stone and transforms into the Dragon of Light, taking the Master Sword with her that it may bask in her radiant powers of evil-banishing Light until Link finds her and takes it back.
I would think this is an absolutely amazing piece of plot development, if they didn't KEEP BASHING YOUR SKULL IN over it. Zelda, the princess who RARELY has any agency over her own story, who so often is just the princess with magical powers, sacrifices herself to ensure that Link can banish the evil once and for all. But it feels wrong. I know it feels wrong, because you remember how I mentioned that the game loves to spoil itself if you do the wrong thing at the wrong time?
I now know what happened to Princess Zelda. I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that these Bizzaro Zelda appearances aren't our Zelda, they're Ganondorf's puppet clones. And yet, the game still insists that I find out "what happened to Zelda". I know the truth, but rather than acknowledge that, it treats me as if I've learned nothing. My quest still says "Find out what happened to Zelda" even though I -know- what happened. Which makes me think... Well, maybe I spoiled myself with spoilers, because they're probably going to undo the grand sacrifice of Zelda's transformation at the end of the game, right? That's when that quest goes away, Zelda comes back after Rauru de-dragonifies her with his magical hand, and everyone lives happily ever after, or something. I can't be awestruck at the sacrifice, because I'm already numb to the idea that in another hour or two, I'll just be told to go investigate another false Zelda appearance from some random schmuck that doesn't have a damn clue who I am, even though he should.
Like I said at the beginning of this. I love the gameplay of TotK. It feels so freeing to make a gizmo to help me in battle, or to remember that I can just attach a rocket to my shield if I need to get somewhere fast. I love playing around with weapon fusions, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the Depths, crawling through the darkness while throwing lightseeds every few feet like I'm 5, and scared to go in the basement.
But the gameplay is where it stops being good, for me. Nintendo has access to amazing story writers, and plot threads from previous Zelda games have been amazing, even though they don't break the mold. Why does Tears of the Kingdom feel like it's so... Hollow? The voice acting is rarely amazing, the direction is questionable... And the worst part is, none of this is even the fault of the people who made the game world, itself.
Hyrule still looks amazing. The way fusions work is astonishingly good, everything is crafted with such love, and detail, and care. They really did put in their best work. But atmosphere, and visual design, only carry me so far in games like this. Zelda didn't NEED some grand, epic story, but they felt like they had to give it one, anyway. And they failed, in my opinion. Massively. I don't want to do the Gerudo or Goron temples because I know I'm going to get the same drivel I've had shoveled in my face for hours and hours of gameplay, there's nothing *new* there except a new ability to use in the open world. I don't even really feel like hunting down shrines, because it's more of the same from the last game.
TotK had the potential to be amazing. It really could have been everything Breath of the Wild wasn't, but at the end of the day, I'm left wanting to put the game down and pick up its predecessor more and more. And the worst part? I wouldn't have had a problem paying $70 for this game, if they had just stayed in their lane, and not somehow managed to tarnish something that should have been stainless.
I don't regret buying the game. But I can't believe no one else has talked about its flaws, the muddled and confused story, or how terrible the new dungeons are. Tears of the Kingdom is the game I'll boot up when I feel like soaring through the sky to try and land on new islands, or delving through the gloomy depths searching for lost souls...
But Breath of the Wild will always be the game I go back to when I want to save the princess from evil.

The only people beating all 10 floors right now are whales who play smart. With that said, I'm pretty damn sure none of these guys have their characters fully maxed out on traces and have mid to high tier gold relics on each of their characters. They are being hard carried by Eideons and 5 star light cones.
MoC is a matter of time, not a matter of if you spent enough money. Enjoy that time.

and I was wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience or could tell me more about him.
I’ve never heard of him before today when I looked it up and it creeps me out that it seems like a common motif
Have you ever had sleep paralysis or met shadow people while half asleep?
I had an eerie dream last night where I was visited by 3 shadow people and I always had nightmares and so I can usually wake myself up but I had a hard time waking myself but I did manage to but when I did, they were in my room standing against my wall watching me. One was distinctly wearing a brimmed hat and a cloak. I googled hat man and shadow people and the hat man Is talked about as a common phenomenon.
They disappeared after like 10 seconds. And I said hey to them but it really creeped me out and I’ll be keeping my lights on at night now.
I haven’t had to do that since a long time.
I’m not psychotic. Just sleep paralysis I think but they felt like they were distinctive people. That they weren’t me or my mind.
And the hat man is just like as described on the internet but I’ve never heard of him before. Ofc vaguely heard of shadow people but he was a distinct profile that other people matched with their experiences.
Specifically a well defined round brim hat, a long cloak and what looked like shaggy and unkempt medium long hair.
Being religious i ofc believe in the existence of things unseen but this was really unsettling.
Have you ever experienced anything like this? Any advice? I don’t know when I’m gunna see the psych again and I don’t want him to think I’m actively psychotic.
I’m sorry I know this is weird.
I briefly spoke to them and said it’s cool if they wanted to hang out in my dreams as long as they were friendly but that the setting really freaked me out cuz I don’t usually talk to non humans and asked them to be more chill and not scare me .
They didn’t seem malicious but it was scary and unsettling.
Specifically the hatman stuck out to me. It all felt so real.
I suffer from mental health but psychosis isn’t part of my profile.
Was it just because of sleep paralysis and being half awake or is he real? It felt very real even after I woke up like I could clearly see the 3 shadows on my wall and the hat man stuck out from the others like a sore thumb. It was a very defined shape.
Is this an omen like thing or sleep paralysis or what? I’ll be sleeping with the lights on for probably the next year.