Here's a creepy story of four kittens who went camping...
Darkness engulfed the dense woods, kindled only by the flicker of a bleary campfire. Around this unsteady light huddled three giggling kittens, while a fourth stood some ways away, gazing into murk.
“Come on, Shantel! Why don’t you join us and have a s’more?” bubbled a calico kitten, roasting a marshmallow on a twig.
“No thanks. I’d rather just watch the night.”
“I don’t know how she can do it,” whispered a cream kitten.
“Do what, Lyra?” the calico stuffed the marshmallow into her mouth.
“Refuse a s’more! Everycat likes s’mores!”
“What I’m wondering is how she can go so far from the campfire,” mewed Rei, a black kitten. “It’s freezing out here.” She got up and disappeared into their tent nearby.
“Hey! Where’re you goin’?” yowled the calico with her mouth full.
“I’m just getting a blanket and I’ll be back!”
“Well hurry up ‘cause I got a ghost story I wanna tell!”
“Stop yelling, Vivian!” hissed Lyra. “There’s a monster in this forest that can turn you into stone with a single glance!”
Rei returned wrapped in an orange blanket and sat next to Lyra. “Nice, but not very original. There are too many tales of creatures with stone stares. There’s the medusa, the cockatrice, and…there was another…”
“The basilisk!” Vivian declared, adding the finishing touches to a s’more.
“Well, these monsters are different,” meowed Lyra. “I’m going to tell you a true story that happened in this very forest. Once upon a –”
“Wait!” cried Vivian. “What about my ghost story? I said I –”
“Hush up, Viv! I mean it about that monster! It’s called the Rhykah. It’s invisible! Only shadows!”
Rei stared at her. “Wait…you don’t really think there are monsters here, do you?”
Lyra looked serious. “Just listen to this story. There once were two brothers: Lukas and Rhys. They lived with their parents in a cabin in this very wood. Every night, they’d say good bye to their parents and take a walk. They always returned at midnight. So, one night they left the cabin and wandered through the forest. Some moments after they stopped talking to each other though (which was some ways away from the cabin); they saw quick-moving shadows and heard a strange sound. It sounded like crying. They started to run, but then a shadow went over Lukas and he disappeared. Rhys turned around and ran toward the cabin, but when he got reached it, no cat was there. It looked as if no cat had lived in it for years. Rhys went back to the place where Lukas disappeared and found him there. He was made of stone. But very old stone. Ivy climbed up his legs and the rock was dirty and crackled. Lukas’ frozen expression was not that of terror of fear, but that of death. And although he didn’t move, Rhys could hear his breathing. His eyes stared straight ahead. But as soon as Rhys looked into those eyes, he too, turned to stone. Rhys remembered that he had forgotten to say good bye that night.”
Rei shivered. “Oooh…that’s spooky. But this can’t be a true story. Rhys didn’t live to tell it! Nobody did!”
“When did this happen?” Vivian inquired.
“It’s an old story.” Lyra said gravely.
Silence.
“Well, I’ve had enough ghost stories for tonight.” Rei stood up, ignoring Vivian’s disappointed mew. “How about we go on a hike and scare ourselves out of our fur?”
“More?” Vivian huddled in Rei’s blanket.
“Well then, who wants to go to bed?”
Silence.
“Fine.” Vivian stood up. “Hey, Shantel! Wanna go on a hike?”
Shantel’s silhouette sat unmoving. “No thanks. I’ll just watch the night.”
“She is so weird.” Vivian whispered. “C’mon, let’s go.”
The three kittens left the camp, heading deep into the caliginous woods. The fire still cackled to itself in its nest, and the Night Watcher would gaze into the shadows forever.
“Now can I tell my ghost story?” Vivian ran ahead of Lyra to Rei’s side.
“No thank you. I’ve had enough.”
“Pleeeeeeeeaaaaaaase? It’s called The Broken Tombstone!”
“I said NO!” Rei shoved Vivian aside and stomped ahead. Lyra followed silently. Nevertheless, they presently became aware of Vivian’s crying.
“Oh no,” Rei groaned. She spun around only to see Lyra standing alone, but she could still hear the crying. “Where’s Viv?”
Lyra shrugged.
Then a terrible realization came over Rei. At one her heartbeat quickened and she couldn’t breathe. “The Rhykah! Run, Lyra!”
The two kittens fled back through the forest toward the camp. Rei’s legs ached almost as soon as she began, but she didn’t stop. Instead, she went faster. She could hear Lyra’s pawsteps and hot breath on her tail, but there was no sign of Vivian. She was gone.
At last, they made it to the camp. The crying had stopped and everything was silent except for the sound of breathing. Rei crumpled on the ground. “We made it!” she rasped. “I feel like I’ve run a marathon! What about you, Lyra?”
Rei twisted around, but Lyra wasn’t there.
“Lyra?” fear once more gripped the kitten and her fur quivered. Lyra was gone.
She turned back to the camp. The fire was now nothing more than scattered ashes, the tent was broken and torn, and their food appeared as if wild animals had rooted through it – long, long ago….
Then she noticed the Night Watcher. She sat in the exact place as before, unmoving. Rei approached gingerly, “Shantel! What happened to the camp? Lyra and Viv are –”
Then Rei saw the cracked gray-brown stone and a deep dread fell over her. She gazed into the dead eyes, and saw no more.
Silence conquered all, and shadow returned to the mysterious woods.
Darkness engulfed the dense woods, kindled only by the flicker of a bleary campfire. Around this unsteady light huddled three giggling kittens, while a fourth stood some ways away, gazing into murk.
“Come on, Shantel! Why don’t you join us and have a s’more?” bubbled a calico kitten, roasting a marshmallow on a twig.
“No thanks. I’d rather just watch the night.”
“I don’t know how she can do it,” whispered a cream kitten.
“Do what, Lyra?” the calico stuffed the marshmallow into her mouth.
“Refuse a s’more! Everycat likes s’mores!”
“What I’m wondering is how she can go so far from the campfire,” mewed Rei, a black kitten. “It’s freezing out here.” She got up and disappeared into their tent nearby.
“Hey! Where’re you goin’?” yowled the calico with her mouth full.
“I’m just getting a blanket and I’ll be back!”
“Well hurry up ‘cause I got a ghost story I wanna tell!”
“Stop yelling, Vivian!” hissed Lyra. “There’s a monster in this forest that can turn you into stone with a single glance!”
Rei returned wrapped in an orange blanket and sat next to Lyra. “Nice, but not very original. There are too many tales of creatures with stone stares. There’s the medusa, the cockatrice, and…there was another…”
“The basilisk!” Vivian declared, adding the finishing touches to a s’more.
“Well, these monsters are different,” meowed Lyra. “I’m going to tell you a true story that happened in this very forest. Once upon a –”
“Wait!” cried Vivian. “What about my ghost story? I said I –”
“Hush up, Viv! I mean it about that monster! It’s called the Rhykah. It’s invisible! Only shadows!”
Rei stared at her. “Wait…you don’t really think there are monsters here, do you?”
Lyra looked serious. “Just listen to this story. There once were two brothers: Lukas and Rhys. They lived with their parents in a cabin in this very wood. Every night, they’d say good bye to their parents and take a walk. They always returned at midnight. So, one night they left the cabin and wandered through the forest. Some moments after they stopped talking to each other though (which was some ways away from the cabin); they saw quick-moving shadows and heard a strange sound. It sounded like crying. They started to run, but then a shadow went over Lukas and he disappeared. Rhys turned around and ran toward the cabin, but when he got reached it, no cat was there. It looked as if no cat had lived in it for years. Rhys went back to the place where Lukas disappeared and found him there. He was made of stone. But very old stone. Ivy climbed up his legs and the rock was dirty and crackled. Lukas’ frozen expression was not that of terror of fear, but that of death. And although he didn’t move, Rhys could hear his breathing. His eyes stared straight ahead. But as soon as Rhys looked into those eyes, he too, turned to stone. Rhys remembered that he had forgotten to say good bye that night.”
Rei shivered. “Oooh…that’s spooky. But this can’t be a true story. Rhys didn’t live to tell it! Nobody did!”
“When did this happen?” Vivian inquired.
“It’s an old story.” Lyra said gravely.
Silence.
“Well, I’ve had enough ghost stories for tonight.” Rei stood up, ignoring Vivian’s disappointed mew. “How about we go on a hike and scare ourselves out of our fur?”
“More?” Vivian huddled in Rei’s blanket.
“Well then, who wants to go to bed?”
Silence.
“Fine.” Vivian stood up. “Hey, Shantel! Wanna go on a hike?”
Shantel’s silhouette sat unmoving. “No thanks. I’ll just watch the night.”
“She is so weird.” Vivian whispered. “C’mon, let’s go.”
The three kittens left the camp, heading deep into the caliginous woods. The fire still cackled to itself in its nest, and the Night Watcher would gaze into the shadows forever.
“Now can I tell my ghost story?” Vivian ran ahead of Lyra to Rei’s side.
“No thank you. I’ve had enough.”
“Pleeeeeeeeaaaaaaase? It’s called The Broken Tombstone!”
“I said NO!” Rei shoved Vivian aside and stomped ahead. Lyra followed silently. Nevertheless, they presently became aware of Vivian’s crying.
“Oh no,” Rei groaned. She spun around only to see Lyra standing alone, but she could still hear the crying. “Where’s Viv?”
Lyra shrugged.
Then a terrible realization came over Rei. At one her heartbeat quickened and she couldn’t breathe. “The Rhykah! Run, Lyra!”
The two kittens fled back through the forest toward the camp. Rei’s legs ached almost as soon as she began, but she didn’t stop. Instead, she went faster. She could hear Lyra’s pawsteps and hot breath on her tail, but there was no sign of Vivian. She was gone.
At last, they made it to the camp. The crying had stopped and everything was silent except for the sound of breathing. Rei crumpled on the ground. “We made it!” she rasped. “I feel like I’ve run a marathon! What about you, Lyra?”
Rei twisted around, but Lyra wasn’t there.
“Lyra?” fear once more gripped the kitten and her fur quivered. Lyra was gone.
She turned back to the camp. The fire was now nothing more than scattered ashes, the tent was broken and torn, and their food appeared as if wild animals had rooted through it – long, long ago….
Then she noticed the Night Watcher. She sat in the exact place as before, unmoving. Rei approached gingerly, “Shantel! What happened to the camp? Lyra and Viv are –”
Then Rei saw the cracked gray-brown stone and a deep dread fell over her. She gazed into the dead eyes, and saw no more.
Silence conquered all, and shadow returned to the mysterious woods.
