The weary wizard stood in the observatory of the tower, staring out at the hills. He hadn’t shaved his beard in a month, he was looking like the elder wizards on the council, aged with their wisdom and stressed out of his mind. He sipped a coffee, trying to keep himself awake, balanced with enough whisky that really ought to knock him out. The sun was just dropping below the hills revealing in the darkness, twinkling eyes staring back at him. They came a month prior, the knocking on the door. He still was unsure why he opened it that night, the fear he was feeling after that dream about being drowned should have stopped him. Part of him felt compelled with some external force, another part thought he was still dreaming, and in one final stand against the fear he bravely did something stupid. Standing there was a creature, four glowing red eyes staring at him, large spiral horns, bat-like wings and a pointed tail. A grin with fanged teeth.

“You gonna let us in?” the creature asked. 

“I rather think not.” Moggy retorted before slamming the door in its face. 

It was a demonic creature from the Darkened Realms, the very sort the tower was designed to work against. It was the first time actually meeting one in person for Moggy. He learnt about them in the academy. Compared to the fearsome beast as the elders described, it was sort of… cute. Though Moggy knew better than to trust them, their tricks were well known among the wizards. It continued to bang on the door and ask to be let in, right up until the sun was about to rise, then it vanished into the shadows.

Every night since, the eyes would stare from the hills. It started with just one set of four, then two, then twenty-five sets. The daytime was fine, no trouble, but at night they’d come. Just staring. It was deeply unsettling and Moggy hadn’t been sure what to do. He tried keeping awake at night and sleep during the day, but this didn’t last long, the farming suffered too much. Now he’d stay up until about 5am, then sleep until 9am, with an attempted nap in the afternoon. It wasn’t great, but it was the best he could do on his own.

He grabbed the telescope and looked closer at the creatures. Twenty-five of them stood around on the hills, silently looking right at him. They couldn’t get inside the tower, it wasn’t possible. The powerful magic stopped them from crossing the threshold. Moggy knew this, but it didn’t help. He knew they were tempting him out, playing the waiting game. But what was their plan, he thought. If he went outside and they hurt him, killed him even, what difference would that make? They’d still be unable to get into the tower and the elders would have sent the next guy down within the hour to keep on guarding it. Maybe that was it he thought “slowly drive each one of us insane and pick us off one by one? No, that’s daft.”

He recognised the one he saw that night at the door, two of his eyes winked at Moggy, before biting his lip in what appeared to be a flirting way. Moggy blinked then sipped his coffee. It was sort of nice having the company he thought after being alone all this time. Even if they were unsettling, in an incorporeal sort of way, like they weren’t really there, Moggy swore he’d see them shifting in and out of existence. Still, he wasn’t sure if he was just sleep deprived. It was getting close to 5am, almost time for sleep. The eyes would slowly dissipate, one after another like counting down sheep. Which he found himself doing this night, one hundred, ninety-nine, ninety-eight… he yawned. Five minutes to five, he fell asleep, just for a moment whilst standing. He found himself running through a labyrinth made of flesh, soft yet firm, with the squelch of blood coming from each step. From behind, a howl like it was coming from three different mouths at once, from the bottom of the ocean, with static and the hiss of electricity, he was being chased by an inconceivable horror. He did not want to see it, no matter what, something told him to not look back, just keep running. The piercing gargle, anger and pain coming from the entity shattered Moggy’s ears, it sounded like a million feet were scurrying towards him mixed with bug wings and the screeching of car tires on the asphalt. The smell all around was like that of death, he could taste it at the back of his throat causing him to gag with every breath, tears streaming down his face. The walls began to contract slowly, he could hear the being behind him screeching as it was crushed, making even more horrific noise than before, this time with added fear. Soon there was silence from the beast, but the walls continued closing in. Moggy was restricted, the fleshy walls were soft around him, it felt warm and gentle, an embrace before it crushed him entirely. Suddenly there was a bright white light, blinding him temporarily. Confusing voices boomed all around, he had no idea what they were saying. He was grabbed by a being much bigger than him, wrapped up in a bundle then shoved into the arms of another. He looked up to see his mother, who smiled warmly at him. All fear eased, he felt safe for the first time in months.

“Come home Moggy, pet. It’s been too long. Come home to see your mammy. I miss you” She trailed off, her sweet voice breaking into a gurgle. With an unnatural twitch her eyes became black empty holes, blood pouring from them, covering Moggy and the white bed sheets.

He woke up, one minute to five. Heart pumping, he grabbed the telescope and looked out, one last set of four eyes stared back, with that fanged grin. He moved back in shock and disgust, but in an instant, it was there, right at the end of the telescope, just at the other side of the window. Wings flapping. It laughed at him before melting into the shadows just as the clock struck five.

Moggy was shaking, he didn’t know where to put himself. He mumbled a few times, disoriented. He eventually managed to shift himself to bed, he didn’t want to sleep again, but his exhaustion gave him no choice, he fell to sleep the moment he touched the sheets. But for the first time in ages, there were no dreams. He’d had enough for one night. He slept through to 2pm, awaking well rested for the first time in ages. Yet he was still feeling hollow over his experience.

Originally released in issue 4 of my webzine