THE THING UNDER THE RUG

It was a cold windy night in the town of Lormor. The moon seemed to be taking

refuge behind the clouds from the booming thunder and fire like lightning. As a matter of

fact it was so dark outside, that it seemed like mother nature had draped her darkest

blanket across the land. Anyway dear farmer Joe had just finished his hard work outside,

and was settling down in his big armchair. He was all alone in the house that night. His dog

had dozed off long ago, and his wife had left him even longer ago. The fire snapped and

hissed in the hearth, it sent shadows dancing across the illy-illuminated room. Suddenly,

there was a huge CRACK, and then a BOOM, the house seemed to tremble in its wake. Joe on

the other hand, sat calm this whole time in his armchair, hands resting on the arms of his

chair. Dont worry Joe, he thought to himself, Its just a little thunder. but again the

monstrous noises came from outside. This sounds a little too frequent for thunder. Joe

said under his breath, a little more worried now. Suddenly, strange coloured lights flashed

upon the wall behind him! Joe nearly jumped out of his skin, and raced for the closet doors.

Nearly ripping the doors off the hinges, he took a glance around the room, and noticed the

noises were getting louder. He roughly pulled out his twelve gage, loaded the gun, and

bolted to the door. He peeked out his door window just in time to see a strange figure

emerge through the darkness, and walk onto his porch. GET OUT OF HERE! barked Joe.

There seemed to be no answer except a loud GURGLE. Joe dashed through his house diving

behind the entryway wall, and peeking around the corner. Suddenly there was a crash, and

as Joe peeked around the wall into the entryway, the door crashed down. A strange, tall,
slender figure appeared. It hissed at Joe, who cursed loudly, and as Joe tried to fight off this

massive being, he quickly remembered the trap door in the living room. He had one small

chance of getting the being in it, trapping it there, and going to get help. He quickly dodged

out of the monsters reach, lunged at the living room carpet and ripped it off the floor. Just as

he got it open, the thing hopped on Joes back and took one giant bite, and there was one

final shriek, the trap door shut and Joe was never to be heard from again. The cops pulled

up the next morning, to a neighbours file of what seemed to be a domestic disturbance. As

the cops filed their squad cars into the driveway, one of them (a young cop named billy in

his training year) took a glance around the farm, and noticed a strange light emerging from

behind the barn. Hey! Billy exclaimed, Whats that strange light coming from behind the

barn? The cops coolly drew their revolvers out of their holsters, and cautiously, one by one,

took a peek behind the barn. As each one of their eyes focused on the big thing, they took a

double take.

Sweet mother of jesus! one of the cops shrieked. There was a giant metal disc

sitting motionless, half dug into the dirt in the field. Just as one of the cops radioed in to his

dispatcher, the ship burst into a ball of flame, and promptly disintegrated.

Holy shit! another cop trembled. As their gaze was engulfed in watching the flame,

no one noticed Billy slowly pacing around the house. Guys! You better come and see this

Billys voice trailed off. The men hastily drew their weapons again, and jogged over to the

house. The door seemed to be ripped of the hinges, and torn to pieces. They quickly

stormed the house, finding nothing but ripped wallpaper, and a dog whimpering in the

corner. As the turned a corner, heading towards Joes closet, they noticed the doors were off
their hinges, and seemed to be hastily thrown oped. Some cops decided to take looks at this

strange sight, and report back to the sheriff, while the brave ones ventured on through the

main floor. As their eyes adjusted to the living room's darkness, they started to notice a

strange trail of blueish green blood. They followed the trail for a bit, which seemed to

abruptly end in the middle of the room, which was bathed in dark red blood. They heard a

hiss, and they all drew their guns and aimed at the around darkness.

WHOS THERE? screamed one cop. There was no response. They looked around

when Billy noticed the hot coals in the hearth.

It must've just been the last of the coals in the fire Billy exclaimed, shaken. All the

other cops, feeling reassured, put their guns back in their holsters, and went outside. After

all the other cops regrouped outside, they decided never to speak of this strange occurrence

again, burn the house and the evidence, and act like it was a fire. One cop struck a match,

threw it in Joes propane tank, and the house burst up in flames. As the cops pulled out of

the driveway, the house let out one loud groan, and fell over. What the cops didnt know is

that the boards fell in such a particular way, that it insulated the cold damp basement from

catching fire, which left the strange being trapped inside.

Fast forward a few years. It's now the 80s, the disco era now losing people's

interest, and the big rave becoming arcades and malls. Here the house that had been where

the mystery occurred so many years ago, was long ago burned down and forgot about. Now

just recently, the relatives of deceased old farmer Joe had put the property up for sale.

Everyone gathered round this property for days, hoping to have the first look at this fine
piece of land. Lots of big companies came over, hoping to buy this land and turn it into the

town's first shopping mall, but the thing was, no one dared buy it. The funny thing is

though, that it was a perfect place to build. The soil was fertile and sturdy, the land was

completely flat, and there was no buildings except for a small wood shed and old wooden

barn to take down, but still no one would pay for it. The one problem is, there had been

strange sounds and sightings coming from this property. At night, when people had been

out for walks along the dirt road, people had reported loud grunts and groans coming from

either the foundation of the house, or from the forest. People had also reported seeing

strange, tall, dark, slender figures prowling around the property. Anyway, when the real

estate agents figured no one would buy it, they lowered the prices hoping to grab some

attention, but still, nothing. Just as the salespeople were about to give up hope, a man,

shorter, almost bald, mid-40s came about, hoping to buy this house. His name was Jim, and

he had said that he was living in his apartment with his only daughter, but it was getting too

crowded in the town, and needed a break. And I guess thats that. The property was sold,

(very quickly, almost too quickly) and Jim and his daughter started to build a nice house.

The house was a modest size, but was built on the foundation of the old house. Now Jim had

received warnings about building on the old foundation. The construction workers all had

said Even after being restored, it still may not hold and Its not safe. but the one

comment that a lonely old construction worker made really caught Jims ear.

Theres a story about this place. claimed the old man with his raspy voice, as he

puffed his cigar, There seems to be, how do I explain this best, a thing. Yes, it seemes to live

in this very foundation and come out at night to hunt. People that have tried looking for this
being have either been so shaken, they never speak of it again, or they just dont come

back. Even after this whole dilemma, Jim took no heed to his warning and quickly the

house was built. The house, was a two story tall building, with a bathroom and a bedroom

upstairs, and a kitchen dining room, a bedroom and a living room downstairs. Now Jim did

get a little spooked by the old man's warning, and decided to block off the entry to the

downstairs. Now what Jim didnt know, is that he forgot to block off the old trap door in the

living room, where his kitchen now stands. And something else he didnt know, is the fact

that the hinges and locks on the trapdoor, had sprung loose from all the vibrations of the

construction. So now all that was separating Jim and the monster, was one thin piece of

plywood, and softwood flooring, but Jim had no idea of this. He thought his house was

sound as a bomb shelter, and was particularly proud of it. Well, its getting late! exclaimed

Jim to his daughter Kerry, We better be off to bed. I mean our new beds! Kerry didnt seem

to happy about this, considering it was only 10:30 but reluctantly agreed when her dad said

she could go to her friends house tomorrow night. As they both settled into their beds, Jim

on the main floor and Kerry on the top, Jim started to hear strange noises. First there was a

groan. Dont worry Jim cooley thought The house is new, its bound to have a few creaks

and groans. and thats what Jim got, but a little to frequent for his liking. Now he was quite

worried Jim you scaredy cat he hissed under his breath, What could it possibly be, an

alien? Anyway, Jim finally managed to fall asleep, just as the creaks and groans grew less

frequent, but he was still quite worried. The next morning, Jim woke up quite early, the

clock read 7:23. He was still half asleep when he shuffled into the kitchen, and fell flat on his

face. OW! he bellowed What did I trip over!? He looked over his shoulder, to notice an
unusually large bump under the rug. What the hell? screamed Jim, waking his daughter,

who was planning to sleep for another few hours.

Daddy! Kerry said croaked out, having just woke up she seemed to uncoordinated

and tripping down the stairs Its only 7:30! Why did you have to wake me up?

Jim replied calmly, as if to try and hide the obvious lump in their dining room rug,

Its nothing dear, just had a little fall. Jim struggled to his feet and put on his

nothing-is-wrong-here-fake-smile. Kerry saw right through this and decided to see what

her dad was standing in front of. As she approached the dining room table, and pushed past

her dad, she noticed there was a huge lump in the carpet.

DAD! she shrieked, THIS HOUSE WAS JUST BUILT! HOW IS THERE THIS LUMP

HERE, AND WHAT IS IT? Even Jim was stumped. He didnt have the faintest idea what it

could be!

I dont know what it is dear. Its probably an animal that made a nest in the floor.

Well, Kerry continued, a little more reassured by knowing what it was, Then get

someone out here and fix it! Im not having anyone over here until it is! Well, thats just

what happened, later that afternoon, while Kerry was shopping, he got a carpenter in who

replaces, and fixed the floor.

There! affirmed the carpenter struggling to get his big stomach off his knees, Good

as new. Now, for the matter of my payment His voice sorta trailed off into the distance.

Jim reluctantly pulled out his checkbook, hastily signed it, and the carpenter was off.

Lets hope nothing else happens to this house muttered Jim, Or else that

carpenters gonna be rich.

As the week past nothing seemed to happen, the groans, moans and bumps grew

less frequent every day, until eventually they left. The bump had surprisingly, not come

back, Jim was so proud of himself, but after two weeks, it appeared again. The bump was

back, the moans, groans and bumps grew so frequent, it sounded like the house was coming

down. Late one evening, Jim decided hed had enough. Kerry was out at a party, so he

figured hed get the town's best exterminators to come out and have a look, but just as Jim

sped out of the driveway in his toyota corolla, the bump under the rug let out a huge sigh,

and popped open. Out from under the rug, a long slender body emerged, with beady yellow

eyes. It seemed to be waiting for something, or should I say, someone, and ran off to the

closet and took refuge. Just as the closet doors latched shut, headlights flooded in the

driveway, the thing in the closet took a peek out to see what it was. It was Kerry, she was a

little bit tipsy from her party, and slowly stumbled into the entryway. It looked like it was

quite the party, considering her long dark straight hair was all frizzled and messed. Her

shirt seemed to have a couple alcohol stains on it, and she could barely walk in her heels.

There she tripped and stumbled into the kitchen, and poured herself a glass of water. I

guess she didnt hear the closet door creak open, while the water was running, but she did

hear a footstep. She wheeled around and hollered out into the dark house, Hello, is anyone

there. There was no response. She screamed again but this time, something caught her eye.

Standing in the middle of the entryway, was a tall, dark slender figure with beady yellow

eyes. It lunged at her, and she let out an ear piercing screech, but the house went silent after.
 The neighbours across the road, who were there when his first incident happened

24 years ago. They quickly contacted the police who were over in two minutes flat. A few

minutes after, Jim ripped onto the scene, jumped out of his car, and ran up to the chief of

police. What is going on here? Inquired Jim.

Its a bit of a situation replied he chief, his voice trembling.

Well, continued Jim What is it?

Its about your daughter.

What about her?

Well she seems to be, well I dont really know how to say this, but she is deceased.

Jim was stunned. To stunned to speak. Well. continued the police chief, We havent quite

figured out the cause of death yet, but I guess we havent found the body either

Finally, Jim found the voice to speak, or should I say the courage to shout.

LET ME IN, I WANT TO SEE MY DAUGHTER! Jim screamed. He barged through the police

barrier, and threw open the door. Jim took a glance around the room, there seemed to be

nothing wrong. His daughter's body nowhere to be found, just a pool of blood. But wait,

there seemed to be footprints on the blood. He could barely recognize the shape through

the darkness of the house, but it was pretty obvious it wasnt human. Oh my god! Jim

muttered under his breath. As his eyes adjusted, he noticed the footprint had long claws,

and it was way too thin to be any human's foot. A shadow darted across the dining room.

WHOS THERE? shouted Jim, but no response, but he swore he heard a grunt just like he

hears every night. It happened again! As Jim approached the centre of the dark room,

cautiously stepping over the pool of blood, he noticed the trap door open. Oh no. Jim
moaned. His stomach started doing somersaults, his mind quickly gave him the most logical

solution, and here it was; that thing, most likely something not from this world, had been

trapped in the foundation after itd been sealed. It mustve barged through, and then the

thing mustve eaten his daughter. And all those many years ago that person who lived here

before, also mustve befallen the same fate! Just as his mind was coming up with the

solution a shadow darted across the room to the corner nearest Jim, this time he was sure

he heard a gurgle noise. Jim, abruptly finished his thought and cooley reached over to the

counter, his fingers grasped his big cooking knife, as he shouted once more WHOS

THERE?! This time, it attracted the attention of the police, who all gathered around the

dining room window to see what was going on. Suddenly the shadow doubled back behind

Jim, and reached a long slimy, claw like hand with a big bulbous head came down on Jim's

neck and bit down, hard. There was a shriek, the cops stood watching through the big bay

window, scared stiff. As the monsters big razor like teeth sunk in deeper and deeper into

Jims neck, a veteran cop named Billy pulled out his pistol, and fired a round at the things

head. There was a loud shriek of pain, as one of the bullets barely missed JIms neck and hit

the thing right in the eye! Blue and red blood pooled on the floor, and formed a big purple

puddle. Both the thing and Jim fell loud to the floor with a defying THUMP! Jim, who had to

avenge his daughter, slowly rose up and screamed, YOU KILLED MY DAUGHTER! grabbing

the knife he had dropped and slicing through the alien's arm, like a hot knife through butter.

There was a shriek, as the arm fell limp to the floor and the thing squirmed on the floor in

pain, blue blood spewing from its shoulder like body part. The thing quickly picked itself

off the floor, and crashed out the window. The police, stunned, whipped out their pistols, all
taking rounds at the beast. Few bullets actually managed to hit the thing, but when they did,

they had little effect. The thing kept running, but eventually slowed down, it mustve been

from the blood loss, but still disappeared into the woods. The police decided not to chase,

considering it was the middle of the night. There we have it. the police chief marvelled, I

guess we have our main suspect for the murder of farmer Joe 10 years ago, and the murder

of Kerry Johnson. The other police, still stunned by the incident didnt comment on the

Chief's remarks. Billy the veteran, broke the silence. We should probably conducted a

search for this thing. I most likely believe that this thing is some sort of extraterrestrial

being. he got quite a few heads nodding his way, as he continued, The thing is though,

thats its too late to hunt down this thing, and we should search in the morning,

considering that nights this aliens prime time to hunt for beings to eat. Now, lets get

everyone off to safety of town, and discuss this with the local scientists. Bring all the

evidence you can find men! hollered Billy, his deep voice booming.

As the last of the evidence was put in the police van, everyone clambered in, and

drove off to town, the wheels kicking up dust and gravel behind them. As they pulled into

the driveway of the local laboratory, they noticed the lights were still on. Good thing the

lights are on! remarked Billy, his broad shoulders just fitting through the squad car door,

Those techies must still be up! and sure enough they were! They told the scientists the

whole story, starting from farmer Joe and ending now, while the scientists ran tests on the

alien's arm, blood, and pieces of what seemed like an alien spacecraft left to rust. The tests

just confirmed Billys theory. It seems that we have an alien living in our local forest.

bluntly stated one of the scientists, pushing his glasses up, You had better get on that to
make sure it doesnt claim any more lives. You see, this alien thrives on feeding off of human

flesh. and that was all the cops needed to hear. By the time everyone made it outside, it was

early dawn. I guess me and the boys will take it from here! remarked the police chief. Jim

didnt even have time to react, because by the time he had thought of something to say, the

police were already up the road and out of sight. The whole town quickly caught word of

this alien business, they rejoiced to know that a lonely old man named Jim had brought

peace to their town. The police came back late in the afternoon, unfortunately empty

handed. Their search proved uneventful and didnt even catch a glimpse at the alien. The

whole town was warned to stay away from the woods at all times, and the town would also

be in high alert for any irregular activity.

The next day there was a funeral for Kerry Johnson, everyone of her friends and

family showed up, and mourned her death. For they would never hear her sweet, soft words

again, or see her flick her dark brown hair across her flawless face. Her stunning slim figure

would be missed forever. The police search went on for a few more days, with little to no

success. They had one sighting of the alien, but they never got a shot at it. To this day, its

still on the move, claiming more and more unsuspecting lives of innocent people, just taking

a walk in the forest. Now if you ever end up in a town called loomer, never go in the forest

and always watch out for the lurking one-armed alien!

THE END