Zero: Number Eleven

 Black ink scours the lands

In this technological wasteland

I've built for myself thus far,

And although I'm young

I have years of power, of growth

And I wonder how long it will take

My brother, the sworn hero

To take me out himself,

Once and for all?

I don't mind these dark powers

I seem to have been born with,

Nor the knowledge I can contain

But he swears that it is wrong

And I am wrong

And everything of wrong is me.

If I've ever felt emotion

It was taken from me

Shortly after birth.

And now, I am void,

My powers are chaos itself,

And everything is black.

The void calls to me as a familiar,

Asking me to help it spread

It's voluminous, blank wings

And I concur that it is

Tragic to be so useful

Yet so frowned upon.

I am cold.

I am efficient.

I am Zero.

Llandros/Landrose: Number Eight

My lips are sealed

As the portal I stand before

And I have all the time in the world

To think, to wonder.

The silence keeps me

Company in these dark times,

As I was so old before but now

Everyone I know has come and gone.

No one can pass my gaze unharmed,

And now one can pierce my armor

As it was woven with golden

Threads and destinies lost.

The more death,

The more my armor grows

Though this curse is very recent.

To guard, to fight:

Those are my drives,

As the whistle of my blade

Keeps me sane in this

Rebirth, this newest life

I never asked for.

I was once at peace,

But now I can not be again

For an eternity more.

And I wonder why the Lifebringer accepted me?

Gorgea: Number Five

A towering build of mud and stone

So still, so strong

Yet so stoically peaceful

Mountains and valleys he has born

Into the earth, its mantle

Wide open for the reaping

And the swamps, the grass

That cover the many lands 

Are his kin anew,

The rebirth coming soon

And him the first to call

The one they know as Life-Bringer.

The earth will quake under his

Titan-like weight

As the storms and the war help him

Sculpt the dirt into a new land,

On this earth that humans

Love to believe is our own.

Number Four: Celestia

Blinded by the darkness
How could I ever see the light again
In any of your faces,
Your bright smiles now erased

And the flowers, the trees
That once bound me are fled
From my crooked, petrifying,
Horrific gaze

My fangs dig deep into the souls
Of the damned and the forgotten
The wretched, the wicked
As I am become now

The pull of the darkness
Tendrils tying me down
Until I give in to this
Madness, this spiral of anger

It pulls me deeper and deeper
Into this black abyss and whispers
Into me, the future, past, and present
Until my sanity drips from my veins

Cut me open, and let it bleed
More and more until there's
Not enough evil to fill my body;
My heart, my soul -

Or perhaps the worst punishment
Is the mercy of it all;
To let me live with this insanity
Every. Single. Full moon.

The Door House Employee Rules and Directions

Greetings employee #87, the Management would like to welcome you to the Door House, home to many peculiarities safely entrenched behind, yes, doors. This letter is a formal introduction along with the rules and guidelines you need to follow. No matter how strange or absurd these rules may seem to you they are there for a reason, and your continued employment depends on following these rules to the letter.

It is advised you keep hold of this letter and the guidelines written, and take 20 minutes a day before your shift to read it over, make a checklist if needed, and remember to take a map of the house with out, and remember were each red marked safe room is.

The Rules:

1. Take the key ring hanging on the wall.
2. Take the map of the house along with the supply pack.
3. Turn on the required body cam and make sure it is running.
4. Follow the designated route, as minimal interaction is asked between employees.
5. Check each door, turn the knob BUT DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR.
6. If the knob moves, slowly rotate the doorknob back and find the numbered key matching the door and lock it.
7. Repeat step five and six until the door is properly locked.
8. Make a note of which doors are unlocked.
9. Pick up any trash in the hall with the gloves and evidence bags within your supply bag.
10. Inspect any structural damage and mark the location, severity, and door number.
11. If the damage looked highly severe please call an administrator and continue your route.
12. Any small Living Being you find should not be interacted with and reported to the administrator as soon as the way is clear.
13. Any large Living Being should be cautiously stared at before slowly backing away until you can sprint to the nearest safe room and Security can be called in.
14. Any books you find along your route can be read during or after break, be sure to file the appropriate form before taking them.
15. Unless this book has a clasp, bound in strange feeling leather or whispers to you. Those must be handed in and examined before you can file the appropriate form.
16. If you hear someone behind a door, perform rules 5-7 and make a note of the door number.
17. If a door has a peep hole, mail slot, or slide take the electrical tape out of your bag and seal these over without looking or touching them. Mark the door.
18. If your route seems to split, check your map to find the correct route and continue.
19. If your map is missing, rendered useless, or changing before your eyes, find the nearest safe room and call an administrator.
20. Do not take drinks from the tables near the doors.
21. Do not take food from the tables near the doors.
22. Ignore any board game tokens, playing cards, or gold near the doors.
23. Do take the iron, silver, and copper masks. They will help you.
24. Do not take the gold, porcelain, or gem masks, They will show you things you do not want to see.
25. Leave a coin from within your supply bag should you come across a tollbooth.
26. If you see any security camera, be sure it is running correctly.
27. If the wires are not connected to the wall, you are free to break it. Its not ours.
28. Laughter far too real and far too fantastical should be avoided. If it follows head to the nearest safe room.
29. If you find another you do not know is human, follow rules 21 and 22. Mark which door they were near, they will not follow.
30. Do not agree to any games, from anything or one.
31. If a door is open, check the immediate surroundings for abnormal or aberrant marks on the floor, ceiling, or walls. Mark the direction, damage and door number and proceed to the nearest safe room to contact an administrator
32. Safe room doors are always the color red with white Times New Roman font marking them as such. If it is not mark the door with an X and continue seeking a real safe room.
33. If a safe room is locked, knock three times and ask “Why is a Raven like a Writing desk?” The correct answer is marked in the employee entrance room and if the answer is not this, mark the door with an X and continue.
34. If the safe room door opens by itself at any point, its not the safe room and you must run in the opposite direction.
35. Run to the nearest safe room and be sure to contact the administrator about any problems.
36. Safe rooms are equipped with an automatic lock, but always be sure that it has locked behind you.
37. If there is another employee in the safe room, check that they have their ID badge before comparing notes and warnings.
38. If they do not have their ID badge, ask for their copy of the rules.
39. If their copy of the rules isn’t printed on eggshell white, it is an out of date list. Remain pleasant as you contact the administrator, and leave as soon as possible.
40. If a door along your route is marked for Exploration, be sure to mark it down and leave a copy of your notes by the door.
41. Remove and attach your harness from your supply bag, ensure everything is properly locked into place.
42. Loop your rope though the metal ring by the right side of the door, then your harness.
43. Once properly secured you may unlock the door.
44. If the door is already unlocked, do not enter, take off your gear, and head to the nearest safe room to contact an administrator and security.
45. If the door is locked, unlock it and enter.
46. Observe the room for the designated time period, mark your findings.
47. If it is an object, do not touch it unless specified in the exploration form.
48. If it is a creature, ensure you are as far from it as the exploration form designates. It does not matter if they are in a cage or behind glass.
49. If these objects are closer then specified, back away to the appropriate distance
50. If it follows, slowly exit the room and lock the door behind you.
51. If the door opens even if you locked and double checked, run.
52. Run faster.
53. Run fast and far and hope you can enter a safe room to contact security.
54. Room 777 is allowed to be unlocked, and employees are welcome to visit its occupant.
55. Room 666 should always be locked, if this room is along your route, check each of its 7 locks are locked and secured.
56. Unnumbered rooms are vacant and to be left alone.
57. Except for Room 0, which only looks vacant, be sure the lock is working.
58. Do not eat from the feast within Room 420, it is not for you.
59. Breaks are to be taken in Safe rooms at 12am or 12pm till 12:45am or 12:44pm
60. Any door with a green tag has a temporary resident.
61. If a temporary resident opens the door, greet them with respect and inquire about what they need.
62. Report any requests, suggestions, and demands to an administrator and continue along your route.
63. If invited into a temporary residence room, do not balk or stare.
64. Stay only for a period between 15- 30 minutes, no longer.
65. Any food or drink offered is to be politely but firmly declined.
66. Answer any question asked to the best of your ability.
67. Do not answer any question vaguely regarding or broaching the subject of wishes, desires, or wants.
68. Exchanges of knowledge is permitted, but you must make a report afterward.
69. Sex of any kind or form is not allowed and termination of employment will follow after.
70. Administrators are only to be contacted for the above stated rules, employment questions can be answered by the HR department after your shift.
71. Security has authority to shoot on sight, so always wear your ID badge to avoid serious injury if found by a patrol.
72. Security without ID badges should be avoided and an administrator contacted.
73. No matter what they say, Security does not have the authority to take your keys and gear away.
74. Found firearms can be carried till the end of your shift.
75. Return or file the appropriate forms at the Security office.
76. Ammunition requests can be made, and be taken from your paycheck.
77. Grenades, incendiaries, or other explosives MUST be turned in or face employment termination.
78. Any use of firearms must be marked along with the location of where.
79. If you hear the sound of gunfire, it is your option to move toward or away to a safe room to contact Security (if its not them already)
80. Stick to the walls if there are any burn marks running the center of the hallway and ceiling.
81. Mark the location of any cat along your route.
82. Do not follow them, you’ll only get lost
83. You are allowed to pet them, treats can also be found in your supply pack.
84. If you lose this list, it is suggested you head to the nearest safe room and contact an administrator for another copy.
85. Should you find yourself suddenly outside the Door house, this rule allows this list to act as a temporary pass port and plane ticket.
86. Rule 87 is a lie and should not be heeded.
87. This rule shall remain blank until the employee baring the same number is terminated during employment.

So you Wanna Leave a Cult?

    Well hello there! If you have picked up this pamphlet, opened the cover and started reading this then you are in fact, in a cult! It's alright though, these things happen to people with little self esteem and who are incredibly gullible to people who speak with a degree more authority than they are used to. If you feeling offended, then congratulations! You are on your way from leaving the happy little group of suckers that surround the ego maniacal criminal you call a cult leader!
    Follow along these 7 simple steps and you just might make it out into normal society!
    Step 1: Just.Leave.
    Now  I know what your thinking- "If I could just fucking leave, then I would!" and if that is your case, this is not the step for you. For those who just got their feet wet in strange rituals and sabbaths in a spooky warehouse, you can leave! Most cults starting out will always have one or two who drop the cause and return to normal life. They may attempt to reach out to you, so if you find them getting too frequent, best skip town for a while.
    Step 2: Remember that skipping town bit?
    If just now 'a cult' seems like a bad idea after the sacrificial bloodletting binding you all together, then its time to close your accounts, stuff all your clothes and money in a bag and drive. There are two optional places you can hide if your former cult buddies decide "one of the Chosen Children of Chargathum'dall" is too important for the Grand Plan: A massive city, or a small town. Both have their pros and cons of course. a city will offer the anonymity of millions of other people, though so do they if they come for you. In a small town, you are the newbie in a town where everyone knows everyone, and there is a high chance your new friendly (and nosy) neighbors will happily greet you, while simultaneously trying to pry everything about yourself out of you. The trick is to act the right amount of normal to keep the community placated, while being interesting enough to keep them from just dismissing you as "just another townie."
    The con of a small town is that everyone is just too damn friendly. Once your cult finds you via some dark magical means or the paper trail your incompetent ass left, being friendly to the locals will make it easier for them to spill your location to them. But, I hear small town cops are really bored and with something like this, you'll have their full attention.
    However, if you are too deeply entrenched in the eldritch rituals and ceremonies to actually just up and vanish, proceed to Step 3!
    Step 3: Fake your Death!
    Well this escalated quickly didn't it? Sadly, your inability to "just say no" when you performed that rite naked and skin-soaked in a mixture of goat and pigs blood, and your witness of something inhuman peering between the shadowy gaps of the trees scribbling furiously, means it's time to take hold of your gender specific genitalia and start being drastic! This step might be a tad hard to do as they watch over each other like a bunch of paranoid hawks but it is worth trying out at the very least! Due to some legal reasons this pamphlet cannot spell out how to do that, so if you're rather unimaginative and have no skills in grave robbing, proceed to the next step!
Step 4: Time to be a Mole!
    Like any decent cult, yours is bound to be doing something so shady even shadow things raise their shadowy eyebrows. It's time to put your natural ability of ass kissing to good use! Build up evidence against your Leader and the various members of your Cult, maybe set up a camera during the Ritual of Borsha'gthha so you have that rampant animal abuse on tape (best keep yourself out of the footage though). Collecting evidence might be hard if you have to live in a room with four other dudes while your Great Leader has a girl-filled mansion to himself. But hey, if you all have an hour of "private time" then be sure to stash them where no one would look. Finally, once you have enough footage, be sure your one of the few who go into the neighboring town to get supplies, ditch your fellow cult members and sing like a canary hopped up on crack.
    With any luck, your testimony and the various evidence will be enough to have police and SWAT kicking in plywood doors and dragging cultists out. Unless of course, the police are under the Cult's control... Which leads us to:
    Step 5: Time to Hire Investigators!
    Aaah, the bane of any cult: nosy people! Yes while it seems a little terrible dragging other people into your mess, remind yourself you saw your leader summon a black glowing ooze from a ritual circle and it turned Bob into a horrible bloated monstrosity that shambles around the estate, so you're really running out of options! A normal party of investigators come in groupings of 3 to 8, and have a wide variety of skills and knowledges that could be helpful in ending your cult...Or getting them brutally killed, at the least. Fret not, for there always seems to be a unlimited number of people willing to fill in the sudden vacancies!
    As for actually hiring them, its best to hire by proxy! Find a good friend, trusted loved one, or someone the cult has alienated, and promptly beg them for help. 9/10 Times they will happily shell out money or favors in order to bring the investigators into town. If your Cult leader starts to get antsy and look suspiciously at his herd then you know they are here!
    Step 6: Lay Low!
    Again, this may seem rather hard as the gaggle of semi-competent "heroes" you managed to hire happily plow though all the carefully laid plans your leader had laid in place with a frightening mix of pure luck and incredible bouts of violence toward the heart of the eldritch and sordid affairs you and your buddies have been up to. It is here you may start to notice bouts of madness begin overtaking various cult members, including your leader as the amount of black rituals with each gleeful ruination of one of those dastardly webs that were woven.
    Human sacrifice in order to summon up a big nasty thing from the realm of H. R. Giger's nightmares and spell slinging mad men are not far behind you and your choice of wearing your "brand me with dark maddening runes" robe today. Its best for you to stay as far under the radar as possible, and weave the illusion of actually participating. Make the movements but not say those hard to sound words, stay hunched in the back as your leader asks for "volunteers", and above all else- STAY. AWAY. FROM.THE. INVESTIGATORS.
    They are more likely to get you killed than any abomination of nature your Grand Leader pulls from parts unknown. You're still a "cultist" and in 99% of the time you run into them, you will get shot, stabbed, beaten, or hit with a spell. Find yourself in that happy medium and wait for:
    Step 7: Wait Until Everyone's Dead!
    Yup! The final step is to be the biggest coward in the bunch. For you see, in the end once you introduce investigators into the mix the  "Final Plan" will be pushed months or even years ahead of schedule as time becomes a precious commodity. As the party to end all parties gets started, the investigators come storming in, guns blazing and sealing spells at the ready.
    Before that, be sure to have an exit strategy, know the entrance which they will most likely enter, hope you aren't doing this ritual inside a room with only one door, and make your move when everyone is distracted! That's right! Run like your life depended on it (because it does!) Always be sure to be wearing normal clothes and good running shoes under your robe because you best ditch that place the minute you can.
    Its best to find a place to hide and wait it out if you can, as who knows what nasty buggers are lurking around the perimeter? Just don't stay in the main building as investigators have a habit of setting fire or blowing up buildings with cult related activity in them.
    If you can't do this, I suggest stealing some car keys before hand, or learning how to hot wire for a quick and safe getaway. Just be sure to ditch the car after the sun rises! With any luck all evidence of you being in the cult would be burned up along with the corpses of monsters and your former colleagues, leaving you free as a bird (except for those nightmares and therapy!)
    And there you have it! You managed to survive the worst decision in your life, and once again are free to hopefully not join another cult! For additional aid please grab "So, an Investigator is Trying to Kill You?" Who knows, you might need it!

Shapeshifter -Part II-

Marching over to my night table in my mundane bedroom, I slid the mahogany drawer open with a cold, calculated plan where my soul should be and a string of laser-focused thoughts in my head. The overwhelming urge to collapse almost overcame my stiff, cold body but I only barely gave a damn. I shuffled through the drawer in a panic, until I saw the black, velvet box that held my affection for the woman within its pillowed insides. I dared not open it, for if anything happened to this item, this ring... I sweated even more at the thought.

I held the box to my face, breathing in its scent as if it were a fresh bed of flowers. The warm drops flowing down my forehead onto the floor narrowly missed its edges. It didn't smell like much of anything, but I felt myself absorbing a piece of her into my lungs, my veins; Filling up the emptiness that everything else in life brought to me. After a few minutes I placed it carefully back behind the mess of miscellaneous clutter that filled the hardly-used table, and placed my face in my hands, the rest of me slowly sliding down the side of the bed. Before reaching the floor I tried to organize my thoughts but it was no use - focus was nowhere to be found within the reaches of such insanity as this. Her voice, her smile, her theories, her passions echoed through my head. I felt my chilled, soaked face and knew that I was past the point of no return. I gently landed on the ground, knowing that I only had a few more chances with her, meaning maybe two or three. I can not explain how I knew that day, but in my heart of hearts, I was certain.

My phone buzzed in my pocket and I nearly threw it across the room in terror, as I forgot it even existed. It was a call from Catherine. Catherine to me, was a wonderful woman to play with, but never anything more. Last time I saw her was 6 months prior, about a week before I tried once more with the love of my life.

I rejected the call so I could think, and possibly die, in peace and alone: the only way I'd like things to go without being in her warming embrace.

'Like, you have no ambitions out of life except to be with me', echoed through my head hundreds of times in a second. 'I'm more into people who are, you know... Passionate about things. This isn't normal. I think you need help.' her voice scraped a new headache through my already pained skull, and kept repeating until another sound made me jump out of my skin.

The phone chirped loudly and my heart stalled. It was a text from Angela.

"Hey handsome, u free? I saw that u guys broke up online. So much for love huh? Hmu if u wanna start having fun again ;)"

Crushing the plastic and glass with my hand, I sent the pieces of pointless booty call all over the plush carpet. I forced myself to stand, legs still wobbling under my slight figure, and forced myself back to the kitchen with the conviction of a saint to drink some more water. Munching on crackers also helped to calm the physical distress of heart break, but only because I hadn't eaten in what felt like years and drank an ocean's amount of rum.

It was quiet. Too quiet. My thoughts wouldn't let this night be a peaceful one. Doing magic was the only way out for me to make it through this, or else I was ready to die trying. The thought of doing the spell again made my stomach twist, but hell, I already had my will written up, so why not? Lumbering over to the clean full length mirror of my bedroom, legs still wobbly, I took more deep breaths and downed one more glass of water. I squeezed with my hand and embraced the pain that shot up my arm from the splintered glass. The crackling and high-pitched shatter was somehow comforting ; The caress of the blood warmed my clammy flesh. It was just another sign that I was alive, and that this was the prime reality realm.

I smeared my palm across the drivers' license photo, leaving a streak of crimson plasma over the unsuspecting woman's face. The searing pain from the cuts made it all the more easy to focus on the ritual. I blindfolded myself with a plain black cloth and grinned wide. The cuts burned with an energy that fed me past the point of being satiated. I stopped feeling the wobble in my legs, proudly standing tall with inhuman power. I only said what came to mind as I wiped my screaming palm along the mirror, drawing unknown symbols to myself.

"This body is mine. You are mine. Annabelle Chevalier, you shall be mine forever forward. I take all of you inside me and absorb you fully. Your face and body belong to me. Your mask, bound of human flesh and spirit shall be imprisoned within my very souls. Come to me now, as you lack the freedom of choice forever more."

I repeated "This body is mine now, Annabelle Chevalier." over and over until the agonizing burning of my veins and body stopped. I nearly blacked out until I hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. It was sooner than it was the other times at least... Perhaps I was growing in power?

I heavily forced my breath to settle while I felt my back sink into the carpet a little deeper. It probably hurt, but I could barely feel a thing past the throbbing pains of muscles all over my body. My lungs and heart finally began to slow and the next thing I remembered was waking up in my hardly used, king-sized bed.

The vigor was almost overwhelming - clearly this woman had a penchant for physical activity and healthy eating. I woke up not only energized for the day, but even the unfamiliar emotion of joy overcame me as I hopped out of my bed refreshed and ready for the day ahead. The craving for kale was a strong side effect, but one that was well worth its cost for this fabulous machine.

I felt my soft curvy hips and up my hourglass waist, then braced myself for the mirror. The sight could have been shocking, and severely disorientating whenever I went through with a change like this. I winced a bit but then jumped in front of the mirror, only glancing and then looking head-on at this puppet that would hopefully be my newest tool of seduction.

My clothes from yesterday were a little tight, as I realized looking in the mirror. My new flawless, olive flesh was a bit squished in my tank top, but at least my polka dotted pajama pants were still too big. My hips, waist, arms,  pretty much everything were a bit bigger than I was used to, but they were fabulous, and I knew I'd draw the attention I so desperately needed. My raven black hair truly caught my eye, even as it lay in disarray, partially covering bright green eyes.

"Time to go shopping." I smiled. The awe from seeing myself this curvy made me almost giddy. For once, I truly felt like I couldn't accidentally hurt my body pushing a grocery cart or picking up too many boxes; Not that my supernatural strength wasn't enough, but that bodies which lack a lot of muscle always felt like they'd snap if I even stood up the wrong way.

I made sure to change into well-fitting clothes before heading off to find the perfect wardrobe, my platinum credit card in purse and my sunglasses shielding my eyes from the burning hell that was daytime. It would have been only a day before the next part of the plan would commence - attempting first contact. The anticipation would have killed me, if it not for the distractions of normal human activities, including moving addresses, donating and then buying furniture and clothes, and transferring bank funds. It's easy to forge your signature when you are the person you say you are, or were.

N'yarlathotep (God Slave)

Power dripping from your
Cosmic, hypnotic eyes
Smells of rotting chaos,
Entropy, fear, passion...

Desire is a siren
Eating away my fears
Waving away all those
Reasonable concerns

Versus my own instincts
Seduced by the nightmares
Desire chews, gnaws, swallows
Awful sights beholden

Pharoah King awaits me
Draws the rope, I comply
Aeons of spirit gape
Witnessing the contracts

Most left unmet by ink
Papers speaking untold
Unable to sign myself
Away completely still

Hills speak, deserts cry here
Exploring gathers doubt
Sights beyond the real, though
Familiar somehow

Blinking, crowned jewels appear
Upon your lying head
Sandstone and marble, quartz
Smoothly line your castle walls

Sentences flood my brain
Thoughts chained to words, to mind
Sirens blaring, in-conceived
Half of what they used to be

Tongue more elegant, sharp
Stabs the flesh that rebels.
Rewards the brain that speaks
For the strange being now

Intellect decreasing.
In-comprehended voice,
Vocals to your music,
Nightmares and the screaming

Untold horrors hidden
Incomprehensible
Voice escapes my quick mouth
Not understanding the words

Shutting down now, help me?
Can not make a small sound
Space and time abandoned
Me and all of my soul

To this dream I now live
Trapped, caged, in this body
Always yearning, can't leave
But can not stay much more

Kill me, for I'm enslaved
If you can hear me, please
Losing all of myself
Into the black abyss

Its black nothing staring
Into me as I once did
Into its inky depths
Eyes rolling back in time