Plague

Written for #DiabolicalDeeds

Leave a comment between now and the end of the #CoffinHop and 3 will be chosen at random to win a free Smashwords copy of Monsters!

Plague

By Lisa McCourt Hollar

 

Zagan stood over the putrid worm that had dared challenge his right to rule. The fetid minion looked up at his master, fear in his eyes, as it should be.

“Please forgive me,” he whimpered, his pathetic whine irritating Zagan. The faintest of an idea whispered in his head.

“What is it?” Chrone asked, his voice fearful of the zoic blob his master handed him.

“Her name is Zymosis, a gift from Pestilence.”

The creature shifted in Chrone’s hand, exploring his palm. The demon giggled. “It tickles…” he began, but then his laughter turned to screams as his hand dissolved.

Word Count: 100

Trapped

Day 5 of The Coffin Hop.

Trapped

By Lisa McCourt Hollar

Tina blinked back the tears. She knew Tommy hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings. He was scared. Her mommy had told her once that people hurt other people when they were scared. It didn’t make sense to her. When she was scared she wanted someone to hold her. She was scared now. These scary fake people made her want her mommy to pick her up and hold her. Only that wasn’t going to happen, because her mommy was one of the scary fake people now.

She could hear her mommy though, except inside of her head. That scared her a little. You weren’t supposed to hear voices in your head, just your own, when you were thinking or pretending something. And if she could hear her mommy, but not see her, did that mean her mommy was a ghost? That scared her more than anything, but still, she listened when she heard her voice. Mommy had told her to run from the scary fake mommy and she had. Now she was with Tommy and his sister, Melinda. Melinda was almost growed up. She would figure out what to do.

Tina’s mommy was telling her something now. She told her Tommy was in trouble.

“Stop him.”

Tina turned around and screamed. The black stuff that was making all the fake people was moving across the floor and Tommy was walking straight towards it.

“TOMMY, NO!”

Melinda nearly fell off the stool she was perched on. That little girl had a scream on her that could wake the dead. When she turned and saw what Tina was pointing at, she did fall off the stool. Picking herself up off the ground, she sprinted full speed across the floor and wrapped her arms around Tommy, lifting him into the air.

“What do you think you were doing?” She hugged her brother to her, tears falling as she backed away from the strange liquid.

“I want to be with mommy.”

“That thing isn’t going to take you to mommy. She’s gone. I don’t want to lose you to.”

The goo had stopped moving across the floor and started to bubble, rising up off the floor. Reaching for Tina’s hand, she jerked her head towards the front door and said to Wayne, “Let’s go. Now.”

“Please don’t.”

Mr. Sullivan stood there now, where a moment ago the ooze had been.

“Stay away.” Melinda pulled Tommy tighter to her, holding onto him despite his struggling to be put down.

“We don’t want to hurt you.”

“You hurt my mommy!” Tina glared angrily at Mr. Sullivan, or what appeared to be Mr. Sullivan.

“Please, just come with me.” Mr. Sullivan held his hand out, black liquid oozing from the fingertips. “It won’t hurt.”

Melinda backed away from the doppelganger, moving towards the front door. Then a jingle at the door told her someone else had entered. Turning, she saw her mother and Owen.

“Mommy!” Tommy reached his arms out to the woman, increasing his effort to escape his sister’s grasp.

“Come home,” Owen said, the words sounding a bit distorted, as they came from the mouth of a baby only two months in age.

“Stay away from us,” Melinda said, backing away. She looked around. With Mr. Sullivan on one side and her mother on the other side, they were trapped.

“Is there a back door,” Tina whispered.

“Through the break room,” Wayne answered, thinking to himself that this girl was smart. If this was the zombie apocalypse, he was glad to have her with them.

Mr. Sullivan moved to intercept them. Thinking quickly, Melinda kicked over the bucket of mop water. She didn’t think it would stop him, but she hoped it would slow him down so they could get away. When the man/thing began screaming, Melinda was surprised to see him on the ground, the black ooze pouring out of him.

It reminded her of a The Exorcist. Mr. Sullivan’s mouth was open and he was vomiting black gore. It was also coming out of his ears and nose. Even his pores were excreting the foul smelling liquid. Across the room, her mother and brother were backing up, their eyes terrified.

“What’s going on,” Tina asked. Her voice was shaking and Melinda was afraid she would lose it at any moment.

“The mop water,” Wayne said, “it must hurt whatever that stuff is.”

“Water? All we need is water?” Melinda sounded doubtful.

“Not water,” Mr. Sullivan said, standing up. The black stuff was on the ground and moving away from them as fast as it could. “Bleach. That was what was in the water.”

“Mr. Sullivan,” Wayne asked, “is that you.”

“Of course it’s me, boy. And next time you leave Frank in charge of the place so you can go screw your girlfriend, you’re fired.”

“How did you know.”

“I had an alien inside of me. I know everything it knows, including why it is here and how to get rid of it.”

A screech at the door caught their attention. Looking outside they saw the parking lot filled with friends and neighbors they recognized. The black ooze dripping from their fingers indicated they were not the same as they remembered them.

“So what do we do,” Melinda asked.

Before Mr. Sullivan answered, Tommy kicked Melinda. Surprised, she loosened her grip and he wriggled out of her arms. Before she could grab him, Tommy was out the door and running towards their mother. The woman greeted him, wrapping him in her arms and allowing the substance that had taken over her body to flow out of her and over Tommy.

Comment on the post and get entered to win a copy of Halloween Frights. Also, make sure you visit the other blogs in the Coffin Hop for a chance to win more free stuff.

Copyright© 2011 Lisa McCourt Hollar. All rights reserved.

Flight

This is day 2 of the Coffin Hop Web Tour and my story continues.

Flight

by Lisa McCourt Hollar

Tina could hear the fake mommy calling to her as she ran, telling her to come back. Terrified, she kept moving, her own mother's voice that she could only hear in her head urging her to keep going and to ignore the scary fake mommy that wanted her to come back.

Tina dodged around a car that stopped in the middle of the road. Mrs. McGraw, her neighbor was trying to get out of the car door, but her feet didn't seem to be working right. Tina knew she was supposed to help people, especially old people and Mrs. McGraw was old, but she smelled like garbage. Also, the reason she was having trouble is because her leg was on backwards. Tina was pretty sure that meant this Mrs. McGraw was a fake, just like the two fake mommies at her house. So Tina ran around the car and kept going.

"Tina, come back here. You are being a naughty girl!" Mrs. McGraw sounded cross. She never sounded cross, even when Diego dug up her garden. Mrs. McGraw was always nice. Now she knew she was a fake and didn't feel bad about not stopping to help.

She did feel bad though. She had left Diego behind with the fake mommies. He was ripping open the first mommy's neck and making all the black stuff come out. The second mommy had come out of the black, tarry blood and tried to grab Tina when she ran past.

Tears spilled out of the little girl's eyes. She hoped Diego would be okay. Maybe if she got help, she could go back and rescue Diego. But who could she get to help her? If her mommy was fake and Mrs. McGraw was fake, then maybe everyone was fake too.

Tina could see Tommy Jones' house up ahead. Maybe his mommy was okay and would know what to do. Then she saw Tommy's front door open and Tommy's sister, Melinda came running out, carrying Tommy.

***

Melinda opened the car door. Looking behind her, she pushed Tommy in the back seat.

"I don't want to leave!" Tommy was trying to push his way past his sister, but Melinda shoved him in and slammed the door shut, thankful for the childproof door. Tommy slammed his body against it though, trying to force it open.

"Tommy please stop! We don't have time." Jumping in the front seat, Melinda put the key in the ignition and turned it. The car started and she laughed. Deep inside, she had been worried it wouldn't. If this had been a horror movie, that is what would have happened.

Putting the car in reverse, she looked towards the open front door of the house. Did she see movement in there? Backing the car out of the driveway, she looked behind her and slammed on the breaks, narrowly avoiding hitting Tommy's friend.

"Tina!" Tommy pounded on the window, yelling at the girl. Melinda stared at her too, trying to decide what to do. Was she who she looked like or was she one of those others? Tina looked frightened.

Melinda looked back at her front door. Her mother...or what appeared to be her mother, was just stepping through, followed by their brother, Owen. The fact that Owen was only 2 months old and shouldn't be walking didn't stop the baby. He still waddled out the door as though walking were the most natural thing for him to do.

Melinda looked back at Tina. The poor child looked positively terrified. Making her decision, Melinda leaned over and opened the passenger door. "Get in!"

***

Tina didn't hesitate. When she had first seen Tommy struggling to get away from his sister, she had been worried Melinda was whatever the mommies and Mrs. McGraw were. But then she had seen Tommy's mommy and little Owen. Owen was always so cute, but he didn't look cute now. His face wasn't smiling and he was walking. Owen wasn't old enough to walk. Sometimes Tommy took Owen's hands and held him so he was standing, but usually Owen's legs would buckle after a few minutes and Tommy would set him back down again.

Tina couldn't smell Owen, but she was sure if she got closer, he would smell really bad. And not just because he needed a diaper change. That smell was bad, but not as bad as the fake mommy and Mrs. McGraw.

She couldn't smell anything bad on Melinda though. So Tina jumped in the car and Melinda started the car again, backing the rest of the way into the street. She didn't even wait for Tina to shut the door.

"I want my mommy!" Tommy slammed his fist against the back of the window.

Tina turned around and stared at Tommy. His eyes were red and he looked like he was going to cry. "That's not your mommy," Tina said. "She's a fake mommy. I think all the mommies are fake now."

"Hold on!" Melinda put out her hand, stopping Tina from falling forward when she slammed on the breaks. Tina's heart was pounding. She had forgotten to put on her seatbelt. Her mommy had told her to always wear her seatbelt. Then her eyes widened and her heart beat even faster. Standing in front of the car was Mrs. McGraw and one of the fake mommies.

"Buckle up," Melinda said, shifting the car into reverse. Tina quickly fastened her belt. Melinda backed the car up and then stopped. Behind them were the second fake mommy and Diego. He didn't act like Diego though. He had his lips curled back. Looking at Tina, he growled. Tina wondered if he was mad because she left him.

"Hold on," Melinda said, shifting back to drive. There were more others coming towards them from the side.

"Hurry," Tina whispered, afraid.

Melinda pushed her foot to the floor, sending the car shooting forward. Mrs. McGraw's head hit the window, splattering black gore all over the glass. Melinda screamed. Mrs. McGraw rolled off the car and into the road. Then Melinda drove the care over Mrs. McGraw.

Tina and Tommy looked behind them as they drove off. The old woman was nothing but a pile of black ichor now. Then, before they were out of sight, they saw a hand begin to form from the remains.

Check back tomorrow for more of the story. Comment on this post and be entered to win a copy of Flashes From The Grave. Also comment on yesterdays story, The Fake Mommy and be entered to win a copy of Halloween Frights. Be sure to check out the other blogs in the Coffin Hop for frees stuff and cool contests!

The Fake Mommy

The Fake Mommy

by Lisa McCourt Hollar

"Who are you?"

"I'm your mommy, silly."

Tina looked at the woman through the side of her eyes. She looked like her mommy. Her hair was red, like her mommy's. Her eyes were green, like her mommy's. But she didn't smell like her mommy. Her mommy smelled like flowers. This mommy smelled like the rotten meat Diego pulled out of the trash last week.

"You're not my mommy." Tina looked behind the fake mommy, searching for her daddy. She knew he had to be here somewhere, his car was in the driveway.

"Come on Tina, I have a surprise for you." The fake mommy was holding her hand out, waiting for Tina to take it. There was dirt under the nails. Her mommy...her real mommy, never had dirt under her nails. Her mommy's nails were clean and painted pretty colors. This paint on this mommy's nails were peeling and one of the nails was broken. The finger looked funny too. It was purple and swollen and bent in the wrong direction.

Tina put her arms behind her back. She didn't want to touch the fake mommy's hands. "What happened to your finger?"

The fake mommy looked at her hand. She seemed surprised to see her finger pointing up. "I suppose I had an accident." Then she did something Tina knew her real mommy would never have done. She took her other hand and wrapped her fingers around the appendage. Then she pulled on it. Tina heard a loud cracking sound come from the finger. She had never heard a sound like that before, but it made her stomach hurt and her teeth feel funny, the way it did when Tommy Jones ran his fingernails across the chalk board at school.

"There, all better." The fake mommy smiled at Tina, flashing her teeth behind a perfectly lipsticked mouth. It was the same color of red her mommy always wore. There was red on the fake mommy's teeth too. Only this red was different than the lipstick. it looked like blood.

"Come on Tina." The fake mommy was holding her hand out again.

Tina took a step backwards. "I don't want to go with you." Her heart was pounding inside her chest. It was beating harder than it ever had before, harder even than the time she ran all the way to Tommy Jones' house. That was three blocks away.

Her legs felt like running now, but the door was behind the scary, fake mommy. Tina would have to run past her and she was sure if she did, fake mommy's hands would grab her. She knew if fake mommy's hands touched her, something bad would happen.

"Tina, you are making me angry! Now come with me and get your surprise."

Tina started crying and she took another step back. Something told her to run. She knew this was her real mommy, even though she only heard her inside her head. She also knew she was right because fake mommy didn't look like real mommy anymore.

Her eyes were no longer green, they were black. When Tina looked into them she saw something move.

Her hair was gone now. Not just the red color, but all of the hair. Where there used to be long tresses, there were now black veins that bubbled and looked like they were going to burst open.

The skin on her face rippled and it looked like there were worms moving beneath the surface. The skin cracked and something black oozed out.

"I said, come get your surprise!" The monster mommy lunged, reaching for Tina. Tina screamed and jumped backwards.

"RUN!" Her mommy's voice screamed at her inside her head. Outside, the monster mommy's fingers brushed against Tina's arm as she leaped out of the way. They grazed her skin for just a moment, sending a burning sensation through the girl's arm.

Tina looked at her arm. There were 3 black marks where the creature's fingers had touched. Screaming, Tina looked up at the monster. Her lips were pulled back in a snarl, her sharp teeth reminding her of Diego, when he had growled at the neighbor across the street. She heard Diego growl now, from behind the monster mommy.

"Run!" Tina dodged to the side, obeying her mommy's voice, even though she wanted to ask her mommy where she was. The creature tried to grab at Tina again, missing her as she leaped to the side. Then Tina heard Diego growl again and saw him leaping through the air. The small dog landed on the monster mommy, sinking his teeth into her neck.

Blood, black as oil, spurted from the creatures neck. The mommy thing swatted at Diego, trying to knock him to the floor, but the little dog held on.

Tina ran around the creature, taking care to avoid the black gore on the ground. The liquid bubbled up and a tentacle rose out of the mess, stretching towards the girl.

Tina screamed again, dodging the appendage and slamming into the door. She looked back one last time, before swinging the door open and running outside.

Behind her, rising out of the black, tar like blood, was another fake mommy. This one, perfectly formed, held her arms out towards Tina.

"Come back Tina," she called. "There is no place to run."

Comment on this post and be entered to win a copy of my e-book, Halloween Frights.

 Be sure to visit the other blogs that are participating in the Coffin Hop for more chances to win free stuff.