The Incubus

Chapter 3, Scene 2

The cool night breeze sent a shiver down Simon's spine. Something evil was brewing in Kelwick. He could sense it; feel it; smell it in the air. It wasn't something obvious. It was so subtle that people pre-occupied with the everyday running of their lives probably wouldn't notice any change at all. But it was there; and Simon sensed it.

There was the heat wave and the strange and violent behaviour in animals, especially dogs, but what bothered Simon the most were the bad dreams. He could handle normal nightmares; but there was something evil about these nightmares; almost as if influenced by an external force. It was something that he could sense, but not see; and that frustrated him.

'Why?' Simon whispered softly. He looked around him, but the streets were deserted at this hour of the morning. It would be three more hours before the sun would even begin to make a faint appearance on the horizon. 'Why am I so different, Lord?'

The soft rustling in the nearby trees was the only answer he received. Since he could remember he had been able to 'sense' certain things about people and situations with one hundred per cent accuracy. He also had a gift of healing people and animals, but restricted himself from using it for fear of becoming a lab rat or some sort of messiah figure. He hated the idea of using his gifts as cheap cocktail party thrills.

A dog howled nearby, and another joined in. Soon, a frantic barking and howling chain reaction echoed into the early morning skies. This had become a common occurrence since roughly two weeks earlier. Something agitated the animals. Simon could sense it. Something invisible and undeniably evil.