Tell Me A Story

Chapter 1: The Old Cemetery

"Tell me a story," begged my 12 years old sister, Irene. I cursed myself. It was my idea to tell her a bedtime story since she was 7. But once it had been implemented, I'd been stuck with it. Despite her age, she never grew out of it. There was no way to escape without telling her a story. I'd told her so much stories that I was literally devoid of stories. Hence I started making my own stories and to be honest, some of them sounded trash, even to me.

My story tonight was that of an old couple who were in their 90's. But they were not the 'loving - caring' type that one would usually find - their main hobby was to kidnap children and consume them in the belief that it would make them young again.

After a while, she fell asleep and I glanced over to the digital clock on the bedside table. It gleamed 10:12 PM in bright red. I guess she fell asleep that quickly because she was scared, probably because the children in the story were her age. I got up from the bed and walked over to the window. The neighborhood was bathed in moonlight. It was a full moon night. My time for adventure hasn't come yet. Usually Irene would fall asleep around at 10:30 PM. And my adventures would begin only after 11:00.

Right now you might be wondering who I am and what my adventures are. I'm Chris and I'm 15. I'm not the typical teenage boy you see daily. I'm different, in fact very different, in many ways. I'll come to that later. Since I'd so much time to kill, I decided to sow the plot of another story in my head. I looked out and stared at the shadows that lied at the feet of all solid things. Somewhere distant, a dog growled. Some others joined afterwards. A nice background for a horror story. It was pretty difficult to come up with an original plot these days as stories about almost everything has been told.

I am so much into horror that every time I looked at something, regardless of the time and situation, I could give a horror touch to it. Shadows... What if shadows had a life of their own but they were trapped to be your followers? What if one day, they broke free and enslaved us? How would it be like, if we lived the life of a shadow? Sounds pretty good, right?

So the story for the next night is set. I was feeling thirsty and hence I walked to the kitchen for a glass of water. I grabbed my bottle along the way to fill it. As I was passing mom's room, I leaned in to ensure that she was asleep. You see, my sister and mom are heavy sleepers. Once they've fallen asleep, they wouldn't wake up until they've had their heart's fill.

But I was the exact opposite to that. In fact a 3-4 hours sleep every night was more than enough for me. And also, I was more active at night than day. After drinking and filling my bottle, I tended to my backpack.

I made sure everything I required was there, from flashlight to pocketknife. I wore my watch. It was 10:55. Time to leave. I walked to the living room, opened the door, closed and locked it behind me and stood out in the moonlight. Tonight's destination : The Old Cemetery.

Little Falls was the best place I've ever been in. It has got so much to offer you. And how I got here? That's another story. My mom is a divorcee and a doctor. She is also the member of 'Glory', a charitable organization. As part of their missions, mom got posted in various places every three years. You might think that it'd be a difficult business, moving from one place to another. It might be so for you but not for me. I loved it. It always gives me a new place to explore.

We've been here for about six months. I've heard tales about this place before arriving. There was already a number of places that could get your nerves working on. So far I'd checked out the not-so-important areas. I'd been saving the big sharks. And tonight I've started hunting them down. I crossed our yard and got to the road. It'd be a while before we reach our location.

Little Falls was a countryside. Agriculture was the prominent activity here. But it was also pretty developed for a countryside. But the real beauty was its village atmosphere... You know, it's got that 'Conjuring' feel about it. So I'd to make my way along many fields. It was pretty old too, there are buildings here that are more than a hundred years old.

The inhabitants here sleep early as they start work early in the morning. Once darkness falls, the roads will be deserted. It aided me, as I wouldn't have to pass someone along my way. The sound of crickets got more intense as I neared The Old Cemetery. Forgot to tell you about that one, The Old Cemetery. It was the very first cemetary of the place. Back when it was in use, the place was an empire. But now, it was an abandoned place. People say that the protection that lingered around the Cemetery that prevented ghosts from coming, has long been gone, ever since the church near to it was demolished. At night, they said that ghosts roamed the place. I hoped to meet one...

I was standing in front of the gates of the Cemetery.They were bound with a chain and a lock that looked as old as the Cemetery itself. I didn't want to break and enter as it might give me away. I climbed over the wall and jumped into the Cemetery. I pulled myself up, brushed the dust off my jacket and took a look.

Mist hovered around the place and it provided an eerie look. Here and there, graves that survived the test of time stood. In between, giant trees stood proudly.

Many of the tombs were ruined - only some were there, intact. I took out my flashlight and turned it on. I started walking around the place. Gravel crunched under my feet. I could see the remnants of the church in the distance. The Cemetery was pretty big. I paused here and there and thought of calling a spirit to come out. But none of the tombs had names on it. But then, I stopped at one, which looked brand new. Weird, it was. Every tomb here looked bad but this one! It looked like it was built the last day.

I flashed my light at the tombstone to see whose it was. And this is what I saw:

Abraham Coller

Just that and nothing else. Whoever this Abraham was, my mind told me, he must have been something when he was alive. I decided to call out his name. I knew it was stupid but I couldn't resist the urge. "Abraham Coller, whoever you are, come out here!"

And a hand pulled me from behind!