The Town That Stayed Silent Part 1

Chapter One: Silence

I woke up with a sudden jolt. The clock on my phone read '7:30 am'. It took me a moment to wake up then I realized, the sky was black. This sort of threw me back for a moment considering it was summer and the sky would normally be a bright morning blue by this point. Was I still dreaming? Had I read the time on my phone correctly? I look at my phone again only to see that that I had not read the time wrong... '7:32 am' It read. Making my way downstairs, I head for my parents room to wake them up and ask if they would be able to see this too. Mom and Dad never did care if I woke them up early, so long as the reason was important.

I quietly creek open my parents bedroom door, not to startle them. But something was wrong, I had not heard the usual snoring of my father (who snored so loud I could always at least faintly hear it). Glancing over at their bed it looked as if no one was there to begin with. I was right. They weren't home.  

"They probably left for work", I said to myself out loud. It wasn't unusual for both my parents to leave for work early. After all they both worked as well respected insurance agents who were always known for their hard work. They must be seeing the sky right now right? They would normally text me about this type of stuff, asking me if I was okay, or if i had eaten yet, etc. I tried calling my mom's phone but, no signal or internet connection for that matter. I was starting to wonder if I really was still dreaming. I pinched myself and sure enough i felt the pain. Trying to keep myself calm and keep a level head in this odd situation, i turned on the T.V. in hopes that maybe the news would have some sort of explanation for this.

'No signal', the television read. I stood still for a moment, wondering what the actual hell was going on. Then I realized how quiet it was. Not the usual quiet you would have in your house from being home alone, but... too quiet. Almost as if there was no ambient sound at all. I heard my own voice a moment ago and whenever i walked around or did anything there was sound so I know i hadn't gone deaf. Then I heard a faint but audible scream come from outside. I jumped and then stood silent for a moment, waiting to hear the scream once again. Sure enough I did, this time it was longer and drawn out. It sounded as if someone was being gutted alive or being torn apart. It was a scream of pure agony, one only a lunatic could produce. There was no one i could call or ask for help from. I decided I would Check it out for myself. Grabbing the largest kitchen knife I could find, I made my way outside. Again, it seemed too quiet like there was no still air or ringing in my ear from the silence.

All I could hear was the door shut behind me, and the distant screaming of what sounded like a man. I started to walk down my street in the direction of the screaming. The sidewalk seemed darker than usual. The street itself was lit up by street lamps, but it just seemed darker in the distance. Like walking down a dark hallway only... outside. As I kept walking forward, the screaming got louder and closer. The stress within me grew, my body started to tense up as I walked slowly around a corner. Nothing to be seen yet, but the screaming is very close. I turn another corner and find myself at an empty intersection and as I did, the screaming abruptly stopped. I don't mean it slowly died down, I mean it stopped... in mid scream. That's when I noticed him, sitting in the middle of the intersection on his knee's facing away from me. His head was down looking at the ground, almost like he was trying to seclude himself from whatever was behind him and I noticed he was silently sobbing to himself.

"What should I do", I thought to myself. Then another though crossed my mind, maybe he needed help. I called out to him softly while slowly approaching him in an attempt not to startle him. He stopped crying and then it just went quiet once again. I felt fear like I never had before. I started to feel my heartbeat quicken as I watched him slowly stand up. Then I noticed something was off about the way he did it. He stood up so quickly, as if I had blinked I would've missed seeing him stand up. He stood up so quick and swiftly but his posture is what disturbed me the most. His legs looked broken in multiple places and his arms were at his sides but his forearms stuck out almost like a zombie. His head cocked back and looking at the sky just slightly while his back remained straight. It felt disturbing to look at. I called out to him again. He then leaned with only the top half of himself. Then he let out a loud shriek. Not like before. No this was... something of another world, it sounded as if he was exaggeratedly sucking in air through a tightened throat making a loud, ear piercing screeching sound. That's when He jerked his head in my direction. The hair on the back of my neck stood up, as I watched him spin around to face me. Then without warning he let out another scream while charging toward me.