So Scary 8- Unholy Night
A famous journalist named Lisa Carter have ventured out into the open, looking for answers to the mysteries of a famous preacher known as Elijah Cromwell. Elijah was rumored to be a good man of hard work and dedication to the entire community of Providence. But he had recently died due to a mysterious illness, and the doctors have confirmed it. Even his wife, Ellie Cromwell had said so.
But there were certain things that couldn't be explained due to the fact that Elijah was used to be some kind of prophet, who had predicted the Ancient Ones were coming into our world, and that the people would have to obey these beings of cosmic nature. Elijah had made some of the citizens very uncomfortable. They argued about it, but certain rumors have pointed out that there was murder afoot. For that reason, Lisa had been told by her editor (and boss) to search for the answers as soon as possible.
It was Christmas Day, December 25, 1995. Lisa stopped her car in front of Elijah's house where Ellie had been staying alone for the night. The reporter even noticed that she hadn't put on the Christmas lights, ever since Elijah died. She figured that Ellie had a very good reason not to celebrate the holiday, especially at a time like this.
Lisa knocked on the door, twice. There was a sound of creaking footsteps, and then stopped. The door opened.
"Hi, Mrs. Cromwell. My name is Lisa Carter. I'm from the Daily News."
"I know who you are."
"Um... okay."
"Come in." The old woman who had just turned 55, allowed Lisa to enter her house. At first, Lisa thought the house hadn't changed much, since the last time she was here, interviewing Elijah Cromwell.
"Do you want anything to drink?" Ellie offered her.
"Yes, please. A black coffee would be nice."
The old lady said, "Have a seat. I'll be right back."
Lisa nodded and sat on the couch of the living room. At the wall, there were family photos and strange souvenirs that Elijah had brought back from the Western Seas. She couldn't describe them in perfect detail, but she was willing to take notes. After all, she hadn't noticed them when Elijah was alive.
Ellie brought the coffee and placed it on the table. Then she sat on a chair, facing towards the reporter.
"So... You came to know more about my dead husband."
"Yes."
"Please, go on. It's your job anyways."
"Um... Don't mind me asking you, Mrs. Cromwell. But... why aren't there any lights in your house?" Lisa also noticed that there wasn't a Christmas tree on the corner of the living room.
"I don't celebrate Christmas anymore. And I'll tell you why."
"Okay..." Lisa picked up the coffee and sipped.
"I found out what my husband was doing. Now I understand why some people of Providence have stopped coming to his church. I was really disappointed in him."
"I see..."
"Yes. Very disappointed."
"How did you come to know?"
"His private journal."
"He had a journal?"
"Yes. Apparently, he had written words of blasphemy. Things of this world that goes beyond his preaching. I often asked myself, Whom did I marry to?"
Lisa wanted to laugh at that, but it didn't sound like a joke. Most likely, Ellie was only trying to say that her husband was the wrong man to marry in her life.
"Mrs. Cromwell. What do you mean by that?"
Ellie sighed. "I will show you his journal." She got up from the chair and left.
Lisa thought about Elijah when she had to interview him. It happened several months ago, when she noticed that Elijah was preaching to the entire town of Providence. But there were some people who had rejected his preaching. They said it was bizarre and strange, even for a preacher like Elijah Cromwell.
When Ellie returned, she handed the book to the journalist. "This is the book that I've found in his office. I had to clear things up."
Lisa looked at it, and then turned the pages.
"My God... What is this?"
"That's what I would like to know. But I'm thinking it's something to do with satanism."
Lisa looked at her, surprisingly, "Are... Are you saying that he's a satanist?"
"Most likely he was, but it doesn't look that way. See that drawing over there?"
"Yes, I see it."
"That's no Satan. And the pentagram is quite different from the satanists'. I'm thinking this is something else, but it doesn't matter. It's still blasphemous."
"Hmm..." Lisa continued flipping the pages, and then stopped.
"What's the matter?"
"What's this? Some kind of language?"
"It could be a code or something. But how should I know? Can you imagine if people find about this? I will be put to shame."
"I'm sorry to hear that, but..." Lisa paused and then looked outside. "At least, you could have put the lights in front of your house, so..."
"What good will that do? I'm the wife of a so-called satanist. I have no right to celebrate, nor I wished to do so. But I think people would understand why. Since my husband's death, I had no Christmas spirit. That's all the reason they need to confirm my grief."
Lisa looked back at her. "I understand."
"If you want, you can take his journal with you. I'm done with him."
"Mrs. Cromwell... Is there any chance that I could ask the locals to find out anything else about Elijah?"
"I don't think they would be able to answer anything at this point, but you could try. After all, you are the reporter."
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Lisa went to ask several locals of the town. Unfortunately, they couldn't tell anything about the dead preacher. In fact, they never cared about him after what they have learned the truth. One local who went by the name of James had mentioned about Elijah's bizarre preaching. It was that moment, he decided not to come to his church anymore. Now that Elijah was gone, a new preacher named Anton Sandreas had taken over the church services. Lisa have asked him about Elijah and his preaching.
"The man had gone off the rails, I suppose. Yes, I would hate to say it. But it was true."
"What really happened?"
"Don't know. I've asked him why he was saying those things. He mentioned some higher being greater than God himself, could do miraculous things in our life. I didn't believe him."
"I guess that goes for everyone else."
"Not exactly. You see, Miss Carter..."
"Just call me, Lisa."
"Okay, Lisa. You see... The thing is that most people in this town have actually believed him. I was afraid that they would not come to church. I was right."
"But they still live here, right?"
"Yes, they do. I suppose you're going to ask them questions?"
"I did ask some of them. But I'm not sure if they were Elijah's followers."
"Yes, that couldn't be indicated of course. You're new in town?"
"No, I've been here before."
"Oh yes, I'm sorry. I'm new as well. If you want, you can come to my place and I could tell you everything there is to know about Elijah Cromwell. Besides, he was my best friend and tutor."
"Oh... I see."
"Yes, it's sad to see him act so strangely that I couldn't even describe it. But he was a good man. He taught me well."
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After the interview was over, Lisa stopped at the motel, and stayed there, typing the story into her laptop. A phone rang while the lightning struck outside. She winced at the flashing light.
"Hello?"
"Lisa?" It was her editor from the Daily News.
"Hi Carl. I got something."
"What do you have?"
"For one thing, I have Elijah's secret journal."
"Hmm... That's interesting."
"Yes, but you wouldn't believe it."
"Yeah, tell me about it. The last story you've told me is that he preached something bizarre like it wasn't mentioned in the Bible."
"Yes, but I've found that he used to be some kind of devil worshiper."
"Some kind?" The boss was confused. "What do you mean?"
"I don't know, but I have to work on it."
"You do that. Because you have a deadline coming up. I have other stories to send out in the newspapers."
"Don't worry, sir. I'll be on it."
"Okay. Keep me posted." The call ended, and Lisa kept typing the story. There was a knock on the door. She stopped typing.
"Who is it?" No one answered. She asked again. She sighed and got up from the bed. She looked through the hole, but couldn't see clearly. since the rain began to pour heavily outside.
Great! Lisa thought. She opened the door slowly when a dark, hooded figure covered in rags, pushed her over. She fell down on the floor. The figure closed the door behind him.
"What the hell?" Lisa said angrily. "Who the **** are you?!"
"That's not your concern. Where's the journal?"
Lisa began to wonder about his voice. It sounded strange like someone was speaking through underwater.
"What are you talking about?"
"You know what I'm talking about. You're Lisa Carter, right?"
"Yes."
"Give me the journal, Lisa. I know you have it."
"N-No!"
"We'll see about that." The figure whacked her. Whatever it was, she attempted to escape from him. But he stopped her by pulling her blonde hair, and then hit her back against the wall.
"Don't resist me, Lisa." He stopped when he noticed the book, lying on the bed.
"You sure know how to snoop around with someone's business." He whacked her again and went to pick up the book. But Lisa bit his leg.
"AH! You b****!" He kicked her head. She was still resisting.
"You're a fool." He pulled out a twisted dagger and then stabbed her hand.
Lisa felt the intense pain and cried out. And the figure grabbed the journal immediately and escaped. Lisa looked at her hand. It was bleeding. She thought, That b@$t@rd... She began to faint and then found herself in darkness.
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She woke up after being treated by none other than Ellie Cromwell herself. Lisa said, "Huh? Where am I?"
"Don't worry, dear. You're in my house."
"Oh... Ellie. I... What happened?"
"You have been attacked for a good reason. I was notified when the owner of the motel found you."
"Yeah... I think I know that answer."
"Unfortunately, you have caused big trouble in this town."
"What are you talking about?" Lisa looked at herself and then realized that she had been tied up to a poster bed.
"Wh... What? What's the meaning of this, Ellie? What's going on?!"
"Elijah is back, Lisa. I was wrong about him."
"I don't get it. You said..."
"Hush, child," someone croaked in the room. "He's here." The same figure who attacked Lisa at the motel, have arrived in the bedroom.
"What the hell? It... It can't be."
"The Lord of the Cosmos have brought me back, Lisa. And now, you must be sacrificed in his name."
"No... NO!"
They all gathered around her, while they chant the unholy words of their Lord. They even croaked and that she could see the terrifying look of the figure's face.
"Don't worry, Lisa," Elijah said. "You'll be one with him... forever."
Next story- The Return of Satan Claus.
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