Inside – Day 1
I can hear them scratching – almost ticking, always clicking, as they move around inside my head. It’s maddening. Their tiny little feet always touching, testing, feeling their way about. Each hair coated limb sliding between the soft tissue and bone – scuttling through the crevasse in between. Growing in and feeding off the fluid…
Sometimes, when I’m looking in the mirror, in the worst moments, the moments where I have to hold onto the basin to support myself and can barely catch a full breath, I swear I see a shadow scuttle behind my eye. The quick darting of a grotesque form moving swiftly past before I can fully focus on it. My own visage in the mirror is a horror in itself; long hair a greasy tangled mess, cheeks sunken and hollow, skin a sickly yellow hue from their rancid poison. Sinking to the floor, scratching at my face to be rid of them, I gouge my eye sockets with filthy, torn nails. Will they find their way through the opening if I offer one? Covered in blood oozing from the destroyed tissue around my eyes, forehead slashed bare, with flesh caked beneath my fingernails, I crawl on hands and knees to the bed, where I cower beneath the covers seeking refuge, hoping to hide. But there is no refuge, nowhere to hide, they are always there with me – inside me, there is no escape from what is inside…
A dark and angst filled road we have chosen…
Come with me over the next week, as I spin my tale for Coffin Hop 2012. This will be a story told day by day – on the final day, encapsulated into one post.
In honor of the tour, I’ll be giving away a goodie per day to one random recipient who leaves a comment on each post. My prizes will come in the form of e-books, print copies, eZines, and an unending subscription to The Sirens Call eZine as well. (plus there may be a rubber duckie or two) All prizes will be randomly selected on November 1st, as per the Coffin Hop guidelines found here on my Coffin Hop 2012 page, along with a list of the other bloggers. Please don’t forget to visit the Coffin Hop Blog for news, updates, delirious ramblings, and magnificent posts from the other bloggers as well!
Nina D'Arcangela
Sotet Angyal 
October 24th, 2012 at 5:28 am
Wow – that is really impressively grisly. I think I’ll probably have nightmares tonight.
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October 24th, 2012 at 12:32 pm
Sorry, and Excellent! … it’s meant to be mildly icky ;}
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October 24th, 2012 at 7:12 am
I once read an article about a medical case where a woman’s head kept feeling like it was itchy, and she ended up scratching right through her skull to her brain! She woke up with brain on her pillows. The start of your story is what that article should have been: dark, creepy, and disturbing!
Happy Hopping!
-aniko
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October 24th, 2012 at 12:34 pm
Thank you Aniko, dark, creepy, and disturbing is right up my alley! I appreciate you saying so. And that poor woman! From now on I rub gently, no more scratching!
Happy Hopping to you also – I haven’t gotten to your blog yet, but I will 🙂
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October 24th, 2012 at 9:24 am
I don’t know why, but the eye-gouging squicked me out more than the rest of the story. Very grotesque. I’m going to go look at kitties now.
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October 24th, 2012 at 12:36 pm
Kitties help… ;} And there is more eye action to come, so more squicked out you might be… Thank you for the ‘very grotesque’, it’s what I was shooting for.
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October 24th, 2012 at 11:26 am
Hey Nina! great opening post! 🙂 You already have me hooked – simply because, knowing you, when I think you’ll zig with this storyline is when you’ll damn well zag! Look forward to the rest…
And…ummm….well…can I have a rubber ducky? Please oh please oh pleeeeease!!!! 😉
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October 24th, 2012 at 12:38 pm
Begging for rubber duckies already on comment #4 – I like that!!! LOL
Thanks Joe, this one is more of a progressive story than what you’d normally expect from me, but I think it delivers on the shiver factor. ;}
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October 24th, 2012 at 6:49 pm
I love the narrative voice here- but I think I really enjoy knowing there are seven more days of this macabre tale yet to come! I’m looking forward to seeing what depths your mind will take us to.
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October 24th, 2012 at 6:51 pm
Thanks Alex! Spiraling downward into depravity is one of my favorite things to do! ;}
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October 24th, 2012 at 10:46 pm
My favorite part –> ” Their tiny little feet always touching, testing, feeling their way about.” After the bit about hearing them clicking, this description just made me smile in a creepy, grim sort of way.
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October 24th, 2012 at 11:04 pm
That makes me feel all tingly and happy inside! LOL
Honestly, thank you. Your comment is very humbly appreciated, and makes me feel that I’ve done a fair job at conveying my twisted intent! ;}
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October 25th, 2012 at 12:04 am
Wow… sick and somber! Really gets into the mind of madness! Only thing darker than this is tearing off a zombies face and finding him still screaming at your with those dead, milky eyes! Can you tell I’ve been watching Walking Dead?
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October 25th, 2012 at 8:30 pm
Thank you – sick and somber would be me! And I’m waiting for the season to end so I can watch it all in one shot, so no Walking Dead spoilers please! LOL
Thank you for coming and reading my post, and for saying what I consider to be such nice things about it! 😉
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October 25th, 2012 at 8:35 pm
Hey, no prob! You’ve done that and then some for me. Also, I have a question regarding Coffin Hop. In short, what if Coffin Hop?
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October 26th, 2012 at 7:38 pm
What is Coffin Hop? Good question storiesbywilliams! It’s a group of blogs that for one week (well, eight days really) are posting all sorts of interviews, horror stories, and other odd and fun stuff; and also giving away prizes in the form of books and all manner of goodies. If you follow the link at the bottom of my post, it will take you to the Coffin Hop Blog, and on there you’ll find a list of blogs to visit, comment on, and generally have fun with in honor of the Halloween season.
This is of course my understanding of it – Axel Howerton can give you a more detailed description, but if you just start ‘hopping’ around to the blogs, I think you’ll get the hang of it. 🙂
BTW – loving the Superheros commentary you’ve got going!
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October 26th, 2012 at 10:10 pm
I always take great joy in reading your words, Nina. Other than the sunken cheeks, you pretty much have my nightly routine down. 🙂
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October 26th, 2012 at 10:12 pm
Happy to hear you enjoy the yarn, sorry to hear about the nightly routine! LOL 😉
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October 29th, 2012 at 8:23 pm
Dark and twisty and very creepy~~~~
Heather
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