The Key Of Shadows

The Devil at the Doorstep

Another one went down.......and then one more. Until is was finally a torrential downpour of leaves. Autumn was so beautiful,yet so melancholic. The scene outside the window was awash with colour......all of it just reminded me about Drake. He loved this season. The leaves,the gardener,the hooded man,the Ice Cream van,all of it....

Wait a minute......a hooded man!!!!

I looked closely.....his face was masked in the shadow of his cloak,and he seemed to be draped in an over sized overcoat. Only his eyes were shown.....they shined in an odd manner. They were staring intently......right at me. Just looking at him sent a chill down my spine. I looked away,thinking that I should tell mom about this figure outside our home. When I turned to see again......

He was gone!!

Vanished...

Damn.....I must have been imaging things. Time to set out. Mom had a bad habit off leaving large shopping lists when she went out,to be brought home by me before she came back. So I shoved the list into my pocket,locked the house and left for the grocery district. It was a good day to go for a walk with the leaves falling around me and the trees shielding me from the hot sun. Yet something didn't feel right. I had goosebumps all over me because of a feeling that I was being watched.

I turned around,disconcerted,stiff with anticipation.

And then I saw him......the hooded man.

OK, so I guess I wasn't imagining him.

But that didn't make me feel any better.

Because that scared the daylights out of me.

My feet were acting of their own accord,and before and I knew it I was running. I didn't look back, just kept running. And I kept running till I reached the busy market street. I blended in the crowd and just as I turned to see whether I had lost him...........and in the process I ran straight into a old man. Dude looked like he could barely walk,he even had a walking stick. I ran to help him to his feet.

His hands struck me as odd.They weren't frail or wrinkled. They were smooth,tight,like the hand of a young man. Something is definitely wrong.......

Thats when hooded man jumps right out of the crowd.

This guy seriously has a penchant for dramatic entries!!

He had lost his calm demeanor,instead he seemed alarmed. He took a step towards me.....and then the old dude began swinging his cane in a practiced,intricate and choreographed manner. He was no old man. He seemed to be soldier,someone who could fight. He seemed to be shielding me from the hooded guy. I heaved a sigh of relief.........by the look of it,he seemed to be protecting me!!!

The stand off was long and intense and then Mr. Hood decides to attack. The two battle together at blinding speed,their attacks a blur. And right out of no where two more people jump out of the crowd and began to attack the hooded guy. This was not a normal street brawl or mugging. It was real fight,like those in the movies.

It seemed that this combined effort was turning out to be too much for the hooded guy.He was backed into a corner.....or so it seemed. Because the very next moment he seemed to be glowing, as if he was on fire!!!

He .....kind off.....

................

................

................

Exploded!!! Dude literally exploded!! I was knocked over by the blast....blinded by the explosion. And as the dust cleared.......just the hooded guy was standing,all the other people surrounding him were reduced to ashes!!!

And me..... I was a quivering,trembling mess. I really don't consider myself a coward,but this dude made me jump out of my skin in fright.

And so I ran again..........right back to my house,and right into the basement. It was a safe house of sorts......just one entrance and under the house,literally inaccessible once locked on the inside. I guess I'll wait it out......till mom comes back. I waited on the couch in the far corner of the room.....fiddling with my phone,even left mom a message. And eventually.... I drifted away to sleep.