The Swamp

The Swamp: By CreepyQuantum

The Swamp: By CreepyQuantum

It has been exactly three years now since the incident happened... The day that I began my life all on my own. I have tried and tried to forget about what happened but it is still burned in my mind. The day is so clear that it could be mistaken for yesterday if I didn’t know any better. I know this is rather cliché, but I am recording this and putting it online in hopes that sharing what happened for all to hear will bring me solace.

My name is Will, my brother, John, and I had a very strong bond, beyond what most siblings have because of our isolation from civilization in southern Louisiana. We were raised by our mother who not only assumed the additional position of a father but as our teacher due to the distance from the nearest school, we were forced to be home-schooled. Our father disappeared when we were very young; he left one day and never returned, our mom often claimed that he left her for a younger woman but I am pretty sure, now, that that isn't true.

Three years ago today, on my brother's 17^th birthday, we decided to take the canoe out through the swamp in hopes of finding an Alligator that we could shoot. John and I always loved hunting alligators, it had always been so fulfilling to find and shoot a big gator and get to feed the family with it. The rush we got when they would fight back and put up a challenge is a feeling unmatched by any other activity. I hope that someone who has had a similar incident sees this and contacts me. Anyways, we were out on our old, white canoe, rowing around. The cold, salty sea air flowing north out of the Gulf of Mexico met the hot, humid swamp air making it difficult to breathe. Prior to this specific expedition, we had covered probably three miles in any which direction from our house.

Rowing in a canoe isn't the fastest means of transportation but it works; we had gotten very good at swerving around the protruding stumps, trees, and the occasional rock that poked out of the murky, green water. The sudden rush of water knocked us out of our trance, something had caused the small wave that nudged the side of the boat; it was an alligator! The time we had been waiting for was right there! My brother rowed closer as I grabbed my 45. Revolver. The alligator wasn't affected by us at all, it continued swimming away from the Gulf, which was now visible, literally as far as the eyes could see. We had never made it all the way to the end of the Bayou before, we had to have been at the very least five miles from home.

The sun was setting by then and I knew this was our only chance for the day. “I am going to pull it up and you take the shot!” John said, getting his body in position to gain some leverage to be able to pull the beast out of the water. “You ready? I’ll do it in three-” he took a quick look at me but his gaze quickly surpassed me and locked on to something behind me and his voice trailed off; he even let go of the rope and the alligator didn’t hesitate to swiftly swim to the bayou. This wasn’t alarming at the time, as alligators go back into the swamp at night time to sleep, however I’m not sure it was swimming to something, but rather from something. I jerked around to see what he was looking at – what was so important and almost couldn't believe what I saw!

Standing on a small island, about twenty meters away were two guys! They stood there, blank stares locked on to us, mouths agape. On the other side of the island, which was probably fifteen meters in diameter was a glowing object, which looked crystalline in nature. My attention went back to the two men. “Hey!” I yelled; no response, they didn't even move, blink, shift, or anything! “Let’s get out of here,” I said to John but he didn't reply either. Our canoe was drifting and the only change by the people on the island was their heads gradually turning to keep their blank stares on us. “Hey, let's go!” I spoke up. I noticed another canoe out of the corner of my eye as I said this, drifting empty in the middle of the water, it must have been theirs. John stared blankly back at the small island. “John!” I yelled but again, no response. He seemed to have his attention held tightly by something on the island, whether the guys, the crystal, or something else I wasn’t sure at the time. I looked back to the island and felt so strange, my stomach was in knots and I shook John but he didn’t resist, look at me, or anything.

I ignored it at first but for the short time the crystal was in my line of sight, I felt unnaturally drawn to it. Just having it in my sight gave me pure euphoria. I am now pretty sure that that damned thing is what caused John to leap out of the boat and swim to the island. As he was about halfway to the island, I noticed something strange. It appeared to be black hair emerging from the water which was followed by the top of a head, then what I was expecting to be a body. I was quickly proven wrong when the thing began walking out of the foaming green water. It was something I had never seen before; it was tall- probably seven or eight feet, it had long black hair, its black eyes looked foggy due to what I took to be some kind of protective film over them. They slanted down its face at awkward angles. Its face was narrow and sharp like it had been starved. Its long, bony fingers seemed to narrow to a point and I was overwhelmed with the scent of decay. I could hear a gargled wheezing sound emanating from its gills, which really just looked like someone took a knife to the thing’s neck! I was paralyzed with fear! What are you supposed to do when you see something like that? The creature walked up the island and the two people shot one last look at me; this one was different, though- I saw tears and beneath the blankness of their stares, I saw primitive fear. The kind of fear that is deep within us all; it was like their human instincts were trying to prevail over whatever trance they were in but that was to no avail, the creature, still wheezing, grabbed both the men, one in each arm and turned around. The whole time this was going on, John seemed unfazed, he was almost to the island when the creature re-submerged, returning to the ocean. I saw bubbles emerging for a little bit when their heads became submerged.

Now I am sure you don't believe me, but I saw what I saw! If someone had told me this story, I wouldn't have believed them either. I yelled to John, who was now standing on the island, about where the other guys were standing; “we need to get out of here, now!” I will never forget his response... His head slowly turned around as he gave me a blank stare then turned back and approached the glowing object and stared at it, his face was practically touching the thing. “John!” I cried but he just looked up and stared at me... I wanted to get him but I wasn’t sure how I would do that at the time and I thought it’d be faster and safer if I were to go get help, so I left him… I abandoned my own brother and now I am alone for it! I feel terrible thinking back on that. I went home and told my mom all about it but she didn't believe me; through all of the scenarios I played out in my head on the exhausting ride back home, I never once thought of what I would say if she didn’t believe me. She just kept telling me to tell her the truth about what happened but it was and still IS the truth... you have to believe me...

She finally gave in, I am assuming she grew restless and wanted answers, despite still not believing my story, and left to go find the elusive glowing item on the island. I asked if I could tag along so I could show her exactly where but she was too full of emotion and demanded for me to stay home. “I am not losing both of my children!” I remember her saying beneath a sheet of tears and sobs. She really was a loving mother and gave her all in everything that she did for us, but I was so frustrated with her, not only did she waste time, refuting my story but she wouldn’t even let me go with her to save my brother. She never returned. I have been living by myself for the past three years and I have decided to try to find answers, using my Mom’s car that she really only used for her occasional trip to the nearest town for groceries, I went in search of a museum, library, history center, anything of the sort and lucked out. Well, sort of.

The first town I entered did, in fact, have a library, though it was small. The old man who ran it was a very kind man and we quickly began to converse, he invited me to sit at the only small table in the room and I eagerly obliged. I told him how I hadn’t really been exposed to much outside the home and the swamp and he told me about all of the things happening in the world from politics to science. It had been a good hour before I asked the first question pertaining to my only reason of actually being there. “Are there any local legends or anything of the sort for this area?” The old man smiled at my question.

“Young man, this place is famous for its local legends! There is the secret government testing facility underneath the city’s power plant, there is the witch’s house, out in the swamp,” I stopped him there.

“Witch? What’d she look like?” Inside, I was conflicted, I wanted him to vividly describe the monstrous thing I saw but at the same time I was hoping it wouldn’t match.”

“Legend says that the old, abandoned house that is barely still standing in the swamp out there,” he took a break in his sentence to turn his body to point a direction which I followed to a blank wall. “Not in here, a couple miles away!” he began to laugh at his old man humor and I smiled, trying not to come off as rude. He continued. “Three children were playing hide and seek, I believe they were siblings but I could be mistaken.” He put his slender fingers on his chin as he went deep into thought. I just sat still, eagerly waiting for a description of the witch herself, my feet bouncing in anticipation. “One of the children went out to the house and never came back, the other two, one seeker and one who had been found, heard a scream so they ran towards it and caught glimpse of a short, fat woman, holding their brother as she floated up to the roof and entered through the chimney of the house.”

He really lost my attention at “short, fat” but I didn’t want to interrupt. “Are there any more?” I asked.

“Yes, there is the Mermaid of the southern sea that-” I stopped him there.

“Mermaid? Like half fish-half human?”

“Well,” he adjusted his position in the old, flaky wooden chair. “Not in the sense of Hollywood’s mermaids. It's not some beautiful woman with a fish tail, it's more disturbing than that.” He smiled. “Of course it's all bullshit.” He covered his mouth as soon as the word effortlessly left his lips.

“Wait I want to know.” I said immediately.

“Well, supposedly people have seen some sort of light out where the bayou meets the sea.” he began. “They said that it had some strange inexplicable effect on them that drew them near, their best guess was that it had something to do with the sound it emanated that was barely audible but it did something to the brain.” It would snag up people who were too weak to resist its pull and take them underwater with it.” the old man fidgeted his thumbs. “Anyways,” he concluded, “don't go worrying about that. It's just a myth.” there was something in his eyes, something that I had seen in John's every time he lied to me about stupid stuff. This guy knew more but I was done, I had heard enough. I wish I could conclude on a lighter note but following my visit, I just went back home and tried to get on with my life. I have been contemplating typing this up and posting it but last night I decided I would. It wasn't some epiphany that I had, it was just that it was hard to sleep because when I looked out my window, I could see a feint glow far beyond the trees, was the light nearer? That was definitely closer than the island where I lost John. It was haunting me and damnit, I am going to go shoot the damn thing and shatter it to pieces. I am posting this right now, then I will update later on what happens.