R. R. Knight

Turn on the lights! Right now, as fast as you can, before you read any further!

TURN. ON. YOUR. LIGHTS.

You are in danger.

Please listen to me. Do NOT fall asleep, at least not at night. Not in the dark. NEVER in the dark. THEY are there. All around us. I know that I sound crazy, believe me, I do—but I’m not. I’ve seen Them, the creatures which write our nightmares. The Authors of Madness.

They know that I’ve discovered Them, that I see Them for what They are, and They are coming for me. I don’t know how much longer I have, but I must tell the world what I know about Them in hopes that my work, my life, has not been in vain. And yes, reading this might make Them come for you too–but that was only ever a matter of time.

My name is Rowan. I’ve been researching Them for years, ever since… It’s not important. There’s no time. Listen. The evidence for Their existence is all around us. They’ve been here with us, in the dark, for millennia. People have named Them throughout time as best they could, but how does one properly describe a living nightmare? You may know Them yourself as demons or ghouls and in a way you are right, but They have many titles. Have had many titles. The Irish named Them the Bean Sidhe, in Arabia They are called the Ifrit, and the Russians know Them as Leshy. To the Hindu, They are the Naga. To the Serbians, They are the Obour. In Japan, They are the Tengu. In China, the T’ien Kou. Records of Their existence even traces as far back as ancient Sumeria, where They were called the Udug Hul. Call Them whatever you please, but I assure you—They are real, and They are everywhere.

Darkness is Their domain. They exist there, somewhere in the discord beyond the cusp of our reality–between our world and somewhere else, lost in a place without a name. They use the darkness as a kind of gateway into our world, blinking in and out of it as They please: here in an instant, and gone in a flash. They are parasites born of chaos, formless shadows which haunt the schisms in our minds, devouring the madness that They sew–and They will not stop. They infect our dreams, polluting them, changing them into something hideous. Our nightmares sustain Them. The more we crack, the more our minds dissolve, the more They feed; and when They are done devouring your mind, when there is no more sanity left in you to harvest, They Unmake you. Annihilate you.

Delete you.

Hundreds of thousands of people go missing each year, sometimes as many as millions, and while it may bring comfort to attribute all of these cases natural and explainable causes, it is naïve. They are behind it—They are the root of mortal decay. They are entropy.

But They are trapped.

Trapped in the Dark.

They cannot leave it. Light, electrical or otherwise, keeps Them at bay. It severs Their foothold in this world and keeps us safe, keeps us alive, but…They can and do draw us into darkness with Them. They are patient, and hungry. Somehow, They can whisper to us, even when we’re in the light–as though They infest the very shadows in the nooks and crannies of our skulls, slithering into our thoughts. They claw and scratch at the corners of our minds, slowly wearing us down like a heavy rain upon stone. They tell us to go to sleep. Sleep, so They can feed.

You may think my warnings to be the rambling of a mad man and that you have no reason to believe me, but you should—as I said, They’re going to be coming for you too.

They might be coming for you now.

You might already hear Them calling to you: Their twisted voices speaking to you at this very moment, in the back of your mind. You might hear Them if you listen. You’ll likely see Them too, if you look. They are there in every shadow, in every corner, watching you with strange, shapeless eyes.

They are waiting for you to fall asleep.

These Things from the dark: They know you. They’ve been haunting you since your first breath, and will unto your last. You’ve likely seen Them a thousand times, you just didn’t know what They were. They are, and have always been, the dark shapes you glimpse from the corner of your eye. They are the creaking of the floorboards late, late at night. They are the scratching in the walls. They are the chill down your spine, the icy breath on the back of your neck when you think you’re alone.

Do not give in.

They are the Arch-Enemy of all life.

Do not give Them what They want. Do not become Their food. Stay in the light. Stay together. Stay awake. If we stay out of the dark we can starve Them, though I don’t know how long it will take. Their entire existence relies on our doubt, our disbelief. Knowledge is the only weapon we have against Them. Please, warn those you love. Don’t leave them be alone in the dark anymore. Tell everyone you can. And, whatever you do, stay out of the dark—for They are coming.

I’ll write more soon with any new discoveries concerning Them I can find, provided that I survive long enough.

Stay safe.

God have mercy on us.