Entry 10- I Was Attacked

I was attacked a second time. But this time, it wasn't by one of those creatures. Honestly, I would have preferred one of those goddamn things attacking me. They're just animal instinct, or so I think. They're just attacking based off of a hunter/hunted mentality. But this was a human being. A human being who wanted me dead, who probably planned this in advance.

Someone out there. Wants to kill me. Already tried once.

Okay. Okay.

I was walking home from my job at the Olive Garden about a quarter mile away from the apartment complex. When I heard the noises from the floor my apartment's on. I took the steps two at a time. I didn't feel like taking my time in case something happened. I ran my hand along the deep claw-marks on the wall of the stairwell- it's become a kind of physical tic for me- and finally made it to the door. Slowly I pushed the door all the way open.

The door was completely clean. That was what grabbed my attention. I left a sheaf of papers on the desk. They were neatly stacked and on top of a filing cabinet.

Then I felt the hands around my throat.

And I remember the voice. The deep, accented voice. Thin, raspy, withered, male. I swear I recognized that voice. "Stey awe' frum mah pets." Then I felt a knife stab me right in the leg. I dropped to the floor, and I decided to make the first act before he tried making a killing blow. I bit him right on the ankle. He bent over in pain and dropped the knife. I lunged for it. He lunged for it. Thankfully, I was quicker, or I would be dead by now. By the time I stood up, knife wound still bleeding, the attacker was gone, and I heard his feet down the stairs.

...I'm at the hospital now. I needed to get 15 stitches. Whoever the attacker was, they did a nasty job cutting open the back of my knee.

I don't know who the attacker was. And I don't want to know who he was.

The tires are getting patched and repaired, slowly but surely, but it'll still be another day before I can even try getting my way out.

Oh well...

it's not like one day's gonna kill me.

Entry 9- I Killed Something

I... I don't even know anymore. I saw... whatever it was, and I shot it... but... I can't find it anymore. It's like it was carried away by someone.

I was talking to Harry at the time. I was telling him about all the strange things that have been going down. I didn't tell him about the shrine, though. I don't even want to remember. But those four bony claws are still etched into my mind. He was telling me an anecdote about his time up in the mountains, and he met a bear. He thought he was going to die, but it was with great fortune that the bear found a bush of berries not three feet from him, and he was spared. I didn't get what me meant by it at the time.

Now I do.

Then I got a call today. It was someone with a really raspy voice that I didn't recognize. It told me, "Stay away from the Shrine." Then it attacked, bursting through my window.

I can't explain exactly what it looked like. It looked like a dog, but its joints were all oddly bent and its head was broken, twisting upside-down in a snarl. It attempted to lash out its tongue, and it licked me on the shin. I didn't know what it would do until I felt the burning sensation. It felt like acid was splashed on my leg. Still does. Then it tried clamping its jaws around my leg. I kicked it away from me and looked around for something to attack it with.

It lunged, and there were a couple times when it got really close. I began limping. The pain was unbearable. I accidentally bumped into my single bed, and rolled over it in pain.

I then heard the whimper and the crunch.

I guess that I bumped into the bed, causing it to tilt up far enough to land right on the dog's crouched upside-down head.

I went downstairs to try to explain it to someone. Anyone.

Then when I came back, it was gone. Silvery, mucus-like slime was still under the bed, but the dog was no longer there.

I don't know what happened. Honestly, I don't want to know. There's a third degree burn mark on my shin now from where its tongue lashed.

I'm going to call some auto shop to buy some tires. I'm sick of this place and I'm getting out ASAP.

Entry 8- The Far Right Path

Wyona came to me and asked if I needed a ride anywhere. I said I just wanted to take a walk on the nature paths in the Grendale Park. She accompanied me while we were hiking, just talking about things that came to our minds. It had a pattern- we'd come up with something funny or interesting, but the conversation would slide to the murder, then to her Uncle Reed, then the trail would be hiked in awkward silence for about five minutes. Then the cycle began again. It was pleasant, and the sweet smell of grass and oak really boosted my spirits, and so did just being around her.

We decided to take the far right path. Wyona never traveled that path before, and honestly, neither did I. It seemed so new, but looked so worn and ancient that I was sure it has either been tread a great deal or hasn't been treaded at all.

We walked along it, and it seemed generally nice. Then we came upon the shrine. That's all I can think of calling it. A shrine. Or perhaps a tomb. It was standing there, a polished ivory. I remember it so well, and I wish I didn't. I asked Wyona if she ever saw this before, but she didn't reply. I turned around, and she wasn't there. What was there, however, was the same path I just turned around from, leading to the same shrine. I turned back. The shrine. I decided to cut my way through the woods and forget the path. When I came back to a clearing, it was eight paths in all cardinal directions, all leading to the same shrine.

Then I saw the door to the shrine begin to open. Pallid, bony hands grasping at the door. Four of them, each about equidistant from each other, the lowest one hitting the bottom of the door. Then some kind of large spade-shaped... I don't know... it was some large, organic, thing, with an ivory end and a giant, cat-like eye in the center...

Then I saw the face. Eyeless, grinning a wide smile that chilled me to the bone. The thing about it was the face was upside down...

Just like the clearing. Just like the warnings.

I ran as fast as I could, and finally I made it back to... reality, I guess. Wyona told me that I wandered off, suddenly disappeared and she suddenly found herself in the familiar left path, even though there's nothing connecting them. I told her that there probably is some connecting path and we walked back in unbroken silence. I didn't want to tell her what happened with me. After the death of Dwayne, I don't think that it would have boosted any morale.

I'm fairly sure that what I saw, if it was anything, was this "Smiley" creature I've been hearing about. I don't know what to make of this, and those who are reading this must think I'm insane.

Well, I'm not sure if I am or not.

I guess we'll find out together...

Entry 7- Police Investigation

The police finally showed up to investigate at about 5:30. They didn't send that many people, just three Crime Scene Investigators and a couple plainclothes detectives. They kept us each for about 15 or 30 minutes each, asking us how well we knew Dwayne, where we were at the time of the killing, what we were doing, et cetera. Because I was in the apartment right next to Dwayne's, they kept me in for what seemed like over an hour. They didn't suspect me of murdering Dwayne. They saw the dog's bite marks and paw prints, but they're a little skeptical that only one dog could cause this much. They asked me if I saw the dog, and I said no, but I heard it.

That was it for the questioning. They carried away Dwayne's body and some of his personal belongings, as well as the broken glass.

Also, I found out that the dog that did this bit holes in the wheels of my Silverado. Until I'm able to get it fixed, I won't be able to get far. Either way, the police are telling me that I have to stay in the county.

Entry 6- I'm Getting Out of Here

First of all, after a long discussion, the landlord agreed to let me move up to the third floor. I got to meet Melanie and Dwayne. Nice people. But the thing is, I moved up two floors so I could be safer. I was not any safer than I was on the first floor.

I was busy unpacking the last of my things. I had only a couple of belongings, mainly books and office supplies, and I felt like I was going to find more peace and quiet because of my move. That quiet, if there was any, didn't last.

I heard heavy footfalls down the hallway. I tensed up a little, then as I heard it softly pad along I began to relax. It went past my apartment- 3A- and kept going towards Dwayne's apartment. I sighed and went back to my unpacking. Then I heard the door open, and then I heard Dwayne's scream- shrill, high, ear-piercing, one that's going to haunt me for a long, long time, finally dwindling down to a gurgle. Then I heard dog's whimpering, and then pawpads heading towards my door. I backed my fully packed box against the door and then headed over to the other end of my apartment and waited. Finally, after what seemed like hours, the pawpads died away. I was also worried.

Why wasn't anyone calling the cops or something? Melanie went to the movies with Douglas, apparently, but Wyona, Harry, or Frank should have heard something. Should have heard anything. I decided to risk it.

Slowly, I pushed the box away from the door. For a long time I just stood there, looking at the door. Occasionally I put my hand to the doorknob, then I took it away. Finally, I was able to open the door, knowing that I was potentially opening the door up to some violent creature with no means of self defense. To my relief, there was no creature right outside my door.

Then I saw Dwayne's body. I could only recognize it as Dwayne by the fact that the torn, battered shirt that was ripped in half, matched the shirt I saw Dwayne wearing earlier today. There was no way a normal dog could have done what it did to Dwayne. I remember the stench- putrid and metallic, blood mingling with the intestines splayed on the floor. I stepped cautiously past and looked into Dwayne's apartment, fearing to see some kind of weird creature inside. There wasn't any. I saw the bloody pawprints leading to the broken remains of the window. I looked out the window and saw a few more pawprints veering off into the cornfields.

I went downstairs and told the landlord. The landlord stayed up all night, calling the sherriff's station, informing next of kin, and waking up the other tenants. Melanie and Douglas came back later tonight. Frank's talking about leaving the apartment, and, frankly, I'm thinking about getting away as well. I feel like getting out as soon as I possibly can. I should have gotten the message with the rabbit's corpse, but I didn't, and now I can't sleep. I don't want to be caught sleeping if that... thing... comes back.

Entry 5- Notes From an Anonymous Messenger

That's it. I'm asking the landlord if I can change to an apartment on the top floor. I do not feel safe anymore on this floor. There are so many deep scratches on the walls and so pronounced that I'm surprised nobody has said anything about it yet.

But right now I do not think I can take any more of this. There was a package mailed to my apartment from an unknown sender. Attached to the outside of the package was a note saying, "DO NOT FEAR SMILEY." Then I loosened the string tightened around the package, slowly, savoring the time before it opened. Inside the package was the mutilated carcass of a rabbit. I don't know how to describe it, but it looked like it was covered in... some kind of glue, or something, and it looked like it was stabbed directly in the chest.

I threw the package out as soon as possible.

I'm pretty sure if I had any chance to not become involved with this whole thing, it just ended.

Entry 4- Scratches and Graverobbers

Well, I'll just get this out of the way, first. Police stopped by our apartment complex on the way to Grendale. They were investigating acts of vandalism in the area, and asked if we knew anything about it. I asked them what they were talking about, and they told me something, kind of... unsettling. The five dogs- the victims of the animal attack- have been taken out of their graves. They haven't foudn any incriminating evidence whatsoever, so they decided to ask us if we knew anything. I told them I didn't and they went on to bug Harry.

Another thing is that I've been noticing scratches on the outside of the complex and some in the first floor. I haven't pointed it out to anyone else, but... I'm getting a bad feeling about this. It's reminding me of the messages about "Smiley". I'm not sure what Smiley is, but I'm having a strange suspicion. Whatever the messages were, they may have something to do with the killing of the dogs. And it may have something to do with the digging up of the dogs' corpses. I can't say anything for certain, and I'm not going to try jumping to conclusions, and I'm not going to stick my nose into where it shouldn't be, but- I'm getting the feeling that it's coming too close for comfort.