A Hallowed Anthology: Contest Entries for Halloween Vault 3D

Nightland

"Nightland Estate?" The local eyed Brandon Middleton dubiously. "There's no Nightland Estate anywhere around, boy."

"No, no, you don't understand," Brandon insisted, feeling confused and uneasy. "My uncle, Thomas Night, passed away and left me Nightland Estate. He said it was in the vicinity of this town."

The local shook his head emphatically. "There's no Nightland Estate, boy!" He turned and walked away quickly.

Brandon sighed, returning to his car and climbing into the driver's seat. There seemed nothing left to do.

How am I supposed to inherit Nightland if I can't find it? Surely Uncle Thomas wouldn't own an estate that doesn't exist, never mind leave it to me?

"How can I find this damn Nightland?" he asked aloud.

A tap sounded on his window and Brandon jumped. Turning, he saw an elderly woman standing outside. Slowly, he lowered the window.

"Nightland, you say?" she asked.

"Yeah," he answered cautiously, furrowing his brow as he wondered how she had heard his question through the closed door.

"To find Nightland, take the old stone road off the highway. Ten miles down, you will find Nightland."

"Thank you," Brandon said, starting to close his window, but the old woman put her hand over the glass.

"Don't thank me, boy. Nightland doesn't exist."

Her tone of voice caused the hairs on the back of Brandon's neck to rise. "What do you mean, it doesn't exist?"

"Just that," the old woman said with a creepy smile. Brandon glanced down, lifting an eyebrow, and then glanced back up to find the woman had completely disappeared.

Dusk was falling as Brandon drove out of town, looking for the road that would take him to Nightland. The wild moors surrounding the town looked eerie in the descending darkness as the wind began to howl.

Then Brandon saw the dirt road, with an old sign half hanging off the post, the barely legible word Stone written on it. He turned onto it and continued driving, resetting his odometer so he would know when the ten miles were up.

Every mile made him more and more uneasy. The wind's howling grew louder, buffeting the car, and strange shapes began to move on the moors, but Brandon couldn't tell if it was just the shadows or actual creatures.

Finally, the ten miles were up and Brandon saw a large rock carved with the words Nightland. A thrill of terror rolled down his spine as he turned into the old driveway, wondering what, exactly, this house would look like.

But as he drove, Brandon quickly saw there was no house. There was nothing at all.

Lightning struck the driveway in front of him and Brandon slammed on the brakes, throwing his arms up to cover his eyes from the brilliant flash. Just as suddenly, the lightning was gone and Brandon glanced up to see a mansion looming before him.

The sky flashed with more lightning, illuminating the twisted face now peering through his window. "Welcome to Nightland, Brandon Middleton."