Terror Tales: Poetry & Death Volume 1 (2025)

[bunniefuu]

Oh Death,

how soon will you come?

When will I know?

Oh Death, oh Death,

what is the manner

in which I shall go?

We all want to know

when and how will meet Death.

Will I leave my mark?

Will I have regrets

before I take my last breath?

Answers to these questions

are ones that many do seek.

But sadly for most,

the outcome is unpredictable

and the end, so often bleak.

Death, you see,

hides in plain sight

and needs no introduction.

Yet you'll know

when Death's near

as your body ceases to function.

We've all heard the ghost

stories,

those tales from the dark side.

Flooding your mind with thoughts

of your very own demise.

Maybe you've searched

for the answers to Death

in your ABCs,

in a trilogy,

from beyond the grave,

or on All Hallows' Eve.

Alas, if you didn't find

the truth in some old VHS,

in a crypt, or comic,

or some hidden nook.

Maybe you'll find them

right here, in the pages

of one of our terrifying books.

But whatever answers

you may find,

there is one simple truth.

Death comes for us all,

and to some,

even in their youth.

How will Death come to

those in our little story?

You'll find out soon enough,

but some will surely be gory.

So sit back, relax,

and turn out the lights.

It's time to hear some stories

that will give you a fright.

We won't leave out

a single detail,

as poetry and Death meet

within the pages of these

haunting Terror Tales.

Now, let's begin.

Round and round

and round we spin.

They all fall down.

What fickle pins.

The split of Death.

No time to cry,

for his beloved game

has gone awry.

Fearfully,

I see what you cannot.

The split of Death.

The scream

that calls behind his eyes.

The split of Death.

No time to cry out now.

Amid the game I'll never win.

What fickle pins.

We all fall down.

Round and round

and round we spin.

Bowl a good game?

Improvements can always be made.

There's always tomorrow, right?

Yeah.

Martha Francis.

Martha Francis?

Golly, I wasn't sure it was you.

You purchased wine

this evening and...

you dropped your wallet, Martha.

I knew I had to track

you down and return it.

Safely.

A wallet holds

many useful documents,

not to mention cash sometimes.

It's an essential item.

I knew you'd be

distressed without it.

Did I drop it?

So I did.

I'm sorry. Who are you?

My name is Henry.

I was at the bowling alley.

I'm a bowling enthusiast.

I was upset tonight.

Couldn't make the split.

It's not that I couldn't.

I could.

Do you work near

the bowling alley?

I couldn't tell by your wallet.

Ah...

Hey, I hope

this didn't upset you.

I just saw your wallet and

your address is on the license.

I live close by, so

it's really no trouble, but...

I understand.

You can't be too

careful these days.

I read the news.

There's a lot of strange

people out there, it seems.

Hard to know who you can trust.

Anyway, here, take it.

I'll be on my way.

All right.

Sorry, I just...

I just don't know

how this happened.

I just thought that I don't...

Anyway, my husband is

waiting for me, so I'm...

Thank you. Thank you so much.

This was very kind.

That's so nice.

No! No!

No! No!

It doesn't

have to be like this.

When you get a bad break,

don't lose your temper.

There must be

an easier way to learn to bowl.

Enough's enough.

What say we knock it off

and start all over again.

Talk about

a splitting headache. Hmm?

Much like a painting,

layered and detailed,

nuanced and messy.

Apologies only go so far.

And sometimes

they arrive too late.

Two months.

Two fates.

Two friends.

Rarely a clean end.

Happily ever after, it ends.

Then she may return.

And so it begins.

Friends forever.

After all this time.

Know that you can never hide

from the devil on your doorstep

once you let her inside.

Once upon a time,

there were two best friends.

Hey.

What's up?

Same old, same old.

That's very boring.

I'm a boring person.

How's the painting going?

It's okay.

Wow. I've never

heard you be so vague.

Look, I know you

feel bad about Skylar,

but you have to know

it wasn't your fault.

She stalked you.

You had to get

a restraining order.

You had no control over that.

I just hope

her parents like the painting.

They're gonna love it.

In a weird way,

I think Skylar would too.

Way to weird me out.

Seriously, she was disturbed,

no doubt,

that she left her work.

And I think that now,

wherever she is, she's better.

I hope.

Hang on. Someone's at the door.

Really?

Don't worry.

I'll take you with me.

What's in the package?

I don't know yet.

There's a card.

Secret admirer?

I don't think so.

What is it?

Uh, it's from Skylar.

That's disturbing.

Maybe from her parents?

I don't think so.

What's the card say?

It's just got a symbol.

It's an apology.

That is weird.

She obviously

sent it before she died.

That was two months ago, though.

Yeah, not gonna lie,

that's spooky.

It's a doll. Huh.

Oh my god, are you kidding me?

I wish I was.

Snap me a pic.

Send one with the symbol too.

Okay. Hang on.

Damn, my mom's beeping in.

I'll call you back.

Okay.

What happened to you?

Hmm.

Hey.

You're breaking up.

Madison?

Why did you let me die?

Now we will be together

forever.

Skylar?

-Madison?

-Yes, who else?

I just got a weird phone call.

Hope you're ready to

up the weirdness level.

What now?

I looked at

the symbol and the doll.

All this stuff

came up about Santeria.

What?

It's used in a ceremony in

which someone's soul is placed

into...

Madison?

No.

Please don't. Please...

-Hi.

-Madison?

Oh my God.

Sorry, I can't answer right

now.

If you leave a message,

I'll call you back

No.

No.

No!

Somebody help me!

Friends don't

let friends die alone.

You can't be here.

Please don't. Not here.

Not like this.

Come on. Just try one out now.

What's the risk?

Are you scared of the glitch?

It's not so scary.

Not so far out.

Almost gone.

Lost.

Deeper.

Darker.

Darkness.

Vices vibrant within

the shroud of night vision.

Mental switchboards

short-circuited.

In due time revisions.

You see, addiction

can be persuasive.

Faces can change like phases.

People can trade places.

And time might just melt

in your mouth if you let it.

Hey, you really

want to film this?

You know we're

here to buy drugs, right?

For the cops

watching this at home,

we're actually buying drugs

for Xander's junkie girlfriend.

- She's not a junkie.

- -Didn't you just get out of rehab?

We actually met in rehab.

Oh, good.

I see that whole process worked out for you two then.

Let's wrap it up.

He's going to

be here any second.

I don't think he's going to

appreciate a camera in his face.

You don't even know him.

He's Kate's dealer.

Look, she trusts him,

I trust her.

Can you just

turn the camera off?

- Dude, we're lost.

Where are we going?

- It's fine.

It's not fine.

We're going around in circles.

You don't have to

make a big deal of it.

He's just taking

us to a safe place.

It's not much further.

- This is sh*t.

- Yeah.

Are you filming?

I'm just using it for

the night vision. It's fine.

-I'm telling you, I said no.

I can't film this.

-It doesn't matter.

Oh, you're a fork

in the road, sweet.

Where the hell is he?

Did we lose him?

Well, man,

we probably could have

walked a little further.

- How the hell did he get over there?

- -I don't know.

Come on.

Xander, I don't like it.

Yeah, me neither.

He spoke French.

This is the part

where he kills us.

Turn that off. I'm serious now.

Oh, and you weren't

serious before.

Hey, you all good, man?

Is everything all right?

Uh...

Jesus! Christ...

What are you looking at?

Man, we're just...

Nothing.

Are we doing this or what?

Of course. Of course.

Sorry, I just needed

to bring you somewhere safe.

Somewhere away from prying eyes.

This is safe?

-Middle of the woods.

-Eliza...

I was looking for the house.

Avec la porte verte.

But I can't

remember where it is.

But hey, that's okay.

I mean, you two seem cool.

Let's just do it here.

You got the money?

Yeah. Yeah, you got the pills?

Sure do. Kate tells me

you're in for a big one,

so I put a few extra

in there free of charge.

Thanks, man.

That's good.

Can we go now?

Yeah, let's do it.

-You don't want to try one?

-Huh?

I mean, yeah,

let's try some, right?

Before you go,

let's have some fun.

A pill? Um, I don't know.

We've got a thing, a party

that we've got to get to.

Come on, I put a few

extra in there for you.

And you can

spare one for me, right?

And you still

have plenty left over.

A lot more than you paid for.

Yeah. Yeah, no, thank you.

Really appreciate it, man.

But we're actually quite late

for the party,

so we've

just got to go now. Sorry.

Okay, hey, I won't force you.

The decision is

entirely yours to make.

One, two, three.

Oh! That's the sh*t.

Yeah.

What?

There's no chance

you feel anything already.

Oh sh*t. I don't know, Eliza.

I don't know if

I'm feeling something.

How?

What is this stuff?

I'm starting to see why

Kate will like this so much.

It's called the Glitch.

Special homemade recipe.

You should try it with us.

I don't know.

Come on, Eliza, just do it.

Then we can go to the party.

Yeah.

Come on, Eliza.

Make the party fun.

Glitch out with us.

Uh, okay.

Okay.

Xander?

Xander? Xander?

- Is that...

- Yeah.

You got the pills?

No. No.

It's not possible.

This. There's no way.

You don't want to try one?

Huh?

What did you give me?

What's going on?

Hey, man. I don't know

what you gave me,

but something's not right.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no.

Screw this.

Hey, you really

want to film this?

You know we're

here to buy drugs, right?

Hey, who are you?

Holy sh*t.

Listen, you can't be here.

This isn't...

Remember, kids, just say no.

No rest for the weary.

No fear allowed

beyond this point.

All trespassers shall

enter at their own risk.

Your safety is

your responsibility.

Your past is your present.

Your demons might be too shy

to show themselves outright,

and so she plots and plans,

listens, and walks right by

the skeletons slumped over

in the hallway of her past,

a past well worth reclaiming.

And this time, for her,

failure is not an option.

Again, no rest

for the weary, dear.

No rest for the weary.

Reagan, honey,

it's Grandma again.

I need you to

come back home, okay?

I need you and Booney

to get home right now.

Something's going on downtown.

People are being attacked.

I don't know what's happening,

but your grandfather

has his g*n out,

and we're scared.

Just come home, okay?

I'm sorry we got in a fight.

None of that matters right now.

- I just need you...

- They're in the house!

Reagan.

Reagan, honey.

Your grandfather and I

love you so much, baby girl.

I love you so much.

Booney.

Come. Come. Come here.

Booney.

Come on.

Booney.

No!

Reagan, honey.

Where are you?

Booney has been

waiting by the door all night.

Please, come home.

Watching you do this

to yourself,

it breaks my heart.

I know it's not easy,

sweetheart.

I know that.

Just like

I knew with your mother.

You never really had the chance

to know her or her struggle.

But I told her the same thing

I'm about to tell you.

I just hope you'll listen.

The road ahead is gonna

test you every step of the way.

But you're not alone.

And that's reason enough to

try.

Honey, you're gonna

fail from time to time.

That's okay.

You just gotta

keep pushing yourself.

Every little inch

forward is progress.

You'll look back and you'll see

all of those little victories.

It's always going to be hard.

But as long as you're willing

to face it head on,

as long as you're willing

to just keep going,

you'll find a way to beat this.

A woman's best

friend to the very end.

Your cheeks will be rosy.

You'll have a nose

just like your mama

and a pocket full of posy.

There's no bond quite like that,

of a mother and her kin.

Flesh of my flesh.

Bone of my bone.

Oh, oh dearest child of mine.

To you, I will

offer pieces of myself.

For you, there is

no sacrifice too great.

For love, there

is no price too high.

I believe you will be perfect.

Oh, child of mine.

I believe. I believe. I believe.

Sam's sperm

are perfectly healthy.

Janelle, my advice

to you is keep trying.

Get plenty of rest.

Avoid caffeine.

Follow your cycle and be sure

you also take it easy.

If you do get another negative,

I want you to come in for

a sonogram and blood test.

In the meantime,

just keep trying.

It's got a nice ring to it.

I heard that.

What about Missy?

With an "i" and a heart.

She could be

a stripper or a rock star.

Oh, predetermining

her fate with a name.

It's twisted. I love it.

Okay, in all seriousness,

you know what I was thinking?

Maya. I think it's

such a beautiful name.

Maya. Yeah, it is nice.

But if it's a girl,

I get to name her.

Deal?

Deal.

So thank you both

again for your patience.

So the ultrasound came back.

And I'm afraid you have POF.

Premature ovarian failure.

I've read about POF.

There are treatments.

You can still

conceive with the treatments.

I'm very sorry

to tell you this, Janelle,

but your POF is non-reversible.

Your ovaries don't

appear to have any eggs.

There are other options, such as

surrogacy or adoption, however.

You can still be a mother.

Now, I'm also concerned

about your blood test.

We've also noticed a very high

red cell count

and some abnormalities

that are concerning.

I'm going to need you to follow

up with us for additional

blood tests.

Morning.

You look beautiful.

I'm not in the mood, Sam.

There are other options.

Plenty of babies

need loving mothers.

I'm not adopting

someone else's baby, Sam.

I want my own child.

I want a child

that comes from me.

I don't understand

why you don't get that.

I do. I get it.

But you know what?

None of these rip-off lotions

that you keep ordering or

fertility drinks

are going to work,

and we've got to accept it.

I want you to look

at the adoption pamphlet.

This is everything to me, Sam.

You have your perfect job

and your perfect sperm.

This is the only thing I want.

I'm not going to

just give up on it.

I know, but you shouldn't

let it ruin our life, right?

Hey, I can't talk

about this right now.

I've got to get to work.

To be continued.

I love you.

Love you.

-Hello?

-Sam?

Honey?

Hi, I'm actually in

the hospital right now.

What?

Oh, I cut my finger.

It was so stupid of me.

I just wasn't paying attention.

But I'm really fine.

Are you sure?

Do you need me

to come pick you up?

No. No, no, no, no.

Stay at work,

and I'll meet you back at home.

Oh, wow. Okay, message received.

Look, I just thought maybe

you wanted me to warm you up

with all those clothes on.

If you want, I can turn up

the heat, and we can get

a little more comfortable.

I'm just a little bit

sensitive from the accident.

All right, I get it.

I get it. I'm glad you're okay.

I'm fine.

Everything's

going to be better now.

Why are you flipping

me the bird right now, huh?

Honey, this is the blood test

that the doctor asked you to

take two months ago,

and it still hasn't been done.

-I guess I forgot.

-I'm concerned, Janelle.

You've lost so much weight,

I find pain pills

all over the house,

and you spend hours on end

in the bathroom.

Am I not

allowed privacy anymore?

Oh, you are, but I'm

worried that you're sick.

-I'm fine, Sam.

-How do you know?

How do you know you're fine?

How do you know you don't

have cancer or something?

-I don't have cancer, Sam.

-You can talk to me.

You can tell me

anything you want, okay?

But I'm here.

I don't know what

you want me to say, Sam.

I don't need you to

say anything, Janelle.

I just need you to go to

the doctors

and get this blood work done.

Okay.

I will.

Thanks for your concern.

What's going on, Janelle?

-I'm going to the bathroom.

-Oh, for Christ's sake.

Am I not allowed to

go to the bathroom, too?

No, you're allowed to go to

the bathroom.

I'm just...

I'm worried about you.

What's going on with you?

-I just need some space.

-Okay, you know what?

I'm going on

a business trip tomorrow.

I'll be gone for a few days.

You can have your space, and

you can do whatever you want.

I don't want to fight.

I'm sorry.

I'll be back Sunday.

Promise me you'll

be alright by yourself.

I'm not a child.

I'll be fine.

Just don't miss your flight.

-I love you.

-I love you, too.

Oh, one more thing.

Will you grab the garbage bags?

One of them is

starting to stink up the house.

Sure.

Hey, babe, it's me.

Um, listen, all of the flights

to the convention are canceled

today because of the storm,

so I'm going to be

going out tomorrow.

I'll be back home shortly,

so, look, text me or call me

when you get this

so you let me know you're okay.

Hey, babe, it's me.

Listen, I'm just in a little bit

of traffic right now,

so I should be about 30, 40

minutes before I get home.

I need you to

call me back, though. Okay?

I've left three, four messages,

and I want to know

if you're okay,

so text me or

call me as soon as you can.

I'm worried. Alright?

I love you. Call me.

Isn't she beautiful?

What a chip

off the old block.

Blood runs thick.

Vengeance on a slow drip.

The knife slicing

the most sensitive skin.

Sipping vices and vengeance.

Dealers and deals.

Time never changes.

Loss may never heal.

The pair will

meet after midnight.

Mark my words, the thirst

will surely be satiated,

as it may forever require.

Vengeance on a slow drip.

Blood runs thick.

Brewed in pain.

The wound's

most thirsted desire.

Sorry, we're closed.

The door's unlocked.

There's no more way to lock it.

They're still behind the bar.

Can I help you?

I would like a drink.

Like I said, we're closed.

So I can't have a drink.

That's kind of

what closed means.

Look, dude,

I've had a rough day,

and I'm not looking forward

to going back to my

sh*thole apartment

and my lazy-a*s roommate.

One drink?

Fine.

Lock the door.

Oh.

Okay, sure.

One drink, okay?

You have until

the time I finish cleaning.

And how long is that?

Thirty minutes, give or take.

Perfect.

Tequila. Soda.

Two slices of lime.

Please.

We only have beer.

What the hell kind

of a place only has beer?

You ever heard of craft brewery?

Ugh, I hate beer.

If I believed in God, I would

think he had it out for me.

I suppose

you'll be leaving then.

I don't feel like

going anywhere else.

Okay, well, I need to clean up.

What's the strongest

beer you have?

Well, I've got a 13%

bourbon barrel-aged stout.

So it has bourbon in it.

Uh, not the way you're thinking.

I mean, it's more like...

It doesn't matter.

Just give me one.

Okay.

Nine bucks.

For this small-a*s beer?

It's high ABV.

Fine.

Uh, we don't want to take cards.

So listen, dude.

When I said that

I had a rough day,

my debit card was part of it.

It got compromised,

and they shut it down.

All right, well,

do you have the exact amount?

Because I don't have change.

Just keep the rest.

Enjoy your drink.

Thank you.

So, what's your name?

Satchel.

Sorry.

That's a bag.

Yeah.

I've never heard of

anyone named Satchel before.

You never heard

of Satchel Paige?

Who is that?

Baseball player.

I don't follow the sports ball.

Speaking of names, what's yours?

Myrtle.

Myrtle?

Wow, that's an old name.

Not too many people

name Myrtle these days.

Old name, old soul.

I bet.

So, are you the owner?

Nope.

So you just...

tend the bar, then?

Yeah.

What else do you do?

What do you mean?

You know what I mean.

No one just

bartends in this town.

What are you pursuing?

What do you really want to do?

I'm a writer.

I knew it. I just knew it.

No, you didn't.

-You're easy to read.

-How's that?

You have this

grumpy silence about you.

Grumpy silence?

All unsuccessful

writers have it.

So, let's hear about

this bad day of yours.

Can I get another drink?

If you're not finished cleaning.

You already paid for it.

Thank you.

You're good at

changing the subject.

You know, my mom always said

that if you had a bad day,

a good day was

right around the corner.

She was way too

positive for this life.

My bad luck always

busted three days straight.

All my life from

pigtails to bad smells.

My braid was always flooded.

So, day one,

my card gets compromised.

I don't carry any credit cards

due to my lack

of impulse control.

So I'm downtown drunk,

can't get an Uber.

I had to wait for two hours

for a bus,

fighting off druggies.

Day two, my quote unquote

partner tells me they can't give

me what I need anymore.

So, I'm starving, hot, vomiting,

so I call in sick from work.

Apparently, I've called out

one too many times

because today, day three,

I got fired.

Well, it's midnight.

I have to go?

Three days are up.

Yes. Yes, they are.

Nice caps.

Set you back a bit.

Mm. Last thing

I put on a credit card.

I'm still paying for them.

But really,

they pay for themselves.

So, not just for fashion, then?

No.

Not just fashion.

One of those people.

One of those people.

Sounds like you're judging.

Just stating a fact.

Once you finish up

your drink, get going.

Are you finished cleaning?

No.

So that's how it is.

The way of the world, sweetie.

Was it the way of

the world when I got infected?

I didn't ask for this.

I'm a survivor.

I could have died when my

college roommate attacked me.

She left me for dead.

Clearly, she was

new to this whole thing

or else

she would have bled me dry.

Maybe she was just trying to

make me her partner

and didn't know

how to broach the subject.

She was 21. I was 17.

I was just a f*cking kid,

and that b*tch stole

what could have been

a normal life away from me.

When I recovered,

the hunger was there.

I was marked by the CDC.

Kicked out of school

for an entire semester.

That's tragic.

You don't sound

very sympathetic.

So there was this guy.

He had an adorable daughter.

Beautiful wife.

Cute dog.

Successful career.

Nice house.

He took his cute dog out for

a walk in the park near

his house

like he does every evening.

But this evening was different.

It was his birthday.

And his wife was

waiting for him at home,

oiled up in her birthday suit

to celebrate.

There was one more thing

different about this evening.

This evening, there was

construction going on

in the park.

The park was closed.

So he had to walk his dog on

the other side of the street

to a neighborhood

he hardly ever goes.

Unfortunately for him,

an infected person was taking

the same route

at exactly the same time.

He and his dog were discovered

in the bushes next morning by

passing school children.

Their bodies were drained dry.

I wonder.

What was he thinking as

his life's blood was

being sucked out of him?

Wife?

Daughter?

His mother perhaps?

My God.

I wonder what he was

thinking as he lay dying.

Nothing he can do about it.

No more soccer games.

No more dinners.

No more walks with his cute dog.

They never found out who did it.

That's a tragedy.

It's against the law.

We have synthetic blood

we can buy now.

I would never do

something like that.

I mean, I'm not

saying it can't happen.

Pure blood is always the best,

but never without consent,

of course.

There are bad people everywhere.

I have to clean the bathroom.

It won't take me long.

Finish your drink.

Ah!

Sorry.

I didn't mean to startle you.

I didn't hear you walk in.

My mother always

said I had gentle feet.

Um, you need

to use the bathroom?

No, thank you.

You never told me

about your writing.

What are you writing, Satchel?

It's a novel.

I'm writing a novel.

What's your novel about?

Well, it's about an android spy

trying to be human

in a dystopian world.

Sounds interesting.

Yeah, I've been

working on it for years.

Just going in circles, really.

Life's kind of

like that, isn't it?

It can be.

Why are you really here, Myrtle?

Why do you think?

How'd you hear about me?

The streets talk.

Too much sometimes.

So do you have

pure blood or not?

I can smell if it's

synthetic, by the way.

Follow me.

Why didn't you ask me why

I was here when I first came in?

I like to vet my customers.

Makes me feel more comfortable

doing business with them.

You feel comfortable around me?

I feel comfortable around you.

In there.

Here?

This is for k*lling

my brother and his dog.

And hi, Myrtle.

Sometimes life can really suck.

Alas, dear friends, these

tales of death are complete.

The show is over.

The curtain has fallen.

But don't get too comfortable,

because death will come

a-callin'.

Each life a verse

in a chilling rhyme.

A fleeting breath,

a dance with time.

In the blink of an eye,

like a candle in the wind.

Your eternal flame

is so suddenly dim.

So heed the darkness,

the creeping chill.

For death is patient,

and come for you it will.

In the still of night,

with eyes aglow,

Death beckons softly,

it's time to go.