SENDER

2024 Barrett Winner

5th Place Hassan Almaliki

It’s a cold November night. Thousands of stars swallow the dark cloudless sky, watching over an industrial building sitting in a lone dense forest. A factory of some sort, a place seen as “off-limits” to the residents living nearby.

Inside, a deep corridor lined by humming fluorescent lights attracts our attention to a heavy metal door at the end. A sign posted in front of it clearly tries to deter anyone who comes across it. It reads “AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY”. It seems to be built to keep something inside. The intense humming of the fluorescents sting the ear stronger and stronger until-

WHAM! The door explodes open, the hinges screeching. A man in a construction vest and helmet staggers out terrified. Sweat races down his trembled face as he runs towards the end of the hall to an elevator.

As he arrives he spams the elevator’s button to get the doors to open, keeping an eye over his shoulders. Something or someone is after him. DING! Thank God, the doors of the elevators slide open. The man squeezes himself in at the first possible second.

He spams the elevator’s buttons again. He has a chance. There's not much he can do, but wait for the elevator to respond. All he could do is watch the end of the hall… is IT still after him?

The doors finally close. Is he safe? Why isn't the elevator moving? Something was wrong.

THUD! The lights in the elevator shut off abruptly. Only the faint red emergency lights glow on the man’s petrified face. A low rumble gurgling noise sinks the man’s stomach. A tall ugly shadow grows behind him.

Aaaaaaaah! Outside the elevator doors the man bangs and bangs now wanting to escape the elevator. The banging slows down until… silence. We moved away from the elevator that was once a place of safety ,but now has become a cage of death.

BARK! BARK! It's still the same cold night. We find ourselves in suburbia. Small one story houses line an empty street. You can see that awkward industrial building from here. It's too close to home. We find a house with a Pitbull dog chained to a pole outside. It wants something. Inside, we find our heroes playing pool with a couple of beers having a good time.

“Pass me another!” Kade demands a friend. “A couple more of those and you’ll find yourself under a tree knocked out cold.” David responds as he hands him a cold crisp Beer from a retro fridge. “You wanna be a part of the conversation?” Kade asks and he pops open the bottle of beer. He turns over to another friend who sits alone on a couch, watching them play pool. He obviously doesn't want to be there. “I’m good here.” Chris simply responds. “Chris you're not trying to be the odd one out here now are ya?” David asks as he gets into striking position. Ugh! Why do I even hang out with them? Chris thinks to himself. “Where do you keep the beers David?” Chris asks in a desperate way to escape that room. “We gots a fresh box out in the shed. Lemme get it for ya.” David responds.

“No, no! I dont wanna ruin your game.” Chris acts as he gets up to head out through the back door. The door takes him into a summer room. But it seems to be more of a storage room because to be honest, there is not much purpose if it's cold out.

Jesus, where's the light switch? Chris thinks to himself. His hands tap the wall looking for a light switch. They land on one. Flick. Nothing… Of course they don't work. Why would they? Just goes to show how inconsiderate David is when it comes to house care. There probably isn't even a bulb to turn on. Chris tries to make his way around the maze of stacked boxes in the dark until he eventually finds the main back door that takes him to the house’s garden.

As he steps out, the smell of skunk enters his breath. Or is that marijuana? Wouldn’t be his first call. His eyes land on the shed that sits across from the yard. It's made out some oak wood that looks like it's about ready to give up on holding itself. But it's a better idea to keep the beers cool outside than trying to stuff as much as you can in a small fridge I guess.

RUFF! RUFF! It’s David’s Pitbull. “God it's freezing out here!” He says to himself. Chris makes his way to the dog to pet him. “Why is he leaving you out here?” He asks the dog. He notices that his food bowl is flipped over and just about out of reach for the dog. Chris picks up the bowl and brings it closer to the dog. “Yeah that food isn't enough. Don't worry, I'll get you some more.” He assures the dog as he continues to stroke his head.

As Chris gets up to walk over to the shed, he stops dead in his tracks. What is it? The ugly orange glow of the street light in front of him frames a silhouette of a strange figure watching him from a distance. It is dark. Murky. Still. A strange guttural sound comes from the figure. It sounds like the one from that elevator. Its proportions seem… off.

Fear is full of him. The figure approaches him slowly. RUN BACK INSIDE! No. The shed is closer. Chris darts towards the shed and locks himself inside. Well that was a good idea… It's dark in there. A string brushes up against his face that dangles from the ceiling. Thank God, a light bulb. Chris flicks it open to see what's inside. There are beers. Boxes stacked upon each other. That doesn't matter. What matters is that unhuman looking thing that looks like it wants to kill him.

Chris scrambles to the shed’s window. He cups his hands to the glass and peers back out into the garden. Maybe I'm just seeing things! A gust of wind blows on week-old laundry fluttering on clothes lines. I can't see! The clothes abstract his view. Another gust of wind blows on the clothes, this time stronger. It now gives him a clear view of the yard. THAT FIGURE AGAIN! It just stands there. He's not seeing things… It's very real. But… it could just be a person wondering about? No. He's lying to himself.

Chris looks over to his left. A hunting rifle! I’ve never shot before. Chris thinks to himself. He probably doesn't even know how to work one. Chris yanks it out of its wall rack and retrieves a few ammo shells from a nearby work bench. He begins to load the weapon as fast as he can. But his trembling hands won't stay still enough to allow him to fill the slots! Chris keeps an eye on the shed’s door. Any second, IT will walk in. The outside winds create a ghostly howl noise. The shed’s unstable walls creaking!

Finally, Chris fully loads the dusty rifle and points it towards the door. The rifle trembles in his hands. He's ready for what's to come. Why isn't David’s dog barking anymore?

The naked dangling light bulb above him begins to hum a lot like the fluorescents in the factory. Chris notices, but keeps his eyes trained at the door. This sounds familiar… A shadowy figure slowly rises from behind him. Chris feels something breathing down his neck. He slowly turns, lowering his rifle… It’s not going to help!

Just then a high-pitched shrieking sound fills the shed.

Chris just stares. Paralyzed by fear.

The bulb above begins to hum louder and louder. The light, growing stronger and stronger.

We think the glass of the bulb will shatter but then-

The terrible shrieking abruptly stops.

The light returns to normal.

Now… The shed is empty.