The Haunted Traveler Vol 1 Issue 2

95
Hole.>
As the heads began to grow, they appeared
to be three-dimensional. 3D, cool, he thought, this is
great software. They grew to the size of the screen
and then appeared to begin to bulge outward. Damn,
Achermann thought, that’s really cool 3D; I gotta
crack this. Achermann tried to reach for his mouse but
discovered that his hands and arms would not move.
He tried to stand up but his legs would not move. He
tried to cry out, but his head and lips would not move.
He watched as the 3D dogs’ heads extended out from
each of the screens. The heads seemed to be right in
front of his nose. Achermann smelled phosphorus. My
board’s burning, he thought; I have to turn this thing
off. But he could not move as the dark red nostrils
of the dogs’ faces sniffed him. He could not move or
speak as the three mouths opened in unison; wider and
wider.
Molly Achermann entered her son’s self-styled
man cave with his chips. She hated the basement. It
smelled of sweat and grime and other things and she
did not like it. $80,000 for a college degree and the
boy sits in the dark in the basement and surfs for porn,
she thought disgustedly.
She looked around the room. He wasn’t there.
Bastard, she thought. Spoiled bastard. Yelling at me
for chips and then leaving. At least he’s out of the
house hopefully she thought. She looked at the three
screens on his desk and cringed. What is that boy getting
into now. The background on each screen was a
human, flayed skinless and nailed to an upside down
cross in a burning circle. He appeared to be screaming.