People fear many things; heights, clowns, spiders, snakes, death, the dark. But those who wish to overcome their fears, they first must face them.

Tyler as a child has always feared the dark; or rather what lurks inside the dark. He’s seen shadows, heard voices and seen eyes in the corner of his closet since he was 6 years old; and stopped seeing them a year ago. Now being 16 he’s ready to face...

Most people fear what they can't see or understand. I don't. People call me crazy but I call myself brave. One day I got a letter.

**Dear Shade,**

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**You have been chosen for a special slot in our training camp for courageous teens. Sign here**

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**__________________**

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**Sincerely, **

**CAMP DEATH’S MISTRESS, LADY LEGEND**

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Camp death? I signed without thinking. But I knew t...

The darkness called to her.

Why? No one knew, but she had felt its pull for as long as she could remember. Her parents told her she had been born with it.

Even as a baby, before she could walk or talk, she would seek out the dark. Much to their dismay.

But to her, it was simply who she was. Her whole life she had been seeking it out.

It didn’t scare her, it was a comfort. The darkness didn’t q...

Trees, bees, fleas, and a breeze

All in my backyard

Finches, witches, and some trash filled ditches

…Are also in my backyard

Maybe even some ghost but if I seen them then I’m toast

But, the worst of all…

The Boogie Man

Why couldn’t he be Batman or a Caveman?

Heck, even a minivan some teenager’s crashed into our ditch would be better.

I wish I could switch places with the van

Because then he wouldn...

In Portland’s underbelly,

where neon lights flicker like half-forgotten dreams,

they gather—

hunched shoulders and hollow eyes,

those who seek the shadows,

not out of fear,

but out of a need to feel something more

than the emptiness inside that daylight exposes.

The streets are veins,

pulsing with the life of the night,

in alleyways slick with rain,

where syringes glint under streetlights,

they s...

The gate quickly started to close, the creaking growing louder as it slid closed. Sorren, Jax and Taylor skidded to a stop, panting heavily. I brushed past them as my body felt a surge of energy, adrenaline, and exhilaration. Taylor reached out to grab me, failing miserably.

“Renji, don’t!!”

On instinct, I sprinted and slid under the metal just in time, the gate slamming into the ground. I quickl...

Humans fear the dark,

But what happens for those who seek it?

Does it make them less human,

Does it make them creatures?

Why do they like the dark?

Why do they seek it?

It’s not beautiful

It’s wickedly evident

That these people are not normal

We are not normal

We are the monsters that lurk in the shadows of steeples

Rejects that know their own worth as human’s equals

We may be different

We may be...

Louis was home alone for the first time. She had finally left her parents home. She loved her parents but they were strict and overprotective. Most people would be nervous but as night time fell and her parents were no where to be found, her stomach clentched a little and a bit of excitement cursed through her body. Out of habit she did what she had always done in her parents home, even though she...

Most people avoid the dark. They see imaginary ghosts and mystical creatures.

I suppose I should explain the type of darkness I am speaking of.

It’s the kind that settles in your closet once the sun sets. It’s the sort that makes you back away from the creepy shed. This darkness inflicts fear and pain.

But it is all a disguise, a defense. It protects what’s in the darkness.

What is in the darknes...

Deep within the heart of a dense, foreboding forest, stood an ancient mansion, its once-grand facade now weathered and decrepit. Shattered windows adorned its walls like hollow eyes, and creeping ivy draped over its crumbling bricks. Despite the ominous warnings whispered among the locals, a group of intrepid adventurers dared to venture inside, drawn by the allure of the unknown. Among them were ...