The time now is 3:03 am.

Upon thy throne sits a demonic statue.

His lifeless eyes… locked with mine…

A feeling of despair beckons my name.

For this is the hour I knew… my time has come.

Holding his malevolent and wickedness high perched are the twins of judgment.

Judging… whispering to themselves about what they see in front of them.

As if they know the very soul they mock, they fiendishly giggle…

Watching… judging…

One sees the ambitions and determination… the other sees the sorrow and the guilt.

Whatever shall I do?

As I’m trapped in paralysis, forced to stand face to face with these Malphas.

The king shares a glimpse into a timeline… as my soul is thrust into an eternal realm…

Where those I’ve done wrong roar with malice…

They’re seeking revenge.

Armed with knives, hammers, swords, pitchforks, and other bludgeoning objects, I feel the warmth of death’s welcoming embrace down my leg.

Above is the king, his body transparently hovers over us…

Fingers contorting as if they’re breaking, snapping in and out of positions, resembling a cartoonish accordion…

Giving him the appearance as if he were conducting a puppet show.

And he was.

I was his puppet.

Lost and suspended in time, still remembering, my body remains motionless, manikin-like.

This was King Malphas’ way of telling me to change.

Upon a single blink, I’m sling shotted into another realm…

But this time…

A feeling of jubilation and a sense of being washed over me.

As if a cool breeze on a warm summer day stripped the worries from within.

On a stage, a man with the resemblance of a Slenderman walks to the podium.

He’s holding an award of some sort, and in the audience are other faceless faces.

They’re cheering, and I can feel how proud they are of the man.

What’s this warm feeling on my cheek?

Why is my vision going blurry?

I look down and a small puddle forms…

This was the sadness I never wanted to face.

The fear I never wanted to accept.

For this was something I never had as a child.

And what I’ve longed for since being abandoned by my family.

Brothers taken away… now cheering me on…

A mother who finally accepts me being who I’ve always been...

A father who is proud of what he’s created…

With his friends, who always knew he would be something great.

I fall to my knees…

The twins start to sing a cheerfully mocking tune.
“La, La, Lala, La, La, Lala, La.”

As they danced, circling me like a pair of buzzards ready to pick the flesh off a rotting carcass.

All of a sudden, they stop, frozen in place.

The realm around me breaks piece by piece until nothing but darkness swallows my worn soul.

I open my eyes, and I see the three looking back at me.
”WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME!” I yell at the motionless malpha figures.

I’m only met with the sound of my thoughts, replaying the experiences of the realms.

Was this my wake-up call

…To choose to be a better me? …

…Or continue on the same path of destruction and desolation I was born in? …

…Should I admit I was wrong and face my fears? …

…The fear of success… abandonment… and betrayal?…

It’s hard to trust and love another soul when all you’ve known were demons.

Lying, deceitful, manipulative, vindictive, and vile angles of hell.

The feeling of undeserving dwells deep in my gut…

But I want it… I need it… my essence yearns for the acknowledgement of success.

To not only prove others wrong… but to prove to myself that I can.

I finally understood what these plague plushies were telling me.

Change now or face hell, no other choice.

I stare at the figures and mutter in a low whispering tone… “I know…”

This was the warning.

With my head heavy, my body weak, I sluggishly head off to bed…

When I noticed the digital clock… the time now was 3:04 am.

There, on the floor, I collapse.

Holy cow!

Talk about an adventure of heartache and fear!

But it does build character. No need to worry about the man in the story.

He woke up feeling like a million bucks in the morning.

But what did you guys think?

What did you like most about the story? And what did you hate?