The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

Ceruleon Station Number Five 
by Kendra Smart  

“The lights are a lie.”

That was the last transmission that came in the form of radio waves from Ceruleon Station Number Five, twenty five years ago.

Logan Davis had spent the formulative parts of her growing up staring into the glow of projector reels and the cling of newspaper smell hung to her clothes. She would spend hours in a haven of first hand accounts of those few who had been there at the station. Anything for the thrill of fresh thought and knowledge. 

Ceruleon Station Number Five had been established back in 1939 at the end of the Depression. Scientists of all fields had joined together to research the region where the galaxy showed its colors. 

There, they attempted to discover concrete evidence over the theories of the how’s and why’s of the light show that once begun split the night sky like a sharp edge through paper. 

But of the twenty six that went, only three came back. But those three did not come back whole, not in one piece. They came back fractured and mere facimilies of their former selves. Barely able to form constructive narratives of what had transpired…or even remember who they were for more than moments at a time.

Logan still woke in cold sweats from nightmares featuring those tapes. The hollow and glossed over eyes reached out beyond the years and followed her…for hours at a time, even after waking. 

But the call to know what happened was stronger than the fears. Her chestnut and honey layered, shoulder length hair was whipping in the wind answering the invitation to dance. Occasionally a strand or two would be aggressive in the wind and stung her face, almost afraid she would fall asleep. 

The ship’s Captain would take her to the dock, but that was as far as he would go. This arrangement had been fine with Logan. She was here to explore not cruise. She had packed her gear with care for this trip and in the process even gained a sponsor to help fund the journey and capture of new information. 

They wanted their credit of course but fame was not her goal. All her life she had wanted the answers the last transmission never gave. 

What was the lie?

Just what had happened? 

She made her way to Ceruleon Station Number Five and settled in. The night seemed to be doing the same. Logan looked out over the peaceful sunset as it made its trek across the surface of the water. 

Logan took her time setting the cameras up and making sure everything was fully charged up and working properly. She unpacked her PB & J and sat down with her eyes watching the sky. 

It happened in a flash once the sun was fully down, almost in the same breath as the dying light. 

The light took to the sky and lit it up in an aggressive and violent sudden vibrancy. The light seemed to pulse as it stretched further down the jagged line. But as the sky began to glow, Logan realized her focus should have been on the water, not the sky. 

The viscous, dripping substance was warmer than the scaled creature that had her ankle gripped. 

Logan’s last words were the same as those who had sought knowledge before her. Only the medium upon which her words were captured had been updated. A single hoarse and harsh whisper followed by sounds of distress and trouble, shuffling and thumps…all off screen as the cameras were not here for Logan…but the sky.

“The lights are a lie…”

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Fiction © Copyright Kendra Smart
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com

More from author Kendra Smart:

Just Emotions:
A Gothic Bite Magazine Anthology

A collection of poetry.

‘Just Emotions‘ is exactly as it states, a group of writers who had feelings they wanted to express in poem form. Inside, there are a range of emotions to explore. Each writer has given a bit of themselves to you, each in their own way.

We hope that you enjoy these writings and that among the poems you may find some thing you can identify with or relate to. Thank you for giving us this chance to open the catacombs and share with you.

Available on Amazon!