A Dark Encounter (SWC)

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My first supernatural encounter occurred when I was very young. I think I was about twelve at the time. Our town was located at a remote part of the city that had just started to undergo some development. There were a lot of bushes and hut around, and right after a brown dirty river there was a thick forest. It was rumored that evil spirits had their abode in that forest.

The elders warned us little children about going to that forest; hell we weren’t even supposed to go to the river, although sometimes we broke the rules and went there to catch some crabs and planktons. It was fun and we splashed water plus some times the girls I liked followed us and we had the most fun.

We went there one evening after school. My mom and dad were away at work and at that time it was just me and my sister—although years later I’d have three more siblings—well I went with my sister and my friends from the neighborhood. When we got to the river it was the most beautiful weather I’d ever seen. This really gentle breeze blew and there were little birds singing, and the atmosphere, it had this brilliant grayness that happened when night was about to come or rain about to fall.

We spent hours catching fishes and crabs and splashing water and my sister, who was always pouty, was also having fun. When it started to get dark I suggested we all return home, and we were just about to leave when one of the boys mentioned something about his sister being missing. I looked around and realized she really wasn’t there, so we all got to shouting and hollering her name and yet no answer came, and it was then one of the other girls said she’d mentioned something about going to the forest.

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The missing girl was called Glory. I had a very soft spot for her because she was sort of hyperactive and funny and she had this way of laughing that just seized your attention. I’d come to the river about three other times with her and every time she always nudged me about going into the forest with her. I’d say no, of course. Because I knew the forest wasn’t anything to mess with. Even though I’d never come in contact with any of the evil spirits myself, I’d seen herbalists and witches carrying all sort of things into the forest as sacrifices and oblations to the spirits. I mostly saw them with goats and fowls and palm oils and stuff, but rumor has it that at night they offered little children too. I remember the year before that two kids went missing.

Well when we confirmed Glory was really missing I knew there was no place else she could be. She had definitely gone into the evil forest. A couple children suggested that we go look for Glory in the evil forest. As expected most of us disagreed with that suggestion. I, for one, knew that my parents would be home soon, if they weren’t already, and I was in big trouble. And even if I wasn’t, the thought of being sacrificed at an alter, robed in white and cut into slices, probably burnt, was not very appealing to me. So I was definitely a part of the people that said no to going into the forest.

But two people went. Two brave boys I didn’t really know. My sister and I returned home, and on our way she made fun of me, saying I couldn’t go save a girl I like because I was a chicken; she said something about maybe I’d be perfect for the sacrifice after all. I paid her no mind, of course, because truly my mind was with Glory. I was so scared for her. I kept on wondering what was happening to her at that moment. Had she been captured by the spirits? Was she been tortured at the moment? What would her parents feel?

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When we got home it had almost gotten very dark. My sister was scared and kept saying it’s my fault and if our parents were to punish us, that’s what she would tell them—that it’s my fault. I didn’t even answer her, I couldn’t even hear her. My mind was with Glory.

At home on the front porch we saw our neighbor waiting for us. Apparently she’d been waiting all evening. Something had come up and mother and father had to travel to our village. They wouldn’t be back till the next day and she had been sent to take care of us.

I was relieved a bit, but my mind was still with Glory. So when it was around eight o clock, and we had eaten and everyone was settled, I snuck out of the house. I was going to go to Mary’s house to see if she’d returned home, but on the way I met the two boys who went inside the forest to find her earlier and they told me they were just returning. They searched and searched but they couldn’t find her. Her parents were freaking out already.

I was going to return home, truly. But my heart just couldn’t take it. So I headed to the river. Yes, I was going to the evil forest to find Glory.

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It had gotten so dark by the time I got to the forest, and when I went inside it got a million times darker. I couldn’t see a thing, but I could hear a lot. I heard crickets chirping and all sort of weird bird sounds the kind that happened in horror movies. A squirrel scurried across my feet and I swear my heart went out of me.

I had no idea where I was going or what I was doing, but I just kept going ahead. I’d barely walked fifty meters inside when I decided I couldn’t take it anymore. I turned back to be on my way out, then, boom! I heard a loud noise, then voices shouting and animals shrieking, next thing I know I saw Glory running furiously toward me. Run! Run! She shouted as she ran towards me. Run!

Boy did I run. I ran so fast I had no idea what was happening. And then the next I know was my leg hitting a stone and me falling and rolling on the darn floor. I picked myself up then, and I looked back and saw that Glory had also fallen. Without thinking I ran back and helped her up. Her leg was stuck under a vine, and as I tried to remove it, I saw a dark figure approaching.

I hurried as fast as I could, and I got it right on time. We started running again and behind us I could hear laughter and voices so dark, shouting, You can run as fast as you can, Children, but you can’t escape me, I will get you!

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We kept running like mad men, though, and even when we got to the river we ran and even when we got to town we ran. We finally stopped after we got to the palm tree across our house. It was there Glory told me about how she was drawn by a voice and wandered into the forest, and how when she got there she felt so dizzy and her head light ,and how she woke up in a cage with blood on the floor beside her and also blood in a gourd, and big flies buzzing all around.
She couldn’t catch her breath as she narrated, and I could tell the trauma was too much for her. I took her home, then, and her parents were all crying and happy at the same time. It was midnight already and almost everyone in the neighborhood had already gathered at Glory’s. My neighbor and my sister included.

We stayed with them for about two hours and then we returned home. I couldn’t sleep, though. I kept seeing the figure in my head, and hearing the dark laughter, and the birds cackling. And then the door to our room started to creak and move. And then this really big wind started to blow, and I saw our neighbor, who had come to watch us, come into the room. She said she’d been having a bad dream; that there’s an evil in the house. I couldn’t disagree, with everything happening, and then my sister woke up and we were all scared considerably.

Our neighbor called a pastor, and he prayed for us over the phone, and gave a bible verse for us to read aloud. We did, and we prayed, and while praying I slept off. The next morning everything was quite calm and the pastor came over and we all went to visit Glory. She was still shaken up but was doing pretty fine at the moment. I was pretty shaken up myself, but the prayers made me feel better. I definitely didn’t go anywhere near that forest again.

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Thanks for reading.