by Julian Fuentes
“Greeting. I am Damon Alburn. Tonight on Found Footage. We recently discovered a mysterious VHS tape where the Maryway Hotel was once located. Rumors spread about the hotel, some saying it’s haunted by mass-murderer and owner of the hotel Scroingle McDoingle.” The image of Scroingle is a weird blob with two legs wearing a mini cowboy hat and mustache. Damon takes a gander at the image. “Uh. I don’t, wh? — What the fuck is this? Is this real?” Small mutters are heard within the background. “IT IS?”
Damon groans but continues anyway. “Scroingle would lead unsuspecting guests up to their “room” only to murder them. It is alleged that Scroingle has murdered over 300,000 people. How he did this, god knows! But man, 300,000! You think people would realize, oh. I dunno. Stop going to the Hotel where people AIt mysteriously appeared the day after the hotel vanished!”
Damon laughs to himself. “What a bunch of morons. This makes no sense. Whatever. I don’t care. For the first time ever, you get to see what dark secrets this tape beholds. I will remain silent for the viewing experience. You might find what you see as disturbing. Please view at your own risk.”
It’s static clears from the television after the tape is inserted. Now, the real story begins. “Hello! I say, I say ello out there! To those watching this… internet youchoob video. My name is Clinton and I’m here with me wife Mary — say hello Mary!”
Mary croaks in response. “Hello…”
“Oh yes! Me and the wife are at this load of tosh called the Maryway Hotel! Yes, that very same place where that — er, uh, kerfuffle with that Scroingle guy.” Clinton chatters.
May chimes in. “Who dear?…”
Clinton is quick to answer. “Oh! He’s that bloke who murdered ova 300,000 people in this very same building, bloody hell that’s alot. Must have been an odd looking fellow that one. Thankfully, his rain came to an end after he said DAMN really loud in 1843 and proceeded to explode into a million pieces on the spot!”
“Ah! Now I remember! You’ve got my noggin’ joggin! Let that be a lesson to you youngins watchin’! If you — If lousy a cuss word you will EXPLODE INTO A MILLION PIECES AND DIE.” Mary adds on as Clinton just stares at Mary. Completely flabbergasted. “M-mn…Uh…Well then love…” Clinton clicks his tongue. “Let’s just…continue shall we?”
“Mm, hh-hm, nynesss.” Mary growls in a devious manner.
Clinton proceeds to clap his hands. “Now then! We have entered this hotel, and I gotta say…this place is rank! Ugh! Cover your nose Mary.”
“Oh my giddy aunt, it smells like Camden the frickin’ place.” Mary closes her nostrils from the horrid scent — gazing at the place surrounding her. “Just look at the place! It’s like it’s being held together out of sheer will to spite god.”
THUD! BANG! The sounds of wood and dirt are head from the roof as it crashes right onto poor Clinton. “YOWCH! Some wood just fell on top of me!”
“Mary chuckles to herself. “Oh dear, whatever shall I do with you.”
“What? What?” Clinton gawks.
All Mary can do is smile as she wipes dirt off Clinton. “Nothing Clinton. Let’s look around shall we?”
Clinton holds her hand towards Mary and holds it for a few seconds. He smiles. “Yeah.”
Currently within the front lobby, they head into what remains of the kitchen. All that’s left is various pots and pans on the floor, along with what seems to be a stove. Clinton snickers. “Ay love, seems like we’re back home early. Am I right?”
Mary just stares at Micheal in disgust.
“If you insult my kitchen one more time I’m driving back home and leaving you here.”
“YesMary.SorryMarry.” Micheal yelps.
“AND ANOTHER THING! Mary says, still on Micheal’s case..
With Clinton being in a situation like this before, he changes the subject to avoid the inevitable mouthful. “So there’s nothing interesting going on in the kitchen. No spirits, the little spirit spher-”
“NO, NO, NO! DON’T YOU CHANGE THE SUBJECT WHILE I’M TALKING! YOU ALWAYS DO THIS!” Mary hollers.
Clinton, like the mad man he is, keeps on going. “With this in mind, my wife and I are going to check upstairs to see if there’s any action up there!”
“CLINTON! CLINTON! DON’T YOU IGNORE ME BACK THERE I KNOEW YOU CAN HEAR ME!” Mary growls, now quite peeved.
The old man heads straight for the stairs like he’s running for his life. “Welp you guys we’re at the stairs and who knows what’s up there I mean-”
“GRAAAH!” Mary roars and smacks the daylights out of Micheal.
“No! No! Please! I said I’m sorry, I said I’m sorry PLEASE!”
“And you better be!” Mary stops hitting Clinton and start filming again. Clinton grumbles underneath his breath as his wife walks a distance away. “White women…”
“Now we’re uh — near the upstairs. Not much going on.” Clinton clicks his tongue, rubbing the small bruise on his face. “Just…near the stairs.” Micheal was starting to second-guess coming here. Was it really worth driving four hours just to get yelled at? Was it really worth driving this long to a where alleged murders happened? No time for that. Finally, FINALLY — something interesting happens. The very same entrance has something quite…the sight. Two eyes glow from the doorstep — hawking Clinton and Mary down. Who do they belong to? Doesn’t matter at the moment. While Mary stares in terror. Clinton grins like a child on Christmas day.
“Oh my giddy aunt! That could be a specter! Focus on me Mary!”
Clinton feverishly heads up the stairs.
“Waitaminute. Don’t wanna scare the thing off, heh-heh.”
So he slowly heads up the stairs. He whispers.
“Up here is where beds for people stopping by would stay. This was also their last stop! For Scroingle would bring these people here to kill them, then bury their bodies under the building. This is where their souls remain as they haunt their final resting place. Some say you can still hear them wail, as they aimlessly wander the small building. Here, we might have one right now.”
Mary is absolutely terrified, “Things got big ol’ eyes. I-It just won’t stop staring! Bother!”
“Relax Mary, nothing will hurt you with me by your side.”
Same thing couldn’t be said for Clinton. Each step he took made the already sorry state of the stairs creak louder and louder, a wail of pain. Clinton whisper-yells.
“Alrighty then! Spirit! If you can hear us, say somethin’ will ya?”
Not a word is uttered. It’s just continues to stare.
“Come on! I’ve got people watching at home on their tellys by the time we get back! If you can’t say a word, why not gives us a sign you can hear?”
Not a smart move on Clinton’s part. The eyes look below Clinton as he takes on final step.
“Fall.”
CRASH! The step before him proceeds to crumble as if it was paper. Mary dashes upstairs to help free her husband.
“You saw that right? You saw that?! I know you saw that! Did you get in on film Mary?”
“Yes dear, let’s get you cleaned up first.”
“Oh yes! Right, right! Thank god we got that on film.”
Mary finally gets Clinton out of the wooden step. “Let’s get going dear. I think this is good enough footage.”
Clinton is quite surprised with Mary’s response. “Are you sure? What if it wasn’t a ghost? Maybe it could’ve been a crook or some prankster messing with us.”
While that wasn’t something Mary wanted to hear, Clinton had a point. “Ugh. I hate when you’re right. But you go in front of me!”
“Will do Mary. Now folks! Just to make sure those eyes weren’t some random stranger, we are going INSIDE the building. Remember lads, upstairs is where Scroingle would kill his victims in this exact same room! If there’s anything spooky going on — it’s up here.”
Clinton takes his first step up the stairs again, only to immediately trip as he tumbles down and falls onto his wife. We hear variant laughs throughout the building. “Mary! You heard that too!”
Mary doesn’t care, rather she is more annoyed. “If you don’t pick yourself up I’m changing my mind about deciding to stay.”
Clinton quickly picks himself up. “Yes Dear! Righto! Now. Apologies for that blunder…Heh-heh..but! Upstairs we go…again…”
The exact same thing happens. Like a moth to a flame Clinton manages to trip and fall for the second time. Howls of laughter can be heard throughout the building. “There it is again! Mary I’m not crazy I KNOW you hear them!”
Mary snarled back. “If you’re purposely falling just to get these spirits to interact, I’m heading out the door you Eejit!”
“Oh yes Mary! I love having to fall over like an oaf! My master plan is to hit the casket before I turn 70 to become a ghost myself! Won’t that be convincing evidence?”
Mary just rolls her eyes. “Oh Clinton…You and your excuses…”
A deafening silence fills the room. Clinton lifts himself up in a matter of seconds.
“You know what? Let’s just drop it. You win. I don’t wanna argue over nothing.”
Mary snaps back. “Yeah, let’s stop!”
Gary just sighs. “Fine. Have the last word, I don’t care.”
“Uh. Yeah. BYE.” Mary grunts.
With a roll of his eyes, Clinton continues where he left off. “Okay, Now we’re heading up stairs. Me and Mary…are going upstairs for real this time!”
“Now that we’re hear…we can see some beds. Ay, three on the left and three on the right. Look Mary! Each bed is accompanied by a small cabinet for clothes. How quaint! There’s also some cabinets with little candle tops.”
“Clinton, look! Here’s one! Strange…looks brand new…”
Clinton examines the strange candle. He holds up the candle with his two fingers.
“How peculiar…What the!?”
Suddenly, the candle lights itself. Clinton is caught off guard, dropping the small little candle like it was nothing. All light from the room vanishes. The two are now at the hand of the spirits. SMASH! THUD! Various furniture getting thrown around the room! Screams of hundreds, THOUSANDS of people are heard — shrieking through the wall.
Clinton shouts at the top of his lungs. “MARY! DUCK AND COVER! KEEP THE FILM ROLLING!”
She grips the camera with her life. “OOOH SPIRITS PLEASE DON’T TAKE ME! I’M ONLY SIXTY SEVEN!”
It seems the spirits have heard Mary’s request. For thhe lights on the camera finally turn back on. But what the two see is shocking.
Clinton utters what few words he can think of on the spot. “M-Mary? Y-you taking a gander at—?”
“Y-yes dear.” She responds sheepishly.
“T-the beds…t-the cabinets…t-the candles…all floating around us!” Mary is spooked out of her mind. “Clinton…they’re spinning around us…Clinton…”
All Clinton can do is hold Mary beside him and nod. “Y-yes Mary.”
“Clinton! They keep getting faster! MAKE IT STOP!”
A meek response is all Clinton can murmur. “I don’t think I can Mary…” SMASH! Everything finally falls into the ground. Things smash into the ground as candles and beds break into a million pieces. The camera light shifts towards the wall. It’s as if the light is alluring them to gaze upon the wall. The two stare.
“Mary, if something happens — just know I love you.”
“I love you too Clinton.” Mary gets close to Clinton.
The sudden wails and screams of hundreds return to warn the two. They shout and chant. “LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY! HE IS COMING! THE MAN WHO TOOK OUR LIVES LONG AGO! HIDE! LEAVE! LEAVE! NEVER COME BACK!”
But the two refuse.
Spirits screams reach their crushendo, getting so loud and ear-piercing until it finally stops. The spirits croak their final sound. “He’s here.”
The moment of truth. The ghost of Scroingle emerges from the wall.
Scroingle speaks from the dead. “Oooh I’m a ghost or some shit I’m really scary and evil or something idk ah ha ha. This is all real lol.”
Mary just stares at Scroingle. “Did he, did he just fucking swear?”
Clinton screams. “MARY NO-“
KABOOM! The Mary bursts into an explosive flame as the footage is abruptly cut off. Damon finally speaks, his face is just blank with a bit a throw up on him. “W-well then! Welcome back everyone. As we can see, that tape was. Well…terrifying. The two Clintons were never seen again after this. Truly tragic end for the two lovers. Join us next week as we review the footage of the Loch Ness’ Monster long lost son! Greg.”
Damon proceeds to cough. “Acks! Whoo! I’m sorry, excuse me. But if you want more content like this off air, check out my Youtube channel ThatSpecterSkeptic — and make sure you like and subscribe! THANKS FOR WATCHING!”
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