The Procession

On a still and silent night, a young boy is restless in his bed. He cannot sleep. Though the trickling recycling of water in his aquarium usually succeeded in lulling him to such a state, tonight is the exception for when it cannot. Something unknown keeps him away from a peaceful slumber.

He threw the covers off from himself and sat up. As he reached for his glass of water, something compelled him to look outside his window into the dark and lonely street. Not a minute later something caught his eye. To his left, cutting through the night came a stream of lights of a most unusual glow. They seemed to grow brighter, larger as their source approached. And as the boy looked on, what projected those lights soon appeared. A line of black cars crept slowly into view. At its head was a strange vehicle that the boy had never seen before. Its front was like the rest, but its back was long, sleek and carried on each side lights of an even more mysterious origin than the ones that had preceded them. They appeared as though they were lanterns. Their lights ebbed and flowed, as if breathing in the very void of night. Behind these lanterns there were narrow, vertical windows that seemed almost black in color. However, as the streetlights revealed them, they also revealed a construction of some strange sorts inside the vehicle’s elongated tail. A seemingly strange and frightening cargo lay inside. What mysterious lot would such an odd vehicle be carrying, and at this time of night?

But that wasn’t all.

Immediately behind the leading car, was another one. It was equally strange and altogether unique. Like the car ahead of it, it too was black and sleek, with a front like the other, black and polished. Its grill, too, resembled the hideous mouth and teeth of a grinning monster’s, and its fender, like the grill, was of prominent chrome. Its back, however, was open and resembled the bed of a truck. It wasn’t empty, though. It was filled with what appeared to be flowers. But with the gathering mist that came in with the line of cars, it was hard to tell. They appeared, however, to be lilies. Hundreds of them. They glistened and almost seemed to move when touched by this mist. They were beautiful. Following this one came a line of black sedans. As the boy looked on, the front car suddenly stopped and the rest followed suit. Though the mist had concealed all but the frames of these vehicles, the boy heard several doors open and slam shut. About a second later, the mist cleared enough to see what had gotten out. Several small, strange creatures from the first were looking up at him. They were but silhouettes in the night. The light did not reach them, though they were under the streetlights. Still, all the lights revealed were glimpses of eyes, which reflected and flashed in those sunken sockets of theirs. The vehicle behind the head one, too, was now vacant of occupants. Two beings of ghastly design stood out beside the doorways. Two skeletons dressed in suits looked up at the boy, who now stared back, frozen with fright. Their eyes too, lay in hollow sockets, and flashed and glowed as they reflected the streetlights. The occupants in the sedan stayed inside the vehicles. They now could be seen as clearly as the others. They too were skeletons, some in suits, and others in dresses. And others were smaller, as if resembling children. The boy was too frightened to move, to scream, to cry.

“Honey, why are you up?” He jumped and nearly fell off his bed. His mother came over to him to see what was the matter.

“Are you okay,” she asked.

He nodded.

After a few moments he collected himself.

“What are you doing up so late? It’s nearly 2 a.m.”

“I, I couldn’t sleep. I saw something outside. On the street.” He pointed to the window.

“What kind of thing, honey,” his mother asked.

“Something scary.”

“Well, it was probably just a bad dream.”

“Look out the window. Look at the street.” He pointed once more.

“Okay. If it makes you feel better.”

She walked up to the window and peered outside. After a few moments, she looked back at her son.

“Come take a look, hon.”

He shook his head.

“It’s okay. I’ll protect you,” she reassured.

Hesitantly, he walked over to her and he slowly peeked over the sill and out into the street.

Nothing.

No cars, no mist, and none of its horrific occupants.

Just then the phone rang.

“I wonder who’s calling at this time,” his mother muttered to herself. The phone persisted and she went off to answer it. On the other end of the line was the hospital calling to inform her that her father had just passed away.

The next morning the boy was playing outside in his yard when something out on the street caught his eye. When he went up to it, he froze in horror. There, on the street was a lily like he had seen in the back of the flower car just last night. And in the same way that they had glistened under the street light, this one did under the sun’s.

Later that week the funeral came. As the boy stood quietly in the presence of his mother and other mourners watching the pallbearers approach with his grandfather’s coffin, he shivered and tried to hold composure as terror took over. For the pallbearers who approached them looked very much like the skeletons he had seen not a week before.

END