Horror Archives - Page 2 of 3 - James Kirst Short Story and Novel Blog

Short Story Saturday: Only Could Be More Heartwarming Set in Philadelphia

Posted on July 13, 2019December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled Only Could Be More Heartwarming Set in Philadelphia. Please enjoy.

With a loud bang, splinters flew across the room. A wave of armored men wearing helmets and masks flooded the room with the ferocity of water through a hole in a broken dam. Their assault rifles pointed at their intended target. The flashlights mounted onto the firearms provided the room its only illumination save the luminescent glow of a laptop that resided atop a crudely made wooden table.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: Only Could Be More Heartwarming Set in Philadelphia”

Short Story Saturday: This Night Did Not Go As Planned

Posted on July 6, 2019December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled This Night Did Not Go As Planned. Please enjoy.

The young man flushed the toilet. Normally an innocuous and mundane action but tonight it was the denouement of a night filled with terror.

It started innocently enough. Greg fiddled around with an object in his pocket as he sat on his girlfriend’s couch. He had never visited before. All their interactions had either been at his small studio apartment or in public and he was certainly surprised to learn that she lived in a mansion.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: This Night Did Not Go As Planned”

Short Story Saturday: A Cabin in Winter

Posted on May 11, 2019December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled A Cabin in Winter. Please enjoy.

It is the dead of winter. Snow descends slowly and the bitter cold can be felt even through the man’s many layers of furs. His head feels frozen despite the raccoon skin hat covering it. The thermal mask he scavenged from one of a multitude of putrefying bonds that litter the mountain trail does little to keep him warm as well. In his hands is a giant ax. On his back are a rifle and a rucksack.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: A Cabin in Winter”

Short Story Saturday: The Price of Victory

Posted on March 23, 2019December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled The Price of Victory. Loosely inspired by this prompt: https://www.writersdigest.com/prompts/soccer-threat. Please enjoy.

It was an insult. A travesty. An outrage. To do such a thing to the world’s greatest goalkeeper, Juan Carlos Gabriel Martinez was unforgivable. They were bluffing. They must have been. The very gall, the very cheek of merely threatening to conduct such a heinous crime against an unparalleled star was a slap in the face. To actually go through with it was inconceivable.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: The Price of Victory”

Short Story Saturday: The Leggy Mistress of The Waterfall

Posted on March 16, 2019December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled The Leggy Mistress of the Waterfall. Please enjoy.

He didn’t go there looking for love. Rather, he was only there for a stiff drink after a hard day’s work at the Northwest Logging Company. The Waterfall Bar wasn’t even his usual haunt. Never before had he been somewhere that emanated refinement and class. Firefly lights practically danced from above brightening the otherwise dark, smoky atmosphere reminiscent of a cigar lounge. Fittingly, classical music wafted in the air setting an almost melancholy yet comfortable mood. It was certainly a far cry from what demarcated his typical drinking establishment with its flickering fluorescent lights and heavy metal and rap blaring oppressively. At least, that was the kind of music that typically played until he and his friends arrived.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: The Leggy Mistress of The Waterfall”

Short Story Saturday: Love is Sacrifice

Posted on February 9, 2019December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled Love is Sacrifice. Please enjoy.

The rain always makes me nostalgic. It reminds me of Joelle Iphigenia, the only woman I ever truly loved.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: Love is Sacrifice”

Short Story Saturday: The Journey

Posted on January 19, 2019December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! Back on schedule this week. Hat tip to my father for giving me the prompt for this story. As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled The Journey. Please enjoy.

A faint bit of moonlight poked through the dark clouds and thicket of tree branches dangling overhead and served to illuminate my path. As I tenuously trekked, I wrapped my arms around my coat. It was not a response to the cold, though the wind had picked up and the temperature had dropped significantly as the night approached the witching hour. No, it was due to the fear induced by my hostile surroundings.

Wolves inhabited those coppices. Their howls were barely audible at first but had grown noticeably louder and angrier. They were savage. Merciless. Cruel. They would not hesitate to eat me alive. Those beasts had indeed claimed many a traveler. Only the most brave or foolhardy ever dared to walk that trail. There was no alternative, though. It was the only time when I could meet her. I needed to see her again.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: The Journey”

Short Story Saturday: The Inevitable

Posted on January 5, 2019December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled The Inevitable. Please enjoy.

It was late, much later than you’d expect a therapist’s office to be open. She was only there because she had lost track of time having spent much of the night going over a patient’s mental health records. The therapist didn’t even notice when the receptionist, the staff, and even the cleaning had finished their duties and departed. Her aspiration to help a troubled and potentially dangerous patient, for she believed she was the only one who could, had superseded all other desires. Succumbing to her innate benevolence would shortly prove to be a mistake.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: The Inevitable”

Short Story Saturday: Why You Never Celebrate in a Weird Bar

Posted on December 29, 2018December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled Why You Never Celebrate in a Weird Bar. Please enjoy.

Waking up after a bender is never a fun thing but you can get used to anything if it’s done long enough. After a while, dealing with dry mouth and nausea became as part of the morning routine as wiping the crud out of your eyes. At least, that’s my excuse as to why I never bothered giving up staying up late drinking at random dive bars, but my latest experience and this sudden pain in my chest is beginning to change my mind. To think, it all happened this morning. Allow me to explain.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: Why You Never Celebrate in a Weird Bar”

Short Story Saturday: Non Morieris in Somnis Memorias

Posted on December 15, 2018December 3, 2023 by jkirst

Hello everyone! As part of Short Story Saturday, I have posted another short story, this one entitled Non Morieris in Somnis Memorias. Please enjoy.

I’m walking through immaculate streets and surrounded by large and luxurious homes, monuments of better days. This place was once vibrant and full of life, now sterile, and empty except for the leaves blowing in the wind. A looming clock tower stands in the center of town. Its ticking hands reverberate inside my skull each passing step perpetually reminding me of the inexorable nature of time.

I am exhausted. Mentally. Physical fatigue is impossible here.

Continue reading “Short Story Saturday: Non Morieris in Somnis Memorias”