More "City of Pillars" Evil Has Arrived!

More “City of Pillars” Evil Has Arrived!

April 9th, 2008

Wow. After so many busy weeks, I’ve finally gotten back into the swing of writing, and that means that the fifth chapter of “City of Pillars” is online! Here’s a sample:

“The world did not end with the destruction of Manhattan,” the bored old general in charge of Project Reclaim Manhattan had said to close the pre-tour briefing. “America did not end with the destruction of Manhattan. Not even New York City ended, though it was grievously wounded. Despite the incredible loss of lives and property on September 11, the Azifist mission to wake the Great Old Ones did not, after all, succeed. Great Cthulhu still sleeps. Irem, the so-called ‘Nameless City,’ today is secure under Coalition forces. With the loss of their capitol and their leadership, the Cthulhu cultists have been driven underground like rats; they will be hunted down one by one, if necessary, and made to pay for their crimes against Humanity. The Great Traitor, George W. Bush, is no more and his Xinaian cabal has been driven back to K’n-Yan to face prosecution by their own people. As President Obama recently stated, ‘Now is not the time to think of all the terrible things that have passed, but of the fruitful, bountiful days that are just now beginning. ’ The Revised Manhattan Rebirth Initiative is both a practical and symbolic example of our nation’s willful resilience. Manhattan will someday rise again; the Five Boroughs will be complete once more. So remember, all of you: what you will see today is going to be disturbing. But you must not dwell on the sundered past. Look beyond the wreckage to the future: Manhattan reborn like a phoenix from the ashes. The clean-up has, for all intents and purposes, only just begun. It will take many more years. But never forget: this is a time of beginnings. And the rebirth of not only New York City but of the United States begins here.”

It was obvious from the way that he read the speech from a typescript and never once looked up at the audience that he didn’t believe a word he was saying. Desultory applause followed him off the podium and out the back door. We were divided up into groups, given packets of information containing “all we needed to know” about the Project and plastic protective overalls to wear over our clothing, then we were hustled out to the waiting choppers. Once I was seated and strapped down, I closed my eyes and listened to the speeding beat of the rotors, trying to think of nothing but the whup-whup-whup of metal slicing air. The helicopter lifted off so smoothly I didn’t even know we were off the ground until Greg leaned over to me and muttered: “Look at that. Dave. Dave. Look.”

See what I did there? It’s horror plus witty, contemporary political commentary! Hell, y’all might as well start calling me The Bill Maher of Lovecraftian Fiction!*

*Please, don’t. My head is big enough already.

By Derek C. F. Pegritz on April 9th, 2008 | Scategory: Footnotes, Good Writin', Horror |