Operation: Blackout
A Halloween Story by Tommy

“Oh boy, telling spooky stories, are we?” says an otter coming into the room to meet his co-workers on break. It was Halloween night, and as per usual, there was a big traditional party in the community center. It took place throughout the building: The main upstairs lounge, the roller rink, ice rink, the basketball court, and the pool area. Unfortunately for the otter and his co-workers, it was primarily an all day affair for them. Luckily, they were given breaks and extra pay.

“Yeah, come on and sit down with us, Dusky.”

“Yeah hun, I’m sure you’re tired from being pushed around by kids all day.”

Dusky chuckled. “Yeah, you’re right.” He’d say as he’d sit down next to his friend Shinju, who he actually had a bit of a crush on.

“So, have you got anything spooky to tell?” asked one of his co-workers sitting on the opposite end of the table.

Dusky sat and thought about it for a good minute before giving a response. “Well, there was this one time..a year or two ago where we were hosting the Halloween Party and the entire community center blacked out.”

Shinju shuddered. She remembered that event.
“Oh yeah, that happened. It was super weird too.”

“So, Dusky and I were casually sitting in our assigned area, which is usually the pool. A kid..well, one of my daily students, actually, came up to me asking if the legend of the Lugarhoo was real.”

Dusky spoke up. “My eyes widened when he asked. If you don’t know, the Lugarhoo is an island myth. Known as a legendary shapeshifter who lurks about in the dark, and can change themselves into a different species from the torso down. It doesn’t just stop at that...it can also alter its size in an instant. He is known to lurk in the dark, dragging chains and a whip made from sticks, leaves..likely the bones of victims he’s kidnapped before. While it’s known most of his victims are children..I don’t think he stops at only kids. If you’re not careful, he could kidnap you with ease.”

[Shinju]
“I wasn’t sure what to really tell the kid..I truthfully had no idea. I simply went, ‘To be honest with you, I’m not all too sure. But, I’m sure you’ve got nothing to worry about.’”

[Dusky]
“Then..as if by pure coincidence..the lights went out. It was pitch black.”

[Shinju]
“I couldn’t see a thing..and neither could Dusky. All we heard was the panic of the guests flooding through our ears. I couldn’t pinpoint where anyone’s voices were coming from. It didn’t help that the entire room just echoes.”

[Dusky]
“A bunch of people turned on their flashlights to help us out. We helped everyone evacuate. We were all super confused. Was there a storm outside? Was the backup generator down? None of us knew.”

[Shinju]
“As soon as we got everyone who wasn’t already outside the building safe, there was only one solution. Going inside to figure this mess out. I was willing to go in...but not alone however.”

[Dusky]
“I decided to go in with her, as well as with our friend Ruffle. The community center at night..cold, empty, quiet, pitch black.. and somehow the fog machine was still running...felt like a scene out of Silent Hill. All you could hear was your own footsteps..that’s how quiet it was. I was thinking about the legend that the kid came to us about. I was baffled. There was no way these two things could be connected.”

“Like, it must’ve been pure coincidence. We were just trying to find the control panel..which, unfortunately, was in the basement. Everything seemed all fine as we walked through the emptiness. That was...until we heard chains falling.”

[Shinju]
“Then soon after that..as we both walked down the stairs...what sounded like a crack of a whip.”

“As Dusky and I got down to the bottom, we were in search of the cable box. That was most likely what caused this. But there was one light peering into our faces..a random flashlight that was left on the ground.”

[Dusky]
“It was strange. There couldn’t have been anyone else in the building..we were sure everyone was accounted for…”

“Turns out we were wrong. There was this eerie figure, standing not too far from the cable box…”

[Shinju]
“Neither of us could muster the strength to go closer. It stared right back at us both, ever so creepily. The top of the figure’s body looked so different from its bottom half.”

[Both]
“..and that was when we realized…”

“The Legend of the Lugarhoo is real.”

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Debating on submitting my stories like this because FA's dumb with their thumbnails <u>
But yeah, short little Halloween story I wrote for a challenge!!
Hope you guys like it! qwq

Dusky, Shinju and story © Me
Ruffle (mentioned) © kevdawg
Amaya and Alex (on the cover) © spitfire_musicislife