Black Clouds Gather
Warning: This story contains things that you wouldn’t want your little siblings reading, like a scene of virgin sacrifice (of an entirely different kind)
Gwen couldn’t believe it. A guy actually asked her out on a date. And not just any guy, but the star football player at her high school. She shook out of nervousness. What am I gonna wear? And what would he see in a skinny albino girl like me? Maybe he’s only dating me because I’m a Dunwich. I have a lot of money. She glanced at the nice boy. He sat on a bench in the park, listening to music on his Walkman. Cody. So cute. I still can’t believe he asked me out. Where are we going? Cody turned in her direction. “Oh, hi, Gwen,” Cody said. “Still thinking about going out tonight? There’s a party I’d like to take you to.”
Gwen shuddered in joy. “Really? Where?”
“I’ll be at your house tonight,” Cody said before leaving. Gwen walked out of the park after adjusting her blue polo shirt. She scanned the surroundings before cursing her poor vision. She made her way through the town’s maze of sidewalks to a mansion on the hill. She walked up to the door and knocked. A gaunt woman with short-cropped dark hair and brown eyes in her late thirties answered the door.
“Come inside,” she said. “Before the sun goes down.” Gwen rushed inside and glanced at the clock. Two O’ Clock. Two and a half-hours till the party. She ran upstairs, smiling. Her mother, on the other hand, paced around the living room, worried about the date on the calendar. It was the first day of winter. And in the town of Brookhaven, winter solstice was a holiday of a creepy local cult.

Gwen paid no heed to local traditions. The dark rites practiced by the cult during solstice were merely superstition to her. Her mind was buzzing with thoughts of joining the popular crowd at Brookhaven High. She was finally invited to a party hosted by all the popular people. Yes! I’ll be in the in-crowd! I’m not the ugly albino girl anymore.

She shook out of nervousness for the next two and half hours, every now and then turning to her vast collection of romance novels to quell the jitters. She watched the hands on her alarm clock move ever closer to the very hour. A while later, she heard the door open and her father start a conversation with a familiar young man. Cody? He’s early. Gwen walked downstairs. Her father, a gruff man in rather scruffy clothes, turned to face his only child.
“Gwen, you know that today is Solstice,” he said. “And that cult’s looking for a virgin to sacrifice to their dark god.” Gwen groaned, showing her disdain for this “old wives’ tale”. “Make sure you’re safe and within sight.” Gwen and Cody made their way out of Dunwich Manor and to Cody’s black station wagon.
“So, um, where exactly are we going?” Gwen asked, nervous.
“I know a good place on Blackburn Hill,” Cody replied. Gwen scanned her mind for references to Blackburn Hill. She asked herself why he’d take her to someplace frequented by a bunch of psychotic cultists. “And don’t worry, I’ll protect you from those sick cultists.” Cody shoved the key in the ignition and drove off. Blackburn hill was across town. Gwen glanced at the bare trees and wondered what a building was doing on an otherwise undeveloped hill. The building had no windows, only a door. Cody parked in front of the strange structure and exited the car. He walked over and unlocked Gwen’s side of the car. Gwen got out and walked toward the building. She pushed open the door, not knowing what to expect. Cody did not follow her, much to her confusion.
Gwen flipped on the light, revealing what looked more like a temple to a pagan god than any place teenagers would normally be seen in. An altar big enough for an average-sized female to lie on was the room’s centerpiece. Immense candleholders surrounded the altar, but with enough room for a human to stand in between two of them. Against one wall, a book stand made itself known. Gwen shook with fear. Maybe the Solstice Festival Isn’t fiction. Maybe it’s real. And this is the room where the rites are held. The sounds of several people walking toward the temple only verified her suspicions. A black-gloved hand lit the candles. Gwen whirled around to face a throng of black-robed strangers. Their faces were concealed with white masks, and their robes covered every inch of skin. One of the strangers carried a book to the book stand, then moved the bookstand around to face his unholy flock. He opened the book and began his address.
“Welcome, my fellow cultists. You all remember what day today is. It’s Solstice, and the sun has sunk below the horizon. It’s time to present our annual virgin offering to our master.” He snapped his gloved fingers and two of his thugs grabbed Gwen and dragged her to the altar, binding her hands with robe. They laid her on her back and tied the ends of the rope to the end of the altar.
“Let me go!” Gwen shrieked. The cultists paid no heed.
“Now I shall recite the invocation,” he said before his gaze darted to the book. “Hail mighty Perverse, Lord of Depravity. Bring terror upon the world. Accept this virgin as a gift and make your presence known among your loyal worshippers.”
“Hail! Hail!” The cultists shouted. Smoke filled the room all of a sudden. Gwen stopped struggling against the restraints and wondered what caused it. A strange figure materialized by the altar. The smoke then disappeared as mysteriously as it had appeared, revealing just what the cultists had summoned. He looked human, except his skin was green and covered with warts. Instead of hair, the creature had a waist-length mass of writhing, thread-like worms. His blank white eyes stared at his summoners. The cultists, out of fear, dispersed, even the apparent high priest of the group, leaving Gwen alone with this creature.
The creature, the being that the cultists called the Perverse, raised one hand to his mouth and gave a slight chuckle. “It’s nice to enjoy a little moment of pleasure before I spend almost a year cooped up in another dimension.” He then glanced at the altar. “And who’s this fragrant young thing?” Gwen felt the creature’s warty hand on her chin, gently cupping it. “Mmm, I’m impressed. Guess those fools are good for something.” That was the point that Gwen realized that the creature had really foul-smelling breath, like sulfur. “Now, what shall I do next? Oh, yes. What I do every year to my victims.” Gwen felt a hand go up her skirt and her panties slowly ease down her leg. The creature’s gonna rape me! This can’t be happening! Solstice is real and I’m the virgin sacrifice! The creature sensed her fear. “Sorry, dear, but I did this to thousands of girls on this day. Here, let me lessen your pain a bit.” He picked up a black cloth and then blindfolded his victim before beginning his sordid deed.

Zechariah and his wife Martha Dunwich sat at home, wondering about the safety of their daughter. “I hope she’s not the Solstice Sacrifice this year,” Martha said, watching the evening news. “Too bad the police won’t do anything about those crazed cultists and their virgin sacrifices.”
“I heard that last years the Andersons’ daughter was the sacrifice,” Zechariah sighed. “She came back pregnant. She just had the baby three months ago. The kid’s a monster.”

Perverse ripped off the blindfold after redressing his victim. “One night. They gave me one night. And I make the best of it.” He vanished after untying Gwen’s wrists.