By Michael K. Silva

He liked to come here alone. The area was so secluded that this tiny beach did not seem to have a name or even a spot on any map, but that was okay. The months he'd spent down here at sunset without any human contact was a reward in itself, along with the beautiful Northwestern American coast and the cool waves of the Pacific Ocean.

One evening, as he lay on a boulder, gazing thoughtfully at the dusky sky, he saw several creatures fly across the setting, orange sun. What sort of winged beasts were they? He sat up and looked about, as if alerted by some inner alarm system. His eyes scanned the sand and rock of the beach and the grassy pathway that led to the spot where his car was parked. A cool ocean breeze wove through the trees. The landscape became shadowed, but the descending sun's orange glow still beamed upon the green coastal flora. Then he remembered the creatures. He scanned the sky. There was nothing now but pink and orange clouds with an encroaching indigo-black creeping overhead as night began to clothe the world in her dark robes. The hair on his body instinctively stood on end. Something didn't feel right. He got to his feet and looked toward the sky again, then started across the beach to the grassy pathway. There was a foreboding presence in the air, as if he were being watched. The only sounds he heard were the rustling in the trees, the siren song of the ocean's ever-crashing waves and the whistling of a cool, crisp breeze.

A terrifying screech exploded suddenly overhead. It resembled the screech of an eagle, only a hundred times louder and just as many times as frightening. He immediately dove for cover in the tall grass, watching the sky. Then he saw it. It wasn’t like anything he’d ever seen before. There wasn’t enough light left for him to make out any details except for its incredibly enormous wingspan. He even surmised that it could pick up his car. He couldn’t be sure; moonlight was just starting to illuminate the ocean and the tiny beach. The sudden appearance of the winged beast shook him to the very core of his being. Never had he felt such fear. Eventually, he made it to his vehicle. Day was gone and night held dominion over this part of the world. Still shaking, he sat and wondered with dread, "Just what the Hell are those these things?!"

He knew that he should be getting his ass out of there, but he feared that if he started the engine he might gain the attention of one of those creatures. He needed to calm himself and get away from there quickly. Another screech ripped through the heavens. He screamed. Nervously, he peered out of his windshield toward the evening sky. There, high above the horizon, in the early moonlight, soared one of those gigantic, winged beasts. Now he could see what looked like tentacles hanging from the creature’s face. In huge circles it soared, over land and sea. Suddenly, it plunged into the ocean. The splash generated reached as high as the forty-foot cliff overlooking the beach. Within a minute the ocean surface erupted as the tentacled monstrosity shot toward the stars. Over the beach it flew, dropping a huge, limp mass from its grasp.

Horrified, he gripped the steering wheel as if it were a magical talisman to ward off this demonic thing. He was petrified, but now battled with curiosity. What lay down there on the beach, in the shore breaks? The vantage point up on this hill gave him a perfect view of the enormous, unmoving mass, with the waves softly and indifferently crashing into it. He didn’t have a watch handy, nor did the clock in his car work, so he couldn’t know the time. Hell, even the stereo didn’t work. Surprisingly enough, he mustered up the courage to go and investigate. To no one he said, "Fuck the time," and proceeded back down the path.

Slowly and carefully he walked, making sure that his senses were primed in case one or more of those things came back. Thick fog had begun to creep in rapidly. A cold, black-grey, amebic thing that swallowed ground, light and sight. Again the icy fingers of fear tickled his spine. Trembling, he continued down the path.

He heard sounds. They were grotesque sounds. Terrifying and unearthly sounds. The tranquility of the beach was now blighted by some unknown and alien force. What he heard amidst the crashing waves and the soft, high-pitched whistling of the wind sounded like frenzied slurping and a deep, low-pitched chittering. He also heard ear-piercing screeches that came in short, random bursts, sometimes even sounding like strange, Hellish chirping. Nausea began to set in; either from intense fear alone, or mingled with the thousands of horrific images that swirled about in his head. Images of what was out here in the fog with him on this secluded beach.

The fog dissipated almost as rapidly as it appeared, or so it seemed. Reality was becoming a warped concept to him now. Finally, he could see clearer and realized that he was farther down the beach than he was aware of and had walked right up to the large mass in the shore breaks. He fell face down into the sand, tripping over part of it. Then something was on his back. He felt strong cables gripping him everywhere. Despite his panic and fear, realization set in. Then disbelief followed by absolute horror. This nightmare couldn’t be happening! He was being attacked by one of those winged creatures!

Violently, he wrestled with it in the sand- all the while it chattered and screeched maniacally, deafening him. Adding to the chaos was the violent beat of its wings, which resulted in sand being thrown and kicked up everywhere. Eventually, he was able to reach behind his head and grab his other-worldly attacker by its tentacled head and hurled it with all of his might. It crashed into what he now realized was the still-being-eaten, freshly killed carcass of an adult humpback whale. The cavity soon erupted, revealing six more of these Hellish creatures. He noticed that these were all smaller than the one that killed this whale.

He was sitting, staring and gaping in absolute terror as the chorus of demonic chittering and screeching grew louder and louder. Blood spurted everywhere and the sand and surf became red. The other creatures saw him and lunged. All the while hungry eyes were fixed on him. The largest winged beast boomed in from above. The screech it let out upon its return threatened to split the world in half. Its huge wings thundered down upon the beach and it was all that he could do to keep from being blinded by the windswept sand. He screamed and screamed when he heard that malevolent screech, and in that moment the threshold between sanity and madness was traversed. The smaller creatures were snapping and lashing at his heels and back with their tentacles.

He was aware of blood in the surf and sand, the horrible, nightmarish sounds, everything…except the pain. He’d gone numb with fear when the larger beast came back. Now he kicked, screamed, flailed, fought, and ran. The sand was slowing him down and there was barely any air in his lungs. He was hyperventilating. The world spun around him as he was driven to his knees, trample underfoot by small, winged monstrosities. Again he screamed and screamed, clawing at the sand futilely, tears streaming down his worn and frightened face. Darting from left to right, his eyes were wild and insane; red with the sting of the sand he no longer felt. All he knew in his fear was all the tentacles about him.

Morning swept over the land and the sun rode its way across the immaculate blue above. The beach was closed today, much to the dismay of many a beach-goer. Police officers and an ambulance crew were gathered around the carcass of a humpback whale, only partially eaten. On-lookers murmured amongst themselves, trying to discern what had happened down there on the beach. It was known that a single body was found. A white male. Someone said the body was terribly mutilated and that the cause of death was very creepy and mysterious, as if he died screaming and frozen in this death mask for all time. The poor man’s eyes were wild and insane looking, even in death.

To further the mystery was the bloodied, puzzling message scrawled into the sand by this very unfortunate soul. All it read was, "THE SKY."