#issue seven

That is true. It's not a joke :') a miracle happened this smissmas

WildC.A.T.s #7 (1994)

Issue Seven: Will-o’-the-Wisp is now live! 

This issue is all about the transitory and the tightrope walk. There are a couple of mischievous sprites lurking at the corners of this issue waiting to reach out and grab you. We cannot promise you that it will lead you to safety, but we think you will enjoy the journey.

If you must know, it went a little something like this.

We were hanging around the main lobby at Scarline Airport. It was a richly sunny afternoon, with beams of light bursting through the windows. We turned our back to the light, much more interested in what was happening behind that small, unmarked, seemingly inconsequential security door that was just beyond the baggage check in.

We had a penchant for things that go unnoticed, things that slip into the background if you let them. Terrible things. And you’d be none the wiser. That is in fact why we were here. Something was happening under the very noses of the staff. People were disappearing.

Seemed like a good story.

In the sticky heat of this building with a broken AC, we became aware of three occurrences that followed one right after the other in rapid succession.

First, a family of five entered the airport through the automatic sliding doors. Doesn’t immediately sound relevant. They were not a unique family. A mother. A father. Son and two daughters. We won’t waste time describing them. Conjure whatever image you like in your mind’s eye.

Second, this family of five, luggage in tow were stopped by two girls asking for a photo. The son obliged. Then a strange woman in a sky blue hospital uniform approached with a couple of foam dowels in her hand. The family thinks she’s selling them. She’s not. It’s a diversion. She would love to take them behind that security door?

Third, the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon describes a situation where something you have recently seen or learned about seems to appear everywhere. It is your brain subconsciously seeking out more information on the topic. In our case, we noticed that nearly every fourth person in this airport was dressed in that same sky blue.

The family was gone. We followed, of course.

Behind the security door, where unwitting attendees are drawn into like a spider’s web, there is a show. Four creatures. Blackened claws. Gnashing of teeth. Splintered eyes, sparks fly. Lightbulbs explode with a crackle and a pop.

The audience, plunged into a blanket of darkness. Did the door disappear or did you forget?

We glanced at the family, sitting near the front row. Not our responsibility.

All we felt was fear. Dragged by our feet. Oxygen felt like poison. Cheek resting on cold tile. A rusty scraping or...cutting sound. We couldn’t move. We were no longer in the theatre, only deeper behind the door.

A needle pierced our left temple and every muscle in our body went numb. Through blurry vision, we blinked and could make out a woman smiling. Our brain could not compute or understand what was happening. But when we reached down to look at our shirt, it all snapped clear.

Dressed in a uniform of sky blue, our fear evaporated like mist.