The Holder Series

The Holder of the Paranoid

The Holder of the Paranoid

In any city, in any country, go to any mental institution or halfway house you can get yourself to. When you reach the front desk, ask to visit someone who calls herself "The Holder of the Paranoid." If the person at the desk claims that the Holder has been sent home, then reply with a hardy "Good day!" and go straight home. Don't speak or share eye contact with anyone, or their words and gaze will haunt you and rend your mind asunder. If the worker flinches and nods three times, however, follow her. She will lead you down a clean and brightly lit hallway, with closed doors lining the walls. Each door will be painted a bright color and adorned with a three digit number, and through each, you will hear voices mumbling. Eventually, the worker will stop at a specific door.

If the door is yellow and has a number that ends in 6, demand that she take you to the true door. If she stops at a blue door whose number ends in 9, ask in a calm voice, "May you show me inside?" If the worker refuses, then bow to her politely and leave, traveling the same path you took to get here. Should the worker oblige to your request, you must thank her three times. Use the same words and tone each time, for if you even so much as stutter, your guide will attempt to end you.

When you are finished thanking her, she will open the blue door in front of you. As soon as the tiniest crack between the door and its frame are made, a horrible, guttural screaming will reach your ears. Do not attempt to block it out, for if you do it will echo throughout your psyche for eternity. Instead, embrace the horrid screams, for they shall lead you on. As you enter the room, you will notice that there are no light sources inside. Standing in the room, you can feel bursts of wind as the howling screams echo around you. The door will close behind you and the screams will stop, plunging you into silent darkness.

From here on out, you must be your only guide. If you find yourself paralyzed with fear, then you have already failed your quest; hold your breath and count to seven, and a swift and silent death will be your reward. But if you can still open and close your hands and wiggle your toes, then you must take nine steps forward.

With each step you take, you will begin to feel the breaths of many people around you. As soon as you take your fifth step, you will feel the caress of many hands upon your flesh. Do not waver or end your steps, or the breaths will turn to dark screams, and the light touches upon your body will tear the skin and muscle from your very bones. After your ninth step, the breathing and touch will cease and out of the corner of your eye, you will see a dim white light hovering to your right. It will increase in brightness as it comes closer to you. If you turn toward it, the light's source will burn into your retinas, and every unspeakable horror your mind can conceive will take physical form and gnaw at your body, driving you into a screaming frenzy that will end only after your throat has been torn open.

If the light stops in its journey toward you, you may turn to face it. Standing in front of you is a visible man, the bright light glowing from inside him illuminating his organs and visceral features. He will motion for you to follow him. Be sure to stay close behind him and do not look back. After a while, the visible man will lose his light and will fade to darkness. As soon as this happens, stand still. You must call out with your loudest voice, "It has been a while! I'm here for a visit!"

At that moment, the darkness will brighten. The room will be revealed to be a warm and cozy place, with a fireplace, a bed, a table and chairs, and a rocking chair. In the rocking chair sits an old woman. She gives off a grandmotherly vibe and as soon as you meet her gaze, she smiles warmly at you and motions for you sit down. Now you must take a chair from the table and place it one foot in front of the rocking chair. Sit in it so that you are facing the woman and her gaze meets your own.

Do not attempt to converse with the old woman. If you do, she will eventually fall asleep, and you will find yourself frozen in place, forever. Instead, look directly into the old woman's eyes and ask, "Why does He see Them yet not believe Them?"

After being asked this, the woman will begin to to weave a tale. She speaks of all things unknown and dark. She whispers about the things man sees in his nightmares and catches out of the corner of his eye. She tells you of the touch you feel when you are alone and she laughs at the way man flinches as he reacts to the visions of his own imagining. At this moment, your chair will be hit with a shocking force from behind. Do not cry out or turn around to face the source, or the old woman's shape will melt away to reveal a pale and sickly Thing with large melancholy jaws. The Thing will scratch the flesh from your bones and maul you until you shuffle off your mortal coil. Ignore the blow and the woman will continue to smile. She will reach into her blouse pocket and take out a pair of glasses. She cleans them with a cloth before putting them on. She looks at you with them on, laughs once more, removes them, and hands them to you. Blink slowly three times and you will return to the waiting room where you began.

The Glasses are Object 160 of 538. To wear them is to see the others and to see the things you wish you shouldn't have.