Claude had been on and off medication for the past five years. His parents initially had thought he was just a child with an overactive imagination. But as he grew older, his imagination had persisted. But it wasn't until they found Claude outside at 2am yelling at nothing with scratches all over his body, that they took him in. The first medicine worked the best. Unfortunately it robbed Claude of all energy and desires, so they had to stop it. His parents were firm believers in medication, but they were firmer believers in childhood. So they tried and they tried for years until they found a dosage that helped with minimum side effects. Claude did well for awhile, but he started to suffer again and he didn't know why. His parents were convinced that the constant city living, moving, had been putting a strain on Claude's well-being. His parents had grown up in a snowy mountain town a few hours north of Denver and they were able to find a place pretty close. Nature could do wonders for people with loud minds.
Arrives in house and things are okay the first week. Spends time exploring the surrounding area and the inside. (massive house) After the first week he starts hearing whispers. This frustrates him cause he thought the medicine was making it better. Keeps it a secret from his parents. The whispers get worse and weird things start happening. Visual hallucinations. His parents start randomly saying horrible things but have no recollection of it when asked about it. He starts waking up in the basement of the house each night at 2. Weather calls for blizzard conditions in the coming weeks. The whispers get worse as do the hallucinations. His parents words turn darker. (sadder) The worst happens and they are snowed in during the blizzard. Claude wakes up to his parents standing over him. Smiling madly, they put a bag over his head. They lead him down into the basement. Carefully down a latter that shouldn't have existed. Down, down, down they go. Claude still blind, terrified he was going to slip, terrified of whatever happened to his parents. But relieved that it's not a hallucination, but equally terrified that it's not a hallucination. they finally reach the bottom and claudes blindfold is removed. It was pitchblack except for a moss covering the stalagmites (claude assumes) Thats when the moss shakes, blowes, squirms, and claude realizes its a tentacle/tendril. As he gets a closer look at it as it lowered from the ceiling into what Claude thought sounded like water. He saw it was barnacled with skeletal remains, much too large to be adult. The sudden descent made them whisper. The same whispers Claude had been hearing since they moved in. Claude's parents drag him into a shallow altered section, as more tentacles rise from the water and light up the room. Claude is unable to scream, unable to speak. Barely able to breathe, as the creatures head finally comes up from the water. At quick glance it is lovely, glowing beautifully in the darkened room, a glowing jellyfish. As your eyes settle on it it becomes more man-of-war like. A tangle of hair, teeth, bones, suckers, spikes. And its eye. It's single pulsing unblinking eye. And the whispers grow to a quiet roar. It sits and stares while Claude's parents cheerfully tell him that they're sorry. That they don't want to do it. But there is no denying the eye. The smallest tentacle of the monster reaches deep within his body and pulls out a dagger, heavily barnacled everywhere except the edge. The edge was sharp, cutting the monster as it pulled it out. (not that the monster notices) Places the dagger in the hand of the father, while the mother holds Claude. Claude finally finds his voice and pleads over the screaming whispers. While they're pleading the eye gets closer and stares harder at the father. The father cuts himself with the dagger and comes to. He flings the knife into the creatures eye. The creature screams in pain and grabs the father as it sinks deep into the depths below. Then it is quiet and the stillness, the sereness of the water beckon claude in. Before he can even react though he's in his mom's arms leaving the dark cave behind. The official report on his father was that he left his house during the blizzard and got lost. Happens all the time. Story ends the day they're planning on moving out with the mother looking at Claude and deciding to stay.
