The Abernath Complex
Dr. Richard Stahlman had nothing much else to say about his current patient. The patient was said to be a unique one at best. But what would others say, the fact that this patient had delusions of the highest order? The madman calls it the Abernath Complex, a place in the mind itself, where you can imagine the worst fears possible there is, and that could be fatal to anyone, who comes in contact with or worse... If that wasn't enough, the mad patient keeps calling, "Cthulhu is coming! Dr. Stahlman! CTHULHU IS COMING!" Richard sighed and tried to forget the absolute madness, stemming from the patient's mind as he looked at the current report. As a professional psychologist, he couldn't fathom the idea that the patient would say something like this, every single time. The doctor had made numerous visits to the patient's room, and observed the behavioral patterns, being recorded by the hidden machine, which not even the mad patient knew about it.
"The patient's name..." Dr. Stahlman said and stopped his recorder. He became kinda sweaty, and wanted a drink, but he quit drinking a long time ago, ever since his wife died of brain tumor. He almost killed himself at that moment because he felt the dread and fear that he was going to be alone for the rest of his life, feeling guilty, shameful and miserable. But then he realized that he needed to stay alive and look after his patients. They needed him the most. His friends and coworkers also needed him. So, Richard decided to clear his act, and come out in the open. He resumed, "The patient's name is Peter Davidson. Former Occupation- Software Engineer. Currently divorced. Came from America at the time of his son's death." He paused. He didn't want to say the brutal moment of his life, that he had ever head from Peter's confession. He resumed again. "Patient claims to have seen a creature known as Cth..." He stopped again. "Damn it! How do you pronounce that name?" He tried again, without turning the recorder on. "Ct-hul-hu. Cthulhu. Yes!" He resumed recording, and repeated the previous line. "Patient claims to have seen a creature known as Cthulhu. Possible causes- High anxiety, hyperventilation, drinking problem possible, but not really. There was one time..." He stopped. He was going to say that Peter used to drink a lot in the pub, which the bartender had recounted the facts of a drunken man, who clearly lost his mind. But the question remains clear, why would he come to London? Richard resumed. "He came to London to look for a job?" He even asked Peter that question, several times. Sometimes, Peter said yes, and other times, he said, "No, Dr. Stahlman. I came here to warn you. Yes, you could say that I'm mad. But I'm not entirely insane, if that's what you think." The patient used to keep fidgeting all the time, whenever he talked about his crazy idea, meeting this unknown creature- the so-called Cthulhu. He had resumed speaking then. "As you can see, Dr. Stahlman, the Abernath Complex is such a wonderful place that nobody could understand it. At first, when I have ventured into his unknown space, I was awed by it. Truly awed. You couldn't begin to imagine what wonders I've seen there. I bet everyone will like it. Even you! This creature known as Cthulhu..." He paused, continued fidgeting, and then resumed. "Yes, you could say that I had trouble pronouncing his name first. But then I got it! And guess what, Dr. Stahlman? Your wife was there."
"What?!" The doctor had stood up from his chair, staring into Peter's gloomy eyes. He couldn't believe what he was hearing at that very moment. The mad patient continued. "You're surprised! I can see that. But I'm telling the truth, Dr. Stahlman. Your wife..." He paused, thinking of her name. "Ah yes, Peggy. I remember it now. Peggy Stahlman. Nice name, pretty woman. I sure loved to screw her. She was there, alright. Actually there! She told me you never came to see her by the bedside, until her timely death. You were too busy taking care of your patients. And..."
"Stop!" Richard said, and stopped himself from hitting Peter Davidson, who had sat on the chair across from his desk, the time of the interview session. Now Richard was staring at the empty furniture as if his patient was actually there. But that only happened a couple of hours ago. What a day! He remembered clearly that his old friend of the same profession had hit one of his patients, and as a result, his license got revoked. He didn't want that to happen. Instead, he had calmed down, and said, "That's enough, Peter. How did you..." He paused and decided to think that this madman must have been following him, before he was brought in, raving about "CTHULHU IS COMING! CTHULHU IS COMING!" and who knows maybe... Just maybe...
"Oh come on!" Dr. Stahlman thought. Get a hold of yourself. A woman dying of brain tumor, can't surely sleep with a madman like Peter Davidson, who keeps talking about this... this... Abernath Complex and the... Cthulhu.What a ridiculous idea! He looked back at the mad patient to see if anything else was coming from his confessional mouth.
"I'm sorry to say this, Dr. Stahlman. She told me everything. But I assure you, that we never... slept... together, if that's what you think." He stopped talking then, and mumbled to himself.
Presently, the doctor placed the patient's report back on the desk, and closed his eyes, wanting to sleep. But there was still work to be done. He phoned the Medical Board Committee, and reported to one of his superiors about the latest incident.
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The lightning flashed throughout the sky, and Dr. Stahlman was so tired and weary that he wanted a drink. It was 12 am. The new orderlies just appeared for their night shift. From the window, he noticed several cars going by, knowing the rest of the staff have gone home for the weekend. Here comes the night shifters! He closed his eyes, and kept thinking, whether he should drink at a time like this. He opened his eyes, and thought, Sure, why not? Just a little drink wouldn't hurt. He got up from his chair, and opened the drawer, where he kept his favorite whiskey. At last! How long has it been? 5? 10? A million years, I suppose. Who cares? I just want a drink, dammit! Lord, help me! He opened the bottle, and then poured it into the glass. Swirling the liquid contents, he sipped the drink slowly.
"Not bad!" The doctor said loudly. He must be going mad of hearing this Abernath Complex. And he had to mention it in the report? What would the rest of the Medical Board Committee think about it, now that he had mentioned to his former instructor on the phone? He thought of going back to that room, and witness the patient's behavior. At times, when he came there, Peter usually sleeps, and sometimes mumbled to himself.
I might as well have to see what he's up to. Let's see if this... Eh... Cthulhu is coming! He drank the rest of the whiskey, and decided to venture out into that horrible room.
But what was so horrible about it? Why, Peter of course. What other reason could there be? I must end this madness, the doctor thought. I must end it. Right. Now. Not to say that I'm going to strangle him to death just he like did to his... He stopped. My God, what's happening to me? He shook his head, and kept sweating all over. It's that bloody drink! Yes. I shouldn't have drank it. But I had to... Oh Peggy, I'm sorry. I should've been there. The doctor wasn't aware that he dozed off into the unknown space, where he can see all the strangest symbols that mankind has never encountered before, and being printed on the walls, made it look artistic in a way, that nobody could even understand its true meaning. But didn't Peter mentioned the wall symbols before? How strange they looked... A unique design of utmost nature. How fascinating! But no. Peter didn't talk about it. Why? I must ask him, what these symbols meant and why he didn't tell me about them. He could hear distant voices coming from somewhere, beyond the realms of darkness. Or was it space? That voice...
"Richie?" It was Peggy's voice. She stood there completely naked, but entirely different. Her skin was so white, that some strange light kept shining upon her. She looked like an angel. And there were scales around her body, as if she came back in the body of a fish. "Oh, Richie. I've been waiting so long to see you."
"No... You're dead." The doctor tried to blink, but he couldn't. Her grotesque beauty mesmerized him in ways that men couldn't understand the difference between inner beauty and the outside one. But Peggy was much more different than that. This wasn't Peggy. It couldn't be.
"No, You're not Peggy. Leave me alone. The real Peggy is dead." He looked around the walls, the symbols and the darkness beyond. "Where are we?"
"We're in the Abernath Complex." The doctor stared at her, as if this was his first visit to a woman, whom he loved so many years ago. Oh Peggy, I've missed you so much. He came closer to her and stopped.
"The Abernath Complex?" The doctor repeated moments earlier of what his so-called wife, who seemingly came back from the dead, had mentioned. "That can't be! I'm in a dream. A madman's dream!"
"It's no dream, Richie. Look around you. Peter and I have seen them. And so do you."
"No..." He looked around the unknown space again. "No, it's a dream. And you're not Peggy!"
Peggy didn't say anything to that. She just stared at the doctor.
"Look here," Richard said. "I'm going to Peter's room. Okay? And I'm..."
"You're in Peter's room." The creature said, stopping him. The doctor stared at her, completely bewildered. After a moment of silence, the doctor said, "What do you mean? I'm already here?"
"Yes, you are. Look!"
The doctor turned around and saw Peter lying naked on the ground, with his legs crossed. It looked like some pentagram of some kind. Like the walls, these strange symbols were also imprinted. The madman was mumbling some chants of ancient prayer. He then opened his eyes, and saw the doctor.
"Hello, Dr. Stahlman. It's good to see you. Welcome to the Abernath Complex!"
"What's the meaning of this, Peter?" Richard said. He was quite fascinated by all those pretty symbols, glowing right in front of him. Pink glow, I should say. And it felt powerful that nobody could think of doing such a forbidden thing. Not even the madman himself.
"I'm uttering a prayer to the Great God Cthulhu. As you can see here, the creature lives beyond space and time. It can give you wonders of the imagination. It can give you everything. It can also bring your loved ones back." Peter looked at the naked creature. The doctor also looked at her, and said, "But.. She's not my wife."
Peter sighed and said, "In a way, she's not. Yes. But I've prayed to Cthulhu to bring her back. But not the way, I've imagined. I suppose the Great God Cthulhu couldn't bring the whole humanness to the entire equation of one's existence. Who are we to blame the god? At least he brought your wife back! You should be happy, Dr. Stahlman."
Richard didn't know what to say all this strangeness of the entire situation. He remembered the day, when Peter confessed his crime to the authorities. That he sacrificed his own son in the name of Cthulhu. It goes beyond human reasoning, no doubt about it. This madman has to be stopped before someone else gets hurt.
"It's time to make another sacrifice, Dr. Stahlman. And you will help me choose."
"No!" The doctor said. "I will not do it!" He knew it all along that he should have killed him a long time ago, even if it costs his license that he had worked hard for. The thought of sacrificing another innocent life was too unbearable for him. Dr. Richard Stahlman couldn't take it anymore. He stepped toward the pentagram, and strangled the madman.
The creature didn't do anything to stop the doctor. She knew what was going to happen next. She stepped back, and then disappeared into darkness.
As for the doctor, Richard kept strangling the madman until his very last breath.
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"Dr. Stahlman? DR. STAHLMAN! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"
The doctor saw himself still gripping the madman's throat, and then let him go. One of the orderlies grabbed the doctor immediately, and the other orderly went to get the security.
The third orderly just came in, and saw the incident. He was shocked beyond belief. Coming closer to the patient, the third orderly checked his pulse.
Jesus Christ! He's dead. The doctor has killed him. He looked at Richard, confused and scared.
"I had to kill him!" Richard said, trying to break free of the orderly. "He forced me to choose, and sacrifice someone in the name of Cthulhu. I'm telling you! CTHULHU IS COMING!"
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"CTHULHU IS COMING!" Dr. Riles Stevenson stopped the recorder, and stared at Richard Stahlman. The former doctor kept fidgeting, and said, "Dr. Stevenson, the Abernath Complex is such a wonderful place. You should see it. But I'm afraid..." He stopped.
"Afraid of what, Richie?" Dr. Stevenson couldn't believe his eyes, that his own friend had become a madman just like the late Peter Davidson. He still couldn't believe it.
"I'm afraid that you will be next, Dr. Stevenson. But you'll have to see it for yourself. This Abernath Complex... You'll understand it, once you get there."
Dr. Stevenson sighed and said, "Richie... I hate to say this. But... there is no Abernath Complex and this... Eh... Cth... Cthu..."
"It's Cthulhu, Dr. Stevenson. I know it's hard at first. But you'll get it."
"Right..." Riles shook his head, and said, "It all exists in your mind, Richie. Nothing more."
"But it does. You just have to get there. And you will!"
"Alright." Riles said, feeling tired already. "What will happen once I get there?" He couldn't believe his own words. But he just have to get along with it, no matter how crazy as it sounds.
"A sacrifice for the greater good." The former doctor said. "Once that sacrifice is done, the gateway will open."
"Gateway?" Riles said, confused. "To what?"
"The Abernath Complex, of course," the former doctor said. "I swear on my grave that it will open, once the sacrifice is made. I'll have to do it, but you have to choose."
Oh my god! Riles thought. He's mad! He looked at the former doctor for a while, and then said, "This is madness, Richie. I don't believe you."
"Oh, you will believe me, Dr. Stevenson. In time... You will have to choose someone to be sacrificed because Cthulhu is waiting..." And that was the end of the interview session. The former doctor was then taken to his cell, which left Stevenson wondering what to do with him.
The Abernath Complex. Cthulhu... What does it all mean? Wild thoughts went swirling around Stevenson's head. Of course, he didn't believe any word of it. But it was pure madness, indeed. As mad as it sounds, he wanted to sleep. But he couldn't. The current session did scare him the most out of all the other patients, which he had interviewed them in the past.
I need a drink, he thought. Yes, that would be a good idea. Surely, he will do it, once he gets home. It's better that way. He was getting things ready, when he heard distant voices coming from somewhere, and that he found himself in the unknown space of darkness. He hasn't even left his office yet!
Dr. Riles Stevenson tried to breathe and told himself, "It's only a dream. Nothing more." But he was still sweating. The voices kept growing louder and louder as Riles walked somewhere on the floor. He stopped, and there he saw Richard's naked form lying on the ground, imprinted with strange symbols that he had never seen before. The former doctor was currently chanting.
"Richie?" Riles said, coming closer to the former doctor. "Is that you?" Somewhere in the background, the female creature was watching the events unfold itself. The former doctor stopped chanting, when he heard his old friend's words. Opening his eyes, he said, "Hello, Dr. Stevenson. It's good to see you. Welcome to the Abernath Complex!"
THE END
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