The Shoggoth Secret - Lovecraftian Erotica

  The Shoggoth Secret

  Lovecraftian Erotica

  by: Amy Morrel

  Text copyright © 2014, Amy Morrel

  All Rights Reserved

  Introduction

  The body had lain just outside of the opening of the cave for several years. Despite its exposure and the abundance of wildlife in the surrounding forest it was still unmolested, for the animals would not approach the cave.

  This year's spring thaw consisted of many warm days followed by freezing nights. The repeated melting and freezing of the snow pack had formed an icy patch beneath the corpse and a falling clump of ice and snow had impacted on it at just the right angle to start it sliding away from the cave mouth on the newly formed ice. Once it reached the nearby slope, it hastened its slide down into the stream at the bottom of small gully.

  Once the body was exposed, it decayed rapidly as the furious rush of the snow-melt swollen stream sloughed off chunks of flesh. One hand, clenched in a true death grip, lost all of its flesh to the raging waters. Shortly after the flesh was gone a large chunk of ice wedged itself against the remaining bones of the hand. The grip remained solid but the connection to the wrist was torn asunder. The skeletal hand went tumbling down the stream, striking rock after rock until the bones fell apart from one another.

  Finally, the silver chain the hand clutched in death came loose from the bones. The charm on the necklace was made of some buoyant substance which kept the metal from sinking to the bottom of the stream and being buried.

  The choker bobbed downstream, but kept hanging up on snags, rocks, and branches. By late spring it had drifted nearly a mile from where it entered the water. When the last of the snow melt was gone the level of the stream dropped, stranding the choker on a branch which was above the normal water level. It sat there glistening in the sun for some time while the pattern worked into both sides of the charm reflected the light to and fro. The silver chain was tangled soundly about the branch while the charm hung free, blowing in the breeze.

  * * *

  Chapter 1 – The Find

  Jacob Harnon was playing hookey. He'd called in to work and told them he was sick. He justified it to himself by claiming that if he didn't get some downtime he would get sick. His college classes and job ate up his entire life, so he felt the need to get out and do something else, anything else, for a day or two. Money being an issue, as it always was for him, he was out in the woods, not quite hiking, just walking around and trying to relax.

  Hey, he thought, there's a stream over there. Maybe I'll go soak my feet for a little while. It's hot out for late spring in New Hampshire.

  He wandered over to the stream and kicked off his shoes and socks. A nearby boulder drew his attention so he sat down on it and dangled his feet in the water. He pushed his sunglasses on top of his head as he leaned back and looked at the stream.

  A shimmer of light on the water caught his gaze. As he stared at it, a slight breeze cooled his forehead and the shimmer began to dance, moving this way and that.

  What the hell? It must be a reflection, but from what?

  Searching for several minutes left him as clueless as he was when he noticed it move. The shimmer was still again now, the breeze gone. He rolled up his pant legs and slid into the stream.

  Fine, I'll find it this way. It better not be a damned beer can though.

  He waded out to the shimmer and began to move his hand around it. When it disappeared, he checked his hand and found the shimmer there. Now he knew what direction it was coming from.

  He waded slightly upstream and to the far bank. A brief search revealed something silvery stuck in the branches of a bush that hung low over the water. He reached in and tugged at it. With a little effort, the branch gave way and he found himself holding a silver colored necklace with an odd-looking pendant.

  The chain felt heavy enough to be real silver, but the pendant was lightweight. It looked like it was made of metal, but not one he knew. It was marked with a pattern, on both sides, in an iridescent material that looked almost like a soap bubble but proved substantially more solid when he nudged it with his fingertip.

  He shrugged and slipped the necklace into his pocket.

  I'll hang onto this, it might be worth something.

  He returned to his boulder and let his feet dry enough to put his shoes and socks back on. When he felt the urge to walk upstream, maybe see if there was anything else up there, he gave in since there was nothing better to do. With a good chunk of the day still ahead of him, he immediately acted on the impulse. The banks of the stream were mostly clear, if slippery, and he ended up walking along them since the undergrowth farther away from the stream was almost thick enough to be impassable.

  Jenny, he thought, or maybe Kathy.

  He couldn't decide which of the two he'd rather have with him out here right now. Not that it mattered, neither one of them would even give him the time of day, never mind wander out into the woods with him.

  He knew that they only hung out with the guys who had money to waste on them. He also knew what that made them, but he'd never say it out loud since the guys that fawned all over the two girls would beat him to a paste if they heard it.

  He never considered the fact that his brown hair was always wild, the cowlicks in it unwilling to submit to comb, brush, or the occasional gels he tried to tame them with. Nor did he consider the fact that, until recently, he'd been thin and gangly from a late growth spurt. The manual labor job, which was the only thing he'd been able to find, had built his muscles up to the point where no-one would use the words thin, or scrawny, to describe him any more.

  Lost in his thoughts, he stumbled and slipped into the stream.

  “Shit,” he yelled, “and the day was going so well.”

  He pulled himself out of the stream. Jacob was soaking wet all along his left side. For a moment he considered heading back to his beat-up old junker of a car, but something called to him from upstream. He could hear it in his head.

  Not far now, come to me and everything will be better. All will be right. Your dreams will come true.

  He shut his eyes for a moment and tried to figure out what he was hearing.

  Did I hit my head when I fell? he thought.

  He checked his skull, pressing his fingers against the bone and discovering no sore spots, only wet hair. When he opened his eyes again, his feet were carrying him upstream.

  He tried to turn around but his mind was under assault. Visions of Jenny in the nude haunted him. She beckoned him onward and demonstrated her flexibility, revealing everything to him. He fought the visions and they were replaced by Kathy, also totally nude. She held her arms open wide for him and begged him to come to her.

  Jacob was confused. All he saw were the visions in his head. At the same time he could feel himself moving past bushes and trees, brushing against their limbs. He struggled to stop moving but the visions redoubled, now showing him Kathy and Jenny together. They were enjoying one another and inviting him to join in.

  His legs stopped moving and his eyes opened. The mouth of a cave loomed in front of him and the forest was silent; there was no birdsong, no chittering of squirrels or chipmunks, no sound at all except the gently burbling stream.

  His mind was in a daze and his erection was hard enough to leave him feeling lightheaded. Consumed by lust, he was eminently vulnerable when he caught a glimpse of light in the cave. The light revealed a flash of smooth, naked flesh. He thought he saw a naked woman dart deeper into the tunnel, disappearing around a turn. He stepped forward, unthinking, and moved towards the light.

  Unnoticed behind him, the skeleton he'd stepped on in his dazed journey
slid the rest of the way into the stream, falling apart into individual bones.

  * * *

  Chapter 2 – The Cave

  Jacob moved into the mouth of the cave. It was dark, but the sun lit the passageway almost to the turn. There was light beyond it, he could see that. The shadows from it bounced and the light slowly dimmed. He hurried to the corner, hoping to catch another glimpse of whoever it was he'd seen a moment earlier.

  Once again Jacob saw a flash of creamy white skin, illuminated by an orange-colored light. It quickly disappeared beyond another turn. He hurried forward to catch it.

  A long hallway stretched out in front of him. There was no sign of whoever he was following but there was light. The hallway was obviously constructed and not of natural origin. The initial cave mouth was rough and dirt littered the floor. In this section the walls were smooth, with carvings at chest-height along both sides of the wall. The floor was spotless and the ceiling overhead was made of what looked like translucent stone. The stone of the ceiling glowed dimly, just enough to light the hallway.

  Jacob wanted to hurry down the corridor but the carvings distracted him. He walked down the corridor, watching the story told by the carvings. The initial ones were crisp, but they were indistinct blobs and he wondered if perhaps whoever created them hadn't finished. The next series of carvings told him he was wrong. The indistinct blob appeared yet again, but this time it was approaching the rear of a monstrous looking creature.

  The next carving showed the blob engulfing the creature. Over the series of carvings leading down the hallway, the blob returned to its normal size, then formed itself into the creature it had eaten. The new creature, distinguished from the original only by half of the head being a miniature of the blob, approached creature after creature, using its disguise to engulf all of them.

  In the last set of carvings, every creature that had been engulfed stood side by side, all with half of their heads portrayed as the original blob. Jacob looked up and realized that the hallway had come to an end at the top of a long flight of stairs. Down bottom the orange light he'd previously seen was bobbing and dancing down another hallway.

  He took the stairs at a run and was rewarded by a glimpse of long hair that came down to a magnificent ass at the other end of the corridor. The woman ducked around another corner after he'd only gotten a brief glimpse. He gave chase and, when he turned the same corner, nearly tumbled down another long flight of stairs.

  The pursuit led him down five more flights of stairs and he found himself panting and tired when he arrived at a short corridor that ended in a massive door. There was no-one in the corridor and the only light was what seeped down from the hallway above. He wondered if the woman he'd been following had passed through the door without him knowing. When his thoughts touched on the door he knew, as though someone had inserted the idea whole into his mind, that he could obtain everything he wanted and desired simply by opening it.

  He walked down the corridor, his nose assaulted by the scents of mold, mildew, and something similar to ammonia. The cool, damp air left him shivering and he heard what sounded like a faint rain, as though millions of drops of water were falling nearby.

  The door looked like it hadn't been opened in ages, but the carving set into it was still crisp and clear. It started on the wall beside the door and, unbroken, worked its way across the door and into the wall on the other side. The pattern looked familiar.

  He walked back to the faint light and drew his recent find out of his pocket. The pattern on the pendant matched the one on the door. The pendant also gave off a faint luminescence. As he approached the door again, the glow from the pendant increased until the hallway was only dim as opposed to dark. When he reached the door, an answering gleam rose in the midst of the carved pattern.

  Jacob tentatively reached out with the necklace in his hand. He pressed the pattern against the matching glow and heard a massive cracking noise from the door. He jumped back as it shifted slightly. In the dimness he saw where the door had opened, breaking the pattern carved across it. A greenish light illuminated the opening.

  The scent of ammonia grew stronger and Jacob's mind cleared in a rush.

  What the hell am I doing down here? I need to get out of this place, he thought.

  He started back down the corridor to the stairs, but before he placed his foot on the bottom one he heard a voice. After a moment he realized that it wasn't a voice, it was something speaking directly to his mind.

  Noooo, don't leave me here. It's been so long and I've been alone. I need someone, anyone, or I'll go mad. Please help me? Please?

  The voice in his head seemed pitched somewhere between alto and tenor so he couldn't determine a gender. His foot halted on the first step when the voice in his mind spoke again.

  Anything. I'd do anything to be free. I've been trapped here since I was created so long ago. For a while I could speak to others of my kind, but then they were gone. You're a sentient, I can speak to you. Please, please help me?

  The voice was accompanied by visions of girls. Kathy, Jenny, the girl he'd chased down the corridors, they were all there. All begging him to help them and telling him they'd do anything for him if he did.

  His resistance wore down quickly.

  Jacob walked back down to the door. He gave it a light push and, despite its obvious weight, it swung open easily. Behind the door was a small room. It was rough carved from stone, although not a stone he was familiar with. In the center of the room stood what looked like a wishing well, only without the wooden roof he saw on most of them. Instead, there was a metal grating fastened snugly to the top of the stones that made up the well.

  I wonder where they are? he thought.

  In the... wishing well? That's what you see it as anyhow, came the reply.

  Jacob glanced at the well. The illumination for the room came from the top of it. He stepped forward and looked in. The well was filled completely with a protoplasmic looking substance. It was purple and pink with streaks of flesh tone here and there. The entire thing gave off a dim glow and occasionally a flash of green light flickered on the surface.

  “Are you trapped in that?” Jacob asked, distaste evident in his voice.

  I am trapped in the well. Unlock the grating and you will free me.

  Jacob looked at the grating. There was some sort of mechanism breaking the regularity of it on the far side. When he looked closer he saw a familiar pattern on the mechanism.

  “So, I just use this thing I found and it will open the grating?” he asked.

  Yes, please hurry. I can taste the freedom I've never had.

  “Are you sure that stuff is safe?” Jacob said, glancing at the substance in the well.

  I will not hurt you. I will reward you beyond your wildest dreams. I vow that you will be safe from me for at least a tenth of the time I have been imprisoned here, should you be lucky enough to live that long.

  Accompanying the statement were more visions. Every woman Jacob had ever lusted after passed through his mind's eye in a flash. All of them naked, all of them begging him to do whatever he wanted.

  His body acted nearly of its own volition, thrusting the pendant at the mechanism. When it made contact, the pendant fused into the mechanism which then split in two. Jacob pushed it apart and slid it to the ground. The grating was as light as the pendant and when he went to lift it, he accidentally flipped it off the top of the well and onto the floor on the other side. As opposed to the ring of metal, there was only a soft 'click' as it struck.

  The substance within the well began to swirl and rise. The purples and pinks receded as the flesh tone dominated its surface. It formed a vaguely humanoid figure.

  Jacob turned to bolt and a small tendril of the substance reached out and touched the back of his neck. His panic turned to patience instantly and he wondered why he'd been about to flee.

  Who do you desire? the voice in his mind said.

  Jacob couldn't help himself. He had a life long fantasy th
at he masturbated to, that he desired even more than Kathy or Jenny. The girl in it was slender with medium to large breasts, hair down to her knees, done up in a thick braid. She had an hourglass figure with hips that he could hang onto. He'd never given her a specific face though, the face changed based upon whatever real girl he'd lusted after the most recently.

  He watched as the vaguely humanoid figure slowly took on the form of his dream. Jacob stared, entranced, as the figure reshaped itself over the course of a quarter hour. The face blurred, flashing between the different faces he'd pictured. When it resolved itself and the blur went away, he could see that it was a mixture of several of the different faces that he'd imagined her with. The end result left him staggered, his jaw hanging open.

  The newly formed girl spoke, or tried to.

  “This ... is ...”

  Too slow, the voice spoke in his head, This is what you want? I will master speaking later. For now I wish to begin your reward.

  Jacob nodded.

  Then use it for your pleasure. I will continue to reward you for as long as you will let me do the other things I must do. This is not the only form I can take, so if you tire of it, I can change. There are other ways that I may reward you also, if you help me.

  Jacob walked over and hesitantly reached for a breast. The girl leaned forward so that it mashed against his hand.

  Do what you wish. I can see that there is much you want to do to this form. None of it repulses me, I was made to tolerate much greater madness than the lusts you wish to sate upon me.

  Jacob grabbed the breast, crushing it with his hand. He pinched the nipple, hard, and it reacted just as he'd hoped it would. It firmed up, jutting out from the breast. His other hand came up to the second breast and he pawed it, twisting and tugging on the nipple.

  A slight gasp came from the girl's mouth. It wasn't a word, simply a noise, but it turned Jacob on even more than he already was.

  “What should I call you?” he asked. “I keep thinking of you as the girl or the creature. Do you have a name?”