The Tragedy of my Son

 ''' This is my first creepypasta. Please be kind. '''

 My name is Andreas (On-Dray-Es) Karevik (Care-Vik) Akerfeldt (Ack-Er-Felt). I am a 48 year old war veteran and Swedish immigrant who moved to the United States 14 years ago with my infant son, Arjen (Are-Yen), after his mother, my beautiful wife Simone, passed away giving birth to him. Too many places, people, and experiences back home reminded me of her, so I wanted to give myself, and my son a fresh new start to the world.

 Ever since arriving here and even to this day, I live in a one story, two bedroom house in suburban New York. I make 57,000 dollars a year working as a road electrician. You might think that for that salary, I could live in a nicer home, but to be frank, simple living is something that I’ve always been happy with, and Arjen loved the house.

 Arjen, my sweet boy Arjen… He was tragically taken from me recently, and I write this now for two groups of people. All of the friends who loved him, as I did, so that they may fully understand what caused his untimely demise, as well as individuals who recklessly look for bargains, despite what dangers may be associated with them.

 For those reading this who did not know Arjen, he was one of those kids who was almost always happy. He had plenty of friends, and while he was not particularly popular at school, he still never had problems with bullies or any such sorts, because he never gave anybody a problem, and was just a generally kind boy.

 He loved gaming, it was something that he was very passionate about, and it brought him together with many of his friends. While me, being the boring, out-with-the-times sort that I am, I never truly understood the appeal or even fundamentals of it, I was still happy to see Arjen enjoying himself with it. This of course, lead to what ultimately ended his life, ironically enough. I should probably start from the beginning…

 It was the release date of this popular new console called the Xbox One. Arjen had an Xbox 360, but his friends were getting Ones, and you know how it goes. When a child’s friends get shiny new toys, they also want said shiny new toys. I wanted to teach my son responsibility, however, so I told him, “Arjen, if you want this new system, you may have it, but you need to work for it. I want you to understand the value of hard work and earning your keep.”

 Arjen did not argue, but rather, with a smile on his face, worked tirelessly for the next month doing odd jobs around the neighborhood such as mowing lawns and splitting wood in order to amass the sum required to pay for the system. Not only did this earn Arjen money, but it also established a relationship between him and the neighbors, as well as giving me the pleasurable feeling of knowing that my son was on his way to becoming an honest man.

 Of course, as is with all humans, we sometimes want to take shortcuts when the appeal of that which we desire becomes too tempting to resist. Arjen had, in one month, made $200. However, this was not nearly enough to pay for the system, which cost $500. So, Arjen took it upon himself to go to the internet in search of a better bargain.

 I could continue on about the experiences that he went through beyond this point, but he has already done that for me, as Arjen took pleasure in recording his daily events in journals in order to help strengthen his English literacy skills. What you are about to see is the uncensored account of what my boy went through. I am copying each entry pertaining to the events down, which is why many entries are left out. I will continue writing of the events that happened after the journal entries end, when I have recorded the final entry.

   

'' December 26th 2013. ''

'' I suppose I shouldn’t have expected father to get me the Xbox One for Christmas, as he made it very clear that if I wanted it, I would have to earn it. However, I am grateful for the other gifts I received, and I don’t want to seem bitter, so I might as well accept the fact that I have a long way to go before I am able to finally able to afford the system. Today, I will relax and play Call of Duty with my friends, but tomorrow, I will get back to work doing jobs for the neighbors. ''

'' December 27th 2013. ''

'' After coming home from doing my work for the neighbors, I logged in to my Xbox 360 to see if any of my friends were online, as none were yesterday, due to the fact that they were all with their families still doing activities. I often wish I could have known my family, especially my mother. Father talks about her only in the highest regard, saying that she was the kindest and most beautiful woman that has ever been graced upon creation. ''

'' In any case, after logging to in to Xbox Live, only my friend Michael was online. I messaged him, asking him if he would like to join a party, and he agreed, and we shortly began a co-op game of Halo 3. While we were playing, he asked me how much money I had earned towards the Xbox One. I told him only $225, after the addition of today’s payment. “Work comes, but it comes slowly.” I explained to him as we shot our way through The Flood (the main bad guys in Halo 3). ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' Michael then told me that it was a long shot since the system was so new, but I could try Criagslist if I wanted to get the system cheap, albeit in most likely sub-par quality. Before this point, I had never even heard of Craigslist (call me sheltered, I know), but none of my other friends had mentioned it before this point, and if I wanted something, I usually either waited until Christmas, my birthday, or until father was feeling generous that particular day. I asked him what Craigslist was and he explained it to me. It seemed like a great idea, so I decided that starting tomorrow, I would look for bargains on the Xbox One. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 15th 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' Finally! After finally browsing Craigslist for what seemed like forever, I found what might just be the best deal ever! The Xbox One, Five games, two controllers with charge kits, and in like new condition for only $300! Since I’ve made just over $345, this will be no problem. I showed father, who seemed skeptical, but none-the-less agreed to take me to meet the man offering the system. Father is very protective of me, so of course he wants to oversee the transaction. The man (who calls himself Tommy) has agreed to meet us both tomorrow at his house at 5:00 PM. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 16th 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' It took us about a half hour to reach Tommy’s house. The house itself was a Victorian style two story building with a beige base paint and green shutters. It seemed to be in better condition than most similar-looking houses. There were two cars parked in the driveway, which extended back to a derelict looking run down wooden garage with several chains and a padlock around the doors. Why the shed was kept looking like crap when the rest of the property looked so nice and well-kept was beyond me. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' In any case, father and I approached the door and knocked. The man who answered looked to be in his mid to late 20’s with a plain black t-shirt and blue jeans. He had short jet-black hair, which was contrasted by his bright blue eyes. He looked at my father and said, “You must be Mr. Akerfeldt.” “Yes, I am Arjens father.” He replied with a smile on his face as the two shook hands. Tommy invited us in and offered us drinks, which I would have accepted, but  father refused for us before I had a chance to say anything. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' The inside of the house was just as nice as the outside, with modern furnishing, a fully stocked kitchen, and a living room the most kick-ass gaming setup I’ve ever had the privilege of laying my eyes upon. He had 2  giant flat-screen TV’s mounted on the wall with a system of shelves also against the wall sectioned off in roughly two by two foot wooden squares. Contained within each square, was a game console. I saw all the old Nintendo  and Sega consoles, Playstations, Xbox’s, and even obscure systems like the TurboGrafx and the 3DO. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' In the center of the living room was the table with the Xbox One which I saw in the picture on Craigslist. But before I bothered talking about the console, I had to ask, “Tommy, why does your garage look so awful even though the rest of your property is immaculate?” “Arjen, that is rude!” My father said to me in a stern, elevated voice. Tommy laughed but then said, “It’s quite alright. You see, I live here with my brother, Roy. The two of us run a business together. We run that business out of that garage. We invent and sell our own technological creations out of that garage. It’s Roy’s job to keep the garage clean and presentable, while it’s my job to keep the house that way. You might think that’s a bit unbalanced, but if you could see in there, you’d understand. That lazy sod just won’t bother to paint or maintain the damn thing. I’ve been getting on his case about it, but sometimes I think he just doesn’t even hear me.” That was good enough for me, so I paid him and my father and I left. I can’t wait to set it up and play tomorrow. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 17th 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I’m blown away. The console works like a charm, it’s near silent, and the graphics are excellent. I had a blast playing this thing all day with my friends. Father was right, hard work and effort really does have the best payoff. Although, I must admit, I’m feeling kind of sick as of writing. I must have eaten something not good for me earlier. I’m going to bed early tonight and hopefully, I feel better tomorrow morning. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 18th 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I still feel sick as of writing. My body aches, I feel weak, and I haven’t been able to eat much. I played Xbox One earlier to try to get this shit out of my mind, but it still hurt. I’ll try to play some more Xbox, and force this sickness away by just ignoring it. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 19th 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I had the most awful dream last night, but it seemed so real. In the dream, I was looking for a real job, but being 14 you don’t find very many of those in suburban New York. Eventually, I got hired at the local market, where many of my other friends were working, even though in real life, most of them are unemployed, as I am. In any case, I started my first day, and everyone in the store was silent. There was no music on the radio, customers weren’t talking. Other employees were just wandering around the store stocking shelves or cleaning, all with blank unblinking expressions on their faces. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' Being the only one with any semblance of personality, I nervously went to the back room to take product out and stock it on shelves, but when I opened the door to go into the back room, next thing I knew, I was on a train. Not like a modern passenger train, but more along the lines of one of those old locomotives where a guy had to shovel coal into it to keep it running. Well, that’s what I found myself doing, shoveling coal. Why, I have no idea. But then, all of a sudden behind me, this disgusting creature appeared. It was humanoid, but tall, at least 7 feet, and extremely fat. I’m talking like a Japanese Sumo Wrestler. No nipples or fat rolls though, just ovular. All along its torso vertically, were disgusting, yellow, crooked, teeth. It had a head, but a long neck that stretched down to the middle of its back. The head had what appeared to be big black eyes, no pupils, no nose, and no mouth. It had short but muscular legs. However, in place of arms, it had opened, blistered stumps that were oozing out a black liquid. I screamed when I saw it, but seemed to be mute. I jumped out of the train car, despite how fast it was moving. I needed the get the fuck away from that horrifying thing. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' However, to my horror, when I landed on the ground, I was not in the quickly moving forested landscape like what I saw outside whilst in the train car. But rather, I was in some sort of a house. A beautiful house though. It had majestic purple, red and yellow carpeting. Tables with white tablecloths and chairs that were all padded with leather. There were also cabinets in the room the contained fine china. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I stood up to admire the room, but not even a second later after I stood up, the creature crashed through the ceiling onto one of the tables, and the sickening maw on its chest opened, revealing a fleshly pink mouth with no tongue, just lots of gore and what appeared to be bones adorning the roof, gums, and walls. The sound that came out of it made me even more sick than the sight of it did. It was a combination of a roar and a high pitched squeal. I ran as fast as I could toward the nearest door. Luckily, the door was not locked. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I ran away as fast as I could but the monster gave chase, and despite its massive size, was able to keep within just a couple feet of me, it’s jaws snapping as it approached closer and closer. While running, I noticed that I seemed to be running down an endless system of halls and rooms that all repeated after opening the door roughly 3 times. Eventually, I couldn’t take it. I had to risk something that could kill me, but even if it did, it was better than being caught by that… thing. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' When I circled back to the dining room, I grabbed a chair and hurled it into the monsters mouth. This slowed it down enough for me to grab another chair, throw it out of the stained glass window beside the china cabinet, and hurl myself out. Luckily, it was not a great height. Only about a story. That being said, the impact on the ground caused what felt like a sprain. There were houses nearby, so I immediately ran for one of them screaming for help and just went inside, but what I saw was not another nice house like the one I was just in, but rather the interior of the market that I had the job at. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' Except this time, rather than people plainly wandering about the store, it looked like a fucking massacre. I’m talking bodies ripped to shreds. Blood and flesh lined the floors and shelves. All of my friends, my father, and even faces I didn’t recognize strewn about the floor. I was crying and I could hardly breathe. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I turned around to leave, but the door had vanished, so I ran throughout through the store trying to find the back exit. While approaching one of the aisles however, I peaked around the corner and then backed up immediately. What I saw was a corpse on the ground, being eaten by another creature. This one however, was different from the one I saw before. This one looked like a large, partially skinless German Shepard with charred looking black bones. It had the same featureless black eyes as the other creature, and the same black liquid oozing out of its ears. ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I did everything in my power to be silent, tip toeing down the adjacent isle until I reached the back exit. I made it, but when I opened the door, everything appeared to go in slow motion.. I was frozen in place holding the door open. And then a flash of darkness overtook me, and I briefly saw the face of the fat monster, before waking up. I feel like puking and my body is still weak. I need a doctor. I will have father take me tomorrow. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 20th 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I was in so much pain this morning I could barely move. Father took me to the hospital to have me examined for any type of food poisoning or anything else that could be causing my agony, but nothing was turned up. Tox screens were clean, MRI didn’t turn up any abnormal brainwave patterns, and it wasn’t an allergic reaction. However, cardiograph showed abnormal muscular activity in all parts of my body. Essentially, my heart and muscles were straining themselves for seemingly no reason at all. I was prescribed muscle relaxers and painkillers and then sent home. While the medication did make the pain somewhat tolerable it didn’t make it go away. I just want this to stop. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 23rd 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' My only escape is Xbox. It’s the only thing that takes my mind away from the agony, although I still feel it. I’ve been staying home from school and completing my homework here, as opposed to actually going, because I can’t focus properly under all of the stress and pain. Please, God, if you can hear me, just make this end. I’ve done nothing to deserve this. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 24th 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I am terrified. The pain won’t go away, and now, I’m fucking hallucinating. Earlier tonight, I went to the kitchen to make myself a sandwich, and as I was preparing the ingredients, I would see flashes in the corner of my eye and reflected in the microwave door that resembled small creatures which I couldn’t quite make out the shape of. I grabbed a plate from the cupboard, and when I turned around, for a couple of seconds, I saw another large creature, but this one was different from the last two. It looked to be a giant praying mantis. Same black eyes, same black ooze, this time stuck to its claws. I screamed and dropped the plate, which caused it to shatter on the floor I stepped forwards and broken glass cut into my feet, which caused me so much agony that I passed out. When I came to, father was holding me in his arms. He told me that he was taking me back to the hospital, and not to worry. ''

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">'' January 26th 2015 ''

<p class="MsoNormal">'' I am back in the hospital. I just… woke up here. I don’t feel pain anymore. I don’t feel much of anything. I feel… light. I feel like I don’t need to eat anything. I can see father coming into the room. He watches me write. He smiles. I want to talk to him, to tell him I love him, but I can’t speak. I want to tell him ''

<p class="MsoNormal"> And that is the final entry my beloved son ever wrote in his journal. After he wrote that last line, he dropped his pen and started convulsing. He was gagging, and gasping for air. I yelled for the doctors, and they tried to settle him down in order to administer emergency treatment, but by the time they got everything ready, he settled down and began to lay still. His eyes shut and when the doctors checked his vitals, he was gone. Cause of death was a violent heart attack.

<p class="MsoNormal"> The funeral service was held shortly after, and many tears were shed. However, when I got home from the funeral, the sadness that filled my soul quickly converted to rage, however, and I went berserk, going through every room in the house, screaming, picking up objects and throwing them around. Smashing, bending, and breaking everything. It was tunnel vision. Eventually, however, without thinking, I smashed open the Xbox One that my son had cherished so much. I began to cry and scorn myself for being so foolish and angry, as to destroy one of my sons most prized possessions. But then, upon closer inspection of the console, I noticed something strange.

<p class="MsoNormal"> Although I don’t know much about games themselves, I do have a bit of engineering knowledge, and the way the inside of that device looked was rather odd. For one thing, there was only one fan, but there were two heat sinks. Attached to the heat sinks, was what appeared to be a glass tube. In the glass tube, was a black, grainy, substance, that looked like gunpowder. I thought it strange that a video game console would need any kind of powder to run. It didn’t make any sense to me.

<p class="MsoNormal"> Then I noticed what looked like a tiny video camera in the front of the console. I was curious, so I Googled what the inside of an Xbox One is supposed to look like, and was taken aback by what I saw. The second heat sink, glass pipe, powder substance, and the video camera were all absent from any list I pulled up. This got me thinking, what the Hell was this stuff? Who would know? Then it hit me. Tommy. If anyone would know about this shit, it would be him.

<p class="MsoNormal"> I drove to his house around 8:30 and knocked on the door. However, it was not Tommy, so I only assumed it could be Roy, the brother that Tommy mentioned. This guy didn’t look like Tommy though. He was short, had brown hair, brown eyes, and was slightly overweight. In any case, I asked him if Tommy was around, to which Roy replied yes, and went to go get him. A few seconds later, Tommy came to the door and asked me what I needed.

<p class="MsoNormal"> When I inquired about the parts in the Xbox, he told me that they were modifications that he and Roy made to it to put extra features into the system. I didn’t buy that at all. I said, “Sure, maybe the camera offers some sort of video feature like the Kinect, but what about the black powder in the glass tube?”

<p class="MsoNormal"> At this point, Tommy told me that it would be better if he showed me, and had me follow him to the garage. He put in the key and then opened it. What I saw inside confused me. It was a medium sized interior. On the walls, anatomical diagrams of the human muscular and nervous system were pinned up with markings in black sharpie. On each end of the room, were tables that all had various test tubes, papers, and large plastic bags filled with what appeared to be ice and various internal organs.

<p class="MsoNormal"> On one of the tables was a system of several monitors stacked on top of one another. On each of the monitors, was a video feed. All of them featured what seemed to be footage of homes. And on some of them, families were seen walking around and talking with each other. Before I had a chance to ask what the Hell was going on, I heard and felt a thud and then I just saw black.

<p class="MsoNormal"> When I came to, my wrists were bound and I was naked, just hanging from a rope that bound my wrists. The two brothers (if indeed they really were brothers) were standing a safe distance back, smiling at me. I didn’t even know where to begin. Tommy stepped forward and said, “Well, since you’re about to assist us in another one of our tests, we might as well explain to you what kind of test we’ll be performing. You see, I sort of lied to you when I said my brother and I just sold technological devices on the internet. We actually sell chemical weapons.”

<p class="MsoNormal"> Then Roy stepped forward and said, “But testing chemical weapons on animals doesn’t really produce the most accurate results, and finding willing test subjects is kind of a difficult matter, that is to say, impossible. So we came up with a plan to test our newest creation. It’s an undetectable but deadly toxin that works by overstimulating the nervous and muscular system, effectively causing them to burn out over a period of time. The more someone is subjected to the toxin, the faster it works.

<p class="MsoNormal"> Being that it does such extensive damage to the nervous system, hallucinations and vivid nightmares can occur, and then eventually, the muscle strain will cause a heart attack. However, due to the nature in which we have created for the toxin to be introduced into the body, it is all but undetectable in any sort of tox screen.”

<p class="MsoNormal"> Tommy then spoke up again. “In order to get accurate test results we picked various pieces of technology out and implanted a system in which the toxin is released, and then the results are recorded on the camera. However, the camera has a chip on it that only activates the camera when it is connected to the internet. The reason for this is simple. If the camera records and we can’t see it, what’s the point of even doing it? So when the chip detects an internet connection, it immediately transmits a live feed to the monitors over on the table.

<p class="MsoNormal"> We usually know that the toxin has taken effect when one or more family members go missing from the feed.” Tommy then began to chuckle. Roy then spoke up again. “In any case you will be the first subject that we test by injecting you with the toxin in a liquefied form. So thanks for that. However, we need to make sure we wear gloves when we do this, can’t get it on our hands now, so you be a good boy and just hang there while we go back into the house to get the gloves which my idiot brother forgot to bring with him again.”

<p class="MsoNormal"> When the two of them left, I felt dead. My son murdered by these two psychopaths who just used him for their test. It all made sense. When the heat sinks produced heat, the toxin burned into a gaseous form and was blown out into the room through the exhaust fan. My son had been slowly subjected to it each time he turned on the Xbox. In any case, I needed to find any way out of this situation.

<p class="MsoNormal"> I scanned the room and luckily, I noticed some kind of knife on one of the tables. I extended my legs across the room and was just barely able to reach it with my toes. I brought my feet up to my hands and was able to grab it and cut the binds. I then hid behind the door and didn’t make a sound.

<p class="MsoNormal"> When the brothers came in, I showed no mercy. As I had experience fighting in the war, and I would assume they had none, I had no issue taking them down. They were unarmed. I was not. However, two dead bodies was not something I wanted to be seen around, so I got away from there as fast as possible.

<p class="MsoNormal">  It is shortly after that event that I am know writing this, tears streaming down my face. I just hope that by tomorrow, I’ll be able to see my son again, and that we me be able to live in peace, as we once did.

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<p class="MsoNormal">'' The following was taken from the will of Andreas, who took his own life shortly after this account was written, and asked to have it read to all those listed in his will. He would ask that those who read this account, share it with their families and so on and so forth so that they may know the dangers of dealing with people who aren’t trustworthy. If something looks too good to be true, it most likely is. ''

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