WWW II: What Still Remains

Words from the Whispering Woods: II

This is based on the legendary woods of Dudleytown, in mountainous northwest CT. This was once a section of the town of Cornwall, back in the 1700s(-ish). It had a population of only around 100 people, who all eventually either died or moved away. Today nothing remains there but abandoned woods, some paths, and some remnants of foundations of old houses. It is believed by many to be haunted. It is absolutely illegal for ANYBODY to trespass or even park near the entrance of these woods, as it is currently owned by the Dark Entry Forest Association. The area is heavily patrolled, and people are frequently fined or arrested immediately on sight simply for parking their cars on Bald Mountain Road or Dark Entry Road.


"WHAT STILL REMAINS"
April 2008

Upon a hill,
At the entrance
Through a gateway of mysterious vines,
All of the sounds of life end.
No creature dwells in this realm.
Nothing lives but the trees
And the wind.
Yet there is a presence,
An energy, lingering,
Of what once was
Miles deep inside these woods,
Seeping through abandoned foundations
Of a dead, old village,
Lurching down the abandoned path
Of a dead, old road.

Those who dare to venture
Past the warning posts
Into this forbidden ghost town
Will still have to contend
With what still remains.

The yell of a voice without a throat
And presence of hate without a conscience
Beckon the shadows
Of ravenous mongrels at your feet.
Angrily creaking trees
Cry out the call of banshees,
Pleading with you
To leave
And never return.
A force burns out your lantern
And crawls into your head;
You stumble onto the dirt,
Stricken with vertigo.

And now you have to run back,
Back to the warning posts,
Out of this forbidden ghost town,
For no one will contend
With what still remains.