Moth To A FlameA Story by Fairy A horror/mystery/psychological thriller (I think?) in the form of official documents in an ongoing case about a deceased 18-year-old boy named Karl who was going to be on trial.. PATIENT STATEMENT REPORT Patient #: 1070 Case file #: 4195 Date: 5/12/2020 13:45 (1:45 MST) Location: Silver Lake Psychiatric Hospital, Silver Lake, Idaho, USA (82516) Leading faculty: Dr. Marleen Garrard Statement Given by: Sebastian Moran Information received from Patient? Yes No STATEMENT START Two years ago, or somewhere thereabout, Karl Pattington (Patient 1070) had a friend named Timothy Ward, more commonly known as “Moth” by his peers. I---Nurse Sebastian Moran---have asked Karl to tell me what he remembers about the events leading up to his family perishing in a house fire that he is under suspicion of causing. On the day of December 6th, 2019, Moth failed to show up to school. Karl presumed he was sick, and hoped he would get better soon so they might hangout again. Karl adamantly states that they had been best friends. Moth didn’t return to school for the next 2 weeks. Karl, reportedly having been concerned for his “best friend” at the time, claims to have visited his house “to check up on him”. Patient Claims; “I walked up to the house, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary at first glance, both of their cars were even there. So, I just walked up to the front door and knocked. I didn’t get a response, so I tried the knob, but it was locked. So I walked around to try the back door, but then remembered that I knew where their spare key was, so I just walked the rest of the way around the house until I was back in front of the front door. A full circle. (Laugh) “So, I moved the pot beside the door and picked up the key, unlocked and opened the door. The hinges creaked, and I remember thinking “Man, they should use WD-40 on these things.” But when I walked into the living room, nothing was different, it was the exact same as it had been the last time I had been over two weeks beforehand, even our half-eaten sandwiches were still sitting out on the coffee table, though they were rotten by then. I thought it was weird, but just kinda brushed it off. I figured they may have gone on a spontaneous vacation, but that didn’t sit right with me. Moth would have told me, even if it WAS spontaneous. “Anyway, so I walked through the living room to the kitchen, but no one was there, either. So I walked back and went upstairs to the upper hallway. All of the doors were open. So, I walked down the hallway, looking inside all of the doors. They weren’t empty, per say, but there wasn’t anything in them that shouldn’t have been there, y’know? “I was looking inside the last room when I got scared by a loud sound behind me. I remember spinning around really fast---faster than I think I’ve ever spun before. But it was just their calico cat, Honey. I remember it looking up at me with its big, green eyes, then meowing and trotting off. It almost gave me a f[Censored] heart attack. “Anyway, I walked back down the hall and checked the bathroom, which was, unsurprisingly, empty. So, I walked back down to the living room, then down to the lower level. I wouldn’t really call it a basement, y’know how some fancier houses nowadays have a lower level with more bedrooms ‘n’ stuff? Yeah, it was one of those. “So I entered the lower level, into the---what, it was kind of like a second living room, I guess? Yeah. So, I entered the second living room kinda thing. It was ALSO empty. There was another hallway, so I decided to look in it. All the doors, this time, were closed. Really creeped me the f[Censored] out, y’know? So, I walk down the hall, opening all the doors and looking into the rooms. These ones were ACTUALLY empty, no furniture or anything. So I walked back and realized I had absolutely bypassed the broom closet, ‘cause, y’know, it’s a broom closet, why would an entire family hide in there? “I tried the knob, but it was locked from the inside. I figured that MIGHT have been where their pet Gerbil---named “Dusty”, funnily enough---had disappeared to. So I went back to the stairs. You know how, when you start climbing a staircase, you kinda look down at your feet to make sure you don’t fall flat on your face and break your nose? Yeah, so I was looking down for the first step. “When I finally looked back up, I THOUGHT I saw movement. I just blamed it on the cat, the one I had seen earlier. Seemed the most logical to me, at the time, at least. So, standing in the main living room, I cupped my mouth and called out; “MOTH! MRS. WARD! MR. WARD? ARE YOU GUYS REALLY NOT HERE?” “I didn’t get a response, so I figured, ‘Yeah, they really aren’t here.’ So, I went back to the front door and walked out onto the step, locking and closing the door behind me. I replaced the key under the potted plant and turned, jogging back to the sidewalk. But, when I got there, I looked back at the house. I can’t exactly remember WHY, it’s just kinda one of those things you do when you’re worried, I guess. So I looked back at the house, but.. It was gone. “And not like, disappeared, like, it wasn’t even a house anymore, it was a mass of burnt wreckage. It even still smelled like smoke. So I just kind of stared, ‘cause, y’know, I was JUST inside that building. No, no, Nurse Moran, don’t give me that look! C’mon, just let me finish, and THEN you can judge me all ya want, okay? Okay. “So, I stared at the burnt remains of the house, and that was when I saw it. Up at the top of the dead Western redcedar---No, I DO know for a fact it was a Western Redcedar, I was studying Botany outside of school, plus, Moth’s Dad had been super excited about it---so, anyway, Up at the top of the tree was a vague shape. But... It looked like it had something feathery, or fluffy, coming out of the top of its head, and large wing-like shapes behind it. And I could DEFINITELY see its eyes. Couldn’t miss ‘em. They were big and white.. And seemed to glow. The rest of the thing, though, was just a silhouette. “I remember it VIVIDLY. I saw it, and then, like, a half second later, it was just gone. I s[Censored] you not, it was. just. GONE. And not like the house was, oh, no no no no, the tree didn’t spontaneously burn down, I just blinked in surprise, and the thing wasn’t there anymore. So, like, obviously I freaked out, but then I tried to convince myself that it was just shock. I wish I had been right. Anyway, after it disappeared, I just kinda turned and walked down the sidewalk, back home. “Nothing else happened until the next day. Yeah, Friday the Twenty-first. I remember having asked my teacher---Sawyer Winkowski, the Astronomy teacher. Though, for me and Moth, he was our shared Homeroom teacher. Cool dude. Anyway, I remember going up to him and asking, “Hey, hey, uh, did you- do you know what happened to Moth’s house?” And he just kinda looked at me, and that---f[Censored], that face.. It was the face people give you when you said something absurd and they feel bad for you, kinda the sad, squinty eyes and the frown, y’know? “So, I asked him if he knew what had happened, and he just gave me that look, but he DID end up responding. He said, “You didn’t hear? His house burnt down with him and his family inside it two weeks ago.”.. And I just.. I just kinda stood there, dumbfounded. Like, I just found out my BEST FRIEND had died in a fire, and I didn’t know. How could I not know?! “Best friends for EIGHT. F[Censored] YEARS, we’re practically close enough for telepathy, and I DIDN’T EVEN KNOW WHEN HE GOT INTO A F[Censored] HOUSE FIRE!! HOW COULD I NOT F[Censored] KNOW?! NOT A FEELING, NO NEWS OUTLETS, NOTHING! GODF[Censored]D[Censored]!! WHAT KIND OF FAILURE OF A F[Censored] FRIEND AM I?! “Sorry. Side rant. Any- I know, I know you said it’s healthy to be frustrated, but I still.. Yeah. Nevermind. Let me continue, please. So, school went by really fast that day---I don’t even remember anything else. I guess only the really.. UNNATURAL things stayed in my mind, but I think that’s only because it was really scary to me. “Anyway, the next part happened after I got home. I had gotten to my house and, after saying hi to my family, who were all in the living room doing whatever, I went to my bedroom and set my backpack down. I wasn’t in the mood to do homework---er, to do ANYTHING, really, I was probably going to take a nap, I can’t really remember. So, I had set my backpack down. I turned to sit on my bed, and I freaked out, because, like, there was a note on my bedside table! So I went over and picked it up, and I was like, “what the hell?” So I opened it, and read it, because, like, what else was I supposed to do? “The note raised the hair on the back of my neck AND my arms! It only had four words, but it scared the s[Censored] outta me. All it said was “Do you feel guilty?” And I was like, “Guilty? Why the hell would I feel guilty? For what?” And then, I s[Censored] you not, something tapped on my window. My bedroom was on the SECOND floor, so I was rightfully freaked out. I had gone over and drawn the curtains away from the window---only SLIGHTLY, though, I may be stupid, but I’m not an idiot---and there was NOTHING there. “When I turned around again, there was ANOTHER note on my bedside table. I freaked out---again---but opened it. It was more cryptic s[Censored]. “We trusted you. Why did you do it?” I think that was when I started to get super jumpy. I had felt something brush against my back, and I remember my heart nearly jumped out of my mouth, and I whirled around. IT WAS THE F[Censored] CALICO. “What really got me, though, was not only that it was the f[Censored] cat, but that it was gone the next second! Full-on GONE, vanished into thin air, abracadabra’d out of existence. And, WOULDN’T YOU KNOW IT, riiiiight behind me, on my f[Censored] bedside table, WAS ANOTHER. F[Censored]. NOTE. I WAS ABO- F[Censored], s[Censored], crap, sorry, sorry, I shouldn’t shout, I know, I know, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get so worked up. I’ll get back on track. “Anyway, as I was saying, there was another note. I opened up the new note, and it was also four words. “You forgot, didn’t you?” And I got more panicked, and really confused. What had I forgotten? I couldn’t take it anymore, so I had taken all three notes. I was a f[Censored] kid. I needed my family’s help. I took the notes and ran downstairs to get my Mom, or my Dad. But.. “But.. when I got downstairs.. To the living room.. They were all.. g-.. dead.. and.. and all that remained were their burnt corpses, remnants of their clothes and bits of hair, their jaws gaping open. It was too much. Way too much. I ran to the kitchen, I knew I needed to call emergency services. So I had picked up the phone and dialed 911. It rung twice, and then picked up. The conversation went a bit like this; “”Hello??”” “”(Heavy breathing)”” “”H-hello?! Is this 911?!”” “”(Heavy breathing) ...Why did you do it?”” “”Do---d-do what? What did I do?!”” “”You don’t remember? You did it to me. To my family.”” “”I didn’t do anything!”” “”(Heavy breathing)”” “After that, I hung up the phone and ran out onto the sidewalk in a panic. When I looked back at my house...the whole thing was on fire. I stood there and stared. I didn’t even notice the sirens coming from down the street. And in one of the windows, I swear, I saw those same big, glowing white eyes.” The medical report from the physical and mental evaluation following Karls immediate incarceration state that he is predominantly sound of mind and body, though he did seem moderately paranoid and on-edge. Though, I, Nurse Sebastian Moran, think that it is intriguing to note some reports of those occupying the rooms surrounding his compartment. Ever since Patient 1070’s arrival, others around him have noted the distinct smell of smoke that appears to “follow him around,” and the same people have also commented on a “shadow, bigger than Karl’s, with something seeming to feather from the top of the head, and large wing-like shapes behind the silhouette that drag the ground, along with big, seemingly glowing white eyes”. Whether these reports are factual, or part of a mass-hysteria induced group schizophrenic episode stemming from Karl sharing his story, is currently unknown. We at Silver Lake Psychiatric Hospital intend on discovering the answer. STATEMENT END STAFF INCIDENT REPORT Regarding patient #: 1096 Case file #: 9684 Date: 6/24/2020 16:28 (5:28 CST) Location: Northshore Psychiatric Care Facility, Maxport, Wisconsin, USA (98283) Leading faculty: Dr. John Machi Statement Given by: Micha JoVinski STATEMENT START At the start of the month, Patient 1096---”Karl Pattington”---was moved to our facility for, quote, “The safety and wellbeing of the other patients at Silver Lake Psychiatric Hospital”. Something about a mass-hysteria induced group schizophrenic episode caused by the patient. I have received the previous report from Nurse Moran, and have received the same statement from the Patient. Despite the records of 1096’s previous evaluation, claiming he was completely sane and healthy, we have done our own intensive testing on Patient 1096, and we conclude that the subject has Paranoid Schizophrenia, along with some other unidentified variant of the disorder. While we are unable to determine the source of the smokey smell, we believe that it is just some form of manipulative mass hypnosis, making people believe they are smelling smoke, or seeing this “Big, moth-like shape with big, glowing white eyes”. Though I as a Nurse am solely interested in explaining these occurrences with science and common sense, in the 22 days that the patient has been here, there have been several instances that I am entirely unable to put logic to. Perhaps it is simply the result of the ongoing pandemic. Either way, I will document them below. 6/3/2020 Nurse Ackerman claims that as she was going to the cafeteria to deal with Patient 1096, who was scaring the other patients with his story, she tried to get him out of the room, but, quote; “When he finally looked up at me, his eyes just looked dead, like he hadn’t slept properly in years. That, coupled with the distinct smell of smoke.. It was unnerving. So I just kind of left him to do his thing. But when I looked up and momentarily glimpsed the window, there was some big dark shape, silhouetted against the background lights. Though it was clear to see two fluffy things feathering from the top of its head, and larger things that could have been a cape, but it looked like a pair of giant wings. And the eyes.. You couldn’ miss them. They were big and circular and.. Seemed to glow white. I can’t explain it. When I turned fully to get a better look, the thing was gone.” Ackerman was promptly placed on paid sick leave to quarantine and remove the hallucinations. 6/8/2020 Report from Dr. Machi. Patient 1096 was in testing at the time. “I was alerted to go to the Patients room by the smell of smoke. All other patients were in the cafeteria at the time, and the Patient himself was in with the second leading doctor for testing. Upon entering the room, I had to take off my medical coat immediately. 1096’s bed had spontaneously caught fire, and I had to snuff the flames. The cause of the fire is still unknown.” 6/12/2020 Report from Patient 1022, just after having eaten lunch. “So, like, I was clearing my tray, and, I just- I just brushed by Karl, we walked by each other and our sleeves barely touched. But, f[Censored]- when that happened, it just felt like my whole f[Censored] ARM was on fire! I couldn’t see any flames, but it burned like hell! And after a moment, it spread to the rest of my f[Censored] body! I had to have water dumped on my face to make it go away. I swear to f[Censored] god, dude, something isn’t right about that guy. He creeps everyone out, and is just really f[Censored] weird. I think he talks to himself, but whenever anyone gets close enough to hear, he just shuts up. I don’t feel safe. I don’t think anyone does.” 6/14/2020 Report from Nurse Sharleen when attempting to collect 1096 from his room after he failed to show up for testing. “I had been told to go get Pattington from his room because he hadn’t yet shown up for [testing]. When I went into his room, he was sitting on the edge of his bed, just looking down at himself. I couldn’t see from the side, but when I approached him, his clothes were FULL of holes. Like, the swiss-cheesiest swiss cheese ever. Would make my pastor jealous, how holey they were.” Unfortunately, on 6/18/2020, the Northport Psychiatric Care Facility had caught fire. The cause of the fire is currently unknown, and while we were able to get the facility and its equipment back in running order in a matter of days, several patients were, unfortunately, lost in the flames. The list is as follows; Patient 1294 - Maria Smith Patient 1723 - Cory Gilliard Patient 243 - William Ponici Patient 722 - River Licchi Patient 425 - Cyeo Afton Patient 2143 - Callie Fitzgerald Patient 1987 - Jeremy Norman Patient 1983 - Michael Julian Patient 2112 - Shelly Schmidt Patient 333 - Cherie Pollin While we are uncertain that the fire was directly related to Patient 1096, we had had no fires predating his arrival. We don’t know what caused the fire, but we do, in fact, know that it wasn’t electrical or something in the kitchen. We are planning on transferring him by the end of the month to another, newer facility in Floross, Iowa, to avoid further incident. We will send our records of Patient 1096 to the leading staff there. STATEMENT END PATIENT PSYCHIATRIC EVALUATION Patient #: 1098 Patient name: Karl Pattington Case file #: 8273 Date: 7/26/2020 06:00 (6:00 A.M. CDT) Location: Mercy Vale Psychiatric Hospital, Floross, Iowa, USA (34997) Leading faculty: Dr. Henry Nigil Evaluation recorded by: Yurai Emily STATEMENT START Two days before the end of June, Karl Pattington---Patient 1098---was transferred to our facility. We have received the previous documents on the patient. I have read through both previous reports, and neither note any skittish behavior, nor any attempts or desire to flee the facilities. On the night of July 14th, Pattington had broken the window in his room with a post from his bed, and escaped through it. Security caught him just as he reached the gate. He started yelling about how he needed to “catch that little s[Censored] Timothy” as he was brought back to the building. No patients on-site are named “Timothy”. 1098 is to be moved to a windowless room for the time being to avoid repetition of this event. I would do well to note that this is not, in fact, the first time he’s attempted escape, but this is the first time he’s succeeded in getting out of the building from inside. We have yet to figure out how he managed to remove a post from his (metal) hospital bed, but investigations are underway. We---much like the Northshore Psychiatric Care Facility, where he was previously located---ran our own tests on the patient, and have subsequently reached the same conclusion of paranoid schizophrenia, with the additional diagnoses of BPD and antisocial personality disorder. Court proceedings---in reference to allegations of septuple homicide via arson---are set to occur late August. Currently, Pattington’s legal team is set to plead not-guilty on account of insanity. By the end of the month, Pattington is set to be moved to a higher-security facility in Arcfast, Texas, to avoid recurrences of this and previous events. Including the one initially stated, there are a total of 4 records of Pattington’s escape attempts---all of which were unsuccessful until now. The first time, 1098 attempted to run past the guards to the front doors of the facility, but was caught. The second time, 1098 attempted to climb the fence during the patient’s recreational time. This prompted guards positioned at the doors to forcefully pull him down---with minor injury---and promptly take him back inside. Pattington’s recreation time has been cut down due to this incident. The third recorded instance, 1098’s abscondence was attempted via pulling the fire alarm. Everyone within the building was evacuated to the back field, and after seven minutes, it was obvious there was no real danger. Pattington had made it nearly to the front gate, where the security personnel stationed there was radioed that there was no fire, and promptly brought ‘98 back. In each individual instance, as well as during evaluations and therapy, Pattington constantly mentions “Timothy” and “Moth”. Reading back through the previous two reports we received from Northshore, Pattington had a friend named “Timothy Ward”, who was found deceased, along with the remains of his family, in the burnt remains of the Ward family home in Silver Lake, Idaho, the matter of which 1098 is currently being tried for, accompanied by the event of Pattington’s own family’s {alleged} pyromanic homicide. I am writing this report to file the recent escape attempt (SEE: documents MTAF98-A and MTAF98-B), but I think it will be of interest to note that in the previous documents, spontaneous and simply unexplainable fires do appear to follow Pattington around, and today as well, the burnt remains of leafbugs were discovered in the far right corner of the facility’s cafeteria - where 1098 prefers to sit during lunchtime. I, Yurai Emily, am going to deliver this document - as well as all previous documents - to the Silver Birch facility as Pattington is moved. The staff at the new location have said that they will keep him well within their care, and will attempt to “rehabilitate” him in hopes of sending him home, but not before his trial has taken place. STATEMENT END
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