A Grim Warning to the Audience
“Mesdames et messieurs!” cried the proprietor. “Ladies and gentlemen! Please ensure you have no serious medical conditions that might endanger your safety tonight. Théâtre Gran Mourguet’s management cannot be held responsible for what may happen next. You will be shocked, my friends, confronted with a revolting and obscene betrayal of all natural and physical laws. The very foundation of your reality will be shattered. There is every chance you will react violently. If anyone has a weak heart or is prone to fainting, vapors, or nervous exhaustion, you are encouraged to leave immediately and receive a full refund!”
A profound silence followed this extravagant warning. No one moved except for an older gentleman who tried—and failed—to stifle a yawn.
The Show Begins
“Very well, dear friends. Let us commence! Kindly direct your attention to the stage. Watch closely and you will see the door to a hellish nightmare—the entrance to the Pit Infernal. Patience, friends! Wait for it… In trois, deux, un…”
On cue, the limelight flared. The ragged curtains hanging before the tiny stage fluttered slightly. A current of cold air swept toward the audience, causing every one of them to shiver despite their well-cut clothes. A strange odor, putrid and distressing, drifted along with the chill. It was too faint for the jaded, cultured noses of Parisian theatre-goers to detect, but everyone felt vaguely uncomfortable, though none dared admit it.
The Pit Revealed
The moment lasted longer than the master of ceremonies expected, as if his star attraction was shy. Then, with a soft hiss like the last sigh of a dying serpent, a hole appeared in the air before the curtain. The worm-eaten boards of the stage vibrated slightly, and a dull, colorless light illuminated a strange, unwholesome shape.
Between the overwrought theatrics of Gran Mourguet and the darkness beyond sanity, something appeared and crawled through that hole. It clambered out and stared back at the audience…
Disclaimer:
This story is a work of fiction created for entertainment purposes only. All images used are for illustration.