Roy Tang

In a quiet suburban neighborhood there was a lot that had been empty for years. One morning nearby residents woke up to see that a tall and imposing black tower had appeared on the lot. It cast a long shadow over their comparatively small houses.

It had no windows, and the lone entrance was a large gray door of wrought iron. Upon the door lay a vicious carving of a monster’s head bearing a giant knocker. None dared approach the tower and they only spoke of it later.

Two days later a man in a suit arrived in the neighborhood. He walked briskly to the tower and without hesitation lifted the giant knocker. The bang of the knocker echoed throughout the neighborhood.

From their windows the residents watched as the man in the suit waited for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, the wrought-iron door started to budge, and residents swore the metal creaked loudly upon stone with an otherwordly wail.

From the darkness beyond a tall figure emerged engulfed in a hooded cloak seemingly made of even blacker darkness. The figure towered over the man in the suit and the morning sunlight showed only a hint of bluish-gray skin underneath his hood.

They stared at each other for a long while, the hooded figure and the man in the suit. Finally, the hooded figure spoke in a deep voice that seemed to reverberate across the area.

WHO DISTURBS MY REST, the voice boomed. The man in the suit held a fist to his mouth and coughed before speaking. “Sir, I’m from city hall. You can’t build a tower here, you’re violating at least three zoning ordinances!”