Azathoth Rising

Abdul Al-Hazred had almost finished. Just the final sentence, and his lineage. "Amen!," his pen swept out the wide, detailed Arabic characters, "I have completed it! Naught more can I do! The future is in thy hands, thou who shall read this writing!"

And that was as far as he got!

Thunder crashed across the sky!

But it was as nothing to the roar of triumph that resounded and echoed inside his head! Sheer terror struck his heart. "Oh, my god and goddess!" he screamed, "Save me from the powers of the Old Ones, and the horrors of beyond!"

But the voice roared with laughter, "THY GOD AND GODDESS WILL NOT HELP THEE NOW!" it bellowed, "I, AZATHOTH, THE CRAWLING CHAOS, HAVE WON! BE AWARE, MORTAL, AND DESPAIR! THE SPELLS AND CHANTS THAT THOU HAST SO CAREFULLY WRIT, FAR FROM BINDING, WILL RELEASE! THE OLD GODS WILL BE FREED! THOU HAST DOOMED THE WHOLE OF THY PITIFUL HUMAN RACE TO DESTRUCTION!" With a scream of despair, the Arab reached out to the pile of manuscript in a desperate attempt to destroy that which he had written. But it was far too late. Al-Hazred's heart failed him, and he collapsed to the earth floor.

Thus was The Necronomicon, the most evil book in creation, completed, with the death of its author.

It was due to destroy other lives in its existence ...

Joseph S. Dale lives in Auckland, New Zealand. "I have always been interested in H.P. Lovecraft, whose Cthulhu Mythos I freely adapted for this story."

Publisher's website: http://sbpra.com/JosephSDale