SW Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction
馃: "Good evening. I am Commander William Riker of the USS Enterprise. Tonight, your challenge is to separate what is true from what is false. I'll present to you five stories. Some will be based on true events while others will be completely fictitious. Can you judge which are fact and which are fiction? To find out, you must enter a world of both truth and deception - a world that is beyond belief."
[sep]
[center][big]#1 The Phone Stalker[/big][/center]
A family has been receiving numerous death threats via phone calls over long period of time. It all started with the family's teenage daughter whose phone started sending text messages to her friends seemingly on its own. Not long after, the family started receiving calls in all hours of the night from someone with a raspy voice threatening to kill everyone in the house. A lot of juvenile things were said, so the family initially thought it was some teenager pulling some kind of sick prank.
However, the seriousness of the situation became even more evident when this caller started sharing details he could have only known if he were stalking them. He knew what places they had visited, what they were doing there and even what they were wearing. The stalker began leaving voicemails that were recordings of the family's private conversations. Naturally, the family went to the police, but their investigation yielded pretty much nothing. They tried tracing the calls, but they only led back to the numbers of the family's cell phones, even when they would be turned off.
The harassment only got worse from there. One of the voicemail recordings was a conversation the family had with the detective. The family installed a new security system and but the stalker knew exactly what their security code was. At one point, one of the family members were slicing limes in the kitchen and the stalker called to tell them they preferred lemons. After months of looking into the matter, the police still seemed powerless to stop it. The family have no clue who they could have angered so much or how they could have made such an enemy. The culprit has never been identified or caught.
[center][big]#2 Why I Stopped Using Dating Apps[/big][/center]
I used to go on this one dating app in hopes of finding a new girlfriend. I won't say which app, it doesn't matter anyway. I never had much luck with it though. I always considered myself a good-looking guy. I was always pretty friendly too. I had several women contact me through the app, plenty of them were fairly attractive and all, but we just never had enough in common to consider seriously dating or even meeting.
That is until this one girl contacted me. Jennifer was her name. She was a hottie alright. Not only that, but we ended up sharing a lot in common. We talked for a while through the app before we eventually agreed to exchange numbers. We eventually started texting but this girl Jennifer, she told me to only text her and to never call. I know this should have been an immediate red flag, but I was so smitten with this chick, it flew right over my head and I agreed to just text.
After about a week of us texting, we decided we had gotten to know each other well enough to finally meet. Jennifer actually lived close by and agreed to meet me at a local park in my town. But she wanted to meet me alone at night after the park was closed so we could go get dinner somewhere. Another very obvious red flag, I know. Call me an idiot, but I was just so excited about meeting Jennifer that I obviously lacked common sense.
The night we were supposed to meet, I arrived at the park at night as planned. I texted her letting her know I was there and she said she was on her way, to meet her at the bench near the bathrooms. I did just that, but I ended up waiting a long time. After 20 minutes, I texted her asking where she was but got no answer. I would periodically send her messages asking where the hell was and started getting frustrated, wondering if she was even coming. I finally got fed up with waiting and getting no answer, that I gave her a call.
That's when I heard a cell phone ringing from the direction of the bathrooms. When I turned to look, I saw a face peering from around the corner of the bathrooms. The person quickly hid once I saw them, but I could tell it was a man. Fear struck over me at the realization that "Jennifer" was actually a man who I was now all alone with in the park at night. After a moment of so, I quickly overcame the shock and dashed into a sprint back to my car. Once I made it back, I sat in the car for a moment to catch my breath.
But I didn't get to rest for long before I turned my head to see that that man was now running toward me fast! I fumbled with my keys for a moment before starting up my car and speeding off at the exact moment the man was about to reach me. As I was driving back home still in complete shock, I got one more text from "Jennifer". All it said was "I'll find you." I blocked the number and ended up changing my own just to be safe. I never saw that person again and as far as I know, that was the end of it. But I've never used any dating apps again and I never will.
[center][big]#3 Old Man Skin-walker[/big][/center]
In a Midwest Native American community, rumors circulated of some of the tribal elders who dabble in witchcraft. The rumors date all the way back to the Indian termination act in the mid-20th century when some of the members of the terminated tribe turned to black magic in an attempt to get revenge on the "white man government" who tried ending their way of life. Once tribe got restored, many were said to have stopped practicing witchcraft, but some old bitter practitioners remained.
These rumors have been widely dismissed as mere superstition. That is until one notable story turned up which have left many wondering if they could very well be true. One such reclusive elder had an infamous reputation for being a skin-walker - a person who can transform into animals. It was said that the old man could turn into a coyote and would spy on other people's houses at night in his coyote form. There were confirmed reports of a lone coyote who would appear to stare at houses and even peer into windows. Unusual for sure, but nothing to suggest that this curious rogue coyote was some kind of skin-walker.
That is until one day, one resident finally had enough of this peeping tom of a coyote and shot at it with their gun, hitting it in its left hind leg. It was reported that the coyote retreated to the safety of the forest and it was undetermined if it had succumbed to its wounds or not. But not long after that incident, the purported skin-walker elder was seen walking with a cane after he had been shot in his left leg! When asked about his injury, the old man answered that he accidentally shot himself at his home.
Some time later, the man died of natural causes unrelated to his injury, but after he died, the rogue coyote sightings ceased. It all could just be coincidence, but many who doubted before now believe it was no coincidence. That that old man was indeed a skin-walker.
[center][big]#4 The Twins[/big][/center]
In a rather disturbing case of a relationship between twins, two twin girls developed a bond that would prove to be dangerous and unsettling. Since childhood, the twins were very isolated from everyone else. They spoke their own language, something not uncommon with twins, and rarely spoke to anyone else. When the girls became teenagers, they came to develop an even worse reputation. They started experimenting with drugs and began a crime spree of theft, vandalism and arson. They were eventually apprehended and both were branded criminally insane.
The twin sisters were committed to a mental institution where, for many years, therapists unsuccessfully attempted to get them to communicate with others. However, it was noted that their love for each other would sometimes unexpectedly turn to hatred as one would attempt to kill the other and vice versa! The twins did eventually reach out to someone where they explained the reason for their murderous tendencies was that they could never truly be individuals so long as both of them lived.
Then one day, one of the girls said that her and her sister agreed that she would be the one to die and when she did, her sister would go on to live a normal life and start speaking to other people. Not long after, that is exactly what happened. Only, she didn't die by her sister's hand, but as a result of a heart condition. The surviving sister exclaimed that she was finally free and that her sister gave her life so she could become normal.
It could just be some bizarre coincidence, but one can't help but feel that the deceased sister did indeed somehow give her life for her twin. Whatever the case, the surviving sister has gone on to live a normal life and has since acquired a sense of individuality.
[center][big]#5 I Put Her in the Attic[/big][/center]
When I was 8 years old, there was this girl who lived on my block who was the same age as me. Her and I were best friends and loved spending time together. We had this swingset that was right outside my house and one time when we were playing alone together, she asked for me to push her on the swing. As I was pushing her, she kept demanding that I push harder so she could go higher. So at one point when she kept calling for me to push her more, I pushed her as hard as I possibly could, but that was apparently more force than she was ready for because she ended up falling off the swing and flying through the air screaming.
Her screaming ceased when she hit the ground, landing right on her head! She was a tough girl. We rough housed all the time and she would always just giggle it off. But she wasn't laughing this time. I expected her to be crying, but she wasn't crying either. No sounds, no movement and no breathing. My friend was dead! I panicked, knowing I was going to be in so much trouble. Even though it was an accident, I knew no one would ever believe me. I couldn't face it, so I took her back into my house and put her in the attic. The attic was so messy, no one ever went up there. And no one ever did and so my dead friend remained hidden away in the attic. My parents ended up moving us out of that house a few months later. It was an old, run-down place. No one ever moved in after us and so it went abandoned.
Over time, I ended up forgetting all about what happened until about 13 years later, when the recurring nightmare's started happening. Dreams of people asking me whatever happened to my friend, of my parents complaining about a foul rotting smell that stunk up the house while being unable to find the source. But were these really dreams or suppressed memories resurfacing? If they were indeed dreams, then what if there never was any girl and this was all just fantasy? But I remember it all so clearly now! And one doesn't just dream up a childhood trauma, do they?
It was tearing me up and there was only one way to find out: I had to go to the house and see if the remains of that girl were there in the attic. But when I attempted to do so, that house was gone! I remembered one year, there was a terrible fire in the neighborhood that burned down many houses. My old house was one of them. Many people were killed in that fire too. A body count was done for every burned down building and I learn some charred skeletal remains were discovered in what was left of my old home. But many bodies were burned to bones in houses that were packed with families. Those bones could just as easily have been someone who was squatting there, which was fairly common in the area.
I will never learn the truth about what happened to my childhood friend, if she was even real. Whether she was or not, the nightmares will haunt me for the rest of my life. I can't even say what's worse, the nightmares or the fact that I'll never know the truth.
[sep]
馃: "Now let's find out which of our stories are fact and which are totally fal-"
Okay, I'll drop the act. Let me know in the comments which stories you think are real and which you think are fiction. After a certain amount of time, I will post my own comment where I'll tell you the answers. Good luck and don't be a spoilsport and cheat by looking these up!
[sep]
[center][big]#1 The Phone Stalker[/big][/center]
A family has been receiving numerous death threats via phone calls over long period of time. It all started with the family's teenage daughter whose phone started sending text messages to her friends seemingly on its own. Not long after, the family started receiving calls in all hours of the night from someone with a raspy voice threatening to kill everyone in the house. A lot of juvenile things were said, so the family initially thought it was some teenager pulling some kind of sick prank.
However, the seriousness of the situation became even more evident when this caller started sharing details he could have only known if he were stalking them. He knew what places they had visited, what they were doing there and even what they were wearing. The stalker began leaving voicemails that were recordings of the family's private conversations. Naturally, the family went to the police, but their investigation yielded pretty much nothing. They tried tracing the calls, but they only led back to the numbers of the family's cell phones, even when they would be turned off.
The harassment only got worse from there. One of the voicemail recordings was a conversation the family had with the detective. The family installed a new security system and but the stalker knew exactly what their security code was. At one point, one of the family members were slicing limes in the kitchen and the stalker called to tell them they preferred lemons. After months of looking into the matter, the police still seemed powerless to stop it. The family have no clue who they could have angered so much or how they could have made such an enemy. The culprit has never been identified or caught.
[center][big]#2 Why I Stopped Using Dating Apps[/big][/center]
I used to go on this one dating app in hopes of finding a new girlfriend. I won't say which app, it doesn't matter anyway. I never had much luck with it though. I always considered myself a good-looking guy. I was always pretty friendly too. I had several women contact me through the app, plenty of them were fairly attractive and all, but we just never had enough in common to consider seriously dating or even meeting.
That is until this one girl contacted me. Jennifer was her name. She was a hottie alright. Not only that, but we ended up sharing a lot in common. We talked for a while through the app before we eventually agreed to exchange numbers. We eventually started texting but this girl Jennifer, she told me to only text her and to never call. I know this should have been an immediate red flag, but I was so smitten with this chick, it flew right over my head and I agreed to just text.
After about a week of us texting, we decided we had gotten to know each other well enough to finally meet. Jennifer actually lived close by and agreed to meet me at a local park in my town. But she wanted to meet me alone at night after the park was closed so we could go get dinner somewhere. Another very obvious red flag, I know. Call me an idiot, but I was just so excited about meeting Jennifer that I obviously lacked common sense.
The night we were supposed to meet, I arrived at the park at night as planned. I texted her letting her know I was there and she said she was on her way, to meet her at the bench near the bathrooms. I did just that, but I ended up waiting a long time. After 20 minutes, I texted her asking where she was but got no answer. I would periodically send her messages asking where the hell was and started getting frustrated, wondering if she was even coming. I finally got fed up with waiting and getting no answer, that I gave her a call.
That's when I heard a cell phone ringing from the direction of the bathrooms. When I turned to look, I saw a face peering from around the corner of the bathrooms. The person quickly hid once I saw them, but I could tell it was a man. Fear struck over me at the realization that "Jennifer" was actually a man who I was now all alone with in the park at night. After a moment of so, I quickly overcame the shock and dashed into a sprint back to my car. Once I made it back, I sat in the car for a moment to catch my breath.
But I didn't get to rest for long before I turned my head to see that that man was now running toward me fast! I fumbled with my keys for a moment before starting up my car and speeding off at the exact moment the man was about to reach me. As I was driving back home still in complete shock, I got one more text from "Jennifer". All it said was "I'll find you." I blocked the number and ended up changing my own just to be safe. I never saw that person again and as far as I know, that was the end of it. But I've never used any dating apps again and I never will.
[center][big]#3 Old Man Skin-walker[/big][/center]
In a Midwest Native American community, rumors circulated of some of the tribal elders who dabble in witchcraft. The rumors date all the way back to the Indian termination act in the mid-20th century when some of the members of the terminated tribe turned to black magic in an attempt to get revenge on the "white man government" who tried ending their way of life. Once tribe got restored, many were said to have stopped practicing witchcraft, but some old bitter practitioners remained.
These rumors have been widely dismissed as mere superstition. That is until one notable story turned up which have left many wondering if they could very well be true. One such reclusive elder had an infamous reputation for being a skin-walker - a person who can transform into animals. It was said that the old man could turn into a coyote and would spy on other people's houses at night in his coyote form. There were confirmed reports of a lone coyote who would appear to stare at houses and even peer into windows. Unusual for sure, but nothing to suggest that this curious rogue coyote was some kind of skin-walker.
That is until one day, one resident finally had enough of this peeping tom of a coyote and shot at it with their gun, hitting it in its left hind leg. It was reported that the coyote retreated to the safety of the forest and it was undetermined if it had succumbed to its wounds or not. But not long after that incident, the purported skin-walker elder was seen walking with a cane after he had been shot in his left leg! When asked about his injury, the old man answered that he accidentally shot himself at his home.
Some time later, the man died of natural causes unrelated to his injury, but after he died, the rogue coyote sightings ceased. It all could just be coincidence, but many who doubted before now believe it was no coincidence. That that old man was indeed a skin-walker.
[center][big]#4 The Twins[/big][/center]
In a rather disturbing case of a relationship between twins, two twin girls developed a bond that would prove to be dangerous and unsettling. Since childhood, the twins were very isolated from everyone else. They spoke their own language, something not uncommon with twins, and rarely spoke to anyone else. When the girls became teenagers, they came to develop an even worse reputation. They started experimenting with drugs and began a crime spree of theft, vandalism and arson. They were eventually apprehended and both were branded criminally insane.
The twin sisters were committed to a mental institution where, for many years, therapists unsuccessfully attempted to get them to communicate with others. However, it was noted that their love for each other would sometimes unexpectedly turn to hatred as one would attempt to kill the other and vice versa! The twins did eventually reach out to someone where they explained the reason for their murderous tendencies was that they could never truly be individuals so long as both of them lived.
Then one day, one of the girls said that her and her sister agreed that she would be the one to die and when she did, her sister would go on to live a normal life and start speaking to other people. Not long after, that is exactly what happened. Only, she didn't die by her sister's hand, but as a result of a heart condition. The surviving sister exclaimed that she was finally free and that her sister gave her life so she could become normal.
It could just be some bizarre coincidence, but one can't help but feel that the deceased sister did indeed somehow give her life for her twin. Whatever the case, the surviving sister has gone on to live a normal life and has since acquired a sense of individuality.
[center][big]#5 I Put Her in the Attic[/big][/center]
When I was 8 years old, there was this girl who lived on my block who was the same age as me. Her and I were best friends and loved spending time together. We had this swingset that was right outside my house and one time when we were playing alone together, she asked for me to push her on the swing. As I was pushing her, she kept demanding that I push harder so she could go higher. So at one point when she kept calling for me to push her more, I pushed her as hard as I possibly could, but that was apparently more force than she was ready for because she ended up falling off the swing and flying through the air screaming.
Her screaming ceased when she hit the ground, landing right on her head! She was a tough girl. We rough housed all the time and she would always just giggle it off. But she wasn't laughing this time. I expected her to be crying, but she wasn't crying either. No sounds, no movement and no breathing. My friend was dead! I panicked, knowing I was going to be in so much trouble. Even though it was an accident, I knew no one would ever believe me. I couldn't face it, so I took her back into my house and put her in the attic. The attic was so messy, no one ever went up there. And no one ever did and so my dead friend remained hidden away in the attic. My parents ended up moving us out of that house a few months later. It was an old, run-down place. No one ever moved in after us and so it went abandoned.
Over time, I ended up forgetting all about what happened until about 13 years later, when the recurring nightmare's started happening. Dreams of people asking me whatever happened to my friend, of my parents complaining about a foul rotting smell that stunk up the house while being unable to find the source. But were these really dreams or suppressed memories resurfacing? If they were indeed dreams, then what if there never was any girl and this was all just fantasy? But I remember it all so clearly now! And one doesn't just dream up a childhood trauma, do they?
It was tearing me up and there was only one way to find out: I had to go to the house and see if the remains of that girl were there in the attic. But when I attempted to do so, that house was gone! I remembered one year, there was a terrible fire in the neighborhood that burned down many houses. My old house was one of them. Many people were killed in that fire too. A body count was done for every burned down building and I learn some charred skeletal remains were discovered in what was left of my old home. But many bodies were burned to bones in houses that were packed with families. Those bones could just as easily have been someone who was squatting there, which was fairly common in the area.
I will never learn the truth about what happened to my childhood friend, if she was even real. Whether she was or not, the nightmares will haunt me for the rest of my life. I can't even say what's worse, the nightmares or the fact that I'll never know the truth.
[sep]
馃: "Now let's find out which of our stories are fact and which are totally fal-"
Okay, I'll drop the act. Let me know in the comments which stories you think are real and which you think are fiction. After a certain amount of time, I will post my own comment where I'll tell you the answers. Good luck and don't be a spoilsport and cheat by looking these up!
