What Lies Beneath Alexandra Falls

I’ll always remember the summer I moved to Alexandra Falls. The neighborhood kids thought my name, Alexander, meant I was related to the town’s namesake. It didn’t make sense to me either—maybe it was their idea of a joke or just another way to remind me I didn’t belong. Terrence Lawman blatantly made fun of me because I liked color in my wardrobe. Derek Spellmen made fun of me because of my mannerisms. Spoiler: those same mannerism is why he asks me on a date 4 years later. But all the other kids made the name “joke”.

The only two kids I got a long with were the twins, Leonelle (Leo) and Arielle (Ari) Laith, and we became fast best friends. We bonded over the monster shows that premiered that year and video game franchises. We were among the few 10th graders who openly loved that stuff, but the twins never cared what others thought—maybe that’s why everyone liked them.

On hot days we would roam a nearby wood, going on fantastic adventures like we were in elementary school. We always just felt like we could be our weird selves with one another. And it’s because of the fearless twin we ended up where we did the night one of them died.

Ari and I were probably a bit closer. In hindsight, I think this had a lot to do with our shared interest in the same sex. Leo, 27 minutes older, was very protective of his brother; he even punched Liam O'Connell for calling Ari a “pansy” after Derek spread the rumor at school that Ari had a girl’s name. Deserving because Liam is a jerk.

Ari and I were walking through the woods, pretending to be powerful expeditioners. Ari had the ability to create force fields and teleport, while I could use various forms of telekinesis, including moving objects with my mind, pyrokinesis, and telepathy. We were searching for members of our agency who had gone missing. Leo had hidden a little deeper in the woods and needed to be rescued.

“Make sure you keep your eyes peeled for anyone left, Agent Al,” Ari said in his agent voice. Very serious and stern, opposite things of Ari.

“Right, Agent Ari. Let me reach out with my mind to see if I can sense anyone,” I put two fingers to my temple and close my eyes making a low hum sound for an effect. I fling my eyes open and gasp.

“What is it Agent Al,” Ari asks falsely concerned.

I point in the obvious direction of Leo, as could be seen by his bright teal shirt, “There! I sense a survivor. But only... one...” I dramatically confess.

“We must save him! Give me your hand and let's go,” Ari holds out his hand.

My pulse annoyingly quickens. Holding hands or touching is nothing new as we’ve been in many cases, such as this one, where we’ve held hands. But my reaction never changes. For a millisecond I hesitated knowing my hands would be clammy to the touch due to the heat. I grab his hand before he thinks I don’t want to.

We “teleported” over to the direction of where I felt the lone survivor. And by teleported, I mean ran. Leo saw us approaching and dropped to the ground, groaning in mock agony.

“Agent Leo,” Ari exclaims running to his side. I survey the area looking for the bodies of others and the perpetrator. “What happened, who did this to you,” Ari tries to shake an answer out of his injured brother.

Leo shakily lifts a finger to point behind me, “It... It was him.”

Ari and I look in the pointed direction to see an Imaginary villain appear. It was endearing to have a shared imagination with others. As if we shared a collective conscious. Something I haven’t felt since.

“Ahh, I’ve lured all three of the best the agents,” Leo voices our enemy.

“I can’t read his mind,” I tell the twins, eyes still on our imaginary enemy. “Who are you?!”

“I am the infamous, Proximity,” Leo’s villain’s voice reminds of an evil skeleton’s voice, making me break character and laugh.

“I’m sorry, who,” I question through laughter.

Leo slightly irritated sucks his teeth, “C’mon, Al. You gotta wait. It’ll make sense.” Leo usually curated the stories.

I get serious and wipe my face, “Okay, sorry. Okay, go again.”

“I am the infamous, Proximity! I only need to be near you to use your power. And what a smorgasbord we have here!” Where did he learn that word?

“Oh, no. We gotta go!” Ari holds his brother’s had and reaches for me.

“Too late! Agent Alexander’s powers are mine! I can now control Agent Leo. Attack!” Leo rises, face portraying he’s now our enemy. Ari comes to my side, and we get ready for a battle.

“I’m not lying!” A voice screeches from afar.

We pause and glance at each other with curiosity. Leo begins to walk toward the voice, and of course, Ari follows him. Reluctantly, I join them. I wanted to bet them money that this involved Terrence and Derek. Of course, as we descend a hill, Terrence and Derek stood with five others: brothers Jeffery and Javon Moore, tomboyish Renee Ogun, Leo’s crush Allora Chase, and Liam.

Javon was the youngest of us, still in middle school and the source of the voice. He looked to be deservingly yelling at Derek, on the verge of tears. “I saw it! That’s why I ran out the woods!”

For whatever reason this makes Derek, Terrence and Liam laugh.

“If my brother said he saw something then he did. He’s not a liar,” Jeffery comes to his younger brother’s defense.

“The myth’s aren’t real. There are no people in the sewers. He’s just a baby,” Derek condescendingly retorts.

“Shut up, Derek. We’re both younger but we aren’t babies. Don’t talk about him like that!” Jeffery was visibly angry.

“You three are bullies and it’s not cute,” Renee, who was a year older than me, chimed in. “Maybe he did see something. They tell stories about this particular manhole. They say people come out of it. Normally, at night though...”

They all fall silent as we approach. I can see visible concern on the brother’s face and skepticism on the others.

“Oh, hey Al, Ari and Leo,” Allora greets us.

“H-Hey,” Leo nervously responds to Allora’s greeting. “What’s going on here?”

Terrence let’s out a chuckle and points at Javon, “The middle schooler thinks he saw one of the infamous Sewer People and came running to us.”

“I know what I saw!”

“The myth aren’t true,” Terrence begins to laugh harder.

“What myths,” I inquire.

“You’re new, Al,” Jeffery says. “Adults secretly say the town was built near supernatural stuff—people in the sewers who feed on the vulnerable.”

“Like babies,” Liam adds, drawing laughs from Terrence and Derek.

“Fuck off, you three,” Jeffery turning red clenches his fist

“Calm down boys,” Renee was visibly annoyed.

“I saw one! It had like eyes on the side of its head. Like a bug... But also like a human,” Javon blurts.

“Fine then, let’s go check! Let’s see if there are these so-called ‘Sewer People’,” Liam dares the group.

“Umm hard pass, Renee,” says as she pivots and walk away. “If Little J is telling the truth, then I want no parts.”

“Screw it, let’s go,” I turn realizing the voice was coming from next to me. Leo had a fire in his eye at the prospect of a new adventure.

I was incline to side with Renee; if Javon was telling the truth, there are people who eat you down there. I too wanted no parts. Our make-believe adventures were enough for me. There was no danger in being attacked by Proximity.

“You’re gonna go, Leo,” Allora asks.

Leo blushes and it was like that question solidified his choice. “Yeah, why not! They said they attack the vulnerable, right? Let’s not be vulnerable. Arm ourselves, and if there is something down there, we’ll be protected.”

Leo’s excitement meant Ari was going. Which meant I was going.

“You go wherever your soft brother, and his boyfriend go, and I know they’re too scared to go down there,” Derek had an extra bite in his response.

“Watch yourself, Derek. Ask Liam how I feel about people coming for my brother.”

Laim sucked his teeth and looked away, conformation that this famous face punch really happened.

“I’m not scared. Plus, like you said, we go everywhere together,” Ari replied staring directly at Liam. He turns attention to me, “But don’t feel like you have to, Al.”

Pridefully, I couldn’t let Liam be right. Logically, I should be catching up to Renee. I’ve seen 80’s movies, and this never ends well.

“Of course, I’m coming...” layering on false bravado.

“Hmm. Fine. Meet back here in a couple of hours, then,” Terrence proclaimed

I stuffed extra water, snacks, a flashlight, and the last pair of D batteries into my backpack—sorry, parentals—and grabbed an axe from the shed. Luckily, Mom and Dad weren’t home to ask why I looked ready for an expedition. I meet the twins back outside and we all look similar; backpacks, jeans and boots, but instead of flashlights they had hats with LED lights. They also had pickaxes in hand. I looked slightly confused.

“Our dad was a miner,” Ari clearly felt my confusion.

Back at the manhole, we were the last to show.

“Thought y’all chickened out,” Terrence smirks.

“Renee and the baby did,” Liam adds.

Javon clenched his fist, ready to swing, but Allora caught his arm. “It’s not worth it. He gets bullied at home, so now he bullies others.”

Liam turns red, “Fuck you, Allora.”

We all look at the manhole cover, anxiety palpable, hearts racing. Even Terrence, Derek and Liam looked a little nervous. Terrence, clearly the ringleader, points to the cover silently directing Derek and Liam to lift it, and they comply.

I paused to look at the sky at dusk, when the sun glows in pink, orange, and my favorite red. Ari and I enjoy sitting on a hill, watching the sunset. We exchanged a glance, just as the others began to climb down.

Surprisingly, Terrence goes first, followed by Derek, Liam, Leo, Ari, me, with Allora following. Descending felt like sinking into water—thick air, sluggish movements, gravity pressing down.

“Is it me or does it feel weird here,” Allora asks as she takes her last step off the ladder. She could feel it too.

“Yeah, like I’m kind of walking at the bottom of a pool,” Leo confirmed.

“Y’all ready to turn back already,” Terrence taunts. But you could hear a little doubt as he jests.

“Let’s just go,” Leo point into a direction and all seven of us begin to walk.

Because it mirrored outside, I didn’t notice that the same light from the surface lit the entire sewer. No, not like the light permeated from the surface. This light came from the ceiling of the sewer and was a tinge redder than the sky outside.

“Do y’all see this,” I query in awe.

They all in unison reply, “Yeah.”

The thought that we had entered a different place from where we had climbed gnawed at the back of my mind. Were we still in Alexandra Falls? I don’t often frequent sewers, but this seemed ordinary. I expected to hear running water and to be greeted by a foul smell, but it was quiet and still. The odor wasn’t great—more like a fart than actual poop. There’s definitely a difference.

“Y’all. I don’t know. I’m not scared but something doesn’t feel right,” Allora from behind me expresses. “Maybe we should come back when it’s light out,” she tried to reason.

“Or not at all,” I chime in barely audible voice.

“Let’s check it out for a few more minutes and then we’ll give up and know Jeffery’s brother was lying,” Terrence says as he sweeps from left to right with his flashlight. I knew was trying to keep his “bad boy” persona, but fear exuded. We all knew something wasn’t right.

We turn a corner and suddenly I could hear something. Like low chittering. Then something like a scuddle.

“Uh... What was that,” I stop dead in my tracks.

“Yeah, I heard that...” Allora pivots to walk back to the ladder. “Nope, I’m going back.”

I turn and follow, “I second that.”

“Okay, okay. Yeah, let’s go back,” Ari adds as he turns around with Leo following.

“Knew you were pansies,” Liam yells after us.

“Come on y’all,” Terrence says to Derek and Liam, keeping up the charade.

As we ignore them, we head back for the ladder. Or where it should have been.

“Wait we didn’t go that far. Isn’t this where the ladder was,” franticness seeping through Allora voice.

“Yeah, that’s the manhole, right,” Leo points. But there was no ladder in sight as if it never existed.

Screams echoed through the sewer. Footsteps pounded behind us. Leo’s helmet light flashed—Terrence and Derek sprinted toward us, their terror infectious.

“Something got him! Something got him,” Terrence yells. “Run!”

We take off, sprinting through the red-lit sewer, with no idea who—or what—got Liam.

‘What happened,” Javon yells between labored breath.

“Just keep going,” Terrence yells back.

“Which way?” Allora skids to a stop at the crossroad. We freeze. Something is right behind us.

We pause for a second looking in three different directions panic setting in.

“Right! We have to go right. If I got it right, this would lead us to the manhole in Ari and my cul-de-sac,” Leo exclaims nearly breathless.

The dilemma was that we had to jump a six-foot gap. While the water wasn’t flowing, there was still a river of unknown liquid between us and where we needed to go.

“Everyone come on, we gotta jump,” Ari says getting into a running-leaping posture.

Ari leaps and lands on the other side. Leo beckons Allora to go next, and she complies landing safely with Ari’s help. Leo looks at me and then I jump next, landing safely and in Ari’s arms. I had the right mind to say screw it and kiss him in that moment but then thought better.

Leo and Javon jump next landing and then yell for Terrence and Derek to follow. Terrence does a ready dance with his feet, gauging if he’ll make it. He finally leaps, and something jumps out of the water catching him in midair, pulling him into the water and disappearing.

We all yell and tell Derek to go now. Once he lands next to Javon, we take off running in the direction Leo suggested. After running for a minute, we come upon a path to go straight or right. I could swear pincers came from the right and grabbed Allora by the throat and took her into the shadows.

“ALLORA!” Leo screams over my own.

“Go,” Ari yells pointing straight.

All I could think was that we were going to die. This was it and I didn’t take my chance to kiss Ari.

We eventually reached a dead end with a manhole cover, but no ladder. In disbelief we all look at each other for some sort of plan. Derek was certainly the strongest of us, but there was no way he could support what would take three people on his shoulders.

I hear a gasp from behind. A six-foot creature loomed—ant’s head, human torso, clawed pincers wrapped around Ari’s waist.

“If... If only I could teleport us,” he reaches for what feels like for me. With a splash the Man-Ant and Ari were gone.

Leo and I screamed out. Not Ari! Why did we have to come down here? How could he go without knowing truly how I felt.

We barely had time to mourn as two more Man-Ants appear. The summer I moved to Alexandra Falls would be my last summer.

My head and stomach begin to ache. I figured I was about to vomit for my last time. These creatures were clearly going take us one by one. I press both hands on my head and let out a scream. I feel some sort of pulse resonating from me, like a power of some sort. I don’t know what I’m doing but I lean into it screaming louder.

The creatures begin to make a screeching sound and chittering. They take off in a flurry disappearing in the red light.

“Look,” Derek points behind me where a ladder suddenly appeared. “Let’s go!”

He races to the ladder and climbs. Leo and I weakly follow behind him, with Javon in the rear. Derek removes the cover with a slight struggle, and we emerge out front of Leo and Ari’s house.

Renee is there frantic but helps us out of the sewer, pulling each of us as we emerge. “I heard some screaming and came running.”

“What are you doing here,” Derek inquires

She points to her left silently reminding him she lives in the same cul-de-sac. “What happened?”

“He’s gone. They’re gone,” Leo sobs.

“The ants got them,” she plainly asks.

“How... How do you know they’re ants,” my heart pounds as I slowly look up at her.

“The grown-ups don’t talk about it because they know the truth. The ants feed when kids wander in—and then they leave us alone.”

“You knew what would happen,” the ferocity in Leo’s voice was palpable. A sinister smile spreads across her face.

She yelps as Derek pushes her in the hole and then put the lid on. She screams but it only lasts for a few moments and then it was silent.

“He’s gone,” Leo says in the silence.

“They all are,” Javon adds

The summer I moved to Alexandra Falls, I lost my best friend and crush—my life was never the same.