The Ick Effect

What I am about to tell you must be held in strict confidence, because I hold a secret that will put me in peril.  While it would serve me better to keep this to myself, I feel that I need to tell someone, a living human being, this deplorable secret or curse as I have come to know it.  A betrayal of the unnatural order.

Let’s start with my given name, Ichabod Soletelk.  You probably have never heard the name before , but I fear you will since my name will become notorious in a short time.  Bartender, can you get me and my friend another round?  Appreciate it.

So, where was I?  Oh yes, I am now or soon to be a wanted man. 

The curse of the Soletelk clan began in Everness, Scotland where a witch tricked my great-great-great-grandfather into surrendering his land.  When he found out what she had done, he went to the authorities and had the hag arrested.  Tried for being a scam artist, the authorities had evidence of her true identity as a witch.  Condemned to be burned at the stake as heretics and all those who keep company with the devil were sentenced by law to be thusly executed.

As the flames licked at the hem of her black gown, she cried out cursing my ancestor to become a shapeshifter.  Since there were ravens present overhead, her curse went to them.  As her screams were lost in the crackling fire and smoke, he felt a force take him skyward where he became a member of the murder with the others hovering above the doomed witch.  

It became known as the Ick Effect due to its intoxicating effect.  I would prefer perhaps a more up-to-date moniker, but there doesn’t seem anything better.  It does capture the crooked spirit of the curse, if I’m being quite honest. 

You seem amused?  I tell you there is no mirth in my tale.  None whatsoever. You see, I carry the curse of the ravenous raven from two centuries before I was born.  I have even given it a name.  Do you want to know what that name is?  The Ick Effect.  Clever, eh?  So are you from around here?  I have never seen you here before.  Claire?  Pretty name. My mother’s name was Clarissa.  I loved her as a child would love his mother.  I was born and raised in Upstate New York where I worked in the fields with my father Geoffrey who tended his cows on our dairy.  He also tended an apple orchard. I must say, my childhood was idyllic until the others came.  

I was not supposed to see their ritual, but I managed to sneak out one night during one of their high masses.  

I must insist that you keep your word on this matter and not tell anyone what I am about to tell you.  Good.

They brought this young girl in wearing a robe and placed her on the altar.  The high priest dressed in a black robe and wearing the mask of a raven plunged a dagger into her heart.  She let out a single scream and then no more.  He removed her heart, still beating and held it up for the congregation. The chanted, growing louder with each utterance until their voices filled with moonless sky.  

There was a flash of light across the blackness.  

Cthulhu Mythos.

Cthulhu Mythos

H.P. Lovecraft wrote about the Cthulhu in his classic story “The Dunwich Horror.”  Printed as science fiction, many have been left to question whether it was fiction or not.  I have no question in the matter, you see, since he appeared at the altar with the high priest and the sacrificed young woman.  I was convinced that I was living through my own nightmare.

As it turned out, my eyes saw this creature of that ancient mythology described in graphic detail. His presence was not meant for human eyes and indeed the perverse shape of this creature was more than my senses could endure.  His voice evoked the suffering of those he had banished to the nether regions of Hell. 

Oh please, don’t leave, Claire.  I need you to hear this story.  I promise you that I mean you no harm.  Let me buy you another drink. It’s the least I can do. 

Where was I?  Oh yes, watching the high mass as the Cthulhu spoke in an ancient language.  This language that sounded to me like gibberish was an ancient tongue not spoken by a living soul for centuries. Its crude guttural expressions are not easy on the listener that is for sure. 

‘Father, who were those men that came the other night?’ I asked him as I adjusted my milking stool.

‘None of your business, Ichabod.’ He puffed on his pipe as he pulled on one of the cow’s teats.  A stream of milk splashed in the bucket. ‘It is an ancient rite that you will one day learn about, but now is not the time.’ 

‘When?’ I implored.

‘I will let you know.’ He nodded as a cloud of smoke circled his head like a halo.  

I was a curious lad.  I asked my mother who promptly slapped my face and wagged her finger at me, warning me not to be profane. I stood there shocked, rubbing my face with my hand where she had struck me. She had never treated me so abruptly and cruelly.  I knew if I wanted answers, I would not find them here. 

And so I went to Blind Willie McNeal.  He had worked for my father before losing his sight to diabetes.  His eyes were coated over in a thick white film.  He would sit on his porch with his corn cob pipe he made when he still had vision and let the sun wash over him as he sat there.  Always glad for company, he greeted me with a grin. When I asked him about the Ick Effect, his warm greeting smile disappeared. 

‘I promise your pa that I would not speak of the ritual.’ He chuckled, ‘One day you will become the high priest as foretold by the Demon of the Damned.’

‘Cthulhu?’ I asked.  His face stiffened.

‘Whereja hear that name?’ His voice hardened. ‘You must never speak of him. When he hears someone call his name, he will come. You do not want to summon him.  Bad fortune will follow.’

Blind Willie stood up and put his hand on the wall of the house as he felt his way back inside his home.  I could tell I had touched a nerve that I shouldn’t have touched.  When he went into his house, I took it as our conversation had ended.

Later the sheriff found Blind Willie in his chair.  His heart had been ripped from his chest.  His mouth was open as a single scream escaped his lips as his heart was being ripped from his chest.  

While spending a few weeks investigating the horrible murder, Sheriff Wainwright eventually concluded Blind Willie had died of natural causes. 

It was the Ick Effect.

Bad fortune had followed. 

Not long after that, there was another high mass held near our orchard.  Men wearing hooded robes gathered in the clearing.  One of the members dressed in a black robe with a raven mask began reading from the ancient text.

‘Blind Willie was one of us.’ They began to chant.

‘Blind Willie was one of us.’

The black robed high priest began to writhe in pain.  His arms became stiff and twisted in an unnatural way.

‘He sees you!’ The creature appeared in a flash of light as I he had the first time I saw him.  The creature had no recognizable face nor did he have any limbs.  He seemed to hover and float.  While I was astounded with his powers, I knew that he had come from another world, another dimension. ‘Blind Willie is now in my realm. But he who shall take your place, stands watching.’

There was a murmur in the crowd and my heart froze when I realized the creature was referring to me.  Suddenly my concealment was in peril and I decided to vacate the premises. 

The next day my father was unusually quiet as we milked the cows.  His face was gaunt and drawn as he puffed on his pipe.  I knew better than to engage him in an early morning conversation.  His crystal blue eyes flashed on me from time to time which made me uncomfortable in his presence. 

‘He is angry with you, Ichabod.’ My mother informed me as I helped her clean the vegetables for dinner.  

I did not ask her why she knew, but in his silence, my father spoke to me of his disapproval.0-0-

It wasn’t long after that I had my first transformation. It was even more dramatic than my first sexual encounter a few years later.  I shook as if a lightning bolt was surging through me. My arms became feathery wings and my legs were transformed into spiny claws.  After the transformation was complete, I opened my wings and took to the sky.  My heart raced inside my chest as I swooped and soared in the baby blue sky.  The rush of exhilaration as I soared over the river and lake was one of the best moments of my young life.  The air filled my lungs and I felt as alive as I had ever felt before.  

It was later I learned that the Ick Effect was not always a pleasant experience.  One of the farmers took a shot at me as I flew by as he cried out, “Mangy critter, stealin’ my corn!” 

A few days later, my father confronted me, ‘So, you have experienced the transformation.’

‘Yes sir.’ I affirmed. 

‘Your time is coming soon.’ He put his thumbs in the straps of his overalls.

‘What does that mean?’ I asked even though I sort of knew what he was about to say. 

‘You will join us during one of our rituals.  You are one of us now.’ He lit his pipe as if this was just an ordinary father son conversation. ‘She cursed us.’

‘Who?’

‘Elizabeth MacLorren.’ He put one foot on his stool as he shook his head, ‘She cursed us.  Made all of us Soletelks shapeshifters. It’s exciting in the beginning, as I’m sure you found out, but later we learn to kill.  Our appetite for death becomes overwhelming.  It has for me.’

I could have been knocked over by a feather.  I never imagined my father was a murderer.

‘Your mother is not one of us.’ He puffed on his pipe, ‘Elizabeth cursed only the male Soletelks and so it has been ever since her execution.’ 

‘I will kill?’

‘Your time is at hand.’

‘Does ma know this?’

‘Of course, she married me.’ He coughed, ‘And she was protected by my vow at our wedding that I would not make her a victim of my perverse nature.’

‘Perverse nature.’

‘It is when we transform we become perverse.’ He bowed his head. ‘We do not have a choice.’ 

Her name was Alice Petrie and I was seduced by her smile.  We began dating in our senior year in high school.  She was planning to go away to Columbia University.

She never made it.

I transformed when we were lying on a blanket near the river bank.  She kissed me and a rush went through my blood.  She screamed as I went through the transformation, but with a swipe of my claw, I silenced the horror she was going through.

The following day, Sheriff Wainwright found her mutilated body.  He stood there shaking his head as his deputy laid a sheet over Alice Petrie.

‘Who would do such a thing to that poor girl?’ He said putting his hands on his hips.

‘Seems like she was attacked by some wild animal.’ Deputy Carson proclaimed. 

‘I wish it were true.’ He squatted down next to her remains. We'll put out an APB.’

Deputy Carson nodded as they lifted Alice’s body into the coroner’s van.  

No, no, don’t go.  I won’t hurt you.  I just want to finish my story, Claire. They are coming for me soon.  The Ick Effect will end with me.  I have no children to pass on this damn curse to. I have made sure that this curse ends with me.  These pills will do the trick.  

There are things I wish I could tell you about meeting the beast, but words are not adequate and when I looked into the empty vacuum of his presence, I felt as if my soul was being sucked right out of me.  He told me that I was doomed to do his bidding at all times just as all of the men in my family for generations.  

There were others after that, victims of my curse. Most of them were no more than casual acquaintances who were unfortunate to cross my path. I moved to New York City to blend in until I was no longer visible, because Sheriff Wainwright was getting suspicious.

When I was ordered to kill my father, I did it without question.

‘He stands in your way, Ichabod’ He enticed me with all the trapping that comes with power.  Absolute power.     

Sheriff Wainwright brought my mother in for questioning.  She knew what I had done.  

I flew into the holding cell where she was sleeping and I made sure she would not spill the beans, but my brutal murder made Sheriff Wainwright suspicious of me.  He sent Deputy Carson to bring me in for questioning.  After quickly dispatching him, I knew I would have to leave my home. I felt bad for Deputy Carson.  He seemed like a decent man.  

The first thing I did when I got here was to buy a copy of the Lovecraft story about the Dunwich Horror.  When I read the story, it gave me chills. From his narration, I could tell he had seen the monster up close.  He was lucky, though, because he was able to escape the beast’s influence.

‘I am the ruler of the underworld.’ He told me once, ‘I am important.  I have to watch over the wretched souls who chose evil over good and were willing to sell their souls to me.’

‘I did not choose to do so.’ I confessed.

‘Some have no choice.’ He laughed, but to me it sounded like a thousand screams from condemned souls. ‘You have devoted yourself to taking the lives of those who inconvenience you.’ 

He was right on that account.  I just shook my head.

“Ichabod, I have placed great responsibility on your shoulders and I do not wish to be disappointed.  So far you have done my bidding to the letter.’ He sighed, ‘Once you have accepted and given into the temptation, I own your soul.’

‘I want my soul back.’

He laughed, but all I heard was the screaming and pleading of all those he had taken with him.  When my turn came, I too would be one of those screaming and pleading for mercy that would not come. 

‘Do not deceive yourself, for you have bartered your soul.’ 

‘It was not my choice.  It was a two hundred year old curse.’ I said defiantly. 

‘Don’t be a fool.  You knew what you were getting into.  Never once did your parents lie to you. As a child you were told about this Ick Effect, weren’t you, but you chose not to believe it.  Now as you stand before me, you are covered with it.  It is a stain that no one else can see, but I can.’ 

I watched a cloud come down from the sky and engulf him.  In cloudy blurry lines, I watched him disappear.  It was the last time I saw him, but not before murdering an actress who told me about an audition with a possible Broadway show.  

Yes, yes, it was me.  I did it because of who I am.  There comes a time in your life when destiny takes over and you lose all control.  A witness has already made a statement about seeing me offering her a ride in my car. It was a nice car, but then I get the best of what is available. 

Would you care to take a look? Plush interior and all the amenities including push button communication. Here let me show you. Get comfortable. Would you care for a spin?   I thought you would.