A Distillation Of Dread

Or, If You Like -
 - a Titration Of Terror.  A Phial Of Fear?  An Essence Of Evil?

NO!  Art - actually you might have something there -

     Sorry, I'm just trying to be clever, and succeeding, which does not necessarily translate into prose that you, gentle reader, can understand without a tour guide and a lexicon.
     I am referring to my earlier post, "Parsing A Ghost Story With Logic", and herein the link to make it more sensible:

http://comsatangel2002.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/return-to-son-of-nothing.html

     There was a small addendum that I omitted on the day that I now wish to append.  Here it is:
     What of today's man-in-the-street, who will have seen film and television horrors that make the worst of the Thirties look like Enid Blyton?  Do you really think he's going to be scared to death by a man wearing a rubber mask?  Further to this I refer you, as an example, to the "Chest-burster" scene from "Alien", or, another WoE moment, the "Ribs Become Teeth" scene from "The Thing".  Or pretty much everything ever made by David Cronenberg or Herschell Gordon Lewis.

Wolfsbane
No, not the rather splendid Pohl and Kornbluth science-fiction novel, because that omits the "s".

It's good.  Go buy it!

     I refer, rather to the plant also known as Monkshood, aconite or Blue Rocket.  
     "Sounds delicious!" I hear you comment.  "Oh - hang on, it's not one of those poisons you've been banging on about, is it?"
     Indeed it is, and having this in a salad is enormously unwise.  Art?

Hence the "Blue" part of "Blue Rocket"

     This is wolfsbane, a plant so toxic that you can fatally poison yourself merely by rubbing one's skin against it.  If ingested then it causes violent gastro-intestinal symptoms, followed by cardiovascular effects (that's the heart to you), thanks to it's bulging with neurotoxins.  Your heart goes into spasms like a bagfull of worms on amphetamine, and - you die.  If the dose is large enough you won't get time enough to comment on how this salad tastes a bit -
     It has been used to hunt wild animals, the hunters using arrows or spears tipped with the toxin, which makes your humble scribe wonder about what the meat tastes like after being cooked, and whether some of these hunting tribesmen only just got out a query about the steak tasting a bit -

The Fools!  The Mad, Impetuous Fools!
I feel as if I'm stealing a line from "Forbidden Planet" or a cheesy black-and-white Universal film where the leading man is condemning Colin Clive and Igor for - how does it go? - 'meddling with nature/the atom/forces man should not touch/Sky subscription boxes'.
     You see, today - well, let me show you the photo -

Shambling zombified brain-biter dead-centre*

     The details are a little spotty yet sufficient to evidence the zombies that were released so casually in work today.
     Note also that Mandy was rash enough to venture downstairs whilst the doddering dead were dawdling around (yes these were the slow kind).
     "Don't get cornered!  Buddy up!" cautioned Conrad.  "And always, always, aim for the head!"
     Which is good advice if facing off the Sinister hordes or these mobile maggot-bags.
     Then came the "Thriller" tribute.  Ah me, yes, cute funny zombies.

Laugh while you can, monkey-boy

      NO!  NO NO NO!   Zombies are not amusing in any way!
     I bet this is how "The Walking Dead" began.  You mark my words, this is the thin end of the wedge and YOU'LL REGRET NOT PAYING ATTENTION TO CONRAD!
     Of course we at The Mansion are fine, thanks to barbed wire, mines, directional laser cannon and a bountiful supply of small arms and ammunition.
     Don't come crying to Conrad when you feel those rotten broken teeth a-scraping your scalp, it'll be too late then.

Nefarious Ways To Up The Word Count
As you may know, or not, or not even care**, your humble scribe tries to get a word count of 750 per blog post on BOOJUM! although if there is time and he's built up enough creative steam, this can be wildly exceeded.
     Where problems occur is at this point tonight, where I have less than a hundred words to hit the total, and the items I have for posting would exceed that by several hundred.  Not only that, I've not had my tea, my lunch for tomorrow has not been made - AND IT'S BAKE OFF IN 24 MINUTES!
     Having typed up this lot means I've actually hit the count*** but I want to try an experiment and stick in a small extract from "The Annals Of Urquelomplangia", a small work in progress so that when National Novel Writing Month arrives, I don't have to start from scratch.

"The Annals Of Urquelomplangia"

(It has a long and distinguished history, you know)

PROLOGUE

Indeed.  Part of the reason for that long and distinguished history, as the sole European nation in this year of Our Lord Sixteen Hundred and <cough cough> that still utilised magic as an official resource of the state, trudged up a long, wet, stony incline in the Enchanted Forest, beneath dripping pine trees.  It was night; a dark, cold, wet, rainy and shelterless night amidst the groves of the Enchanted Forest, which tonight lacked any kind of enchantment or magic.  Rain has that effect.

     Wulfstan, for this is the person we are speaking of, wiped rain from his face with a hand already wet from performing this duty many times already.  His partner in comradeship and travel, Boguslav, took umbrage at this spurning of the night’s damp benison.

     ‘Damn it, must you always be fussing about your face!’ he snapped.  The follow-on from this, that it was not a face of any great charm that merited any great attention, remained unsaid, if not unthought:  Boguslav as a travelling comrade left much to be desired.

     ‘Yes,’ replied Wulfstan.  ‘I’m not wasting magic on keeping the rain off.  This drizzle will keep up all night long.’

     Boguslav muttered what might have been a spell, but which was more probably swearing in Polish.

Which has taken us up to over a thousand words, so I shall take my leave of you tonight.

*  Do you see what - O you do.
** In which case what are you doing here when you could be changing your car's engine oil?
*** Hooray!