Have you ever wondered why the hairs on your neck stand up when you walk by an unlit house? Why you're entire being is overcome with a sense of foreboding when you stare down a shadow filled alley? Why humans have such a deep, primal fear of the dark?

Well I know. I know better than anyone. It's not the dark that scares us so terribly.

It's what is waiting for us inside it.

"So whats the story on this guy Barnes?"

"Don't know Foley. Boss didnt say much. Just to bring him in. Nelson, Jones, both of your squads ready?"

"Roger."

"Roger."

"All right then. You boys know the drill. We go in quiet, tag him, bag him, and get the hell back to base."

The lights of Washington D.C. were shining brightly as two black helicopters swooped down across the night sky. Twenty men were split between the two choppers, all of them bound for the same place. The heavily armed soldiers checked and re-checked their equipment.

Barnes looked at his men. They were well trained, well motivated, and had more than enough experience for this sort of thing. This wasnt the first time the company had sent them on a tag and bag black op. Barnes and his boys had gone up against everything. Telekinesis, super strength, fliers. But for some reason Barnes couldnt shake this bad feeling. The Boss hadnt given him all the intel, of that much he was sure.

"Barnes...we're coming up on the target."

As the the helicopters hovered over the Anacostia River, Barnes looked at the abandoned warehouse the target was hiding out in. He stared at the blackened windows, eyes trying to pierce the shadows.

"What you got Barnes? Your super eyes see anything?"

Barnes tried to use his gift, his enhanced vision, to look through the darkness and make the target. But staring at the blackness gave him the chills.

"Whats up Barnes? You see anything?"

"No. Nothing."

"You ok Barnes? You look spooked."

"I'm fine."

But the truth was Barnes wasnt fine at all. He had never experienced anything so disturbing. Because the longer he stared...the more he felt like the shadows were staring back.

I was never afraid of the dark. I was never able to be. The dark wouldnt let me.

People are quick to dimiss it as an overactive imagination, when they think they see something moving in the shadows. They shake thier heads and look again, certain that they didnt see what they thought. But what they dont realize, or maybe what they dont want to realize, is that there are things that go bump in the night.

Old things.

Ancient things.

Things that wont let me be.

"Alright boys lets do this. Foley...youre squad is with me. Nelson...Jone, your squads cover the back exit. Go slow until we get a fix on the target. Then hit him hard and fast. Remember, no live ammo. Tranqs only. The Boss wants this guy alive."

"Roger."

"Roger."

Barnes listend to the the thump-thump-thump of the helicopters overhead. Thig guy was going to know they were coming. Barnes hated that. The element of surprise was vital when dealing with targets with abilities.

As Barnes and Foleys moved into the building, sweeping through the warehouse room by room.

"Barnes, its to dark in here. Are we go to use our flashlights?"

"Negative Foley. The guy is going to know we're coming."

"Barnes we got no nightvision and visibility in here is shit. If we dont hit our lights we'll end up pumping Nelson and Jones squads full of bullets."

"Fine. Just keep them dim."

"Roger. You heard him."

Barnes watched as as room lit up on the other side of the warehouse. The five little lights bobbed and weaved through the opposite side of the building. Barnes motioned to his own squad to turn their lights on as well, and then continued moving towards the opposite end of the building.

"Nelson...Jones, we're maybe a quarter of the way through the building. Any sign of the target?"

"Negative. But we're coming up on the main room at the middle of the building. We'll hold up here and wait for..."

"Nelson this is Jones. Is your squad picking up that noise?"

"What noise?"

"We're hearing...whispers. Whispers in the shadows."

"Barnes are we positive the target is by himself?"

"Roger that Nelson. Target is solo."

"Barnes I have a bad feeling about..."

The quiet of the abandoned building was torn asunder by a crack of gunfire, followed by horrible scream. Barnes stared across the building and saw Foleys squad had held up.

"Nelson! Jones! Do you copy! Do you copy!"

"Barnes this is Nelson. Jones is squad is down. We're under attack. Jesus what are these things? Barnes the target is not alone! I repeat, target is not..."

Barnes ripped the radio out of his ear as Nelsons signal screeched and went out. He quickly put it back in.

"Foley...go live. Repeat, live ammo is authorized. We're going to bring this son of a bitch down."

"Copy that."

As the two squads raced towards the main room of the warehouse Barnes tried with all his might to use his ability. But the closer they got to the last no position of their comrades, the thicker the shadows seemed to become. Thw two squads met up at the only door into the main production room and halted.

"SkINN TheEM hehehe."

"NO! GutTt tHem hahhah!"

"Barnes...what in the name of God is going on here?"

"I...I dont know."

There was no way the ten men could have expected what was waiting for them on the other side of the door. As they burst in and began to sweep the room, they were met with the sickly sweet smell of blood.

"Oh Jesus..."

Their lights shined brightly, illuminating the body parts strewn across the room. But what the soldiers didnt notice was that the blackness was moving. Getting closer and closer, until it was right on top of them.

Barnes barely had any time to react. He heard his Foley scream in terror. He felt little clawed hand scratching at his legs, pulling him down. But when he looked to see what was pinning him against the ground he saw nothing but shadow.

He watched helpless as the wall of darkness wrapped up one of his men, and felt his stomach drop as he heard bone crunch. When the wall pulled away their lay a broken, bloody body, crushed into mangled ball of flesh. Barnes damned his ability, damned it as he watched a massive black hand grab Foley and smash him repeatedly into the ground.

And almost as suddenly as it began, it was over. Barnes heard footsteps and craned his nect to see who...or what was coming towards him. And out of the shadows walked a man, darkness swirling around him. The man knelt down beside Barnes.

"From what I can gather, my uncle sent you. Is that right?"

Barnes stayed silent. He had trained for this. There wasnt anyway this freak could torture information out of him.

"Nothing to say? It doesnt matter. What? No. No! We arent going to squeeze his God damn brains out. Cant you all just shut up for just a second!"

He didnt understand what was going on, but Barnes knew this was his one chance. He strained his arms and managed to flick on a distress beacon on his belt. The helicopters would be coming in guns blazing any minute.

"Im sorry about that. Now, Im not going to kill you. No. Youre going to go back and tell my uncle to stay the hell away from me. You tell him if he doesnt I'll be the one to come looking for him. And when I come I'll be dragging the hides of those he loves the most. Do you under..."

The lights of the helicopters blazed through the windows. But even seeing how heavily armed they were, the man didnt seem overly concerned.

"Are these helicopters for me? Have I been appointed to speak? Well, well..."

Barnes watched as the shadows swirling around the man broke through the windows. The blackness took the shape of massive tentacles, and with one swing Barnes hopes were crushed. The great dark things swatted the choppers down like insects.

"What? Rip out his eyes? I d-d-dont know if that would be...well yes I know he did but...fine. Do what you have to. But dont kill him!"

Barnes watched the thin man walk away. It would be the last thing he ever saw.

"Tell my Uncle Arthur that Robert says hello.