The Holder of Childhood

In any city, in any country, go to any childcare facility or play centre you can get yourself to. Make your way to the office area and tell the first adult you see that you have come for your play date with the Holder of Childhood. The adult with blink a couple of times as if you have just shone a torch right into their eyes. Tell them again, keeping your tone light and airy. If they continue to blink at you, their eyes beginning to squint, shut your own and cover them with your hands. Wait until you hear the sound of the adult’s dead body hitting the ground before opening them once again and running for your life. If the adult rubs their eyes and nods in a weary manner then you are in luck. They will lead you through the office and gesture to a door that wasn’t there before. If you would like to back out this is your last chance. If you are certain you wish to pursue this Object then turn the handle and step through the doorway.


You will now find yourself in a large room with brightly coloured walls. The floor will be covered with well-loved rugs depicting cartoon animals, plants and cars, while handmade decorations will hang from the ceiling. Be careful that your head doesn’t brush against any of them - the children will grow angry if you disturb their creations.


In the middle of the room you will find a group of young children ranging in ages from two to around five. They will be sitting on the floor in a cluster around a young man, their bright eager eyes locked on him as he reads excitedly from a large storybook. Approach the group and sit on the floor behind them. One by one the children will begin to notice you. Do not move or react lest you upset them. Keep your eyes on the young man reading from the book until he has finished his story. Only then may you observe your new surroundings.


By the time the story ends all of the children will be looking at you, their faces changed from what you saw before. Their eyes will now be gaping holes, darker than the deepest black any human has ever seen. Their tiny jaws would have dislocated, enabling them to open their mouths wide to reveal razor sharp teeth and a forked tongue. The children will begin to screech at you, the sound so unbearable you will be overcome with the urge to rip off your own ears to make it stop but you must resist. They will begin to crawl towards you, their tiny, clammy hands grasping at your skin. You must let them. They will begin to climb all over you, screeching with glee at their new toy. Some of them may bite you, delighted at the blood they will spill. Some will shove their putrid fingers into your mouth and try to pull out your tongue while others will yank on your hair, poke at your eyes and push foul-smelling crayons up your nose. You must not react. Disrupting playtime will result in consequences far too horrific to mention.


After what will feel like an eternity, the demon children will begin to tire. The young man will stand and lightly clap his hands to get their attention. “Okay children, it’s nap time,” he will say, in an overly joyful voice. If you have placated the children they will release you from their grasp and make their way over to a far corner, never lifting their gaze from you. If they have not had their fill of you they will ignore the young man and continue their play until they are satisfied. This may take years.


Assuming the children have accepted that playtime is over, you may now scooch forward on the rug, moving as a little child would when told to get closer. Rest your elbows on your knees and your chin in your cupped hands, looking up at the young man as if he were the most fascinating thing in the entire universe. He will beam at you and sit back down on his stool, picking up his large book once again, poised and ready to tell another story. The only question that will cause him to read from the book again is: “What happened to Them when They were children?”


The young man will clap his hands together and excitedly turn to a page in the book. He will begin to tell you of the childhood of the Holders, sparing no horrific detail, all the while keeping up the energy and tone of someone reading a children’s story to a small toddler. Every now and then he will turn the book around to show you pictures of the most vile, perverse scenes drawn in a cartoon style. Every time you see a cartoon after this, these images will flood your mind. By the time the man is done you will want to curl up in a ball and cry, for the things he has told you were not meant for mortal minds to comprehend. If you remain unbroken he will eventually put his book away and reach out behind him, pulling a pastel-blue diaper bag across the floor and pushing it towards you.


“It’s changing time,” he will nod with a wink. Shoulder the bag, stand up and run for the door as if your life depends on it. Trust me, it does. If you are fast enough and get yourself through the door in time you will find yourself emerging from a storage closet in the childcare facility you began your journey in. The children will begin to cry and scream in terror at your presence, as all children will from this day forward. I would suggest leaving as quickly as possible before the authorities are called.

The diaper bag you have been given is one of Legion's Objects, and will serve as a beacon for Their children, drawing them to you wherever you go. I would suggest not remaining in one place for too long, especially after They have come together.