Toy soldier story It started as just another normal day where Simon and Ben had gone to school and their mum fussed around down stairs with her daily chores. But this was Friday and the toy soldiers loved Fridays. This was because Ben and Simon would be staying around their friends house for the weekend. With them out of the way and the toy soldiers could go about their little war games without the watchful eyes of people. It was the one rule that the toys never broke. Of course most children suspected that toys came alive when they slept or simply weren't watching but they were always to quick to be caught. This didn't matter because tonight was the turn of Ben’s soldiers to invade Simons room at the stroke of midnight and the atmosphere of excitement was plain to all. The morning always saw both armies a little time to set up their scout groups and scout out the area before the children’s mother would find her way upstairs by lunch time to clean the kids rooms. It was about 09:30 when the lid of Ben’s toy box began to creek open and his hundred strong army began to appear head and shoulders above the rim of the box in small groups at a time. Looking cautiously this way and that to ensure the cost was clear. Pausing to radio back that this was the case, the scout group jumped down onto the thick carpet that came up to their waists, lending the whole scene a very jungle type feel. They hit the ground running and took up position by the door and watched impatiently as the rest of their forces vacated the stuffy confines of the box. The last of the troops jumped from the rim and as their make shift lid prop was tugged free by its rope, the lid came crashing down. As usual, general Thorn cringed at the loud crash it made. They really had to do something about this one thing that could catch the attention of the humans and when the lid closed they could not get back in until Ben returned and cursed himself for forgetting to put the soldiers away. One day his mother would make good on her threat to throw them all out and that would never do. He, like his brother really loved his soldiers. and so Ben would always gather them up and dutifully shovel them back into their home. Thorn's thoughts were snapped back to reality by the impatient voice of captain Briggs on the radio "sir the scout party are ready to go and we don't want to give the Simons (as they were nick named) a head start". Yes replied Thorn. Move out. With that Captain Briggs and his men ducked under the door and cautiously advanced onto the landing. All the while Keeping their eyes open for any of Simons troops that may cross their path. They found no such threats and so made their way to the landing to set up an advance look out in case Ben’s mum (a pretty young mother of about 27, by the name of Emma) came up the stairs early but at the moment all was quiet, too quiet in fact. Then Briggs remembered why. It was about now that Emma was usually pushing that noisy electric thing back and forth over the carpet. It was a huge thundering thing that shook the ground as it moved but for all that it didn’t seem to do much. Out of curiosity one day, he had asked brains, the radio man what he though it was. He had been told it was a ‘vacuum cleaner’ and that it picked up dirt and mess from the floor by means of suction. Also that these things could be dangerous. In spite of the fact that brain was seldom wrong, the thing only seemed to remove the smaller debris and left most of the things behind. And as regards being dangerous, Well he still remembered the time one of his men (Jones if he was not mistaken) had been caught in plain site of Emma and could no longer move out of the things way. The noise machine had rolled right over him and suddenly made a noise like it was choking to death and did not calm down until Emma had pulled Jones free and tossed him aside. Jones was one slightly bent leg worse off and an hour with the field surgeon saw him as good as new. No thought Briggs these things are no threat. Feeling the need for something more to report, Briggs and his men began the climb down the stairs to see what mother was doing. As the last of his men reached the ground and stop to regain there breath, Briggs and 2 others crept to the towering cliff of pine that was the living room door. Ducking under the space at the bottom, they peered out of the shadows, spotted the gigantic carpet slippers and strained their necks upwards. Mother was in front of the bay window which faced out onto the drive. The curtains were still drawn and she was peering through them with an excited and impatient look on her tight liped features. Suddenly her face burst into a grin and a second later, the chimes of the door bell were echoing the length of the spacious hallway. The soldiers felt their limbs stiffening into hard plastic once more as the rapidly approaching giantess came within line of site and flung the door open. Rushing to the front door and pulling her gown together with one hand, she fumbled the other with the latch. The soldiers used the distraction to scramble to their feet and dash into the living room and under the sofa. Briggs then accounted for his men and ordered them toward the front of the sofa, where they all lay belly down in the generous cover that the heavy carpet pile afforded them. Before the last man was fully settled, there was the sound of something heavy being dragged along the passage toward the room and a moment later the door was swung open by the stooped shape of Emma as she dragged a tall cardboard box into the middle of the room and set it down. The box was as wide as she was and tall enough to come up to her chest. Without pause, she set into the tape and flaps at the top and extracted what looked like a small booklet. A loud thump and a notable sag in what now served as a kind of ceiling to the troops, indicated that she had flopped down onto the sofa, above their heads. Briggs turned to brain and gestured with his hand that he wanted the radio. The mic was thrust into his hand and general Thorn was already on the other end. Thorn: Well? Briggs: Ben’s mother doesn’t seem to be doing her usual routine today sir Thorn: What is she doing then? Briggs: She has just had a large parcel delivered and I think she is reading the manual. Thorn: What’s inside? Briggs: We don’t Know sir. Thorn: Find out more and report back. Thorn out. As the line went dead, it was replaced by the ringing of the phone. With an irritated sigh, Emma tossed the manual onto the floor and ambled of down the hall. The men all knew this was the routine, daily call from the woman next door but one. That time of morning when she could share with Ben and Simons mum, all the juicy gossip of the previous day. This would mean that they had a little time. Creeping out from the Sofa they approached the manual where it had fallen open and regarded it's pages. The Cynthia Vacuum Cleaner. The Cynthia Vacuum Cleaner is the latest development in cleaning technology. This machine does not need an external power supply as it’s Special design dust bag breaks down everything inside of it in order to release energy. This is similar to the way people digest food. This means that there is never any power cable to plug in or trip over Along with many in built tools and extra wide Mouth (witch can swallow up the largest of debris), the has the most Powerful suction ever seen in a Vacuum. The most outstanding Feature, however is that this machine cleans the room all by itself. All you need to do is switch her on, sit back and just watch the dirt getting eaten alive. WARNING. The seems to go for moving objects. so please ensure that pet rodents, birds and small dogs are kept away from the machine when it is in use. Briggs thought about that clapped out old yellow thing as he gazed upon the pages and chuckled to himself. These companies really do exaggerate at times. Still, at least this may yet pick up all of the crumbs instead of just the small ones. His thoughts were interrupted by the bass echo of footsteps. Mum was coming back. Moving as one the soldiers made a dive for the cover of the sofa as she came through the door and catching their breaths, they scrutinised her from the shaded cover of their hiding place. her movements were rushed and excited as she just tore away at the cardboard box with all the gay abandonment off a young child. The sounds of her grunting and the tearing, as from their horizontal window of a view, it seemed for all the world to be raining shards of cardboard, eventually ceased and what stood revealed inspired all who gazed upon it with a sense of awe. Such was the pain staking detail that had gone into the design of this machine that it seemed to sparkle along every one of it’s many metallic surfaces. The Mouth (for want of a better word) splayed out at a wide angle, lending the whole machine a sense of determined even menacing purpose about it. In the mechanical sense this thing looked imposing. But the mechanical side was not the half of it. No doubt it was designed to look like a living creature. This was clear from the Thornp looking eyes place centres of the front plate of the cleaning head. The irises were scintillating shades of blue, Surrounding pitch black, bottom less pupils which would make any soldier who now gazed into them feel like he was being mesmerised in a way akin to Cobra hypnotising a small mouse. If the soldiers felt uneasy about this, then they were positively spooked by what happened next. After pausing to admire this work of art, science and true craftsmanship, Emma turned her attention away from the machine for a moment in order to pick up the manual. As she did the eyes suddenly moved. The movement was just a tiny fraction so that the troop thought at first it was their imagination (well it must be mustn’t it?) but as this tiny shift brought those ebony pupils to rest directly on them, the whole face moved. ruby coloured lips that move with a display of fleshy softness, that made them look so real, turned up into a broad grin, sensuous enough to make them shiver. The large capacity dust bag seemed to ripple in a fleshy manor too. A neat turned up nose wrinkled As one eye closed for the briefest of moments. A brief moment of open mouth stares went by before the slow realisation set in. She had just winked at them. Directly at them. A quick glance around at the faces of their friends was all it took them to confirm that it had really just happened. And as soon as it did it was over. Ben & Simons mum turned back. In response the machines face snapped back into position and froze there. Mother smiled an admiring grin at the machine and whispered, to herself as much as to the world in general, “OK lets see what you can do”. With that she reached for the switch marked ON/OFF and flicked it. The response was immediate and both Emma and the soldiers stared on, both as entranced as the other….. jerked into life with a sudden jump, not unlike the way someone would jump if you unexpectedly pressed an ice cube to the back of their neck. Her eyes began to glow with a faint light. Her whole face took on a dreamy expression almost, in fact a look of joy. She started making a low Thornp noise from within somewhere between a hum and a sensuous purr. She brought her full lips to a pucker, making as if to kiss somebody and commenced to inhale. As she did this the continuos purr got louder and seemed too shake and vibrate the floor, making the soldiers, too a man feel inwardly embarrassed that the tremors now shooting through their feet and up their legs were erotic as hell. She just kept right on inhaling and her fleshy outer bag began to shudder and ripple with life and still she inhaled. The soft sound off her inward breathing now grew to the tearing hiss of devastating suction and without warning the manual, still left on the floor was snatched up from several paces away and shot strait under her sexy pucker. It happened so fast that you could hardly see it. One moment the book was there the next it was gone. She now began to move forward. Snatching the very carpet up into her undulating maw and advancing on the rest of the room. Briggs was watching in amazement as anything in the way was devoured. A number of coins and similar things would suddenly leap up into the air and dive at her open mouth as soon as she came within a couple of feet. Not even the CD, still in its case beneath the table was spared as with a piercing hiss and SllluurrrrpP, it met the same fate as the other objects. He gasped with a nervous start when a hand descended on his shoulder. “Sir, I think we should get the hell out of here” suggested brain. Briggs was quick to agree and without further pause ordered his men to the end of the sofa closest to the door and when the way seemed reasonably clear they made a break for it. It was hard to run with the floor shaking so badly. There progress came in surges and stumbles but at last the door loomed ahead. Brain was the first through closely followed by Captain Briggs. As both men made it through the gap beneath the door the gazed anxiously back at the rest of the fleeing party. They were almost there but now had caught sight of them and abruptly changed direction and came in pursuit at a rapid pace. As three of the remaining five made it to the safety of the door, the first of the two straggles ran past and into the cover of the pot that housed looming rubber plant just inside the living room. The last man however was just that little way behind. Sprinting hard now he was so nearly there, the long dark shadows of sanctuary lay enticingly just a few more paces when suddenly….. Emma had sat watching excitedly as Cynthia set about her work with a determination that seemed almost vengeful. In fact she got a distinct impression that the machine was enjoying it, but of course that was impossible, after all it was just a machine. The machine in question had, none the less moved off of course with a very real sense of purpose and so, turning her head she gazed in the direction that it was headed in and saw a plastic soldier. “Good grief” Emma mumbled under her breath. “I could of sworn it moved just for a split second there”. Shrugging to her self she dismissed the though as unfeasible. Making the final dash for cover, the Soldier suddenly felt it. The human eyes upon him, the instantaneous hardening of his plastic limbs. Not now he thought, for fucks sake not now. But before he had time to even gasp the thought, it had happened and all he could do now was watch with his suddenly inanimate eyes, along with the watching eyes of his equally helpless comrades. “Oh no. One of the children’s soldiers” sighed Emma, her calf muscle tensing ready to jump forward to intervene but she already knew she would not get their and so her mind over rode the reaction before it happened. The first thing he noticed was just a slight change in tone. Cynthia’s smooth purring hum seem to raise just a little in what was almost triumphant delight. her eyes fixed upon him with a stare that seemed strangely out of place. Not the angry or cold stare of detachment which he fully expected but warm, affectionate, no laughing eyes with a gleam of victory. gazing into that stare he felt like he was loosing himself , drowning in the infinite void of those pitch black pupils that held him like a rabbit in the glare of a cars head lights. The whole world was moving in slow motion now as once more those lips returned to their enticing, kissing pucker. The moving air around him felt was suddenly like the strongest gale force winds and continuously on the increase. Feeling now as thought gravity itself had been reversed he felt himself beginning to shift. To roll forward just a tad but of course that initial movement was all it took, just that slight forward momentum and that was it. no sooner had he started to move than he was hurtling through the rushing air so fast that he had the sensation of his insides being left behind. So fast that he barely had time to see that vast, gaping pit of a mouth expanding to fill his whole vision. As he was snatched out of sight, his limbs were all at once his own again. Free to flail in vain at his fate. It was dark now. Dark and warm?. Yes, more than that. It was in fact hot. He was gripped tightly in the mobile walls of Cynthia’s bag. The vibrations both deafening him and shaking him to his very core. This humid, swiftly moving environment could be nothing other than flesh. Flesh that was gripping him in a tight smothering embrace. She was putting a powerful squeeze on him. A squeeze that started on his chest and would spread in a rolling motion down his body. As soon as the pressure slid off of his chest, beginning it’s downward journey, it was replaced by another in a continuous swallowing action that would suck him in all directions at once. something was building inside him. his energy seemed to be flowing up from his very depth of being, up to the surface of his skin to be drawn away by the next gulp of Cynthia’s rippling bag. It is of little surprise that toy soldiers are not really what you would call sexually functional. If they were then the helpless soldier would have likened what he now felt to an orgasm. But not just through his manhood (if he had one). It was like his whole body was firing his very soul out into the ravenous hunger that was smothering his flesh. Every time she contracted around him he would feel that little bit weaker, colder, more fatigued, somehow more distant and less concerned about himself. He was so tired now. It was time to sleep. Time to just fade into the all enveloping embrace, to just let go. To let himself go forever……. As she seemed to pause and savour the sensation with a visible sigh, the remaining troop just stared from their hiding place under the door. Stunned by the shock and horror of what they saw. Their mortified stupor costing them valuable seconds during which time Cynthia had once more began to move. Captain brigs was the first to see the threat. His eye widening in panic as he shouted the order to run. Cynthia was charging toward the door. Although the door was safely closed and opened inward to the living room (she would not be able to push the door open), they could already start to feel the pull of those shapely lips. Throwing themselves clear of the gap, they all hit the floor and held on. The passage way was filled with the all to familiar roaring and hissing and all was confusion. small debris and grit and crumbs stung their eyes as it came rocketing past them. Blinded and defend all anyone could do was hang on in their new found world of isolation and fear. Then it all stopped. The viscous roaring tone dived in pitch, slowing down and taking on an air of frustration the hurricane that whipped all around them degraded to a gently breeze and eventually faded completely and the men began to regain their faculties. regaining their breath, they looked around. Brains was gone. As her hand gripped the off switch, Emma felt the machine grind to a halt. She looked all around the room and beamed with satisfaction at the spotless carpet. The pile had never looked so groomed, so drawn up all strait as if standing to attention, not even when it was new. Turning back to her new toy or more accurately her new pet, for already she seemed to think off it in that way, she found herself stoking the side of the bag, absently. “I can see that we are all going to have to be very careful about what we leave lying around from now on” With that she crouched down to unfasten the connecting clip in order to rescue the objects already lost to her newest friend. pulling the bag free from the bottom and unzipping it along the side, she stared at the contents. The manual, the CD and two plastic soldiers along with an array of coins elastic bands and the usual things. “oh” she shrugged “didn’t notice the other soldier”. “you seem to have a talent for finding things”. But as she gazed upon the object something was amiss. the seemed so grey and lifeless, almost shrivelled in some macabre way. Emma could not help but be reminded of those empty husks of former insects that you find in the web of a spider. That’s what it all looked like. The discarded remains of a finished meal. shuddering, she reached out to grasp a soldier. Jumping back and almost screaming as the thing crumpled to so much dust and fully disintegrated at her touch. A quick prod gave the same result for everything else to. Reassembling Cynthia she shook her head. “Yes very careful inThornd”. Wheezing and panting but with a speed brought on by fear of their lives, Captain Briggs and his men were scaling the cliff face of the 3rd stair when the living room door opened and the horrific noised resumed. Screaming at his men to hurry, he watched the monster advance into the hall. From their current position there was no cover to hide behind and they were spotted immediately as with an excited roar Cynthia rushed toward them. The fact that they had climbed to safety was the only thought of comfort that Briggs could muster in the face of such a terror. Her shape and design and the fact that even now she was pulling up to a halt at the foot of the stairs, stated quite plainly that Cynthia could not climb up after them. This Comfort was short lived however. Fixing them in that stare of hers, the loud click of a catch being released was bearly audibly above the din. The top of her handle flipped open and slowly like a giant serpent rearing itself out of the ground and looming up for the strike, The old style patterned weave of a telescopic hose extended itself. “Was there no end to this despair?” cursed Briggs. The hose extended itself fully now. Bending it over herself in a forward arc, Cynthia looked for all the world like a scorpion about to strike. She did exactly that. the woven tube with its pitch black open end struck repeatedly and each time it came back, the soldiers numbered one less. “Briggs, Briggs”. General Thorn was getting annoyed now. What was that clown up to?. He had not reported in for far to long and any time now, Emma would be coming up stairs to clean up. A couple more angry shouts yielded nothing and sure enough the familiar footsteps were coming up the stairs now. Gritting his teeth, he thrust the radio back at the young sergeant beside him. “Alright that’s it.” “Here she comes”. “You know the routine men.” “Under the bed until she has left once more.” General Thorn knew that this was just a safety precaution. Emma would clean Ben and Simons room on alternate days and he was reasonably sure that it was Simons room today but not sure enough to go taking any chances. As the men waited, the footsteps came up to the landing and then turned off and the sound of the door opening in the adjacent room confirmed that he had been right. With the sound of Simons door being opened came the exasperated tone of Emma’s voice “so Simons left his soldiers out again”. “well I’ve warned him enough times its his own fault now”. of course Thorn and his men knew that this was not quite the truth of it. after a while in which Emma’s could be heard rushing around and moving things, she left the room and went down stairs. She immediately returned and seemed to be dragging something. Opening the his door once more she shuffled inside. This was quickly followed by a low pitched humming noise that seemed to emanate from all around and the shaking vibrations in the floor (even in Ben’s room) made the group nervous and unsteady on their feet. What the hell was going on in there cursed Thorn. The air was filled with hissing sucking sounds that seemed to be almost gleeful. Thorn’s imagination was starting to play tricks on him. Through the humming and hissing he could almost hear…..giggling? and if he strained to hear above the din, tiny almost drowned out screams. He shuddered. Get a grip on yourself man. Where were his scout party?. They should have reported what was going on. His thoughts were snapped back into reality be Emma as she burst into the room, rushing around gathering laundry and fussing in general. If she was here, then who was making all that noise next door? Someone was definitely on extra watch duty when they got back. Before long Emma had finished rearranging things in Ben’s room. “well that will have to do for today” she sighed. “I’ve got to nip down to the shops”. “I’ll bring Cynthia in here tomorrow”. Of course that was it. Emma had hired a house keeper and she was working next door. Thorn groaned. Another human to watch out for would be an inconvenience. As the door closed, the soldiers were left in peace for the rest of the day to plan their midnight raid. Footsteps next door followed by the sudden end to the howling earth quake, confirmed that the coast was, once more clear. The striking of the ornate grandfather clock, indicating the turn of midnight, saw the general and his men already waiting. “Ok this is it move out” came his immediate order. the 40 strong group of his best vets quick marched up to the door with their weapons drawn. They had long grown used to the ‘landing guard’ that was always in wait for them. Taking a Thornp breath they ducked under the door space and charged through the gap. Rounding the corner bringing their weapons to bear, they went careering strait into the face of……… ………Nothing ! The landing was deserted. Thorn urgently called a hush down onto the disorientated group. “It would seem our enemy has changed tactics on us”. “we must proceed with caution”. “Take it slow and keep your eyes open”. “Advance” The men neatly filled into the door space as a well organised unit. I was dark and not much could be made out. The long shadows threatening all kinds of horrendous ambushes as they crept towards what little illumination the open space of the central floor granted them. They made it all the way and still nothing happened. Something was not quite right here and Thorn knew it. Just what was going on? split into four search parties, he ordered. Keep in radio contact and stay alert. his men promptly complied. He watched the groups vanish into the shadows of each corner respectively. Leaving him alone with a radio man and his nagging doubts. after what seemed like an eternity, there came a panicked cry from under the bed. Followed by the crackle of the radio kicking into life. Sir. We’ve found someone under the bed. I think you should come and take a look. Thorn arrived to the sight of his men grouped around in a circle with puzzled looks on their faces. one of them was trying to calm a plainly terrified Simon cowering behind the old shoe box where he had lodged himself between it and the wall. seeing the horror in his features Thorn could not help but feel a twinge of sympathy for the poor fella. but the only intelligible word he and his men could get from him, between the sobs and panic attacks was It was her She came for us. Having no clear alternative option, he ordered him to be taken back to bass. once their it took a good portion of the rest of the evening to get him to relax enough to tell his story and when he did, Thorn was chilled to the core. It all came out in a flood of garbled words. How Cynthia swallowed them up in legions. The unimaginable typhoon like winds that would suck at a man until he was dragged, screaming and kicking toward his macabre fate. No niche sheltered enough, no grip holding enough strength to stave off the vacuum forces exerted upon the helpless victims. The fact that no gap beneath furniture or no shelf was beyond the reach of her hideous serpentine hose. And believe that the men hide tried EVERY last sanctuary and to no avail. As the ranting died down and the prisoner slipped into a fitful sleep, The drill Sargent turned to face Thorn. What’s our next move sir? I don’t know but we had better think of something. Wincing Thorn remembered Emma's words as she left Ben’s room that morning. Tomorrow she would take Cynthia into Ben’s room. Into their room ! Staring at the firmly closed lid of the toy box, Thorn felt for the first time in his whole military career that he was now at a complete loss.