Categories > Celebrities > My Chemical Romance
The Incubus
"The word 'incubus' means 'to lie on', and it was believed that any heavy feeling in bed, such as a weight pressing down on your chest, especially accompanied by nightmares, was a sure sign that an incubus had attempted to have a nocturnal intercourse with you. Given the religious fervor of the middle ages, it is not altogether surprising that the idea of a demon lover, was believed to account of this phenomenon."
It started at the Paramour Manor.
Paramour had been a place of ghoulish tales and legends, accompanied by many scares and frights to uphold its name. No one in the band had forgotten a single, sinister detail from their stay at the place. No, not when they had come so close to losing their beloved bassist Mikey Way in the process.
For the most part however, every member felt as though they had recovered from the ordeal, save for one member in particular.
For Gerard Way, the memories of Paramour had given birth to a new breed of paranoia. As if he was not paranoid already; Gerard spent most of his days worrying about one thing or another, and he certainly did not have room for things like ghosts and demons in his head. And yet, four years after his stay, he still found himself replaying events repeatedly in his mind.
It would seem pointless, yes, if not for the fact that the same events were still occurring to him today.
To start from the very beginning, we must retrace our steps back to the mansion, and the room in which Gerard stayed. It was on the second floor, at the very end of a very long, very dark hallway.
The first night spent in the room was uneventful. A quiet occasion that was interrupted by nothing more than the occasional thump and bump that older buildings typically came with. While Gerard had thought he heard footsteps here and there, he deemed it nothing worth considering, as he was not the only person staying there. He wrapped himself in the provided sheets and drifted off into the only peaceful rest he would ever have at the place.
The next night was the first occurrence. The room and its occupant were exactly the same as they had been the night before, yet Gerard felt something different in the air as he attempted to sleep that night. Sure enough, Gerard was plummeted into a world of vivid nightmares that evening, and awoke with a gigantic gasp of air. Yet the strangest moment of it all was not the horrible visions that came to him in dreams, but the paralysis he felt upon waking.
It was though everything except his mind had been abruptly frozen. He was in no lull between sleep and awake --- he was fully awake, he was sure of it. He simply could not move.
There was nothing unusual Gerard could see above him. If he could look next to him, he would have, but the fact was that he could not turn his head for the life of him. Instead, he was left to stare at a plain white ceiling with nothing but a light bulb upon it's face.
Although, he did think he may have seen something moving about on that white ceiling. Yet one would argue that everyone can see things forming in the darkness, if they only stare long enough.
A feeling of nervousness that bordered fear arose in Gerard, and he tried to scream out Frank's name. Frank Iero was just staying in the room just next to him, however Gerard was not sure if the guitarist had even retired to his room for the evening.
Even then, it would have been of no use. For Gerard could not bring himself to move his mouth, or emit any noise or sound. He tried, and it felt every other moment or so like he had made some sort of very minor progression, but never enough to actually get him anywhere.
Becoming desperate, Gerard eventually attempted to launch himself from the bed...which was then achieved successfully. He hit the floor along with his sheets, and ended up an entangled mess on the ground. Clearly, whatever had gripped him moments ago had released its hold.
In reality, the ordeal only lasted mere seconds. If someone had been in the room with Gerard, they would have probably not even noticed something was amiss until he hurled himself onto the ground. Yet to Gerard, it had felt like an eternity. He sat awake for the rest of the evening, wondering just what could explain those frightful few seconds. Of course, there was nothing else really to do but wait till morning.
A truly disturbing thing was that the event was not a one-time occurrence. Actually, it became a nightly thing in Gerard's visit at the Paramour. Mind, it did not always happen in the exact same succession. There were times where there was no paralysis, but a feeling of solid yet unseeable hands that raked his body. Nightmares did not always occur, but Gerard would often awaken feeling watched.
Other symptoms began to add on to the strange ordeal, a few of them rather embarrassing. Gerard would sometimes awaken, finding himself aroused. Sometimes, the bed would be wet. Sometimes he would feel a weight lifting from him as he awoke, as though someone had just leapt off of him.
Gerard did speak to the rest of his band mates about his troubles, but they all were experiencing many troubles of their own. While they did listen to Gerard, it was only with a sympathetic but unhelpful stare. They would tell Gerard that it must be the mansion, as it was having a similar effect on all of them. And for the rest of his time there, Gerard did his best to convince himself of the same thing, although Gerard somehow felt doubt that it had anything to do with the mansion.
Eventually, as everyone knows, the album was completed and the band was more than done with the whole thing. They left Paramour mansion, and Gerard was not sorry to see it go. For everyone else, the hauntings that had stalked them were left behind in the building.
Gerard was not so lucky.
While his night terrors did become much more occasional, Gerard was still visited by his mysterious stranger over night.
He investigated, searching online for anything with similar symptoms that could explain the puzzling thing. He came upon what felt like 100 different sleep disorders, and ended up stumbling upon tales of a mythological creature called "The Incubus."
The incubus was a demon that essentially raped it's victims at night, causing nocturnal emission and other symptoms that were strangely identical to Gerard's. Many causes of actual, prosecuted rape had been blamed on the Incubus before, and often women would rather blame an Incubus than admit that the rape was commuted by someone they trusted. Repeated intercourse with an Incubus would lead to constant illness, and eventually, death.
It was a silly idea of course. There were about a thousand more logical explanations for it that Gerard could find. Still, Gerard found himself pondering the idea an unhealthy amount.
"You're being ridiculous Gee!" his brother Mikey would tell him every time. "There is no such thing as some demon rapist! Now go to sleep..."
Yet like many other times in their relationship, Gerard would not listen to Mikey. What was most troubling of all was that the incubus would only visit him when no one else was slumbering with him that night, so people like Mikey and Lindsey could assure him that there was in fact, no such ghostly visitor.
Realizing that he would receive no help with this, Gerard began to keep a secret journal of it. He would describe the dreams in detail, and he kept a log of every time he woke up wet in bed. Every time he fell ill, the thought of the incubus crept in his mind. It was silly, yes, but his stay at the Paramour made him a believer in all sorts of silly things.
Presently, one could find Gerard gasping into awakening once more. His heart pounding in his chest, he found himself not under the usual paralysis that he awoke to. He turned to his side, and nearly screamed to find Frank Iero standing right next to his bed side.
"What are you doing here?" Gerard mumbled groggily, wiping at his eyes.
"I forgot my memory card." Frank said, waving a small square shape in one hand. Yet, Gerard thought he saw him slip something else, something resembling a vial, in his pocket.
Too tired to question much, Gerard merely nodded. Frank looked at him with concern.
"Are you okay?" he asked him.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Gerard responded, assuming Frank did not want to hear another silly story about ghosts and demons.
"You were having your nightmares again, huh?" Frank sounded sympathetic. Gerard gave another little nod.
"You want me to stay with you?"
Gerard shrugged. He did want Frank to stay, but did not want to oblige his friend. Frank took the hint anyway and nestled down next to Gerard. As he did, Gerard felt a familiar weight press down upon him.
At least, Gerard thought as Frank snaked an arm around his waist, he'd be safe from the incubus tonight.
END.
"The word 'incubus' means 'to lie on', and it was believed that any heavy feeling in bed, such as a weight pressing down on your chest, especially accompanied by nightmares, was a sure sign that an incubus had attempted to have a nocturnal intercourse with you. Given the religious fervor of the middle ages, it is not altogether surprising that the idea of a demon lover, was believed to account of this phenomenon."
It started at the Paramour Manor.
Paramour had been a place of ghoulish tales and legends, accompanied by many scares and frights to uphold its name. No one in the band had forgotten a single, sinister detail from their stay at the place. No, not when they had come so close to losing their beloved bassist Mikey Way in the process.
For the most part however, every member felt as though they had recovered from the ordeal, save for one member in particular.
For Gerard Way, the memories of Paramour had given birth to a new breed of paranoia. As if he was not paranoid already; Gerard spent most of his days worrying about one thing or another, and he certainly did not have room for things like ghosts and demons in his head. And yet, four years after his stay, he still found himself replaying events repeatedly in his mind.
It would seem pointless, yes, if not for the fact that the same events were still occurring to him today.
To start from the very beginning, we must retrace our steps back to the mansion, and the room in which Gerard stayed. It was on the second floor, at the very end of a very long, very dark hallway.
The first night spent in the room was uneventful. A quiet occasion that was interrupted by nothing more than the occasional thump and bump that older buildings typically came with. While Gerard had thought he heard footsteps here and there, he deemed it nothing worth considering, as he was not the only person staying there. He wrapped himself in the provided sheets and drifted off into the only peaceful rest he would ever have at the place.
The next night was the first occurrence. The room and its occupant were exactly the same as they had been the night before, yet Gerard felt something different in the air as he attempted to sleep that night. Sure enough, Gerard was plummeted into a world of vivid nightmares that evening, and awoke with a gigantic gasp of air. Yet the strangest moment of it all was not the horrible visions that came to him in dreams, but the paralysis he felt upon waking.
It was though everything except his mind had been abruptly frozen. He was in no lull between sleep and awake --- he was fully awake, he was sure of it. He simply could not move.
There was nothing unusual Gerard could see above him. If he could look next to him, he would have, but the fact was that he could not turn his head for the life of him. Instead, he was left to stare at a plain white ceiling with nothing but a light bulb upon it's face.
Although, he did think he may have seen something moving about on that white ceiling. Yet one would argue that everyone can see things forming in the darkness, if they only stare long enough.
A feeling of nervousness that bordered fear arose in Gerard, and he tried to scream out Frank's name. Frank Iero was just staying in the room just next to him, however Gerard was not sure if the guitarist had even retired to his room for the evening.
Even then, it would have been of no use. For Gerard could not bring himself to move his mouth, or emit any noise or sound. He tried, and it felt every other moment or so like he had made some sort of very minor progression, but never enough to actually get him anywhere.
Becoming desperate, Gerard eventually attempted to launch himself from the bed...which was then achieved successfully. He hit the floor along with his sheets, and ended up an entangled mess on the ground. Clearly, whatever had gripped him moments ago had released its hold.
In reality, the ordeal only lasted mere seconds. If someone had been in the room with Gerard, they would have probably not even noticed something was amiss until he hurled himself onto the ground. Yet to Gerard, it had felt like an eternity. He sat awake for the rest of the evening, wondering just what could explain those frightful few seconds. Of course, there was nothing else really to do but wait till morning.
A truly disturbing thing was that the event was not a one-time occurrence. Actually, it became a nightly thing in Gerard's visit at the Paramour. Mind, it did not always happen in the exact same succession. There were times where there was no paralysis, but a feeling of solid yet unseeable hands that raked his body. Nightmares did not always occur, but Gerard would often awaken feeling watched.
Other symptoms began to add on to the strange ordeal, a few of them rather embarrassing. Gerard would sometimes awaken, finding himself aroused. Sometimes, the bed would be wet. Sometimes he would feel a weight lifting from him as he awoke, as though someone had just leapt off of him.
Gerard did speak to the rest of his band mates about his troubles, but they all were experiencing many troubles of their own. While they did listen to Gerard, it was only with a sympathetic but unhelpful stare. They would tell Gerard that it must be the mansion, as it was having a similar effect on all of them. And for the rest of his time there, Gerard did his best to convince himself of the same thing, although Gerard somehow felt doubt that it had anything to do with the mansion.
Eventually, as everyone knows, the album was completed and the band was more than done with the whole thing. They left Paramour mansion, and Gerard was not sorry to see it go. For everyone else, the hauntings that had stalked them were left behind in the building.
Gerard was not so lucky.
While his night terrors did become much more occasional, Gerard was still visited by his mysterious stranger over night.
He investigated, searching online for anything with similar symptoms that could explain the puzzling thing. He came upon what felt like 100 different sleep disorders, and ended up stumbling upon tales of a mythological creature called "The Incubus."
The incubus was a demon that essentially raped it's victims at night, causing nocturnal emission and other symptoms that were strangely identical to Gerard's. Many causes of actual, prosecuted rape had been blamed on the Incubus before, and often women would rather blame an Incubus than admit that the rape was commuted by someone they trusted. Repeated intercourse with an Incubus would lead to constant illness, and eventually, death.
It was a silly idea of course. There were about a thousand more logical explanations for it that Gerard could find. Still, Gerard found himself pondering the idea an unhealthy amount.
"You're being ridiculous Gee!" his brother Mikey would tell him every time. "There is no such thing as some demon rapist! Now go to sleep..."
Yet like many other times in their relationship, Gerard would not listen to Mikey. What was most troubling of all was that the incubus would only visit him when no one else was slumbering with him that night, so people like Mikey and Lindsey could assure him that there was in fact, no such ghostly visitor.
Realizing that he would receive no help with this, Gerard began to keep a secret journal of it. He would describe the dreams in detail, and he kept a log of every time he woke up wet in bed. Every time he fell ill, the thought of the incubus crept in his mind. It was silly, yes, but his stay at the Paramour made him a believer in all sorts of silly things.
Presently, one could find Gerard gasping into awakening once more. His heart pounding in his chest, he found himself not under the usual paralysis that he awoke to. He turned to his side, and nearly screamed to find Frank Iero standing right next to his bed side.
"What are you doing here?" Gerard mumbled groggily, wiping at his eyes.
"I forgot my memory card." Frank said, waving a small square shape in one hand. Yet, Gerard thought he saw him slip something else, something resembling a vial, in his pocket.
Too tired to question much, Gerard merely nodded. Frank looked at him with concern.
"Are you okay?" he asked him.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Gerard responded, assuming Frank did not want to hear another silly story about ghosts and demons.
"You were having your nightmares again, huh?" Frank sounded sympathetic. Gerard gave another little nod.
"You want me to stay with you?"
Gerard shrugged. He did want Frank to stay, but did not want to oblige his friend. Frank took the hint anyway and nestled down next to Gerard. As he did, Gerard felt a familiar weight press down upon him.
At least, Gerard thought as Frank snaked an arm around his waist, he'd be safe from the incubus tonight.
END.
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