The Phantom Stronghold

Title: The Phantom Stronghold
Author: chasing carousels;
Type: Fan-Fiction
Genre: Horror, Chaptered
Rating: R

"Mr. Horan?" Dr. Matthews side stepped away from her desk, her fingers dancing along the corner edges. She swallowed the uneasy sickness that stuck on her throat. "Niall?"

His scarlet tongue darted out of his mouth to the corner of his lips as he smiled maniacally. Hopping down from the couch, he landed nimbly on his feet which prefaced a long shoulder roll. The entire length of his spinal column popped consecutively, rattling the floor boards of Dr. Matthews' office.

In the span of a breath, Niall was flying over her leather arm chair, a shrill scream bursting forth from his soft lips. Her finger tapped the button five times rapidly as Niall knocked her backwards off her feet. Once on her back, Niall wrapped his hands around her pale white neck. He put pressure on her throat, his eyes dancing with violent delight.

Fans of One Direction will have no difficulty in recognising the character's name, however, they should know that this story isn't that of the typical romance-themed ones which are usually accustomed to the five lads. In fact, this story is the complete opposite of that and instead, it focuses more on horror and suspense.

The story opens up with the Irish member of the band, Niall Horan, having a therapy session with a female therapist called Dr. Matthews. It was later known that the five lads had a mental breakdown around the same time, after they were brought back from their video shoot for their next single, which took place in a castle in Ireland. What was supposedly to be a 'harmless video shoot for a harmless song' became their worst nightmare when the boys were stricken with hearing voices which told them that they were going to die. Apparently, the main cause of all the madness was centered around a mysterious entity by the name of Ruby in which its presence was not revealed yet.

The Phantom Stronghold is written by chasing carousels;, a writer who is already popular with her One Direction romance-themed stories. This will be her first time in trying out on a different genre and I must say, she has done a pretty good job in doing so. Her flamboyant way of descriptive writing makes it easy for readers to picture the scene in our minds, and her articulate description of the characters make the readers feel for them. The plot is intriguing, having me teetered at the edge of my seat at some parts while others got me wanting to know more.

Currently at seven chapters long and still ongoing, The Phantom Stronghold is a must for every One Direction fans. If you're not, you can still give this a try as it is a perfect read for the upcoming Halloween festivity.