The old neighborhood.
Nobody knows for sure why River's End was abandoned. Nobody ever talks about it. A large sign near the perimeter displays the word "CONDEMNED", and the area has since been fenced off on all sides. The houses, now dilapidated and crumbling, were once pristine and gorgeous. The lawns of those houses, now overgrown with weeds and other plant life, were once perfectly square, and the lushest shade of green you could imagine. They say the people were friendly, and that there was once peace and tranquility in the quaint little village. But now it's all gone. What's left of that beautiful place is only ruin and devastation, neglect and decay, abandonment by the outside world.
Established in 1955, the area known as River's End began as a series of developments that, as the name implied, ran near the mouth of a nearby river. A few dozen families inhabited the development at its onset, but the area gradually became well known for its beauty, causing property values to rise, and more people to show up. Eventually, the village of River's End was fully formed. Small businesses appeared. A school for the growing number of children was built in 1965. The neighbourhoods became prosperous, and for several decades, it was one of the fastest-growing suburban areas in the state.
But then something happened. Or rather, a series of events supposedly took place. The last known record of people living in River's End was in November 1989. That's when the final remaining families were moved out. Any and all efforts to communicate with the people of the town have proven to be ineffective. Many of them cannot be found, as if they disappeared without a trace after leaving their homes.
What could possibly have happened in such a small period of time that caused the entire place to be evacuated and condemned? Many theories have arisen about these events. Records from the River's End Police Department shortly before the evacuation and local published documents from throughout the town's history have given us at least a few clues. The truth about River's End will most likely never be known in full, but the following has been pieced together from the little evidence we have.
April 18th, 1969
Two children were found dead. Their bodies were discovered by police in the forest surrounding the suburbs after three days of searching. They had been brutally dismembered, and their remains showed signs of sexual assault. There were hardly any fingerprints or other clues at the scene; too little evidence for investigators to identify any solid suspects. Background checks of all River's End residents began shortly after.
No matches were found. Whoever the perpetrator was, they couldn't have been a local. A search of several nearby towns and urban areas yielded not a single possible suspect, either. The case remained open.
May 4th, 1969
Not too long after the children's bodies were discovered, officers received a call regarding a man found dead by his vehicle in his driveway on Mulberry Street. This time, there had been a witness, a neighbor from across the road. The witness was apparently getting ready to retrieve his mail when he saw the murder from his living room window. The man across the street was leaving for his job in the city when a figure dressed in black stabbed him repeatedly in the back with a large knife. The strange murderer then knelt over the victim's body for a brief time, before fleeing the scene just as the victim's wife discovered his body. The man was described as being dressed entirely in black, including his gloves and shoes. The witness said he had climbed over the victim's back fence and disappeared from view.
Officers theorized a link between this murder and the double homicide the month prior. However, no more evidence was found. The perpetrator had vanished yet again. The town was subsequently put under stricter supervision, and more officers were placed on active duty in the months to follow.
July 4th, 1969
After several months of peace and quiet, there was another incident. This one an arson. On the fourth of July, a local shop operated by River's End citizens was burned to the ground in broad daylight. There were at least 10 casualties, including the store's owner. Not a single occupant saw any suspicious persons or foreign objects at the scene.
The entire area was put on lockdown. The police spent a long period of time scouting the streets for any suspicious individuals or activities. But the search was fruitless. The media attention for this catastrophe was enormous, also. Many people fled the town as a result, taking up residence in the more peaceful communities surrounding River's End.
Who was murdering all of these innocent people, and why?
September 18th, 1972
Three years had passed since the fourth of July arson. In the time since, there had been no murders or unusual crimes. However, many people throughout the community began to observe strange occurrences. One man claimed he saw a large flock of crows surrounding a house on Easter Avenue. Even stranger was the fact that River's End was nowhere near the crow's habitat range. Another woman testified that she had heard strange noises coming from outside her bedroom windows at night, several times over the years. She and her husband searched the property repeatedly, but not a single thing out of the ordinary was ever discovered. Several residents mentioned mysterious black vehicles, either traveling around town or parked at several residencies and businesses. Among other things, these odd sights began to occur more frequently, but there was still no trace of the previous crimes' perpetrators.
Then, in the fall of 1972, that silence was broken. A group of men were apprehended by police for resisting arrest and assaulting an officer after being investigated for disturbing the peace. Residents had reported loud noises and yelling at all hours of the day and night at the home of one of the men in custody. Said home was searched shortly after by police, who suspected the influence of drugs.
What they found shocked them.
The home was apparently operating as the base of operations for a satanic cult. Inside, they found religious artifacts and a room that contained a large pentagram, a circle of candles, and a book, the pages of which were written in blood in a language nobody could decipher.
The men were interrogated at the town's police station. Surprisingly, they opened up to the authorities, confessing to being responsible for the murders, arson, and other events around town over the years. It was revealed that they were from out of state and needed a quiet, innocent suburban area to operate in. After all, no-one would ever suspect this kind of thing in a quiet little place like River's End. Their goal was simple: to open a portal to hell so their master could join them in the human world. A few days prior to their arrest, they claimed to have finally succeeded.
The men were put on trial and promptly put to death for their crimes. Afterwards, the people of River's End believed they'd put their terrors behind them. They thought they could no longer be afraid.
From this point onward, police reports become vague before ceasing entirely. What follows is a list of events taken from outside sources, insider information, supposed eyewitness accounts, and wild speculation.
1972-1989
Several residents reported murmurings and whispering coming from the walls of their homes. One individual claimed he had experienced supernatural activity, and supposedly, at one point, demonic possession.
Strange figures were seen at nighttime hours by police and several residents. Most were spotted at the cemetery, but other reports placed sightings all around the town at varying times of night.
In 1976, the plant life in many parts of the town was found to be withering for no apparent reason. Many animals began to act strangely as well, running out in front of cars and being killed. Many birds died by flying into objects, seemingly intentionally. Pets began to act up, and lots perished in random or unknown circumstances.
The town's water supply began to become contaminated and undrinkable. This occurred sometime by 1980. The sky over River's End was said to have become gray and dark nearly 90% of the time throughout the 80s.
Many homes soon became abandoned. People were leaving as early as 1976, but the last of those who stayed went over a decade later in 1989. Businesses and all other town facilities were shut down, and eventually, all utilities ceased in the area.
River's End Today
River's End was slated for demolition in 1990, once every resident had departed. However, on the first day in the town, a bulldozer malfunctioned and exploded, killing several workers and putting the operation on hold. Several other attempts failed similarly over the years. Eventually, a wall was built around the town, and the ruins of River's End still remain with us today.
Nobody knows for sure what kind of force ended the story of a prospering, hopeful community. Some say it was a government conspiracy. Others believe it to be a string of coincidences. I believe in something quite different.
One night, on my way home from work, I passed by the entrance to River's End. Right there, in front of the large "CONDEMNED" sign, was a figure dressed in black. It was too dark to see much, but I did look into my rearview mirror. As I drove on, I noticed the figure turn around and then vanish into the night.
Written by Fearofthedark
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