The Demon

The Midnight Article "BREAKING: MAN LOSES FINGERS IN HORRIFYING BREAK IN" was written by u/fravia22 and posted to r/MidnightPaper.

The text of the Article was as follows:

BREAKING: MAN LOSES FINGERS IN HORRIFYING BREAK IN Tonight, at 12:47 AM, a man met with a terrible fate. On 371 Haskins Avenue, a terrifying demon found its way into a man’s house, and attacked him.

The victim in question was a young 25 year old man named Jacob Wozniak, a simple man living off of his parents wealth. He was in his bed when the attack occurred. His ears rang, and he heard the footsteps of the demon. By the time he realized what was going on, though, the demon was already at his room.

Description:

"The Demon" is an Entity-Type Oddity. Its motives are completely unknown, as is where it chooses to appear or who it chooses to attack. It is possible that The Demon has a preference for human fingers, as the headline stated that a victim lost his fingers. The fact that the headline didn't read "man loses his life in horrifying break-in" means that he survived his encounter with the being.

The Demon's physical appearance is also unknown, with fravia22 describing it as "the most terrifyingly disgusting thing" he had ever seen.

UPDATE:

u/fravia22 posted an update regarding this malicious, Entity-Type Oddity. In it, he describes the demon further. The text for the entry was as follows:

Back when I was young, my dad said that people got what was coming to them. There was no way to change fate. It’s something I’ve tried to live my life by.

That being said, I don’t think I deserved a demon in my bedroom.

Standing in front of me was one of the most foul and disgusting creatures I had ever seen. His greyed skin drooped off his face. His eyes were like black voids, filled with nothing but hatred. His long, clawed fingers were extended outwards, ready to strike. And draped over his body was a black cloak with white letters sprinkled across him.

If there was a thought to be had about him, I didn’t have enough time to think it, as his hand raised up to attack me. I rolled to the left, trying to avoid it, but as soon as I landed there, his other hand was ready, and slashed at my face.

I ducked beneath a desk to think for a second. I realized I had no chance at killing this thing. It was just too powerful. My best choice would be just to run away.

I quickly rolled out from underneath the table, into a sprinting position. If I was gonna get out, now was my chance. I darted towards the only door in the room, but as soon as I tried, he turned towards me and grabbed me by the shirt.

”Don’t try to escape this.”

His voice chilled me to the bone. It sounded like the night. It sounded like fear.

I shook my way out of his hand, tearing my favorite pajamas in the process. Better than having my finger torn off. He simply glanced at me, as if he knew I would do it. There was no surprise, no retaliation. I ducked behind my bed. Lying there was the damned paper that got me into this entire mess. I quickly flipped through it again, hoping to find some way to escape or defeat the beast standing in the center of my room. What I found was much more important.

''”When Jacob realized that the demon was poised for an attack, he tried to roll to the left, but was intercepted by the demon. He ducked beneath a desk, to collect his thoughts, and decided to try to run. However, the demon was there again, to catch him...”''

What the fuck.

Written in white ink on the dark page in front of me was an exact description of everything I was doing.

More than that, it was an exact description of everything I would do.

* If this is the future where I lose my finger...

Then all I need to do to change it is to do the exact opposite of what it says.* Simple enough.

”After rolling out from behind his bed, Jacob was caught by the demon, this time being slashed across his back, tearing his clothes.”

I leapt on top of the bed and jumped across the room. As I soared through the air, I noticed that the demon was slashing his claws at the side of the bed. He only knew what was supposed to happen.

As his hand grazed against the bedpost, he leapt back in surprise. A screeching noise emitted from his chest. He twisted around in confusion. This wasn’t supposed to happen. I smirked.

Suddenly, though his screeches became less of desperation, and more like laughter.

That doesn’t seem good.

As he crumbled himself into a ball, I noticed his cloak changing. The white letters spun themselves around the black canvas, like they were shooting stars soaring through space. His screeching faded. He stood up, even taller than before. As he turned to me, I saw a glint of light in his empty skull. His tattered flesh formed into a smirk.

Fuck.

I looked back down at the paper, the only thing that could possibly save me. I watched as the letters rearranged themselves, just like letters on the cloak. When they had finally stopped moving, the headline had changed.

BREAKING: MAN LOSES ARM IN TERRIBLE DEMONIC BREAK IN.

The article was only a sentence long.

”You shouldn’t have tempted fate.”

Before I could even scream, he slashed at my arm.

with the last bit of strength I had, I grabbed my phone, and called 911.

I awoke later in a hospital bed.

I must have been on an insane amount of painkillers, because I could barely feel anything.

There was no nurse watching over me.

No one in the room but me.

I glanced at my arm.

It was nothing but a stump covered in bandages.

With my remaining hand, I grabbed at my phone. They had left it next to my bed.

The screen was black. It must have been dead.

Suddenly, white letters started to materialize on the screen. They were so elegant that they looked handwritten.

Displayed across the screen was a simple but poignant message.

”Never tempt fate.”

Description 2:

The Demon is described physically as having "greyed skin (that) drooped off his face. His eyes were like black voids, filled with nothing but hatred. His long, clawed fingers were extended outwards, ready to strike. And draped over his body was a black cloak with white letters sprinkled across him." Indeed, it seems that it is draped in a cloak that appears to be a kind of Midnight Paper. The white letters on the cloak re-arranged themselves, prompting the words on Jacob's copy of the Midnight Paper to change as well.

The Demon is capable of speech, often stating phrases that amount to the fact that its attacks are unavoidable and inescapable.

Modus Operandi:

The Demon seems to choose random victims, but once he does, a Midnight Paper will appear to the unfortunate individual in question. The headline will warn the reader of what body part The Demon will take in its next attack, and the Article's text will describe the attack in detail. It is unknown if the Midnight Paper in question is meant as a warning or if The Demon itself is able to produce or alter it to suit his needs. The Demon's cloak was at least able to alter the Paper's contents, though it is not known if The Demon was writing it itself.

The Demon is, then, one of the most dangerous entities ever to appear in a Midnight Paper. It is able to alter the Paper's contents and avoiding its attacks is seemingly impossible.