Kids Can Be Scary

- FanDuel is now available everywhere in the U.S. ♪ I've been everywhere, man ♪ ♪ I've been everywhere, man ♪ So you can get in on the sports action no matter where you are, including these places. ♪ I've been to Georgia, Houston, Cleveland ♪ ♪ Minnesota, Buffalo, Lincoln, Chi-Town, Arizona ♪ Make this your most rewarding season ever with FanDuel. Age and location restrictions apply. Product availability varies by market. See FanDuel.com for eligibility. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER. I'm Luke LaManna, and this is Wartime Stories. Before we begin, I do want to give a quick content warning. Some of the stories in this episode include mentions of child death. Nothing is presented in a graphic or exploitative way, but the subject does come up, and I know that it can be difficult for some listeners. So please use your own discretion before continuing. Honey, I'm home. Honey? In the late 1970s, Air Force Tech Sergeant John Jarnibro returned home from work to his Tower apartment and encountered one of the most horrible sights imaginable. The lifeless bodies of his four-year-old son, John, and another little girl, three-year-old Kimiko Russo, lay in the apartment, along with his 27-year-old wife, Lucy, whose wrists were slashed. The little girl, Kimiko, was the daughter of Staff Sergeant and Mrs. Russo, who lived in the same housing unit. It would seem that young Kimiko was spending the day being supervised by John's wife, Lucy. Despite her severe loss of blood after John called for help, Lucy was hospitalized, and the partial news article I found states that she was stabilized at the time. Whatever the causes for this incident, those who lived on Yokota Air Base at the time, whether service members or their families, they certainly remember hearing about the deaths of these two children when it happened. The news, of course, spread like wildfire around the base. Some recall hearing that the children had died from multiple knife wounds, but the news article indicates they had been drowned in the bathtub. In any available news records, I could find nothing about the events that followed, the court hearings, or anything that would clarify Lucy's motives. But those who recalled the event and discussed it in online forums, those who lived on the base at the time, they have additionally stated that they were not aware of the events that followed, and that they were not aware of the events that followed. The news article states that the children had died from multiple knife wounds, but the news article indicates that they had been drowned in the bathtub. In any available news records, I could find nothing about the events that followed, the court hearings, or anything that would clarify Lucy's motives, but those who recalled the event and discussed it in online forums, those who lived on the base at the time, they have additionally stated that they remember that not only were the children's deaths intentional, but that Lucy claimed she had been possessed, and that she didn't remember anything that took place. Combined with other tragic events that have taken place in these tower apartments, predominantly people throwing themselves off of the building or the balconies, these events are often considered the reason for the most significant events that have taken place in the building or the balconies. The events that have taken place in the building or the balconies are often considered the reason for the most significant events that have taken place in the building or the balconies. voices sometimes calling for help or knocking noises heard by children as they're sleeping who then wake up and see an apparition standing near the bathroom one tower is said to possibly be haunted by a teenage boy who jumped off of the building in the 1980s it is said that the rooftops were then secured to prevent anyone else from accessing them but residents have said they sometimes hear what sounds like a young man's voice yelling but they cannot see who or what is making the sound back in 1996 my husband was stationed at 29 palms with third tanks we were now moving into the old marine palms one of the housing areas on the base this strange occurrence was that the old marine palms were not able to get to the base and they were not able to get to the base and they were not able to get to the base and they were not able to get to the base once happened three weeks after we had just moved into our new house once happened three weeks after we had just moved into our new house with our two sons and my two with our two sons and my two with our two sons and my two young nieces and i was pregnant young nieces and i was pregnant young nieces and i was pregnant with our third child it was around 3 a.m with our third child it was around 3 a.m with our third child it was around 3 a.m and i woke up to use the bathroom and i woke up to use the bathroom and i woke up to use the bathroom and while i was in there i heard a man's voice voice voice tell me to tell me to tell me to get out get out get out get out it was it was it was very clear get out get out get out again i heard the voice say something again i heard the voice say something again i heard the voice say something and this time it sounded much more and this time it sounded much more and this time it sounded much more aggressive aggressive aggressive and so i immediately went to the bedroom and so i immediately went to the bedroom and so i immediately went to the bedroom where my husband was staying with the where my husband was staying with the where my husband was staying with the two boys two boys two boys telling him to quit scaring me telling him to quit scaring me telling him to quit scaring me but but but he was fast asleep he was fast asleep he was fast asleep i assumed i had just been imagining i assumed i had just been imagining i assumed i had just been imagining things being tired and also things being tired and also things being tired and also i went back to bed i went back to bed i went back to bed but about 15 minutes later with my nieces but about 15 minutes later with my nieces but about 15 minutes later with my nieces lying next to the side of my bed lying next to the side of my bed lying next to the side of my bed one of the girls suddenly screamed one of the girls suddenly screamed one of the girls suddenly screamed and she was saying that her hair was and she was saying that her hair was and she was saying that her hair was moving moving moving i looked down i looked down i looked down and her pigtail was floating up in the and her pigtail was floating up in the and her pigtail was floating up in the air air air i didn't really think about it i just i didn't really think about it i just i didn't really think about it i just grabbed the girls and i ran to my grabbed the girls and i ran to my grabbed the girls and i ran to my neighbor's house across the street neighbor's house across the street neighbor's house across the street after calming down i suppose i figured after calming down i suppose i figured after calming down i suppose i figured the boys would be okay staying with the boys would be okay staying with the boys would be okay staying with their dad their dad their dad but i guess i panicked and i later just thought that if i tried and i later just thought that if i tried and i later just thought that if i tried going back and waking my husband up to going back and waking my husband up to going back and waking my husband up to tell him what had happened tell him what had happened tell him what had happened he probably wouldn't believe me but then he probably wouldn't believe me but then he probably wouldn't believe me but then later that evening later that evening later that evening my neighbor woke me up and what she my neighbor woke me up and what she my neighbor woke me up and what she wanted to show me wanted to show me wanted to show me was that the lights were now flickering was that the lights were now flickering was that the lights were now flickering on and off in our house on and off in our house on and off in our house so the next day after my husband went so the next day after my husband went so the next day after my husband went to work to work to work i went and told the base chaplain about i went and told the base chaplain about i went and told the base chaplain about what was happening what was happening what was happening and he came and blessed the house and he came and blessed the house and he came and blessed the house i felt kind of foolish but a week later i felt kind of foolish but a week later i felt kind of foolish but a week later the chaplain called me the chaplain called me the chaplain called me to tell me he had found out through to tell me he had found out through to tell me he had found out through research research research that a soldier who had returned home that a soldier who had returned home that a soldier who had returned home from vietnam 20 years earlier from vietnam 20 years earlier from vietnam 20 years earlier he had murdered himself he had murdered himself he had murdered himself in that house hey hey stop what's the matter man hey hey stop what's the matter man hey hey stop what's the matter man see somebody freaking kid see somebody freaking kid see somebody freaking kid scared the out of me scared the out of me scared the out of me scared the out of me which way did he go god he ran into this which way did he go god he ran into this which way did he go god he ran into this back room over here back room over here back room over here hey come out of there now hey come out of there now hey come out of there now do not make me come in there and get do not make me come in there and get do not make me come in there and get you you you come out now come out now come out now stupid kids man stupid kids man stupid kids man hey kid hey kid hey kid i said come i said come i said come what what what everything all right man everything all right man what everything all right man dude i just saw a kid running here dude i just saw a kid running here dude i just saw a kid running here did you see him come out did you see him come out did you see him come out uh bro i i didn't see anybody uh bro i i didn't see anybody uh bro i i didn't see anybody are you sure you weren't just seeing are you sure you weren't just seeing are you sure you weren't just seeing things you man things you man things you man i saw a kid as much as i'm looking at i saw a kid as much as i'm looking at i saw a kid as much as i'm looking at you right now i saw a kid right in you right now i saw a kid right in you right now i saw a kid right in here all right well here all right well here all right well uh maybe you should be the first to go uh maybe you should be the first to go uh maybe you should be the first to go down for a sleep shift tonight down for a sleep shift tonight down for a sleep shift tonight to hell with this place man to hell with this place man to hell with this place man gives me the creeps in iraq we lived in a war-torn in iraq we lived in a war-torn in iraq we lived in a war-torn four-story shopping mall which means we four-story shopping mall which means we four-story shopping mall which means we also pulled our own security also pulled our own security also pulled our own security solo solo solo one of the rooms we used to pull one of the rooms we used to pull one of the rooms we used to pull security became infamous for security became infamous for security became infamous for paranormal activity which started around paranormal activity which started around paranormal activity which started around midnight with eerie unexplained noises midnight with eerie unexplained noises midnight with eerie unexplained noises the activity then peaking around 3 a.m the activity then peaking around 3 a.m the activity then peaking around 3 a.m with crazy unexplainable stuff with crazy unexplainable stuff with crazy unexplainable stuff in that room we sat in a corner staring in that room we sat in a corner staring in that room we sat in a corner staring out the windows out the windows out the windows we would hear feet shuffling and we would hear feet shuffling and we would hear feet shuffling and footsteps behind us the entire shift so footsteps behind us the entire shift so footsteps behind us the entire shift so we all got used to it it's not like we we all got used to it it's not like we we all got used to it it's not like we had a choice anyways had a choice anyways had a choice anyways then around 3 a.m the witching hour then around 3 a.m the witching hour then around 3 a.m the witching hour crazy stuff starts happening one of my friends had a giant black one of my friends had a giant black one of my friends had a giant black trash bag that was lying next to him trash bag that was lying next to him trash bag that was lying next to him full of empty rip it cans and water full of empty rip it cans and water full of empty rip it cans and water bottles bottles bottles that got flung that got flung that got flung into the air into the air into the air throwing trash everywhere throwing trash everywhere throwing trash everywhere he got so scared he threw his chair he got so scared he threw his chair he got so scared he threw his chair we had sergeants chase kids we had sergeants chase kids we had sergeants chase kids into empty rooms into empty rooms into empty rooms when there was only one door in and out when there was only one door in and out when there was only one door in and out we were supposed to be the only ones we were supposed to be the only ones we were supposed to be the only ones inside the mall inside the mall inside the mall no local civilians especially not kids another one of my friends ended up literally frozen in fear when he saw a grayed out transparent iraqi soldier walk up and sit next to him during his shift he said he just froze the entire shift and tried not to look at it the entire exterior of the mall was riddled with bullet holes and craters so we figured a bunch of people died there before us but we later found out the one room we experienced the most activity in was formerly a discotheque a party room club where saddam's two sons tortured and killed people that room also led to the roof where they had apparently you tossed people off of the building my worst witching hour experience wasn't as bad as others my shift that night was midnight to zero four hundred it started with feet shuffling behind me for hours which wasn't too bad to get used to and i i was trying not to look away from the windows where there was at least some ambient light coming in because when you're wearing night vision all you see is a green circle through one eye and complete darkness through the other it gets really creepy when you turn your head because if you do see something scary it won't show up until it's directly in front of you due to the loss of peripheral vision looking through the night vision lens so after maybe three hours of staring into nothingness it's now about oh three hundred and all of a sudden i hear and feel a whisper next to my ear as if someone had their lips half an inch away from my ear don't fuck with me you know i'm scared of this shit i will shoot oh i have never moved so fast in my entire life i simultaneously stood up turned around gun up light on ready to shoot a ghost i was hoping it was someone pranking me but there wasn't anyone around me i went and checked all of the adjacent rooms but they were clear so i broke an entire box of chem lights and tossed them all over the room thinking i'm gonna be able to see anything coming now but that just gave the room a really eerie green glow before i couldn't see a single thing now i think i'm seeing things moving because it's so dimly lit i ended up spending the rest of my shift facing the room with my back against the window i couldn't give a damn what was happening outside anymore they could have had a vbid drive right now i couldn't give a damn what was happening outside anymore they could have had a vbid drive right up to us i have had a vbid drive right now i couldn't give a damn what was happening outside anymore they could have had a vbid drive right up to us i was more scared of the ghosts than anything was more scared of the ghosts than anything was more scared of the ghosts than anything another subscriber with the handle at goodie another subscriber with the handle at goodie another subscriber with the handle at goodie tiger 57 another army vet who visited the same tiger 57 another army vet who visited the same tiger 57 another army vet who visited the same location responded to his comment and his story location responded to his comment and his story location responded to his comment and his story with the following with the following with the following the very first day we got to that mall the very first day we got to that mall the very first day we got to that mall we were all like holy hell this place is we were all like holy hell this place is we were all like holy hell this place is really creepy really creepy really creepy like sean of the dead times a hundred and like sean of the dead times a hundred and like sean of the dead times a hundred and we were either late teens or barely old we were either late teens or barely old we were either late teens or barely old enough to drink so enough to drink so enough to drink so obviously the first thing we did was go obviously the first thing we did was go obviously the first thing we did was go straight into the basement to check it straight into the basement to check it straight into the basement to check it out it was pitch black and really creepy out it was pitch black and really creepy out it was pitch black and really creepy didn't matter if we had guns it still didn't matter if we had guns it still didn't matter if we had guns it still felt really scary felt really scary felt really scary out of our group me and a few guys were out of our group me and a few guys were out of our group me and a few guys were the first to run out of there the first to run out of there the first to run out of there seen too many scary movies to stay seen too many scary movies to stay seen too many scary movies to stay there any longer there any longer there any longer the last ones to leave kept saying they the last ones to leave kept saying they the last ones to leave kept saying they saw stuff but saw stuff but saw stuff but we figured they were just messing with we figured they were just messing with we figured they were just messing with us because we chickened out and it was us because we chickened out and it was us because we chickened out and it was only month one out of 15 of our stay only month one out of 15 of our stay only month one out of 15 of our stay never really went back down there as op6 never really went back down there as op6 never really went back down there as op6 and the surrounding hallways were scary and the surrounding hallways were scary and the surrounding hallways were scary enough and the surrounding hallways were scary oh yeah dude i love staff duty sir you have any idea which one of these sir you have any idea which one of these sir you have any idea which one of these keys opens this damn thing keys opens this damn thing keys opens this damn thing no staff sergeant i do not oh that's no staff sergeant i do not oh that's no staff sergeant i do not oh that's just great just great just great it's like a bugs bunny cartoon the it's like a bugs bunny cartoon the it's like a bugs bunny cartoon the garage the front door the back door garage the front door the back door garage the front door the back door why don't they label these oh where did why don't they label these oh where did why don't they label these oh where did she come from she come from she come from oh oh oh young lady how'd she get over the fence oh i hope how'd she get over the fence oh i hope how'd she get over the fence oh i hope this doesn't mean paperwork young lady this doesn't mean paperwork young lady this doesn't mean paperwork young lady you were not supposed to be in there you were not supposed to be in there you were not supposed to be in there where do you think she came from where do you think she came from where do you think she came from she looks local she looks local she looks local sumimasen um sumimasen um sumimasen um ego ego ego hanimashika hanimashika hanimashika do you have any idea that i say anything do you have any idea that i say anything do you have any idea that i say anything in japanese no uh no young lady in japanese no uh no young lady in japanese no uh no young lady all right i gotta get this gate open hey all right i gotta get this gate open hey all right i gotta get this gate open hey hey where's she going hey hey don't hey where's she going hey hey don't hey where's she going hey hey don't don't walk toward no come back come back don't walk toward no come back come back don't walk toward no come back come back so i never witnessed the ghost girl but so i never witnessed the ghost girl but so i never witnessed the ghost girl but my staff sergeant saw her on the first my staff sergeant saw her on the first my staff sergeant saw her on the first udp he was on when i replaced my buddies udp he was on when i replaced my buddies udp he was on when i replaced my buddies during my udp during my udp during my udp they told me they saw her as well from they told me they saw her as well from they told me they saw her as well from the ramp area and she's haunted that the ramp area and she's haunted that the ramp area and she's haunted that area ever since area ever since area ever since in our first udp in 2014 my staff sergeant in our first udp in 2014 my staff sergeant in our first udp in 2014 my staff sergeant was on battalion staff duty and he and was on battalion staff duty and he and was on battalion staff duty and he and the duty driver were heading down to the the duty driver were heading down to the the duty driver were heading down to the ramp late at night to double check ramp late at night to double check ramp late at night to double check everything was locked everything was locked everything was locked from what he said they pull up to the from what he said they pull up to the from what he said they pull up to the gate at the ramp and he gets out and gate at the ramp and he gets out and gate at the ramp and he gets out and starts to get the gate unlocked starts to get the gate unlocked starts to get the gate unlocked he looks up and about 30 feet away he looks up and about 30 feet away he looks up and about 30 feet away next to the last line of aavs next to the last line of aavs next to the last line of aavs there's this japanese girl looking at there's this japanese girl looking at there's this japanese girl looking at him and the duty driver him and the duty driver him and the duty driver she then walks past the aavs she then walks past the aavs she then walks past the aavs through the fence through the fence through the fence and disappears into the jungle and disappears into the jungle and disappears into the jungle a couple years later in 2016 a couple years later in 2016 a couple years later in 2016 i arrived a month early to do a i arrived a month early to do a i arrived a month early to do a changeover with the other company changeover with the other company changeover with the other company i'm hanging out with my buddy and he i'm hanging out with my buddy and he i'm hanging out with my buddy and he tells me that the prior week they were tells me that the prior week they were tells me that the prior week they were in the bay one of the garage type in the bay one of the garage type in the bay one of the garage type workspaces workspaces workspaces working on an aav track working on an aav track working on an aav track it's late at night and pouring rain it's late at night and pouring rain it's late at night and pouring rain there's about half a dozen guys working there's about half a dozen guys working there's about half a dozen guys working on getting this track fixed on getting this track fixed on getting this track fixed he said they all just turned and looked he said they all just turned and looked he said they all just turned and looked out to the line of lavs and aavs out to the line of lavs and aavs out to the line of lavs and aavs and there's this girl looking at them and there's this girl looking at them and there's this girl looking at them and once they see her she turns and once they see her she turns and once they see her she turns and walks through the line of vehicles and walks through the line of vehicles and walks through the line of vehicles and the fence and the fence and the fence back into the jungle they all bounced and didn't want to hang they all bounced and didn't want to hang they all bounced and didn't want to hang around after that around after that around after that i know some more of the guys i had been i know some more of the guys i had been i know some more of the guys i had been with had witnessed this ghost but those with had witnessed this ghost but those with had witnessed this ghost but those are the two that i recall in detail are the two that i recall in detail are the two that i recall in detail we were always spooked if we were out we were always spooked if we were out we were always spooked if we were out there late at night there late at night there late at night some of the instructors would even talk some of the instructors would even talk some of the instructors would even talk about getting old radio transmissions about getting old radio transmissions from World War II when they were in Okinawa. They told us that if we get to Okinawa and are doing night ops, we might run into that while we were there. As he more or less indicated, detailed accounts of the ghost girl on the ramp at Schwab certainly exist, but most have not been widely shared. It's more of a rumor than a collection of stories. But if it's any indication of how widespread this story is, it is often mentioned by Marines in online forums. Another Marine under the handle iBuildRobots posted in a forum about Okinawa ghost stories. The old boat ramp on Camp Schwab, Okinawa. Had dudes in my shop refuse to work overnight shifts? Because the little girl roaming the halls. The current building my command HQ is in used to be the base hospital. Now it's all offices. Roaming duties are interesting when you roll into a secured basement with motion detector lights that randomly trigger. One Marine with the handle Automatic Sprinkles 2 asked a question. My last UDP, I was at Camp Schwab. I work as a AAV crewman and heard the stories of little girl at the ramp and so on. This whole island is creepy. A buddy of mine said he'd seen a little girl in his closet one night. Any other Marines have any stories? Also, feel free to share stories about Camp Fuji as well. Another Marine with the handle Navalis2208 responded. We had two guys. In my unit see a ghost of a little girl on the ramp at Camp Schwab on different occasions. It was back in 1992-93. They were both teased mercilessly, but both swore that it happened. After reading a different ghost story shared by another Marine stationed on Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, a Marine with the handle Fat Kid Loves PC Gam responded. This story hit a nerve with me. I've literally heard a story very similar to this from the trackers out of a cab company on Camp Schwab, except at their ramp it was a grown woman who would walk up from the ramp at the guard. The eyes, though. The description of the evil in her eyes is exactly what was described by those trackers out of Camp Schwab. You trackers have some weird stuff at your ramps. This next story about the same little girl was directly emailed to me by a Marine named Ryan. Not sure if you wanted me to out your full name, brother, but in case his buddies are listening and they doubt that this is his story, his last name starts with A and correlates with a type of currency. I'll leave it at that. Something to first point out is that it seems like a lot of Marines who spend time in Okinawa also end up flying up to mainland Japan and conducting training around Mount Fuji, which I did as well. There is a Marine Corps base nearby, Camp Fuji, and also a forest at the base of the massive volcano called Aokigahara, which translates to Sea of Trees. That is commonly called by another much darker term, and has been the subject of many controversies, including the one with famous YouTuber Logan Paul. With this forest's dark reputation, a place where many Japanese locals walk in with a length of rope and no intention of ever walking back out, perhaps it's no surprise, then, that Marines training in the area seem to have paranormal experiences there. Ryan writes in his email, Hope all is well with you. I was going to include a story about my platoon's encounter with a ghost in the forest near Mount Fuji, but I can't find the map of the Fuji training area where I had marked our location where it happened. So here's a story of the ghost girl my buddy John and I saw in the barracks at Camp Schwab, Okinawa, Japan, 2015. It was a late night at Camp Schwab, and I was having trouble sleeping. My buddy John was on barracks duty that night, and I thought I'd keep him company. So I grabbed a couple of Red Bulls from my fridge and sat with him in the duty lounge, talking about what we were going to do once we got back to the States. About 15 to 20 minutes passed by when he got up from the desk to go tour his post. Just when he stepped outside the doorway, he had a look of fear on his face and just stood there for what seemed like a minute or two. And then he motions for me to come see what he's looking at. What I saw cemented my belief in the paranormal. I looked down the hallway and saw an apparition of a little girl in ragged old clothes standing by the fire exit. I don't know what made me do this, but I said, hey, right when the door opened and she ran out. We ran down the hallway, out the door, and looked around the area outside, and there was no trace of her. Many veterans who spend time in Japan have a similar story from Camp Schwab. It doesn't surprise me that military bases, especially Camp Schwab, have been the setting of so many stories about the paranormal. Okinawa being the place of one of the Marine Corps' bloodiest battles during World War II, I imagine there are many lost souls trying to find their way home. This first story was originally submitted to Nick Orton's Tales from the Grid Square Project. An airman with the Royal Canadian Air Force was participating in training on CFP Meaford and had the strangest experience of his life. He writes, Back before I joined the RCAF, I was an Army Reservist in my home province of Ontario. All the combat units in the brigade sent their new recruits to CFP Meaford, the training area for Land Force Central. I spent the summer of 2014 there for my Infantry DP-1 development period. The place is in the middle of nowhere, on the Georgian Bay, about 50 square kilometers, riddled with ruins of old stone farms, and dilapidated graveyards. When you arrive in Meaford, you start hearing the story of Meaford Mary in passing. Even the old guard knows about her. Stories differ, but supposedly, before the military took ownership of the land, a young girl in the late 1800s tripped and fell down a well and then drowned, while crying helplessly for her parents. I can confirm that this well still exists. Now, she's said to stalk the training area at night. Most of us were around 17 or 18 at the time, and had a good chuckle about the whole idea. Close to the end of the course, me and one of the boys were manning the gun at the 6 o'clock position of our platoon hide site, at around 0300, in a wooded area near one of the graveyards. Everyone else was asleep, except the guys at these clock positions keeping watch. I remember it being a dark, windless night. Hey, what time is it? You've got a watch. Yeah, but backlight doesn't work. Busted on the rappel tower. Oh, nice. It's 0300. The witching hour. It bent. Oh, is that a rippet? Yep. Here I am, dipping a coffee packet, eh? Should have thought to bring. So much for light discipline. Hey, what's with the blue lights? I don't even think any of our guys. What the. So, we're staring out into the woods. Could only see maybe five feet in front of us. Then, maybe 20 yards away, we see these two glowing blue lights. Like eyes. They first go from left to right, and then it was like they turned. To face in our direction. Like, whatever this was had just noticed us. The lights start moving toward us, and now it gave the distinct impression of being eyes. Because they were bobbing up and down, like someone walking. But we didn't hear anything. It was totally silent. We didn't even hear the rustling of leaves. I don't think it really hit us, what we were seeing. But, we were just frozen. And then it stopped, a few yards away, and that's when we heard her. The distinct voice of a little girl crying. We just. stared at it, then the glow went out, like it had never been there, at all. And everything was quiet again. When we looked around the hide site, everyone else nearby, we saw nothing. We looked around the hide site, everyone else nearby, we saw nothing. was still asleep. At the time, we just chalked it up to some of the staff messing with us and laughed it off. But I know what a headlamp looks like. I know what a grown man sounds like. And I know that nothing four to five feet tall could move through those woods without making a sound. The Canadian Armed Forces is a small community, and I've met a number of others who have encountered Meaford Mary. She's also been simply called Blue Eyes. I'm convinced that we came face to face with her that night. You, uh, you ever notice how creepy playgrounds look at night? Everything looks creepy at night. Yeah, well, no, I. Hold up. Hmm? Is that a kid? What? Oh, man. Hey, hey there. You know, it's a little too late for you to be playing out here. How did he even get around the fence? Maybe he was hiding back here when they closed? His parents must be freaking out. Did you hear any reports about a missing kid? No, I didn't. You, you can come out. It's okay. Wait, where are his. Oh, my God. Of all the stories I've read, there are none that are as unsettling as those involving children. I think Hollywood understands that. Movies like The Exorcist, The Omen. The Ring, Children of the Corn. Being afraid of kids just goes against our primal nature. We're supposed to help children, but our senses are telling us to run. So saying, this might be just one of the creepiest stories I've read. It was submitted by a sailor who was posted to Naval Base Guam in 2007 as a security officer. They were carrying out a routine patrol of various sections of the base and saw something he believes, was a remnant of the terrible history of the Japanese occupation. He writes, "This happened in 2007, about a year after I graduated from A school and was stationed on Naval Base Guam. Almost as soon as I arrived in 2006 and made some Chamorro friends, they began telling me about how haunted the island was. The longer I was on Guam, the more I learned about the terrible things Japanese soldiers did to the Chamorro people. Chamorro people during the war. I've always been a believer in spirits and the paranormal, but I've never personally experienced anything that could also be verified by someone else. So many locals spoke about seeing ghosts and the legends of Tautaumona, which are these ancestral spirits that are both feared and highly respected by the Chamorro people. When everyone around you talks about their unique paranormal experiences, it does kind of make you wish you had an encounter of your own. As a member of the security forces working the night shift, part of our job was to check all the buildings to ensure they were locked and secured during the night. On this particular night, my partner and I had finished checking most of the buildings and finally made our way to the Child Development Center, the CDC. While at the CDC, we checked the front doors, then walked around the back of the building where the playground was. At first, everything seemed normal. Then we reached the sandpit area where there was this plastic turtle thing, you know, the kind of thing kids could crawl under and play inside. But as I glanced over at this turtle, I saw what looked like a child staring at us from underneath it. My first thought was something like, holy crap, this kid's been out here for God knows how long and nobody noticed. But as I looked closer, I realized that something was very, very wrong. The child, he, he only had a torso, no legs. His skin wasn't pale or white, but darker, like one of the local Chamorro kids. I watched as it began to move out from under the turtle shell. The movement was slow, almost like a turtle shell. I watched as it moved, almost like a turtle shell. There was nothing there. As we were driving away, I asked my partner what she saw, just to verify what I had seen. I honestly thought at that point that I was just being dramatic or that my eyes were playing tricks on me. But she described the exact same thing. This legless child crawling out from under the turtle. She said she felt that there was something very evil about it. advancement made by the Russians. It was not uncommon to be given maps that were heavily outdated or incomplete, leading to confusion when we stumbled on roads or villages that were not marked on those maps. GPS was working, but due to the weather at the time, most of our GPS units were not functioning properly or reliably, hence why we relied on those maps and our dear buddy Maps, who himself became increasingly frustrated because of the maps' shoddy quality. While en route to an assignment, the units in front of our column reported seeing a small cluster of approximately 40 houses and buildings about a half a mile east from the main road that we were traveling on. Of course, our maps didn't show this village, and since we couldn't confirm if previous teams had cleared it, we decided we should search the village again. So, my squad of 10 and another 10 guys dismounted and approached the village, joined by two armed interpreters, guys from the Ukrainian army who spoke decent enough English to tag along. My squad approached from the southwest, the other from the northwest. Maintaining comms while approaching, we identified a gas station, about 25 total homes and apartment blocks, what looked to be a government-type building, and other various structures I couldn't possibly identify. So, little by little, we cleared each building. Unfortunately, we did find deceased people along the way. Thorough searches on our end found nothing. The village was left almost untouched. Despite the dead, it didn't look like any engagements had occurred here. No craters from explosions, no bullet holes in the walls, nothing. It's almost as if everyone just packed up and left. But as we were wrapping up the search of this village, the other squad came out of an apartment block with two chasers. They were a bunch of children and a dog. They were emaciated, clearly starved. So our medics began treatment on them while we established a defensive perimeter and waited for an evacuation platoon to come. The children were picked up, and we moved on. Later, I got to talk to the guys who found the children and the dog. And again, this is where the unexplainable begins. The next day, we were able to see the children and the dog. They were lying on the ground on the ground floor. We were able to take a look at their bodies. We were able to see their eyes. several items of thick clothing. A woman was found down the hallway in a bedroom. They said it looked like she had been dead at least for several days, if not at least a week by that point. Her injuries were believed to be due to a brutal assault. Before I had heard this story, I had heard and it was confirmed that an evac platoon had visited this same village about five days prior, followed two days later by another task force. Neither one of them reported finding children or this woman when clearing the village, but it was determined later that members of the same evac platoon had committed crimes against women and children while they were searching the village. The time frame of when they were there seemingly lines up with her death. Going back to these guys' story, what stands out to me is the locked door. Because all three of them confirmed amongst themselves that it was locked, and they were about to break it down before it simply popped open. I will say Tango and I worked together several times after our rotation in Ukraine, and he established himself as a great contractor with strong moral character. I know from my time with him that he wouldn't feed into a lie, so I truly believe this happened. As far as knowing why that door just popped open, I don't know, but we'll have to wait and see. Your guess is as good as mine, but I believe that that woman, in whatever form she was in at that time, was hanging on, watching after her kids. Maybe she wanted to be there to greet them as they crossed over, I don't know. But maybe, knowing she couldn't save them, she at least did her best to protect them. Whether by locking the door, when she was in the house, or by knocking on the door when she saw our guys coming down the hallway, or if the door was already locked or not, perhaps she realized that our guys could save her children, and she took the chance at opening the door. Regardless, the last I heard, only the dog passed away. So, she can rest, knowing that we saved them. So, he comes up looking like someone just stole his lunch money, and I'm like, what happened to you? And he tells me he dropped that, he had to go, you know, take a shit, and he drops that brand new cold steel knife he bought into the port-a-john, like when he was pulling his pants out. That $300 knife that he kept bragging about, and showing everyone, but never actually used to cut anything? Yeah, and, you know, as much as I wanted to rake him over the coals about it, I honestly felt really… You hear that? Footsteps. Could be a deer. I don't… I don't think so. You think it's Op 4? Who else? Give me that rock. What? Give me the rock. Dude, if that's a guy… If it's Op 4, he'll just shoot at us. If it's an animal, it'll take off. Alright. You got anything? No. I think it… No. No. Bro, what the fuck? What the hell is that? You think we should, uh… think we should call this up? Uh, yeah. Yeah, I'll call it. Charlie Golf, this is Post 3. Come in over. Scattered throughout Camp Hornos Valleys and Rolling Hills are these little collections of mock buildings and streets known as "mout towns." Mout, or military operations on urban terrain, refers to combat training that takes place in cities and towns. Urban environments are probably some of the most challenging to fight in. During the last two decades of wars in the Middle East, it was often an environment Marines found themselves in. These little towns made of metal shipping containers were then constructed to give Marines a taste of just how brutal and complex fighting in populated areas can be. This next story was written by a U.S. Marine who found himself posted up in one of Hornos' mout towns during a late-night field exercise. If you thought these little ghost villages couldn't feel any more creepy in the dead of night, his experience begs to differ. He writes: My unit was on a pre-ITX integrated training exercise field op in the area surrounding Horno on Camp Pendleton. We were posted up in this little mout town in the heart of a valley surrounded by steep hills and ridges. I was on my usual 0200-0400 firewatch that I always had in the field because my staff NCO had a hard-on for me. I was sitting on my 240 Bravo post facing a long stretch of gravel road. I was standing on the other side of the mout town on the right and dense trees and brush on the left. So our post was roughly 10 feet from the tree line and my buddy and I started hearing a good amount of rustling coming from the left. My buddy threw a rock at it and it stopped for a while. But a few minutes later it picked right back up again. Around this time there was that eerie moisture layer coming in from the ocean. What was strange is that it had this darker shade to it compared to the regular fog that often rolled in. I'm not sure if that's related to what happened next but my buddy thought that it was worth pointing out. Then we started hearing voices from the trees on our left. Voices that sounded just like a little girl. I couldn't quite make out what she was saying but soon the talking stopped and she started laughing. Like just this non-stop childish giggling. We were really creeped out and didn't know what to do in this situation. So I called it up to the corporal of the guard over the radio who then forwarded it up to the sergeant of the guard. The sergeant wanted absolutely nothing to do with it so he sent the corporal down to hang with us for a bit. It was silent for the first few minutes that he was with us but then it picked right back up and he heard it loud and clear. E4 hit up our lieutenant who said we had no other units operating in the area. So the sergeant of the guard said to just go ahead and ignore it. Not knowing what else to do the three of us just sat there for the remaining hour of our firewatch listening to footsteps running around the woods and a giggling child laughing at us from the darkness. The entire time this was happening static. It was blasting out of the radio. And when our relief finally arrived. Everything just went silent. My buddy and I had had enough and we got the hell out of there as fast as possible. The following is a separate account from a woman named Alicia. The spouse of an airman stationed in Japan at the time her story takes place. She was interviewed in 2021 by Erica Earl of the Stars and Stripes military newspaper. She says that my husband and I PCS to Yokota Air Base in 2012 and moved into a house on base a garden unit on the west side. Immediately we started noticing strange things happening. Sometimes the bed in the spare bedroom would be inexplicably stripped of its sheets and sheets. Or there would be a loud crashing sound in the kitchen in the middle of the night, but the kitchen was empty and there was nothing broken or misplaced. Sometimes we'd wake up in the morning to find all the kitchen cabinets wide open when they were shut the night before. At first I just brushed it off figuring my then husband might be the one doing all of it. But when he was deployed and I was then left with no one else in the house to blame for what was going on. That's when I realized it couldn't have been him. I worried people might think I was crazy, but I started asking other service members and spouses about it to see if anyone else had similar experiences in their homes. And sure enough, a bunch of people have shared stories like mine. After hearing about these shared experiences, Alicia started a community on the base, which has continued until today. As a private Facebook group for Yokota residents called the Yokota Ghost Hunter Club. Before this interview with Alicia the previous year in October of 2020, Erica Earl also interviewed Staff Sergeant Brianna Adams of the 374th Civil Engineer Squadron about her experiences with strange happenings on the base. She explained that she and her husband often heard clear, persistent knocking noises in their old east side tower unit. Security camera footage apparently showed televisions and bedroom lights turning on and off when no one was home. In the follow-up interview on the story in March of the following year, Erica also spoke with Chaplain Lance Brown, an Air Force captain assigned to Yokota's 374th Wing Staff Agency, as well as his wife, Karen Brown. Chaplain Brown and his wife have evidently been performing home cleanses or anointings for nearly a decade in homes on the base where odd things occur. Chaplain Brown stated that the cleansings are sometimes more about helping someone cope with anxiety, heartbreak, or a troubled past than about literal evil spirits. But of course, he said, "I wouldn't suggest that the presence of spirits "is all in the person's head. "Whether we all believe in them or not, "ghosts or demonic activity, "these things of an evil or spiritual nature, "only God can combat that," he said. As home cleanses are not officially sanctioned by the Air Force, we otherwise have the ability to be that beacon of hope as people invite us into their homes to deal with whatever has been troubling them. In March of 2021, Lori Greenberg, who also lived in one of Yakota's garden units, said she too started to feel uncomfortable in her home the previous year. "My three-year-old daughter has been experiencing "sleep regression the past year," she explained. "There have been several times when I would be watching "her video monitor and I would see orbs of light in her room. "And there have been a few instances where I'd be "in my bedroom and I would see a white streak of light. "I would see a white streak of light run past the foot "of my bed. "And more recently, my daughter has been saying "she's seeing monsters and that she's scared. "Lori and her husband, Master Sergeant Austin Pope "of the 374th Maintenance Squadron, decided that "since Lori was six months pregnant at the time, "they needed to do something to help their daughter "feel less afraid and sleep through the night "before bringing a new baby home. "The family happened to meet Chaplain Brown "and his wife, and despite not identifying "with any religion, they decided to invite the Browns "over to give the house cleansing a try. "I know it won't happen overnight, but I'm hoping "we can all learn to live more comfortably in our home, "regardless of whether there is a spirit existing here," Lori said. The Popes, who had their home cleansed on March 1st, 2021, were hopeful that the process seemed to have helped. "My daughter still isn't sleeping through the night," Lori later said. "But I do feel a much greater sense of peace "being home alone, especially at night." The Browns do the cleanses free of cost, judgment, or disclosure, they said. People need not be religious to have a home cleansing, and the Browns said their objective is not to convert anyone's belief systems. During the same interview, the couple said that they received more calls at Yokota over the past year than they did in the entirety of their previous assignment in Fort McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas. The Browns weren't certain exactly how many calls they have received on Yokota, but explained that they receive a steady flow of requests and even had a cleansing arranged for right after their interview with Stars and Stripes. The Browns declined to share the details of specific cleansings, but said that they have both experienced fear and emotional response, as well as the fear of being left out. "It's not anything of Hollywood, but evil is a very real thing," Chaplin Brown said. "You just sense an absolute darkness, "and your skin tingles, and the hair on the back "of your neck raises, and you get a sense of, 'I don't want to be here.'" "I'm not certain if Chaplin Brown has been reassigned "since this interview took place, but in any case, "you're not alone," said the Browns. "You're not alone. "You're not alone." The Browns, Yokota Air Base, and certainly many more bases throughout Japan and the rest of the world, continue to be no stranger to hauntings. This next story was emailed to me in April of last year by a soldier named Tyler. I'll skip his last name. There wasn't any mention of whether he wanted to remain anonymous or not, but he can otherwise out himself in the comments if he likes. He writes, "I was with Bravo 2506, 140, "601st Airborne. "We were stationed in southern Baghdad in Fob Falcon, "but were sent out to this little hole in the wall "that we called the Dog House, down Route Senators, "off on Route Red Wings, which was southeast of Fob Falcon. "The house, or Dog House, which it was called, "was an IED make house that was taken over "and made into a base run by our Delta company. "Route Red Wings was this long, twisting road "that finally split into a Y, right, "at the Dog House, and we would have static patrols "on this road just to have overlapping views "along the whole length of the road. "At the Y of the road, we had blocked it off, "and we weren't allowed to drive farther south "beyond OP Red, so we had these jersey barriers "set up on the roads to keep traffic "from coming up from the south. "And one night, we were being relieved "from our static positions, and from there, "we would go on QRF, a quick reaction force. "We would back up our trucks into this driveway, "and I was always the last truck to back in, "so I would pull security down the two roads "that were blocked off. "Now, like most places, the Iraqi homes, "the buildings, they had these privacy walls around them, "which are block walls with broken glass on top of them. "And the area between the road and the wall "was often this low scrub brush. "So I sat there watching out over the roads "and this brush. "Now, mind you, it's about 03 in the morning. "So we're back in the trucks up. "I'm sitting up as the turret gunner "with my 240 Bravo mounted on the Humvee, "complete darkness, using our nods, "and we're acting as ground guides, "telling the driver which way to go. "Otherwise, we would drive off the driveway, "and there was about a three-foot drop. "So you had to pay particular attention while doing this. "And suddenly, I spotted some movement in my nods. "And I looked over to this wall in the scrub brush, "and I saw this. "And I saw this kid, about maybe 12 years of age, "staring down at the ground. "What immediately struck me "was that he seemed to be glowing. "There was this aura of white light all around him. "Of course, I thought that was strange. "So I immediately, I lifted up my nods, "and I couldn't see him anymore. "So I put my nods back down, and there he was. "About 30 yards away. "And as I stood there looking at him, "I couldn't help but think, "you know, wow, this kid's almost angelic. "There's no blemishes in this shitty, war-torn area at BFE. "Now, these people were dirt poor, "but this kid looks, like I said, angelic, "especially with this white light, this aura around him. "And about this time, it was almost like this kid "could hear what I was thinking, "and he looked straight at me, "meeting my eyes, "and he smiled, and then it happened. "As I was looking at him, his face twisted. "The only thing I can and have ever been able to compare it to "was in the movie, Passion of the Christ, "where Judas betrays Jesus, and all of the little kids' faces, "are all twisted and looking evil. "That's the only thing I could think of. "I have no other way to describe this child, "if I could call it that. "It turned and started to walk towards me. "And I am just thinking, what the hell is this? "And then, as if it could tell I was frightened, "it began to jog and then went into a dead run right at me. "And I'm thinking, I'm gonna have to shoot this thing. "So I immediately bend down and pick up a sight picture "through my nods and click the safety off "and start to put pressure on the trigger. "Now this thing is only about five feet away from my truck. "And so the trucks that were backing up "are having trouble maneuvering. "So at that moment, they all turned on their headlights. "So this white light floods the whole area and my nods. "So I'm blind for a second. "And when I regain my picture through the nods, it's gone. "I click the safety back on the gun "and I lean back into the turret. "My medic heard me sigh. and he asked me what was wrong. And I told him that I thought I was going insane. Obviously, this all happened very quickly. We finished backing our truck into the parking location for QRF, and that's it. But for the next three consecutive nights, when I was on a sleep shift and had some kind of dream, I would have these recurring nightmares of this angelic boy demon. And a few days after seeing this, we were coming back down that road. We would be out at OP Red for four days at a time, and then move back to Fob Falcon for a day and a half for refit. So now we were traveling back down the road in a convoy, and I was feeling lucky to be in the middle of the pack. I had my. turret at the three o'clock position, and as we were driving I see a group of people with a young girl standing apart from the rest. She was about 20 yards to their right, back against this privacy wall. And as we drove by, I had always made a habit of making eye contact with anyone I saw, but something just felt strange about this girl with her back against the wall. As we got closer, I noticed two things. One, she had. jet-black eyes, and two, where she was standing, there was a canal that ran right next to the wall. I realized there was nowhere for her to be standing. This black-eyed little girl was hovering at ground level, staring a hole through me. And as this tree came between us, breaking my eye contact with her, and she had disappeared, by the time I could see, around the other side of the tree. I don't know if anyone else saw this particular girl, or the demon kid, but other guys in my outfit later told me about seeing similar things. I'm convinced that that land is cursed. This story really still freaks me out, and I still get chills thinking about it. I think I had an encounter with the old Meaford Mary. Let me set the scene. Full night land navigation practice, multiple points throughout the area, and of course, the very last nav point was all the way out in the boonies. I cleared the entire way through the night without much issue, and reached the approximate location of the last grid point around 0200-0230. But it was around that time when it got insanely foggy. NVGs, headlamps, with white or red light, it didn't matter. We couldn't see anything. By this time, there was a group of four of us, and the boys and I didn't know what the hell to do. After taking about 20 minutes to confirm the location, we heard something in the distance. A female voice saying, help me, help me. Not knowing where it came from, we radioed it in and were told that we were the only ones in that area. I know it doesn't sound as wild compared to some other stories, but damn, the uneasy feeling you get when you can't see five feet in front of you and you hear that out in the distance really makes your hair stand on end. One vic approaching from the west. Looks like a white sedan. And away it goes. Talk about a quiet night. Quiet for Iraq standards anyway. Guys, I'm gonna go take a piss. Now there's something to remember. The time we had to low-crawl to get to the top of the mountain, and the time we had to low-crawl ten meters just to take a piss. A marine buddy once told me that they had four guys crammed into a port-a-john, all pissing at the same time. Man, leave it to the marines to make it a competition. Speaking of competition, I bet I've still got the biggest. Oh, shit. What's the matter? You get it caught in your zipper? Worse. I think we're compromised. What? How? There's a kid out there. A kid? Yeah. Just came out of nowhere. This next story was submitted by a soldier who, at one point, was posted on Watch on the outskirts of Ramadi. While many of the specters and strange things seen in Iraq involve, shadowy figures and inhuman entities, this soldier encountered something much more mystifying. A child that, perhaps, wasn't really a child. My team and I were doing recon for a big push into Ramadi. We were near that big lake east of the city, south of Fallujah. I can't remember the name. Habania. Whatever. It's really big and hard to miss. Anyways, it's nighttime and we're posted up about 700 yards from the highway, observing movements and such. It was quiet. Well, about as quiet as Iraq got at the time. So my buddy crawls away to take a piss while the rest of us are keeping an eye out. He was mumbling some joke about his large wang and he, well, he suddenly stops. I remember I found it weird the way he stopped mid-sentence. So I said, "What? I know damn well that our pants are buttonflies, but I said what I said." He crawls up, he grabs my ankle and whispers, "There's a kid out there." I didn't believe him. Until I look. And this kid is just standing out there in the moonlight, clear as day. I radio over to my team leader. I think our cover is blown. I tell him what's going on and he's like, "Does he know you're there?" And I'm like, "I don't think so, but he's right on top of us." Team leader says, "Grab the kid and don't let him get away." So we do. The kid didn't put up a fight. It was like he didn't care or almost like he expected this to happen. He just calmly raised his hands and my buddy patted him down, cleared him, zip-tied him, and walked him to our hide. Our team leader is trying to get the TAC, the Tactical Operations Command, on the line to report the situation. They advised us to get out and exfil. So we start breaking everything down and getting it all packed up. We get ready to start moving and I'm like, "What about the kid?" TL says, "Bring him." So I grab him and we were off. So we're hoofing it as fast as we can toward the lake, which is like a mile or so away. We get about 300-400 yards from our original position and take a knee in some palm trees and bushes to make sure we aren't being followed. The TL decides we're far enough away from our original position, so we're going to cut hard into this big canal that runs right through Ramadi and connects to the lake. He said we could follow the canal straight to the rendezvous and use it as a cover, so we can really book it. But when I turned around to grab the kid, he was gone. Just straight up vanished. There was no sign that he was ever there besides two zip ties on the ground. There was no noise, no footprints, and the zip ties were still intact, just laying there on the ground. It was like this kid just literally disappeared into thin air. I know it's hard to believe. I know for a fact that seven other guys saw him, and a few physically interacted with him. None of us imagined this kid. He was there. My battle buddy is pretty shaken up by this. He's got his nods on. He's looking everywhere for this kid. At this point, we were far enough away from our first spot, and it's too dark for anyone out searching for us to actually see us. So we take a few minutes to look for this kid, but there's just no trace of him anywhere. T.L. calls it, and we get our asses out of there. When we got back to camp, we were talking about what we saw. What really freaked us out was the zip ties still being intact. If the kid wasn't actually there, how the hell did the zip ties get to where we were, let alone still be connected in one piece? I was so close to him that if he tried to wriggle his way out of them, I'd definitely have to hurt him. As we're talking about this, one of the S2 intel guys overhears us. He walks over and says, "That sounds like a djinn." And we're all like, "What the hell is a djinn?" And he says, "You know, the genie from Aladdin? That's a djinn." Being the smartasses we were, we told him that none of us had rubbed a lamp. At this, he shakes his head, and he's like, "No, that part is bullshit." And then he says, "A djinn is a wandering spirit. It can be good or bad, but they're around here." When he said this, we just stared at him, until someone asked, "So, was this a good one, or a bad one?" The S2 just shrugged and said, "Well, you're still alive, so I'm gonna say a good one." Damn, I got chills just thinking about it. To this day, I don't know why it showed itself to us or stuck with us for so long, but I do remember the S2 guy saying that the good ones protect, and the bad ones kill, or something along those lines. I'm not much for believing that kind of stuff, but there is something else I can't explain. I don't know what kind of bullet we dodged, literally, but I went that whole tour and never got a scratch. Matter of fact, none of us did. And let me tell you, it got hairy. This was in December '03, things started heating up by February '04, and Ramadi was full-blown crazy by April when the Marines rolled through. But even still, I never took a scratch, not a single one. Bullet or otherwise. So who knows? Maybe something was watching out for us. "Get out of the camp. Wait a minute. Nail out. Nail out. Get out of the camp. Wait a minute. Nail out. Nail out. Get out of the camp. Wait a minute. Nail out. Get out of the camp. Wait a minute. Nail out. Nail out. Get out of the camp. Wait a minute. Nail out. Get out of the camp. Wait a minute. Nail out. Get out of the camp. Wait a minute. Nail Lord! God, help me! Please! - James! - Open the door! James, wake up, buddy. Come on, wake up. James. James. Wake up, bud. There you are. Were you having another dream? Yes. What were you dreaming about? Papa, papa, papa. Yeah? A crash. Why, yeah. I was dreaming. A plane crash? A crash, Roger. Papa. A plane crashed into the water? A crash, Roger. That's okay, buddy. Papa's here, okay? A crash. There's no plane. Papa's here. It's just Papa. You're okay. Born on April 10th, 1998, James Leininger, then a little boy just over the age of two, was beset by a series of terrifying dreams. On almost a nightly basis, the child's parents, Bruce and Andrea Leininger, would find themselves rushing to his bedside, discovering him thrashing about in his sleep, then finding it difficult to wake their son from what was clearly a visceral night terror. In the midst of these episodes, being only a toddler, it shocked them to hear James screaming out harrowing details that depicted what he was seeing in his subconscious mind. The image of a man trapped in a burning aircraft, unable to escape the flames. And when asked by Andrea who the little man in the plane was, James replied, According to his parents, the oddities surrounding James began just before his second birthday, during a visit to the James Cavanaugh Flight Museum in Dallas, Texas. James was enamored by the many examples of World War II-era combat aircrafts, being drawn specifically to the iconic gull-winged F-4U Corsair fighter plane. So strong was his reaction to the historic vehicles that the parents found themselves spending the entire day at the museum, having to quite literally drag their son out of the building by day's end. It wasn't long after the museum visit that James' mother would have a peculiar interaction with her toddler. One day, as they passed by a toy shop displaying a bin of plastic airplanes and boats, James and Andrea Leininger, who had been in the museum for a long time, appeared to have a bomb fixed to its undercarriage. James, not even two years of age and barely able to read, responded to his mother in a very matter-of-fact tone, "That wasn't a bomb," he said. "It was a drop tank." His mother, unfamiliar with the term, was shocked to learn that her toddler had correctly identified the external fuel tank commonly found on many World War II aircraft. It was shortly afterward, following his birthday, that the terrifying nightmares would begin. Much to the concern and mounting confusion of his parents, elements of James' nightmares seemed to be influencing his everyday conduct. More often than not, James would be found sitting at the table, drawing various pictures. The scenes they depicted, while naturally childlike and crude, were undeniably grim. The pictures appeared to depict naval and air battles, the skies filled with fire and flak. James' mother, Andrea Leininger, who had been in the museum for a long time, had seen the flak as propeller-driven aircraft plunged towards the sea in flames. When he was asked details about his drawings, young James would explain that they were depictions of battle between American and Japanese aircraft in the Pacific skies of World War II. This left his parents baffled. Their son had no access to media regarding World War II and was barely able to read. How could he be aware of such events? James' mother, Andrea Leininger, who had been in the museum for a long time, said that he had no access to media regarding World War II. Despite this, the child was able to accurately describe both Japanese and American aircraft types within his drawings. James also displayed a familiarity with the more obscure nicknames American aviators assigned to various Japanese aircraft, assigning female names like Betty, Jill, and Kate to bombers, and male names like Zeke, Oscar, and Tony for fighters. Curiously, James would always sign his drawings as James III. When asked by his parents what that meant, he would cryptically state that he was "the third James." Determined to uncover the truth behind James' unexplainable behaviors, Bruce and Andrea would sit down with their son, asking him questions about his dreams and his suddenly-acquired knowledge. It was during these discussions that James revealed unnervingly accurate details of a life he'd never experienced. According to the young boy, he himself was the doomed pilot in his dreams, plunging to the ocean in flames after being shot down by the Japanese. The way his mother put it, one day while playing, James nonchalantly stated, "Mama, before I was born, I was a pilot, and my airplane got shot in the engine and crashed in the water. And that's how I died." James, who was a pilot, said, "Mama, before I was born, I was a pilot, and my airplane got shot in the engine and crashed in the water. And that's how I died." In this other existence, James bore the same first name and told his parents that on the day he was shot down, he had taken off from a ship called Natoma, near a small island. The boy was also adamant that he had flown the F4U Corsair fighter plane and had a good friend on the ship, another pilot, by the name of Jack Larson. All of this left James' father, Bruce, particularly unsettled. As a Christian, he didn't quite know what to make of his son's inexplicable memories, and all of the questions it brought to mind about the possibility of reincarnation. Gathering up all of the details conveyed by his son about his former life as a World War II pilot, Bruce began to research with hopes of writing off James' story as the byproduct of an extremely active imagination. What he uncovered, however, did just the opposite. The ship James identified simply as Natoma corresponded to that of the USS Natoma Bay, a Casablanca-class escort carrier that served in many campaigns throughout the Pacific theater. On its roster of pilots, a Jack Larson was indeed sighted, the young aviator going on to survive the war. Further down that list, however, another name jumped out at Bruce. Sending a cold shiver down his spine, listed as being 21 years of age at the time of his death, was James Huston, Jr. The naval aviator was indeed shot down on March 3, 1945, near Chichijima, flying operations in support of the American landings on the small Japanese island of Iwo Jima. The only detail that didn't seem to line up to his son's testimony was that James Huston, Jr. was listed as piloting an FM2 Wildcat fighter at the time of his death, not a Corsair. Despite this, Bruce, recalling young James dubbing himself the "Third James," was finding it harder and harder to shake the unbelievable thought that his own son, James Leininger, could be the reincarnated soul of James Huston, Jr. and his father, James Huston, Jr. The story of James Huston and James Leininger is set to be revealed in the next episode. - Oh, sweetie, you have me perplexed. You sure do seem to know a lot about our family, even calling me Annie. I haven't had anybody call me Annie since, oh, since James died. - Hey, Annie. - What's that, sugar? - You remember how Papa used to drink a lot? - Huh? - I do. You remember that? - Then he'll get real mad. - Yes, yes, he sure did. - Well, but they send him when he drank too much. - Oh. Oh, you mean the rehabilitation clinic for alcoholics? The drinking hospital? - Oh, yeah. I would have to miss him when he had to go to the drinking hospital. - Oh, my goodness. Yes, sugar, I. I miss. I miss Papa too. After verifying the identity of James' supposed past self, the Leiningers immediately went about tracking down Huston's family members, as well as surviving veterans of the Natoma Bay. After much digging, a phone call was arranged between young James, now five, and Huston's older sister, Anne Barron. Quite bizarrely, during the course of their lengthy discussion, the older woman became convinced that she was indeed talking with the reborn soul of her long-lost baby brother. Without prompting, James addressed this woman, Anne, whom he had never spoken with before, as "Annie," a nickname that only Huston had used when speaking with his older sister. Her questions delving even deeper into what he remembered, young James would recall intimate details of the Huston family household, his childish phrasing no less making it clear that he even remembered the rampant alcoholism suffered by their father, and his frequent trips in and out of rehab. What swept away any lingering doubt for Anne was James recalling the time their mother gifted them with painted portraits of themselves, done by an artist he correctly named as "Darley." While information about Huston's service during World War II could feasibly be sourced, how on earth would a five-year-old child be privy to such personal family knowledge? In the aftermath of their talk, Anne would mail the rest of her brother's belongings to the Leiningers, along with a treasure trove of wartime photographs. Included in these was a picture of a smiling James Huston Jr., fully clad in his flight gear, standing next to an iconic Corsair fighter plane. The following year, James, now at the age of six, would attend a naval research and development center in New York City, California, where he and his mother would learn the history of war and the history of war. He would study war history, and learn about the history of war. reunion of Natoma Bay pilots, once again brushing shoulders with men that he, even though a child, ostensibly considered to be his old Navy pals. Without being formally introduced, James was immediately able to identify a former pilot by the name of Bob Greenwalt just by hearing his voice. When asked what provoked such an instant reaction to hearing Bob speak, James, once again, correctly stated that the man had been his wingman during his past life in the war. While speaking with other veterans, the young boy, much to their shock, was able to correctly list technical specifications of the Natoma Bay and recall interactions with some of the other crewmen present. During their discussions with some of the pilots, James' parents offhandedly mentioned that their son had dubbed three of his beloved G.I. Joe action figures, Billy, Walter, and Leon. At this, the faces of the hardened combat pilots suddenly darkened. During Huston's time at war, they said, he had grown close to three fellow aviators, Billy Peeler, Walter Devlin, and Leon Connor. Like James Huston, all of these men had been killed in action. When asked why he called his action figures by these names, James is reported to have innocently said that those were the names of the men who had been killed in action. The names of the men who first greeted him when he got to heaven. Over the years, James Leininger's remarkable story would garner significant media attention, his parents even going on to publish a book entitled Soul Survivor about their son's incredible experience. Catching wind of the story in 2009, a Japanese production company offered the family a chance to visit the spot where James Huston Jr. met his end so many years ago. James, then-president of the Huston family, was the first person to be seen in the film. James, then almost a teenager, was only periodically tormented by the vivid and terrifying dreams from his childhood and was eager to make the trip. Sailing to a spot not far off the island of Chichijima, the approximate location where Huston's plane would have disappeared, James Leininger cast a bouquet of flowers into the blue waters of the Pacific, bidding a final, emotional farewell to the man he once was. The experience in visiting the location he would later state, proved emotionally cathartic, as if a massive weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Wherever Huston was now, it felt to James that his soul, having spent all these years crying out across the vastness of time, was finally at peace. The story of James Leininger's supposed reincarnation is one of the most popular and widely discussed incidents of spiritual rebirth in the Western world. However, one will find that there are thousands of stories that report children eerily calling upon accurate and verifiable memories of apparent past lives. Another such story, not too different from that of James Leininger, comes in the form of a year-long story of James Leininger's life. In October 2007, Jasmine's nursery school teacher, going by the username AngelCat, began writing a series of posts in an online forum which documented instances of reincarnation. According to the teacher, Jasmine, then three years of age, was able to eerily recall memories and experiences that appeared to align with those of a World War I fighter pilot. While other children in her class were learning the alphabet and singing nursery rhymes, Jasmine was describing Great War-era flight gear and, to the shock of her teachers, flawlessly singing the popular British marching song, It's a Long Way to Tipperary. Jasmine's teacher could offer no explanation for the young girl's knowledge of World War I-era pilots and military songs. The three-year-old was notably a bright, child and had proven to be a fast learner in school. But where could she have been exposed to such information? It certainly wasn't a part of the nursery school curriculum. While Jasmine loved to play with dolls and partake in other such activities appropriate for girls her age, she would also spend her time drawing various pictures. One, which she proudly showed her teacher, depicted a crudely drawn biplane, the young girl referring to it simply as camel. Upon further research, Jasmine's teacher was stunned to find that the three-year-old's crayon drawing depicted a Sopwith camel, a British fighter aircraft made famous in the skies of the Great War. When shown a historical image of the iconic fighter, Jasmine was reported to have become giddy with excitement before suddenly becoming very sullen. Noticing her change in demeanor, her teacher asked what was wrong. Jasmine then lamented that her Sopwith camel was broken in the trees. Among her many other drawings were depictions of German airships and burning buildings turned to rubble after, as she put it, the sky fell on them. One day, Jasmine's teacher said she handed her an envelope, upon which the child had doodled a small yet very intriguing image. In blazing red, black crosses on its wings was the unmistakable outline of a German Sopwith camel. Jasmine's teacher said she handed her an envelope, upon which the child had doodled a small yet very intriguing image. In blazing red, black crosses on its wings was the triplane fighter, infamously flown by some of the war's most feared aces. Next to the picture, Jasmine had scribbled an ominous message. Bad, bad, bad. An RFC plane wrecked in the trees, its pilot hanging limply out of the open cockpit. As with James Leininger, Jasmine's strange statements give all the appearances of being those of a fighter pilot who met his end following an aerial battle. From October 2007 to December 2009, her teacher would regularly document Jasmine's memories on the blog, eventually piecing her memories together and zeroing in on the identity of the girl's past life. While she's chosen to withhold the pilot's name in order to preserve the privacy of his remaining family, through research she uncovered an account of the pilot's past life. She also discovered that the pilot's name was not of an Irish fighter pilot who, behind the controls of his Sopwith Camel, seems like a promising candidate. He was killed during a dogfight against the German Luftstreitkräfte, his plane coming down in a patch of dense woodland. To this day, the forum remains untouched, Jasmine's transcribed memories one more testament to a man whose earthly body met a sudden, violent end, but whose spirit were in vain. At least, his memories, apparently, kept on living. When delving into the many documented stories of apparent reincarnation, there is one consistent factor prominent in most cases. While memories and visions of one's past life are not necessarily the same, they are the same. They are the same, but they are not the same. In the early years of childhood, they mostly fade away with the passing of time, becoming almost non-existent by early adulthood. This was very much the case with James Leininger and young Jasmine. However, there are exceptions to this rule. As in the case of this next story, traumatic aftershocks suffered in a previous life can echo well into one's adulthood. The story, submitted to the popular Tales of the Old Testament, is a story about a man who, in the early days of his life, from the GridSquare project begins, like so many of these reports tend to, with a series of dreams. This story tells told by a man whose father was afflicted by visions of a past life, describes how his dad had in recent years experienced a number of vivid dreams set in the skies over Nazi Germany. Without knowing their names, for the sake of clarity, we will refer to the father as John and the son as John Jr. While John wasn't able to recall the specifics of the first dream, he awoke with the phrase, bombs over Bremen, burned into his memory. The second dream was where the mission over Germany became far more harrowing. Posted on the left waist gun of a B-17 bomber, John recalled in stark detail, witnessing a chaotic air battle, German fighters tearing into a mass formation of American bombers. Over the thunder of machine guns and roaring engines, he could hear the shouts of his crewmen over the radio, as bombers tumbled from the sky in flames. So vivid and real was the dream, that the man could even feel the violent shaking of the aircraft around him, as it absorbed the bullets of the marauding German aircraft. A massive explosion rocked the bomber, piping hot shrapnel tearing into his legs. Even in the dream, the searing pain was unbearably intense. Turning to check on the status of the right waist gunner just behind him, John, now saw nothing but a gaping hole in the plane's fuselage, the entire position having been blown away, along with its gunner. At that point, the second dream ended. Pilot to bombardier, your ship, take us in. Roger that, bombardier to pilot, my ship, bombardier to crew, bomb bay doors open. Steady as she goes, Pete. Target in sight. Almost. Bombs away. Closing bay doors. Ship is yours, skipper. Solid work, boys. Let's get this crate home to. Shit, we're hit. That was three engines, a wash. I hear you. Right. Everyone out. I'll hold her steady. That means you too, Al. You'll be right behind us. In John's third dream, the bomber was on its final approach to the city of Bremen, dropping its payload on the industrial target. Following their drop, the aircraft was hit by a torrential hail of anti-aircraft fire, the sky around them suddenly turning dark from countless bursts of flak. It was in the midst of this terrifying barrage that John's final dream would abruptly end. The vivid nature and striking realism of these dreams are the result of John's last dream. The final dream of these dreams, experienced by John, was perplexing to him. According to his son, who recounted this story, John had little to no interest in military aviation or World War II history in general. That being the case, they both wondered, how on earth was he able to accurately visualize such a precise depiction of air combat, even providing correct descriptions of things he had never seen, such as the interior layout of a B-17 bomber. Further still, despite having no knowledge of military aircraft before this sequence of dreams, how was he able to specifically identify the one in the dream as being a B-17F variant, a model of the bomber commonly flown in the early war period? The entire ordeal ultimately prompted John to look back on the days of his early childhood, re-analyzing certain events that, when now placed in the context of these dreams, took on, in his mind, an entirely new, and chilling, meaning. When John was about six years of age, he recalled drawing pictures of a place he referred to as Northumberland. For the longest time, he thought he had simply made the place up. However, Northumberland is indeed a real location in the north of England. It was also home to several Allied airfields during the Second World War. Much to his surprise, John realized, that his childhood drawings prominently featured what could only be described as control towers sprouting up from the crudely drawn countryside. Even more bizarrely, their locations depicted in the childish drawings aligned with historical photographs of the many air bases dotting the region. Considering he had never been to England, John couldn't help but wonder, is it possible that he had retained these memories from a past life, the life of an American airman? That ended, abruptly, in the skies over Bremen. So, what happened? Some rookie hardy gunners accidentally plastered one of the utility roads? Yeah, something like that. So, what happened? Nice. So, what happened? Is it just me, or did it get cold all of a sudden? Yeah, it did, didn't it? Hold up. Eleven o'clock. Flashlight. Is that someone with a cadre? Might be a civilian. They sometimes hop. Nobody move. Sir? What do you mean, that. that's a kid. She probably needs. Nope. Ignore her. Sir? That is the way to the old well. The old well? Yeah. A lot of guys have fallen into it. No one's died yet, but they all said that they followed the voice of a little girl. Sir, you can't be. Do I sound like I'm joking? Pass the word down the patrol. Make sure Jimmy knows. Ignore the voice. We keep moving. Help me! Please! Help me! This next story was submitted in the early 2010s by a Canadian soldier to the Toronto and Ontario Ghosts and Hauntings Research Society. out picking flowers, as she normally did before dinner, when her mother called. Her house and that area of the base is all forest and sits on top of a huge cliff edge that goes down into Georgian Bay. The little girl's mom called, and she came running, but what she didn't see was the old boarded-up well that her parents always warned her about. She fell down into the well and was there for a good while. As she was eight years old and could swim, it took a long time for her to be overcome with hypothermia, and she eventually drowned in the well. She screamed for help the whole time. A gravestone still sits outside between the house and the well. I have seen it. Two years ago, I was on a patrol with my section commander and three other guys. We were doing a reconnaissance patrol. It was mid-August, about 0300 in the morning. We had reports from base command that new artillery gunners might have hit an old road that went through that part of the woods. Command wanted us to get eyes on the damage to know if we could still use the hilly forest road. As we began our walk to the extraction point, on the side of a road, we could see something moving in the woods. There was a little white glow, and we could all feel that we were being watched. We all wanted out of there. The air turned like ice, and our hair stood on end. Our stomachs dropped to our feet when we heard, help me, please help me, from a little girl's voice far off in the distance. We all knew we heard it, but our section commander said, no. That's the way to the old well. Lots of troops have fallen into that well. Luckily, none have died yet, but anyone who has went after the little girl has fallen into the well. We soon realized that we had lost one of our troops on the patrol. We went back to find him headed right for the well. He said, I could hear a little girl moaning for help, and I lost track of you guys after I stopped to listen. We grabbed him and left the area. When we got back to the road, the truck was waiting for us. I have only been out that way on the base one other time. On that fighting patrol, at about the same time of night, and a year and one month later, I saw what I thought to be a little girl in an old Victorian-style nightgown in the woods, about 150 meters away. This time I saw it. her through IR night vision goggles. No voice accompanied this apparition, only her and the same creepy feeling. The air once again turned cold, and the hair on my neck stood on end. A couple of years after that last story was posted to the Toronto and Ontario Ghosts and Hauntings Research Society's webpage, a Canadian soldier read it. He then submitted his own account to the society, which they posted underneath the first one, as a response. He writes, As a general rule for all of us CF personnel, we aren't allowed to enter gravesites within the training area, as respect for the dead. A bit of an addition to the posted encounter, in late 2007, I was posted to LFCA TC Meaford to do my DP-1 infantry course. Blue eyes seemed like a bit of a running joke among some of the staff, who in some cases would shrug you off if you asked about the tale. In November, my course was doing its one-week defensive exercise in the Hogsback area, Training Area 5-Alpha, on the linked map. I don't recall exact grids of our position, unfortunately. The exercise was geared at defensive positions and sleep deprivation. By week's end, people were seeing all sorts of things. Batman running through the camp, etc. However, myself and a few others do recall seeing, through our night vision goggles, a human figure walking through the field in front of us. When we challenged about their identity, the figure disappeared, and did not reappear. There were no enemy force, OPFOR, active that night, and none of the staff were forward of our trenches. There shouldn't have been anybody out there. The human figure was too far away to tell gender or height, but it was most definitely not wearing army gear. Just a white human shape walking around. On a separate field exercise, my recce patrol walked through some ruins and came across an open well. A few of us noted that we had that distinct "we're being watched" feeling. But again, no military personnel were active in that area, aside from us. I don't know if this will help any, but I figured it couldn't hurt to show. It's so small. I thought bunkers were bigger than this. It's probably just one of those machine gun things. Like, you know, from World War II. Do you think somebody died in there? Becca, don't say that. What? I'm just saying. It's creepy. Hold still. One more shot. Wait. Becca? What? Amber, what is it? What? Becca: What? This next story was shared online by a woman under the handle AmberRoz33, as in AmberRose3, with the E being the backwards 3. I'm not sure. In it, she recalls a chilling event that happened during a family vacation to Guam when she was about 12. As her family stopped to grab a bite at a popular diner called Jeff's Pirate's Cove, Amber and her sister went to do a bit of exploring. A mere stone's throw away from the restaurant, they came across the remains of a machine gun bunker, likely constructed by the Japanese during World War II. And evidently, the bunker wasn't completely abandoned. She writes: I had the opportunity to visit Guam eight years ago. It was an incredible experience, and I would love the opportunity to go back one of these days. During our visit, we went to this roadside restaurant called Jeff's Pirate's Cove. As our parents sat down to enjoy their drinks, my sister and I went off to wander around until our food arrived. So we made our way around the back of the building and a little ways beyond it. We come across this old World War II bunker. It was kind of creepy to see, and when we talked about what happened later on, we both had this off feeling about it. But still, we checked it out, and I snapped some photos on our digital camera. As we were scrolling through the photos to see how they turned out, one of them made me stop. It was a hot tropical day, but what I saw gave me goosebumps. The picture was of the bunker entrance, and peeking around the corner of the doorway, clear as day, was the face of a man. I was only a kid at the time, maybe about 12. So needless to say, the sight of this photo scared the crap out of me. After seeing this, my sister and I got the hell out of there and ran back to our parents at the restaurant. We showed them the picture, and even they agreed that it looked as if someone was staring at us from inside the empty bunker. Thoroughly creeped out, I deleted the pic, and I thought that was the end of it. We returned to the hotel later, and we settled in for the night. But as I slept, I had this weird dream of a man in a brown uniform just standing at the foot of my bed. Again, I was only 12. So this really freaked me out. I even remember begging my family to let me go back to the bunker the next morning so I could apologize to the spirit of this man for taking photos or somehow disrespecting him. As someone who's always been skeptical of supernatural paranormal happenings, this was something I found disturbing. Even after thinking about it for all these years, trying to rationally explain what I saw, I have to believe. It was a ghost. This story was posted online by an army nurse writing under the handle Lissador. While working at a hospital on Fort Riley, she recalls the many strange stories she heard during break room conversations with her fellow nurses, surgeons, and hospital techs. My brother works in a hospital, and he's easily one of the most rational people I know. And the stories he's told me, as well as the other stories I've read before, have me convinced that hospitals are paranormal hotspots. Lissador writes: I was stationed at Fort Riley and worked at a community hospital. While I had my own paranormal encounters, they don't compare to those my colleagues experienced during my enlistment there. Riley is one of the oldest army posts in the country. There's a lot of literature detailing the multiple known hauntings, particularly in the officer's housing and even named addresses that are available for purchase or readily found on Google. During my time there, I heard some of the most unsettling stories. During one of my work shifts, we heard from one of our OBGYN surgeons that she had moved from her home on post to a new house off-base with her spouse and two toddlers. The move came out of nowhere, and when we started asking what prompted such a sudden change, she simply stated that: She had moved from her home on post to a new house off-base with her spouse and two toddlers. Needless to say, it wasn't like that when they left. She had moved from her home on post to a new house off-base with her spouse and two toddlers. This in itself made them uneasy, but it wasn't enough to scare them away. But the second encounter was something else altogether. On that same night, after they came home to find the kitchen in a mess, the surgeon and her family had some company over to the house. They were entertaining downstairs, while their two small children, both under the age of three, were in bed upstairs. At some point, a noise was heard coming from upstairs, so her husband went to check on the kids. Their first thought was that the kids had woken up and were goofing around. But when he reached the top of the stairs, the husband shouted down for everyone to come up and have a look. And what they found made their blood run cold. Right in the middle of the hall was a mountain of all of their bedding, duvets, pillow covers, sheets, blankets, comforters. The pile reached so high that it was almost touching the ceiling. The children were sound asleep in their beds. And considering the height of this blanket tower, these very small children could never have done it. That was the final nail in the coffin. They packed up and moved out as quickly as they could. A doctor on the other end of the hospital told us a creepy story of a pilot friend of his who apparently used to live in that very same haunted house. Well, it was either that house, or one of the five homes that were next to each other near an airfield. He came downstairs into his kitchen one morning to find every single one of his canned goods neatly lined up next to each other on the counter, and every single one was opened. I don't recall whether he left or stayed in the house after that. The same doctor also told me about his ghost cat. Their family cat had died, but, apparently, was still seen inside the home by friends and relatives on occasion. And they said it was clear as day. I also knew another nurse who lived in one of the famously haunted Fort Riley homes. She experienced lots of stuff, but it wasn't until the encounters became malicious that they also ended up moving out. After returning from a short family trip, they came home to find the police, and they were told that they were going to have to go to the hospital. They were asked why they were there, and the MPs told them that a 911 call was placed from someone inside the home. The family was, of course, alarmed, and they explained that they'd been gone for the entire weekend. No one should have even been in the house. Thinking that someone must have then broken in, the MPs searched the house, but found no signs of any trespassing or burglary. They gave the all clear and left, but they could never explain who made the call or how it happened. On two other occasions, this nurse's husband said he felt something shove him from behind while standing at the top of the staircase. This also happened to their adolescent son, except he was actually pretty banged up because he had been pushed down the stairs, by this unseen force. It was after that that this nurse and her family started looking for a new place. Like I said, my own accounts don't compare to any of these, but I have experienced some strange stuff while working at the hospital. We had frequent 24-hour in-house call duty. We'd be able to sleep on the couch in the break room when all duties were done, but had to be there for emergencies. One night, I was lying on the couch with my back to the room facing the wall. Our break room door stayed open, but the door leading from the patient holding area to the hallway just outside is heavy and makes a loud creaking noise when it's opened. Even in a deep sleep, the sound of that door opening is enough to wake you up, and it shuts loudly on its own too. So, I'm having a nap and wake up to feel something poking me in the back, like a finger. I was frozen in fear because I knew I was the only one in the break room. I just squeezed my eyes shut, ignoring it until I somehow fell back asleep. I really felt that if I turned around to look at whatever was touching me, I would see something I would regret. On another night, I was watching a movie in the break room when I heard the distinct sound of that heavy door opening. This was nothing unusual. Nurses from the ward, surgeons, anesthesiologists, and other staff could come in at any time, and the dressing rooms are connected to the break room. But I heard no footsteps, just the door opening and closing again. Honestly, I was too chicken to go look. I stayed put, convinced a ghost just came in or went out. I didn't care to know. It was a spooky place to be, late at night. All alone. This next story was sent to me by a U.S. Army veteran named Richard. It takes place during his first tour of Iraq sometime in the late 2000s. And while the deployment saw him in some of the country's most dangerous areas, it was an incident in the city of Ur, that really stuck with him. For students of ancient history, archaeology, or theology, Ur needs no introduction. The city dates back to the days of ancient Mesopotamia, some 3,800 years B.C. It was a thriving hub of commerce, politics, literature, art, and is even mentioned in the Bible as being the birthplace of Abraham. While a more modern city stands nearby, the incredibly well-preserved ruins of the great Ziggurat Temple, and royal tombs are stark reminders of Ur's ancient history. But according to Richard, something else was lingering in the old city. Something that many Iraqis and devout Muslims believe are entities of pure evil. He writes, I was active duty army from 06 to 2010 and did a deployment to Iraq out of Iraq. I was Germany while I was in. It wasn't anything overly fancy, I was just a comms guy and a SAT operator, but I ended up being pretty decent at keeping those machines operational, either through gentle sweet-talking or percussive maintenance. But overall, it wasn't too rough as far as deployments go. It was my first and only time in Iraq, so naturally I was a bit green behind the years, but I was very fortunate enough to have a few very seasoned NCOs guiding me throughout my time in the country. I learned a lot from those guys. Don't do this, do this, buddy system, 98% of the wildlife will murder your face, etc. My unit ended up getting tasked out to go cover down for a Cobb contingency operating base that was responding to the Russians. This was during the time that Russia invaded Georgia, and I was the low man. To go out and cover down. Most of that particular deployment was a bit rough for us, since that area the Cobb was in wasn't exactly the most friendly towards Americans. At some point, I ended up getting asked if I wanted to do hearts and minds, run, and escort the PSYOPs folks, the psychological operations guys. And by asked, I mean I was voluntold. But what really got my interest was that we were heading to the city of Ur. Of course, being someone who enjoyed history and seeing cool stuff, I looked it up before we hit the road. Southern Iraq, about 2-3 hours by convoy, nothing on the radar for activity, quiet. The NCOs I was with were pretty calm about it as well. They mentioned this wasn't a big deal, nothing to be too concerned about, but reminded us to stay focused. Hearts and minds are important, but remember your training. That sort of thing. We left early in the morning, riding in an MRAP, and I didn't think anything of it. The weather wasn't too bad, even for August, the usual rainy season hadn't started yet. Few showers here and there, but nothing to make things overly miserable. We rolled into town, and actually got a nice greeting. Lots of folks waving to us, kids running near the trucks, all along the way. A nice change of pace from the usual "howdy do" we got. I later discovered that it was pretty common for troops to go in and out of the city, but we didn't want to do that. It was pretty common for troops to go and visit the ancient ruins, but only when they were in the area. At least that's what I was told. I personally didn't care either way, I was there, in one of the most storied sites in the ancient world. I had to remember that I was a soldier with a job to do, and struggled to keep myself from nerding out. While I was there, our unit drew quite a crowd. Still being green, I fed off the emotion of our officers and NCOs. They were well aware of their surroundings, but mellow. So that really set me at ease. There were plenty of kids in the crowd, and they were pretty excited to come see us. Two of them came up to me and started tugging on my hands, wanting me to come play with them. It was honestly kind of surreal, but it was a pleasant reprieve from the usual stoic soldier routine. My battle buddy was near me as we were playing with these kids, and I think they wanted me to play tag, or whatever their version of it was. They'd run around this fairly large pillar, laughing the entire way as I started chasing them. And I'm still decked out. You know, in all my combat gear. Well, one tag exchange later, they took off around this pillar and just. vanished and I doubled back and looked around but these kids were nowhere in sight but I could hear them clear as day giggling as they're still running circles around this pillar and I called to my buddy like hey did you see where the kids went and the expression on his face told me that something was very very wrong he was white as a sheet he saw the whole thing and like me could still hear them laughing in my attempts to find the kids I told myself that you know maybe they fell into a hole snuck into a trap door I couldn't see something like that my buddy however never moved he was absolutely petrified sweating profusely muttering to himself and just in a state of complete shock you and he keeps just repeating this isn't real that didn't just happen over and over and that's about all I could get out of him so I called my sergeant over and I basically told him that something is really wrong our interpreter also came with us since unbeknownst to me at the time several other people noticed the same thing the kids were especially freaked out they ran back to their parents and cried to the point where the adults were also now starting to panic and I I turned to the pillar again I'm still trying to make sense of all of this and the first thing I thought to look for were footprints there's like sand everywhere there has to be footprints but all all I could see was my own boot marks nothing the size of a child's footprint anywhere near that pillar my buddy slowly coming to his senses said he saw them running around but he actually didn't see their feet touch the ground he chalked it up to his vision the heat you know taking its toll on him but in hindsight that was him forcing a rational explanation to something that just didn't make any sense in the entire time we searched we heard giggling the whole time it was like they were right there in front of me our interpreter who was a devout muslim said that we needed to leave the area now according to him it was no longer safe honestly my thought at the time with the rowdy crowd and all was that we were expecting trouble from insurgents so my sergeant told us to mount up and I didn't question him and later on when we returned to the Cobb I checked with the interpreter and this guy looked like he'd seen the devil himself after exchanging pleasantries I asked him about you know what actually went down in Ur like what did we see and why were all the Iraqis so shaken by it like why did he say that the area wasn't safe you know why we have to leave and he turned to me and his eyes are just cold as steel and he says my friend what I tell you now is that you are closer to death than any other time in your life and after hearing this I was like what are you talking about I said to him explain that to me like what do you mean I was close to death and he told me in a hushed voice that those two little girls were going to die and I said were not actually girls. "Hearing voices, seeing them run, but not touching the ground, feeling them tag your hands or clothes, then turning and running, that, my friend, was a djinn. They're dangerous beings that need to be given a wide berth. Stay away from them. Very dangerous." That's kind of how he said it. Of course, I'd never heard of a djinn before. Genies, sure. Aladdin, you know, the cartoon, but a djinn? After the interpreter gave me the rundown on djinn in Islamic scripture, I did a little bit of research on my own, and according to Muslims, djinn are basically these entities that can appear when they want, in any shape they want to do, anything they want. They're often seen as tricksters or malevolent entities. Bad news all around, to say the least. Our interpreter didn't say much else after that, and I could tell he was too frightened to continue talking about it. No matter how hard we pressed, he refused to say anything else on the matter. But ever since then, I've been a lot more open to things like this. Spirits, cryptids, stuff like that. I myself have a doctorate, so I know from my own work and studies that there's usually at least some kernel of truth in even the most extraordinary claims, my own included. Scientifically speaking, I saw something that I could not explain. I heard sounds that I couldn't pinpoint the source of. And several other people around me reacted to whatever was going on. Now, I'm honestly not sure if we saw a djinn that day, or two djinns, but I do know that whatever we witnessed was enough to scare the absolute shit out of both the interpreter and my battle buddy. All I can say is that I know what I saw, I know what I heard, I know what I felt, I know what happened afterwards. Whatever we encountered that day in the city of Ur was far from normal. This next story is interesting for a couple reasons. First, it comes from Lieutenant Colonel Seth Hall of the US Army. And second, it wasn't posted on some random ghost forum or anonymous message board. It was published on the Army's own website. Which doesn't automatically mean every detail is true, obviously, but it does make it a little harder to just brush it off as internet creepypasta. Hall's story goes back to when he was a young lieutenant living on Fort Sill, Oklahoma in a neighborhood called Academic Heights. And from the way he describes it, Academic Heights was one of those older on-post housing areas that actually had some charm to it. Solid old houses, heavy wooden doors, brass knobs, families living close together, kids running back and forth between houses. You know, the kind of place where when the dads were deployed, everybody on the block helped look out for everybody else. But according to Hall, there was something else in that neighborhood too. Something his dog noticed before he did. And something two little girls may have been feeding lunch to without realizing what they were dealing with. He writes: I'll start off by saying that I've always been skeptical of ghosts and ghost stories, and I still am. But I'll admit, there are far more things in this world that I cannot explain. Than things I can. I'll put the following events into the latter category. Both of these accounts are 100% true, to the best of my recollection. They happened some 18 years ago, but they are not embellished in any way. Both happenings occurred on Fort Sill when I was a young lieutenant living in Academic Heights. Out of consideration to the young families who live in the quarters now, I will not share the exact addresses of where these incidents occurred. My first unexplainable encounter happened around six months after we moved into our place. My family left the day prior for a long weekend trip to Grandma and Grandpa's house. Our faithful Beagle Ulysses and I were the only two living souls in the house, and had settled into bed around 10:30 PM. It was a cool fall night. All the windows were shut, and the bedroom door was completely closed, as is my routine when I go to bed. If you've never been in Academic Heights, they were erected in the mid-20th century, when buildings were made to last. At that time, all of the exterior and interior doors were made of solid wood, making them extremely heavy. The knobs and latches were all brass, and they seemed original, from when the building was originally built. I was reading for around 20 minutes, and Ulysses was curled up in his usual spot, at the foot of the bed, sleeping. And out of nowhere, Ulysses jolts awake, and he starts growling at the door. The hair on his back is standing straight up, and his gaze is just laser-focused on the door. He was growling, showing his teeth, posing, as mean-looking as I'd ever seen him. I hadn't heard any noises, as we occasionally did, living in a fourplex. In any way, Ulysses was used to those sounds, but this was different. He was scared. In an attempt to calm him, and keep him from disturbing our neighbors, I reached down to pet him, and when I touched his back leg, he kind of startled. He was scared. If I had locked both doors, I heard the latch. click, and watched the doorknob turn. Then, the door between the bedroom and the hallway swung open to about a 45-degree angle. That was enough for Ulysses. He lost it. In an instant, all of his bravado vanished as he leapt off the opposite side of the bed and went to hide underneath of it. I instinctively reached for a small aluminum bat that I kept by the side of my bed, and started yelling at whoever or whatever had just opened my door. Over the next 30 minutes, I checked and rechecked the entire apartment, turning on all the lights and triple-checking the door locks. I couldn't find any evidence that anyone else had been in the house. When I felt safe again, when my heart stopped racing, logic took over, and I tried for the next hour to replicate the door going from being latched shut to opening, but no use. Something wanted in or out of my room, and it made no bones about letting me know. It wanted me to know. It was there. Because my kids were little, I did not tell them. What happened? So that they wouldn't be frightened? I told my wife, but I'm not sure she totally believed me. We lived in those quarters for another few years, but neither Ulysses or I ever saw anything else that we couldn't explain. The second spooky encounter didn't happen in my quarters or to me directly, but it did happen around the same time as my personal experience and in the same neighborhood. The second spooky encounter didn't happen in my personal experience and in the same neighborhood. As families living on post tend to do, my family became very close to several others in our neighborhood. This was during the Operation Iraqi Freedom 1-3 timeframe. For several consecutive years, at least a few dads were always deployed. When you were gone, you knew your family would be watched out for by friends on the block, and when you were home, you watched out for the other families. I still love that about on-post living. The second spooky encounter didn't happen in my family. I never saw anyone else in my family. Anyway, my oldest daughter, who was about four years old at the time, made friends with a girl her age, who lived in quarters across the street. The girls roamed the neighborhood all summer and fall to the park and back, and in and out of both houses, often eating lunch at whichever house they happened to be at when they were hungry. At the age of four, the world is still magical. Every new playtime comes with dragons to be slain and unicorns to befriend. It wasn't uncommon to hear the girls singing with fairy choirs, or whispering secrets to animals who always whispered back. The strange occurrences started, innocently enough, at lunchtime. My daughter's friends started asking if her new friend could have lunch with them. A friend who wasn't my daughter. At first, the adults assumed this request was for a stuffed animal or another make-believe friend. And depending on how much food was left, whichever mom had assumed lunch duty that day would do their best to, at least, set aside an extra plate for this new friend. For a week or two, this lunch plan placated the girls. But that all changed one day when their friend didn't get any lunch. My daughter's friend was visibly upset. When her mother asked, "What's the matter?" she said, "Zoe is mad at you, Mommy, because you didn't feed her today." "Who is Zoe?" her mom asked. "She's my friend, and she's hungry," replies this little girl. Trying to defuse the situation and thinking that Zoe must be a stuffed animal, her mother asked to see Zoe. "Mommy, she's standing right in the hallway, right there. Can't you see her?" her daughter said, now as equally puzzled as her mother. "No, I can't see her," her mother replied, very confused. "She has long blonde hair, and she's wearing a long white dress, like always," said her daughter. For fun, my friend showed her daughter photos of girls wearing white dressing gowns from the early 1900s. "That looks just like the dress Zoe wears," her daughter told her. "Okay," her mom said as calmly as possible. "Tell Zoe it's time to go home. Her mommy will feed her when she gets there." The girls went to tell Zoe it was time to go home, and after that day, they never mentioned her again. In the end, Zoe's family decided to leave the house and move in with Zoe. The next morning, Zoe's parents arrived at the house and said, "What are you doing here?" "I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to get out of this house," said Zoe. "What are you doing here?" "I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to get out of this house," said Zoe.