"Cain Rose Up" is a horror

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

by American writer Stephen King. It was originally published in the Spring 1968 issue of ''

Ubris ''Ubris'' was a literary journal published by the University of Maine. It is most notable for having published a number of Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, sus ...

'' magazine, and collected in King's ''

Skeleton Crew A skeleton crew is the minimum number of personnel needed to operate and maintain an item such as a business, organization, or ship at its most simple operating requirements. Skeleton crews are often utilized during an emergency and are meant to ...

'' in 1985. It deals with a depressed and homicidal college student, Curt Garrish, who goes on a murderous sniper rampage from his dormitory room.

Plot summary

Curt Garrish is a college student who lives in one of the campus dorms. At the end of a spring semester, he returns to his room after a particularly hard exam. He talks to a couple of his fellow students and the dorm's RA who tells him to fill out a damage form. Garrish's roommate, an untidy student nicknamed Piggy, has already left for the semester. Garrish takes out a hunting rifle hidden in his closet. Rifles are permitted on campus, with proper documentation, for use on the campus' shooting range. Garrish had checked the rifle out and hidden it in the woods, retrieving it late at night while everyone was asleep. He

field strip Field stripping is firearms terminology for the act of disassembling a firearm to the greatest possible extent without the usage of any extra tools. A disassembly that uses such tools is called a detail strip, but this is less common than a fie ...

s and loads it from a box of ammunition. After talking to another student named Bailey, who takes the nude model pinups from over Piggy's bed, Garrish relates the story of Cain and Abel, then opens a window and begins to hunt for targets outside. His first shot kills a pretty blonde student. His next shots take out her parents, then other students as they try to run. Garrish sees another student trying to hide and wanting to run but is frozen with fear. Garrish begins to pull the trigger again.

Film adaptation

The story was adapted into a short film in 2013. It was directed by Ranjeet S. Marwa. The short story was adapted once again in 2022 by Miguel Alejandro Marquez, with actor Steven Braunstein starring as Curt.

References

1982 short stories Horror short stories Short stories by Stephen King Works about school violence Works originally published in Ubris {{1980s-horror-story-stub

Plot summary

Film adaptation

See also

References