When I was in the army,  doing guard duty is quite not for the timid. I remember there was this stretch of very very long straight section that consist of grass, drain covers, and roads, behind buildings that we need to walk pass in my camp. This long long stretch consist of a few checkpoints… Checkpoint 2 is between some vehicles park and behind one building, checkpoint 3 is a gate to the training fields, checkpoint 4 is behind a training shed, checkpoint 5 hidden behind some trees in a very secluded dark spot in a corner under some multi story carpark. The next checkpoint will be somewhere far far away from here.. This few checkpoints runs along a fence that divides the camp and the outfield training area and also run parallel to the dirt path inside.

Checkpoint 2 is infamous for the weird tapping sounds coming from the aluminium ceiling of the building beside… Probably from the grasshoppers and birds inside the ceiling. Checkpoint 3 is also notorious for the fact that there are reports of people entering and exiting the gate… The training shed nearest to checkpoint 4 have an altar set up there… and between checkpoint 4 and 5, is a normal road, but with no lightings. It is at the same time covered with trees from both sides.

I believe there are many sightings and rumours along this stretch thats why guard comms always tell us to be careful when prowling there… Usually I won’t even prowl near the fence… I will just walk along the road, almost 30 metres off the prowling route.

Until this day when there are people first time prowling from my company. Sway sway guard comm and duty officer and all the commanders on duty all from my company… Cannot get caught, if not sure kana… I was instructed to bring a new guy along the full route… show him all the checkpoints etc…

I’m not too sure what time was my shift was but one thing for sure… when we walked past that route the second time, it would be just nice past 12am, first day of the hungry ghost month… and I was walking the right direction from CP2 to CP5… My first round was a very smooth one… But definitely not for the second.

When I turned right to face that long long stretch of road after checkpoint 2 the second time, we were quite surprised to see the entire stretch very smoky due to the incense paper burning and also from all the joss sticks. The thing is, the first time we walked pass, there was nothing there… This means that the 1 hour in between, many people had actually came out to do offerings… so many that it managed to make that long long stretch filled with smoke. The nearest unit wasn’t even near the fence leh… but we see no people… The entire road machiam yin yang jian… very spooky…

Me n my partner didn’t think much and continued anyway… then we were hit hard by a strong smell of alcohol… and we also heard some humming noise around us… somehow both me and my partner don’t know why still can so brave still continue on. The smell and humming did not stop until we reach checkpoint 4, den we skipped checkpoint 5.  Because that road had suddenly became very foggy… don’t know from the smoke or what… with no lightings and only our torch to guide our way, it was actually pretty dangerous. so we took a short cut and skipped that route around that MSCP. This is also when the smell and humming stops after we turned out from the road.

After we returned to the guard room, we shared our experience with the rest of the duty personnels… Then only we realised we are not the only ones experiencing this before… There was a case where my camp mate took a rest at the MSCP… when they also smell alcohol around them… this is den followed by some loud hummings right above them… They immediately chuah sai run back to the guard room…

My partner and I was discussing this and we found quite alot of abnormalities. The guard comm, who is my PS, was usually rather laid-back… but he was exceptionally naggy and uptight that night. the officer on duty, who was my OO, was also strangely strict. Turned us out quite a number of times. Along the entire prowling route, there was totally no activity at all. Not even the usual occasional lorries that will deliver food to the cookhouse. Den as mentioned, during that one hour from the first time to the second time we took the route, there cant be so many people giving offerings. those prayers were scattered all over. And that area is actually quite open at some parts… so why the smoke? What does it mean when my guard comm said if there are anything just comms back to the guard room? And sway enough, that area is also a blind spot for the walkie talkie…

Well, that is my closest encounter…