Hush

Hush: Sinking into Requirden

I heard him shout my name, I had already rushed from the dorm to where Jack had called me from. A room that was normally locked, I could only hope that it was open. But at a mere twelve inches tall all I could do was reach up while a sense of dread ran through me.

Claws, claws, use your claws.

The voices that were on my side in my head shouted urgently.

I looked at my black claws and heat warmed my tummy as I realized they were too short to slice through.

Useless bear, pitiful, predictable.

The other voices whispered. Bringing down my confidence. I had to do something, with an overwhelming feeling of determination and intent, my body responded to my will, my form was once again morphing into something not quite right, again my claws grew long and sharp, and fangs filled my mouth. I was vaguely aware of my body clawing its way up the door and I closed my jaws around the handle pulling it down and hearing the click of the door as it opened, I dropped to the floor and rushed inside, seeing the darkness in the form of hands gripping on to Jack as he struggled feebly to pull himself away from what looked like a black hole under the bed. A draught was making its way out of the dark hole as more shadows formed and took a hold of him until I could barely see him beneath its fog. I stared in shock unsure of what I could possibly do, but my desire to protect him took over. I threw myself towards the darkness and found myself being sucked through the floorboards by a powerful vortex, in its darkness, hands grasped eagerly at me, I used my claws to try grip the floor, leaving deep claw marks when I was dragged back and down within the hole.

I could hear Jack above me now as his body too was dragged towards the darkness, instantly the loud struggle he had been putting up against the tendrils and hands that pulled at him stopped, and it was fear for Jack's safety that kept me fighting against the fog, I was able to find strength to throw my body out of the sinking pool of darkness and I watched for a split second as the black hole that consumed Jack began to shrink away, with Jack crying for my help from somewhere deep within. I forced myself forward, throwing my small body into the remainder of the darkness and I found myself blinded in a dizzying sensation, as my body spun too quickly and too aggressively, like being in a washing machine on two thousand spins. Down further and further I fell and somewhere in the distance of this sickening tornado of darkness I could hear Jack wailing, perhaps being tossed around as much as me.

Just when I thought that I had allowed us to be captured into an endless vortex, I landed hard on my weighted bum. My eyes still blinded by the dark smog gradually began to clear as it seemed like the darkness was slowly being consumed by my body. I felt its icy chill within me and an unease fell over me knowing so much of it was now within me.

'Jack?' I called out. Aware that there was no echo, but instead a slight breeze.

Gone, waiting, Requirden has captured you.

Voices in my head were my only companions. I knew better than to pay them any attention.

Something they said stood out to me though, Requirden: A name, a place. Either way it sounded bad. I looked around my new surroundings, with my form still in what I decided to call angry bear mode, I dug my claws into the ash covered ground. Around me the land was desolate, the stench of sulphur burned my delicate senses. I could see for what seemed like miles ahead of me, only scattered bare trees cracked apart at their trunks as though lightening had ruined them dotted the land, pasty white bark and dried dead leaves.

Where are we?

A whispery voice asked inside my head,

Requirden, Another voice softly answered. Broken dreams, decaying souls, the bowels of Enchanten, Requirden.

I looked up to the ink black sky above, there was no moon, no stars, just an endless blackness above that felt all consuming to look at. Even the voices in my head dare not utter words too loud, lest the place I found myself in heard them. I willed myself to take another step, my excessively large fangs biting down on my tongue, a necessary pain to let me think against the fog of panic I felt welling up inside me.

The ash below my paws moved like sand under foot, its soft texture a false comfort in a place that held no reason to feel the slightest of hope.

I called out for Jack, but his name got lost in the vastness of this dark, grey land, no echo, just a flat noise that was taken by the overwhelming, oppressive silence. A gust of wind forced me forward, howling as it brushed against me biting cold and uncomfortable, irritating my eyes with the ash that it took with it. I looked around me once more, behind me like a mirror image of what was ahead of me, an endless wasteland of ash. I had to keep moving, if Jack was here, then he would be more scared than me, I was sure of it. That thought alone quickened my steps until eventually I was running. I had no idea where I was heading and the further I ran the darker this barren world around me became, until all too soon the ash below my feet began to swallow me, pulling me down, I scrambled against it with my claws, eager to stay above ground. With nothing to hold on to, the ground gradually claimed bit by bit of me, feet first. I saw a black shadow in the form of a panther emerge from the ash and silently spring upon me, forcing me deeper down into the ash until I was entirely consumed.