DUSK OF DECAY

CHAPTER 6

They ran but unfortunately, they weren't fast enough. A man grabbed the girl by her hair and pulled her back, making all of them stop abruptly. He put a knife to her throat. The fear was evident in the eyes of the man and the woman. Without thinking anything, Zara lunged onto the man, pulling of his mask, revealing his face for everyone to see. His eyes were the most menacing she had ever seen in her life. And she knew at that moment that she was in trouble. He released the girl and naturally, she ran to her father. The man charged towards Zara with the knife in his hand. But lucky for her, he couldn't harm her as the father pushed him hard, causing him to crash into the wall. The father grabbed the nearest object he could get his hands on and stabbed the guy in his skull. They all watched in horror as he pulled the knife out of his skull, making a stream of blood flow down his whole face. The man checked the body of the guy to find any weapon he could use in future. All he found was a gun. He threw the bloodied knife for Noah to catch. Noah accepted the knife, though with a lot of repulsion. "We must stick together." The father said. "As long as we're together, we'll be safer." He said. Zara agreed with him. If it hadn't been for him, they'd be dead by now.

It was already starting to get dark, as the night prevailed. The group moved through the dimly lit corridors, the moonlight casting eerie shadows on the decaying walls. They stumble upon a rusted door with a worn down sign that read "stairwell to the upper floor." The metal handle creaked as Mark (the father) opened the door. A damp, musty scent wafted from the stairwell, mingling with the stale air of the station. The first steps were uneven and covered in dust, hinting at years of neglect. Mark led the way, Sarah and Lisa (His daughter and his wife) clutching onto his arm, and Noah following closely behind.

With each step they ascended, the atmosphere grew heavier. The echoes of their footsteps reverberated off the walls, creating an unsettling symphony. As they reached the top of the stairs, the group found themselves facing a narrow corridor, dimly lit by a flickering overhead light. The corridor seemed to stretch endlessly, disappearing into the shadows. The females exchanged uneasy glances before Mark encouraged them to move forward. The moonlight cast a feeble glow on the peeling wallpaper and old photographs that lined the corridor. The images depicted scenes from the station's heyday, but the colors had faded, and the faces in the photographs looked like distant memories. As they ventured deeper, the corridor opened up into a spacious area. To their surprise, they found a series of interconnected rooms, each with its own unique character. The first room had shattered windows, their broken glass scattered on the floor. In another room, a broken-down bookshelf stood against a wall. In a room further down the hall, they discovered a collection of dusty books and discarded luggage, as if someone had left in a hurry long ago. The eerie silence was occasionally broken by the distant howling of wind, making the abandoned station feel like a forgotten realm frozen in time. Continuing their exploration, they entered a room with peeling wallpaper that seemed to have once been a lounge. Dust-covered couches and tattered curtains hung limply, the remnants of a bygone era. In a corner, they spotted an old radio, its dial missing from its place.

As they made their way through the rooms, their footsteps echoed and bounced off the walls, creating a haunting cacophony. With every door they opened, they unraveled more of the station's history, feeling an odd mix of fascination and trepidation.

As the group ventured deeper into the abandoned railway station, the suffocating darkness seemed to close in around them. Their footsteps echoed eerily, bouncing off the cold, desolate walls. Each corridor they took appeared hauntingly similar, as if the station itself was conspiring to confuse and entrap them. The light from their moon cast distorted shadows that danced along the decayed walls, adding to the unsettling atmosphere. With every turn they made, the layout of the station seemed to shift, corridors lengthening and platforms warping into unfamiliar shapes.

A sense of desperation clawed at them as they retraced their steps, only to find themselves back where they started. Panic gnawed at the edges of their minds as the realization set in: there was no clear way out of this labyrinthine nightmare. The station's very architecture seemed to play tricks on them, leading them further into its heart, away from any glimmer of escape.

Fear mounted with each passing moment, and their attempts to find an exit became more frantic. The air grew heavy, suffused with the weight of their dread. The station's dark history seemed to fill the silence, amplifying their unease. The walls seemed to pulse with a malevolent energy, and the group couldn't shake the sensation of being watched.

As the hours ticked on and exhaustion set in, their hope dwindled. The darkness became their only companion, and the station's scariness intensified. The group found itself trapped not just by physical barriers, but by the very essence of the place itself—a nightmarish limbo that held them captive in its twisted embrace.