Welcome to my Dream World || (deukae)

Chapter 9: Cave of Nightmares

The whispering winds of the Phantom Hollows seemed to carry secrets of an age long past, as Handong's party picked their way through the gnarled trees and fog that clung to the ground like a shroud. The Dream World had never felt so alive, nor so sinister. The air was thick with a sense of foreboding, and the muted colors of the landscape seemed drained of life.

"Stay close," Handong murmured, her voice barely above the wind, as she held aloft a lantern that cast ghostly shadows upon their path. Bora nodded, her eyes scanning the surroundings with a mix of awe and apprehension. Siyeon trailed her fingers along the bark of a tree, feeling the ancient whispers skim across her skin.

"Something is not right," she breathed, her words hanging heavy in the air.

"Of course, it isn't," scoffed Dami, squinting into the distance. "It's called the Phantom Hollows for a reason."

A few steps further, nestled between two twisted willows, lay an object that pulsed with an eerie luminescence. It drew them in, its glow hypnotic against the dreary backdrop. The group exchanged uncertain glances before converging around the strange artifact.

"Careful," Minji warned, reaching out but stopping inches away from the object. "We don't know what this does."

"Only one way to find out," said Dami, the edge of her curiosity sharpened by the danger.

"Wait!" Siyeon extended a hand to halt Dami's advance, but it was too late.

As Dami's fingertips brushed the object, the earth shuddered beneath them. With a cacophony of crumbling stone and dirt, the ground gave way. They fell through darkness, their cries echoing as they descended.

Gahyeon's scream echoed the loudest throughout the darkness, her fear of falling digging into her at this moment as she felt her soul leave her for what felt like an eternity. She thought it was never going to end until the surroundings started to change.

They landed with a collective thud on the cold floor of a tight cave. Scrambling to their feet, they found themselves in a warren of narrow passages and small chambers, the claustrophobic confines pressing in around them.

"Everyone okay?" Handong's voice cut through the dust-filled air, her lantern now providing the only feeble light.

The others sat there, still briefly recovering.

"What I meant by I'm also trapped in the nightmare is that my fear is falling, and we just seemingly fell after touching something," Gahyeon explained after sitting up.

"Where did that thing even go?" Dami asked, brushing off her clothes, her eyes darting around the chamber.

"Lost," Minji stated bluntly. "Just like us."

"Let's not panic," Handong insisted, taking charge. "We'll find a way out."

"Wait, where did Siyeon and Bora go?" Gahyeon asked, looking around with the flickering light inside the lantern, threatening to go out any second.

They peered down the labyrinthine pathways, each looking more foreboding than the last, they knew escape would not come easily. The mysterious object had vanished along with two of their group, but its glow seemed to linger in their minds, a beacon of both hope and despair, illuminating the treacherous path ahead.

***

The narrow chamber seemed to pulse with a life of its own, the walls undulating ever so slightly as if breathing. Siyeon's chest tightened in response, each inhale more laborious than the last. Her shallow breaths echoed against the stony confines, mocking her attempt at calm. She looked around for her group, for comfort, but no one was there besides a dark and narrow cave trapping her in. She breathed in.