The Backrooms: Descent into Madness

Chapter VII - Cold.

Water pools in the cracks and potholes of the garage, making the air humid and warm. The lights hum loudly as they always do, hanging from thick cables that seem unswayable. Wires fray from power boxes and rubber cable wrap, and the vents hummed a dull tone. My breath, filtered and pressurized, hissed through the air as I rounded a dull concrete corner. In my right hand, the silver 1911 I had been given by Judy reflected the pale florescence that shined above me.

I holstered it when I saw the chamber was empty, and I pulled the hood of my pullover up around my head. Maybe the lack of perception was dangerous but it did make me feel a false sense of security. My skin began to tingle as I walked and my arms were enveloped in goosebumps. The temperature seemed to steadily drop, even as my misty breath became visible. Do I turn back? No. This is my proving grounds, this is my chance to show that this is the job for me. As scared as I am to be in this anomalous and twisted place I know I would rather be exploring it than succumbing to it, waiting for death. I may never escape, but I won't lie down and take it.

The puddles on the floor gradually froze over as I continued my trek and sharp, glistening icicles dangled from pipes. The vents seemed to release gaseous winter, flash freezing any moisture and slowly decreasing the temperature of the halls. My breath escape in clouds from the filters of my mask, and my lungs stung from the polar air that froze the moisture inside. I was slowing down without a doubt, and my body was aching as my muscles slowly stiffened and cramped. This motion was the only thing keeping me from freezing to death.

My CPS read that I still had six miles to travel before I reached the reported supply depot. At this point, my mask was the only thing keeping my face from freezing. Tiny ice crystals coated my clothing and my skin stung with freezer-burn. It's too late to go back now, I don't know when this ice ends but I know I wouldn't make it back to warmth in time. My breath was becoming lighter and my skin became taught. With gaunt brown eyes I searched the hall for any source of heat, but alas I found none.

My right leg buckled first, sending me crashing to the ground without so much as a grunt. I looked down at the frozen concrete beneath me, exhausted and alone. "Tired?" A male voice spoke. I looked up slowly. There, before my very eyes, was my father Donnie. "I know you're tired, but don't give up son. Life's hard, and it doesn't pull its punches." He kneeled and put his hand on my shoulder, "But I believe in you." Hot tears streamed down my face, and he vanished in the blink of an eye.

I pushed myself to a knee, straining in pain. "Is it hard?" A feminine voice said to me. My mother, Jorene, stood before me and her hands cupped my cheeks. "You're my strong, brave boy. Be strong for me, like you always have been." I choked a sob. "Always so full of heart, don't let this place steal it. You have so much love to give, even here." She was gone in an instant too. I staggered to my knees, tears pooling in my mask and clogging the seals.

"Hey." My brother Lukas spoke hoisting me under my arm. "You know we'll always have your back, right?" My older brother Nicolas spoke as he hoisted my other side. I raised to my full height, feeling the full weight of the world upon my shoulders. No, greater. The weight of love itself. And it was lifting me.

"Logan." I looked up once again, my body screaming at me to lie down. A woman stood before me, with blue and brown eyes and reddish-brown hair flowing from her head. Morgan. "How do we keep meeting like this? I guess it's different this time, look at the trouble you got into." She chuckled. Her face then seemed to mellow, serious but gentle. "Don't die here, we still have so much to do together." My body took a step on its own, and she smiled. "Glad we agree. Even if you don't remember." In a blink she was gone, too. I raised a hand to my mask and turned the seals, leaving my hot tears to stream onto the frozen ground. With a final shaky breath, I continued my trek through this, the ninth ring of hell. Every part of my body roared in agony, I felt as though I was falling apart at the seams.

Shakily, I pulled the CPS out of my pocket and looked at the remaining distance. Two-Hundred feet. At the end of this obscenely long hall was a right turn that supposedly led into a warehouse sized chamber. At this point, frost made the floors slick with ice and my eyes burned with pain. After an eternity, it was right here in front of me. The overhead lights flicker out, bathing the frozen hallway in black.

Pipes from the ceiling overhead burst, spraying steam into the corridor. My heart thundered in my chest as I sped up, moving in a limping speed walk to get away from the superheated avalanche. I rounded the final corner of the hallway and collapsed through the threshold of the chamber. A massive metal door slid shut behind me, blocking the steam from reaching me and allowing me time to rest. The vents of the room seemed to kick out warm air the second the door sealed, melting the frost in the chamber and thawing me from my frozen nightmare.

The ice water on my body melted and dribbled down my body, revealing the irritated red skin beneath and causing me to roll over in a fit of hacking coughs. Once my lungs were void of fluid and my shivers finally ceased I stood up and took off my pullover, mask, and shirt. My whole body felt clammy and slick with frozen water. I kicked off my shoes and peeled off my socks, even going so far as to remove my trousers, and finally took a look around the room. Large storage racks lined the massive room in rows, reminding me of a home improvement retailer like Home Depot or Lowe's. I hung my clothes on lower shelves of the large racks next to a vent, and looked to the soggy bandages on my arm. I wasn't a doctor, but I understood infections and moist wounds. I carefully tugged at the end of the wraps, unwinding it and removing the gauze. The stub was heavily scarred, but had finally closed up with help from Doc's stitches.

I decided it was healed enough and simply tossed the bandages on the concrete floor with a soaked splat. My body was wrought with pain, but I had done it. Each rack of this chamber was loaded down with supplies. I held the CPS in my hand and pressed the objective, which prompted me to confirm or cancel my request to send a positional beacon. With a decisive tap, the location was updated from a "Reported Supply Cache" to a "Confirmed Supply Cache." With a shaky, huffy breath, I took the tent pack that had been given to me and pitched it for the night. As soon as I was done I walked to the door I entered through and pulled the large switch beside it, shutting the lights with a loud click.