Alex's world shattered in an instant when the screeching tires and the crunch of metal engulfed him. He woke in a hospital bed, disoriented, unable to speak. Panic set in as he realized he couldn’t utter a sound. His family surrounded him, their concerned faces a blur. Doctors assured him that his ability to talk would return, but weeks passed, and Alex remained voiceless.
In his hospital room, he began noticing dark figures lurking in the corners. At first, he thought it was a trick of his mind. But as he spent more time in solitude, the shadows grew bolder, whispering to him in guttural tones. They drew closer whenever he felt fear creeping in. The doctors dismissed his fears, attributing them to post-traumatic stress.
Once released, the shadows followed him home. They loomed larger, feeding off his silence. Every time he attempted to call for help, the shadows grew stronger, wrapping around him like a suffocating blanket. In desperation, he confided in Emma, a fellow patient who had suffered similar trauma. Emma revealed she, too, had experienced these shadows.
Determined to understand their presence, Alex and Emma began investigating the hospital's dark history. They discovered a series of unexplained disappearances, each victim a patient who lost their voice after trauma. The founder of the hospital had committed horrific acts, silencing patients to harness their fears.
As the shadows grew more aggressive, Alex and Emma returned to the hospital one night, armed with their findings. They confronted the shadows, Alex summoning his remaining strength to focus on his emotions. He wrote furiously, pouring his fears onto paper. The shadows writhed in agony as the truth of their existence struck them.
With one final, desperate act, Alex shouted his fears into the darkness. A blinding light filled the room, dissipating the shadows and releasing the voices of the lost souls. Exhausted but triumphant, Alex found his voice returning. As dawn broke, he knew he had faced the darkness within himself and emerged stronger.
