Tales from the Dark

17.

At Crestwood University, the end of the semester loomed large, bringing a mix of excitement and dread. Among the students was Lena, a dedicated literature major who always took her assignments seriously. This semester, her professor had assigned a project that required students to delve into local folklore. It seemed harmless enough—until she stumbled upon the tale of the Hollow Man. According to legend, the Hollow Man was a spirit who haunted the woods near the university, luring unsuspecting students to their doom with promises of knowledge and power. Those who followed him were said to vanish without a trace, leaving only whispers of their names on the wind. Lena brushed it off as a silly ghost story, but something about the tale nagged at her. The night before her presentation, she decided to explore the woods, hoping to gather more material for her project. Armed with a flashlight and a notebook, she ventured into the darkness. As she walked deeper into the trees, the air grew still, and a heavy fog settled around her. Shadows danced between the trunks, and the only sound was the crunch of leaves beneath her feet. After an hour of searching, Lena found an old stone altar, overgrown with moss and surrounded by wilted flowers. Intrigued, she took out her notebook to sketch the site. Suddenly, she heard a faint whisper—a voice carried by the wind. "Lena... come closer..." Startled, she looked around but saw no one. The whisper came again, more insistent this time. "Lena... I can show you... everything..." Against her better judgment, she felt drawn to the altar. As she approached, the fog thickened, wrapping around her like a shroud. The air felt charged, electric. She could almost make out a figure in the mist, its form shifting and blurry. "Who are you?" Lena called, her heart racing. "I am the Hollow Man," the voice replied, smooth and inviting. "I can grant you knowledge beyond your wildest dreams. Just follow me." Lena hesitated, but the allure of power and understanding was intoxicating. "What do I need to do?" "Just take my hand..." In that moment, she felt an overwhelming urge to reach out. As her fingers brushed against the cold mist, a jolt shot through her. The world around her warped and twisted, and she suddenly found herself standing in a vast library, shelves lined with ancient books. The air buzzed with the energy of forgotten knowledge. But as she moved to touch the nearest tome, a dark realization sank in. The faces of the students she had heard about flickered in the shadows, their expressions twisted in anguish. They were trapped here, like moths drawn to a flame, never to return. "No! Let me go!" Lena screamed, backing away. But the library shifted around her, walls closing in, books flying from the shelves. The whisper grew louder, a cacophony of voices echoing in her mind. "Stay with us... learn with us..." Desperation surged within her, and she ran, weaving through the maze of bookshelves. But every turn brought her back to the altar, the Hollow Man looming over her, his shadowy form more defined now, eyes glinting with malice. "You can't escape the knowledge you seek," he hissed. "You belong to me now." Lena's breath quickened. "No! I won't be like them!" Summoning every ounce of strength, she fought against the pull of the spirit. In a final act of defiance, she tore a page from her notebook, scribbling frantically. "Knowledge isn't power! It's a choice!" With the paper in hand, she threw it at the Hollow Man. The words glowed momentarily, illuminating the darkness. The shadow recoiled, the whispers turning to shrieks as the library began to collapse. Lena bolted through the crumbling walls, the light from her notebook guiding her. She burst into the forest, gasping for air, the fog lifting like a nightmare dissipating at dawn. The world outside was still, the moon casting a silver glow over the trees. Heart pounding, she stumbled back to campus, vowing never to return to the woods. The next day, Lena presented her project to her class, but the memory of the Hollow Man haunted her thoughts. As she finished, she noticed a shadow flickering in the corner of the room. It lingered, a reminder of the darkness she had escaped. In the weeks that followed, her classmates started to disappear—one by one—vanishing into thin air. The whispers returned, soft and pleading, "Help us... come learn with us..." And as Lena looked out into the darkening woods, she realized she could never truly escape. The knowledge of the Hollow Man had become part of her, and with each passing night, the whispers grew louder, beckoning her to join the lost souls, forever wandering the shadows of the library she had once yearned to understand.