My Nightmare Just Became Real

Chapter 23 - The Lost

Author’s Note: Sorry to leave you hanging there :) Hopefully this will make you feel a little better – enjoy :)

The old man knocked me to the ground and all of the breath left my body. His hands scrabbled at my throat and I struggled as his sharp little fingernails dug into me. I cried out as I felt warm blood flow down my neck where his nails had pierced my skin. Then I felt a pulling, something tugging at my soul. It hurt. Hurt so bad. It was like...like I could feel the connection between my soul and my body becoming thinner. Stretching and stretching as if about to snap. My soul was being torn from my body. I screamed and, before I knew what was happening, the old man was sitting on the ground, breathing heavily. I was in pretty much the same state, never taking my eyes off him, afraid of what he was about to do next.

He looked furious, his eyes huge and manic. Then, he came and grabbed me by my collar and dragged me to the door. He flung it open and all I could see was darkness outside. I whimpered slightly, not really capable of making any other noise. “Let’s see if the Lost can break you.” Snarled the old man, pushing me into the nothingness.

I almost drifted to the ground so my fall wasn’t all that bad. I stood there in the darkness, my heart racing, wondering what was there...out there in the darkness. Just waiting. I now completely understood what Charlie meant when he said he wasn’t afraid of the dark...but what was in it. I decided it was no use standing there waiting for whatever it was to come to me. If I was going to meet something, I was going to find it myself. I walked blindly forwards, stretching out a hand just in case there was something I could bump into. Then in the distance I noticed a light, just a faint trickle but light it was. I made my way across to it and stopped dead in my tracks.

A cage towered above me, its bars old and rusty, their paint peeling. Cautiously I stepped a little closer and peered inside, unsure whether I wanted to know what was inside or not. There was a hand. A horrible bloodied hand reaching out of the cage. It stretched and clawed at the thin air as if trying to reach something...someone. Maybe me. Another hand followed and then another. Soon I was stepping back in an attempt to stay out of reach of the desperate fingers. Some of the arms looked broken or disfigured. Battered and bruised and bleeding. I shivered as more and more hands tried to grab the thin air and couldn’t help feeling glad they couldn’t reach me...or could they?

No sooner had the thought entered my mind the bars of the cage fell away with a clang, making me aware of how quiet everything was. I shrieked as the hands advanced and bodies came into view, slowly shuffling forwards. Their faces blank, their eyes glazed over. Limbs were twisted and cuts stood out on their deathly pale skin. Their clothes were ripped and dirty and they walked towards me. Just walked and walked, not seeing anything. I began to run but I hadn’t gotten more than a few metres when I was faced with more of...of the Lost. That’s what they were. So this is what it’s like to be lost? I thought. Hands grabbed me from all directions and I screamed as icy fingers curled around my body. As cold blood dripped down my arms and down my face. I screamed again as one of the Lost pulled me into a tight embrace. I could feel their heart beat, awfully fragile and fluttery under their papery skin. Slowly, more of the cold bodies pressed against me making my shiver and struggle. It was like the dead had gotten out of their graves, skin wearing away, cold blood.

Then the whispering starting. It was just a murmur at first, just a sound. But gradually I could make out words. “Help us.” Said the Lost, their voices soft and strangely melodic. Their lips hardly moved as they formed the same words over and over again.  “Help us, help us, help us...” I wanted to put my hands over my ears to block it all out, to forget it. But my arms were pinned to my sides in the press of bodies. I wasn’t going to end up like this. Nobody deserved to end up like this. The space began too tight and I felt my lungs being squeezed tight. I gasped for air, desperate to get out of this nightmare. “Help us.” Went the voices. “Help us...or join us.” I shivered when I heard some of the Lost saying that. I struggled harder, lashing out. But the Lost seemed immune to my blows. “Come with us, come...” I screamed when I heard that, my shriek piercing the soft sound of whispering. I didn’t want to go with them. I couldn’t go with them. The hands began to drag me away and, no matter how hard I thrashed about, I was swept along by the sea of bodies. Swept away to who knows where.

Author’s Note: Cliff hanger...sorry, I couldn’t resist xD I really enjoyed writing this one, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did :) So, yeah, my front cover. This is where it came from or should I say this is what came from the front cover. The picture gave me the idea ^_^ Anyway, this was rather dark, in my opinion, but I hope you liked it. I’d really love to hear what you thought – thanks for reading, it means a lot :)