BANG! The tray of food slams on the table in front of me, filled with food. My stomach turns at the thought of food. I hadn't had an appetite for anything since I've came to this place. When they gave us food, it was such meager portions that it was barely worth trying. Thought that's all the more reason to take advantage of every opportunity you get to eat here. Knowing that I probably couldn't leave until I ate, I swallowed the food, not tasting it at all. I do admit, after the food was in my stomach, I felt I had a little more strength in me. Apparently not enough to fight off the burly men that came to escort me to a dark, gray room. They grabbed the sleeves of my orange jumpsuit, and practically dragged me to the destination. I would laugh at the thought of wearing a jumpsuit if it weren't for my predicament. We weren't supposed to be prisoners, but it sure felt like it. Suddenly a feeling of regret settles over me. I hadn't even gotten to say goodbyes to my friend. That remorse is quickly replaced by fear as we approach the metal door. We reach the room, and they set me down on a plush chair. It's comfort did not bring me any relief. I lay there, motionless, to weak to fight. One of the men come over with a syringe. It was filled with a dark purple liquid. Without any warning, he injects it into my neck. I can feel the solution pulsing through my veins, swarming it's way through my body. I started to feel dizzy, nauseous even. Try as I might, I couldn't release myself from the strong pull of sleep. A hazy cloud began to settle over my vision, obscuring the world from my view. Then an explosion of black, bursting like a ballon. The substance oozed everywhere, encompassing the space. The murky ink covered the area until there wasn't a speck of light. Then only darkness. Trapped in my mind, I began to panic. What could I possibly fight this monster with, when I was drugged and unconscious. I put a hand to my head to think. I gasp as a realization surges through me. I could walk and move in this dream. A feeling of pride overtakes me as I swing my legs over the plush chair, to my surprise, land on solid ground. I collapse on the floor, grateful to be mobile instead of stationary. I lay there for a moment, on the cold floor. Sound, serene, and peaceful. I could almost drift away with my thoughts, content for the moment. Just as soon as my illusion started, it began to end. I bolt up, my bones chilled. I knew what was coming, but I didn't want to face it. I couldn't. Taking a deep breath, I prepare myself for the abomination I was about to stare dead in the eyes. Without another thought on how it could tear me to spreads, I whisk around, barely containing my scream. I bit my lip, trying to appear not afraid. I wanted to radiate confidence in the midst of such terror, but my defensive walls, as quickly as they were strung up, crumble to dust. Gulping, I stare dead in the eyes the face of the beast. To my dismay, it had no eyes. Darkness has no eyes. No recognizable face. No way to distinguish it. It lurks everywhere, haunting you from every shadow and every corner. The only way to face it, is to not be afraid. Gathering all my courage, which wasn't much, I look around the room, fire behind my gaze. In response, shapes started to form out of the darkness. Big and bulky, small and frail. All of the figures surrounding me. This was too much. I most fear what hides beneath the shadows of the dark. Forgetting all that for the time being, I yell, "I'm not afraid of you!" Nothing happens. My hearts starts to pound faster and faster, until I fear it will leave my chest. Sweat drips off my forehead, arching down my back, chilling my spine. The forms move in closer, until their almost directly in front of me. "IM NOT AFRAID OF YOU!" My voice radiates calmness, wrapped in authority. Echoing off the walls, it seems to bounce back and obliterate the darkness. Shattering like a mirror, fragment after fragment cracks, breaking. The once terrifying phenomenon crumbles. Beyond the ashes lies a crowd. Thousands of eyes, staring back at me. No, not thousands. More than thousands. Everyone in the world must be in attendance. My face pales, knowing immediately what this was. My muscles tense as I walk to the podium, The familiar dropping feeling overtakes me, squeezing in on my stomach. It keeps getting tighter and tighter, to the point where I almost can't breath. I look at the base, searching for a paper to read off of. That wouldn't make it so bad. Alas, nothing was there. Just cold, hard wood. Nothing to reference, nothing to calm my nerves in the slightest. What was I supposed to do? The only thing I could do was the thing I dreaded the most. Face the crowd. Gulping past the lump in my throat, I open my mouth to speak. Like a blockade, nothing comes out, not a word. I close my mouth, and swallow hard. I squeeze my eyes shut, gathering all my fear. Opening my eyes, I release it all. Confident as I'll ever be, I face the many eyes before me. Contrary to before, words start streaming out. "Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, I'm sure you all are familiar with the feeling of fear. Especially when faced with a crowd." The speech went on, and kept going, until I felt calm. I wasn't scared of these people. Just as soon as I finished, the scene started to dissolve around me, crumbling to dust. Unveiled underneath was sky. Endless sky, rolling on for miles and miles. I glance around suspiciously, and realize where I am. I'm on top of a cold, concrete slab. Three feet by three feet, no railings. Peering over the edge, it seems to go on endlessly. My breathing starts to race rapidly, in tune with my heart. I must've been up 1,000 feet in the air! I was beginning to get the feeling I had to overcome all of these scenarios. The way to conquer heights is to go down. I close my eyes, and step with one foot off the edge of the building. It hovered it mid-air, waiting for my second foot to follow. I push all thoughts of worry away, before they can burrow into my brain. I step off with the other foot, and scream. A shattering scream, that probably was the cause of the scene breaking around me. Weightlessness in the pit of my stomach dragged me down. Slicing through the open air faster and faster. I could see the ground now, approaching with quickening speed. About to slam into the bottom, I prepare myself to be blown to bits. I throw my arms out, hoping to roll to try and lessen the impact. Useless. I hit home, touching down on, a soft woolen blanket? I lightly plop down, unharmed. What was this? I look around the brightly light room. Light came from every corner, illuminating time on the floor. My blurry vision clearing, I stare at the light in fear. Fire. Surrounding me. It was everywhere. Quashing all my feelings, which I have begun to get into the routine of, I take deep breaths. How to defeat this enemy? Walking straight into it. I stand up shakily, walking towards the flames. Intense heat burns back at me, almost unbearable. I step closer and closer, until the flames almost reach me. I step in without a thought. Feeling the flames lick up and down my arms. Burning, shriveling my away. At least, that's what it should have been doing. Instead as I touched the flames, they withered and died, revealing yet another scene beyond. A dark, murky sky, completely opposite of the room I stepped out of, lay as far as the eye can see. I hear a strong whoosh of wind from behind me. I spin around, only to come close to a panic attack. A towering spiral hung down from the sky, touching the ground in a wicked point. Twirling with incredible agility, it crumbled everything in its path. And I happened to be in the middle of it. As I contemplate how best to move past this obstacle, a strong current of air picks me up, catapulting me into the eye of the beast. I am tossed around in circles, over and over again. I get very dizzy, head hurting like a thousand needles were piercing it. Then, just as I faint, I am thrown from the ravaging monster. As I'm flung I wake, only to roll onto the floor of a boat. A nasty ache had settled in as I stood up, investigating. The ocean lay out on both sides of the vessel, disappearing into the horizon. One side was calm, flat, and serene. The other, was rough, waves reaching stupendous heights. One in particular, looking to be fifty feet tall, was aiming for the boat I had landed on. Curling at the top, white fizz formed, forming a roof over the ship. Then, WHAM! It came down in torrents, crushing the feeble wooden structure, sending me plummeting into the ocean. I was to deep and too weak to swim back up, so I gave in, figuring that's how I'd escape this nightmare. I breath in the water, letting it replace the vital oxygen. I breath it in until I can't anymore, my lungs constricted, reduced to nothing. I shakes violently, and then still, nothing left. My eyes close as my now 'dead' body drifts deeper. Then, before I could venture further, all the water is drained from around me. My lungs inflate back to life, greedy for the sweet taste of air. After I had caught my breath, I become aware of my surroundings. That was when the terror set in.
I was in the middle of an abandoned town, by the looks of it. It was dead quiet. The silence was so thick that you couldn't even cut it with a sharp knife. No leaves were rustled, no breaking branches, no sound at all. It was eerie, unnatural even. I was alone. My breathing increased tenfold, until I was hyperventilating. I wasn't in contact with any people. I was vulnerable. Anyone could get me out here. I sank to the floor, unable to take it any longer. The weight was pressing down on me, doing nothing soothe my nerves. I started to rock back and forth. This was too much for me. Then, cutting through the silence, a loud HONK! HONK! Confused, I realize it was from a car. I relax a little, now that I was around other people, but my resolve shattered as a tank of a vehicle hits me. Literally. A semi-truck, ten times the size of a normal car, flattens me like a pancake. The wheels tear me apart, limb by limb. The excruciating pain was felt in every molecule of my body. I'll spare you from the gory details, but what happened next was almost worse. When you body reforms itself after being plastered to the pavement, it isn't the most enjoyable scenario. My form molded back together, peeling itself off of the road. The feeling of your bones reattaching themselves is like a hammer to the nerve. It hurts. After my body had pieces it's massive puzzle together, I begin to be aware of my surroundings. An open area, bare and desolate. No one was in sight. I wondered for a moment if I was having a repeat fear. Alas, I was wrong. A tall, burly man was standing in front of me. His mouth was twisted into a sneer, with eyes like coal. Fire burned beneath his gaze. His black cloak swayed in the wind, trailing behind him. With a smirk on his face, he gestured to his outstretched hand. Fearing coursing through me, I stare at the machine. A gun. Of all things, he had a gun. My heart starts to pound. There was nothing holding me back, butt I felt cemented to my spot. I couldn't even blink. The man looked me dead in the eyes, and began to sing in a raspy voice, "Ring around the rosy," the gunshot echoed as he hit me in the leg. I collapse to the ground, wailing in pain. A burning sensation overtakes my right leg, and I lose control of it. My nerves were probably destroyed. "Pocket full of posies," he shoots me in the shoulder, and my left hand frantically goes to comfort it. I pull back as my finger touches blood. My blood. A puddle had started to form underneath me. "Ashes, ashes," he voice rings out in a way that suggests he is enjoying this. What a sick, sick man. He aims at my heart, and rests his hand over the trigger. "We all fall down," his face is eerily calm as he opens fire, obliterating a hole in my stomach. I collapse to the ground, my whole life flashing before me. Everything. I hit he concrete, and lay there. I close my eyes, and let out a raspy breath. The last I'll ever take.
(Word Count~ 2268)

