Walk Into The Light - Shadows of the Night 6

Chapter 5

Hi,

Illusion or real? No matter "where" Anna is right now, she'll have to up her game in this chapter... I hope you like it! Let me know what you think, and have a great week :-)

Lara

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Chapter 5

Was it all just an elaborate illusion?

The graffiti-smeared concrete wall beside me was a mess of colors, warped messages and slogans. I exhaled. These were slogans with an artistic aim. They had a familiar ring to them and carried the unmistakable slang of street talk.

The blaring noise of police sirens in the distance made me go still. There was more. Scraps of dance music carried over the soft murmur of cars making their way through the city.

The city.

I sucked in a breath. I'd automatically assumed it was a city. Not only just a city, but my very own, and I might be right about it. If this was another version of New York, as closely molded to reality and my understanding of it, where was I?

I got up on my feet and the world grew dark around the edges, the filthy asphalt under my feet spinning dangerously fast. I grabbed on to whatever solid object was next, found nothing, and settled on the concrete wall. My fingers were icy, thawing with the prickly, painful feeling of motion. My feet might have been cast in concrete.

I breathed in and out until my vision went back to normal. It was probably part of the illusion. This time, I wasn't going to be fooled. I was going to make my way to Vladislav's throne, core of his mind or whatever it was, and get out.

With that in mind, I started walking.

* * *

Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.

If these words were true, there were two possibilities left. Either Vladislav won and I was already trapped in his head for good, or I had somehow returned to the real world – New York City of all places. After stumbling along four less frequented streets close to the Riverside that looked exactly like I remembered, I was starting to believe it was the latter.

I had no idea how long I had been trapped inside Vladislav's mind, if that was what it was. What had happened and how did I get out? And the most important question: Did I really get out?

The last thing I remembered was battling my way towards Vladislav's throne. There had been no concept of time, just an endless, drumming repetition of deprivation. The darkness had closed in around me, air growing thinner the more I tried to move forward. That was about all I remembered.

Was it possible that for some reason Vladislav's hold over my mind waned with approaching daylight? I shook my head and kept walking, scanning the street again.

Perhaps it was the early hour, perhaps it was the location, but the streets were pretty much empty. No leftover party-goers, no early-morning-overachievers.

Weird.

There was more. No matter where I looked, no matter how slowly I turned, my vision would fizzle out and change, until I found myself stumbling right into second sight. The world of auratic gray that showed everything that lay in between seemed ever-present and more vibrant than I remembered.

No matter how often I tried to switch back into normal sight and remain in the real world, I would always catch a glimpse of something in the corner of my eye.