Emma

Chapter Two

A/N: As I was looking over this chapter, I saw that it definitely needed editing here and there. Don't let that put you off though. If you enjoyed this chapter, make sure to vote and comment! :)

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A short yet piercing scream leapt out of Emma’s mouth as she hurtled into the hole. There wasn’t much darkness around the entrance, as the light was streaming into it, but beyond where she stood it gradually grew darker. The girl nestled herself into an alcove along the side of the wall and inspected the graze on her ankle. It was deep enough to cause bleeding and as Emma kept her fingers pressed on the wound, she hoped it wouldn’t be infected.

She took this time to think some more about her dream. She didn’t like the taste of dates, and she hadn’t eaten any for a long time, so why did it wander into her mind and create a dream like that? The image in her head revealed nothing more - no-one was standing around them. Was there?

The silhouette of what seemed to be an upright body was lurking in the background of the picture. Its arms were raised, and its head was slightly tilted back in a flinching manner. In her mind’s eye, she was concentrating on it closely. That could not have been a person. It was simply a cactus swaying in the wind, and she ended her thoughts with that conclusion.

Still half-dazed from the sudden fall, she reached for her bottle and took a long drink from it. Refreshed, she used more water on her wound after removing her fingers. It seemed that the blood had clotted. She smiled weakly to herself and stood up - but something immediately made her sit back down again. It was her stomach.

As she was briefly wiping her mouth after being sick, Emma noticed something half-buried under a pile of fallen sand. Curiously, she uncovered the writing but after several tries of trying to translate it, she gave up.

She rose once more and, for the first time, came to realise that in front of her, there were crossroads. She took a random direction and began walking, and as she travelled more she continuously grew to be astonished. What made her marvel was not the sandstone alone but the fact that the sandstone had lots of ancient writings carved into it. Not a single spot on the stone was uncovered. How much time did these people spend writing it? Who were these people?

Her thoughts stopped as she spotted someone at the opposite end of the tunnel. He did not seem to notice her because his viridian eyes were locked onto someone else.

Like a lion waiting to catch its prey, he silently made his way towards a small, almost defenceless human being. His back was turned as he was inspecting the contents of a brown leather bag, similar to Emma’s. The man made one swift move with his sword and it descended onto his victim’s back. a repulsive cracking sound was heard, and the sight was not one that Emma wanted to see.

The victim lay in two halves and as the girl now watched the killer, he picked up the wooden sword and the two bags that he had now earned. She gazed with curiosity at him as he tossed out a few empty flasks onto the floor and disappeared from sight. Did he leave? She took a few tiny steps forward and as a small gasp escaped her lips, he came into her view.

His eyes now showed determination as he ran towards her, dropping everything but the wooden sword in his path. Emma responded with her instincts, and turned to escape the claws of death that were nearing her.

The only thought on her mind was to leave the man far behind, but due to her circumstances – the fact that she was in a maze of narrow tunnels and her wound was throbbing – she did not doubt that this would be her death place. Not caring about which direction she took, she ran through the cave and came to a somewhat challenging jump course.