Demon Hunterz

Chapter 4: The dilemma

Silence in a void of absolute darkness.

There was no light. No sound. No sense of smell or direction. It was just me. Alone in my own thoughts. Unable to make sense of anything.

I start to question whether I was dead or not. That I too, had become like the spirits that haunt my dreams.  But I add all the pieces together. I didn't finish sinking in the ground. Nor do I recall myself dying in the process. I felt no pain. No final heartbeat. And from the situation I was in, I should have at least drowned. To have just suddenly go black is irrational. Death doesn't work that way.

I don't believe in the afterlife. Don't get me wrong. I still think ghosts are real. It's just I don't believe the whole heaven and hell aspect. What I know is the cold hard truth. That once you die, you no longer exist. And that afterimages are merely a hollow reminder of one's existence. An echo of what you once were in the world of the living.

But now I'm having doubts. Because I can still sense myself whole. I may not be able to see my body. But I know it's there. I can still feel. Along with my mind. Since I'm able to conjure up thoughts freely.

So...just where the hell am I?

A deep throb in my core. I feel great motion around me. Like I was riding some roller coaster. Slowly but surely, my hearing returns in the form of a ringing sensation in the ears. My nostrils pick up the smell of wood and mildew. Then, as strength pours into me from places I have yet to understand, I flutter my eyes open.

I groan once I wake up. Feeling weak all over. I swing my head in both directions. To find myself in the attic.

I try to move my arms. But I can't. My arms are tucked behind me. Tied down with something. Maybe some kind of rope or string. The same goes for my legs too. After a few seconds of pointless resistance, my shoulders sink in defeat. And I decide to observe my surroundings for a clue to get out of this.

The attic is bare. We usually don't keep much stuff here. Besides maybe a few boxes filled with old junk. Old photo albums. Yearbooks. Record discs. Nothing too special.

A single ray of light peers through the window. Revealing untold millions of dust particles. That is floating in the air around us. Something about that makes me feel at ease. Because it was one of the things we take for granted. Especially after you have just seen the unimaginable.

Sometimes normal is a good thing. A blessing in disguise.

"Hey, he's awake now." Sammie's voice. I turn to see her sitting right next to me. Her arms and legs untied. Her eyes are also puffy and has a slight tinge of red to them. Almost as if she was crying. Frederick is further down to her right. Alive and in one piece.

"Sammie?" I croak weakly. Then I shake some sense into me by shaking my head. "W-What happened back there? I could've sworn that the ground was melting. The trees, buildings, even our moving truck!" I meet Frederick head on. "And you were inside of it! I heard you screaming and everything! But...you're here now. So was that all just my imagination? Am I going crazy?!"