Devil's Game

Chapter 2

Metal Tracks

           I woke up. How? I had no idea.

I opened my eyes to see a horrific field of darkness. I reached for a light, only to realize where I was again. I started to cry.

           I got up and looked around. It was just isolated as far and the eye could see. The bitter air churned around me, as the stillness was made sinister. I whimpered at the darkness as my breathing enhanced.

What if someone was there?

           My eyes started to pour as I yearned for the protection of my family. I felt so helpless to the the world, and was fearful of everything. I had always been shy, but I had never been as scared as I was that day. I shut my eyes, wanting to die, wanting to forget everything and let go.

           When I opened my eyes, I could see a fuzzy figure. I screamed and gasped for air. Who was there? The image cleared, and I could make out a little boy.

           I whimpered and shrieked at the sight of him. He had pale skin and dull, lifeless eyes. His hands and head twitched as if unalive. He was wearing a button down shirt and his pants were soaked in flaming red blood. I let out a high pitch shrill and sprinted the other direction.

Why me? Why now?

           I kept running, but soon I saw the boy, once again, in front of me, flickering as if he were a hologram. Screaming, I let myself fall down as I lowered my head, petrified.

           Would I ever see anyone again? Was this my end?

I let the darkness take control as the feeling of pain shot through me. I screamed and cried as my stomach curled in. Crying, I wailed in terror as a horrific thought entered my mind.

           I was already dead.

I looked at my hands, which were stained with crimson red blood. On my stomach, a patch of blood pooled over onto the floor. It made me sick to watch myself stand in a pool of blood, much less my own.

           Would my afterlife be an eternal cycle of pain?

I looked up to see the endless darkness of my eternity, in the center of the terror, the little boy, his bleak eyes drilling a hole through my forehead. What did he want?

           I broke down, the ghastly place creeping its way through my mind.

The little boy tilted his head at me. His eyes shot through the air as the cold swirled around the boys body, blood soaking through his veins.

            I whimpered, but I was less scared. My breath slowed down, but I was still in shock. I covered my eyes and lay down, curling into a ball and wishing the darkness away. I wanted to die again.

           I thought about Clarice, and her voice. I thought about my mom, how she'd look if she saw me dead. Why did it matter? I didn't care about anything anymore. I got up. The little boy flickered right in front of me, his blood shot eyes glistening in the darkness.

           I screamed and whimpered.

"Go away, go away, please don't hurt me" I whispered under my breath as I gasped for air. My eyes slowly started to fog up with tears. The boy flickered away.

           "Come" he persuaded.

I got up, my tears drying instantly. There was something familiar about him, the way his blank eyes stared right through me, sinking into the darkest parts of my mind. I couldn't quite put my finger on who he was. I instinctively moved closer to him.

          "Closer.." he whined deceivingly.

I couldn't remember. Was it his face, or his voice that reminded me of someone? I wanted to know. Who was this? I stepped closer, each movement drawing nearer to the little boy.

           "Who are you?" I demanded.

            The little boy tilted his head, flickering in front of my eyes. The darkness seemed to get lighter, the bleakness seemingly hopeful as I crept towards him. His blood stained pants radiated, though I wasn't scared. I was curious.

"You," he said. "Me is you. We friends,"

            It came to me that this boy was about six. He couldn't talk. I took one more step, and instantly, I was right in front of him. He reached out his hand. Without thinking, I placed mine on top of his.

           Immediately, I felt a connection with the boy, like I knew him well before. I didn't want to leave anymore. I let go of any bits of fear remaining. The boy made me feel comfortable

"You must go, Emma," he murmured.

           Blackness swirled around me as my mind was sucked into the realness of life. Everything seemed dark, as blackness flashed through the sky. When it finally stopped, the darkness faded away, and it seemed so distant, the world I had just been in, the horror and fury still swirling in my mind, the little boy. I stepped back, stumbling onto train tracks. They were made of metal, built onto rocks. I looked down at the tracks. Where was I? It took time for my mind to adjust to the light. I was still in a daze. Looking back up, I gaped at the sudden change of scenery.

           The vast horizon spread across the blue sky, dipping down to inspect the mountains. I sat up, my white pants stained with a metallic red tint, the smell of gas polluting the air.

           Suddenly, a train came whooshing forward. I yelped, and jumped back, the train narrowly missing the hairs of my neck. My mind cleared, but I still couldn't recognize where I was.

           My heart was racing. I could feel it pounding in my chest. Where was I? How did I get here?

I looked forward at the curve of the tracks, the train leaving a cloud of wispy grey smoke trailing after it. Did the boy bring me here?

           Then, I remembered. I was hit by a car. Who was the boy? Did he revive me?I wondered about Clarice. Did she see me get hit? Where did I go? How was I here, alive?

           All these thoughts combined into one as I came to a conclusion; It was the Devil.

I knew the Devil was fake, just a story to scare people, but what I had experienced wasn't a dream. It was silly, yet there was no other explanation. However, I wasn't a kid anymore. I was sensible, and wasn't supposed to believe in that. I didn't even know if I did. People would think I was crazy. Was I?

           I needed to know more.