SHADOWS

PROLOGUE

The gentle tap of footsteps echo behind my own. I never look to see what's with me, the irrational fear of doing so taking root in my heart. I stare ahead to see of any means of escape, but the dimly lit hallway stretches onward with no changes in sight. I feel myself getting anxious with this new discovery, the fear in my heart becoming stronger with every step. I couldn't stop, and with this terror blooming, I fear I never would.

My heart drums loudly in my ears, and in a weak attempt to calm myself, I listened to it. But the clearer it became to my ears, the clearer its own echo could be heard.

My walking stopped, but even though the action was involuntary, I couldn't help but to be glad that I have done so. My joy is easily replaced by that horrid feeling as I realize that the echo didn't stop after my own did. It's still there, getting closer and closer. My heart starts to race and I let my fear take hold as I begin to run, never looking back.

I can hear it clearly now, its footfalls offbeat with the echo of my own. This is when I realize, it wasn't running. It was as if it thought it had all the time in the world to catch up to me.

Running is good, I think, distance is good.

I don't know how long I've been running since then, but it's been quite a while since I've heard the eerie footsteps of that thing. And now that they aren't distracting my thoughts, I've begun to notice things that weren't there before: empty picture frames dotted along the walls, small tables that held empty vases sparsely set to the sides of the hall, and up ahead I could just barely make out another path to the right.

A wide grin makes it way onto my face as I slow my run to a stroll, the thought of having an exit calming me down. I inspect one of the empty frames as I pass, noticing now how much dust has collected on it. I look at all the other things as I continue on and as I walked past another table with an impressive amount of dust covering it I can see that one of the corners has been cleared, looking as if it's been wiped. After seeing this, I begin to wonder if there had been others here before me and come to a sudden realization that I don't even know where here is.

Have I always been here? Has it always been here? How long have I been here? Have I been here before? Why am I here? Why can't I seem to remember anything other than this hallway and that echo?

Why can't I find an exit?

I shake my head at the sudden questions that are filling my mind. I shouldn't panic, after all, at the end of this turn may very well be my exit.

I slow when I'm near, and I can't help but be cautious as I approach. I stop when I'm just at the corner, a nervous feeling fluttering in my stomach. I peek around, and release the breath that I wasn't even aware I was holding. There was nothing there but another dimly lit hallway. I smile and walk around the corner and into the hall, but the nervousness remains. I choose to ignore this feeling, wanting nothing more than peace at this point.

It takes a minute, but I can see something blocking the hallway. It takes me a moment, but I quickly come to the conclusion that it's a wall. I panic and run to the wall. I place my hands on it, feeling around it. There are no other pathways, this can't be it.

"No... No, no, no... Please," I hear a small voice begin to say. "Don't let this be it. This can't be it!" The voice, which I now register as my own, mutters in desperation. I don't know why I'm so set on being so quiet, after all, there's nobody else here with me.

Or, at least, that's what I thought for a solitary four seconds before I heard it. The sound that's been haunting my thoughts since I started here. The echoing of that thing, though I don't suppose it's an echo if it's the only one walking. It's already in this hall, there's no way I can turn back now. I can't turn around at all.

The fear that had drawn back to the depths of my mind immediately came back, hitting me full-force with the realization that I might not ever make it out of this place. I close my eyes as I continue to face the wall, counting the steps I can hear it take.

1, 2, 3. It stops for a moment as if cautious, or perhaps curious, of what I'm doing.

4, 5, 6. It stops again, and I can just barely hear my heart begin to beat faster.

7, 8, 9, 10. It stopped again, confusing me with it's rhythm for a moment, almost not realizing that it was much closer than I had originally thought it had been.

11, 12, 13. It stopped, now standing right behind me and I could hear my heartbeat as clearly as I could hear its own.

I held my breath, waiting for it to make a move. I hear it shuffle, but I don't feel anything. Maybe it's going to leave? I hope it is. Everything is now silent, but my heart's still beating fast. It's as if I already knew what's going to happen, but I don't.

I froze, feeling a light touch on my right shoulder. It's such a soft pressure that I, for a second, doubt it's even there. That is, until I feel it move from my shoulder to my arm. The feeling was unwelcome and cold, so I shied away from it. It didn't take long for the feeling to come back, harsher this time, more solid. I can now tell that it's a hand grabbing me.

I keep my eyes closed as it turns me around forcibly, my back hitting the wall harshly as it pushed me into it. It isn't holding onto me anymore, but I have a feeling that if I try and move again it might do more damage than the few bruises that I feel forming.

A sharp pain ripped through my stomach, an ominously familiar feeling. Shocked, I open my eyes. A small gasp barely emerged as I stare into the abyss.

Then, with a numb feeling, I fall.