Earth's End

Shit. He'd Found us Again.

Through my unconsciousness, I felt my long move outside of my own volition. Then came the slight muscle cramp that forcefully pulled me from my blissful slumber. Blinking the sleep from my eyes, I awoke to find that my foot had wrapped itself uncomfortably around Alex's ankle. He hadn't seemed to notice and simply rolled over to face the other direction, pulling me with him.

After carefully untangling my foot from his, as not to wake him, I realized that I wasn't going to fall asleep again. So, I decided to explore the inside of the cabin.

I traced my finger along some of the tables, leaving a line in the thick dust. I began opening cabinets and pantries boredly before following the hallway back into the second room. It was empty save for a wooden bed frame and bookcase. Skimming the book's titles, I recognized quite a few of them despite the centuries of difference in pop culture.

On the top shelf, I noticed something unusual: a section in the middle of the shelf was cleaned off of the dust as if a book had been slid out. I paused, unsure of what to make of it.

Then, I heard movement from the other room. There was a crash - possibly from the candlestick hitting the floor - and what sounded like the onset of a struggle. But it wasn't one that lasted very long. The movement ended with a small squeak that sounded like it had come from Alex. Shit. He'd found us again.

Another struggle could be heard before a forced, "Run!" before silence once again. This time, it had come from Kelly. A smack was heard and I imagined the man smacking Kelly across the face with the back of his hand.

"Don't listen to them, Izzy, there's no other way out. Besides, I've been so eager to meet you. Please, do come out so that we can chat. I promise not to kill you...yet." The man called from the other room.

Wow, very reassuring.

I paused for a moment, not knowing what to do. Now that I think about it though, this entire journey so far I've had no idea what to do. I've had no idea what to think, how to act. I have no idea who this guy is, why he's apparently trying to destroy the world, and Kelly he is the only thing Kelly seems to be frightened of. I barely know who I am and what my abilities are, let alone how I'm supposed to save the world with them. So, if there was ever a time for a villainous monologue, this would be the time.

I took a deep breath to regain my focus and admittedly, let go of some of the fear I had pent-up inside. And stepped out of the sanctuary of the back room. An unnerving smile stretched out across the man's face and a shudder went down my spine.