The House, A Tale of The Figure. - A short story.

'The rain had come at last, embracing the world, refusing to let go. The Figure stepped in another in a long line of invisible puddles, making the one in his boot even deeper.

He scaled the hill, the sand that covered it for what had seemed so long, fell rapidly, taking the memories of Before with it. He wasn't nostalgic about it. The only thing that crossed his mind was the fact that underneath the sand was only rock, he would have to hurry. He rushed up the hill, at last seeing the top, hoping it would hold his asylum. The rain held him back, causing him to slow down, slightly unnerved at slipping and falling to his certain death. But he still clambered, hoping he would make progress as the sea of sand in his eyes deepened, hitting his face like bullets, but the pain was nothing new to him. He pulled himself up his final obstacle and instantly regretted it.'

Continuing from 'Before, A Tale of The Figure' The Figure finds himself in need of shelter in his quest for survival, he is found and becomes trapped in a house that he must escape before he is trapped forever.
Just to point out, whilst it contains the same lead character and follows on a few of the hanging threads of it's predecessor, this story is pretty much completely standalone and almost completely different in tone ('Before' is a post-apocalyptic thriller- this is a full-on gothic horror) so you can read this first if you want.
Again thanks to my editor for his annoying obsession with such insignificant things like 'grammar', 'spelling', 'continuity' and 'plot holes' and VB writer for the incredible cover.