First Encounter
Trapped Within Darkness Part 3 | Choice 2 - Sometimes it is best that questions are left unanswered
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The Chosen Path - “Speak with the voice”
Trapped Within Darkness
Part 3.2: First Encounter
The sound of the voice shocked me to my core. Confusion swept over me, as I felt relief that I wasn’t alone, but fear of the unknown held me tight in its grasp. I was entirely at the stranger’s mercy. I was about to open my mouth to speak before the chance was taken from me.
“You…are wondering where…you are.” The raspy voice continued on, “ That…is not the right question.”
“Well, feel free to enlighten me then.” I replied, struggling against the solidified gravel that was keeping me prisoner.
“The question…is where you will be.”
“Where might that be?” I inquired.
“Here…but not here. This…is but a glimpse”
“Ah, that clears things up!” I said, rather sarcastically, which was probably not the best way to go about speaking to something that has all the control over my situation.
“You…attempt to mask your…fear, with wit.” The gravel crunched beside my head, as if the stranger was walking around me. Without warning, its next words were spoken directly into my ear. “This…will not serve you here.”
“Note taken. Now would you care to elaborate on where I will be?” I asked, attempting to remain calm and collected.
“You will be…here.”
“I feel like we are going in circles, you made that clear already.”
“You…are not listening.”
“It’s not my fault you are being more vague than –”
The gravel tightened around my torso unexpectedly causing me to wince and gasp. My ribs felt like they would explode if constricted anymore. I stopped struggling and started to focus on my shallow breathing, when I noticed my extremely elevated heart rate start to ring in my ears.
“You…will…LISTEN.” The hollow voice was suddenly alive, and seething anger.
I managed to choke out “I will,” before shutting up. This is probably a bad time to bring up to the stranger that I am claustrophobic anyway – as if they would care.
“He…has not taken…enough from you yet. You are…not truly here, rather…previewing your future.” The gravel started to loosen a bit, allowing me a little more room to breathe. The voice continued on, “You will know…when you are here.”
“What do you mean ‘He hasn’t taken enough from me yet’?” I asked, concerned by the ominous sound of that statement.
“This place…thrives with fear…pain…loss…torment,” the voice ached, almost as if experiencing each of those in tandem. “When He…has taken enough…you will be trapped here.”
“Where is here?”
“Many names…this place has been called. It…exists outside of your…reality.”
“Why does ‘He’ want me?”
“You…are special.”
That took me by surprise. Never in my life had I been considered special to anyone, besides maybe my father. “Why am I special?”
“Your…blood.” The voice spoke into my ear again without warning, sending chills down my spine. Of all the things to be special for.
“Why does ‘He’ want my blood?” Silence followed my question. “Hello?”
The stranger was no longer answering me, leaving me to feel alone once again. I genuinely thought that I couldn’t be more confused than I already was, but the stranger made sure to prove me wrong. My questions at this point were many, and answers were in short supply it seemed.
“Are you still there?” Again, I was met with more silence. “Did I ask the wrong question? Don’t leave me here.”
The gravel started to shift around me, loosening and tightening around my body as if it were alive. It started to cover more and more of my body with each passing second.
“You never even told me who you are!” I yelled into the darkness. Suddenly I heard the gravel next to me crunch underneath footsteps.
“You…will find out soon enough.” The voice appeared again, seemingly all around me somehow.
I started to sink into the ground causing alarms to go off in my head. My brain was sending impulse after impulse to flail around and attempt to get out of the grave that was swallowing me.
“Help!” I yelled at the stranger, hoping he was willing to show me mercy. The air became alive with energy I had never felt – a dark energy. My head was suddenly forced back and pinned in position and it felt as if each individual strand of my hair was being pulled from my scalp. A sickening growl arose next to my ear before the voice returned at an intensity I couldn’t have imagined.
“HELP…DOES NOT AWAIT YOU.”
“YOU ARE…ALONE.”
“HE…IS COMING.”
“FIND….REFUGE…IN THE DARK.”
My heart was racing faster than lightspeed. The sheer rage that was being experienced from the voice was absolutely the most terrifying thing I have ever encountered. Even with all that was going on I still had a burning question that I needed answered, and I had just enough stupidity to ask.
“W-who are you?” I asked in a voice weaker than a mouse. Silence followed my question once again. Pieces of gravel started to cover my face as I continued to sink deeper into the pit that was opening up. Before I could speak again, pebbles began forcing my way into my mouth, and when I attempted to shut my mouth I found that I had no such ability. My muscles tensed and my eyes bulged as I started coughing on the gravel that was forcing its way down my throat. This is it, I am being killed by gravel. What a lovely tombstone that will make; “Here Lies Kolt, Son and Friend, Taken by Gravel.”
Right before what was seemingly going to be my demise, the voice spoke one more time and was kind enough to answer my question.
“I…am…you.”
I awoke heaving and coughing into a bright white room in a strange bed. Looking around I saw medical machines, some of which were hooked up to me. A hospital? On the wall in front of me I saw a whiteboard that had my name, the Doctor and nurses that were caring for me and why I was there.
“Patient received Black Widow bite to neck.”
After being thrust into the dark unknown, Kolt has absolutely no idea what to think of what he just experienced. Was he going crazy, or was something more sinister afoot? Whatever the case may be, he is again left with another choice to make. Find out what your choice means for his future in the next part of Trapped Within Darkness!
This would not be possible if not for your choices made, so thank you for helping me create this terrifying horror story! Keep on choosing and see where this story goes! Trapped Within Darkness will return after the next issues of Expedition Epsilon and Perthro: The Rune of Mystery. You could earn a free premium membership if your refer 3 people, and you will have access to the character sheets! I hope you have a great week, and as always — Choose Fiction!