Chapter 5 - Reprieve from darkness

With a startle my eyes open. There is a soft glow in my right side. The bed is rough and somewhat lumpy, like an old cushion. The smell of straw and earth wafts to my senses unlike a barn. The musky old ragged scent makes the place cosy. My vision is half blurry from being closed. Pain courses through like a firm grip allover me but they are not sharp.

From the look of the room it seems like some sort of old storage with the various shelves lining the wall. The air is cool but there is no enjoyment when I breathe in. Every intake brings an uncomfortable grip on the sides of my chest. The vision is clearing now as my eyes adjust to the surroundings. I hear faint activity outside the door. The room is bare other than the empty shelves and the bed.

As I try to sit up from the bed my muscles strain. I wonder how long I've been asleep. A sense of dread creeps to me as the memory of the beasts and my rescuer. The sound of tearing flesh clear in my mind. I shudder at the thought and focus on getting up off the bed. As I sit up the door opens and a woman's head looks in. Sadness in their eyes.

"You've been asleep for days. Are you hungry?" She asks me gently.

My stomach grumbles as she finishes he sentence. I look at her almost embarrassed at my grumbling. She smiles warmly and beckons me to follow. While her smile is warm there is sadness in her eyes. I hobble towards her, feeling dizzy I reach for the wall to help me. Walking through the doorway I'm met with enquiring downcast eyes. A high ceilinged cavern jutted with stalactites dancing from torch lights. The floor is uneven as it is just the cavern floor that look to be worn in from foot traffic. The cavern is dimly lit from torches lining the walls. Various doors of mish mash doors appear randomly around the wall.

I head for one of the doors that she stands in front of waiting for me as I struggle to get to. Finally seeing that I was having a hard time walking she jogs to me and slides her arm around me. This helps me and I feel her strength as she goes me. As I look at her face I recognise her as the one that screened at is from the doors.

"I'm sorry" I choke out an apology.

She turns and just smiles at me with glazed eyes. Blood shot, probably from crying. The memory again invades my mind. My heart starts from the dark. I see them bounding towards us. The pain in my chest is unbearable. My breath is tight as if someone was standing on top of me. I can feel the cool air rushing past me, and the sound of the beasts claws striking the hard rocky floor. Their guttural breathing echoes to me.

"Are you ok?" She nudges me back from my nightmare. Heart racing I try to look at her.

"Yeah, just.." I stop as I notice someone stomping towards me. A heavy set man. Glaring not trying to hide their displeasure towards me. With no hesitation he grabs me by the collar. The shove that followed took the wind out of me.

"It's all your fault! You had to try to be a hero now Greg is dead." He screamed at me. I didn't have much strength as I tried to push them away. I was helpless. Tears welled from my eyes unbidden. He looks me dead in the eyes and pushes me away. As I recover from their push, they storm off. I look back at them is dismay, what did I expect....

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4

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