I ran with every ounce of strength contained within me, ancient buildings lined my path as I swiftly moved past them.
Becoming nothing more than a blur in the endless darkness.
I dashed into numerous alleyways each time I sighted a supernatural creature.
My heart thumped hard and fast. Fear overpowering my senses, yet I kept going.
My legs slammed against the floor. Sending light, unheard echoes across the ground. Crumbling buildings flashed past my eyes, as I easily found my way through the overgrown streets.
Based on the ruined state of his environment, I could easily come to the conclusion that it was probably the ruin of a city of sorts.
...Perhaps overrun by the same supernatural forces that now haunts the land.
Just as I passed through a narrow alleyway, my legs moving down the cold cobblestones.
A roar suddenly rang into my ears.
My heart almost skipped a beat for a second there, my eyes moving towards the source of the loud noise.
...My eyes widened in shock.
"Shit!"
I cursed.
My legs moving even faster as I pushed my body beyond its limit.
The sound of heavy footsteps echoed in my ears. Rapidly chasing after me was what resembled a dire wolf, save for the fact that it was more terror-inducing.
It was eerie dark and abysmal.
Its body casting long eerie shadows into the endless darkness. And just gazing at its crimson eyes sent cold chills down my spine.
And then… all hell suddenly broke loose.
The dire wolf leaped forth, slashing forward with a terrifying force that sent a gush of wind towards me.
I felt a cold chill running down my spine. Immediately bending down as I rolled onto the ground. The large terrifying claws swept past my previous position, smashing into the ground with a loud cracking sound.
My eyes widened in shock.
Relief fleeting but soothing washing over me for a second there.
I had no doubt about it.
If I had been there by the time the claws had landed.
I would have been reduced to paste.
Without a moment's pause, I scrambled to my feet.
My gaze locked on a door.
Arched and eerie dark, the door was wide open.
A beacon of hope during the worst of times.
I hoped.
Forcing myself to my feet. I tried hard to force down the deep sense of unease holding onto me.
And then, I immediately scurried towards the door- and despite knowing I might be heading into something more dreadful, I still kept running.
'…I had no choice.'
Not only that, but I had to first escape this before thinking of what was to come next.
Hence, I ran with every ounce of strength contained within me.
The dire wolf seemed to realize what I was planning.
It roared in anger!
Leaping forth. It skated pass me, before coming to a stop a few feet away from me.
Our eyes met.
Unseen sparkles flashing across the dark space between us.
An eerie unease gripped my soul as my heart thumped violently.
And as if to make matters worse, the dire wolf seemed to be enjoying this moment as it salivated, taking slow steps towards me.
I felt a cold chill creeping into my spine.
A terrifying fear grabbing onto me.
I tried to force down all the irrational thoughts slamming onto the walls of my mind.
Though it proved far more difficult than I had expected, yet amidst the sweat that trickled down my forehead to my subtly shaking legs.
I was able to maintain a semblance of a rational mind.
...What should I do?
What should I do?
I questioned myself over and over again.
Yet, I wasn't able to come up with a reasonable way out of this hopeless situation.
Slowly, I could feel it- the pull of despair, of hopelessness.
It gripped me and tightened around my chest like a vice.
My mind soon went into a frantic pace as various thoughts slammed onto the edges of my mind.
...Yet, none proved useful.
Darkness slowly encroached upon the walls of my mind, my eyes slowly losing their bright lustre.
...What am I even fighting for?
Why am I fighting?
I asked myself and perhaps the endless void within me.
A ragged and foul breath drilling into my mind-
The dire wolf prowled closer, each step it took sent me further down an abyssal-like maze. Yet no matter how hard I thought about it, I wasn't able to come up with an answer.
It was almost as though... I was just fighting.
Almost as though I was just trying to survive
...For survival's case.
'How...laughable!'
A self-depreciating laughter escaped my lips.
Soon, the nightmarish direwolf towered over me.
The cold sense of death inched closer with each breath I took.
And the tension itself- soon thickened.
Dread slowly settled into my spine.
Yet, I forced down the unease that gripped me… as I waited.
I waited for it to all come to an end.
I had no family to fight for.
No friends to fight to see.
No goal to fight for.
I had absolutely nothing to fight for.
So… why keep fighting?
I asked no one but myself and perhaps the endless void within me. My mind slowly slipped away, endless shadows lingering at the edges of my eyes.
Then... it struck.
Pain!
Blinding pain shot through me.
Coursing through every fiber of my being.
And then, my vision blurred as my head rolled away, disembodied.
Blood pooled around my body, now just a hollow shell- like a shadow existing without light.
Darkness slowly crept into the walls of my mind and in the blink of an eye, the world went blank.
For a brief moment, I felt a deep sense of peace.
Relief.
Unlike ever, rippled through every fiber of my being
...It was over.
It was finally over.
It had to be.
The void shattered, and I opened my eyes once again.
Alive.
Whole again.
No! This can't be!!
Why!?
I screamed into the void, but it gave no answers.
Only silence.
Despair soon gripped me, and I clawed at my hair.
At my skin.
Trying to escape the endless cycle of death. Yet no matter what I did- no matter how many times I fell- I always returned.
My mind at this point had long descended into madness, and perhaps profanity.
I had tugged at my hair at every revival.
Had screamed to the heavens if they did exist.
I knew it would have been real cool, and I would have gladly accepted this endless revival of a thing if I had something to live for.
But the cold truth was…I didn't.
So why stress myself to stay alive when I will still keep getting killed.
...Why!!
I clutched at my hair.
My eyes now extremely red.
Tears soon streaked down the corner of my eyes.
I was tired of all these repeated deaths and revival of a thing.
'...Can't I even just rest in peace?'
I asked no one in particular, teardrops dripping onto the cobblestones beneath me.
'Which damned being is behind all this!'
I cursed.
I cried.
I yelled, and I voiced out my defiance.
Yet...it changed nothing.
Seconds clocked by into minutes, and minutes into hours.
I had no idea how long I had been sitting there. My mind at this point was completely overwhelmed by various thoughts that threatened to overwhelm me.
I sobbed and sobbed until I could cry no more.
I screamed until finally, exhaustion took over me.
I sat there, broken. Lost.
But then.
After what felt like an eternity in the endless darkness, a small spark ignited within me.
A flash of resolution flashed within my eyes.
...Perhaps I don't have something to live for.
But I have got memories to unravel.
Questions to answer.
I have to find out, what happened to me?
How did I end up here?
What's going on?
I have to figure it out.
And perhaps, just perhaps… at the end of it all.
A family lies for me beyond the edges of this abyss.
A hollow laughter escaped my lips, and my body trembled lightly, adrenaline coursing through every fiber of my being.
I knew the chances of this being true was rather slim, yet I would rather hold on to this than wallow in despair and frustration.
Now...I had something to live for.
Now...I had something to fight for!
Somehow, unknowingly to even me, a light smile slowly crept up my face and for the first time in a really long time… it seems.
I felt a light surge of warmth coursing through me.
I stood.
Shaky but determined.
I had no hope, but I had lots of curiosity.
And for now, that was more than enough.
I clenched my hands, and with hardened resolve.
I stepped into the endless darkness before me.