Sarah's POV
The creatures' advance was relentless, their forms emerging from the darkness like phantoms, their movements fast and jerky. Their hollow eyes glowed with an unsettling light, and their mouths twisted in grotesque grins. I could feel their presence pressing down on me, like the weight of the world itself had shifted to this one moment, this one place. The air was thick with dread.
Axel stepped closer, his arm brushing mine. "We need to move. This place is changing, and it's getting worse by the second."
I could feel his tension, the way his body was coiled, ready for anything. But the truth was, we weren't prepared. None of this made sense-none of it felt like something we could fight. It wasn't just creatures; it was the entire world itself, bending and warping around us.
The woman stood unmoved, watching us with an expression that was almost pitying. "You can run," she said, her voice as cold as the space around us, "but you can never outrun the rift."
"Shut up!" Axel barked, his voice harsh. He took a step forward, glaring at her. "I'm done with your games."
The woman tilted her head, her smile widening into something more sinister. "You've barely begun to understand the game you're playing, Axel. The rift plays by its own rules, and once you're in its grasp, there's no escaping." She stretched out her hand toward us, her fingers curling like claws. "You're mine now."
As if she'd spoken an incantation, the ground beneath us trembled, the cracks in the earth widening, pulling us toward the yawning abyss that had opened beneath our feet. My heart raced, fear bubbling up inside me as I struggled to keep my balance. The creatures inched closer, their eyes gleaming with anticipation, but my attention was fixed on the gaping hole in the ground.
"Move!" Axel shouted, pulling me by the arm and dragging me away from the abyss. We sprinted toward the edge of the shattered earth, the ground buckling beneath our feet, the creatures' guttural growls echoing around us. My breath came in short gasps, and I could feel the pull of the rift, as if it were trying to drag us back into its depths.
We reached a clearing, the terrain shifting again, but this time I saw something-something that made my heart leap in my chest.
A doorway.
It shimmered in the air, faint, like a mirage. It beckoned to us, and I knew, deep down, that it was our only chance to escape. But the creatures were closing in, their glowing eyes burning into us. We had to move, and we had to move fast.
"Axel, look!" I shouted, pointing to the door. "That's our way out!"
His gaze flicked to the doorway, and without hesitation, he pulled me toward it. We ran, every step bringing us closer to the shimmering threshold, the creatures snapping at our heels, their claws scraping against the ground like nails on metal.
Just as we reached the doorway, something cold and jagged scraped across my back. I gasped, the pain searing through me, and spun around to see one of the creatures's claws inches from my skin. Its mouth gaped open in a grotesque snarl, its eyes wild with hunger.
"Sarah!" Axel shouted, his voice full of panic.
But I was already moving. I pushed myself forward with every ounce of strength I had, stumbling into the doorway. I felt a sudden pull, like the world itself was trying to suck me back into the rift, but I fought against it, diving headfirst into the unknown.
There was a moment of disorientation, a brief instant where I felt like I was falling through nothingness, the ground beneath me vanishing, the air shifting. My stomach lurched, and I had to fight the overwhelming urge to close my eyes. I couldn't-whatever was on the other side of this doorway, I had to face it head-on.
Then, with a sharp jolt, my feet hit solid ground. I stumbled forward, hands scraping against the rough surface, my breath ragged as I collapsed to the ground.
"Sarah!" Axel's voice broke through the haze of my disorientation, and I looked up to find him kneeling beside me, his face etched with concern. "Are you alright?"
I nodded weakly, my hand pressing against the wound on my back, but it was already beginning to heal. The rift was still with me, I could feel its pull, but we had made it through. We had escaped, for now.
But what had we truly escaped to?
I looked around. The landscape was different. The trees were darker, the sky an unnatural shade of violet. The air was thin, almost too still. It wasn't the rift, but it wasn't the world we had left behind either. This place felt like something in between-like a waiting room for souls caught between dimensions.
Axel stood, his expression tense as he surveyed our surroundings. "Where are we?" he muttered, almost to himself.
I didn't have an answer. But I knew one thing: the rift hadn't let go of us. It was still watching, waiting, and it wasn't done with us yet.
"We need to move," I said, pushing myself to my feet, the wound already a distant memory. "We can't stay here. Whatever this place is, it's not safe."
Axel nodded, his gaze scanning the horizon. "Right. But we have to find out where we are first."
And so we began to walk, every step taking us deeper into the unknown, the rift's shadow still hanging over us like a cloud. We didn't know what lay ahead, but we couldn't stop. Not now. Not after everything we had been through