We didn't linger by the black pool. The cavern still felt heavy, like something unseen was pressing down on us, urging us forward. Ava took the lead again, though now she kept glancing back at Will with a mixture of respect and concern. Will followed her, shoulders squared, the fierceness in her expression still simmering beneath the surface.
The tunnel ahead was narrow, the walls pulsing faintly like the whole place was breathing around us. I stayed close to the middle of the group, constantly checking over my shoulder. My gut told me we weren't alone.
"We need to get out of here before this place finds another way to kill us," Cole muttered, his flashlight flickering yet again. He smacked it against his palm, frustration etched across his face.
"We're trying," Ava replied, her voice tight. "But this place doesn't follow any rules. Tunnels appear. Caverns shift. That door didn't open by accident. Something wanted us to come this way."
I didn't like the sound of that. "So what are you saying? We're walking into another trap?"
"Maybe," Ava said. "But unless you have a better idea, we keep moving."
We trudged forward in silence, our footsteps echoing in uneven patterns. The further we went, the colder the air became. It wasn't the chill of the stone but something deeper—a cold that gnawed into your bones. The light from Cole's flashlight stretched long shadows across the walls, and I couldn't stop staring at them. I kept expecting them to peel away, to rise and hunt us like before.
Then it happened.
A sharp clatter. A scraping noise behind us.
I spun around so fast my head swam. "Did you hear that?"
Cole stopped mid-step, shining his flickering light behind us. "Hear what?"
Ava froze. "Something's there."
The noise came again—a dragging, rasping sound, like something clawing across stone. I could see it now. A shape shifting in the shadows, moving toward us with slow, deliberate steps. I squinted into the darkness, and then I saw him.
Freddie.
Or what was left of him.
The twisted version of Freddie that had hunted us earlier was back, but worse now—larger, distorted, almost melted. His body was a mangled mockery of what it once was, shadow and flesh fused together into something monstrous. His face was split, his mouth stretched far too wide, filled with jagged teeth that gleamed like shards of bone. His eyes burned with faint, ghostly light, and when he opened his mouth, a sick, wet growl rattled out.
"Freddie…" Will breathed, her voice soft but steady.
Freddie moved faster now, crawling along the walls and ceiling like a spider, his limbs cracking at unnatural angles. Ava shoved Cole forward. "RUN!"
We bolted down the tunnel, Freddie's distorted screech ringing in my ears. Cole's flashlight sputtered as he ran, the light barely enough to guide us. I stumbled, nearly falling, but Will grabbed my arm, pulling me up.
"Keep moving!" she shouted.
The tunnel seemed endless, the darkness closing in behind us. The sound of Freddie's claws scraping against stone grew louder, closer. He wasn't slowing down.
"We're not going to outrun him!" I gasped.
Ava skidded to a stop at an intersection where the tunnel split into two paths. She turned, her knife drawn. "We fight."
Cole looked at her like she was insane. "Fight? That thing?"
"We don't have a choice!" Ava snapped.
Freddie rounded the corner, his grotesque body dripping shadow as he lunged forward. The sound he made was inhuman, echoing off the walls like a hundred voices screaming at once. Cole swung his flashlight up, the flickering beam striking Freddie's face. He let out a guttural hiss, rearing back from the light.
"They hate the light!" I shouted.
"Then keep it on him!" Ava ordered.
Cole held the flashlight steady, though it shook in his trembling hands. Freddie's body writhed, the shadows twisting and pulling away like smoke where the light hit him.
Will stepped forward suddenly, picking up a loose chunk of stone. "If we keep him pinned with the light, I can hit him!"
Ava grabbed her arm. "Will, no—"
"I can do this!" Will shouted, pulling free.
Freddie snarled and lunged again, his twisted limbs scrambling for purchase. Cole swung the flashlight, forcing him back. Will didn't wait—she ran forward, stone gripped in her hand, and smashed it into Freddie's face.
The sound was sickening, like stone cracking against wet flesh. Freddie shrieked, stumbling backward as parts of his body seemed to slough away like ash. Will hit him again, this time harder. "Get back!" she screamed, the anger in her voice cutting through the chaos.
Freddie let out a final, strangled roar before his body began to dissolve completely. The shadows broke apart, curling and writhing like snakes before evaporating into the air.
When it was over, Will stood there, panting, the stone dropping from her hand. Silence returned to the tunnel.
Cole's flashlight flickered one last time and died completely, plunging us into darkness.
"No, no, no…" Cole muttered, smacking it uselessly.
"It's fine," Ava said quietly, her voice steady again. "We're fine."
I fumbled for the emergency lighter in my pocket, flicking it on. The flame cast small, shaky light around us. I turned to Will, who stood still, staring at where Freddie had been.
"You okay?" I asked softly.
She looked at me, her face pale but calm. "Yeah. I'm okay."
Ava stepped closer, her tone almost gentle. "That was brave. You saved us."
Will didn't smile. "He's not the last one. You know that, right?"
I swallowed hard, the reality sinking in. She was right. Freddie was gone, but whatever had turned him into that was still out there, waiting. Watching.
A faint hum echoed from deep within one of the tunnels.
Ava glanced toward it, her jaw tightening. "We keep moving."
"Toward that?" Cole asked, his voice thin.
"Toward whatever gets us out of here," Ava replied firmly.
I held the lighter higher, the flame flickering as we turned down the next path. Will walked beside me now, her steps steady, her hands no longer shaking. She wasn't afraid anymore—and that meant maybe, just maybe, we had a chance.
The darkness stretched ahead, waiting. And we were ready to meet it.