Opening that entrance door from the wall in this cafeteria was quite a challenge for us. There was a loud creaking sound as he opened it in a careful manner, thankfully nobody came out until now. My heart skipped of the idea that those two evil women might be inside whatever lies behind it.
When it fully opened, however, what greeted our eyes was a long and tight hallway with a seemingly indefinite amount of doors lining along each side of the walls. The flickering white lights glowing inside on the ceiling bulbs gave off a dim light.
Strange noises echoed throughout the hallways, sounds of people crying and shouting faintly in the distance. We stood still for a few moments in silence as we took in all the sights around us. Dubious of whether we should enter this mysterious endless corridor or turn back and run away with our tails between our legs.
“Let us keep moving forward,” Smith suggested. “There is nothing else for us to do but press on,” he added with conviction.
Sweat dripped down my forehead, wiping it with my sleeve, “I-I really do not think we shoulder enter this place, it feels…eerie,” I muttered while shaking my head in fear. Deep down, my survival instincts told me not to enter this long hallway immediately but at least I have someone here beside me that will stand with me no matter how hopeless things seemed to be.
He sighed deeply, “Look, I understand you are scared but there is absolutely nothing that scares me more than death,” Smith explained while giving a reassuring smile.
I looked at him questioningly, “You are not afraid?” Questioning why someone like him would not be afraid to step inside these creepy halls.
“Not at all!” Smith manically laughed loudly. “Death is something that comes for all of us eventually! You should know that better than anyone else alive right now!” he exclaimed with crazy passion, causing me to question further his current mental state.
He continued laughing hysterically before stopping, groaning before comforting his own head again with his hands. “Sorry if I made you uncomfortable again…” he mumbled loudly, looking away from me in shame.
“It is alright. I know what you are going through,” I said gently patting his back lightly. “We will find a way out of this mess somehow,” I assured him with a small laugh.
After a moment of pause, he turned his gaze towards mine with a serious look, “What do you think?” He stated plainly yet sternly before continuing on, “Do you think we should enter this hallway or keep walking ahead? It is up to you.”
I shook my head slowly while shrugging my shoulders, “I do not think there is anything wrong entering this hallway. What is the worst thing that could happen?” Could be a big mistake. Even though my instincts told me not to go, I do not think it was the right choice after all. If only I listened to my gut feeling instead of ignoring it.
Smith gave me a gentle smile, “Then let us go,” he suggested with an encouraging voice that did not match his eyes. I nodded nervously from his answer, walking into the endless tight hallway with flickering dim lights that cast shadows across the corridor. The sound of our footsteps echoed eerily through the empty hallways that appeared endless as we walked deeper into the dimmed place.
Notwithstanding the constant sounds of people crying and shouting faintly in the distance, our walk forward was uneventful and jading until we reached a dead end with no exit sign or door anywhere in sight. We stood motionless in front of a metal wall blocking off our path and stared at it in silence.
I gulped softly, feeling the butterflies fluttering in my stomach. I should have trusted my instincts, but unfortunately for me, I ignored them as well. Feeling my knees trembling, I took a deep breath before exhaling in defeat, kneeling down in defeat.
“There is nothing here… I thought this hallway ended somewhere around here,” I replied quietly, trying to hide the quiver in my voice.
He winced in sympathy at my obvious disappointment. “We have to head back,” he informed me with a grave tone, staring at the steel wall in front of us before turning his gaze towards me. “Are you ready?” He asked me with a hint of concern.
What about the doors? Perhaps there is something behind those closed doors?
“Did you check any of the doors?”
He frowned as he looked away from me, “No,” he murmured. “They must have been locked when I tried to open a few of them during our stroll…” His voice trailed off as his brows furrowed with ambiguity. “Perhaps it is better if we head back now,” he suggested with a decisive expression.
I bit my lip, “Okay,” I muttered reluctantly. “Let us head back then,” we started heading back from the dim light and eerie hallway with a slow pace, cautiously stepping over every inch of the floor, careful not to trip or stumble not to alert unknown entities that could be lurking within the walls.
All of the voices stopped around us, silent and still. My then heart thumped loudly in my chest as we both stopped in our tracks, “what is going on?” My voice trembled with hairs raised all over the surface of my skin.
His face became grim, he peered ahead, “I do not know,” he whispered, his jaw clenched tightly. “But it is not good,” he added, grabbing hold of my arm, pulling me along as we quietly hurried down the long hallway.
Monstrous roar appeared behind the back, echoing in the corridor, sending chills up and down our spines. The sound of loud footsteps echoed all around us, someone was running after us.
We wasted no time in running, pushing ourselves forward with haste to escape this place alive. We ran like madmen for a long while until finally, the entrance door suddenly closed, blocking the only way to leave this hallway.
“W-what do we do now?!” I desperately called out, looking around this. There were doors everywhere around us, but nearly all of them were locked.
The echoing sounds of the monster’s footsteps continued to grow louder, approaching closer and closer from afar. “We need to find another way out of this place,” he said, quickly glancing around. “It is too late to turnaround, but perhaps if we check any of the doors near us, one of them could be open!” Smith exclaimed, rushing to the nearest door.
Memory came to my eyes. In that memory I remembered something since the first event of meeting Smith.
“Use your key!” I shouted. “It might work! It has to!”
Smith did not turn to look at him nor did he need to, his visage says it all. “You..you are right! I forgot about that. Come on Adam, let us get the hell out of this place before that thing gets us!” His hand immediately reached for the doorknob, using his small key to unlock it. With a swift motion, the door opened, revealing a large cavern. “Oh thank god,” he breathed, relief spreading across his face. “Come on, hurry.”
I pursued behind, peering down the dark passageway, feeling hesitant to step inside. “What are you waiting for, go already,” Smith urged. “Hurry!”
“Wait a-” I did not have anytime to complete my sentence when he forcibly pulled inside the cavern in hurried, fast pace before he managed to close the door in time and lock it with his key.
The monstrous growls and bangs behind the locked door grew even more deafening as the unknown creature keep trying to smash the door down, trying to force its way in while I laid on the surface, wide opened and fearful of the thought that the thing that was chasing us would break the door down and kill us in likely the most gruesome and painfully way imaginable.
Luckily for us, after a few minutes of sweating and nervousness, the pounding and banging stopped and all that could be heard was silence. Allowing us to breathe in a sigh of relief from the terrifying situation we had landed ourselves into.
The best part of all is that we did not physically see the thing that was chasing us, better than having constant nightmares of what might the appearance of that beast looked like.
“Need a hand to stand up?” He asked, offering me his hand. “No thanks, I think I got it,” I replied, getting to my feet with some difficulty, still shaken from the fright. “So, where are we now? We left from that scary hallway. So, this must be a cavern,” I added, looking around the place. “Where are we exactly, do you know?”
He glanced at me with one eye and shrugged his shoulders, smiling wryly. “Honestly, I do not know where we are, but I am sure we are somewhere underground. And there is no way back to that dungeon from here, I am afraid.” My heart sank from his answer, knowing it was useless for me to ask more.
“Well, it does not really matter, because we are still alive,” he said with a shrug. “That is something to celebrate, isn’t it?” For once, he appeared genuinely happy, perhaps because of our unexpected escape from death. Or maybe because of his newfound companionship as team.
I could not help but smile as well, because it felt good to be alive. “Yes, indeed, it is,” I agreed, though the truth is, I was not quite so thrilled. As much as it pained me to admit it, that encounter with the monster had rattled me. It was a terrible experience, and one I wanted to put behind me. But unfortunately, the memory refused to leave.
“Oh, I guess you are right. But what now, where will we go?” I wondered aloud, feeling lost and alone from the moment the thing almost killed us. “Well, let us find out,” he suggested, gesturing me to follow. We walked along the passageway, seeing all sorts of glowing pebbles and small rocks that illuminated the cave with their appealing colors.
“It is beautiful,” I whispered, admiring the beauty of the place, despite the fact it reminded me of creepy, underground lair. “How do you feel about this place, Smith?”
He sighed, shaking his head. “I hate it. There are too many things that remind me of the past. All those times spent down here, searching for things that were not even real, and all that effort wasted,” his depressing demeanor reflected his thoughts.
I nodded in agreement, for it was a familiar feeling of mine as well. “I understand where you are going through. The same thought has crossed my mind several times before. Sometimes it feels like it happened just yesterday, sometimes it appears more like it took place centuries ago. Like nothing ever changed down here. That is why it is so difficult for me to believe in what others say about the outside world…”
We both froze at our spots, contemplating the question of whether to continue or simply give up. Finally, after a few moments of silence, Smith spoke. “So, do we keep walking? What do you think?”
It is hard to keep on moving, seeing people tortured, having little food and being almost brutally killed by unknown monster; but there is no choice. We have to keep moving forward for the sake of our loved ones back home. “Yeah,” I finally replied, trying to sound strong and confident. “Let’s go.”
So, we continued to walk, each step taking us further and deeper into the depths of this cavern, until suddenly, the ground started to rumble beneath our feet.
“What is going on?!” I asked, looking around in alarm. Smith looked worried, too, glancing at the walls and ceiling nervously, “Adam, if this whole cavern collapses, I want to say that you are the best kid I have ever known!”
As he said that, the floor shook again, sending dust and rock fragments flying all around. It was obvious that the tremors were getting worse. In fact, it felt as though the entire mountain might come crumbling down.
“What should we do?!” I shouted in desperation, watching the rocks fall all around us.
Smith stared at me with a sadden look of defeat, a grim smile spreading across his face. “I do not think we are going to survive this kid…I am sorry.”
My teary eyes widened in shock, sobbing helplessly as I continued to look at him with fear in my gaze. “I DO NOT WANT TO DIE! I DO NOT WANT TO DIE! PLEASE, STOP IT! PLEASE, DO SOMETHING! I DO NOT WANT TO DIE!”
Suddenly, a massive boulder fell right next to me, slamming into the ground with a loud bang. “It is already too late,” Smith muttered, staring ahead with a sad expression in his eyes before closing them.
That was the last thing he ever said to me as the ground beneath us broke into pieces after the massive boulder fell on the surface, resulting us to fall into the dark and hollow abyss.
