Down Bellow

Darkness!

Complete and pitch-black darkness greeted me as I opened the door. It was really anti-climactic considering all the pressure and tension I felt. Though I have to say, the stairs leading deeper into the darkness were really creeping me out.

I looked towards Y as he continued to float around me with his disgusting cheeks and overall revolting appearance. I wondered where he was during my childhood. I swore I didn't remember him at all. Something seemed amiss. He even said, "I can finally talk to you at last." At that time, I didn't even notice, but now, closely looking at him, I should probably ask him what he meant by those words.

But before I could, he was the first to initiate a conversation about the situation, giving me a chance to ask him the question.

"Looks like it goes deeper through the tabernacle. These stairs are ominous. I wouldn't even recommend going inside in our current state," he explained his analysis to me.

I looked below the door and saw what he was talking about. The stairs that led deeper inside the tabernacle, as he called it, were like threats to the room. It was dark, rustic, and displeasing. I guess this is where the basement really resides.

"I don't advise that we go further, Enzo. This seems too quiet. Nothing good will happen if we do," Y warned me.

I nodded in full agreement. "I think we should run before something crawls out from this deep abyss—come on, seriously?" A shrill scream was heard from below.

"You have the worst timing, Enzo. However, this could prove to be an opportunity," Y replied. "We should stay here and fight this thing, or rather, you should be the one doing the fighting."

He looked at me, giving me a bright smile. I didn't like that smile, not one bit. And did he just say "fight that thing"? What thing is that? Something that would give me a few hits? Besides, I am not prepared. I didn't even bring a sword or anything that would enable me to properly handle the situation.

"What do you mean by that, huh? I have nothing with me?" I retaliated to his statement.

"Well, now is the time to learn what to do when you have nothing, right?" he leisurely replied to me. I swear this guy can be annoying sometimes.

A deafening screech tore through the air, reverberating with a piercing intensity that sent shivers down our spines. I quickly ran away from the door and headed to the area where I thought the entrance was.

"Hey! Where are you going? You are supposed to fight this shade. Hey... Stop... Listen to me," Y called out to me, but I ignored him and quickly rummaged through the walls, searching for a possible exit.

As I continued to rummage through the elusive walls, something protruded from the wall and began to shake. I walked back, frightened by what happened. When the amorphous object came through, it was Y, his face fully enraged and disappointed.

"Why do you not want to fight? A shade of this magnitude would be easy, and it is alone!" he yelled at me with an ear-piercing tone, scolding me for what would happen.

I covered my ears from his loud scoldings. Although it is true that I have been really scared about everything, I have no choice. I cannot do anything at the moment. I don't even have a proper weapon. And why would he have faith in someone who is just 13 years old and knows practically nothing?

"What can I do? I don't have a weapon, no crucifix, nothing that would enable me to attack it," I replied in a nervous tone, hoping that he would give me a chance to at least let me live another day.

"Didn't you say you wanted to find your parents? Find answers to your questions. Another question can be answered if you go through that door and finish this damn thing," Y gave me no room to back down. "Aren't you supposed to be someone who would carry the hopes of everyone? Don't you at least have a goal to finish this war, not just survive, but live with your family? Isn't that what you wanted?"

"I never wanted to be leaned on by everyone!" I shouted without restraint, overwhelmed by different emotions that got to me. "I—I never wanted to be this important in the world, nor did I accept this fate of mine." I didn't know what hit me, but I grabbed my chest with an intense passion that almost ripped it out.

"You think that I chose to be in this state as well? Well, grow up, kid. I was thrown into the battlefield when I was 8, and I learned how to manage a kingdom when I was 11. I was cursed when I reached 18. I complained just like you, I shouted just like you, and I despised everything just like you. But how in the deep horse manure did you bury your head to stop improving and let fear take over you, huh?" Each time his voice grew louder, his presence became larger and more frightening, and emotions swirled all over the place, wild as they could be.

Y's voice softened, tinged with sadness. "Sometimes life doesn't give us what we want. But we have to rise above it. We have to face our fears and fight, not just for ourselves, but for the ones we love." He said, "Fear is natural. But the moment you let it take the fall of blame for every mistake that you make, every second of hesitation that will cause you someone it would be the end, and it surely not be the last to happen."

"I know I am weak, I can't but be weak I don't where I am going. I don't have anything" I said in frustration.

A loud shriek then began to resonate inside the room. It was a high-pitched scream. The shade spoke in a manner that defied comprehension. His words were a jumble of disjointed sounds and indecipherable syllables, leaving me utterly perplexed. It was as if he had dipped into an unknown language, a code that no one could crack. My brows furrowed in frustration as I strained to make sense of his unintelligible speech.

The shade slowly emerged from the door, leaving behind a murky dark substance from the smog that emanated from its body. The first thing I noticed was its eyes. They were deep black, distinct from the rest of its body, like beckoning me into the depths of its sockets, showing no regard for emotion.

It scoured the area, looking for something or someone. Turning its head in a slow but menacing motion, it locked its empty eyes onto mine. It screamed once more, making me tremble.

My hands had issues moving as they shivered from the atmosphere of death that lingered inside the room. My legs were crippled, and I stood frozen, not knowing how to move. It was a loud scene that I never expected to be so silent. My ears went blank and covered themselves, not wanting to hear any more of this chaos.

I stood there, blood frozen, short of breath, terrified, and wanting to run. It took no time for the shade to identify me as something it wanted as a midnight snack and lunged at me with speeds that made my hairs stand on end. As it dove into the place where I was situated, it went through the ground and merged with the floor.

Stumbling on the ground as I dodged its attempt, I didn't wait to see if it would make another move. I walked back to the middle of the room where I found him missing, as amorphous shadows began to ride the night, their pathways being the ceilings, floors, and tables, with their destination soon to be me.

"Shades will slowly kill you and eat your soul. Be careful," Y gave me trivial information as I stood up again after falling once more.

"As they launch their assault, their chilling touch induces a numbing effect on their unfortunate target, rendering their joints almost immobile and leaving them incapacitated. Simultaneously, their victims experience a loss of sensory perception, with their sense of smell, touch, and hearing fading away. It is at this precise moment that the shadows commence their draining action, effectively sapping the energy of their adversary, leaving them weakened and powerless."

"Thank you for the information, but I think I need another type of help right now, and I hope it's something helpful and possibly what I need right now" I ran around as the shade always tried to jump on me, barely dodging its movements.

His long dark claws were filled with cold, I feel it with every swing of his hand, his mouth opens and incomprehensible voices comes out, it was very distracting. My focus began to fade as strength left my body. It was getting heavy and the more I move, the heavier every motion I do becomes.

I know I should get out soon, or else I would attract something bigger, larger, just like I always do. And I do not want that to happen again.