The shaking of the ladder seemed almost frantic now. Almost as if it knew it was getting closer. She took a deep breath and felt her muscle tense as she started pulling herself up the ladder as fast as she could go. The top had to be near. She couldn't imagine why a ladder would be here if it was much further. Why not steps?
Her hand raised at last and felt no ladder rung. The darkness here made the air murky. She could barely see her hands as she felt before her. Concrete with pock marks and broken shards scattered around. She stood up from the last rung of the ladder and felt the rusted metal that dug into the concrete. She was hoping it was rusted enough to break loose and make the ladder fall, but she didn't know how much time she had, for the clinking and clanging was getting so much closer now.
Every now and again she could hear a moaning sound from the ledge. She turned and walked as fast as she could. Because of the darkness she couldn't chance running and bumping into something, let alone maybe falling off a ledge. She didn't know how high she was or where she even was. The pressure that was around her seemed to be so strong now. It had to be very close. She could even hear it grunting with it's toil up the ladder.
Her hands felt a wall in front of her now. Feeling around her she felt no ladder. Just a sheer wall. This didn't feel like concrete though. Felt smooth and cold, like granite. Her mind raced as she felt for a door, or something to let her more forward.
She paused in her tracks. She heard something. She couldn't tell direction or distance. It was something distinctly different than this thing chasing her. She found a corner and sat down in the corner, hoping this thing wouldn't be able to see her once it got up to the top with her. Then she heard the sound again. Was that a voice? Yes, a voice.
"Oh dear, looks like you might be in trouble, Tracy. Oh, the suspense." She could hear the smile in the voice.
"Who are you?" Tracy hugged her knees closer to herself, feeling like burying her face in her knees.
"Who I am is unimportant. You wouldn't understand anyway," the voice said matter of factly.
"What I can tell you is maybe more interesting for you in your current situation." Tracy could almost feel as if the source of the voice was near her. The rattling from the chains had stopped advancing, but she could hear it was near the edge still. But it was on the top of the concrete. She was certain of that.
"Don't worry for the moment, I've stopped it." The voice seemed to get close to Tracy and she felt as if something tapped her shoulder.
"Take a look. Here, I'll help you see it." The voice was very close to her and she wiped her eyes briefly and peered into the darkness.
A soft glow started twenty yards from her, casting a yellowish red hue to the air and the creature that had been persuing her. Rusty, grey chains protruded from portions of the body. It looked human but was deformed in ways that she couldn't fully comprehend. It's head seemed to roll from side to side as it moved impatiently, trying to move toward her. The ends of the chains had hooked ends that for some reason were pulled taught, keeping the thing where it was. Nothing held onto the ends of the chains. The chains protruded from the front of each shoulder, the forearms just above the wrists, and on either side of the hips. The chains were bloodied and looked long ago fused to their locations somehow. It seemed to be male, but she wasn't sure. The light played tricks with her eyes, flickering and changing features to seem more femanine at times and then reverting back in an instant.
"Wh...what is it?" Tracy whispered. Fearing her mere mention of it would release it.
A darker shadow took form next to her and seemed to lean against the granite, proping a foot up behind it. It seemed to have an apple in a hand that it took a bite out of before speaking again.
"It's not mine. I was hoping you'd tell me? You made it a little more - " Tracy interrupted the figure.
"I did no such thing. I'd never wish that. Besides," she couldn't take her eyes off the mutilated figure, " how could I create it?"
The figure tossed the apple, rolling it across the concrete and it disappeared over the edge of the drop off. Then the figure turned what must have been a shadowed face to her.
"You humans don't know everything your brains can do. There's little places that things can hide." Tracy could sense a sly little sneer spreading across the figures face.
"It's strange. You have all this potential, but you can't get past the very basics save for a few of you. Those few are shunned or disregarded as liars and cheats." The figure leaned down and spoke softly near Tracy's ear.
"Most of them are," a content sigh escaped from the figure. Tracy turned her head and leaned as close to the granite wall that she could. The figure stood back up and motion with his hand and the light faded back to almost total darkness.
"But there are a few that are real. Take this little creation for instance. How do you know it wouldn't have been worse and killed more people if it had been given free will? At least this way your subconscience has some control over it. You're not all bad, Tracy." A chuckled again from the figure.
"Nonsense! As I said - " this time Tracy was cut off.
"You haven't the first bit of knowledge about this thing." professed the figure.
"You've felt the pressure from it, right? The weight? That's not me. You need of it. You want it to take you. Your subconscience is wishing for it. We can test that right now. Here, let me release it and if your subconscience doesn't want it, stop it and turn it away." Tracy felt that burning smile from the figure.
Tracy said nothing, she knew she was being played with, but she didn't know how long it would go on.
"Awww, nothing to say, Tracy? Come on. I know you better than that."
Tracy started to get up slowly in the darkness and decided to try to quietly find somewhere to go. A moment before she would be standing up, she was forced back down, an energy pressing on her from the figure.
"Tracy! I'm not ready to let you go yet. The sooner you understand that, the better off you'll be." Broken concrete spread in a circle around Tracy as the force drifted down her and over the concrete ground around her like a hurricane force wind. Tracy started to shutter now. This was more serious than she thought. She was hoping it was a dream, but what kind of dream is this?
"To show you I'm serious, Tracy here's my point." One of the chains broke free of the chained human and darted through the darkness and impaled Tracy in the shoulder, shattering the ball socket of her joint, shooting hot, searing pain through out her body. Tracy yelled out and laid back on the cement, gripping her shoulder and feeling the chain, unable to pull it out.
"You feel that, Tracy? You need more? Don't play with me, Tracy. I am here. I am real," the figure roared in a low gutteral voice. Tracy barely heard any of it with her mind still processing what just happened.
The figure turned and let out a loud roar that shook the ground. Anger was taking over.
Her hand raised at last and felt no ladder rung. The darkness here made the air murky. She could barely see her hands as she felt before her. Concrete with pock marks and broken shards scattered around. She stood up from the last rung of the ladder and felt the rusted metal that dug into the concrete. She was hoping it was rusted enough to break loose and make the ladder fall, but she didn't know how much time she had, for the clinking and clanging was getting so much closer now.
Every now and again she could hear a moaning sound from the ledge. She turned and walked as fast as she could. Because of the darkness she couldn't chance running and bumping into something, let alone maybe falling off a ledge. She didn't know how high she was or where she even was. The pressure that was around her seemed to be so strong now. It had to be very close. She could even hear it grunting with it's toil up the ladder.
Her hands felt a wall in front of her now. Feeling around her she felt no ladder. Just a sheer wall. This didn't feel like concrete though. Felt smooth and cold, like granite. Her mind raced as she felt for a door, or something to let her more forward.
She paused in her tracks. She heard something. She couldn't tell direction or distance. It was something distinctly different than this thing chasing her. She found a corner and sat down in the corner, hoping this thing wouldn't be able to see her once it got up to the top with her. Then she heard the sound again. Was that a voice? Yes, a voice.
"Oh dear, looks like you might be in trouble, Tracy. Oh, the suspense." She could hear the smile in the voice.
"Who are you?" Tracy hugged her knees closer to herself, feeling like burying her face in her knees.
"Who I am is unimportant. You wouldn't understand anyway," the voice said matter of factly.
"What I can tell you is maybe more interesting for you in your current situation." Tracy could almost feel as if the source of the voice was near her. The rattling from the chains had stopped advancing, but she could hear it was near the edge still. But it was on the top of the concrete. She was certain of that.
"Don't worry for the moment, I've stopped it." The voice seemed to get close to Tracy and she felt as if something tapped her shoulder.
"Take a look. Here, I'll help you see it." The voice was very close to her and she wiped her eyes briefly and peered into the darkness.
A soft glow started twenty yards from her, casting a yellowish red hue to the air and the creature that had been persuing her. Rusty, grey chains protruded from portions of the body. It looked human but was deformed in ways that she couldn't fully comprehend. It's head seemed to roll from side to side as it moved impatiently, trying to move toward her. The ends of the chains had hooked ends that for some reason were pulled taught, keeping the thing where it was. Nothing held onto the ends of the chains. The chains protruded from the front of each shoulder, the forearms just above the wrists, and on either side of the hips. The chains were bloodied and looked long ago fused to their locations somehow. It seemed to be male, but she wasn't sure. The light played tricks with her eyes, flickering and changing features to seem more femanine at times and then reverting back in an instant.
"Wh...what is it?" Tracy whispered. Fearing her mere mention of it would release it.
A darker shadow took form next to her and seemed to lean against the granite, proping a foot up behind it. It seemed to have an apple in a hand that it took a bite out of before speaking again.
"It's not mine. I was hoping you'd tell me? You made it a little more - " Tracy interrupted the figure.
"I did no such thing. I'd never wish that. Besides," she couldn't take her eyes off the mutilated figure, " how could I create it?"
The figure tossed the apple, rolling it across the concrete and it disappeared over the edge of the drop off. Then the figure turned what must have been a shadowed face to her.
"You humans don't know everything your brains can do. There's little places that things can hide." Tracy could sense a sly little sneer spreading across the figures face.
"It's strange. You have all this potential, but you can't get past the very basics save for a few of you. Those few are shunned or disregarded as liars and cheats." The figure leaned down and spoke softly near Tracy's ear.
"Most of them are," a content sigh escaped from the figure. Tracy turned her head and leaned as close to the granite wall that she could. The figure stood back up and motion with his hand and the light faded back to almost total darkness.
"But there are a few that are real. Take this little creation for instance. How do you know it wouldn't have been worse and killed more people if it had been given free will? At least this way your subconscience has some control over it. You're not all bad, Tracy." A chuckled again from the figure.
"Nonsense! As I said - " this time Tracy was cut off.
"You haven't the first bit of knowledge about this thing." professed the figure.
"You've felt the pressure from it, right? The weight? That's not me. You need of it. You want it to take you. Your subconscience is wishing for it. We can test that right now. Here, let me release it and if your subconscience doesn't want it, stop it and turn it away." Tracy felt that burning smile from the figure.
Tracy said nothing, she knew she was being played with, but she didn't know how long it would go on.
"Awww, nothing to say, Tracy? Come on. I know you better than that."
Tracy started to get up slowly in the darkness and decided to try to quietly find somewhere to go. A moment before she would be standing up, she was forced back down, an energy pressing on her from the figure.
"Tracy! I'm not ready to let you go yet. The sooner you understand that, the better off you'll be." Broken concrete spread in a circle around Tracy as the force drifted down her and over the concrete ground around her like a hurricane force wind. Tracy started to shutter now. This was more serious than she thought. She was hoping it was a dream, but what kind of dream is this?
"To show you I'm serious, Tracy here's my point." One of the chains broke free of the chained human and darted through the darkness and impaled Tracy in the shoulder, shattering the ball socket of her joint, shooting hot, searing pain through out her body. Tracy yelled out and laid back on the cement, gripping her shoulder and feeling the chain, unable to pull it out.
"You feel that, Tracy? You need more? Don't play with me, Tracy. I am here. I am real," the figure roared in a low gutteral voice. Tracy barely heard any of it with her mind still processing what just happened.
The figure turned and let out a loud roar that shook the ground. Anger was taking over.
"I'm done with you for the moment, Tracy. We'll talk again. Don't worry about that." The human form seemed to distort and then faded into the blackness. The figure seemed to leave Tracy and she felt the pressure on her leaving. She laid her head back and felt herself starting to black out.
She woke, but was in her bed now. Her shoulder was aching still. Looking around her room she realized it was only about two in the morning and she was laying on the shoulder that was hurting. Her hair was wet with sweat as was her pillow and sheets. That was a strange dream, she thought. Never had she had one like that before.
She turned to sit up and that's when the hot pain shot from her shoulder. Her eyes widened in fear. Her mind raced with thoughts, trying to rationalize. That's when the voice seemed to echo in her mind...I am real.
The End
"Something to ponder. Our conscience has a personality and that makes us who we are when we are awake. Why would our subconsience not have the same rule. Who's to say we are any different from a person with a multiple personality disorder. Their subconscience just comes out when they are awake still. Lets all hope our subconscience is gentle in nature."
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