Sensory — P.1
The cold, dry air billowed around me as the stone vents pumped endlessly into the void. I moved quickly and quietly in the dark, feeling along the wall for any changes or obstacles. I had traversed this infinite prison many times, accustomed to the experiences and minuscule quirks of it all. Such is to be expected in a liminal void of darkness.
The walls, the floor, the ceiling, and the very air itself carried no light. Not a trace of any reflections nor the slivers of light normally seen through a window or from the moon. There was no sight here. One only had their instinct and intuition to rely on as they wandered through the endless walls and treacherous floors.
I slowed greatly as I felt the wall fall away, indicative of a right turn. I fumbled along the corner of the wall, silently concerned that I hadn’t found the hook right away. After a few seconds of internal panic, I felt a cold metal object screwed tightly into the wall. A small hook that was almost completely closed off, with a gap just big enough to slip a thin braided rope through to latch onto the metal. I exhaled a sigh of relief and quietly took my pack off, carefully unzipping it and reaching inside.
The hairs on my neck stood on end, and every instinct told me to flee in terror. I suppressed the urge to run and flattened myself against the wall, holding my breath and straining to hear anything in the silent abyss. There. A faint sobbing, and claws slowly raking against the stone. The signs of a spirit. Son of a bitch! It was gaining on me fast, and if it touched me there would be no mercy from the damned.
I grabbed my pack, zipped it, slung it over my shoulder, and took off sprinting down the hallway to the right. I had memorized all the unchanging details of roughly 100 square miles of this place, but objects and entities always changed, and it would only take one mistake to kill myself. I counted the steps and did the quick math for the increase in pace, anticipating 17 steps before I reached the stairs with the deadbolt doors. Safe doors. I heard a blood-curdling scream as a loud smash could be heard from the intersection I had just come from. Shit. I ran as fast as I could possibly go, straining every muscle in my body in a mad dash for safety. The terror of the looming invisible threat gave me the motivation to run, ignoring my exhaustion and soreness.
A powerful blast of frigid air slammed into me from behind, a dire warning of the waning gap between me and my attacker. The stench of decay began lingering in my nose, and the air felt alive with static. I sent a silent prayer into the void as I counted the last few steps. 14, 15, 16, 17… I abruptly slowed as I held my hands out in front of me, thudding against a set of cold metal doors. I grinned like an idiot as I kicked the doors open, slammed them shut behind me, and threw the giant deadbolt into place. I felt for the secondary lock, which warded off entities, and locked it in place below the larger lock. It wouldn’t last long against a spirit this strong, but it would hold long enough to escape to a different level.
I sighed in relief as I took a few minutes to recover, massaging my legs and drinking a flask of water from my pack. I ate a small snack, packed my things, and stood quickly, not wanting to waste much time. I fell to my knees, scanning the ground with my hands, and put my ear to the stone. For a second I heard nothing as my ears adjusted, but after a few seconds I heard a familiar and welcoming sound. Running water. Entities can’t cross running water.
I felt my way up the wall and grabbed the metal railing. Taking one step at a time, I climbed down the stairs, one hand holding the railing and the other waving around in front of me to search the environment. I felt no stairs with my next step and leaned forward with my free hand, feeling the sudden intense cold of frozen metal. I shuffled sideways, meticulously searching for a handle or lever. My hand finally bumped against a large lever and I grasped it with both hands, pulling down the heavy switch with a strained grunt. A mechanism in the door clicked and it unlatched from the wall, creating a small gap that emanated cold, humid air. I shoved the door open all the way just as the door above me exploded violently, as if shattered like glass.
