Chapter 2 : The Maze of Darkness
281 Words
Alina’s heart pounded in her chest as the hidden door creaked open, revealing a narrow passageway shrouded in darkness. For a moment, she hesitated. The unknown stretched before her like a living thing, its silence more unnerving than the guards she had evaded. But there was no turning back now. She took a deep breath and stepped into the abyss.
The air was thick and stale, the walls closing in as she navigated the twisting tunnel. Her fingers brushed against cold stone, guiding her in the near pitch-black as she shuffled forward. Every step echoed, magnified in the suffocating quiet, and Alina couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t alone.
Her mind raced with the stories she had heard from other prisoners—tales of this labyrinth, buried beneath the prison for centuries. Few had ventured into it, and fewer still had returned. Some claimed it was a forgotten network of tunnels, while others whispered of creatures that roamed the shadows, devouring the souls of the lost. Alina shook the thoughts from her mind. Fear was her greatest enemy now.
After what felt like hours of blindly moving forward, she spotted a faint glow ahead. Her pulse quickened. Was it the way out, or a trick of the mind? Alina approached cautiously, her eyes straining to adjust to the light. As she neared, the glow grew brighter, revealing an ancient stone chamber, its walls lined with strange markings. In the center stood a single torch, its flame flickering weakly.
She reached for the torch, but as her fingers closed around the handle, a voice echoed through the chamber.
“You shouldn’t have come this far.”
Alina froze. She wasn’t alone.
- Writer
