Monday, March 7, 2011

Falling Deep

Warning: This story contains violent imagery and graphic discussions of sexuality. It is darker than anything I've published previously. Please consider this before reading. Thank you.

Falling Deep

In the moonlit night, Elyse stared at the drooling beast towering above her. "You're not real," she whimpered. "You're not real, and this is a dream. You can't really hurt me. I... I can't be scared."


The snarling beast slowly melted back into the featureless, stitched mannequin. The human-sized doll ripped apart at where its mouth should be and it began talking.

"You're right. This is only a dream. But... it sure seems real, doesn't it?" its form grew greasy black hair and its stomach began to bulge. It grew a surly, mocking voice as it warped itself. "It sure seems like you're facing that man. That man who brought the darkness so many nights ago. I smell like him. I sound like him. That arrogant, wicked tone that tells you just how confident I am that I'm going to win what happens next. That hot, gross breath pouring out of my mouth... sure seems like its all there, now don't it?"

The thing had taken full form now. It had hollow black eyes and resembled a twisted version of the person that had harmed Elyse over a decade ago. His arms were more musclebound before, his skin worse, scabbed and even ripped in some places. His mouth was a full sneer.

"Why don't we do it all over again, little lady? Why don't we live that one perfect night all o'er again, and you can jut out your chin and tell me how it's not real while I work my magic."

Her pulse had risen to new levels as she began to panic. She couldn't go back there. She couldn't handle it. She stepped backwards twice before turning around and running down the first hallway she say.

"You keep running, little lady! You keep running and tucker yerself out!"

The face of the man briefly returned to that of the formless, cloth doll. Its mouth parted.

"We have seven more hours, Elyse Halloway. We will end in our success."

Find Gerald, she thought. He's in here somewhere; the dreams are linked. He has to be in one of these rooms. She knocked on each door she came across. Every window, every panel, every cupboard. Some were made of wood, others cold steel. No matter which one she pounded against, however, there was no sound. She turned around and saw the silhouette of the creature lumbering towards her. It attempted an impression of a human laugh, but it failed, leaving a broken, gargling giggle to echo through the hallway.

A thought occurred to Elyse. If this was her dream world, then it had to operate by her imagination to her extent. It had to be layered with how she imagined things...

The moment she realized this, she remembered the long talks she would have with her mother at the coffee shop on Wednesday mornings. Her mother would start out pleasant and then eventually drone on about her success in subtle backhands to Elyse. Soon enough, the conversation wold become a monologue about how Elyse had wasted her life, even though she was only 19. Her mom would tell her the changes she would need to make, and Elyse would just stare down at her coffee cup, wishing she could just...

... that was it. Elyse grabbed one of the tiniest cupboard doors and pulled it open. From the two square feet in the cabinet, dozens of coffee glasses came tumbling out, almost all of them breaking instantly.

The creature was near now, talking and muttering its fond memories of a night it never had. It had clearly fully connected to her fears and dark memories and was reveling in their fullness. It was less than twenty feet away.

Elyse took the only undamaged cup and sat it down between her and the creature. She stood there for a moment, wishing how she could get away from her mother. How she could get away from this painful past. How she could tell someone about it and that would make everything go away. And if she couldn't do that, maybe she could just... disappear.

She took one step over the cup, her foot hovering above its open brim. Her eyes met the grotesque and smug man now fifteen feet away from her. She took a breath and let her body go limp.

The next moment, she opened her eyes and she was falling. Falling through a darkness. High above her, she could see the vast brim of the coffee cup, its size now larger than her bedroom. Above it, the massive face of the disgusting man peered over as if an ominous moon.

"Oh, we'll find ya little lady. We'll reconnect with how you think, and we'll be there for a right proper reunion. Just you wait."

As she fell, she began to breath normally once more. Her pulse slowed down slightly, and she tried to gather her thoughts.

Find Gerald. She had to find Gerald.

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