Chapter 11 - Breakdown

Arise, thee who was kept in the dark 

I offer thee those embed with the mark 

Let my fellowship embark on thy mighty ark 

Treading the sea of pain and the bloody shark 

In this time of darkness, I request for thy spark

So may those who cross us, be dead since the start

              -Page 4, Chapter 6. Poem of the summon by George J. Northtooth. 

….. 

"Mm…" 

Gently, her eyelids twitched in a brief moment as her mind stirred within. Slowly unfolding themselves, the pupils of the young girl contrasted in order to focus their line of vision. 

When the coldness of the floor had prickled her skin, the young girl felt prompted to get up and take a look at her surroundings. While the numbness in one of her hands was noticed, an understanding intent flashed in her eyes as she realized that her sleeping posture wasn't the best this entire time. 

In her dazed state after waking up from her slumber, Elizabeth started to recall the memories and scenes of the past. However, her musing was halted immediately when her gaze laid upon a scene before her. 

A puddle of liquid could be seen through the dim lighting out of her window. Though she couldn't make heads or tails of what kind of liquid it was in the cover of darkness, it doesn't obstruct her curiosity to find out the nature of it. 

The familiar whiff arrived at her nostrils and caused her to raise her eyebrows.  Feeling the surge of foreboding sprouted within her, she hastened her pace and quickly got up to her feet. A disturbed expression slowly creeping into her visage. 

'Uh… A flashlight.' 

Gazing upon the broken form of her lamp, Elizabeth knew there would be no way to activate that lamp anymore. Not until she replaced it with the newer one. In the meantime, her mind seeks for another tool to illuminate her room and everything around her. 

Pulling out her study desk while carefully watching her feet to not step onto the puddle, Elizabeth quickly found what she was looking for and took it out. With a flip of a switch, a bright cone shaped light came out of the flashlight, as she directed that same light towards the puddle nearby. 

Shortly, she found the source of her unease while her expression changed to that of shock and panic. The red, glistening color of the liquid told Elizabeth that it was blood. Such a sizable puddle should have been caused by a major bleeding or something similar. 

'W-What happened!?' Asked Elizabeth to heeded as she put her other hand to cover her gaping mouth. If she remembered it correctly, before she got knocked out, there shouldn't be any blood around the place. Not even the humanoid monster who appeared out of nowhere was resulting in a gore display at his last moment. 

'That's right… Back then…' 

Back then, she recalled a cloaked figure who saved her at the clutch of the humanoid monster. In that critical time, if the cloaked figure was late even by a few seconds later, Elizabeth couldn't imagine if she could still be breathing at this point of time.

Next, the cloaked figure appeared to walk towards her direction. And then, her consciousness couldn't hold on for much longer and he blanked out at that moment. 

'What are they…' 

Up until now, Elizabeth felt that everything happened in the past hours seemed to be a dream. If not for the puddle of blood in front of her as proof, then she might think she had hallucination. 

The more she recalled those scenes, the more the pace of heartbeats became uncontrollable. Everything around her seemed to be in standstill, as her body felt shackled by the invisible layers of chains all around her, stiffened at the thought of her encounter. 

Her mind was a train wreck, flowing incessantly with many questions she could not answer. The rush of her blood caused her anxiety to reach its peak once more, leading her to spiral of shock and terror as the thick smell of blood permeated in the air. 

"A..a...ah…" 

Now, that all of her drowsiness washed away by the cold fact of terror she had comprehended, Elizabeth realized how close she was at the death's door. 

The luster of her eyes dimmed considerably while her whole being was frozen silly. Hand still covering her mouth, her other hand slowly dropped off the flashlight to the floor and grabbed unto her other arm, near the shoulder. Clutching them tightly in case to see if all of this was just a dream. 

Everything is crystal clear to her at this moment. But at the same time, her mind was also muddled by the unknown presented before her. No matter what, she was in her own abode. Yet, safe was the furthest word she could think of now. 

Slowly, she took a few steps back as her gaze fixated onto the glinting light of the blood. Her flashlight was right near the puddle and gave its illumination to it to make it worse in her vision. 

While her consciousness wanted to get away from this place as far as possible and her position was right beside the entrance of her room, Elizabeth couldn't help but took a glance at the door next to her. 

With a gaze filled with suspicions and fright, Elizabeth subconsciously thought of what had transpired back then. Last time, everything happened from the moment she saw the door being able to move itself. Now that humanoid monster is gone, or at least she thinks he is gone.

Again, another mystery that roused the stifled and choking feeling within her. She moved away from the door as well, and before she knew it, her back was pressed against the walls, her eyes wandered to everything around her in wariness and anxiousness. 

Shortly, it had begun with a subtle start. But as the dam broke, misty tears flowed down from her eyes as her figure trembled in frustration, anger, and fear. She knows nothing. And she can't trust anything. Slowly, she dropped down her wearied body and curled up in a ball. A faint sobbing noise could be heard out of her lips.