https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9ttpUqxEow
The moon shone through the window in my guildhall dorm. Though it was still very early, I got up. There was something I felt I needed to do, somewhere I had to be. I quietly left my room and walked down the stairs; my footfalls too soft to echo off the wood. I entered the lobby. Moonlight shining through the windows provided the only illumination. No, not here. I had to be elsewhere. Ross was sleepwalking again, aimlessly walking around the bottom floor of the guild, leaving a trail of paint. I never saw his face. I ignore him. It appeared he at one point had wandered into the basement. I follow the trail there, into the storage room. Closer, but not quite.
Here. Behind some boxes, hidden away. There was a hole in the floor with a ladder. I went down. I had to. Deeper I went into the ground beneath the guild, surrounded on all sides by earth. Claustrophobic. There was no light source, yet the way was illuminated.
Deeper, deeper.
...
How deep does this go?
...
I reached the bottom. The bare earth gave way to dark, damp stone bricks forming a hallway, patches of dark lichens and moss spattered throughout. Dim torches lined one side of the wall, in between regularly spaced alcoves. I walked forward, further into the dungeon. The end of the hall opened up into an inner chamber, lit by braziers on either side. A figure was standing in the middle of the room, and beyond him stood a gallows grim. This is where I needed to be. Stepping into the camber, other mons appeared to materialize, though I was unable to determine what they were. Unmoving and white. I approached the figure in the middle of the room. Is this why I had to come?
The figure was undoubtedly another pokemon, I could tell, but even standing before it I could not see its face or make out any features. It was holding a length of rope at its side. Fear blossomed in by chest, but I stood firm. The gallows loomed above me.
A question escaped my mouth. "Is this for me?"
The figure provided no response.
Another. "Are you to kill me?"
Silence. My fear grew. I knew the answer.
Slowly, the figure raised its hand to me, offering the rope. Though featureless, I could see it sneer. No words were spoken, but I could hear its words. A command.
Do it yourself.
I began to reach for the rope. The gallows loomed.
-
I stopped. Me fear overtook me. Whatever conviction I had that led me here I no longer possess. My mind was filled with one thought. Run. I had to get out of here, this evil place.
I turned and ran. The figure remained still. I passed though the figures blocking the egress like mist. I could hear, no, feel the laughter coming from the figure, its soundless words echoing down the hall, giving me chase.
USELESS. USELESS. USELESS.
As fast as my short legs could carry me, and occasionally sliding on my chest, I made it back to the ladder. The walls seemed to shake. But the ladder is tall, and I am short. Surely they'll catch up to me before I make it to the top? I climbed. I made it to the top unaccosted. If I was being chased, I was still ahead of them. I had the feeling they wouldn't leave their chamber, but I still needed to run. To get away. I had to get higher. They could be right behind me at any moment. It was morning now. I ran towards the dorms, passing guildmates who appeared to be standing still, or wandering without purpose. Can they not see the danger that lies below? Do they not care?
I ran into a room, leaving the door open behind me. Heart still racing, but the fear had subsided somewhat. I looked out the window. It was facing the bay. The water seemed darker than normal, even in the sunlight. I stood and watched for a moment. Fear began to take me again. Surely, that dreaded chamber was down there somewhere. I watched now with trepidation, as if expecting at any moment for those figures to burst from the waters to claim me. No, it wasn't safe here. I had to get further away.
I turned to leave the room, and as I passed the threshold I emerged not into the guildhall, but a very familiar place. One I hadn't seen in quite some time. My childhood home. I could see my mother sitting in a recliner. My fear vanished. I would be safe here. I looked down and saw myself. Not the oshawott I had become, but the old me. The human me. The real me. I stepped forwa
I awoke from my slumber at once, and the scene blinked away in an instant, forgotten.