P.R.I.S.M of Memories -on Hold

Chapter Twenty-Two

This is bad...if that means what I think it means....

"...This maze might be more difficult than a puzzle in a video game. Those were meant to be solved."

"But why create a maze to lead nowhere?"

"Why create it at all, Laura?! For all we know, that's exactly what this is", I angrily retort.

I put a hand to my head. Feeling a migraine coming.

Crestfallen, she replies, "I'm just trying to be optimistic."

I look at Laura's despondent eyes as she wanders to a random hallway. She is probably saying stuff like that more for herself than me. I need to ease off.

I catch up to her. "I'm sorry for snapping at you."

She says nothing.

I'll make this up to you, Laura. When we get out of here, I promise.

I walk ahead and take the lead. We come to a small square room with three other staircases. This room is furnished though. It almost looks like a living room. With a dusty couch and an old wooden table with loose white pages. There is a feather and ink bottle nearby it. And...

"A lantern", Laura shouts joyfully. Her voice echoes throughout the room and into the hallways. She puts her hand over her mouth.

She apologizes in a much softer voice, "Sorry."

I shrug. "I don't think anyone is in here besides us. They would've come to stop us by now."

I still scan the hallways. Uncomfortable with the idea that there might be people or worse things wandering though this labyrinth too. I approach the table with Laura. The lantern looked old. Partially covered in rust with thick blankets of dust on it. But screw it. I'll take it.

I cup my hands around my mouth, inhale, and start blowing air on the lantern. I coughed from the dust clouds coming off of it. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Laura wandering around. As the lantern is slowly becoming usable, I study it. I've seen lamps like this in furniture stores that boast how it was modeled after the ones our ancestors used during the colonial times. But the metal on this was heavy and the shape looks like the lanterns I saw when we were watching that documentary on the Salem trials.

I let my fingers feel the rust on the side of it.  "There's no way right?"

Turning around, I nearly drop the lantern after seeing Laura haphazardly on her tippy toes right on the rounded arch of the couch.

"Laura! What are you doing? Get down from there!"

Her hand is outstretched and straining as if she is reaching for something. I could barely see it in the torch light but there is a glint of a small key hanging out of her reach.

"Just a little more...", Laura struggles to make her arm reach.

I rush over to the couch as I see it beginning to topple underneath the weight. It's old, it can't possibly be that strong.

"Laura! Get down! You're going to fall!"

She hops upwards and is temporarily in the air as she snatches the key above. "I got it!"

The couch vanishes from underneath her sinking into a floor. I stop short of a giant gaping hole that I'm sure wasn't there a moment ago.

Shit. Booby trap!

Laura's face is a mix of horror and shock, her mouth forming an "O" of surprise before she screams as she falls into the darkness below.

"Laura!"

Praying to God that there is a soft landing beneath us...I  dive into the darkness after her.

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These chapters are NEVER as long as I want them to be. But I also feel if I made them as long as I wanted them to be they'll be like 100 pages on a mobile device. LOL

Sorry for the huge gap in between. My laptop broke and I've been writing this from my phone and UGH!! It takes forever!! Luckily one of my wonderful friends was able to save my laptop so I can start writing from it again.  Yyyyyyaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyy!

So I've been thinking about "who" I'm writing this for and honestly...I don't know. I want to say it would be for young adults but I feel like that applies to adults period. I mean I love the Harry Potter series and it was meant for children. I think fiction is just fiction and can be enjoyed by all ages and maybe even genders. I know that the main character is male and I'm doing my best to make him sound and talk like a male but I feel like Conrad is a little too mature for his age (there's a reason which you'll find out eventually).

So please leave comments or hit that star button. I love to hear from people. If you're shy you can also just PM me. I'm always open to meeting new people. Next chapter will be up sooner than you think.