Encountering Darkness: The Great Pursuit (Book One)

Chapter Seventeen

Pete wakes up and quickly stands on his feet, but stumbles to the ground. Pete is once again in pitch black, and his ankle kills him. It felt like forever since he had been in the world and he couldn't remember what he last did. He sits and tries to clear his mind. What was I doing before I was on the ground, thinks Pete? He sits in silence for the longest time. He could not remember what he had been doing.

"Door..."

Pete freaked out for a second because the sound came out of nothing.

What about a door? he thinks. He tries with all his might to remember what a door has to do with him being in here.

One candle by itself is useless. The same can be said...

After remembering this, it came to him. He had jumped off of the candle stand and landed on the door handle. That's why his foot hurt.

He begins to search around for the door. After a few moments, he found the door, and then the door knob. As he turns the doorknob, he half expects the door not to open. The door doesn't open.

"Darn it," says Pete out loud.

Then he realizes that he is sitting on the door and proceeds to move of it.

The door did not budge easily, but eventually the door swings open. Pete isn't sure what to do now. The door is open, but how can he accomplish anything in the darkness?

Pete sits down, not sure of what to do.

A light peeks from inside the door. He can't be sure how far the light is, but one thing is for sure: the light moves towards him.

As the light continues to move closer he can tell there is someone holding a light.

"Who is there?"

The person did not respond.

"Stop! Don't come any closer. Who are you?"

The person holding the light still did not stop. At this point, he is only a couple hundred feet away from Pete.

Pete strains to see who this person is. He can't see his face. He then notices there is blood on this person, and that is enough for Pete to shake.

Pete's heart jumps out of his chest. He panics and, unsure of what to do, slams the door close.

He then hears a knock on the door.

"Who is it?"

"A friend"

"Who?"

"Your friend."

Pete still isn't sure what to think, but something about the voice gives him enough reason to trust this person. All Pete knew is that he is beginning to dislike doors.

"How do I know you're a friend?"

"Because you need me."

"Why should I trust you? How can I?"

"You can only open the door to find out. I cannot force you; I can only invite you."

The more the bloodied man speaks, the more Pete isn't sure, but maybe he is trying to talk himself out of opening the door.

He sits in silence for a while, thinking and trying to figure everything out. The same whisper he heard awhile back suddenly came through his head.

He feels the same peace, even though he is afraid, and so he opens the door.

Light blasts through and blinds Pete. He quickly lost his balance and fell into the door which opens. He expects pain because of landing on the ground, but he did not.

He opens his eyes. He is in a large corridor. The ceilings stack a hundred feet high and reddish light come from all around. He sees large beams holding up the ceilings. On those beams are intricate carvings of various creatures.

Pete tries to look around, but he can't. All he can do is look ahead.

In the left corner of his eye, he can see a figure. Someone is with him. They begin to walk. Who is this? That is all Pete can think.

As Pete continues to walk, he finds himself in front of an extremely large door. The door is made of wood and has the same types of images that are on the beams.

The large door opens. Pete and the person to his left walk in. Pete stands at the entrance to the door watching what happens.

There is some kind of creature in the middle of the room. It is the same type of creature that is on the beams and the door. The creature took one look at Pete, and the creature has a wicked smile on his face.

Everything thereafter appears to happen in slow motion and feels surreal. The person who came with him, jumps a good twenty feet in the air and suddenly has a sword in his hand. The blade pierces down into the creature and both of them continue through the floor. It seems like endless noise, but finally there is silence.

Pete walks over to the edge of the hole and looks down. All he sees is an endless black. Nothing as far as the eye can see. As Pete continues to look down he has shivers run along his spine.

I need to get out of here! Thinks Pete.

He walks around the room and sees no way out.

"This seems to be a theme in my life," sighs Pete.

He decides to backtrack the way he came from, along the corridor and past the beams. He walks up the stairs to the door. Half expecting the door not to open he hesitates for a second and then opens the door.

While still traveling through the door, he hears a voice.

"Hurry!"

"Who? Me?" says Pete.

"Be quiet! They will hear you."

"Who will hear me?"

"Stop with the questions and follow me. We are not safe here."

Pete notices the whisper has a body. A pleasant, but fearful smile is found on the face of this person. This person turns around and begins to walk.

"We don't have much time. Follow me."

Pete follows the footsteps in the darkness and did everything this person speaks. After a good amount of walking they pass from the ash, dusty ground to grass. Right before they arrive on the grass, this person told him to step up.

Now they pass along trees and Pete can hear a stream in the distance. Then Pete stops, because he could hear other noises in the distance as well. It takes him a while to realize what they are, but he hears crickets, an owl, a wolf, and even the sound of the wind blowing through the trees.

Pete realizes he is once again alone.

"Hey! Where did you go?"

Pete looks around and notices he could see a little in this darkness. He looks up. The moon is full and very bright.

Now what? Thinks Pete.

At this point he isn't sure which way he should proceed, but he didn't want to go back to the dark area, so he sits down next to a tree. This tree, like the tree before, is bare, but Pete did not give it much thought. Soon Pete falls asleep.