Shock And Awe

Lost in the Catacombs

A/N: Please note that other triggering content (self-harm and suicide will be discussed) throughout the story. Please be forewarned and take precautions if these are troubling for you.

I just wanted to thank everyone for the reviews and votes. My muse and I both appreciate it. This is still, as of now, planned to be a fairly long, multi-part story, but if you all aren't into it...I'll wrap it up before too long.

And remember...reviews and votes keep me and my muse motivated...especially if they're positive!!!

***This chapter is a continuation of the second "part" of the story***More drama and more secrets revealed***

I hope you enjoy this latest chapter...Now on with the show!!!

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""When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks into you." ~ Friedrich Nietzsche

"There never can be a man so lost as one who is lost in the vast and intricate corridors of his own lonely mind, where none may reach and none may save." ~ Isaac Asimov
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Chapter 31

I feel like I'm caught between sleep and a dream...stuck in that moment right before you fully wake...when you try to go back to sleep...to remember what it was you were dreaming about but everything is mixed up in your head. So...I reluctantly decide to wake up...but in doing so...I find that I have to struggle to open my eyes. Then I realize I'm not home and I begin to become confused. I realize I have no idea what's going on. I try to figure out where I am. What happened? When did I fall asleep? When I finally do manage to fully open my eyes and take in my surroundings, none of my questions are answered. In fact...I'm even more confused than I was when I first woke up.

For some reason, I seem to be back at the house I lived in when I was a teenager in Italy. But this is a room I don't remember ever seeing before...yet I still know it's a part of that house. How did I end up here...and why?

It's looks like old dusty office of some kind...there are cobwebs and dust on almost every surface...a large desk...filing cabinets and folders everywhere...a couple of big chairs and one old creepy looking door in the far corner of the room. The room is dark and something you might see in a horror movie...but I don't feel scared here...just curious about why I'm here...and how I got here. I keep looking around and notice the room doesn't seem to have any windows where I can see outside...it must be an interior room.

Then I notice something...or rather someone... is here with me...my childhood friend Matthew. He walks up and wraps me in a big bear hug saying "thought you'd never wake up...damn...when you take a nap...you really take a nap."

My confusion grows exponentially. My memory is starting to come back in bits and pieces now...and the last thing I remember was being in that building with Lucas...hoping that JJ and Summer were safe...and trying to find a way to break free of the bindings that were holding me to that chair. How did I end up here? What the Hell is going on? Did something go wrong? Am I dead? Matthew died a few years ago. Why am I not scared to see him? Aren't most normal people scared when they see a ghost...or whatever it is that Matthew is now?

"Look...I know you have a ton of questions Em...I can hear your thoughts now. First...JJ and Summer are safe...but they're definitely worried about you. In fact, from time to time...you may even be able to hear them...other people too. Second...you aren't dead like me...at least not yet. You have a little time to decide that one. You're in a kind of limbo between life and death. I guess you could call me your guide or whatever. I'm here to help you work out some stuff that's keeping you stuck here" Matthew starts his explanation.