University Of Shadows - Book I

I. When The Shadows Attacked

     A sudden hush fell over the room. Standing up, she walked around her desk and came to stand in the center of the room. She turned around, saw Henry sitting at his desk, hunched over at his computer. From where she was standing she could also see herself, sitting at her desk. She heard a growl from behind her. Blinking, Taya found herself sitting back in her chair, her mind dizzy. A sudden compulsion to look up made her lift her eyes to the ceiling. A black blob moved from side-to-side like a pacing tiger. She was more curious than afraid at first, uncertain if it was dangerous or not.

     The shadow had ceased its pacing right above Taya. She craned her neck as far back as it could go, unable to look away. She became acutely aware of how cold the room had become. A scream tried to escape her mouth but found she had no voice to use. Her mouth opened, defiantly trying to make some sort of noise but she could only release a noiseless gasp. All she could do was to look upwards. The shadow was just a pit of darkness. Like a black hole that would suck her into itself to an unknown, terrible fate. It was as inhuman as anything could be, yet she could sense it was looking at her. It wanted something from her and she was helpless to stop it.

     She felt her body pull forward so that her head touched her desk. A series of horrible images invaded her mind and she felt a heavy pressure pushing her down against her back. Violent images flashed in and out of her mind like flashes of lightning. People burning, bodies strewn around the ground like discarded dolls. Taya saw herself on the ground, beaten and helpless. Taya could hear people screaming, the smell of smoke, blood and dead things. She wanted to throw up, to scream, to cry. Henry. He was right beside her and he couldn't see what was happening.

     No. Her mind screamed. No! This isn't real! Leave me alone!

     The shadow was laughing, mocking her. It sounded human. That made it so much worse. That such an inhuman thing could sound so much like a person seemed wrong. Her cheek lay against the desk, a cold hand gripping her neck roughly. Icy fingers digging into her flesh like knives. She felt the cold until all she felt was a numbness envelope her and her thoughts began to slip away...

     A feeling of bright hot anger surged through her. She didn't want to be this thing's victim. It had no right to hurt her. It had no right to do any of this. In her mind, Taya forced herself to get up, stand up and fight back. She closed her eyes, concentrated, focusing her rage to fight against it.

     A warmth moved to the rest of her body and the cold had disappeared. She moved her head to the other side and in doing so the images in her mind turned. The invisible figure that had assaulted her mind became visible. What she saw was not what she expected. Standing before her was someone who was very much human. A thirty-something white man with red hair so light it looked nearly blonde, with shining blue eyes wearing an attractive suit. This, she realized, was the shadow that was attacking her. A wave of red hot anger swelled up inside her. That anger burst from her like a wildfire. With a sneer, the man vanished. Only a shadow remained.

     "Taya?"

    Her eyes snapped open at hearing Henry's voice. She lifted her head meeting his gaze. His concern was gentle and quiet. When she felt a warm hand on her forehead she felt herself be pulled back to her body. She took several deep jagged breaths. Her heart was pounding so hard inside her, like a frightened bird trying to escape. She blinked, rubbing the sweat from her forehead and eyes. He looked to the ceiling but saw nothing except the bright fluorescent lights.

     "Taya, are you alright?" Henry asked. "You look sick."

     He wasn't wrong. She ran out of the room and only made it to the nearest trash can in time to vomit up her small dinner, yet it felt like she was throwing up her whole stomach. Henry had followed her, his concern for her palpable. Without a word he pulled back her long black hair and patted her back reassuringly.

     "Taya what's wrong?" He asked gently, the quiver in his voice betraying his fear and concern.

     "I'm fine." She lied. She would be once she had left this building far behind her. Taya took a deep breath and exhaled. Suddenly every shadow or dark spot in the building seemed alive and watching her. She wouldn't stay here another second longer.

     "We need to leave." She told him. Henry nodded his agreement. "Yeah. I'll take you home." He helped her up, legs shaking, mouth tasting like vomit and nose burning. She was exhausted and she was afraid. There was nothing that could make her step foot into that classroom again, she couldn't even bring herself to look inside. Henry had gone back to collect their things. Every second felt like an hour. She couldn't walk to the car fast enough.

     A flash of lightning and then a crash of thunder boomed in front of them.

     "A storm's heading right towards us. Looks like things are going to get pretty nasty." Henry said aloud, keeping a careful eye on Taya.

     Out of the corner of her eye, she could just make out the figure of a person standing at the doorway of the building. It disappeared when she dared to turn and look. Climbing into the car, face pale as chalk, she slammed the door and sank further into the seat.

     "Take me home, please." She begged.

     That night she slept with all the lights on. Her dreams were full of terrible things, visions of shadows watching her. Ready to grab her and never let go.