Living In Fear

Chapter 16: A colorful Darkness

Maddy held onto the rope that bonded Annie and Brooke's hands together, they walked through the dark forest calling out for their missing friend. "Callie!" Brooke called out as they searched for a way out of the trees.

"I feel like we've been going in circles." Maddy complained. Annie sighed, "I dont think we're getting out of here until we find all 8 pages." She said feeling as if it was there last hope. Maddy rolled her eyes, "great. So we're stuck in here. It could take forever to find all those pieces of paper out here in the woods." She huffed feeling doomed.

Annie pulled the note she had found earlier out of her pocket, "me and Brooke found a note before we heard Callie scream." She said showing it to Maddy, who looked it over and then pulled her own note out. "Me and Callie found one too just before she vanished." She said handing both notes to Annie.

"We just need 3 more pages.." Annie said frustrated, "all we can do is search for them and hope we make it out of here at this point." She said putting all of the pages into her bag. "What about Callie?" Brooke asked in a scared tone.

Annie stopped for a moment looking at Maddy and her little sister, unsure what to say. "I dont know.. If we can find her-" she started to say before Maddy cut in, "what do you mean you dont know? Didnt any of that folklore you were reading say where he might of taken her?" She spat unwilling to leave without Callie.

Annie looked at her wishing she could give her the answers she seeked, "no, all it said was that 'slender man' takes people, kids. Somewhere to the center of the forest, no one knows why or for what.." she said feeling creeped out.

Maddy grabbed the rope and pulled them forward, "then lets get moving, im not leaving her here." She said leading the group. "Wait a minute!" Annie called out as they were pulled forward. "Im not sure if we can find the center, this thing has us going in circles and I dont think its a good idea to find its main domain." She said trying to calm Maddy down.

"But we cant leave her.." Maddy cried with wet eyes. Annie stopped her and gave her a hug, "its okay, we'll find a way." She said lieing, hopeing to keep her from turning hysterical. Maddy cried in her arms for only a moment and then looked up at the two of them, "right.. maybe if we find all the pages, she'll be freed." Maddy said with what hope she had left.

The three travel endlessly through the woods shining their dim flashlights around them looking for the last 3 pages. They staied close together holding hands, trying to prepare themselves for a possible run in with the 'slender man'.

Then, as they slowly walked through the darkness a large tree with a wide base appeared before them at the ends of their lights. The tree reached up to the sky high above the others and had not one sign of life left in it. It was burned on one side and sitting right in plane view stuck to the tree was another note.

The girls seemed timid to go forth and gab it, they shined their combined lights on it and stared from a distance. "It's another note!" Maddy said excidedly with hope as she squeezed Brooke's hand in her's. She took a step forward but the others didnt move with her, "what's wrong? Its what we came for." She said confused looking at Annie.

"Last time we each found a note 'it' came for one of us. I have a feeling that things will be no different the moment we pick up that note." She said not wanting to push their luck. "You have a point, but what do you suggest we do then?" She asked irritated.

"Just let think.." she said placing a hand on her forehead. After a long pause she looked at Maddy and Brooke, a seriouse look on her face. "Okay. we'll run in, grab it, run out. Whatever you do dont look at, just close your eyes and follow me." She said in a firm tone. They nodded.

They aproached the tree and shined their lights on the note, it read; "help me." Maddy looked at the note with wide eyes, "Is this one of the pages? It looks like Callie wrote it!" She said excitedly as her heart raced. Annie shook her head, "I dont think Callie left this note, its one of the pages." She said reaching for it.

Maddy quickly swiped it from the tree, "are you sure? What if she's still out there looking for us?" She asked paniced looking at the page. Annie attempted to take it from her, "no Maddy, its not Callie, its that thing messing with your head!" She yelled as Maddy backed away.

Maddy could feel her head pounding, the world around her like a daze as she stood with the page in her hand. Suddenly there was a load burst of color above them and they all gazed up to see red fireworks exploding in the night sky. They lit up the entire forest from above as they bloomed in load pops and slowly burned out into smoke.

During the bursts of fireworks Maddy noticed the slender man standing inbetween the trees, he vanished back into the darkness as the light from the fireworks faded. She screamed as with each flash of bright light he seemed to teleport around them.

Annie, who had her eyes fixed on the sky quickly put her hand over Brooke's eyes without a second thought and shut her's tight. "Dont look at him Maddy!" She yelled over the fireworks.

Maddy noticed her nose starting to bleed and there was a terrible sound in her ears like static. She couldnt help but to look around, peering through the trees as the fireworks lit up the woods. There was a scream off in the distance; it wss Callie's scream

"Its Callie, we have to help her!" Maddy yelled scanning the trees with her dieing flashlight. "We have to-" she pause for a moment in her panic and was silent.