Into the Void

Chap #1 - The Darkness Between The Stars

I slowly inch my way towards the door, weighing the problem. I don't want to wake Ella, but I need to get into the front room. It isn't that far away. Surely she'll be fine.

As I back away from the glass panes and towards the barricaded door, I realize that the wooden frame of the window is splintered; so I did remember to secure those! Something is in the house, probably a void monster. I have no means of protection, and I don't think I can make it to the front room without attracting the creature's attention. Nevertheless, it's worth a try since I don't know any other option. I reach for the door handle, taking one last glance at Ella. She looks so peaceful, lying there with her honey-coloured hair fanned out around her head.

Suddenly, the edges of my vision darken and blot. A terrible expression takes over Ella's face. Her whole body lifts off of the bed, her back arching as if in pain. She twists her neck at an impossible angle, her skin literally crawling with maggots, and piercing green eyes stare straight into my own. A glint of red flashes across her face, and her skin gradually turns an ashen colour. A scream crawls up my throat, and just when I'm about to let it loose, there's a blink of blackness and everything goes back to normal. I shiver as I watch my sister roll over in her sleep, the goosebumps returning immediately, and turn away. I lay a sweaty palm on the cool metal of the door handle, its curve molding into my hand. I turn it tentatively, slow and careful. My breath is caught in my throat. I would silently celebrate if this accursed handle refrained itself from squeaking. A whimper escapes my mouth and my body tenses, waiting for the void monster, or more than one, to come barging in.

Nothing.

I release the breath that I'm holding and begin to turn the handle a little ways more...until it's nearly sideways and I can open the door. Just when I think I'm in the clear, the metal lets out a loud groan.

Something collides against my bedroom door, crashing and banging to be let in. I throw myself to the ground. There has to be something in here that I can use to retaliate against the void monsters. I'm not going down without a fight!

Ella is awake now, and panicked. She slides clumsily off the bed and runs towards me, reaching out.

"Hold on!" I whisper, still attempting to stay quiet although I know with certainty that the voids knows we're in here. I brush a stray strand of hair from her face, and time seems to slow.

I wish things could rewind, go back to the way they used to be...

I give her a reassuring half-smile and turn to feel all along the cracks of the floor for anything, anything at all that would come in useful fighting one of the monsters.

Nothing, nothing but worn wood.

A loud splintering sound punctuates the heavy silence, coming from the doorway. I look up frantically to see the corners of a void stretching towards me.

Think.

I wrack my brain for any possible solution, shaking it mentally in frustration. I must avenge my parents! Finally, as fingertips of dawn caress the horizon, realization hits like lightning and I double over, berating myself. How could I not have remembered?! This was the kind of situation that I'd been preparing for for my whole life! And I'd forgotten the one main item, of my few backup weapons! I now remember the thing that could be the difference between life and death; a knife under my bed.

I dive under the bed, worry for Ella prickling in the back of my mind, and after feeling around for a moment I mercifully make contact with cold, hard metal. In my haste, the blade nicks my hand and warm blood trickles thickly from the deep gash. I barely feel it, though, in my state of pounding adrenaline.

A resounding crack fills the room and I realize I'm trapped. Squirming back out would take too much time. Crawling out the other side is too far.

Think.