Sophie knew that she couldn’t just sit here.
She had to go in.
In, where the pain had lessened some. In, where the air was stale and dark. In, where the penny had told her to go.
She was already close to passing out from the pain. What she needed was to get to her pack and find her first-aid supplies. She had to mend her wounds and move on. She didn’t know if she had enough bandages, but she had to try. She couldn’t give up now. No matter how much she wanted to.
She must have fallen two or three feet, but she still hit with a bone jarring thump.
The impact rattled her bones. She felt it in the ache of her body and the snap of her head.
Sophie couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t seem to suck air into her lungs. And panic started.
Without air, she’d die. She wouldn’t get into Hell. She wouldn’t do what she needed. And Annie would die.
Her twin would be gone and it be all her fault. And she’d be here dead. Suffocated. Because there was no air.
Get yourself together, Soph! There has to be air. You’re just having a panic attack!
It took her a moment, and quite a few deep breaths, to pull herself together, but when she did she noticed a few things. First: her body was no longer on fire. Second: she was laying on her backpack. And third: it was darker in here than it had been in the other part of the cave.
And it was unnaturally silent. Even the crackling was gone.
Sophie looked up to the hole and found only a blackness that was so complete, there was nothing shining from the other side. It was like the hole wasn’t even there. It had been there, right?
She hadn’t hit her head and imagined the whole thing? She wasn’t still laying in that hospital bed?
Oh darn! There goes my escape plan.
Not that she would go through with it. But knowing that it was a possibility was always nice. Now, she was stuck in here, in the dark. And where was her flashlight?
Sophie scrambled up from the pack and dug around, feeling until she grasped the hard plastic of her backup light. It was the kind that could be concentrated into a beam, or transformed into a lantern, and Soph decided to change it into the second option.
All the better to see the caves with, my dear.
She thought, and then laughed. In her head the laughter was rich, but slightly—or a little more than slightly—hysterical. What came out was a weird expelling of air. And the noise immediately leeched all the humor from her.
Sophie put the lantern down, carefully placing it so that she could see most of the corridor. There were little patches of hidden darkness, but she felt good about how much it lit up. At least she felt relatively safe.
It was nice knowing what was near you, especially when Demonic creatures could sneak up on her at any time.
She examined the pack, and noticed the old cracked light. Yepp, broken!
As nervous as she was about staying here, she was more nervous about entering into Hell.
At least here, there was a wall at her back, as well as on two sides. Things could only approach from the wide path that led further on.
Which is why she moved in that direction to settle the lamp about 10 feet away. If she could see the something coming for her, maybe she could reason with it.
She’d probably need help. What a great idea! She thought sarcastically. A great hypothetical thought, but as she heard a scurrying noise, she immediately regretted it.
I take it back! I don’t want to meet anything or anyone!
The noise was so quiet, she had almost missed it. But it was terrifying nonetheless.
Was something out there? God, she kind of hoped not.
Soph put the light down, turning back to her backpack to get her gun. Or the pen. Anything really!
And why did I move so far away from the pack in the first place?
It was then she noticed a tiny creature. It was about the size of a three year old child. Its body was covered in hair, little fur that was only an inch or two long and sparse. There were several bald patches on its back. And its head was bald as well. Its body vibrated as it dug into her things, making little chuffing noises.
Sophie’s immediate reaction was to run away. She wanted no part of the creepy little thing. It was something out of a nightmare, or a scary movie.
It was nothing like what she pictured a Demon to look like. She thought maybe someone handsome and evil. Or a scantily clad girl with a tail. But watching this being move, jerking slightly as it went, she couldn’t quite control her shiver.
It took out some food, a sandwich, and started eating it.
Hunger she could understand. It was something all beings felt. She almost felt a connection to it, until it turned, showing her its profile. A profile that had no nose, just big eyes, and large fangs coming from its thin mouth. It growled, a sound full of menace. And Sophie saw large claws digging into the bread. Claws that had blood on them.
Oh no, no, no!
That wasn’t good. She couldn’t fight that thing! It would probably bathe in her blood in no time! She’d probably fall and hit her head! And since fighting was out of the equation, Sophie did the only thing that she could do, retreat.
She stood up slowly, leaving the flashlight on the ground. She took a cautious step back, only to bump into something.
Something warm and hard. Something alive.
Oh, gosh!
But even now she couldn’t scream, even when her instincts told
