PART ONE
The smell of mildew was the first thing to assault Jenna’s senses. The next was an almost non-existent electrical humming. It was just loud enough to grind at her nerves. Jenna’s head throbbed and vision blurred. “Where am I?”
The last thing she remembered was going to bed after a party. She never really drank or did drugs, so she knew that her new surroundings weren’t based on that. Jenna clearly remembered getting home, changing into her pjs, and crawling into bed.
Rubbing her head, she sat up against the dirty wall. Jenna reached down to the carpet but quickly pulled her hand back. It was drenched. The smell of mold lay thick everywhere. Her clothes dripped with water from laying down for however long it had been. “Wait! My clothes!” She was now wearing blue jeans, a t-shirt, and hiking boots.
“Ok, this is getting way too weird. Who the hell dressed me?” Her voice echoed through the empty space.
Looking around didn’t help at all. There was nothing she recognized. It was a large room with several hallways branching off in different directions. Halogen lights glowed from the ceiling. Not a single piece of furniture decorated the area.
“Well, sitting here isn’t getting me anywhere.” She stood up and tried to straighten her soaked clothes. There had to be a way out or maybe someone else in here with her. “Hello?” Jenna waked to the different hallways and repeated herself. “Hello? Is anyone here?” She didn’t receive an answer.
“Guess I’ll just have to look around.” Jenna went down one hallway. It was a dead end. Mold climbed the walls like ants. Her feet sloshed in the wet carpet. Luckily her boots were waterproof.
She turned around and made it back to the large room. This time she took the opposite hallway. This one made several turns. Before she knew it, she was lost. Not that she knew where she was anyway. This had to be progress, though.
Jenna was about to turn down another hallway when she stopped dead in her tracks. Something was moving just ahead of her. She could hear a thump. Shortly after the thump was the sound of something dragging. Then another thump and a drag. Groaning caused the hair on the back of her neck to stand up. Whatever it was, wasn’t anything she wanted to encounter.
As silently as she could, Jenna backtracked down the short hall she was in. It didn’t matter which way she turned. She just wanted to put distance between her and whatever that was. She now faced the end of her hall and tried to choose a direction. Groaning, a little to close, caused her to glance back. What she saw was straight out of nightmare.
The thing was low to the ground and jet black as if made from tar. Its skin rippled as one long appendage lifted and stomped down. Then it dragged the rest of its worm like body a little closer. White eyes opened and closed all over the creature’s body. They appeared sightless other than the two right up front and they had spotted her.
Jenna screamed snapping her brain back into motion. Just gazing upon this thing made her thoughts sluggish and slimy. She felt her sanity slowly trickling away. Another scream ripped out of her mouth. She jarred her body forward and to the right.
At every turn, the beast gained on her. Jenna’s breath came in short gasps as she started to run out of energy. Stopping meant certain death and that wouldn’t be an option. She had to find a way out of here. For a minute she wondered if all this was a bad dream. Maybe she should stop running and when the monster got close, she would wake up.
Distracted, Jenna fell hard to the wet ground. A sharp pain sprung from her left elbow. Blood flowed freely over the carpet and spread fast through the water. That answered that. She wasn’t dreaming.
The monster bellowed behind her. Sounds of sniffing came from it but there was no nose that could be seen. Not that she was paying much attention to its facial structure. The blood must have driven it mad because the thing quickened its pace.
Jenna shoved herself up off the ground and ran faster. The small break gave her some time to regain her breathing. She pumped her legs as hard as she could. Daring to grasp the disgusting walls to help her turn corners pulled her farther away.
She dared another look back. It just came into view when Jenna felt herself falling. She pinged back and forth along a narrow duct leading down. The only grace was that it was too narrow to flip her headfirst. It felt like the longest fall of her life. But as all things do, it ended abruptly with her hitting a rocky surface, creating even more cuts and probably bruises. That was way better than being dead.
Jenna looked up the shaft. A barely visible light could be seen at the very top. Something moved back and forth across it. She couldn’t hear the thumping of its appendage, and it appeared the shaft was too small for it to follow her. With a sigh of relief, Jenna slumped against the nearest rock wall.
That is when she realized the electric humming had stopped. However, in its place was a low ritual chanting in some unrecognizable language.
PART TWO
Jenna sat just to the side of where she fell through the hole. Her clothes were still drenched so the water dripping from the cave walls didn’t bother her much. Every deep breath did little to steady her nerves. The constant low chanting wasn’t helping.
“What the hell was that?” She looked up the shaft again but couldn’t see the monster anymore. It must have moved on.
Looking around, Jenna could see she was in a large cave. How it was so light in there was beyond her understanding. There seemed to be more tunnels leading off than the above room had. There had to be a way out but where did she go? She couldn’t even think clearly from the constant ritualistic noise seeming to come from everywhere. It rose and lowered in a rhythmic fashion.
She drew up her knees to her chest and laid her head on top of them. Tears streamed down her face. Maybe if she just stayed where she was, someone would come looking for her. Her mother and father would have noticed by now that she was gone, right? Even friends from school would have been blowing up her cell phone. Why wasn’t anyone looking for her already?
Thinking that moving would just force her into another encounter with a monster, Jenna decided to stay where she was. Strangely enough, she wasn’t hungry or thirsty so it shouldn’t be an issue. Jenna instantly regretted thinking that.
Screaming echoed in the cavern. Jenna covered her ears, but it didn’t help. Wait. Was it really screaming? Now it sounded like crying or moaning. And screaming? All in one voice or was it many? Again, Jenna felt as if her mind was slipping away slowly.
The pitch and tone changed causing Jenna to freak out even more. “Mom? Is that you? Where are you? What’s wrong?” Jenna stood up quickly and started looking at her options. Each tunnel appeared to be the same just went in different directions. The screaming came from all of them.
“Mom! Where are you?” Jenna ran from one tunnel opening to the other. There was no way she would run down one if it was the wrong choice.
A sound drew her attention from a tunnel across from where she stood. The scream, moan, cry continued all around her, but footsteps were coming from one tunnel only. She ran over to that one and tried to investigate the darkness. There wasn’t any light in it, unlike the huge cave she now stood in.
Ever so slowly, a figure became visible. At first it was just a shadow. Then it grew into a woman’s form. She had long red hair just like Jenna and a thin frame. As she drew near, however, Jenna noticed her mother wasn’t wearing any clothes. Her stride was hindered by an injured leg, too. But it was her arms and face that caused Jenna to gasp in horror.
The form strode closer and closer giving Jenna a clearer look at what approached. Her arms were almost down to the rock floor and her mouth didn’t move even though the screaming continued. She didn’t blink either. Her gaze was straight ahead and locked onto Jenna. This was not her mother.
Jenna fell backwards hitting the ground hard jarring every bone in her body. She crab walked backwards as fast as she could but only made it as far as the furthest wall. On bated breath, Jenna watched as the thing emerged from the tunnel and into the light.
Now even more visible, it was even more wrong. The skin sagged all over. Blood dripped from the fingertips and smeared the ground with each step. Its gate was almost the same as the thing on the above level. Stomp. Slide. Stomp. Slide.
The mimic stopped just barely outside of the tunnel’s opening. It stared at Jenna, twisting its head sideways. Her mother’s voice rose above the screaming, but the mouth still didn’t move. “Jenna. Jenna, come here. I need you.”
Jenna wanted to scream but her voice was gone. She shook her head violently in answer. Her legs shook as she stood up trying to get further away.
“Jenna, dear. Come to mommy.” It twisted its head to the other side.
Finally, finding her voice again, Jenna screamed. “You are not my mother! Stay away from me!”
It didn’t speak again, only stared at Jenna. Its mouth opened hanging loosely. This time, the scream did come from with its core. A shrill, ear-piercing screech shook the ground. Jenna wanted to cover her hearing but didn’t dare move. She could feel blood trickle out of her ears and down her neck on both sides.
As if the monster’s visage couldn’t get anymore disturbing, its skin ruptured in an instant, falling to the ground. Hair, fingers, eyes, were all gone. In its place was a skeletal thing dripping blood. Not an inch of skin covered it, nor organs filled its gaps. All there was, were bones.
Hunching over, the monster dug its branch like bones into the cave floor. A snarl rose above the screaming that still rocked Jenna’s core. Just below that sound, she could still hear the chanting. It was all maddening. This couldn’t be happening. If she wanted to live, she needed believe and then run.
At this point, any of the tunnels would do so she turned around and took the closest one. Barreling down the black space, she could hear that thing pursuing her. Scratching and stomping got closer and closer. There was no way to tell where she was going so, she just sped on.
Jenna slammed into a wall but quickly regained her control. It was merely a turn. When she did turn, a light ahead of her shone in the darkness. It had to be a way out.
Pumping her legs as fast as she could, Jenna put on more speed. The monster didn’t slam into the wall like she did so all Jenna could think was its sight was better than hers. That cut her head start down by a lot.
Jenna made it to the light’s source. It was a small hole in the side of the wall. With her slender build, she might be able to squeeze through. There was no time to consider it though, so she climbed in. It was tight and her claustrophobia instantly kicked in. She scrambled as far enough in that she thought she would be safe so she could take control of the overwhelming panic.
She wasn’t safe. A long boney appendage reached in and wrapped around her ankle. Jenna screamed as loud as she could only to have the beast mimic her. Kicking, Jenna finally got her ankle free, and she shimmied her way further into the closed in space.
She didn’t take the time to look back beyond her feet to see if it was following her. Instead, Jenna crawled forward with all her strength. Again, she ended up falling out of where she was and into another room. This one was similar to the one above but dry.
Scurrying away from the opening, she looked back but the creature didn’t come through. Jenna breathed a sigh of relief until she heard the chanting again. This time it was louder.
PART THREE
Again, the monster didn’t pursue her into the next room. It was a relief but didn’t make sense. Nothing about this place made sense. Jenna’s thought felt like liquid running through her hands, unable to catch more than a few fleeting moments.
She let out a deep sigh and closed her eyes. Rest is what she really needed right now but with how the past events have gone, Jenna didn’t believe she would get any. As if to prove that point, soft shuffling sounds finally reached her ears.
Slowly, Jenna opened her eyes. She regretted doing it. All over the walls, ceiling and floor were small to medium globs of some kind. They had originally blended in with the colors but now each one started turning deep black. They flowed like thick oil over the surface they clung to, not moving in any single direction. Long, rope like appendages formed from their mass and receded back just as quickly. Small sightless eyes popped open and closed all over.
The multitude nearly had a scream bubble up from Jenna’s throat, but she covered her mouth. They didn’t seem interested in her at the moment. If they decided to come for her all at once, there was nothing she would be able to do. One thing was for sure, however. She needed to get out of there.
Jenna was not a dancer or graceful ballerina so stepping between the closely spaced creatures would be quite a challenge. She lifted on leg producing a ruffling sound from her jeans. Instantly, all the creatures reacted. They swiveled and stirred in her direction at a snail’s pace. The appendages reached ahead of them looking for whatever cause the sound.
She slowly lowered her leg and stayed quiet. Her hands covered her mouth just to make sure a single sound didn’t escape. As she predicted, the monsters settled down and returned to meandering around. Their slimy ropes became one with their bodies, yet again.
Panic rose in her chest. A moments thought was to simply run as fast as she could to see if they would catch her. That thought was instantly crushed when witnessing two of them merging into one as they moved. A second later they split apart again. How was she going to get out of this one?
Raising her leg, but keeping it lower than before, she was able to lightly step in between two creatures. Her movement was soundless and didn’t cause a reaction from her enemy. Another silent move later and she was hopeful for an escape.
Sweat formed on her brow. It began its trek down her face landing on her shirt. Jenna couldn’t tell that it made any noise, but the creatures started to stir again, only slower this time. She had to hurry. She continued to take more steps towards the closest hallway.
The monsters covering the ground didn’t seem to notice her presence but the ones on the ceiling grew more agitated. As they bumped into each other, they combined their mass. Directly in her path, now grew a huge blob of swirling and groping ropes hanging down from the ceiling as the whole of its body also expanded.
Jenna rushed her steps even more now. She was almost to the hallway, but that monstrosity was blocking her. There had to be a way around it. As she drew nearer, her vision swam. Concentration became harder and harder. What was she doing? Where was she going?
When she closed her eyes, her mind caught up. Hysterical laughter tried to burst from her mouth. Instead, Jenna bit down on her lip causing mind clearing pain. She had to keep her gaze away from what hung before her. That was the only way.
Keeping her gaze to the floor and focusing only on the smaller creatures, she stepped ahead and to the right. Sweat continued to drip from her face. Each drip showed a ripple effect with the beast’s extremities. One slender strand reached out and nearly grabbed her. Jenna recoiled. Her mind tried to fizzle out again, but she held her focus.
Every attempt to pass was met with more cables of slime being propelled towards her. In a brief moment of absolute clarity, she had an idea. If she could throw something in the opposite direction, it should buy her enough time to get away. What could she throw? There was no telling what she would face next if this worked so she needed her shoes. The rest of her clothes were simple, shirt, pants, and underthings. The only viable option was her shirt.
Jenna quickly pulled her shirt over her head. Wadding it up in a ball, she threw it as far as she could. It made a soft plop sound when it landed on a group of creatures. The giant mass in front of her moved at lightening speed towards where her shirt lay. The smaller creatures extended their appendages to inspect what lay on top of them. All around her, the things zoomed in the same direction.
There wasn’t a moment to waste. She ran. It didn’t matter anymore if she made noise. The monsters behind her began screeching. They had discovered her deception.
PART FOUR
Tendrils grasped at Jenna’s ankles and wrists. She pulled hard to free herself. Every time one would let go, two more grabbed hold. She was almost to the tunnel’s opening. Terror was the only thing driving her, but would she make it?
Both legs were now completely covered in black slimy tentacles. Something sharp pierced her flesh from each one. Jenna went to reach one arm towards the tunnel, but it quickly became trapped as well. Her other arm snapped up and out. Just her fingertips made it past the opening. A cool breeze tickled the ends. Her heart sank with despair. There was no way she would get the rest of her into the open space.
Just as the cool air licked at her fingers, the globs’ appendages twitched hard. They continued to spasm, retracting whatever teeth or claws they had grasped her with. Their convulsions vibrated Jenna’s whole body. Her teeth began to chatter. One by one, feelers snapped back to its host’s body.
Jenna nearly fell when the last one let go but seeing all the mini blobs waiting for her along the floor helped to keep her standing. They rotated slowly around her feet but didn’t touch her. The giant one behind her continued to grow.
Without hesitation, Jenna jumped over the circling creatures. Her right foot landed on the other side of the tunnel’s entrance. She tumbled the rest of the way. She lay there with her heart pound so hard inside her chest that Jenna knew it would break free at any moment. Air stung her throat as she rasped each breath through dry, cracked lips. All around her was rock. There weren’t any carpeting or squared walls anymore. Jenna was back inside a cave.
Thumping drew her attention away from the relief she temporarily felt. Jenna sat up and looked back from where she came. The little globs were throwing themselves at the opening to her tunnel but hitting an invisible wall. Others behind them swirled in place clearly agitated. The giant one dropped to the floor, zoomed to the tunnel, and hit the same wall. Small rocks and dust flittered to the ground from the impact.
After its second attempt, it slowly backed up and disassembled into all the multitude of tiny blobs that had previously combined with it. All of them scooted back to their original spaces, settling into the motionlessness they had been before. Before Jenna’s eyes, even their color resorted back to match the walls and floor.
Seconds ticked in rhythm to Jenna’s heartbeat. As she began to realize those monsters weren’t going to come for her, she stood and slowed her breathing. Her hands still shook but that didn’t seem to be something that would change anytime soon.
Remembering the spikes or whatever they used to puncture her legs, Jenna rubbed her hand down one side of her jeans. When her hand came up bloody, she nearly fainted. Getting medical help didn’t seem like a possibility and neither did finding a way to clean each wound. All she could do was to continue on. Hopefully, the cuts were small enough to close on their own.
She turned away and slowly marched down the tunnel. It veered left and right with no rhyme or reason. Not that any of this made sense. A part of her wanted to stop, lay down and hope to die where she was. At least then it would be on her own terms, not being torn apart from creatures of nightmare.
It felt like forever, but Jenna finally came to a four-way juncture. Each choice was filled with darkness. She could only see about three feet in any direction. Continuing in the same direction seemed the logical choice. She took at step forward and stopped.
The darkness before her moved. The shadows shifted and swirled. Something long and thin stepped into the light. It stood like a human but that was the end of the similarity. Horns scraped the rocky ceiling on a head with no face. The emancipated body seemed to be made of wood with arms that stretched to the floor.
The thing just stood there, supported on tall twig like legs, with its featureless face and head slowly swaying to the left and right. Jenna stayed as still as she could. Maybe without eyes, it couldn’t see her. Maybe it responded to sound like the blobs she just survived.
Gradually turning her eyes and head to the right, she surveyed that choice. Running was definitely going to be needed but she had to be sure it was in the right area. She then turned to check the path to her left. After a minute of dissecting that region, the shadows moved again.
This time, whatever it was stayed close to the ground. More tentacles came into view, but a cylindrical head followed. These weren’t black like the blobs but a deep red and blue. More of this beast began to emerge. It walked on all fours and hunched in the back like a hyena. There was no fur covering its body, however. More tentacles writhed down the back and some kind of substance dripped off the monster’s body. It slowly took one stalking step after the next with its head down low.
That left one option. Jenna looked back to the right. Nothing seemed to be blocking her path in that direction. If there was, there would be nowhere for her to run. This might be the end. It was strange, but she felt a tinge of relief to that notion.
Human nature, of course, wouldn’t let her give up. She took off as fast as she could down the right-side tunnel.
PART FIVE
Jenna ran. The pounding of blood in her ears was so loud it made it difficult to hear the scratching of claws not far behind her. Searing sharp pain filled her chest from the exertion.
Another decision came into view up ahead. Jenna could go left or right again but not straight. Since she went right last time, she chose left. Now to hope she made it to the turn alive. It was still several yards ahead and whichever beast chased her was gaining.
Coming up to the turn, Jenna went wide hoping to keep from slipping on the damp floor. Just as she could see around the corner, her hands desperately began grasping for the corner to help her stop. As before, a hound waited with its head lowered, jaws dripping saliva. A deep growl reverberated against the rock walls.
She couldn’t help but release a loud scream. It looked exactly like the other hound. Was it the same one or a different one? Jenna dared a glance down the tunnel she had just been in. There was no sound of claws running anymore. Instead, the first hound nearly filled the tunnel a good way back. The tall tree like creature waited behind it. None of them moved.
Jenna took a ragged breath daring to look back and forth. It was definitely a different hound. The beast was smaller but nothing about its size made it less menacing. In fact, it seemed more agitated. Other than trying to keep both corridors in view, she didn’t dare even flinch.
Apparently, that was not what the monsters wanted. The smaller one stomped one foot repeatedly, digging its talons in the rock. The bigger on took a step forward, extending its tentacles in Jenna’s direction. When she still didn’t move, they both took several more steps.
She finally took the hint. Turning in the only direction she could, Jenna ran. The monsters howled and began their pursuit again. Something wasn’t right about this, but Jenna didn’t have time to really think about it. Now she had three beasts chasing her.
This route did not appear to turn for as far as Jenna could see which wasn’t far considering the lack of light. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could run. Her lungs hurt and a sharp pain formed at her side. The continued sounds of claws on rock and snuffling kept her going.
The darkness ahead dipped a little to the right. Jenna thought it could be another break off point but wasn’t sure. Motion just beyond that spot had her hoping it was. She ran closer and what she saw had her mind slipping like it did with the blobs. Her vision began to swim, and her legs buckled beneath her. She came to a skidding halt producing scrapes all along her arms.
There wasn’t much of a form. Something blocked the passageway but moved in small amounts. Long ropes extended and retracted to the side walls and ceiling. Short human like legs held the entire mass up off the ground a few inches. But in the middle, was mind breaking. A head swam in circles within the black oil colored mass. It tried to form facial features, but they were all wrong. A gaping, lipless mouth opened wide in a silent scream.
It was too much. Jenna’s mind snapped. She knew she should get up and run away but her will to do so was gone. Let the beasts descend and tear her apart. Let whatever this was do its worst. At this point she didn’t believe she would feel any of it. She lay there, bleeding from her many scrapes.
Again, the monster stopped chasing only to stand and stare at her. The hounds shifted their dripping heads from side to side. The tall spindly one came from behind, stepping between them to come forward. Its horns kept scraping the side and ceiling of their tunnel. Jenna slowly turned her head to watch it approach.
The faceless creature bent down towards Jenna. Long wooden arms slid under her neck and legs. When it touched her, Jenna’s mind went further into madness as if the contact made it all more real. As it lifted her, she slipped into blackness.
PART SIX
Jenna’s vision faded in and out as the tall, spindly monster carried her. She should have been terrified. She should have fought and ran away. But Jenna found both her strength and will to be gone. Whatever these things had in store for her, she didn’t care anymore.
For a while, all she could hear was the sounds of footsteps as they proceeded to wherever they were going. That changed when water dripped from somewhere close by. Then that awful chanting picked back up again. It grew louder and louder.
It was clear now she was being taken to the source of those chants. She tried to lift her head and look around but every time she did, her vision blurred. Jenna focused on listening instead. The words didn’t make any sense, though. Finally, one was recognizable. Cthulhu.
She tried to clear her mind. This couldn’t be happening. That beast was made up. He wasn’t real. She remembered all the monsters she had run from and the one carrying her even now. Maybe he was real after all. If he was, what did that mean for her?
The Lovecraft topic wasn’t one she ever learned. She knew the name. Everyone knew the name. She wracked her brain trying to remember anything she could about him. There was something about him sleeping and that if he woke up it would be really bad. Why would these people be chanting to him then?
They turned a corner and Jenna saw she would be getting her answers soon. Her vision chose now to clear up. An enormous cave loomed before her. Torches clung to the walls all around creating enough light to see everything clearly.
In the center, a large pool of black water sat stagnate and still as glass. Figures in red robes circled the water. Their covered arms raised high. Now that she was inside the cave, their voices echoed loudly off the walls.
The monster paused only briefly before continuing towards the worshipers. It walked around to the right of them and that’s when she saw a platform. It stood maybe four feet high and seven feet long. The surface was some kind of smooth rock. That was where it was taking her.
In an unbelievably delicate manner, the monster placed Jenna on the platform. It slowly backed away and rejoined the hounds who had refused to enter the cave. One worshiper, who’s robes were darker than the others and trimmed in gold, turned to the creature. “Thank you. You may go about your duties.”
Jenna lay limp on the surface with her head turned towards the retreating monsters. She couldn’t understand how these people could be working with such beings. How were these beasts able to understand these humans? She felt her mind start to slip again. She couldn’t let that happen. For some reason, she felt these cultists were more dangerous than the monsters.
The one with the fancy robes slowly walked towards her. His hood covered most of his head, but she could still see his face. He didn’t smile. His shaven face stayed slack; eyes cold. “Do try to sit up, my dear.”
Jenna did her best but only got propped up on her elbows. She breathed hard. Just that much was almost too much. The man came forward and grabbed her by one arm. He pulled her up to a sitting position. When he was sure she could keep herself upright, he took several steps back. All the while, the others continued to chant.
“My Elder God has called for you and you have come. Each test you have passed. Now you must choose.”
Jenna wasn’t sure her voice would work but she tried anyway. After a few croaking attempts, she finally said, “What do you mean, tests? What choice?”
The man nodded. “Each level, you survived. Most do not. You have proven strong enough. Your mind is still mostly intact.”
She scoffed. “I wouldn’t go that far.” Looking around for an exit, Jenna finally gave up and asked, “How the hell do I get out of here?”
“It is simple. You make a choice. You can choose to be a witness, or you can choose to find another that will take your place as witness.”
“Stop talking in riddles. A witness to what? I just want to go home.”
“If that is what you wish then you must find another to take your place as witness.”
The man was like a repeating robot. It was infuriating. All Jenna wanted was to leave, to go back to her life. She tried to think of someone she knew who wouldn’t mind witnessing who knew what. It couldn’t be that bad. “How long will my replacement have to be a witness?”
“For all eternity.”
Dread crept into her bones. “What will be witnessed?” This was the real question that needed answering.
“Cthulhu’s slumber.”
“Wait..What?” Did she hear that right? Watch a monster sleep? What was the catch? Sounded boring. “You or someone you choose will bare witness to Cthulhu’s slumber for all eternity until he wakes. It is no simple task. You will slowly lose your mind and not remember who or what you are most of the time. At other times, you will know. Again, at other times, you will know all the secrets of the universe only to forget again.” Now he smiled but it was not a friendly one. “Your choice is to be that witness or place that honor upon someone else.”
