My blood froze. Weariness dissolved into nothing —a mere illusion—as every instinct roared awake. My mind sharpened, preparing me for fight or flight. Hadn't this cell been the one I inspected right before escaping? Shit. It had been unlocked this entire time...?

The smell seeping out from the narrow crack was terrible, but different from the previous cells. This reeked of stale blood, of viscera, of... death.

'Thud'

Oh shit. I closed the door and yanked the keyring from my pocket. My hands trembled so badly that I struggled to hold it. I fumbled for a key and slid it into the steel lock, praying, and twisted it.

Nothing. The lock didn't even budge.

"Please, please," I whispered, my voice cracking. Randomly grabbing another key, I jammed it into the lock and turned forcefully.

Another failure.

'Hiiiisssss...'

The sound was getting closer — a wet, slithering hiss that crawled down my spine. I shoved the next key in and twisted. Finall- Shit.

It only went halfway, the key almost breaking inside the lock.

A low throaty sound echoed from within. Whatever was in there should NOT be allowed out. I knew it, I knew it deep inside my bones that this thing couldn't get out.

"Shadam hohem glot'toitili. Rorhein hohem biytilha."

It was whispering something unintelligible directly into my mind. Something perverse.

"Trô uema krer. Trô uem-"

Death, death was approaching.

I was panicking now, my hands slick with sweat. If this key didn't work, I would have to run. Maybe hide in another cell. I had to survive — I had to.

The fourth key slid in.

And turned.

'Click'

"Huff... huff. Oh, oh thank god."

It felt like I'd run a marathon; my legs shook uncontrollably and my chest heaved intensely. This had been too close for comfort. My hands and fingers were numb out of fear. My heartbeat pounded in my ears, making a dull sound. I felt like I was... outside of myself, underwater. This... all this... all of this. What the hell was even happening? What was- What the hell was that?

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The whispers were gone, the corridor now filled with an eerie silence. I collapsed right there, on the ground, huffing. I knew it was not smart, but I had no strength in my legs. At least that had been the last door, I thought.

After a few seconds, I stood up, using the wall for support. Staying here was not it. I had to... I had to get out. Get out and rest.

My nerves refused to settle the entire way back. This place was a purgatory. The things contained here were abominations. There was simply no way this house was safer than other places.

I'd have to reread that note later.

Staggering back to the entrance, I slid the fake bookshelf out of the way and stepped out of the basement.

The surface was almost as dark as the underground — the fancy dining room took a grim atmosphere at night, it seemed. It reminded me of those haunted houses at amusement parks I used to visit as a kid.

This basement definitely took the cake.

Now, where should I hide? I pondered. The plan had been to stay the night here, and while I didn't feel very safe right now, the decision had been made. There was no time to go anywhere else, anymore. It was night already.

My best bet was staying here and choosing one of the rooms upstairs, far away from both entrances. I also wanted to secure an escape route in case things got too dicey, but that was probably too much to ask.

Reaching the second floor, I headed for the main room — the same one where I'd found the amulet and the letters. The door was partially busted, which was a big con, but someone would still have to open and cross the entire meeting room to reach me. The other rooms only had a single door separating the inside from the outside, which wouldn't give me enough time to wake up and react if something were to happen.

I entered my quarters for the night. At least the bed had silk sheets. Chuckling, I remembered what my grandma always used to say to me as a kid: "Sleep well. But not too well, else you won't want to wake up". She was one of those witty types. My lips trembled and my eyes stung. Shit. Turning around, I started working. There was a lot to do: the desk had to be moved, the room searched again... I would use all the furniture available to barricade the entrance since the door was broken.

After that was done, I went behind the bookshelf and inspected the single window in the room. The curtains covering it were old and dusty, but the window itself was made of normal glass, encompassed in a sturdy, wooden frame. A glimpse through it didn't reveal much, as the outside was totally dark. I ended up leaving the bookshelf where it was, blocking the window.

"Guess that's it". Placing my knife under the pillow (was this made of feathers?), I emptied my pockets onto the ground and lay down on the bed. I was extremely tired but also too anxious, so I probably wouldn't be able to catch any shut-eye tonight, unfortunately. There was a lot to think about.

Eight cells, sixty-six steps. Me, the girl, the man, the Komodo dragon, nothing, that swarm, 'Martha' and... some whispering abomination.

Where is the pattern? Is there even a pattern?

.

.

.

Within minutes, I was fast asleep.

*********

I opened my eyes to a white, unfamiliar ceiling. The soft glow of the sunrise peeked through the gaps of the hidden window on my right, illuminating the bedroom. The slight chill of an amulet on my chest, however, promptly reminded me of my situation and washed away any sleepiness that threatened to remain in my system. Getting up, I grabbed my knife and went to look out the window. It was still very early but the soft grassy slopes outside looked bright.

The night had been anything but pleasant. I woke up multiple times, convinced something had broken into the house or that one of those things had escaped containment. Every little noise set my nerves on edge. It felt like a miracle that I managed to get any sleep at all.

Suddenly, after noticing how quiet it was, a random thought struck me: I hadn't seen nor heard any birds in this place yet. I saw a squirrel — when I encountered that first zombie — and also the mangled carcass of something quadrupedal, but that was it. This place was quiet all the time.

"Well, this pillow is made of feathers, so birds do exist. Probably." I made it a habit to double-check some basic common knowledge every now and then, just to make sure I wasn't completely crazy. Ok, birds are real — check.

Satisfied to add one more fact to my 'not-crazy list', I approached the door and peered through the keyhole. Seeing no one outside, I carefully moved the desk aside and stepped out. I would return later to grab the keys and other items — it was quieter this way.

After being certain that nothing had wandered inside the house at night, I went to the kitchen to make some breakfast.

A few gulps of water, this time with a cup, and one sad cheese sandwich made up my main course. Honestly, the sandwich didn't even taste like a proper cheese sandwich; the ingredients were too different from what I was used to. It tasted more like rubber and dirty socks than bread and parmesan but that was expected. Before leaving, I contemplated trying one of the fruits and opted for an awkward green one. It had rugged skin and multiple seeds inside, kinda like a papaya. The fruit itself didn't taste like anything, though.

Done with breakfast, I wiped my hands and got up.

"Alright, so where to now?"