Hall of Infinite Doors
You spin on your heels and bolt back into the darkness. You dash upward along the path, bashing into walls and scratching huge gouges along your face and arms as you run. There is a terrible cacophony somewhere behind you, and you hear the furious sound of pursuit. You can't see, but there are echoes around you, something like language that makes your blood throb and muscles pump. You slam into a wall, wheel, turn, and rush off into new darkness, plant yourself in a pillar, fall and rush on. The echoes seem fainter now - but you have no idea how close you are to the ladder. Will they keep chasing you, even if you return to the hallway?
All you can do is run. So you do, continuously, until your bones are battered and bruised and blood leaks from your split lip and scratched skin. Your breath is ragged, your feet sear with aches, but you stumble, forward and forward, until you simply cannot anymore, collapsing against a cool stone wall and waiting for the inevitable end.
Only... there's nothing.
No sound. No chase. Nothing but the darkness, absolute and unending.
You stand, and wearily listen. The silence is complete. The air is chill and dry - like it would be in any average cave, portal to Hell notwithstanding. You can hardly believe it, but you've lost them, somehow.
You put your hand to the wall, hiss a sigh of relief, and set off to find the exit.
An hour later, you're still looking. Your other hand hasn't touched the opposite wall yet. Your footsteps echo alarmingly.
There must have been another passage somewhere. And now you're lost. You take your hand off the wall for a few seconds and become unable to find it again. You stumble forward, but touch nothing - only the bare stone floor and the still air ahead.
There's nothing at all - only the echo of your own footsteps and the sheerest nothingness around you.
All you can do is run. So you do, continuously, until your bones are battered and bruised and blood leaks from your split lip and scratched skin. Your breath is ragged, your feet sear with aches, but you stumble, forward and forward, until you simply cannot anymore, collapsing against a cool stone wall and waiting for the inevitable end.
Only... there's nothing.
No sound. No chase. Nothing but the darkness, absolute and unending.
You stand, and wearily listen. The silence is complete. The air is chill and dry - like it would be in any average cave, portal to Hell notwithstanding. You can hardly believe it, but you've lost them, somehow.
You put your hand to the wall, hiss a sigh of relief, and set off to find the exit.
An hour later, you're still looking. Your other hand hasn't touched the opposite wall yet. Your footsteps echo alarmingly.
There must have been another passage somewhere. And now you're lost. You take your hand off the wall for a few seconds and become unable to find it again. You stumble forward, but touch nothing - only the bare stone floor and the still air ahead.
There's nothing at all - only the echo of your own footsteps and the sheerest nothingness around you.
