Encountering Darkness Read online

  “Just playing bro.”

  Bro? What's a bro? And did this shield really answer her? She wonders.

  Amy looks back at the shield in haste, but the words do not change. She laughs to herself and says what she thought a moment before.

  “A bro is a friend of the male companionship. Yes.”

  “But, I'm a female!” exclaimed Amy.

  “Okay, chick.”

  “What's a chick?”

  “The young of a chicken or a slang term for a female.”

  Amy throws the shield as far as she can from her.

  “You happy now! I threw you!” Amy yells, while getting up from the ground. She walks over to shield and picks it up.

  “Ouch.”

  Amy laughs and falls to the ground once more, she continues to laugh until she cannot anymore. She pulls the shield to her side again and looks at what is written, but nothing appears.

  “What is your name?”

  “What is a name, but a way to address someone? You may call me what you would like.”

  “What are you?”

  “A shield.”

  “When did you come about?”

  “I do not know.”

  “What are you used for?”

  Blocking things.

  Amy laughs again. It's almost like this shield has a personality.

  “What am I supposed to do now?”

  “I do not know.”

  “What are you good at?”

  Blocking things, if the person using me is good at it.

  “That's an old joke.”

  “No, that's the truth.”

  “What about glowing? You glow.”

  “Do I? I cannot see so I cannot be sure. Thanks for letting me know. ;)”

  “What is that at the end of your words?”

  “A wink.”

  “What is a wink?”

  “Quickly closing one eye.”

  “Why would you wink at me?”

  “I was flirting.”

  “Wha…”, but before Amy can ask, a response appears.

  “Social interaction between two people to show interest in the person. Flirting shows ‘liking.’”

  “How can you like me, I am a female, and you are a shield?”

  “Why would I not like you? I have no one else to write to.”

  “When is the last time you’ve spoken to someone?”

  “You are the first.”

  “Are you lonely?”

  “I am a shield.”

  “Is there anything you can do to help me?”

  “What do you need help with?”

  “I'm not sure what to do now.”

  “Tell me what has happened.”

  Amy spent the rest of the day going over everything that had happened. She spoke about her old tribe and growing up there; she talked about the damned, and how she had to flee her village. She spoke about Pete and him dying. Amy continued on with the children, the building with the passageway (which led to a room), the necklace, the room, the door in the middle of the room, and the other world. She spoke about the way she awoke and came back and ran out of the room. Anything that came to Amy's mind, she spoke about.

  After she finishes, she pauses and waits for the shield to respond. The shield did not respond, so she asks, “What do you think?”

  “I have confirmed you are a female.”

  “Come on shield!” She bashes the shield on the ground multiple times. “No, I mean about the story?”

  “Was the story a question?”

  “No, but what should I do now?”

  “I am a shield. I am used to defend.”

  “So you are saying you cannot help?”

  “What do you need help with?”

  Amy raises her voice. “You are annoying! You are probably the most frustrating thing I have ever spoken with!”

  “I am a shield. Have you ever spoken to a shield before?”

  “No.”

  “Then how would you know what to expect?”

  Amy sighs and pulls her head back and looks up at the sky. It was soon after she notices that it is pitch black out. She looks back at the shield and it glows bright.

  “Shield, why do you glow?”

  “Yes, yes! I forgot to tell you, I can glow too! A double use…no…triple use shield!”

  “So why?”

  “Don't be afraid…well, then again, perhaps you should…I only glow when the shadows are out.”

  “You mean nighttime?”

  “I do not glow at night, only when shadows are close by. Do you see any shadows?”

  “I cannot tell, there is darkness all around me; I cannot see anything.”

  “Is it nighttime?”

  “I suppose so, but I cannot see stars, everything is black.”

  “I am afraid to say…what was your name?”

  “Amy.”

  “Amy, the shadows are all around you now. You cannot see anything because the shadows block you from seeing anything they want you to see. I have realized my purpose now. You must visualize where you were facing and head towards the building you spoke of. Hold on tight to me!”

  “Will the door be there now?”

  “I do not know, all I understand is that these shadows suck life by feeding on life itself and feeding on fear.”

  “I think I have the right way. Can these shadows hurt you?”

  “I am a shield, but they can hurt you, as you have already mentioned.”

  Amy continues, with heavy movement, across the grass, only being able to perceive a foot around the glowing shield. It is in this moment that Amy realizes that everything is silent. She cannot make out anything about her except the sound of the grass brushing along her. But, it is almost as if the sound stops by the shadows. As well as the sound stopping, it is almost as if the surrounding sound is louder, like it reflects.

  She continues to walk, but realizes she walks much more than she should have. She should have made it back to the building.

  “I can help you!” A voice cries out in the darkness. As Amy follows the voice, she looks at the writing on the shield.

  “I wouldn't listen. It is worse than I thought! The shadows seem to speak!”

  Amy doubles back, but even though she did not stray far, the damage has been done. She doesn't quite remember which way she is going.

  Amy, not realizing that the shadows can understand her, talks out loud to the shield.

  “I'm not sure where I should go!” Panic is in her voice. “I have lost my way!”

  “Do not be afraid, for I am with you.”

  It was from the poem that her father told her as a child! Amy thought.

  “It's not just a poem.”

  Amy freezes, the shield said it couldn’t hear her thoughts, but could it? Was she being told lies this whole time? Maybe she should not listen anymore.

  “Why would I lie to you? I am a shield. I gave you what you needed to know at the time. Nothing more.”

  “So you know what I need to do now?”

  “I am a shield.”

  Amy continues walking, her breathing is heavy, and she felt stuffy, almost like she couldn’t get enough oxygen.

  “I can hear you breathe that is not good. You need to relax.”

  But Amy can not relax. She panics and wonders why she hasn't seen anyone from her village. Were they all gone now? What is she suppose to do now? She can see nothing and only has a shield to help her. How would that help?

  Thoughts continue to flood into Amy, thoughts she can not control. The darkness seems to be all around her.

  She again looks at the shield.

  Everything will be okay.

  Except she didn't understand how that can be possible.

  “Death is upon her now!”

  “She cannot make it.”

  “Trouble breathing are we?”

  “Just give up.”

  Amy listens to these voices and many others; they are now flooding her mind. She looks one last time to read
the words of the shield, but passes out before comprehending them.

  “You are gone,” is the last voice she comprehends.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Amy awakens in a startle. She breathes heavily, and the left side of her body is in extreme pain. There is a bright light above her, and she tries to look about. Amy, aware of a lady's voice from behind her, feels the lady push her down. Amy tries to speak, but something is in her mouth. The object comes out of her mouth too, and connects to something that is to her left.

  “Doctor, she woke up! Doctor, doctor, get back here!”

  The doctor walks back into the room, having just left.

  “Whoa Caroline, the anesthesiologist put her out just an hour ago. Get him on the phone now.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  The lady that held Amy down walks away, and the doctor walks up to Amy and speaks.

  “Everything will be okay, don't struggle. Just rest. Caroline, I need the nursing team back here now!”

  “Yes, sir.” Caroline is farther away now as Amy can barely understand her.

  Amy points to her chest area, trying to get this person to understand she couldn't breathe. The man seems to understand, but Amy passes out again.

  ***

  When she wakes up, she cannot make out the place she is at. Everything is a whitish tan color, but after a few moments, Amy's vision appears once again. In front of her there is a white wall and a white ceiling. She thinks it is unusual everything looks clean; there is no sign of a mess or how the walls and ceiling were created. The walls seem to have a covering, and to Amy, fake. She glances over to her left and sees a door. The first aspect that reminds her of the door is it looks like the doors from the place she came from. The stone building.

  She sees a small table on her left that has a few items Amy can’t place.

  At once, the sunlight is gleaming through the open window to the right and Amy stares and observes how pretty the reflection is on the wall. She continues to watch as the shadows of clouds made their way across the sun's path and then realizes her predicament.

  Her mouth is clear of the object from before, but now there is another object around her nose. She touches it and pulls it out, but after a few moments, puts it back into place, as it seems to help her to breathe.

  Amy reaches across her body with her right arm, which is bruised, and touches her left arm, or tries to touch it, as it has a white hard casing. She knocks on it, and nothing happens. Again, Amy knocks on it and asks it a question, hoping it would answer, but again, nothing happens.

  With confusion and in a daze, Amy tries to get up hoping to see what is happening, but her body only moves a little and she rolls back to her original spot on the bed.

  Even as it is only a few minutes from when she awoke, she is bored and tries to talk, but nothing comes out. It is at that moment she realizes she did not speak to the white object on her arm, but only had the thought of what she wanted to speak. It is all in her head. She can only make noises, but she can’t form words together.

  Hoping for a bell, she looks around her room to see if there is any way to get a hold of anyone. Still there is nothing, just a white room, with one bed, one small table, one door, and some strange looking objects to her right, one of which connects to her nose.

  So Amy waits, for what felt like hours, for someone to come into the room, but no one does.

  The white light, illuminating across the wall in front of her, is now gone, becoming a dark orange color.

  Silence fills the room around her. It is the first time in many years Amy hears no sound.

  She looks at her right arm and pulls off the white strip of sticky material and notices there is something protruding. As she pulls at it, a burning sensation shoots through her right arm, and she stops for a second.

  Hesitating, she quickly pulls it out and examines it. It is a curious item, a long pointy thing, and it has a small hole at the end. The other end connects to a long tube shaped thing and connects to a clear bag at the end. The bag has nothing in it and has strange markings on it, similar to the ones she found when she first came into this world.

  Blood comes out of the spot where she pulls it out of her arm. She grabs her arm, and notices it is sore.

  Amy pulls off the thing on her nose and swings her legs over the side of the bed to the left. She sighs and gets up.

  Standing on her two legs, she walks towards the door. She shakes and stumbles against the wall next to the door. This is the first time she realizes she is weak and tired.

  Amy falls into the door, puts her hand on the knob, and turns it. She tilts back a little, and the door swings open.

  With the door open, Amy breathes in a deep breath and steps through.

  Everything around her is bright, and she falls down shielding her eyes. Amy brings her face to the ground and notices something tickles.

  It is grass, but even the grass is bright. Her eyes hurt, and can’t stand the brightness, but the light is beautiful. Amy cannot stop herself from keeping her eyes open, but she shields her eyes with one hand, staring into the glimpses of light.

  Out in the silence, Amy hears a voice, a gentle and soft, powerful, but caring voice calls to her.

  “Rise up my child and follow me.”

  Amy pushes herself off the ground as the voice commands her. She asked the voice, “Can I stop shielding my eyes?”

  “I'm afraid you cannot my child because we do not want you to see, but only listen. Listen to the words I tell you. Your Father is here, waiting for you. But, it is not your time yet, we want you back in the other world. Just remember that it is not because we need you, but because we want you. You are not special, you are chosen by us.”

  Amy strains to understand what this voice tells her, but nothing comes to mind, except that this must be god, she is in Imdagos, and she is bowing down to him whether she wants to or not.

  “What do I do?” Amy cries out.

  Hearing no response she repeats once again. “What do I do?”

  As everything in the bright world fades, she finds everything is dark, but she is still talking, repeating, “What do I do?”

  Her words remain soft and seem like they are distant.

  In a flash, her eyes open to darkness. She tries to look around, but there is no light.

  It is not the darkness that bothers her, but the sounds. From all around her, she can pick up screaming. The voices continue, with each distinguishable from one another, male and female, and they remain in pain. Amy hates the sounds and this place; she will do anything to get away. There are strange emotions running through her: pain, hate, fear, sadness, but the strongest one is the loneliness.

  For the first time in a long time, Amy desires to be with people. With anyone, it didn't matter who. She feels empty and lost.

  Amy tries to cry out to the surrounding voices, but she cannot…and then silence.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Someone lightly shakes her, and she awakens to a soft whispering of someone to her left.

  As she opens her eyes, she looks over and notices someone is talking to her. For a split second, she cries out in fear, but the face is kind, caring, and concerned.

  “How are you feeling?” the lady asks.

  Amy looks around the room. It is the same room she was in before: the one she was dreaming. Or is she in a dream now?

  Maybe, which is a dream is a better question, she wonders.

  “Ener eq gerdododt.”

  The lady, looks at her puzzled? “I'm sorry, can you say that again?”

  “Ener eq gerdododt.” Amy says slowly, not sure why for the nurse’s confusion.

  “Do you speak English? I'm sorry, I don't speak what you do.”

  Amy nods.

  “You are speaking gibberish, Ms. I cannot understand you.”

  Amy, points at her hand, and moves it along, forming words, looking at the lady in between.

  The lady seems to understand and leaves the room. Moments later she co
mes back with two items, one is thin white pieces of something, and the other is some type of tool.

  The lady hands the items to Amy, but Amy only stares at them. Understanding her confusion, the lady takes the items, and shows the uses of these two strange items. One is for writing the characters down, and the other is to write the characters upon.

  After Amy is given the two tools, she writes what she said before. Ener eq gerdododt, and hands the tools to the lady.

  “I'm sorry, I do not understand your language.”

  Amy face reddens, and she can’t understand what she hears. This lady speaks perfect Phorgine!

  She swings her legs over to the left, and gets up not realizing she still has the thing in her nose, and her right arm still connects to the clear bag.

  “No, please, stop! I cannot allow you to leave: you are still recovering. Please lie back down...security…security!” The lady yells and rushes out of the room.

  Since Amy notices the clear bag connects to her arm and the object in her nose, she pulls both objects which obscure her, and takes off past the nurse. She makes her way to the already open door, hesitates for a split second, and runs through.

  She continues by proceeding to the right and heads down the hallway.

  Outside of her room she realizes that all the walls here are white. There are doors to her right and to her left. She makes her way to the place with two doors and without thinking, pushes through them. After stepping through the two doors, and with doors causing her issues, she stops and realizes she went through another door. Also, she notices the strange lights right above her. One of them flickers with an unnatural glow.

  At once, Amy sees a couple people in front of her. They seem to think her important and begin to chase her.

  She doubles back through the double door and, not realizing how hallways and rooms work in this world, makes a quick left into the open door to her left.

  Finding a room similar to when she first awoke in this world, she sees someone on the bed like he is asleep. Walking up to this person, she sees it is someone familiar. Except for his face, he has a white blanket covering him, and also has objects connecting to him.

  She leans in to inspect, and realizes he has a similar thing in his mouth, and also a similar thing in his nose.