Something After
Chapter One.
Until I wasn't.
Until a voice came, low and deep, chanting.
Until a voice rang from everywhere at once, surrounding me.
Until a voice echoed around the tiny room, shaking the white walls, the white floors, the white beds, and then me.
Until a voice called, descending upon me in some unseen pattern.
This voice terrified me more than my former companion, the quiet.
It was harsh in my ears, unbelievably loud.
It was distorted, maybe human once, but now reduced to some unknown, to some creature.
It was nothing from my world.
Finally, I grew almost accustomed to the unending words, to the unintelligible syllables swallowing me whole.
Finally, I understood the meaning.
The word repeating over and over and over was something I recognized easily.
It was my name.
And then, as abruptly as the assault on my ears had begun, it ended.
There was silence once more.
I was left with a feeling everyone knows, that everyone has experienced.
I was left with the unshakable sensation of eyes, unwavering, upon my skin.
Goosebumps everywhere, hair reaching as high as it could, told me I was not imagining.
No matter what I wished to believe, I was not the only one in this deserted hospital.
I was no longer alone.
Placing my fear to the back of my mind, I decided I needed to find the owner of this voice, or at least a way out of this place. I needed to explore ever single inch of the building, no matter how unpleasant.
And so I set out, through the dizzying white, determined to figure out exactly what was happening to me.
Until a voice came, low and deep, chanting.
Until a voice rang from everywhere at once, surrounding me.
Until a voice echoed around the tiny room, shaking the white walls, the white floors, the white beds, and then me.
Until a voice called, descending upon me in some unseen pattern.
This voice terrified me more than my former companion, the quiet.
It was harsh in my ears, unbelievably loud.
It was distorted, maybe human once, but now reduced to some unknown, to some creature.
It was nothing from my world.
Finally, I grew almost accustomed to the unending words, to the unintelligible syllables swallowing me whole.
Finally, I understood the meaning.
The word repeating over and over and over was something I recognized easily.
It was my name.
And then, as abruptly as the assault on my ears had begun, it ended.
There was silence once more.
I was left with a feeling everyone knows, that everyone has experienced.
I was left with the unshakable sensation of eyes, unwavering, upon my skin.
Goosebumps everywhere, hair reaching as high as it could, told me I was not imagining.
No matter what I wished to believe, I was not the only one in this deserted hospital.
I was no longer alone.
Placing my fear to the back of my mind, I decided I needed to find the owner of this voice, or at least a way out of this place. I needed to explore ever single inch of the building, no matter how unpleasant.
And so I set out, through the dizzying white, determined to figure out exactly what was happening to me.