Everything was damp, wet, and still cold. I could feel the back of my clothes and my hair soaked. Surprisingly, it wasn't soaked with my own blood.
A lake lay spread out in that "hole." It wasn't very deep; even when I was lying down, it reached my ears, so I couldn't explain how I didn't die, much less how the impact didn't hurt.
My brain was probably too busy dealing with the cold air to pay attention to a fatal fall.
I got up from the spot as soon as I could, eager to find a warm place. What I saw around me wasn't something that would help me with this.
Boxes, cells, forts, cubes of metal, wood, glass—all of these things surrounded me. They were all fixed to the floor, and they all served the purpose of a cell, even if some didn't look like one.
Some were empty, with others I couldn't see inside them, but the ones that weren't empty had something worse than emptiness inside: people.
Everyone I could see was naked, either huddled in a corner, lying in the water, or desperately clutching the bars of their cell, pleading for help. None of them seemed to be affected by the cold I felt.
There was no way to get them out of those boxes. Most of them had a door, but they all had locks, so no one could open them, not them, not me.
And even if I had the key, it wasn't the time to be helping people like a saint. My brain was only thinking about warmth, about avoiding the cold that enveloped my body.
"If it got colder while I was falling, everything should go back to normal if I go up…"
'But what kind of ladder?' When I realized there were no ladders near me, I started to panic. I went from standing still to running around, desperately searching for a ladder.
I ignored all those locked people, all those empty cells, with a red glow in my eyes.
They looked ahead, toward the possibility of finding a way out.
They looked up to see if there was a ladder nearby. I looked up as far as I could to find any trace of a ladder in that place.
They looked down at the ground, when I was out of breath, and my need to breathe overcame my need to stay warm.
They were staring at my back, paranoid that they'd heard footsteps behind me, footsteps moving away from me. They were moving away from me toward a staircase that appeared behind me.
The start of it was right in my direction. I had to head there and start climbing.
I ran, as fast as I could, just to be able to touch her, to know she was real. And, as I longed for, she was real, not a mirage.
It was in a sorry state, the wood was moldy and flimsy, and there were occasional broken rungs, but it was still standing.
I put one foot on the first step, a little disgusted, then on the second, avoiding the gap between it. I stood still, waiting to see if it would stay upright. 1, 2, 3, 4…
In the fifth second, I started climbing the stairs quickly, wanting to get out of there as quickly as possible, not because of the area itself, but because of the cold. What did it matter what was down there, I had an even bigger problem.
Just because I was fast doesn't mean I wasn't careful, I didn't want to trip and fall down the side of the stairs.
Minutes passed, and haste turned into patience. Hours passed, and patience turned into perseverance. When I couldn't tell how much time had passed, perseverance turned into annoyance.
The staircase was in better condition, but not yet acceptable. I longed for handrails on either side; the height I was at was becoming increasingly worrying.
I hate heights, but I can't get dizzy from them now. As long as I don't look down, everything will be fine.
I don't have to go up that high either. It's not so cold anymore, but I'd like to get back to normal rather than continue like this. There's no way I'm going to get used to this.
There were many steps near me, all going upwards, but I didn't see anyone climbing them while I was climbing mine.
I was alone, no one was going to help me up. If there are people stuck down there, why would anyone come to help me?
Higher up, I could see the staircase was in acceptable condition. Although I didn't pay attention to that; there were handrails on the sides.
I climbed as fast as I could, so I could lean on them, so I could be safe. I was careful not to fall, I didn't despair, and so, I made it.
It had taken a long time, but I had finally arrived where I wanted to be. Everything looked better, it was safer, and best of all, it wasn't cold anymore.
Why would I want to go higher? The only thing that's going to change is how safe it is, but I don't need anything else; having handrails is enough.
Even with that, I continued up the stairs, at a slower pace, curious as to what might be beyond that I hadn't seen.
Would I have more to do besides climb? Could I distract myself with other things if I climbed high enough? Would there be new clothes to change into?
All those questions made me want to go upstairs, but first, I needed a break. I'd run all the way here; I need to get some air.
I leaned on the railing to my right, allowing it to partially support my weight. A slight creaking sound came from it.
Before I could process it, the railing broke, causing me to fall off the stairs along with the broken piece of railing.
The last thing I knew was that I was falling again, that everything I had done was in vain.
All that time, only to fall for the one thing I trusted.