After witnessing the elevator being snapped and the brutal landscape of the 275th floor, he knew there was something trapped in here and couldn't find the reason why his mind was screaming at him to go to the top-most floor.
Raviel lowered himself in a crouching position. As he couldn't afford to catch the attention of whatever— entity which was present. He went full cautious mode.
His eyes darted across the corridors and some of the open room doors with broken hinges and scratched wooden frames with blood everywhere, which felt as if they were watching his every movement.
Every shadow felt alive from Raviel's vision,
And
Somewhere along the darkened end of the corridor, metal scraped against the marble.
Raviel froze
His grip tightened until his knuckles went white, his ears turned red from the noises,
Scrape
Step...
Scrape
Step...
Scrape
Step.....
The sound drew closer, reverberating inside the darkened corridor. The flickering light buzzed as if it was on the verge of dying.
Raviel's throat gulped on the excess saliva in his mouth, while his heartbeat was while another story, it felt like it was drilling a hole in his chest.
"Don't panic.....Don't panic, no loud breathing and study it first"
He hid behind a doorframe near him, which was broken from it's hinges and instead of going in the room he used it to pull it towards him— before peering from a small hole in the centre from the corner of his eye.
A silhouette
Humanoid. Bent as if it's spine was curved in a downward parabola but still it's neck stood straight which made it more 'haunting' than it already was and was dragging something on the floor till tiny sparks flew from where it made contact....
And then it stopped
The thing lifted his head
Two dark hollow eyes that flickered in the lights
Looked directly on him
Raviels breath hitched, his body was quivering and screaming—Move.
He clenched his teeth and lifted a small piece of glass shard and held it like a knife while the figure still looked towards him as if it saw him through the door.
The silence stretched endlessly.
And then—
The lights went out.
Pitch black
The entire corridor went black
Zzzzt–Zzzt
The lights flickered back on,
Raviel's blood ran cold
The figure was right in front of him—its face nothing but a white canvas while the pitch black eyes seemed to glow. Its body was a mess as puss oozed from every wound and chains were wrapped around his entire chest with barbs on them till they were covered in the stench of rot. And in his hands—
A metal rod, thick and heavy, and at it's end a pointed spike.
It's tip hovered inches from Raviel's right pupil.
Raviel didn't wait to see why the figure stopped his instincts screamed louder then words—Ru...n
He bolted
While the figure stood perfectly in the piercing pose.
Doors lined the corridor but they weren't his focus as he could see the stairs at the far end. Just twenty metres.
Then—
Flicker
The lights died
Two seconds.....
When the lights returned, his stomach dropped
The faceless figure was right behind him and the tip of the spike pressed against the back of his neck till blood trickled from the small puncture—all this happened in two seconds.
His legs nearly buckled—but his mind raced.
"It doesn't move when there's light.....but in darkness, that's why it stopped, that's why—"
Flicker
Dark again
Two seconds–he counted in his mind.
Flicker
The figure was now behind him again.
But this time it trembled slightly as of it was 'angered' but it didn't move an single inch.
"It only moves in darkness..."
Raviel was sure of it now.
The light buzzed overhead, threatening another blackout.
Raviel heartbeat was a drum and mind in a frenzy. "Freeze. Three Step. Freeze."
The lights above crackled while a drop of sweat ran down Raviel's temple.
"Don't rush, Don't panic, time it"
Flicker
Darkness
He ran 5 more steps in an adrenaline rush.
Light...
It was 2 metres closer now.
Flicker.
Dark again
This time when he moved he felt another chill and swallowed hard.
Light.
When the light returned, the figure wasn't alone
Two more joined it with different tools in their hands.
Raviel's veins turned to ice.
"Shit!!! It's not just one"
His mind reeled:"The longer I stay here the more will spawn from the darkness"
"...Alright" he whispered. "Then we gamble"
The lights flickered-off again, this time longer..
The world sank black
He sprinted
No hesitation, his shoes now tore themself completely as his bare feet now slammed against the broken marble, beside him. Behind him he could hear the metal rustling.
Light...
He sprinted again, to save himself few metres without catching his breath.
Seven metres.
The staircase was so damn close. So close.
Flicker
Dark
He ran....
But this time the lights flickered on in nanosecond.
He knew this was his last chance.
Flicker
Dark
With all his might he ran as the light flickered on again but this time when he saw behind. Hundreds of those flooded the corridor, some still on the doors. All frozen mid-rush.
As staircase swallowed him in darkness...