The creature before me looked eerily familiar—like something pulled straight from my dreams. But it wasn't the usual kind. This one was different, something I had never encountered before. A grotesque amalgamation of shadow and form, its body seemed barely anchored to reality. A tattered cloak of pure darkness hung from its twisted frame, its shredded layers shifting and fluttering weightlessly, despite the dead air around us.
Its face—if it could even be called that—resembled an empty skull wrapped in dark grayish, leathery skin. Or at least, something disturbingly close to skin. Long, bony fingers stretched from beneath the cloak, their joints grotesquely crooked, tapering into jagged tips that seemed to scrape at the very air itself. Beneath the flowing robes, I caught glimpses of its lower body—serpentine, writhing and coiling in a way that never seemed to settle. It didn't walk. It glided. Its movements were smooth, unnatural, and worst of all—completely silent.
I shut my eyes, inhaling deeply.
I'm just seeing things. That's all.
For the past five months, my dreams had been filled with bizarre, twisted things like this—creatures that defied logic, breaking every rule of reality my mind knew. But this… this was the first time I had seen something like that outside of my dreams. Why?
First that woman, and now this.
It stood there, motionless, facing in my direction but doing nothing—just existing like an eerie, lifeless statue. It didn't move, didn't react. Did it not sense me? Or maybe… it couldn't see at all? After all, it had no eyes.
I clenched my fists and shut my eyes again, forcing myself to stay calm.
Calm down. Just breathe.
But a different fear started creeping into my mind.
Am I dreaming? Or is this just another hallucination, like this morning?
I had been here before—trapped in dreams so vivid, so tangible, that I could barely distinguish them from reality. They always left me questioning. Yesterday was the same—I woke up in that bed, thinking it had all been real, only to realize it was nothing but a dream.
But something about this was different.
I couldn't remember how I got here. Not even a vague recollection of lying down or falling asleep. Usually, I had at least a fragmented memory, a hazy clue. But now? Nothing. My last clear memory felt like a distant echo, unreachable.
I glanced down. My phone was still in my hand.
My breath hitched.
Why would I have my phone in a dream? That's… not normal, is it?
A dry, bitter laugh escaped me, barely audible.
"So this must be a hallucination," I muttered.
Yeah, that's all this is. My messed-up brain is just projecting this freakish thing in front of me. Nothing more.
I exhaled sharply, forcing myself to relax. I'd open my eyes, and it would be gone. It had to be.
I opened them.
It was still there.
Fuck.
My fingers curled into fists, my nails digging into my palms. My mind wavered between reality and delusion.
And then it happened.
A car approached from the distance, its headlights cutting through the darkness, illuminating the creature. But as the light passed through it, the thing remained unchanged—untouched. A second later, the car drove right next to it, as if it wasn't even there.
It didn't react. Not even a twitch.
The car continued on its way, rolling past me, and I caught a glimpse of the driver through the window. A man, casually smiling—relaxed. He glanced in my direction before turning his focus back to the road.
No fear. No reaction.
That wasn't normal. No sane person would see something like that and just keep driving like nothing was wrong.
My gaze snapped back to the creature. It still hadn't moved.
A flood of thoughts clouded my mind, but I forced them down. It didn't matter. None of it mattered.
Whatever. It's just a hallucination. I'll go home, take a bath, and go straight to bed.
With that decision, I controlled my breathing and took my first step forward. The creature remained still, its presence unwavering.
But then, as I got closer, something shifted.
Its face—previously fixed in a blank forward stare—tilted slightly. Toward me.
Like it had sensed me.
A deep, primal dread coiled in my gut.
And then, it moved.
The thing lunged, its serpentine lower half propelling it forward in a horrific crawl.
My breath hitched, and my heart pounded against my ribs, wild and frantic. I tried to move, but my legs felt like lead—frozen in place, refusing to respond.
Move. MOVE!
I willed my body into action, but it was too late.
It was on me.
Cold, skeletal fingers clamped down on my right shoulder, their grip unyielding. The creature's bony face suddenly split open, the skeletal structure pulling apart to reveal something grotesquely organic beneath—a writhing, dark muscle-like face. Two hollow holes where eyes should have been. A massive, gaping mouth lined with jagged, pointed teeth, inches from my face.
"FUUUCK!" I screamed.
Then, something surged inside me.
A rush of energy, unlike anything I had felt before. My heartbeat—already frantic—spiked even higher, a rapid, deafening rhythm in my ears. My vision sharpened to an unnatural degree, and everything around me slowed, as if time itself had bent to my will.
Without thinking, I moved.
I grabbed the creature's skeletal hand with my left and clenched my right into a fist.
Then I swung.
My knuckles cracked against its head, sending a jolt through my arm. Without hesitation, I followed up with an elbow strike, slamming it into the hand gripping me.
The creature let go.
I didn't hesitate.
I turned, ready to run—but a voice made me glance sideways.
A couple stood nearby, staring at me. Confused.
They see that?
I barely registered my own voice as I yelled, "Fucking RUN!"
Then my legs moved on their own. I bolted, and the creature followed—mere inches away.
My breath came in ragged gasps, my lungs burning with every desperate inhale. My legs screamed with fatigue, but I didn't stop. I couldn't stop.
The world around me blurred, the pavement a streak beneath my feet. Every step was a thunderous drumbeat in my chest, a desperate, pounding rhythm of survival. The wind lashed against my face, my thoughts a chaotic mess, but my body kept moving—faster, faster, as if I could outrun reality itself.
And then—my house.
It was so close.
But my breaths grew heavier, my body sluggish with exhaustion.
Just a little more. Just a little more.