I know the tags are 'horror' and 'mystery'…but if you've read any of my other stories…you can infer that there will probably be some sort of friendship and/or romance later on. :P I'm just sayin'.

Chapter One: Fear

"So this is the entrance to the collapsed tunnel…neat!" Willow Summers said to herself as she inspected the rubble before her. There was caution tape all around the wreckage that warned passersby not to go any further. Pfft! As if she, Willow Summers, self proclaimed adventurer of the highest caliber, was going to take advice from some silly yellow plastic! There was no way she was going to pass up the chance to explore something as intriguing as a mysterious tunnel.

And mysterious it was! It had collapsed unexpectedly as a few sheep headers from her town were out walking near it. No one could figure out why it was there…or who had made it. It was deemed a strange and potentially dangerous occurrence, and was proclaimed off limits to all town folk. Most people would grow worried and listen to the warnings…but not Willow.

She had heard the news whispered from grownup to grownup around the town before actually being told about it personally. She had grown more curious every time it was mentioned around her, and was just itching to go check it out. There had to be some reason for its existence…an entire tunnel wasn't something 'random'. Her parents told her not to go near it no matter what, knowing full well that she would attempt to get a closer look. She nodded and promised not to do anything stupid…all the while with her fingers crossed behind her back. She knew she was being reckless, and her parents would kill her if they caught her sneaking out of the house, but it was in her nature to be adventurous! She took pride in her fearless and brave attitude that even outshined most of the boys in her class. No offense to her beloved mom and dad, but there was no way she was going to let this phenomenon go unnoticed.

Willow hastily looked around herself a few times to make sure no one was around to see her. Satisfied that she wasn't going to be scolded out of nowhere by anyone before even going in, she dropped down into the underground space. She landed, feet first, with only mild stumbling. Brushing herself off, she quickly lit her lantern and stomped on the match to make sure it was out.

"Wow…this place is even cooler than I thought it would be!" she said aloud. She spun in a circle and shined the light; taking in all the crumbling dirt walls around herself. It appeared that she was in a small sub tunnel that connected to the larger main one. Eagerly, she walked down the length of the little tunnel until she saw the opening into the larger one. She stopped at the edge and peered before her.

She wasn't sure why…but all of a sudden a feeling of nervousness washed over her. She swallowed hard and narrowed her hazel eyes into the shadows. There was no way she was backing down now…she had never gotten scared before like this on any of her other expeditions! Then again, she had never had the chance to uncover something this big; but that was all the more reason to pine on! Regretfully, nothing all that interesting ever happened in her small town of Mare. This seemed like something she could really brag about and enjoy! She had returned home unscathed after all her other endeavors…so why would this time be any different? It wouldn't.

"Don't be a baby!" she scolded herself. She took a breath and boldly jumped down from the slight elevation into the main tunnel. She gasped quietly as she realized the sheer size of the space around here. Perhaps the sub-tunnel was something dug by her fellow villagers in an attempt to investigate before they got freaked out. It paled in comparison to this!

"Wow…" she breathed as she made her way a bit farther along the tunnel. "This thing must go on forever!"

Even with the lantern light it was nearly pitch black. Willow had never seen any big deal about the dark. Many of her fellow children confessed to or nervously denied the fear…but she had never thought it all that scary. If something bad was going to happen, why only in the dark? What was to stop it from happening in broad daylight instead? There was nothing worse about nighttime…

Willow bit her lip as she thought hard; continuing her journey into the tunnel. She had made her way inside…but now what? She hadn't seen anything that hinted at its reason for creation yet…just lots of shadows and dirt. And what could have possibly made it so tall? Some sort of machine? No person should be that big…

It was actually quite cold underground, and Willow hugged her skinny frame in an attempt to stay warm. Her thin black and white striped tee shirt, shorts and black sandals didn't help in the matter.

"I should have brought a sweater…" she thought; longing for the warmth provided by her favorite grey hoodie. She blew a few stray strands of her auburn hair from her face as she came to a stop. She thought she heard something…no! She had heard something.

She scrunched her eyes shut and listened hard. There it was again! It sounded like…slithering? Snakes? She wasn't afraid of the scaly little creatures…but she didn't like them either. She continued standing still and craning her neck as she tried to discern what she was hearing.

It definitely sounded like a smooth kind of slithery noise…but it sounded far too large to be a snake. It didn't sound too far off either…but what on earth could it be?

Images of a giant snake slithering around underground flooded her mind. Perhaps that was how the tunnel had happened…but that was preposterous! Right?

Willow felt herself grow uneasy. "Calm down…there's nothing to fear!" she told herself. She sounded too unsure though…and her statement quickly began to resemble a comforting lie. As the sound continued, it got louder. Whatever was making it was coming closer. Willow stiffened as she felt the hairs on the back of her neck begin to stand on end. A horrid, heavy feeling fell over her. Whatever was making its way towards her was giving off some really bad energy…

Willow couldn't remember the last time she had felt this frightened. She gulped as a cold sweat beaded her brow. Whatever was going on here…she didn't like it. As much as she still felt the need to investigate, something inside was screaming at her to run back.

"I…I can't just give up!" she thought. "I haven't done anything significant yet and…" before she could finish her thought the slithering noise sounded loudly near her, then silenced. The terrible feeling strengthened as Willow felt her heart stop.

Cautiously, she turned a full three-sixty around herself; lantern held out like some sort of protective talisman...or a death weapon. Whatever she was more likely to need. Nothing appeared to be there…what was going on? Was she going crazy and hearing things or something?

Even though she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, she kept her guard up. Just because she couldn't see it, whatever it was, didn't mean it wasn't there. She had learned her lesson on the subject of seemingly invisible attackers when she had been pecked at and chased away by one of her neighbor's chickens. She had climbed the fence to get a ball she had accidently kicked over, not even seeing the little bugger until it was too late.

Willow had the horrible feeling that this was not just an angry farm animal…but something much, much more terrifying.

Gathering up every available ounce of courage she possessed, the young girl called out into the darkness. "H-hello? Is anyone out there?"

She awaited a response. Every moment of continued silence was agonizing.

"Well…I guess I was just imagining it…" she thought sheepishly. She lifted her right foot the begin walking once more, but stopped dead as laughter sounded all around her.

The harsh sound bounced and echoed every which way in the cavernous space, making it hard to tell exactly where it was coming from. A strangled scream caught roughly in Willow's throat as she whipped around.

A sight like none she had ever seen, or even imagined, met her gaze. A large, black mass covered the dirt walls as it seemed to slither across them all around her. Despite just looking like a big shadow, it was covered in large red eyes and multiple mouths wide enough to swallow her whole.

"Well, what have we here? What might a tiny thing like you be doing down here so late?" said a booming, metallic voice. The voice seemed to come from the massive shadow itself. "Humans like you aren't supposed to know about this tunnel…that idiot Sloth must have dug too close to the surface here."

Willow had no idea what the thing was talking about or how shadows could actually speak. She didn't want to stick around and find out either. Apparently, even her seemingly insatiable curiosity had its limits…and now they had just been set.

She stumbled back a bit, fumbling and nearly dropping her lantern in the process. She tried to turn on her heel and run, but fear combined with the shadow's voice froze her once again.

"You're going to run? I don't blame you…but do you think I can just let you get away like that?" the shadows asked. "I think not." They finished cruelly.

Willow could sense an attack coming and finally forced herself to move. She bolted back the way she came as fast as her scrawny legs would carry her. She could hear the rush of the slithering shadows behind her as she sprinted towards the exit. Fear and adrenaline pumped through her at the terrifying sound and knowledge that if she were to fall, she would surely be killed.

"Get back here!" the voice demanded virulently.

Willow tired not to pay attention as she saw the opening coming up. Thank goodness she had managed to hold onto the lantern the whole time. If she had been running in the darkness; she was sure her chances of survival would have been much lower.

Finally, when the exit was only mere feet away, Willow tossed herself forward. She dove up into the sub-tunnel roughly, scraping her exposed arms and legs as she went. She tried to get up, but found that her legs wobbled under her weight like they were made of jelly. They would not support her. She collapsed and backed herself against the side of the dirty space. Her heart was beating so hard that it hurt, and her throat stung with every raw, rasping gasp she took. Frightened tears stung the corners of her eyes as she desperately prayed that the shadowy monster had stopped chasing her.

She felt her breath catch as she spied the eyes and teeth just outside of her hiding spot. She braced herself, but nothing came. The eyes narrowed a bit as the shadows slinked back and dissipated into the darkness of the main tunnel.

Willow furrowed her brow as she began to breathe again. Why had it just stopped trying to get her like that? Was there something stopping it from leaving the tunnel?

She didn't care…she was just grateful that she was alive. Relief washed over her like a cool waterfall as she leaned her head back and tried to calm down.

When she was well enough to stand, she climbed out and speed-walked home as fast as her already tired legs would take her. She didn't know whether she should confide in her parents about what happened or keep it a secret. If she told them; many things could go wrong. For one thing, she would be grounded into the next millennium, and likely never be allowed to leave the house by herself again. That wouldn't fly…

Also, would they really believe her tale about the shadow monster? Would anyone?

As she nervously trekked back home Willow decided it was best to keep her frightful encounter a secret for the time being. She could just say she was climbing the rocks by the river again to explain her disheveled appearance. As much as she wanted to confide in someone, she felt it would just be a safer move to stay quiet.

As horrified and exhausted as she was, Willow had a strange feeling that she would be returning to the tunnel once again.