The Last Night

Chapter One: Insanity

Ally looked around at the rows of houses. The night seemed to close in on her, light it was a psycho murderer, and she was its victim. Then, fire seemed to erupt from the closest one. There was a horrifying scream to her right, opposite of the burning house. Then, she felt something hot against her hand. It seemed to move from her wrist down to her index finger. It was… moist? She stared at it in the light of the fire. It was blood.

Deep, red blood.

She began to feel something stir inside her chest.

A, sort of a, a craving… for more of the life-giving liquid that was…

Blood.

There was another screech. Male's voice, Ally deciphered, past the sound of the ever getting closer fire – the crackling. Ally jerked her head around to face the house – or, at least a moment ago, it was a house. Now there was nothing, yet the scream persisted, even though it came from nowhere.

No, that wasn't true!

I seemed to come from everywhere – at once!

But, now it didn't sound very masculine, it sounded childish, and Ally began to make out some words from it.

"MOMMY! HE-HELP ME!" It screamed.

Ally was horrified, this was not happening – not to her, at least! This couldn't be true! It had to be a dream – a nightmare! Yes! That's what it was, a nightmare! If she blinked three times, she would awaken, that's what she was always told to do when she had a nightmare, blink three times.

OK. That's what she did.

She blinked.

Once.

She blinked again.

Twice.

She blinked a third time.

Thrice.

But, when she opened her eyes, she was not awake. Though, she had moved to a different location. She was somewhere new. She had never been here before.

Well, it couldn't be as bad as the other place. There were even people here.

Real, live human beings.

But, when she looked at their faces, they were empty. Like they weren't alive, or anything! She shivered, from the cold, and then she shivered again, from the cold, again. Then she shivered a third time and vanished. Disappeared into emptiness.

It was like nothing ever existed in this world.

NOTHING.

But, evil emanated from the depths of this emptiness. An evil so pure, so concentrated, that it sent trembles down her spine, fear pierced her heart and she had been frozen.

It seemed like forever when she finally made a move. She moved her mouth and spoke.

"…" No sound was made.

She repeated herself, but she could not hear it. Then she discovered where she may be. She may be in space – nothing can travel through it. But, if she was in space, with no suit… wouldn't she have imploded? Maybe that was what that feeling of impending doom was: that fact that she was imploding, or already imploded. She may be in super-slow-motion, where she wouldn't feel it for another century.

Maybe, just maybe…

Something smacked her and she screamed and all Hell broke loose.