WARNING: DISTURBING IMAGERY, VIOLENCE, AND SEXUAL CONTENT
Where am I? I thought for sure I would be dead; but I'm not. Wasn't I at home? Maybe... wait, I'm sure of it now. I had taken all of my prescribed sleeping pills, hoping I would overdose. Holy fuck, why aren't I at home?! I'm in a wheat field, why?! It looks familiar but there's no way I've been here before. Nothing about this place seems natural either. The sky is a sunset orange, and it doesn't seem to fade in darker shades, as if it's permanently orange and never gets darker. The only thing really changing is the direction of the wind blowing back and forth, rocking the long wheat in the field.
Nothing to do but explore, otherwise I'll never figure out what's going on.
Also, I've got to find a place to get away from this bullshit wind, its blowing so hard it goes through my long skirt.
I tread around the field for a while until I see a shack. It seems kind of unnatural as it's constructed completely from old, rusted steel. I feel strangely drawn to it, but there's a padlock on the door. There's no way I'm strong enough to pull it off, I guess I'll walk a little farther. Maybe I'll find a crowbar or the key thrown somewhere. I keep wandering in the field until I come across a giant stalk of wheat in my way. I decide to pass through it and then suddenly, the area changes and I'm no longer in the wheat field with the shack. I've been transported to a road in a tunnel with dozens of broken cars.
The sight is unbearable; I hate to imagine living people stuck inside the debris. As I continue to walk and look at the wreckage, I'm stopped by an ambulance, blocking the rest of the road. I try to wrestle the doors open but they're locked as well. It's no use to keep trying so I turn around to back and then BAM!... I collect myself for a moment as I lay on the floor. Strange that an earthquake would make me collapse so quickly. There's a slight pain on my knee so I lift my skirt to see a minor scrape. I must be alive, I wouldn't feel pain if I'm dead. I get up to find the ambulance doors wide open with a lift with a body on it inside. When I finally get a good look at it, my heart begins to race. I see… me... on the lift.
I feel knots of fear in my chest, wondering if maybe I'm a ghost looking at my corpse. My pale skin looks like I've bathed in moonlight. My short hair is still dyed red in certain areas, but most of my dark brown hair is visible. I open my eyelids to see my beautiful emerald green eyes. They were the only thing I liked about myself, apart from my sharp nails, always painted red and always filed to sharp points, like cat claws. I get more curious, and seeing my cheeks enlarged, I notice that something's been stuffed in my mouth. I open it and find a crumpled ball of paper. I open it to find a key. Odd, but maybe the key I was looking for. I turn to go back, yet again but this time I'm more cautious.
As anticipated, I hear a creaking noise above me. I do the most logical thing and run for it, while behind me, the ceiling of the tunnel collapses. I continue to run until I just barely make it through the wheat stalk. I run back to the shack and try the key on the padlock. To my relief, it opens it and I enter. Inside is a display of steel and machinery that looks like it hasn't been touched in years. I try to look for a switch but it seems like there isn't one. Strange, wouldn't a machine need a switch? Then I see faint writing inscribed near what looks like a boarded up hole in the wall. It reads, "A SACRIFICE FROM THE HEART WILL BE REWARDED….BUT WHAT TYPE OF SACRIFICE?" Hmm….maybe I need to give something to the machine to work. As I ponder the inscription, a crow appears near the door. It drops something on the floor and flies away, but not too far away. I go to pick up what it dropped and find it to be another key. I wonder what this one opens.
I quickly run to follow the crow, which seems to want me to follow it, as it squawks loudly when I don't. Again, I go into the giant stalk of wheat and am transported away from the fields to the woods, where a gruesome display of animal heads awaits me on a gate. No more guessing games, since I immediately use the key I found on the gate, which immediately opens. Inside I find a cabin with a woman sitting on a rocking chair. To me, she looks like a hermit, since her clothes are an array of colors and fabrics that are completely outdated, but her face was a glow of youth and perfection, with her white blond hair in a bun with two strands sticking out on each side of her face. She looks in my direction, and gives me a hard gaze with her fiery blue eyes. I never knew blue eyes could look like fire, but hers do. Yet, her facial expression reads as though I'm an old friend she hasn't seen in awhile, the way she smiles at me. "Welcome Audrey, I've been expecting you"
End Of Chapter One