The darkness was around me, closing in. I didn't know where to turn-there was no light to run to, no path to escape down. I had no escape route, and the darkness seemed to be pressing in on me. I called out for help, fear gripping me as my eyes searched the blackness. A whisper answered me, first in front, then behind, and soon all around me. Frantic in my fear, I spun around, trying to pinpoint the thing in the shadows. My eyes failed me, lost in the nothingness.
So I did all I could. I ran.
My pounding footsteps were muffled in the suffocating darkness, my breathing ragged and panicked. The whispering grew, evolved into a laughter that rang in my ears. A strangled cry escaped me, silencing the laughter. I glanced behind as I ran but still saw nothing. My right foot collided with my left, sending me flying. The ground was cold and hard, the smooth stones of the pavement calmed my feverish brow. From my place on the ground, I could see a large building towering over me. The Tower.
With all the strength I could muster I tried to push myself up and run for the safety of the Tower, but my head was foggy, my movements sluggish. The laughter returned. Danced in my head, toying with my mind and clawing at my sanity. My hands rushed to my head, trying to pull apart the laughter inside. Once more I cried out and the laughter faded. I looked up to the Tower. My view was blocked by a mass of dark shadows-darker than the night surrounding it. I will never forget those eyes-blood red and glinting in the darkness.
It laughed once more.
I awoke the next day at the foot of the Tower. It was daylight, the town was alive once more. People were walking past me lying there on the ground, never once glancing down to see me. I pushed myself up and looked around. I felt dizzy. My hand reached out to a trainer in front of me to steady myself. He didn't turn around. That's when I heard the conversation.
"Do you believe in ghosts?" a child asked him.
He shook his head.
"Haha… I guess not… That white hand on your shoulder, it's not real,"