A/N: Well, here we go again. Lovely. Thanks so much for all of the reviews, they have truly amazed me! And thank you Daft Penguin, you are entitled to your opinion, that's what makes this country so awesome to live in: you can say whatever you wish. And honestly, I do appreciate that you did give your true feelings, thanks for the honesty. Also, the Phantom is actually my favorite over Raoul, but I like to do the more obscure viewpoint. (hope I'm not coming off too callous). Thanks also to everyone else too and "The Phantom of the Opera": I did appreciate your review, it made me smile, thanks! Hope this is enjoyed and meets expectations, if not, feel free to tell me where it fell short.
A chill, dank wind blew into my face and body as I swiftly followed Madame Giry down a snaking trail of stone steps. I could not help but think that as we wound further and further downward I would have lost my thoughts completely had they not had a sole objective. Events had tumbled into an order that I never would have wished or entertained, even in nightmares. Whatever was now to unfold out of that sick man's mind was of my concern and was the result of my own folly. A small flickering glow emanated from the single oil lamp which Madame Giry's pale hand grasped. In its struggle to add light to the dismal corridor, it exposed the decomposed flutter of several old, deteriorating posters. It was clear the shows had been long since performed and forgotten by all but the Phantom and perhaps the aged ballet mistress herself; now they swung idly in a muted, pitiful state. Madame Giry's voice reached my ears in a tone of strained control and the strange sound echoed behind us.
"Keep your hand at the level of your eyes." She advised without looking towards me or turning her gaze in any direction aside from directly facing her. I was not entirely sure of the meaning of her cautions, but I drew my hand towards my brow nevertheless and continued to follow her downwards. "The level of your eyes." I echoed wearily. My eyesight moved to rest upon the mysterious woman, but I could read nothing from her eyes that I could not hear in her voice or see from her movements. As quickly as she had begun moving with me down this path, she halted, her body stopping in a controlled, fashioned manner. The point seemed nondescript enough to cause me to wonder what her reason was for not going any further. The look in her eyes told of some unseen barrier or trap yet to be sprung.
"This is as far as I dare go." She stated simply, with only a measure of fear in her voice. I nodded my agreement and thanks to her, taking on her cautious observance of the floor beneath me and column surrounding. Though I knew that something lurked for me and, indeed, anyone who dared to penetrate the Phantom's lair, my bravado lurched forward with me and I left Madame Giry behind. Stepping quickly down the staircase, I pulled at my jacket and threw the cumbersome fabric off of my shoulders, along with a restricting over shirt. No need for civility in heroism.
No longer under the helpful watch and knowing glance of my guide, I moved with a certain restraint in my body. For everything that my knowledge consisted of, I could be continuing down this path for another twenty yards or two seconds. An increasingly sick feeling grew in the pit of my stomach and something pulled at me to glance over the edge of the thick banister. The twisting darkness drew down into an unrecognizable black pit, which seemed no more encouraging then where I currently stood. The place bore a strange resemblance to a deep well and I felt as if the mere spectacle pulled me down, moving towards the drowning force of dark waters. Adrenaline coursed through my limbs and I gave up the idea of a plan of attack for the simplicity of speed.
Lurking in the midst of the blackness before me somewhere were the Phantom and Christine. An overwhelming feeling of how large the situation was around me froze every muscle in my body for several moments. In the dark reaches of my mind I softly heard Christine's voice and saw the look on her face minutes before he had taken her. "Anywhere you go, let me go too." Anywhere. I had promised her an escape from darkness and had allowed her to be swallowed by the true definition of evil. I told her that I would be her light and shelter, yet I had let her hand slip from mine. Resolve hardened further and I shakily stepped forward. Pulling my hand up slowly, I continued to move into the dark unknown that Christine was trapped in. Hand at the level of my eyes. There was no other option but that of soldiering on.
I stepped down heavily on one of the few stair platforms that I had seen and at once felt every nerve in my body fly upwards, away from me. Before I could begin to distinguish the nature of the sensation, I was surrounded in murky waters and a whitish-green light shown high above my head. Panic had little to no time to set into my mind and I pushed up above the waters, scanning for a way of escape. Thoughts became increasingly difficult to put into any kind of order as I fought for control of my mind. My senses were assailed by the only recent feeling of falling, a damp heaviness and the sound of heavy metal chains moving above. Glancing up quickly, I saw a menacing lattice lowering cautiously towards the surface of the water and the clarity of the subterfuge in which I was caught became apparent. Panicked, I turned from side to side, searching for something that would stop the descent of the grid. I took a swift breath and dove down into the clouded depths of the water. My eyes could not focus on anything well, but I swam towards the only plausible looking escape.
I grasped a small metal wheel attached to the wall of the pool and tried to push it into a position that would reverse the movement of the lattice. Despite the adrenaline that was constantly being supplied to me, a heavy fatigue began to flow into my arms and the weight of the wheel was almost too much. With one last grasp at a plan I pushed to the surface and took in as large of a breath as I could before the water was broken. I knew that while there are many ways to leave this world, dying a used pawn of the Phantom was not going to be mine. Not now.
The well-rusted piece of metal stuck stubbornly in its position, not allowing much movement in either direction. I could feel a choking burning in my lungs, like breathing in smoke, as the air supply that I had hastily gathered was almost entirely used up. This may have well been a last effort, I thought, but I would not give up trying. The smooth wheel began to budge beneath my hands and I pushed it with all that I had left, praying that it would not be the last movement I would make. A rattling sound reverberated throughout the water-filled chamber and I saw the lattice begin to ascend back to its rightful place. A faint, blurry darkness began to assail the edges of my vision as I pushed towards the surface of the water. Grabbing a ladder with fatigued hands, I pulled upward onto a flat surface and stumbled on into the darkness.
From that point on, the trek was not nearly as difficult. Although ink black and dank, I felt through the passages with my hands, following the gentle twists and turns that the passage made. I knew nothing of where I was or how close Christine was to me. Simply put, the only thought that was left of my bedraggled and torn senses was to find her and take her away. Away from the Opera, from the Phantom. Away from this hell. I fell swiftly in the darkness, tumbling down what could only be felt as a steep set of stairs. The flavor of dank water filled my mouth as I hit stone with a hard impact on my left arm and head. Colors filled my vision in the midst of the black, and I knew that I was near unconsciousness. With a small grunt of pain I stood to my feet and pushed against the wound on my arm that was once again bleeding. Fatigue threatened to take over and bruised tissue made itself known all along my legs and back.
I held myself up against a slick, algae covered wall and slid along, wading through water that was well up to my knees. My hands felt along in front of me, continuing the assurance that would be something ahead to walk towards. I slapped my arm forward and felt the contact of the stone on my elbow, but oddly my hand only swung purposelessly through the air. Moving cautiously to the opposite side of the path, I felt the wall and as my hand slid forward, it too only found blank space. In the darkness I did not have any notion of what was sitting before me and I let my foot explore the ground of the corridor, only to find that there was no more floor to be found. With only a moment's thought of what was there, I stepped into the pit and sunk slowly into more dark water. My right leg hit something solid, and I stood on the base of the cavern, turning to see a light several feet above my head. It did not take long before I was crawling into the dim light of another flat, vast room, lit mildly with candles. The sound of a horse echoed raggedly in front of me and I followed it towards an even larger chamber. Now that I could see the way, it was clear where I needed to go and that the Phantom was close by.
I ran down a slope consisting entirely of flattened steps and jumped into another large pool of water, this time banked by a dry stone area. Once it became feasible, I jumped onto the pathway and ran until the stone met once again with water. Silently I wondered if the entire place was flooded with the murky, green liquid. I flung myself back into the cool fluid and waded forward towards the haunted sound of Christine's voice. My legs froze as I felt something brush against them and looking down, I saw a large fish swim idly by. I had stopped moving now, and an eerie silence echoed, through which I could hear far too much. Every hair stood on end at what I heard Christine say.
"Have you gorged yourself at last in your lust for blood? Am I now to be pray to your lust for flesh?" Another voice followed closely after hers in response and I waded forward vigorously.
"This face which condemns me to wallow in blood has also denied me the joys of the flesh." Millions of unwelcome and terrifying images lapped into my mind and panic almost completely took over. "…pity comes too late, turn around and face your fate, an eternity of this before your eyes."
I stopped suddenly as the two forms of Christine and the Phantom arose before me, surrounded in lavish fabrics, shining gold and flickering candles. Christine was clad in a soft white, flowing gown and her voice flew above the darkness surrounding her.
"This haunted face holds no horror for me now, its in your soul that the true distortion lies." Finally, there was Christine, standing pure and clean in a chamber full of elegant gaudiness. Her beauty sat enthroned by things far less stunning, and I unknowingly took in air at the sight of her. At that moment I wished nothing more than for Christine to be in my arms once again, safe from the evil bombarding her. But as I drew closer to the iron lattice separating us, I could do nothing but stand mesmerized at the picture before me.
Another man's voice broke my reverie and Christine turned in surprise, her eyes filling with hope. "Wait, I think my dear, we have a guest. Sir, this is indeed, an unparalleled delight. I had rather hoped that you would come and now my wish comes true, you have truly made my night." His armed looped around Christine's waist and pulled her harshly. I could softly hear her voice telling him to let go of her and I would have torn through the metal in front of me right then if it would have been physically possible.
"Free her! Do what you like, only free her! Have you no pity?" I shouted loudly, wanting just the sound of my voice to threaten his hold on her.
"Your lover makes a passionately plea."
"Please, Raoul, it's useless."
"I love her, does that mean nothing? I love her. Show some compassion." I felt anything but strong and heroic standing only feet away from saving Christine, yet unable to do anything but watch.
"The world showed no compassion to me."
"Christine, Christine. Let me see her!" My voice rang out loudly, commanding more than the courage that I could muster.
"Be my guest sir." The Phantom's voice sounded calm and level compared to mine. Anger welled up at the simple fact that he seemed infinitely more in control and it took all my strength to keep my body under the guise of civility. A dark feeling rose from the pit of my stomach as the disfigured man walked towards me and I knew that the worst of the battle was yet to be fought.
Ta Da! Sorry for the suspense…uh…hopefully I'll write more soon. ducks away from fruits and vegetables being thrown at her