Dan ran along the sidewalk searching for any sign of the troubled woman. For about ten minutes he jogged around the area but found nothing. Panting and exhausted, he stopped to catch his breath. His heart pounded inside of his chest, hurting with every pulse as sweet ran down his face and drenched his clothing.

Dan wasn't really the running type of guy, at least not anymore. He's gotten on in his years he supposed. In fact, the last time he ever ran this much was when he was in track & field at his old high school. The life a traveling salesmen never called for intense running but at this very moment he wished he had his high schoolers stamina back.

"Damn you Mona..." Dan mumbled to himself in between breaths. "What the hell are you thinking..."

Out of the blue, there was a mild crashing sound that came from behind him. Turing around, he noticed a trash can had fallen on its side and a small piece of paper lay on its rim. Walking as slow as he could, he approached the metal can, scouting the area around him as he did. After all that's already happened he didn't want to be taken by surprise again.

Kneeling down, Dan picked it up and saw that it wasn't trash, it was a note written on an old ragged napkin with "To Dan" on its front. He unfolded it began to read.

It said,

_

This place you've come too isn't the best Dan.
They'll always come after you ya know.
They'll never stop.
Come to the old Balkan Church down on Blotch St.
To find the way outta here you're gonna have to trust me.
If you don't, you won't make it out alive.

Signed - An Old Friend
_

"Again?" He stood back up and stared at the piece of paper. "At least this 'old friend' appears to be on my side." Running his fingers through his brown hair, he stuck the note in his left pocket, confused about his whereabouts. "How am I supposed to find Blotch-" He spotted a small blood trail leading a few feet in front of him. It wasn't there before, how could it be there now?

"Things go from bad to worse I guess." He reluctantly followed the sinister trail, heart pounding still as he did. When he reached the end of the trail he came upon a square, blood covered sign. "What is this supposed to be..?"

He inspected it a bit closer. "There's something under here!" Dan whipped the blood off of the sign with the side of his shirt then slang his arm toward to the ground flinging a majority off of it. He didn't care if he got a little bloody, he just wanted the hell out of here. With the menacing red gone he found It was a map of the streets!

He being on Finney St. he was two blocks away from the church. It would take him even less time if he took a short cut through all alleyway about ten feet behind him. "Guess I'm going that way." Trying to memorize it as best as he could, Dan turned back around and headed in the direction of the alleyway.

When he finally reached the narrow tunnel like alley he didn't want to venture any further into it! Yet again, the question was where was he going to go besides here? He would have to go all the way around the town for the intersection that Finney St. would end is also the street that is now cliff side.

Hesitation was pushed aside by desperation as Dan flipped his flashlight on and sluggishly forced himself into the darkness. The black was all around him, much like it was in the other place. Cold and dark.

His thought came back to a day when he and Jason had gotten themselves lost in the woods on a summer camping trip about three years ago. It was night, and all he had was a small flashlight. They needed more firewood which was laid out for campers several meters away. Jason wanted to come along, wanting to help his old dad out. He could remember that smart mouthed remark from Jennie like it was yesterday. "You two are gonna get lost in less than ten minutes out there!"

She was wrong, they got lost in five. It took them about three hours of searching for the camp before the y managed to find their tent. Jennie just stood there with Ginger, smiling and shaking her head. "What did I tell you Danny Brown! You go get yourself lost but don't drag Jason into it!" She jokingly shouted at him.

"Yeah, yeah." He turned his hand and threw his hand out at her in a joking blow off gesture. "Did you have fun son?"

Jason smiled at his father without fear in his eyes nor in his hear. "Yeah dad!"

"See? The boy's as strong as his father is."

For the first time since he got here which to him seemed like a million years, a short chuckle, a laugh escaped from his terrified body. He couldn't believe himself as he walked down the dismal area.

As he ventured onward, something in the distance caught his eye. It broke away the concentration on the thoughts that warmed his heart as he got closer to it with every step. Dan could see dozens of flies buzzing all around this unknown thing.

When he reached it, he discovered it was a brutally mauled body. There was no way you could tell if it was male or female. The face of this person had been savagely torn apart. Perhaps even eaten off by...Something. The persons cloths were covered in blood and their entrails were spilled out all over the ground. It was a revolting sight and as he looked upon it the stench off death crept over him. It caused him to recoil and throw his hand over his noise in disgust, nearly causing him to vomit right on the spot.

He looked down at the corpse as the ash stopped falling and was replaced by the bizarre rain he had witnessed not too long ago. The feeling of joy was replaced by that of deep dread. The kinda feeling you get when you know you're being watched.

"Is anybody there!" He shouted in a slightly timid way.

This time Dan wished he had no reply, that only silence entered his ears again. It was not so, as a loud and intense sound of growling came from behind him. Terror struck in his heart and mind once again as rotated around toward the source of the noise.

Shining the light at the clamor, many pairs of green eyes appeared out of the shadows. He found that there were six large pairs of eyes staring strait at him him in the distance. What they were he could not tell, they were a good fifteen feet away from him and he didn't dare get any closer.

The unknown creatures snarling began to intensify, drilling extreme fear inside of him. Standing a good fifteen feet away from him, Dan felt dumbstruck as their scowling began to get closer. His aim wasn't the best and he had only a few bullets left. There was no way he could take out all of the creatures ahead of him. Especially is this darkness. Thankfully, his instinct whispered inside of his ears more truth than ever before; All put into one simple word.

Run!

He bolted forward as fast as he could go and he could hear the claws of the creatures pound against the pavement as pursued Dan. Their growling and snarling seemed to amplify with every step they took.

The light in his hand traversed wildly as he focused only on what was ahead of him. In his own head he questioned his own survival, asking himself if he was ever gonna see his beloved wife and kids ever again. The monsters behind him were not letting up and they were getting ever closer to Dan with every passing second.

Then, he flashed back in his mind the conversation he had with his daughter. "You promise you'll be back soon..." His muscles began to stiffen up. "Yes, I promise sweetie..."

With those few sentences boiling inside of his mind, Dan Browns body was refueled with new found strength. It felt as if he had never been tired before as his body was built on nothing more than the his care towards his family.

The monsters displayed no mercy in their pursuit but he wasn't giving up so easily.

Suddenly, the rain ceased and the ash began to fall once more. Running at top speed he could see a dim light just meters ahead of him. He made it all the way down the alley, but a large wooden fence blocked him from of the other side safety. With one amazing leap, he grabbed the top of the fence with the palms of his hands. Pulling his front up he leaned his front half over to pull his leg over the fence.

They were close now, very close. So close in fact he could feel their very presence right underneath him. Without a thought in his head, Dan threw himself over the end of the eight foot fence.

Hitting the ground hard on his back his breath was knocked out of him. The creatures hit the fence with a loud crash, clawing at it trying to get at him. His breath being knocked out of him from the fall, he clenched his stomach tight. He himself couldn't believe he managed to escape the grasp of the monsters.

Gaining his control back, and crawled slowly away from the fence. He sat there and just looked at as the monsters scratched and growled. He couldn't even imagine what horrors were on the other side. Some of wood began to splint and within a blink of an eye he was to his feet with his gun drawn.

After about a minute or two, the unknown things finally gave up on their chase. Relief shuttered over Dan as the other worldly sounds finally ended.

Lowering his weapon, he smiled and twirled around and gazed into the streets. "One block down. Two to go."

The scraping of the metal was like nails on a chalkboard. The fire was all around, even falling through the ceiling. There was only one way out now, a way blocked by a strange monster. Its head was covered by some kind of helmet. Dan stood helpless at the end of the room watching as it closed in on him. Jason was at the far end of it, watching as the monster picked his large weapon off the ground.

"Dad!" The young boy shouted as the monster thrust its weapon at Dan, decapitating him immediately. "Dad!"

"Jason!" Jennie shook her frantic son. "Jason wake up honey!"

The boy in a deep state of panic grabbed his mother and held her tight. "Mom! Dad's in trouble!" He buried his face in her shoulder as he shouted. "I know it!" His mind unable to stop the replay of the dream over and over again the boy began to cry in fear for his father.

Unsure of what to think, Jennie tried her best to calm her son down. "No Jason! Your father is fine! He's just away on business Jason! Everything will be alright! You were just having nightmares again!"

Jason said nothing more, he only wept in his mothers arms.

It was night and this was about the time Jason would have nightmares when he was younger. He would awake sweeting and scared, just like he was now. Jennie was used to this and it was no surprise, but he sheer confidence again disturbed her.

She held her son tight, calming and reassuring him that his father was fine. She was beginning to wonder if he was alright herself.

Could something bad really have happened to him? She thought to herself

Dan could see the church in sight. It was only a few short feet away when loud ringing nearly made him fire his gun off. Glancing over his shoulder he saw it was a pay phone.

Bolting to it he immediately answered it without a second though. "Hello! Is anyone there!"

"Dan?" Jennies voice echoed into his ears.

"Jennie! Is that you! How'd you get this number!"

"Dan, your never getting away..."

"What! What the hell are you talking about Jennie! Look, my car broke down I need your hel-

"You'll never leave us Danny...Never again.."

"What! I never left-"

"NEVER AGAIN!"

Inhuman screams burst out of the phone and sent a sharp pain throughout his head. Dan ripped the phone from its cord and beat the metal box several times with the severed end of the phone.

He shook from fear and confusion. "Was that really Jennie?"

Making it to the church, Dan stood at the front door, unknowing what to do next. "Could this be a trap?" Dan asked himself.

With all of these monsters here he had seen no other human beings besides that crazed woman who tried to kill him once already. Who could be here that actually wants to help him in this nightmare? That person also being someone he knew?

Reality struck him hard, what more could he do than hold onto this last glimmer of hope? Even if it was a trap he had no where else to go. Dan held the knob firm in hand and slowly pushed the large door open.