What Is Reality?


Connor's eyes fluttered opened to reveal his still empty room. How long he had been asleep, he wasn't sure. To his horror, he looked to see that the door had been left wide open. Now at his feet, and in spite of the risks, Connor quietly exited his room. He peaked out of the doorway, to be met by no one. No sight of any of the hotel occupants.

He tried listening.

No sound.

No air movement.

Add to this the fact that there was quite a bit of dust that had somehow accumulated throughout the space overnight, if such a thing were possible.

As he walked down the stairs and into the lobby, it had only confirmed that the entire hotel seemed devoid of life. The furniture sat covered in sheets, and the bar looked as though it had been uprooted. The red and gold had gone and were it not for the windows allowing the sunlight to pour in, the place would be pitch black. The interior lights had even gone dark throughout the building. It looked as though the hotel had been long since abandoned.

Of course that was until a small, black cat had made itself known to him; crossing from one end of the building and disappearing into the other.

He approached the door to the outside but found that the doorknob wouldn't turn. Thinking there had to be another way out, he turned back to explore, but was met with a rather peculiar sight, as standing not ten feet away, was a stag.

This of course would be an oddity of its own; how such a creature could have entered the hotel on its own was a mystery. But its appearance told Connor that this was no ordinary deer. Sporting large, black antlers that stretched a good four or five feet, hooves that looked a bit sharper towards the tips than it really had any reason to, and the fact that its jaw seemed…almost dislocated with how it slacked, revealing a mouth of large yellow fangs. But the most obvious detail, was its coat of fur was a bright…red.

A chill had shot down Connor's spine as the deer's head began to twist and contort until it had finally become the face of Alastor. He let out a hair-raising elk bugle as his dial-eyes shone bright and fangs bared.

Connor twisted to the door, but found that it had fused into the wall, along with all the windows. He had no way out.

And so he bolted, just as the Alastor-deer charged at him. Dashing back up the stairs, he didn't need to look back to know that the creature was gaining. The ever present sound of its hoofbeats ringing in his ears.

Turning another corner, his hope returned to him in the form of a broom cupboard; its door barely cracked open. If he could make it there, he'd buy himself just a bit more time. More than he was allotted, as another elk bugle sounded the demon deer's return. He dove in, headfirst, crashing into the hard wood floor before turning back to slam the door shut behind him just as he caught a glimpse of Alastor's antlers peeking around the bend. With the door shut, the darkness took him again. And yet, this he found more comforting than having to face what was awaiting him outside.

Connor jolted awake, drenched in sweat. He sat there, gasping for air as he stared up at the ceiling. It had felt so real. He brought a hand to his head, heart still pounding.

*Thump-Thump-Thump-Thump*

*Thump-Thump-Thump-Thump*

There was no telling if he would be able to fall back asleep after something like that.

As he laid back in his bed, the memories of the day prior played back in his mind. Taking in every moment that had led him to where he was now. Then he tried to convince himself to forget the horrors that had transpired in his sleep. Then counting as high as he could at the time, focusing on the numbers. Staring at the ceiling as if it would change color. Quoting lines from an old movie he remembered watching over and over. Humming a tune! Anything he could think of to put his mind at ease.

But after so long, he brought his hands to his face, unable to deny it any longer.

He was in Hell.

Surrounded by what he could only assume were demons. One of which having taken an unsettlingly keen interest in him. Most of the others he wasn't as sure of; they may have seemed neutral at worst, but that could all change at the drop of a hat. But then again, Charlie hadn't seemed so bad. Maybe she was different?

He glanced down at himself and saw that an extra blanket had been placed on him while he was out. Come to think of it, the pillows against his head felt more fluffed than when he initially laid down. Could Charlie have done this while he was unconscious? Or her friend…Vaggie, wasn't it? Though, the blanket was making things a bit warmer than he would have liked though, throwing it off, allowing cooler air to hit him. The hotel definitely lacked air conditioning that was for sure; the air had become so stuffy.

He rolled over to the side, finding a small, red apple and a glass of water with half-melted ice cubes sitting on the floor next to his bed. The sight causing his stomach to urge him into partaking. He reached down, taking the apple gingerly in his hand. Even in the dark, he could see the bright coloring, and just how glossy it was. He could even smell the sweet aroma coming from it.

But at once he reminded himself of where he was, holding back momentarily. What if the food here wasn't fit for his consumption? Until now, he wasn't aware that the dead even could eat. He even recalled a tale that warned of eating the fruit of the Underworld, lest they remain there for eternity.

Unfortunately, his stomach still craved substance, and this was all the food he had in sight. And if she really meant what she said about helping him…

He took the smallest, tentative bite of the apple…and soon began wolfing down the rest. It was like nothing he had tasted before! It was sweet and only slightly tart, crisp yet so easy to bite into. It was quite literally perfect. The apple didn't exist for long, as Connor left it a thin core not a few minutes later.

The water had a bit more of an acquired taste. There was little doubt they had gotten it from the tap. Hopefully there weren't too many bacteria or any other contaminants. Though, it was a sort of strange miracle they even had drinking water in Hell of all places.

A knocking at the door gave him a jump.

"Connor? Is everything okay?" Charlie's voice asked from the other side.

Connor sighed in relief, before approaching the door. "Y-yeah, everything's fine. We're fine. Here. Now…h-how are you?"

There was a moment of silence.

"…Do you mind if I come in?"

His brow furrowed. Why did she want to see him at this time of night? Maybe she was just that worried. She did leave him the apple and a glass of water after all.

"Y-yeah, just a second." Connor replied as he gripped the handle.

But just as he was about to start turning, a tinge of fear struck him. There was a small, buzzing sound coming from the other side of the door that he was able to pick up on. Slowly leaning his head against the door, listening intently, he could hear radio static softly coming from the other side.

In a panic, Connor relocked the door, and threw the dresser on its side; backing away from the door. He didn't care if the sound had woken up everyone in the hotel, he knew who or rather, what was waiting for him on the other side.

"O-on second thought…Charlie," He coughed. "I don't think now's a good time."

If there was another face Alastor could make, it would be a grimace. This one was clever, he'd give the boy that.

"…Oh, okay. I'll see you later then!" Alastor imitated into his mic, before taking his leave.

Connor's heart had been pounding more than ever. The tremors in his hands wouldn't stop, and his heavy breathing reminded him of just how dehydrated he was. He took the glass, and shakily drank the remainder of its contents before he returned to the bed.

He laid there, eyes wide open, staring at the dark ceiling, trying desperately to calm himself. But he was afraid to even close his eyes, terrified that despite his efforts, Alastor would still appear the instant he opened them again.


Time slowly passed, and all Connor could do was lay there in wait.

Where was Charlie? The real Charlie? Didn't she say she'd come back for him later? He assumed that had obviously meant the following morning, but he was finding it increasingly difficult to read the passage of time in this realm. Hours or even days could have passed since then, and he wouldn't know the difference.

*drip*

A small droplet of liquid had fallen to Connor's forehead. Great, his room just HAD to be one with a leak.

*drip*

Once again, another drop had made contact with his face, this one landing on his upper lip near his nose. With this, he caught a smell of what was falling on him. It was…coppery.

He brushed the droplet away, and squinted his eyes in the dim light to see that it indeed wasn't clear as he had hoped, but a very red dark color.

In shock, he turned to see blood seeping in from the walls as well as the ceiling. It started out a barely noticeable trickle, before slowly becoming a consistent drizzle, and no doubt would soon become a torrent if he didn't get out soon.

In a lapse of judgement, Connor threw the dresser off to the side and opened the door once again. With the ceiling making a sound that signified its threatening to cave in from the pool that was no doubt forming above it, Connor slammed the door behind him just as he could hear it finally burst; a stream of blood was now rushing past his bare feet from below the doorway. It took him a minute to catch his breath after this.

After that, he slowly opened the door again to see his room a dripping mess, somehow redder than ever. But what stunned him in that moment more than the sudden paint job, Vaggie laid strewn on the floor.

In panic, he rushed to her. Her eye was wide open, but she seemed practically catatonic! Her face frozen in an expression of absolute terror. Taking her by the shoulder, he shook her gently, not wanting to hurt anything, but her body was as cold as ice. He snapped his fingers, took her by the hands, tried calling out to her in an effort to get something out of her. But still she remained. Was she…dead? …again?

The moment was shattered when all of a sudden, she had let out an ear-piercing scream, one of fear and anguish, as more blood shot out of her mouth and both her eye sockets, quickly pooling onto the floor. Connor jumped back in horror at this scene. As much as it pained him to be unable to help her, he could immediately notice that her body was rapidly beginning to decompose.

There came another creaking noise. But he looked up, and saw there was no ceiling left, where could-

He got his answer once the floor gave up from under him. He thought he would just end up in the room below him, but on and on he fell. Darkness was all he could experience as he dropped, to where he didn't know, but by this point he wasn't descending further into the hotel, he was more than certain he was now under it.

*BOING*

At last, Connor's descent had ended, though not how he would have guessed. Slowly peeping an eye open, he found himself within a cavernous, black space. Underground perhaps? Could be, but with his only light source being the hole he had left far above, there was little he could make out. He looked up to the light to judge how far he had fallen, only to get further doused with the gallons of blood that had finally reached him from stories above. He coughed, worried he may have swallowed some of it by mistake.

He made to wipe his eyes clean of the ichor, but found his arms unable to move. In an attempt to move his head, he found it also stuck to whatever he had landed on. His legs were likewise pinned in place. Shaking the blood away with what little movement he was able to do, he glanced to the side and was met with the realization of where he had ended up.

For he was at the center of a great, white net. One composed of an incredibly adhesive substance.

A spider's web.

Naturally beginning to panic, trying his best to remove himself lest he meet the web's maker. But this was easier said than done, as no matter how far he was able to pull his limbs away, they simply snapped back into place. And it was after so many attempts did he understand that he was drawing the creator's attention with his constant flailing, as every movement he made sent vibrations throughout the web. And in the darkness at the edge below his legs, the vibrations came to a halt.

It was here.

Connor paled as it made itself known to him, crossing into the dim light shining above him. Its jointed legs were a fuzzy white and pink that stretched about as long as his whole body. Once fully in the light did he see that while the back half of the abdomen was that of a traditional arachnid, the upper half had taken on a more familiar appearance.

Angel had quickly descended onto him, undressing Connor with his many eyes. Picking him up with four of his arms, he retracted his jaw to reveal a pair of large gold mandibles. Out came more of the webbing as he began spinning Connor around, covering his entire body in webbing; his movements becoming more and more restricted. In time, he was completely entombed, unable to move at all. With hunger in the spider's eyes, he drove his head down into Connor's side, partaking in this delicious new fly.


"Okay this is getting ridiculous!"

Connor had somehow, again, found himself in his bed. Growing frustrated, he got up and went to the window to get some fresh air in. The stuffiness had reached a breaking point, to which he was finding it hard to breathe. Being as an old a building as it was, opening the thing took some doing. So much so that he worried it may shatter the panes before he was able to crack it open.

Until this moment, Connor hadn't taken note of the view of the city that his room had given him. The place still looked like a disaster area with the multitude of fires still ongoing, but it was…oddly scenic in a way. He took notice of the sky taking on a slightly brighter hue; perhaps it was almost morning?

He let out a deep yawn. He knew he had to get some sleep but how could he when he was plagued by these never-ending terrors? Though, if he was still in Hell whether he was asleep or not, what difference would it make?

Going into the bathroom and flicking the lights on, he winced at the immediate change in brightness. The mirror revealed the state he now found himself in and he…looked positively horrible.

Eyes, bloodshot and red, with bags underneath signifying his lack of sleep, and his face was a paler than normal. Looking at his clothes, he frowned. His green hoodie and jeans were still covered in plaster, and still stunk of trash. At the very least, the blue T-shirt he had worn underneath it all was still somewhat clean. But for now, though it disgusted him, he'd have to rough it with what he had.

After reliving himself, he returned to the window. And as he imagined, struggled with getting it to shut. It had gotten to the point where after fifteen minutes of attempts, he stood up onto the sill, and tried shoving it down with his body weight. With enough force behind his blistering hands, the window finally fell, but the sudden motion had caused him to lose balance as he tumbled back onto the floor. He cradled his head as he brought himself up, still sore from there impact with Charle's limo yesterday. Though when he opened his eyes, he was shocked to see that someone else had appeared in his room.

There in front of him, was Niffty. Standing there perfectly still, with an uncharacteristically soft smile on her face. Connor pulled himself back up to meet her gaze. He smirked a bit; without that malicious smile, she was actually some kind of adorable! Though how she had gotten in here, he had no clue, as the dresser was still piled in front of the doorway. Did she climb up the walls from outside? Were there any air vents she could have snuck in through?

But then, without breaking eye contact, or saying a word, she pulled out a matchbox from her pocket. Her smile slowly twisted into a murderous, psychotic grin as she struck one of the matches, igniting it. At the moment the match was lit, Niffty herself was spontaneously coated in fire. She didn't make a sound nor did her expression change. Simply drifting away as ash within seconds of ignition. And with no hand guiding the matchstick, it fell to the carpeted floor, setting the floor aflame.

Connor quickly began trying to pull the dresser away, but found that it had somehow become much heavier than before. How could it have added this much weight? He hadn't put anything in it, and there was nothing there to begin with!

Soon the sheets on his bed were caught in the growing blaze.

Then the curtains ignited as the fire began to lick the ceiling!

He turned just as this happened, while wondering if he may have to risk diving out of the window. Though he was aware that from this height, it'd most likely end up killing him.

The fire was playing with its food it seemed, as it slowly crept up on Connor. He noticed that it had formed a ring about him, almost as if it were waiting for him. And his luck wouldn't be as patient. The smoke was getting thicker; he coughed with every breath he took. If he didn't get out soon, he'd end up fried for sure. Where the actual hell was that woman at a time like this?!

With one final heave, Connor managed to push the dresser away. Not bothering to care what may have been waiting for him on the other side, he threw the door open.


Connor quickly sat up from his bed. He was again angered by the realization that this was yet another nightmare. That was, however, until he saw that the door had taken on a lighter complexion. Even the walls around it looked different. He followed it until he met the now opened window, now across the room rather than just to his side.

At this, he gradually rose from the bed, and onto his feet. Looking down at himself, he saw that his clothes were no longer tarnished, but fresh! A flapping in the curtains took his attention to the outside, as he walked to the other side of the room.

The window had revealed a view different than what he had seen the night before. A bright, blue sky with very few clouds hovering above a city in the distance. Before that, came a humble neighborhood surrounding the building he found himself in.

He shook his head; all of that hell and demon stuff had just been a rather lucid nightmare. Smiling, he took in more of this space. The floor was hard wood, making the chair sitting at the desk much easier to maneuver. There was a tall wooden dresser sitting next to the closet in one corner, on top of which sat a small flat screen television and accompanying game console. A motorized fan in the other corner continuously blowing air in each way it turned, and an old bookshelf lined with many different paper and hardback covers, as well as the frame of a graduate's diploma. It was odd, but he couldn't escape the feeling…he had seen this place before…!

And in that moment he knew; this was his room! His! From his home! The tears flowed as rivers from his eyes, though as he went to wipe his eyes away, his fingers met glass. He paused at this. Reaching around the temples of his head, he pulled away a pair of slightly-rounded glasses.

Wiping his eyes away and sliding the glasses back over his eyes, he walked to the door, and leaned out. He did it tentatively though, as he still somewhat expected someone from the hotel to pop out at him. When no one materialized, his eyes took him to the right side of the hall, where another two doors were kept; both doors shut. He made to open the one on the right side of the hall, just a few feet down from his, but in a strange turn of events, the doorknob refused to turn. He tried again. Still nothing. The same happened with the door across the hall. Odd. Almost like they did when-

There came a sudden tapping at the window at the other end of the corridor. Slowly walking to it, he found that the house had sat in the center of a crescent-shaped border of a great forest. One look out to those trees, and a warning from his childhood echoed in his mind, telling him to stay clear of those woods, lest he become trapped inside. The same forest whose trees he sworn he could see sometimes bend without the need for wind, and never shared any leaves on their long branches, just the ones that lay strewn on the ground. Where no birds sang, no squirrels would scurry; no life had entered those woods.

And yet, as he stared out, he felt the greatest of shocks when he glanced over to see a young woman in red enter those same woods without looking back!

Astounded by this persons tenacity, or stupidity, Connor immediately rushed down the stairs in an effort to warn her of the potential dangers she may face. He ran so quickly, he wasn't able to take in the details of the living room or kitchen, as he pulled away the screen door and ran out onto the backyard deck. He didn't even take note of the fact that the skies were changing to a rather ominous gray.

He tried calling out to the girl, but found his voice failing him. Unsure of why, and seeing her go further in, he wasn't sure of what else to do but follow.

This may have been against his better judgement, however. It took only minute for him to be swallowed by the trees. He looked back, but saw no sign of his home. Whichever direction he turned, there was only barren woodland all around him. Save for the glimpse of blonde hair he had spotted in the thicket just a few yards away. Why was he getting the feeling he had seen her before? The sky was growing darker.

Making a jog to the brush she had just vanished behind, he wasn't aware of the hole in the ground until he inevitably fell into it. He coughed as he composed himself, now covered in dirt. Brushing himself off, he took notice of how this hole had opened into a sort of cave. One that was given light from some unknown source, giving the place an ethereal glow. Wherever it was, he knew that a structure like this could not have been made naturally. Someone had been down here long before him.

He then looked ahead to see that the woman had finally stopped, with her back turned to him. She stood within a large circle outlined by five tall, stone spires, all with a series of odd markings and runes drawn on them. And now that he was within a close enough proximity, he grew shocked to see that the woman he had been following into the forest was…Charlie?! He too remained where he stood, momentarily stunned to see the young woman who had brought him to the hotel just yesterday had appeared outside of Hell.

Charlie then drew a sinister-looking dagger from the ether, and slowly cut the palm of her hand, allowing her blood to drip onto the circle. She knelt down using her fingers to draw a shape in the ground.

A five-pointed star.

She then raised her hands up to an opening in the cave ceiling, allowing for the light of the moon to enter. But how could it have become night already? It had only been midday when he left the house! And yet in the sky was the full moon, appearing much larger than normal as it took up a majority of the cave opening. Though what seemed more unsettling was that the moon itself began to turn a dark, blood red.

At that, the wind began to whip up in an invisible frenzy, as Connor tried to shield himself from the leaves flying around him. Lightning cracked and thunder roared, as a great rumbling came from the ground beneath his feet. The stone spires, as well as the pentagram that Charlie had drawn also began to glow a bright red.

Connor called for Charlie once more, but the roaring of the earth and sky had robbed him of any sound. He tried to reach her, growing closer to where she stood in the center of the circle. For whatever reason he felt he had to pull her away from the circle, fearing what would come next. But the circle suddenly cracked, and the ground caved in, releasing a column of fire bursting forth from the circle.

Connor immediately jumped back, though even against the cave walls he felt himself getting seared. But the flames suddenly died away, leaving only an ominously lit hole in his wake. He hesitantly, nudged closer to it, until he was able to glimpse down to see if Charlie had somehow survived the blaze. But the scene he was met with was one that had frightened him most of all.

What met him was a bottomless pit of flame and stone, populated by the wailings of an impossible amount of souls. All wrapped in black, iron chains. They were gouged, slashed, and stabbed by numerous blades, all bleeding out. Never allowed peace, only constant agony. Connor fell on his backside at this horrific sight, scrambling back as far as he could. Those eyes, the many bloody wounds, and the screams…those screams! Terrible, drawn out, screeching, awful things that would never leave him. He got back to his feet, now would definitely be a good time to leave.

But when he turned away, a hand had reached up from the pit, grabbing him by the ankle and causing him to lose balance. He landed on the cold earth floor and tried to get away. But the hand that had taken grasp of him had a grip made of steel. He turned back, ready to fight against whatever evil was threatening to pull him in but froze. The hand that had taken hold of him, belonged to Charlie.

But this wasn't the woman he knew.

This Charlie had a hand with long, bloody claws. Her face had become one similar to the cannibals, and her flaming red eyes were trained on him with razor-sharp teeth. Before he could even scream, with one tug, she had pulled him into the pit.

Down he fell, as he watched the world above him fade from his view. One that was now full of fire and endless torture. In their free fall, Charlie lunged out at him, arms fastening around him to keep him from pushing her away. He struggled with trying to escape, but all he could do now was watch helplessly as she reared her head back, allowing her fangs to extend before biting down on his throat. Those eyes were the last thing Connor had seen before everything turned red as the inferno consumed them both.


So funny story, I was originally going to release the first chapter ON Halloween. I ultimately decided enough was enough and wanted to release it when I had; I was just too excited to get back into storytelling I guess. But I've been saving this one for a while now, and I knew that this chapter would be PERFECT for Halloween.

Or at least I did, until I found out that the new Helluva Boss episode was dropping THAT day. So I found it in my heart to release this chapter a day early and let you kids enjoy the candy a bit early! Hope you all enjoy this one. I've never written horror before and hope I did a good job on this one. Thanks everyone for all the favorites/follows! Be sure to leave a review, I really am curious about what you guys think of how I'm doing so far!