Monday, 11 November 2013

20 Day Challenge #8

This is prompt #6: The haunted house is sentient, and you are stuck inside.      

          It knows I am here. I think it knew before I entered the door, felt me on the steps outside, saw me peering through the dust-covered windows. The door creaked open as I stood in front of it, a perfect cliche. It should have been a warning, but curiosity got the better of me. It always does. As soon as I stepped inside, the door locked behind me, and I tried frantically to unlock it, but the lock wouldn't move. The house has locked every window and every door, turned off every light. I am trapped.
          I am rooted to the spot, trying not to make a sound, but my breathing is too loud and I can't slow it down. There are whispers in the room next to me and a banging sound coming from upstairs. I think I can see a pair of eyes staring at me through the crack in the hallway closet. The noises grow louder, building to a crescendo; next to me, the voices begin screaming at each other at inhuman pitches.
          This is my opportunity. Using the noise to shield the sound of my actions, I tiptoe to the front window and turn my back to it, then begin kicking at it with the heel of my boot. The voices continue to scream, and upstairs the banging has started to shake the floor. I hope the house can't feel me with everything else that is happening.
          The window shatters, and for an instant my heart soars, but then I realize that the house has gone silent and the crack of the glass could be heard throughout the house. There is a pause, and then the house screams, and I am inside its mouth and the sound is reverberating inside my head. The walls shudder and I am pelted with the remaining glass from the window. I scream in pain and cover my head as my arms and back are sliced by a hundred slivers of glass. As I turn to dive out the window, I can see creatures moving in - the glow of eyes, the swish of limbs scuttling across the floor. My hands scrabble for something - anything - to hold on to. As I latch on to the mailbox, I feel something grab hold of my leg, then a burning pain as a set of teeth sink deep into my calf. I try to shake it off and pull myself out, but I can feel more of them take hold, the grip of claws and the catch of teeth.
          My arms give out, and I am pulled back inside.

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