In the Hollows

one.

Grey clouds painted the sky, the sun nothing more than a faint glow that seeped between the thickest patches of darkness. A crisp chill hung in the afternoon air, accompanied by a brisk breeze dancing through the trees. Blackbirds called to each other, occasionally darting across the monotone backdrop before swooping down to land on a bare branch. 

The dirt that covered the ground was hard as ice, frozen solid by the cold snap that had blown over days before. Patches of brown grass stood erect, frozen in place by the dewdrops that had once rested there. 

Even the pine needles on the evergreens that towered in the surrounding forest looked more like a dark black than green. It was as if someone had come and drained the color from the world, casting humans to live in a constant veil of grey. 

It was that grey that came into focus first. Just a dull blanket of grey, stretching out endlessly above. Then came the throbbing sensation in her head. It was like a gunshot, ricocheting off the walls of her skull before crashing into her eyes, white-hot pain searing her vision. 

Each time that she dared to open her eyelids, the pain intensified, like a red hot iron prod digging into her skin. Her eyes squinted tightly, a slow, soft groan rumbling at the base of her throat before slipping through her lips. 

Muddled sounds registered in her head, the pain thudding alongside it. Her pained groan grew louder as it pulled her further from the darkness that gripped her tightly. The sounds morphed into fuzzy voices, but to her, it sounded foreign. No words registered with her, their tone itself hard to interpret. 

She attempted to open her eyes again, this time holding them open long enough to spot the five dark, blurry silhouettes that loomed above her. A drop of fear sunk in her stomach, her eyes squeezing shut again as her body finally started to wake up. 

The movement started in her fingers, slowly managing to clench her hands before she scrunched her toes. It was like shedding a heavy blanket that weighed on her, holding her down. With each movement, the paralysis seemed to fade, that pain blooming from her forehead. As the rest of her body woke up, so did the pain that resided in her wrists. 

"Fuck" she breathed with a wince, rolling slightly to the side where she gingerly brought her arms to her chest, cradling her aching wrists. Shaded from the reflection of the sun that resided on the luminescent clouds, her eyes fluttered open again, finally able to filter the light. 

Dark dirt lay beneath her, its chill seeping through her clothes. Blinking slowly, she took in the frozen tufts of grass that broke through the frigid dirt. She tried to recognize the world that lay sideways in front of her, but nothing came to mind. She tried to remember what happened first before there was darkness, but her search came up blank. 

"Where-" she winced, the fog from her brain lessening slightly. "Where am I?" she cleared her burning throat, the landscape coming into focus once again. Returning to her back, she stared up at the evergreens that loomed above, the pine needles dark against the grey sky. 

The muffled, hushed voices reached her ears again, an urgent tone to the quiet conversation. Her eyebrows drew together in confusion, the pain still beating like a drum behind her eyes. "Hello?" she breathed, slowly propping herself up on her elbows, although her muscles ached in protest. 

Attention turning towards her, their voices dropped until it fell silent. Only the calls of the blackbirds up above carrying along with the breeze. A taller shape moved forwards, each step hesitant, each step delicate. 

"Hey" a deeper voice spoke, an actual word finally registering within. "Can you hear me?"  the voice asked gently, the shape growing closer. 

She nodded with a wince, taking a deep breath. "Who are you? Where-" another shot of pain ripped through her head, her eyes clenched shut as she uttered a groan. Labored breaths slipped through her lips which burned in the fresh air. Her eyes pried themselves open again, the taller shape suddenly back with the others.