The Night Crawler

My Resting Place

The swan carried me on its wings into a black new world I never knew existed. I was left in the dark and alone, just as the Butcher wanted me to be. This time, there was no way out.

I was in pitch darkness, and unable to move within a tightly confined space. It smelt like mildew and pine wood. I rocked gently back and forth as if I was floating, and once I regained my composure, I realized that it was the water lapping outside and making everything around me creak. A shadow formed somewhere above me and ran across the wooden planks, dragging it's tail behind it. Whatever it was, I heard it jump into water with a splash.

Oh my God, where am I?

I could see the light making its way through the planks. My heart palpitated inside my chest, making it difficult for me to breathe. But it didn't change the fact that I was living one of my nightmares. I lay inside a wooden coffin with its lid shut tightly above me.

I heard the water bubbling and whooshing, and I imagined I was being carried forward what was perhaps a long tunnel.

Inside the coffin, I made attempts to move but there wasn't any space. My arms and legs were jammed with not even an inch to spare. My face was so close to the wood, it was impossible to turn my head. The water was dripping onto my face continuously, and I started to hyperventilate, praying that the coffin didn't overturn and sink with me inside it.

This is not happening. This is not happening. I repeated to myself, panic setting in.

"Help! Help! Is anyone out there? Can anyone hear me?" I shouted desperately, my body shaking.

Nobody responded because nobody was there. I scooted my body to the edge of the coffin, keeping myself balanced, and pushed onto the lid with all the strength my body could gather. But it wasn't budging. It just sat more heavily on top of me. I dug my nails into the wood, scraping them to blood, and pounding on the lid that squeezed the air out of my chest.

That's when I heard something move in the water.

I held my breath and listened. It slowly waded towards the coffin, disturbing the water, and stopped level with my head. I heard screeching and rattling, and then suddenly the coffin lid came off. It fell into the water with a splash. I screamed bloody murder, watching two translucent ghostly hands slide off the side of the coffin and vanish as quickly as they appeared.

I lay, not making a sound, inhaling, and exhaling air I couldn't get enough of. When I finally calmed my racing heart and was brave enough to rise out of the coffin and look around, I didn't see anybody in the water. The coffin lid floated by, just a few feet away, drifting into the darkness, as if it was inviting me along with it.

Everything around me was suddenly still like whoever remained here was still watching my every move.

I was buoyant in black water and being dragged along by some dark current, when I noticed streaks of light diffusing onto the water surface. The light painted the waves in golden bristles. When the coffin travelled a few more feet, I realized it wasn't paint, but a faint glow of the gemstones embedded into the walls. They emitted a soft light, like flames burning inside tiny lanterns.

I knew then I was travelling down a cave, the coffin rocking me left and right down the murky waters. There was nothing behind me and nothing ahead but white fog.

Peering into the foggy mists, I felt a sting. I brought my hand to my throbbing head and ran my fingers through my hair, feeling a cut. I didn't remember how I ended up inside the cave. The only memory that came to mind was George's empty stare, and everything else came up blank.