Maria followed as close behind them as she could manage. That meant she was at least several minutes behind them. The outer layer of buildings here were strip mall like segments. At one point kids her age would have spent their free time running wild here. Nowadays everything had gone out of business. There wasn’t a reason for anyone up to any good to be here. That these kids hung around here intrigued her.

Old town was a bit of a labyrinth. Even under normal circumstances catching up to a friend on a crowded street would be difficult here. When following others who might not want you tailing them the difficulty cranked up. Given their lead, it would be difficult to guess where they had gone. But what if she didn’t have to?

Seeing them was out of the question. They were wearing dark colors and well ahead of her. The odds of her turning somewhere in this maze of structures and seeing them was small, even if she ran. Even then with the rapidly sinking sun combined with the already darkened streets would hide them. She wasn’t some hunter from a fantasy movie who could taste her prey on the wind. So that idea was out, though the thought gave her a smile. What about hearing, though? Even if they were walking quietly the odds that any large number of people would be here was low. Closing her eyes, she consciously slowed her breathing and listened.

For a long while there was nothing but the occasional passing of street traffic behind her and the steady gusts of wind that never seemed to cease. Her heart sank. What if she had wasted her time doing this? She could have just chosen a direction and run with it. Her heart raced.

She thought about the group she’d seen. They’d seemed so close from afar. What even made her think she deserved to have friends like that? Why did she so strongly want to believe she deserved this fantasy of hers? Everything her father had raised her to believe ran counter intuitive to that. Women simply didn’t exist to have personal fulfillment. She was a tool of God’s will and nothing more. It was foolish of her to have come here.

Something icy blue kindled in her mind’s eye. A vivid flash that clashed against the words running through her head. It grew from a spark into a small flame, and as it expanded, the words of her father’s sermons grew quiet and distant until all that remained was darkness and a column of fire roaring in shades of ice. In the center where the flames were their brightest hue, a darkness approached. It started small and grew until she could make out the figure of a feral man with wild dreads.

Closing her eyes, she dived into the sanctuary of her mind and reached out to the fire. A vast expanse wove out in real time, creating a mental labyrinth between her and the flame. In an instant she knew where to go. She shook her head to snap herself out of the trancelike state and readied herself to move quickly towards the old factory district.

The last light of the sun trailed behind her as she walked. Silhouettes of bright red mingled with and fought against the shadows only to be slowly snuffed out one by one. And something inside her found this to be pleasing, exciting even. It was almost as if the natural eeriness of the abandoned streets and boarded buildings was calling to her instead of pushing her away. As if the darkness was embracing her. Yet part of her remained hesitant.

She was alone in the dark. If anything happened to her here, no one would find out until it was too late. The thought sent shivers down her spine and soured the nervous excitement stirring in her guy. She had to decide to either follow her gut instinct and find them, or to turn around now and go some place normal like the Boomerang Diner where she could eat and scroll on her phone in peace there until Liz picked her up to go home. That was the better idea.

Her feet didn’t seem to like that concept. She’d spaced out while contemplating the decision, and had kept walking on her own toward where her gut told her they would be, where he would be. Taller buildings loomed on either side of her now. Not quite skyscrapers, but large enough and tightly packed enough that several of them could block out the skyline. If not for the occasional building and street light she wouldn’t have been able to see at all. She stared into the void that was the street and gulped. There was a tension in the air here. She knew if she just kept walking she’d find the source, but the same feeling told her she wouldn’t like it.

This isn’t the place for me. She shook her head and turned around as the voices drifted in behind her. They were indistinct but human. She clenched her fists. What makes me think where I belong is that way either? How will I ever know if I don’t go?

Not sure where she was going, she turned back around and ran. The street opened up to a well lit square with only two buildings. She eyed them nervously. They were both maintained better than most of the surrounding area she’d seen so far. Between the pair of buildings there weren’t any obviously boarded windows, and the lawns appeared almost residential. She eyed the old structures, but she had nothing. Whatever gut feeling had guided this far had left her. She had to make this choice on her own. She looked them over one more time and noticed a difference. The door on the building to her left was not only ajar, but had torn it from one of its hinges. The kids she’d seen had probably broken it to get inside.

She approached the door and moved to push it over with a trembling hand but stopped. I shouldn’t be doing this. Her gut exploded with fear. I need to turn around and go home. This is stupid. What has gotten into you, Maria? Those last words rang out in her mind and images of Chad mixed with thoughts of him ditching their date. Liz barely holding up any of her end of this entire ordeal rang in as another sticking point. Where had doing normal things and following normal rules ever gotten her? “Fuck it,” she muttered and body checked the door.

The door groaned against the floor as she slammed it open. The force of her rush teetered it away where it swayed for a moment before almost slamming back to its original position, leaving Maria in near pitch darkness. As her eyes adjusted to the light, or lack thereof, her nose began picking up subtle scents. Old mildew and stale air mixed with the scent of industrial oils. The door hadn’t been broken for long. Rooms aired out if left open, right?

As her eyes adjusted, she could see the room she was in was almost barren. Crates lay scattered and strewn about in various stages of decay, most with long dead mushrooms dotting them. A few remnants of steel structures remained haphazardly jutting out of the floor seemingly at random. She took out her phone and turned on the flashlight to get a better look. The stark contrast of long sitting dust on dark grey concrete dominated the room. She flashed the light along the floor, looking for any signs of life. Just a few feet in mixed with her own footprints were fresh drag marks in the dust. She trailed the long, wide smudge with her light until it reached a door at the far side of the room. Unthinking, she approached it and moved to open it.

A loud slam erupted from the other side, and she froze. Horror replaced the curious excitement in her stomach as she tried to turn and run only to find her legs didn’t want to move. There’s something in there. That was huge sounding. I need to get out of here before it notices me. She slowed her breath and took a step back. No, Maria. We’ve got this. It’s probably just those kids doing something shady. Just open the door, say something nice, and after everyone is over the shock we can go from there. Maria nodded to herself and pushed forward to grab and turn the door handle.

A fierce pressure pushed against the door as she opened it and before she could even yelp the door flew open and something plowed straight into her chest, bowling her over. She rolled several times before coming to a stop against one of the crates. Footsteps echoed away from her and out the door she had entered.

Her heart skipped several beats before resuming with thunderous intent. What on Jehovah’s green earth was that? Son of God, that was intense. I need to get out of here, like yesterday. She gasped. That thing went out the door. I need out that door!

She pushed herself up to a sitting position and checked herself for injuries. There’s only one option here. First, I need to turn off my phone light. She clicked her tongue, chastising herself. Then I need to run like hell out that door and away from whatever rag-dolled me Skyrim style. She gulped. Yeah, that will work.

That’s when she heard the voices. Several of them just outside the door. The horror of the situation dawned on her. Whatever had been in here was out there was out there with a group of people now. If it could throw her around like a child then what could it do to them? She shivered and faced the door. There’s no way I’m letting them get hurt without a fighting chance. She clenched her fists and approached the door, heart beating like it was trying to escape from her bad decision. Her knuckles showed white as she gripped the broken door. With a final deep breath she heaved the door back as hard as she could and charged out of the building screaming what she hoped was a battle cry.