Two more figures appeared and, one of them was pointing at her with what looked like a thick stick with a flat stone embedded in it, tied with a string of fibers. It was a very defective stone ax for chopping wood, but perfect for breaking ribs and sinking with some ease into the back of a poor old man.
An overwhelming anger began to run through her body, fueling it. She felt like it was going to burst. Then, anger climbed up her throat, dragging out a scream of rage. Finally, the rage settled in her head. It didn't let her see anything beyond a picture where everyone was dead. Even her.
In a tenth of a second, fear began to creep up Emillie's legs, shaking them. When both met, fear began to fight rage until sanity appeared. Then, she realized that if she didn't time her moves right, she’ll die there without remedy.
Suddenly, everything stopped as if someone had pressed "Pause" on a movie. The old woman's voice explained. "These are Emillie's own reactions. Not yours, Emily. I know you well. You would have done other things, so the current situation would be completely different." Emily liked her tone less and less. "You wouldn't react like Emillie, right?".
She kept silent and listened despondently, fearing the worst. The voice took on a deeper tone. "You wouldn't have shown so such anger to see your battered old uncle falling like that. Because it's not a feeling you let out. You would have only given free rein to fear and despair, suffocating your anger. Thus, sanity would have never appeared. So your situation would have been like this."
Everything went three seconds ago. Anger never showed up. Only her eternal and colossal companion "Fear". Fear began to take hold of her, choking her, causing a terrible pressure and anguish in her chest. She felt her legs suddenly gave out. She fell to the ground, crying and screaming.
The humanoid creature got so close that she could smell its horrendous odor. It was smiling, revealing deformed sharp teeth. Teeth made for tearing flesh. The creature was practically naked, except for a dirty loincloth. Its skin was extremely dark, dirty and completely hairless; which further accentuated its ugliness.
She was shaking so much that her teeth were almost chattering. More and more frightened, she felt between her legs a warm liquid that gave off the smell of urine. The creature laughed and gloated, realizing the fact that she was completely defeated. It could do whatever it wanted to her. Everything it had ever wanted to do to a beautiful human. Its most darkest and twisted thoughts pounded in its mind, making its eyes shine with dantesque images. Red as blood. Red as its eyes.
She tried to pathetically crawl backwards, which encouraged the creature to hit the ground with the stone ax. That made dirt jump on her eyes, creating in her the desired effect. Panic and despair. She begged while crying her eyes out.
Suddenly, she saw the cobblestone of the street again, instead of dirt and weeds. He hadn’t peed herself, nor was she crying. She was just standing.
The old woman interrupted her. "Do you think you're ready for this? Call me crazy but, I don't think so."
Emily lowered her head. She felt like that time she had forgotten to bring a very important assignment to class and Beth had laughed out loud. Although, she was somewhat relieved to see that all that had only been in her mind.
She turned to leave, sighing bitterly. But just when she was about to take a step in order to leave, she felt that her oppressive companion, “Fear”, thought differently. Not only did it stop her from running away, but she felt as if it slapped her in the face. Instantly, it came to her mind. "The alternative is death, remember?". She gritted her teeth tightly, holding back the tears that wanted to flow again.
She thought about the horrible moments she had just experienced. She had seen movies, read stories and played video games where moments like that were common. She had felt extremely terrified experiencing them, but she had overcome them, victoriously. She even had liked them. But that was because she was in the safety of her home, she assumed.
She looked at the old woman and showing a courage which she wasn't aware of, she reproached her. "You’re the one who created that vision. How can you be so sure that I would react like that? I recognize that I am not prepared to survive that for real, but if at least.…"
The old woman interrupted her, smiling. "Correct answer. Now prove it to me!". Emily was perplexed as the old woman reached out her arm again. Darkness returned once again.
Emily thought about the creatures, their weaponry, and their possible weaknesses. She remembered that their only weapon was a rudimentary hoe made entirely of wood. She kept trying to recall video games or movies where the protagonists found themselves in similar situations. "Come on! Remember! I don't have much time. I'll show this old woman the hundreds of hours I've been surviving in nightmare worlds." Her heart began to race as a knot formed in her stomach.
When darkness disappeared and she could finally see something, she was in her high school hallway. Right in front of her, there was a naked picture of her, taped to her locker. She began to hear dozens of giggles that quickly turned into laughter. She looked back and the hallway was carpeted with pictures of her with her phone number written on them. Beth and her friends were handing them out to the guys as everyone laughed. Her phone rang and rang nonstop.
Rebecca was whispering with George, pointing at Emily as a storm of laughs erupted, deafening her. Her heart was pounding wildly and her legs began to fail. Whichever direction she looked, there was someone pointing at her, someone laughing. Before she knew it, she was crying and trying to run away. Wherever she went, but she had to run.
Suddenly, the old woman's voice was heard everywhere. "Come on! Show me! Show me how you fight a real enemy." Emily couldn't believe that the old woman would expose her to such a situation.
Her heart was beating so hard inside her chest that she felt like it was going to explode. She felt dizzy, wanting to vomit. Her vision was getting blurrier and darker. Her ears were ringing so much, that she tried to cover them with her hands, but it was useless.
Suddenly, she felt like fainting. She felt like falling, but never hit the ground. Her body was shaking uncontrollably, unable to see or hear anything. Until finally, everything stopped.
Emily opened her eyes and saw that the sea of photos covering the floor was now stained with blood and corpses all over. Startled, she heard behind her the footsteps of a mysterious figure approaching; almost naked and covered in tattered rags. She was breathing like a beast and covered in blood. Mostly arms and mouth.
Emily had already peed herself in terror at the sight of that being. "OMG! What the hell is that?"
The old woman's voice echoed everywhere again. "Come on! Show me!"
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