As I stepped into the hallway, the pitch black paint nearly left me in the dark. I was used to it, though. So soon enough, my eyes adjusted to the lighting. Carved into the walls were vines decorated with spikes. The carvings were as pitch black, as the wall itself.

So, anyone who got too close to the wall was in for a rude awakening. I wasn't looking at the spikes, though. But on the things hanging from them. Thousands of little objects hung from the spikes. Necklaces, bracelets, watches, etc.

I took each of them from a corpse that the Nightmare Master forced me to massacre. My eyes searched the wall, looking for a spike that had nothing on it. Of course, there was nothing. It has been years since I started doing this. So, these walls contain thousands, perhaps even millions of these objects. 

I turned to start my usual walk through this building when the sound of another thump stopped me. When I glance back, Crimson was yanking his knife out of another nightmare eye. 

"You know, destroying them will just make him want to send more, right?"

"I'm going with you." He stated completely ignoring my question. 

I let out an annoyed sigh. "I guess I can't stop you. Just know I am not searching for the exit; I've long stopped looking for it." 

I turned back and started my walk. Crimson fell in step silently behind me. Probably realizing there was no use fighting with me. My eyes skimmed the wall as I walked. Only stopping when I see a free spike to hang something on. 

I could tell my actions confused Crimson. I wasn't doing it for him, though. I was doing it for them. For the people who are now just corpses that the Nightmare Master will throw out back. I was barely even halfway done when Crimson reached for one of the objects. 

Instantly, I spun to him. "Do not touch them." 

He opened his mouth as if to protest. However, when he saw the look in my eyes, he stepped back. "I um, I thought it might be...his." 

His hand clutched the necklace around his neck as if it were some kind of lifeline. From the way he acted when hearing his name. I stepped to the side. My silent way of telling him he could touch it. He hesitated for a second. 

Probably because of the way I had reacted before. I went completely tense as his fingers brushed the necklace he had been reaching for before. Still, I forced myself to do nothing. He pulled it closer, examining it, his gaze a cross between two different types of hope. One was the hope that it actually was his. 

So he would know what happened to Alex. The other hope was that it wasn't. He still wanted to believe that Alex was still out there alive somewhere. He released it, his face crumbling. I didn't bother to comfort him, knowing I was probably the last person he needed comfort from. 

I went back to the wall, continuing my process while he followed me. I wasn't sure why he was following me. I had told him I wasn't going to the exit. Does he suspect I lied about not knowing where the exit is? The exit is at the top of the building, past all the different obstacles created by the Nightmare Master. 

I've actually made it to the last obstacle once. However, before I could even try to do it. I passed out from blood loss. That's why I don't want to back up there, though. I was just sick and tired of doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting a different result. 

Thankfully, we reached the end of the objects in my hand before the hallway ended. When I tried to turn back, though, he stopped me. 

"Wait, are you really just going to turn back?" 

"Of course, as I ha-."

"I know what you told me. Do you really expect me to believe that you do not know where the exit is?" He snapped, confirming my thoughts from earlier. 

"If you want to go ahead, then you can. I am going back to my stage." 

His jaw ticked as he clenched it. "Fine, if you give me one good reason, I will let you go back." 

I stepped closer, narrowing my eyes. "Maybe for the only month out of the year that I have control of my body, I just want to do what I want. Instead of running some nightmare course th..."

I trailed off, noticing a nightmare eye close enough to listen to our conversation. 

"Have the nightmare eyes been following us the whole time?" 

I focused so much on what I was doing that I couldn't pay attention to anything else. 

He nodded. "Yeah, it appeared soon after I destroyed the last one. Why?" 

I ignored his question and tried to walk back down the hallway. Crimson didn't stop me, probably thinking I was going back. He might not have stopped me, but before I could even take five steps. The nightmare eyes was in front of me. I tried to step around it, but got the same result. 

"It seems that it will not let me go back," I told Crimson as I turned back to him. 

He narrowed his eyes at the eye. "Should I destroy it?" 

He had his knife out. Ready to take these nightmare eyes out. Like he had done with all the rest. Before he could move, though, something shot out of the eyes and buried itself right in his arm. The small knife was barely an inch thick and three inches wide. 

He reached for the knife, about to yank it from his arm, when another one shot out at him. He managed to dodge this one since he was expecting it.

"What the fuck? Why is it shooting at me?"

"The Nightmare Master must have activated their defence response since you kept destroying them. I told you something like this was going to happen."