296: THE CHAOS AROUND YOU As the darkness envelops the world around you, a chilling sense of terror grips your very being. It’s not just the absence of light, but the profound void that seems to seep into every corner of your consciousness. In the midst of chaos, where order once reigned, you find yourself engulfed by an overwhelming sense of fear. At first, the darkness is subtle, creeping in like a thief in the night. Shadows dance at the edges of your vision, teasing and taunting you with their elusive forms. But as chaos unfolds, the darkness grows thicker, denser, suffocating. It presses against your skin like a heavy blanket, weighing you down with its oppressive presence. In the absence of light, your senses become hyper–aware, amplifying every sound, every whisper of movement. Each creak of the floorboards, each rustle of leaves outside, sends shivers down your spine. You can feel the palpable tension in the air, a silent scream echoing through the darkness. But it’s not just the physical darkness that fills you with terror. It’s the darkness within, the abyss that threatens to consume your very soul. In the face of chaos, you find yourself confronting your deepest fears, the demons that lurk in the darkest recesses of your mind. Fear gnaws at your insides, a relentless beast clawing at your sanity. It whispers cruel taunts, feeding on your doubts and insecurities. In the midst of chaos, you feel utterly alone, abandoned to face the darkness that threatens to swallow you whole. Time seems to lose all meaning in the depths of that darkness. Minutes stretch into hours, hours into eternity. There’s no escape, no respite from the relentless onslaught of fear. You’re trapped in a nightmare of your own making, a prisoner of your own mind. But even in the darkest of moments, a flicker of hope remains. A tiny spark, barely discernible amidst the suffocating darkness. It whispers of resilience, of the strength to endure even the most harrowing of trials. And so, you cling to that flicker of hope, refusing to surrender to the darkness that threatens to consume you. Slowly, agonizingly, the darkness begins to recede. Light pierces the gloom, banishing the shadows that have held you captive for so long. With each ray of light, the terror begins to dissipate, replaced by a sense of cautious optimism. In the aftermath of chaos, you emerge battered but unbroken. The darkness has tested you, pushed you to the brink of despair, but you have survived. And in that survival, you find. a strength you never knew you possessed. THE CHADS AROUND YOU For in the darkest of moments, when chaos unfolds and fear threatens to consume you, it Is your resilience that ultimately prevails. You may stumble and fall, but you rise again, ready to face whatever darkness may come your way. ARIEL’S POV My eyes opened, and I could myself standing close to the sea, the water moving with so much force, and it’s noise was enough to scare the living soul out of someone. There was thunder all around, and lightning materialized. I stood confused, wondering where I was. And looking around, only to discern that I was the only soul around this empty location, I was extremely terrified. The river kept on moving g violently, and the movement of the wind became vigorous, going on to a whole new level. Violent, aggressive and looking forceful. The ground began to quiver, I could hear the cracking noises. Still with my terrified face, I looked around, trying to see if there was any way to get out of this place. I couldn’t understand what was going on, but this was definitely not great. Just then, I saw Luke running towards me. He grabbed my hand, and continued his race, dragging me along. I wanted to ask him what was going on, or the location we were currently at. But for some reason, I didn’t. And I didn’t know the reason myself. Still scampering, we both stopped, and everywhere became darker than before. The ground in front of us cracked, and coming out was a man, more like a shadow, pointing a gun at us. Luke ran from that direction and took me to a different location, but while we continued to sprint, the ground shook vigorously, and it cracked. We both fell down, and as Luke tried to hold me, something came from the front, ripping his head off. His blood was spilled all over my body, my face was messed up, all covered up. And then I gasped, opening my eyes, looking at everywhere in the room. My eyes went down and Luke, was sleeping peacefully. I was breathing heavily, every scene of the dream was still playing in my head. This wasn’t the first time I was having a nightmare where I had to lose Luke. Something just didn’t seem right around here. And it looked like I was being told something, but I just couldn’t figure out what it was. I stood up, grabbed a robe and put it on, walked towards the window and I stood there, just taking a look at the things outside the hotel. Gazing through the window, I sighted this man walking along the road, in the empty street. He was putting on a black garment, taking some leaden steps, and I could imagine what THE CHAOS AROUND YOU he was doing at this time. I was still staring at this man, with my arms crossed. The man halted and then turned around, his eyes met mine. I quickly averted my gaze, hiding myself nigh to the wall, leaning against it, and I was breathing heavily, but inaudibly. “Ariel?” Luke uttered softly, waking up. “What are you doing there?” “Nothing actually. I was just standing close to the windows to get some fresh air** | replied, and my voice was shaking. Luke gave me.a skeptical look. “You don’t sound too good.” “What? I don’t sound too good? How?” I gave him a fake laugh. “You look like you’re freaking out. And you’re all sweaty.” “Yeah, I need to go take a shower,” I told him and looked through the window but I didn’t that see the man in the hooded garment anymore. He must have disappeared, or what? And was this some imagination, it something? Or was this real? After hastily excusing myself, I made my way to the bathroom, trying to shake off the lingering unease from the nightmare and the unsettling sight of the mysterious man outside. As the warm water cascaded over me, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched, the memory of those piercing eyes burning into my mind. When I emerged from the shower, I found Luke waiting for me, concern etched on his face.. “Are you feeling any better?” he asked, his voice filled with genuine worry. I hesitated, unsure of how to articulate the strange encounter I had just experienced. “I don’t know, Luke. I saw something… someone outside,” I began, my voice trembling slightly. Luke’s brows furrowed in confusion. “What do you mean? Who did you see?” “It was… a man, wearing a black garment, walking alone in the street,” I explained, struggling to find the right words. “He looked at me and his face was so scary. It was like he belonged to the demons of devil, or something.” Luke’s expression softened as he listened, his concern deepening. “Do you think it was just your imagination?” he asked gently. I shook my head, a shiver running down my spine. “I don’t know, Luke. But it felt real, too real to be just a figment of my imagination.” Loke reached out, taking my hand in his. “Well, whatever it was, you’re safe now. We’re here together, and nothing is going to harm you,” he reassured me, his voice steady and comforting
