LUMM 1: Die a Horrid Death, Arlo Crowhaven

5 | blade & bottle

Three things happened at once. First, the shadows took the form of long rods with blisters in them. Second, fear blocked the air from my throat as I stumbled against the wall. Human instinct and the desperation to live combined. My shoulder slammed against the rough wood, but instead of catching my weight, it swung inward—into a huge, dark cavern behind. And third, the world zipped past my feet as the darkness caught me, and inches from my ankles, metal and glass slammed into the dressing room floor. The shards haven't stopped skittering into a million directions when my elbow slapped an uneven surface. Pain shot up my arm.

"Ow!" I cried. But I haven't finished falling.

The craggy floor turned out to be a staircase leading to a void, and I descended on it with my butt. My hands shot out, fingers clawing for anything to halt my progress. My nails scratched some splinters of a railing. With a grunt, I forced my fingers to wrap around the next baluster. The world stilled, and I clung to that wooden pole like a buoy in the storm.

I caught my breath, chest heaving. My mind lurched into action. Someone tried to kill me out there. Someone...

My eyes widened, making me ignore all the pins and prickles of ache in my muscles. I scrambled up the steps as fast as my scrawny frame afforded me. Whoever they were, they would linger around to see if their plan succeeded. A killer would always check if their victim perished because of their brilliant plan. Not today, shag bag. Not today.

I reached the last step and flailed around. If a wall blocked this hellish basement, it should have swung inward when I dug against it. Hinges whined softly when my knuckles rapped against the slab of wood attached to them. Door. With a quick whip, I slid it closer to the connecting wall, leaving a crack. It was dark. They wouldn't notice.

My breath rang in loud explosions in my ears, heart threatening to clear a way out of my ribs. I squeezed an eye between the meager space, scanning the world outside. One of the stage lights swung down the steel bars hoisting it over the stage. That could only happen if someone sawed the thick ropes holding them in place. To do that...

They must have watched me go in, waited for the right moment, and made quick work of it. If not magic, then it would have been a sharp knife. Or a sword. Plenty of both lingering in the campus hallways.

A different whine rang from the far side of the darkness. Through my barely-adjusted vision, I saw a dark figure whish past the dressing room door I left open. Light footsteps, as if their owner was small. Petite. The hinges cried again when the culprit closed it upon stepping out. On their hand was a ball of light, illuminating the floor but not their face. Before the locks clicked in place, the culprit turned to check their work again. A glint caught on the nightlight's glow.

Sapphire.

The door closed, cutting the meager source of light. I was alone in the darkness again. Better that way. With slow movements, I crept backwards. Each step elicited a painful creak from the wooden stairs, and I continued until my foot hit solid ground once more. A basement, judging from the wide space I felt around me. Thick, musty air sealed off by both the door and the inky shadows assaulted my nose. I coughed, pressing my face to the crook of my arm. With my free hand, I summoned a blaze of fire.