The Man in the Mask

Lightning flashed outside, sending a momentary glow through the entrance far behind me. And in that brief second of light—

I saw something move.

Not ahead of me.

Not behind me.

On the ceiling.

Hanging. Watching.

Then—it dropped.

Without a second thought, I screamed and dashed toward the path I came from, my only thought: escape. Just then, I realized I was holding something… The locket.

My breath hitched. I had seen this before.

Wait—oh shit… this is Sam’s locket.

It had our photo together.

With shaky hands, I opened the locket—only to feel my stomach drop.

Sam’s photo was scratched beyond recognition.

And mine… was gone.

Before I could react, the light flickered.

Then—darkness.

My breath caught in my throat. The cave was silent except for the faint dripping of blood.

Then—the light snapped back on.

And I wasn’t alone.

A few feet ahead, a figure stood hunched over—a knife glinting in their hand.

They were wearing a hoodie, the fabric drenched in crimson. Their arm moved in a horrifying rhythm—stab, stab, stab. Over and over again. The sound of metal sinking into flesh filled the air.

My stomach churned. My legs locked in place.

Then—my gaze fell to the body on the ground.

My heart stopped.

Sam.

His face was pale, his mouth slightly open—as if trying to speak. But his chest wasn’t rising.

He was dead.

My body went numb. No. No, this can’t be real. Sam was already dead—wasn’t he?

The hooded figure’s hand stilled. They sensed me.

Slowly, their head turned toward me.

And then—they dropped the knife. It was a man..

A long, suffocating silence. I looked over my shoulder at the path behind me… then back at the figure in front of me. Should I go back? I clenched the locket tightly in my palm, my fingers trembling around it. Or should I run past him? But if he catches up with me? I don't have nothing to fight against him... he has a knife and me nothing. Lost in my thoughts, I didn’t even realize he had started moving. To my surprise, he didn’t say a word; he just stared at me, his head tilted. Then, he slowly raised his gloved hand. Is he trying to scare me? He seized Sam by the throat, lifting him slightly to force him to face me. I couldn't bear to look at him... his unmoving body... I wanted to hold him... I needed to— before I could act, he slashed Sam's throat with his knife. I reached out, “No.. please. Don't do that.” My voice nearly breaking. Then again... the knife cut... then again... and again...

He gazed at me as if he were smiling beneath his mask. “Stop it.. spare him.. w-what did he do to you?” I whispered, stepping towards them. He stood up, tossing the knife aside and stepping over Sam's body, as if it meant nothing to him. “Shit..” I muttered, was about to run when a knife flew past me—did he just throw that at me? And he missed… or did he miss on purpose? He suddenly appeared in front of me, forcing me to take a step back... I didn't even notice when my back touched the wall. I realized there's no way to escape.

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