The Nothingness That Consumes

I'm alone. It's dark; I can't see, the shadows are pulling me into their grasp: I can't escape. My eyes are dancing in confusion in search for something...anything. Darkness. Everywhere. There is no sound, there is nothing. Nothing, and then there's me. Where am I? Why am I here? What is this...place? I can't see, but I can feel. As i feel into the abyss I graze a wall with my fingers, smoothening the cracks underneath my fingertips. The damp of the cool brick stirred my senses. I still can't see, but I'm starting to smell. There is a staleness to the air, an uncleanliness. Then I'm hit with a stench that sends my head spiraling and I feel myself recoil in revulsion. What is that? In my panic, I stumbled over something and fell. I felt my weight press on to something that caved in under my force, and made a disgusting 'squelch'‐ing sound. I can hear. My face is cold with something wet. I can't see. The smell has gotten worse, horrifically worse. I could feel my eyes watering, and as I reached to wipe them, i could smell the stench all over my hands in a liquidy mess. I couldn't contain myself, so my stomach decided to empty its contents. There was nothing. But I can taste. Taste something sour in my mouth. Bile. Now, along with the taste of bile, I can taste the stench now. It tastes old; rotten, sour, wrong. But then the stench became more clear as I adapted to it. This was the smell of blood. Underneath me there was something leaking this blood, this stench. The sickening feeling within me worsened. My tears were starting to cloud my eyes, it was getting uncomfortable. I blinked them away. There was something there; in my eyes. I rubbed my face on my shoulder in an attempt to almost rub away this discomfort in my eyes. It wouldn't go, my eyes still felt like they were burning, like there were tiny pieces of gravel inside them, scouring them away. Then there was relief. I opened my eyes, glad to be able to leave them alone and feel comfort once again. But, I regretted opening them. I was greeted with a sight that left my heart clenching, and my stomach bubbling in distaste. This stench, this taste, this feeling. Now, sight. This sight. A corpse. I was kneeling inside a corpse, whose chest was caved in and rips were slightly askew. Their face was disfigured and unrecognisable. I didn't know what sex they were. I couldn't tell. Their jaw was smashed in and rearranged unevenly, which made it look as if they were gaping at me in awe. Their eyes were dark, hollow sockets, except for the pooling of discoloured blood, and the wriggling movement of maggots inside them. I could just make out that their arms were raised above their head, in a messy surrender, leaving themselves exposed, their stomach spewing out a murky liquid that had seperated into mold and fat over time. Disgusting. I recoiled immediately after having realised the absurdity of what I was sitting in. I stood up, my legs weak now after having had been seated for so long. I could feel maggots crawling on me, all over my skin. It made my stomach drop and my hairs stand on end. I shook them all off. Had i only gained a conscience just now? Although i could see, it was still dark, and my eyes were still adjusting to this new darkness. I cautiously crept over to the wall, taking steady steps so as not to trip over the shadows on the floor around me. I didn't want to be here any longer, I wanted to go somewhere else, far away from wherever I am right now with this corpse, the shadows and this awful smell. So, i decided to try find an exit. My eyes were gradually growing used to this pitch‐black environment, and I was hopeful that there would be an archway, or a door that would lead me out of here. I trailed my arms along the walls, following them in hopes of finding an escape. Then, I saw it. It was faint, but it was there. A light. Gloomy, dull and far away. I could feel the hope rise within me, and i started walking towards the source, fastening my pace after every stride. This was it: I was going to get out of there! Until I tripped; again. This time, i wasn't so lucky when i fell. Instead of falling into a corpse, i fell into two, both piled on top of eachother, their eyes wide and mouths guffawing at me as if I was insane. Maybe I was insane. But then there was that horrible stench, and as my weight continued to press into the bodies, they relaxed, and popped. All over me, their insides gushing onto my face, in my ears, my eyes, some in my mouth. I was horrified. I immediately retched and my brain sent a flurry of signals allover my body. I was panicking again. I spat out what was in my mouth, as well as what my stomach had heaved up for me, and wiped whatever gunk was in my eyes, away. I hastily stood up, and retreated back to the wall. I could see it now, but along with being able to identify the wall, i also saw the shadows. No, they were silhouettes. No...they were bodies. There were more. My stomach was growing uncomfortable, and the adrenaline rush inside me had left, leaving me tired. I had to leave.