1st Spring, 522
The Protea Inn was as quiet as it ever was, save for the noises that sleeping people made. As the season turned from Winter to Spring, more than a new year was born. Unbeknownst to the denizens of Syka, an evil darkness had enveloped the settlement with the unheard tolling of the midnight chime.
Oralie shifted under her bedsheets, tossing and turning as if she were having an uncomfortable dream. Her breath quickened and she awoke momentarily, sitting bolt upright in her bed. Her chest heaved as she tried to calm her breathing, and she groaned, dropping her head into her hands.
With a sigh she flopped back onto the pillows. It was pitch dark outside and there was not a whisper of a noise to indicate any activity. It was far too early to be awake. She turned over, wrapping the sheets tightly around her body and wriggled to get comfortable so she could fall asleep again. Just before she closed her eyes, she paused, thinking she had seen something moving in her room.
Oralie was too tired to be bothered to sit up again, so she shifted her gaze as far over as she could, seeing nothing at all. She listened too, her keen Kelvic hearing not picking up anything unusual. With a mental shrug, her eyes slid shut once more and she drifted off to sleep.
Her eyes next fluttered open as a gentle tendril of weak morning sunlight started to creep into her room. She sighed, before yawning widely, turning onto her back. Oralie stared at the ceiling, listening for signs of life elsewhere in the Inn. Nothing yet. And then, movement once again out of the corner of her eye. She froze. Whatever it was did not make a sound. She turned her head slowly to the left, a sinking feeling pooling in her chest.
Oralie frowned as her gaze fell on… nothing. She was sure she had seen something. A hazy memory came to her then. She vaguely recalled the same thing happening to her in the middle of the night. Maybe she had eaten something funny the day before.
Reluctantly, she pushed herself up into a seated position. And yet again, she thought something moved over to her left. She looked over quickly, her eyes not picking out anything but the oddly shaped shadows cast by the faint dawn light.
But then… did a shadow move? Oralie’s heartbeat stuttered for a moment as she stared at the corner of her room. Nothing moved as she watched now, but she did have a funny feeling that the shadows were peculiar shapes.
She was just about to write it off as her being still tired, or dozy in her newly awakened state, when two bright spots appeared in the shadow. Luminous, silver eyes stared right at her from the darkness.
With a muffled shriek of alarm, Oralie leapt backwards off of her bed, away from the… thing. She scrambled backwards until her back hit the door of her room, never taking her own eyes of whatever it was that had just materialised. It didn’t move.
“I’m going crazy… it’s not real. It’s not real…” Oralie groped behind her for the door handle, twisted it and quickly exited her room, pulling the door shut tight once she was in the hallway. She backed away, keeping her golden gaze fixed on the door.
Nothing was happening. She stopped in the hallway and tried to calm herself down, focusing on her breathing. “See Ori, it’s not real.” Oralie let out a shaky laugh and figured she should probably go back and put some clothes on before seeing what to do about making some sort of tea now that she was awake.
Before she could do anything though, the actually very real shadow figure drifted right through her door and stopped just in front of it. It stared at her with fathomless silver eyes. Oralie couldn’t help it. She screamed. She screamed with raw terror, standing right in the middle of the hallway completely naked and convinced that whatever this creature was had come to do something completely evil to her.
+692
Oralie shifted under her bedsheets, tossing and turning as if she were having an uncomfortable dream. Her breath quickened and she awoke momentarily, sitting bolt upright in her bed. Her chest heaved as she tried to calm her breathing, and she groaned, dropping her head into her hands.
With a sigh she flopped back onto the pillows. It was pitch dark outside and there was not a whisper of a noise to indicate any activity. It was far too early to be awake. She turned over, wrapping the sheets tightly around her body and wriggled to get comfortable so she could fall asleep again. Just before she closed her eyes, she paused, thinking she had seen something moving in her room.
Oralie was too tired to be bothered to sit up again, so she shifted her gaze as far over as she could, seeing nothing at all. She listened too, her keen Kelvic hearing not picking up anything unusual. With a mental shrug, her eyes slid shut once more and she drifted off to sleep.
Her eyes next fluttered open as a gentle tendril of weak morning sunlight started to creep into her room. She sighed, before yawning widely, turning onto her back. Oralie stared at the ceiling, listening for signs of life elsewhere in the Inn. Nothing yet. And then, movement once again out of the corner of her eye. She froze. Whatever it was did not make a sound. She turned her head slowly to the left, a sinking feeling pooling in her chest.
Oralie frowned as her gaze fell on… nothing. She was sure she had seen something. A hazy memory came to her then. She vaguely recalled the same thing happening to her in the middle of the night. Maybe she had eaten something funny the day before.
Reluctantly, she pushed herself up into a seated position. And yet again, she thought something moved over to her left. She looked over quickly, her eyes not picking out anything but the oddly shaped shadows cast by the faint dawn light.
But then… did a shadow move? Oralie’s heartbeat stuttered for a moment as she stared at the corner of her room. Nothing moved as she watched now, but she did have a funny feeling that the shadows were peculiar shapes.
She was just about to write it off as her being still tired, or dozy in her newly awakened state, when two bright spots appeared in the shadow. Luminous, silver eyes stared right at her from the darkness.
With a muffled shriek of alarm, Oralie leapt backwards off of her bed, away from the… thing. She scrambled backwards until her back hit the door of her room, never taking her own eyes of whatever it was that had just materialised. It didn’t move.
“I’m going crazy… it’s not real. It’s not real…” Oralie groped behind her for the door handle, twisted it and quickly exited her room, pulling the door shut tight once she was in the hallway. She backed away, keeping her golden gaze fixed on the door.
Nothing was happening. She stopped in the hallway and tried to calm herself down, focusing on her breathing. “See Ori, it’s not real.” Oralie let out a shaky laugh and figured she should probably go back and put some clothes on before seeing what to do about making some sort of tea now that she was awake.
Before she could do anything though, the actually very real shadow figure drifted right through her door and stopped just in front of it. It stared at her with fathomless silver eyes. Oralie couldn’t help it. She screamed. She screamed with raw terror, standing right in the middle of the hallway completely naked and convinced that whatever this creature was had come to do something completely evil to her.
+692