⠀⠀Like vultures awaiting the death of their prey, all sorts of evil creatures writhed in the shadows, invigorated by the return of their beloved darkness. Eyes flashed in alleyways, jaws snapped from dim corners, and an eerie chill settled into every nook and cranny the city had to offer. Weak pools of candlelight fought against it, but to no avail; great swaths of darkness comfortably assumed their places just as they had every night prior for the entire stretch of existence.
⠀⠀The newborn night was laced with despairing chaos tucked carefully beneath a calm exterior. It was quiet, but more due to an uncanny lack of noise than tranquility. Hushed whispers and the scuff of soles against stone were barely audible, as those who feared the lurking demons fled to the refuge of their homes. None wanted to be left in the dark to whatever fate lay beyond locked doors. The unknown remained just that: unknown. A few bumbling fools ventured out into the darkness, aided by flickering lights in hopes of warding off certain destruction for at least a little longer, but past their false sense of security lay devils waiting to strike. The pitter-patter of fleeing footsteps of the wise became the rhythm of the night. Fleeing was the only way to escape.
⠀⠀Amidst the tolling of the bells, a dark silhouette burst around a corner, bent at the waist and panting furiously. It tilted its face to the sky, which cast a red glow over sharp feminine features. Her eyes were wide with panic, and she did nothing to regain her composure. It was simply beyond her ability. Fear consumed her, its tendrils creeping through her body like ivy. It was visible in the hunch of her shoulders, the trembling of her knees. But greater than the fear was despair.
⠀⠀Eyes devoid of all hope looked heavenward for comfort, but found none in the cold grin of the moon, shining dimly against the fading red. With a grim nod, she continued on, stumbling blindly with surprising haste. No destination lay waiting for her, as even the shadows cringed away from the broken woman fleeing a morbid past. Her figure was darker than the blackness around her, encircled by an aura of grief.
⠀⠀The fear contorting her face had disappeared with the last scraps of daylight, leaving in its place bone-deep sorrow. Sharp breaths entered her lungs only to be expelled harshly through her gaping mouth. Each motion racked her delicate form. Shadows black as pitch clung greedily to the ghost that barreled through the streets. Indeed, she was nothing more than a ghost: haunted and almost ethereal in her aloof nature.
⠀⠀After her body could bear no more, she collapsed into a heap on the ground, emitting the cry of an animal. It tore itself from her throat, the noise raw and primal and full of pure, unbridled anguish. The clouds gave pause in their rolling; the bells grew silent, their peals still vibrating through the air; even the rats stopped scuttling underfoot for the briefest moment. An aching heart called desperately for acknowledgement, for an assurance that the pain would lessen if only she endured.
⠀⠀None was offered. No one assuaged her sorrow or lifted the burden from her soul. Her cry echoed and then disappeared as suddenly as it had rung out, swallowed up by the blackened abyss. She was alone.
⠀⠀The realization struck her like a blow to the head, and she reeled back, hissing through bloodstained teeth. Her hands gathered fistfuls of hair, clawing their way along her scalp and down to her neck. A choked sob died in her throat. The lifeless gaze fixed itself on the ground, blinking back the moisture that gathered on her lashes.
⠀⠀Desperately, she scrambled across the stone with no regard for her skinned knees. Pain spurred her along, leaving a trail of heartbreak just as tangible as the blood.
⠀⠀She hovered above a puddle, pushing knotted hair back from her face. A tongue drier than sand flicked across rough lips, again and again, holding in the sounds that fought to escape. She was fixated solely on her reflection. The faint image stared up at her in silence: the gaunt eye sockets, hollow cheeks, sallow skin.
⠀⠀In the next instant, ripples broke up the image, her fingers slapping furiously at the truth she didn't want to admit.
I am ruined.
