There was absolute silence. What made it more suffocating was the picture in front of me. The picture was identical to me in every way, to the extent that it felt sickening.
The closer I looked, the more I felt something was off. Who in their right mind would eat their own limb? Not only did that feel wrong, but the smile. The bone-chilling smile. It felt like the person wasn't smiling to himself, but to me.
What made my nerves drop was the direction the severed hand was pointing. It was pointing in my direction.
"As if telling me it was aware of my presence," I mumbled, sweat dripping from my face.
But it also felt like there was more to it. I moved my body to the side, away from the direction it was pointing. Lo and behold, it wasn't actually my direction it was pointing to, but a particular direction.
I turned my head toward that direction and shivered. What lay there was darkness. Complete darkness. Nothing I had ever seen before.
"Am I supposed to go in that direction?" I muttered.
No answer came. I looked at the painting, waiting for some kind of confirmation, but I was greeted with a chilling smile. I looked at the painting and the eerie character one last time before heading in that direction.
And there, in my line of sight, was a being watching and judging every decision I made.
I moved steadily toward the dark alley. Each step I took resounded in the enormous hall as I inched ever closer to the darkness. Until I was close to it. Just being this close made me start to second-guess myself.
The darkness began to stir, consuming me slowly as I stepped into it, until I was fully consumed, leaving no residue. The darkness was like a hungry maw, devouring everything that fit into it.
On the other side was complete darkness. I moved through it until a bright light pierced my eyes, blinding me for a second.
As my vision adjusted to the intensity of the light, a voice echoed throughout the area.
"Peter Schlaw, you have been accused of some insidious crimes. Could you state your defense?"
I stood there aghast, my mind blank, because I didn't know what was happening. My eyes moved, scanning my immediate surroundings. Behind me was a great number of unknown people, staring at me silently, awaiting some kind of justice to be passed.
My eyes narrowed before trailing back to the person whose voice had echoed. The person sat at the front of everyone, seated comfortably, wearing a grey wig and black gown. He gazed at me with an indifferent expression.
A sudden thought dawned on me as I stared at the man.
"Am I in a courtroom?"
It seemed impossible, but that was the only explanation for what was happening.
"Your Honor, it seems this person has forgotten about the crimes he has committed. Mind if I jolt his brain awake?" a tall, lanky man stepped forward with a vicious grin as he looked at me.
"Carry on," the judge said indifferently.
"Thank you, Your Honor," he straightened his suit as he moved toward me.
"In the year XXXX, on April 24th, you were caught smuggling cocaine onto an airplane traveling to Las Vegas. Not only did you transport it, but you also delivered it to the kingpin there. And here is the evidence to support my claim, Your Honor," he walked toward an officer, delivering a stack of documents to him.
The officer took the documents and presented them to the judge, who stared at them with a blank face. He flipped through the documents for several minutes and repeated what he had said earlier.
"Peter Schlaw, you have been accused of some insidious crimes. Could you state your defense?"
It was only when the judge finished that I fully understood the situation I was in. I was accused of crimes, and I was here to defend myself.
My face hardened as I glanced at the judge, silently contemplating what to say.
"No, Your Honor. I can't, because I am guilty."
It was at that moment the emotionless judge finally cracked. Confusion spread across his face, as if everything wasn't going according to script.
"What?" the lanky man shouted.
"Is that what you wanted to hear?" I spoke, staring directly at a corner.
"It seems you have noticed me," a familiar voice said.
The surrounding environment became dark in an instant as a familiar person walked forward.
"Emily?"
The moment I said that name, something in my mind unlocked. All the memories I had been longing to remember came back to me as if it were natural.
I stared at the person again, this time with suspicion and caution.
"Who are you?"
The person, still disguised as Emily, walked forward with a smile, moving steadily toward me.
"You don't remember me? I am Emily. The person who saved you from that pitiful life. The only person who loved you. The only person who will be with you forever," a twisted smile formed on her face.
I began to move backward with each step she took. A deep frown formed on my face as I spoke again.
"I won't repeat myself. Who are you?"
The person stopped and smiled, opening her mouth wide. Right in front of me, another person began to emerge from her mouth. This time, the person had a completely different face. Saliva dripped from both her face and hands as she emerged from what looked like her shell, her old skin. The old skin fell to the floor and burned to char.
The person who stood before me had gorgeous green eyes, alluring scarlet lips, and a breathtaking body that made her the girl of every man's dream.
The woman stood there, scanning me from head to toe before she smiled.
"You passed the trial, and you are free to go."
I paused, wondering if she was serious. I looked at her and saw no crack in her expression. I was filled with joy, but that was shattered by her next statement.
"Is that what you wanted to hear?" she smiled mockingly, trying to rile me.
I moved forward, wanting to punch the ugly smug off her face, but she dodged at the last moment, leaving me to fall to the ground.
"What a pitiful existence," a look of disdain appeared on her face.