Figures In Darkness

• Hashir Afraz, Grade 5, Eastwood Public School
• Short Story
• 2022

Finalist in the 'Unleashed 2022' competition

William stood tall; his blond-white hair spiked upwards. His brow furrowed, affixing sight on a gentle-sharp, neon-like glow. Green light emitted from a strange structure, the same colour as William’s piercing eyes which now looked more curious than ever to explore the building. His foil jacket reflected the insignificant amount of moonlight that would occasionally reach through the dense canopy of forest trees. William, slightly nervous, had started to run towards the mansion, shadowed by darkness. Soon, he arrived. Above the manor, a large opening was cut into the canopy of trees, as if it were purposely there to highlight the building. The boy stood face-to-face with the artefact. He stepped forward.
Regret flowed darkly through William’s body. Darkness enveloped him like a glove, wrapping tight, choking him harshly. He had made the undoubtable mistake of entering a supposedly uninhabited manor, excluding the hundreds of spiders living there. A shrill cry rang out, making William jump. He sat down, bringing his pale and sweaty hands, shivering, up to his head. His world started spinning, slowly, and then, silence. Darkness.
* * *
William lay there for many hours before coming to. Instantly, he regretted fainting. As the boy blinked desperately, cleansing his eyes of dust, a harsh organ note played deeply. He stood up suddenly, trying to make sense of his surroundings. A low-pitched sound rang out, sweat beading on the silvery jacket the boy wore. His tanned arms bent backwards one by one, slipping the clothing off. The frigid wind stung his arms, entering from the many cracks in the mansion. William flinched, before walking deeper into the depths.
A single candle’s light bounced dimly across the room, illuminating the musty walls. William's head jerked this way and that, surveying his atmosphere. A sudden shadow made his heart stop dead. A sphere with two pointed ears cast a shadow, long and ominous, across the dirty-tiled floor. William’s breath sped. He started to run.
Footsteps raced through the mansion, William’s, as he frantically searched for an exit. The boy held out his hand to turn a fast-approaching doorknob. Locked. He began a race, the race against time. The wind was striking trees outside, and rain smashed against the French red-yellow tinted windows. Far too nice for this place, William thought. And then, all at once, he saw it. Hope. He turned left, sprinting towards the far-right edge of the manor. The boy held up his arms, bracing himself for impact. William’s brain instinctively lunged his shoulder forth last second. William went smashing through the window. Colourful shards of glass went flying, giving him uncountable cuts. His chest heaved, and his heart thumped, as he rolled onto the hard gravel floor. William rolled a few metres before his momentum died. The boy scrambled up and, crying, ran into the woods, the moon shining behind him. In the mansion, a British-shorthair cat licked the silvery jacket William had dropped earlier. The cat liked being a “monster.”