With a crash I come tumbling down, hitting the floor outside of the closet. A few metal panels and bars hit the ground also, creating a jarring crash that leaves my ears ringing. Luckily, I’m not too badly hurt. I look around. I see that I’m in a metal hallway. It reminds me of a corridor on a starship in a movie, or maybe a military vessel, or secret base. At least it would, if it were clean and had real lighting.

As it is, the only lighting I can see is smeared and stamped on the walls like paint, giving off an orange glow. I would say it was bright, but that is probably just because I’ve been in pitch blackness since I woke up in that closet.

As for the corridor, it is one step up from derelict. The walls are streaked with rust, and there are mounds of rubble swept into the corners. Loose or missing panels in the walls and ceiling reveal pipes and wires. Whatever else this place is, it is old, unmaintained, and looks to have been scavenged for parts.

I stand up and brush myself off. My clothes are dirty, stained with rust and grime. I must look a nightmare! I give a half-chuckle, only to cut it off as I see a door at the end of the hallway creak open, flooding the end of the corridor with torchlight and voices.

The torchbearer is the first one around the corner. At first I think he might be wearing some kind of armor or costume. He stands taller than the corridor ceiling, having to hunch down. Over his body there are plates of what look like broken concrete and pavement. Like a pile of construction garbage had been glued together in the shape of a person. The way he moves though makes it very clear: It’s not armor. Behind him looks to be at least one other person, a tall black teenage girl in coveralls, but I might not have time to analyze further.

1- I should stay and confront these people.

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