Phantoms 99th Percentile Round 2: Writers Debate

Chapter 5: EscapeThe decision before me is a difficult one. I have no idea where I am, nor any Idea where I'd be going if I was to escape. The entire place is entirely unknown, and by escaping I wouldn't have the first clue what to do next. I need to weigh my options.I think about the alternative, however, and my decision starts to sway. I have been confronted with near death situations 3 times now, and there is un-doubtedly more trials, and life threatening "tests" ahead. I look at all the death and blood around me, and shudder. I did this. I caused all this death, pain. and suffering.I may have been created by a monster, but I am no monster. I won't allow myself to allow this evil entity to wane my morality anymore. I need to save what's left of me, the last threads of humanity.I take one last look at the blood shed, and gore, and my decision is final.I jump through the opening, and fall into a dark underway below the Coliseum.That's a shame. I was really starting to like you too. Well, while your down there, I don't think it would be nice to leave you all alone. So I am inviting some old friends down their to play with you, you know, in case you get bored."Old friends? I don't have any friends?"I say out loud.The mechanical voice chuckles maniacally in my head. Then I here it. A unanimous Roar sounds above me, seemingly two or three simultaneously. The roar is all to familiar. The Dyrkite smell the blood in the air, and are aroused, blood thirsty. It won't be long before they find my scent and come pounding after me. I need to think fast.I take in my surroundings. I seem to be in a small, but narrow steel underway, with all sorts of pipes running along the corner of the passage. It will be too dark to see, once I am out of range of the light, so I decide to press my fingers against the pipe line and follow it through the dark passage.Very clever. You never cease to amaze me, #319.Stop calling me that. I think this statement, rather than speak it, so that the Dyrkite won't seek my position.I start to run, desperately trying to get away from the sound of snarling and gnashing, as I here the animals rummaging through the dead bodies above me, chewing bits of gnarled flesh. The thought disgusts me, and it takes everything in me to resist puking. This is odd, as it was me who caused all the death to begin with. That evil manipulative machine...Manipulative? What if I told you that the pill you took really doesn't hold any power over your will? It is true, Subject #319, that you possessed true power. Magnificent, fluent, beautiful power! Isn't the feeling excellent? I don't believe you. I respond to this comment mentally.Very well. But tell me, where do you plan on going? I am sure by now you have realized that you are at a dead end.Shoot. The voice is right, before me lies a tin wall, with a few holes for the pipes to continue. I am trapped. Just then, the growl noises get significantly louder, as it is apparent that the Dyrkite have found my trail, and are not at the beginning of the underway. This is it, I really am screwed this time. Dammit! I kick the wall in front of me in anger. To my surprise, it's starts to shudder and vibrate vivantly. Yes! There is hope. I Kick the tin plate again hard, over and over again, desperately trying to break through as the footpaws behind me are threateningly close. Finally, the plate crashes down, as it falls over. I quickly run inside the small chamber, just in time to see the wild panther-thing's a few meters from me, coming at me fast. I don't waste any time, as I quickly grab the tin plate and prop it up against the wall back to it's original position, and lean my full body weight against it. Just then, I feel the panther's head smash into the plate hard. The impact is so devastating, that it sends reverberations down my spine. Now there is only two growling noises on the other side, and I assume that the Dyrkite has knocked itself out cold. The other two, swipe and scratch at the door for the next 15 minutes, trying to get through. Eventually, they realize the task is useless, and the sounds of snarls and growls fade away, as I assume they left the area. Phew, that was close.It is time to get the heck out of here. I am in a small little room with tons of wire protruding from the pipes I was just following. My eyes follow each wire into hundreds off different plugs, outlets, and all kinds of strange mechanical gadgets that seem to have no bearing for my brain. I make a quick decision of what to do next, and grab two small wires.No, don't do that. You might destroy something valuable!"Yeah, that's the point." I say with a grim tone. Then I rip the two wires from their chords. I hear a loud siren go off, which leads me to believe I have disturbed some sort of sound mechanism. I eagerly continue pulling out wires, breaking plugs, and smashing electrical devices left and right. Stop please, for the sake of science! No, not that one! Please let go of that wire! The voice pleads with me persistently, however I continue to ignore it. I pull a red chord, and suddenly the lights in the entire place go out. There is pandemonium above me, as all sorts of screeching, sirens, and noises are made. Please no! Whatever you do, do not rip that one #319!Reverse psychology works on me, and I yank it.What have you done! You have just released the rest of the test subjects! They were not ready yet for testing! You have ruined everything, how will I fix this mess!?The voice is in mass hysteria, I rip chords out of their sockets.No more, I beg-The voice is cut off as I pluck a small white and red wire. Silence. The voice no longer speaks to me. Whatever that thing was doing to communicate with my brain, was suddenly cut off when I destroyed the wire. Yes! The nagging voice was hurting my brain. It felt good to have peace and quite in my head. No one there to bother my thoughts, to command me, or send snide condescending jeers my way. In this moment, I feel more or less, free....I have yanked every wire out of it's socket. The only thing remaining in the room is a lone, red button. Well, I have come this far, might as well push it, I decide.I walk over to the button and press it firmly. The wall in front of me comes to life, and begins opening upwards. I am amazed, shocked, and horrified as I gaze through it into the room beyond the entrance. I take a shaky step forward, toward the room, feeling hopeless, alone and desolate. I have come so far... for nothing! Before me, is a giant glass chamber, with a big dusty command seat surrounded by loads of controls, and mechanisms used presumably to guide, or steer something. But that isn't what shocks me. It is what is beyond the glass, that is so horrifying. I look through the glass and gaze into... Nothing. Blackness, specked with shiny radiant stars all over. The heavy realization sinks hard in my stomach. I am in space. I am trapped aboard this gigantic space vessel, with all sorts of horrifying devastation's waiting for me, and there is literally no hope of escape.Then I here it, the mechanical voice. But this time it isn't in my head, it shouts over loudspeakers somewhere within the walls of the vessel, omnipotently. "I asked you earlier, where you thought you were going. You truly didn't know did you? I told you, to trust me, but there you went rushing off, and ignoring me, like you always do. You must think you are so clever, don't you? I wish I could hear your thoughts now, #319. Unfortunately, you have killed the brain transmitter. We could have accomplished greatness together, you and I. Now we are enemies. You have destroyed many vital weapons in my arsenal, but I will destroy you for what you've done to me. You have left me with a lot of cleaning up to do." The voice ends, and I realize that I am in deeper waters than I could wade.PROBLEM: Protagonist is being pursued by the voice, who seeks revenge on him. Escape is not an option, it seems.