Just the beginning

Nolan blinked twice before trying to open his eyes. His head felt heavy and it pained to even move. He was exhausted all of a sudden and dizziness started to act upon him again. He tried to bring his hands to his head only to find them secured tightly in a rope. He wriggled his hands, but all his attempts were futile. The ropes dug deeper into his skin, making a thin mark on them.

He groaned. However, no voice came out of his mouth. His mouth was sealed tightly with a tape. At that moment, all the events came rushing to his mind. He remembered talking to Ted and later stepping out in the balcony only to hit by someone whose face he couldn't see.

'Who hit me? Is it Adrian? Did he find me?' He thought shivering in panic. His blood ran cold thinking about the possibility. If it was Adrian who had captured him, then he was as good as dead. He attempted to move again, but stopped immediately when it became excruciatingly painful.

He could still feel the blood that had trickled down his face when the bat had hit him. It had dried a little, sticking to his cheeks. He looked around him, the dim light helping him to see. It looked like an old, abandoned warehouse. But he was not sure.

There were broken objects around him, two pillars had fallen on the ground while four were supporting the roof. He could smell the dust and the cobwebs in the air. It was suffocating. However, for his comfort, one of the broken windows were kept open. So, the smell was not that strong. But, he was shivering. It was cold outside and the cold winds were blowing, harshly biting his skin. Also, it did not help that he was clad in his thin pajamas.

Suddenly an owl hooted, sending a chill down his spine. The room, the scene in front of him, the sounds, everything intensified his horror. The place looked nothing less than a haunted house. Nolan had no idea what to do. Sleep was not an option for him, not when he did not know what was lurking behind the shadows. He couldn't move or speak. The only thing he could do was wait for his captor to return.

He waited for a long time, not knowing what time it was. Though it was only a few minutes, it felt like hours. It was killing him and the pain was only aggravating every moment. At that moment, he heard the sound of footsteps behind him. The sudden sound in the silent room creeped him like hell. He was terrified.

The footsteps were coming towards him. He could also hear a screech like something made of metal, was being dragged along the floor. Nolan tried to sit as still as possible, pretending to be unconscious, hoping his captor would leave him alone for the time being. But all his hopes went down the drain.

"I see you are awake?" The man said, making Nolan open his eyes in an instant. He pulled his head back immediately seeing the man close up. He did not expect him to be this close.

'When did he walk here? Why didn't I hear it?' Nolan pondered.

As scary as the situation was, the man's mask was scarier which made Nolan's heart to skip a beat. The man was clearly hiding his face from him. But why?

"You must be wondering why I have kidnapped you." The masked man walked away from him towards the opened window on the left. Nolan did nothing. The man started laughing out of nowhere. His voice echoed through the place.

The darkness, the hideous mask, the man's voice, everything about him made him look like satan had reincarnated on earth. He had the chilling aura around him that made Nolan forget about the cold weather outside and think about him.

"By the way, why am I even talking to you? All I could do is kill you and end this." With this, the man walked back to Nolan and raised the bat to smash his head. Nolan looked at him, his eyes having pure fear in them. He closed them tightly waiting for the strike which never came. He slowly opened his eyes to see the masked man looking at him.

"Hmm. What am I doing? It's not fun to end your life this early. I need to have my share of fun. I need to see your blood dripping on the floor drop by drop. I need to hear your screams, I need to see your eyes look at me in fear every time I come in front of you. Also, I want you to see the way the chop off your limbs first, then dig out your eyes." The man stopped suddenly.

"Wait, if I dig out your eyes, you will not be able to see me. Then that will be the last thing I will do. What shall I do next then?" He placed his right index finger under his chin and thought for a while. All this time, Nolan stared at him wide-eyed in terror. If his hands and legs were not bound to the chair he was sitting on, he would have run away far away from the psychotic man.

"Yes," The man exclaimed. "I will dig out your organs one by one and see you bleed. Oh, what a beautiful sight it would be!" Only a crazy man like him would call something so horrendous beautiful.

"Hmm, then at last. I will dig out your eyes. And the best part is I will not have to kill you. You will die on your own. Oh, such fun! Just thinking about it is making me happy. And as a reward, I will grant one of the wishes." He leaned forward making Nolan lean back.

"Did you think I would grant you a wish?" The man pulled back and laughed out loud. He was a lunatic in Nolan's eyes. Nothing he said or did made sense to him.

"I am not a genie. I am gifting a wish to myself and my wish is..." The man raised his bat and swung it on Nolan's face. Fresh blood oozed out and he fell unconscious again.

"What a chick! Couldn't tolerate even one hit." The man whispered and chuckled softly. He walked to the window and slowly removed his mask. His handsome face looked magnificent in the moonlight and his hair fell on his forehead when the wind blew. He smiled faintly as he stared straight ahead in front of him.

"This is just the beginning people of Vlei. Beware, I am coming for you."