Chapter Six: Roxie's Arrived

Chapter Six:

Roxie's arrived

”Nothing can beat the feeling of finding what you have been looking for since forever - the moment you lay your eyes on it, you lose your mind”

It took Roxie longer than expected to finally reach “The Camp”. Thanks to her neighbour's car she could cover half the distance but, unfortunately, it broke down only mid-way. She realized that she had no access to her phone, she couldn't even call someone to help her out, not to forget she was deserted in the middle of nowhere to even ask someone to help her.

She did wait for some time in the hope that she would be able to get a lift from someone passing by, but with no luck, an hour passed with no sign of any living creature.

Roxie decided there was no more time to waste. She picked up her backpack from the back seat and began to walk on her feet. It was a better alternative to standing helplessly and anticipating for someone to give her a ride-along, which would be almost impossible given the situation.

The long narrow concrete roads seemed never-ending as far as it stretched. There was some greenery at every two feet distance, but not enough to make it look alive and for the worse part, even the street lights were very few in number as well as broken. The road seemed abandoned, people must have forgotten it’s existence or maybe no one dared to walk on the road as the destination wouldn’t be as pleasant.

The weather wasn’t on her side either, it felt too hot or too cold at times. It seemed like the weather couldn’t make up its own mind. The heat would either pierce her skin or the cold wouldn’t let her nostrils get any air to breathe.

In a couple of hours, the sun would be down and Roxie wouldn't be able to go much further, and hence she continued to walk as fast as her steps could take her. Her every breath felt like a countdown to dusk.

It was when she had already walked for an hour with no hope that her legs also decided to give up, she could see a huge banner not so far away. There, led a pathway which was lit with what seemed like remains of torches used during the early times. It seemed pretty ancient. Right there and then, Roxie had a feeling that she was close to the site. It was the only part of her journey that didn't seem sad and brought a smile to her face.

Most parts of her journey only consisted of sad and abandoned roads, but finally she caught the sight of something that stood out from everything else. Of course this has to be the way to her destination and if not then it might not be that bad of a choice.

She managed to smile but was already extremely tired from all the walking, she felt oddly weak as if someone had sucked all of her energy out. As she tried to balance herself, she was hit by another headache. Only this time it was slightly lighter than usual which was unlike the other ones that came like a loud blow to her head.

Luckily, this time she manages not to pass out. Her hopes kept her on her feet. The thought of finally getting hold of her sister was all that she wanted. Reuniting sounded like a dream up until now but maybe now it could be the reality.

“Just a few feet to go and I’ll be able to see my sister” Roxie tries to push herself. This is all she has been dreaming of ever since she stepped out of her house.

Somehow, Roxie manages to reach the campsite, but her vision had already started to blur out before she could make it to the entrance. She was as exhausted as one could ever be and the caffeine in her system was also adding up its after-effects. She could barely move another inch of her body, it was too exhausting for her. She still didn’t want to give up, she took up every last bit of strength left in her and attempted to crawl all the way in.

But she could do this no more, her eyelids slowly rolled down, and her body gave up; a foot away before entering “the camp”.

“I.. I made it”, she mumbles with her leftover breath as her head hits the ground.

and bam!! *thudding sound*

____________________

Couple of hours later…

Roxie woke up to a similar voice waking her up, calling her out. She opens her eyes partially only to realize a familiar set of eyes staring back at her. The sight was enough to put her back on her feet but her body had other plans.

The set of eyes were blue in shade, just like hers. Her hair fell over her eyes, they were so black that they could blend easily with the dawning night sky. Raven. Roxie couldn't mistake her even with her eyes barely able to stay open.

"Hey wake up, are you dead?? I hope not" the voice said in concern.

Roxie struggled to open her eyes, “Ra...Ra..ven is that you?” she stuttered.

"Umm.. yes?" Raven said with a tinge of self-doubt.

Roxie proceeds to faint as if her soul has been sucked out and she no longer has any life left in her; to move or even speak. She slowly gave herself away into the hands of the cosmos

Raven decided to pick Roxie up over her shoulders and take her to her & Valerie’s room, how could she leave someone on the ground? It was already getting late and the temperature was only dropping cold with each passing minute.

Raven proceeds to try to pick Roxie over her shoulders right when she hears someone say something from a distance.

“Raven, run” the voice ordered her.

“Is that you Tim?” Raven questioned as she squinted her eyes in a hope she could make out of who it was but it had gotten too dark now.

“Yes, we need to leave right now” he proceeded to walk towards Raven, almost in her sight and then proceeded to run in the direction of the torch-lit pathway.

“But.. what happened?” Raven shuttered, wondering what could possibly be wrong that he had to tell her to run.

“Earlier the in-charge said if we stay out during the night, we could get severely punished or fined, or worse even thrown out of the camp for not being disciplined enough”, he said as his voice faded into the dawning darkness.

Raven had no time to waste. She didn’t want to be punished or worse thrown out of the camp in the middle of the night. That wasn’t her plan, she came here to have fun or similar experience. She wanted to prove to her sister she could do things like this on her own without having her babysitted the whole time.

She didn’t even know the way back home & Valerie wouldn’t even know where Raven would be since she said she was only going to check the facilities. So, she quickly picked Roxie up on her back and walked as fast as she could. Roxie didn’t feel so heavy so it was quite easy for Raven to balance her on her back & walk with the fastest pace she could while carrying someone.

Roxie's feet didn't let her walk straight though, it was almost like Raven was dragging Roxie since Roxie was taller than Raven. It was difficult to see the path in the dark so Raven did stumble a couple of times while trying to walk faster. Luckily, soon enough she was in front of the torch-lit pathway, this time it seemed daunting.

The flame wasn't bright blue anymore but purple, it roared in anger going on and off again and again. To be honest at this point Raven was a little bit scared, but she knew she would make it in time, or at least she had to. She didn't want to face any consequences of staying out late, as she wanted to enjoy the break and not suffer. There is a thing about Raven, though she can be mischievous at times, she never liked the taste of punishments and has always made sure to avoid them or not get them in the first place. She isn’t a fan of following the rules but she never broke any either.

Not very far from the cabin-like building she noticed a clock tower to her left, it was a crossroad. The ticking of the second-hand could easily be heard as there was no other sound present at that moment. The whole camp seemed dead, pin-drop silence with only the ticking of the clock, the only sound almost like the beats of a heart creeping in.

There was still one-minute left for the minute hand to hit 12, it would be 6 pm then.

A few steps later, as soon as Raven stepped inside the cabin, the door shut itself close and the bell of the clock could be clearly heard. It was loud, frightening and echoed throughout the camp. It was almost as if someone was announcing danger.

Once inside, Raven was back into the maze, but this time it didn’t seem as difficult as earlier since she remembered clearly when she and Valerie first walked in, Valerie announced the order of the rooms. Recalling the moment & Valeri’s words it didn’t take Raven much time to get back to the room they were sharing. Though with each passing minute Roxie’s weight felt heavier than before. Her determination didn’t let her give up and her sights wandered around to find a familiar face with no luck.

For a minute she started wondering about the guy she encountered earlier, how fast he was to disappear from her sight. Did he already find his glasses? He faded straight into the darkness like he knew the way which was unlike Raven. Where was he staying? Raven thought to herself. Was he accommodating in the same building? She didn’t see any other similar buildings around nor a place that could contain youngsters like her. But it wouldn’t be a surprise if the other building didn’t even have windows since the cabin she was residing in was nothing less than a haunted house you can easily find in the middle of a carnival.

It would be similarly abandoned since her generation wasn’t to be scared easily. They laughed at the notion of anything being possessed. Also, anything eerie would be too cool for them.

Approaching footsteps broke Raven out of her thoughts, she didn’t know what to expect or who to expect. It could be anyone or anything; since it has feet it must be a human.

To be continued…