5 - Into The Castle

He walked farther up to the entrance and stopped. Something felt strangely off. Asher looked left and right to both sides as if someone were watching him. Chills ran down his spine.

“Just the wind,” he told himself in a mumble. He didn’t actually know for sure, but he refused to scare himself with the thought of a murderous creature awaiting his arrival inside.

He chuckled. How dumb. The thought of it being a silly thing that actually put some fear in him.

The sky dimmed and clouds turned gray. Asher sighed. Please don’t rain...

And just to spite him, little cold droplets scattered down, getting harder and harder. The rain turned out to be heavy, dark weather with lightning illuminating the sky and a thunder that boomed so loud overhead.

“So much for a beautiful day,” he said to himself, as he cursed frustrated and kicked the castle wall beside him. Still, it shouldn’t be a horrible birthday because of it...

He thought about it a little more and knew the rain wouldn’t stop if he tried to will it away. He doubted that it would go just for his one special day, either, and so finally concluded to entering the structure that stood, menacingly, before him.

“It’s not as if I have a choice,” he tried to convince himself with the lie, but he knew that it was really his curiosity that got the better of him. Asher never minded before, walking or standing in the rain. It was usually nice and peaceful in his opinion and a great time to think when you don’t, although Asher already had all the time in the world.

He took a deep breath in and exhaled, walking on the dirt path beside the castle. An old and moldy, wooden side door came into view as he headed further down. The sight was quite the opposite of warm and inviting, but there was only so much shivering and cold that he could take.

The boy ran for it and quickly grasped and turned the rusted, metal handle. It was icy cold and left orange stains on his hand, but this he failed to notice. He pushed the door open, making a loud, creaking noise and wood dust, dirt as well as other particles spread and floated all around him. He sneezed, and sneezed again, trying to wave it all away from his face as he advanced into the shadows.

Asher rubbed his nose. It was good that he didn’t have any allergies or the dust would’ve killed him from the mass amount that suddenly appeared.

It must be an old door...

But if there were so many other people that came to visit this castle, shouldn’t all the doorways be in recent use? The one that Asher had gone through had cried so loud as if it hurt for the door to be opened at all.

It seemed suspicious, but then again, this whole place had given him that feeling from the very beginning.

He sniffed, trying to clear his nose. He hoped he wouldn’t get sick, being out in the rain and then the dust attack. “Oh well,” he shook the thought away. He had more important things to worry about...like the darkness that he’d fallen trapped into.

The confined air smelled musty and old. Then came a strange and unspeakable odor.