I headed forwards, moving toward the setting sun. My skin brushed past the smooth, waxy cordgrass swaying gently in the evening breeze, and my boots trudged through the thick sludge, struggling to find their way out of the heavy layer of mud. I dabbed away sweat on my brow and closed my eyes as the air slowly cooled, with its humid weight lifting as the night (Darkness) crept in.

    It grew darker, the last remnants of daylight fading into a vast expanse of deep blue. Stars lit up into existence, their twinkling silver light transforming into constellations as I trekked through the undergrowth. The strands of grass stretched taller, turning denser and more compact until they created a wall around me. It became harder to separate them, their stalks turning stiff and motionless. Soon, all I could see was green, with an occasional rock or branch emerging from the path, but slowly even those started to dissipate.

    The grass deepened, and the air turned chill. The once-frequent twigs and branches vanished, and the grass thickened, layering upon itself until it formed an impenetrable canopy, blocking out the sky. The darkness pressed in, the towering blades eclipsing the stars. I pushed forward, my muscles aching, my breath coming quicker. The land around me turned even tighter, the moonlight above now nothing more than a faint gleam.

    The grass stretched higher still, as if reaching beyond the c-cluh. Clouds. An image of the sky flashed before me, and as much as I tried ignoring it, I wished I could be there.

    I only had two options now.

Keep On Going:

https://sites.google.com/view/ijustwishtherewassomethingelse/home

Turn Back:

https://sites.google.com/view/eyesofember/home