Luxuria Dark Reflections Ep 02

Episode 2: The Foyer

Musty air enveloped them, stale and heavy, almost suffocating. It smelled old; of earth, leather, and something sweet. It was a scent that reached within both of them and tugged at hidden memories, and hidden desires.

Emma hesitated on the threshold as her eyes slowly adjusted to the shadow-draped foyer beyond. The setting sun's light was quickly fading and casting a darker pall within.

"There is not too much work to be done," John said, his voice laced with determination. He tried a light switch just inside the door. Nothing. He pulled out his phone and turned the light on. He stepped further into the foyer, casting the weak light from his phone around as his eyes took in the grand staircase that led up to the second floor. "We can definitely bring this place back to life. Mainly a lot of dust and dirt. Now, we should have power. Let me..." His voice faded as he walked deeper into the house.

"Wow," Emma breathed, as she took a step inside. Her voice echoed strangely into a house that was not empty. It was as if it was talking, mockingly, back to her. A faint feeling of unease crept into the pit of her stomach. She took a second, hesitant step and felt her foot hit something. She slowly glanced down and screamed at a black mass of decayed flesh and fur with bones clawing around the toe of her shoe. She kicked her foot out. The mass broke apart in the air.

"What is," he started to ask before he noticed the clump of rotten flesh that landed just in front of him. He let out a gasp and jumped back slightly. "What the fuck is that?" He kicked it with his shoe. "Oh, looks like a dead rat."

Emma froze, her heart pounding in her chest as she stared at the decaying rat carcass. The musty smell intensified, and she felt a wave of nausea wash over her. She took a step back, her hand gripping the door jam.

"Yeah, we may have some of these to deal with," John muttered, his brows furrowed in disgust. He kicked the remnants of the rat to the side. "I'll clean that up later." He turned back around. "Wait there," he called back. "Let me find the breaker box."

"Nothing else better have died in here," Emma whispered, her eyes darting around the foyer nervously. The shadows seemed to shift and dance as the light from John's phone moved around. She looked down the hall opposite of where John had walked off to and tried to see what lay within. "Maybe we should come back when we have power, John," she called out to him. The light from his phone danced around, then faded.

Emma did not hear John reply. She wished she had brought her phone with her, but it was still in the car. She thought she could just go back outside. Wait for John in the car. Turning around, she saw nothing but a void of blackness. She didn't think it had gotten that dark so quickly. Where was the moon, the stars? There should have been some light from the night sky, right? She asked herself in a panic. The door had to be right here! Or was she still facing inside the dark depths of the house? She turned what she thought was another 180 degrees around. Still no light. No noise. Only an oppressive blackness started to smother her.

Emma's breathing was coming in quicker, shallow breaths.

"John?" she called out again. Still no reply. She strained to listen but could hear nothing over her heart beating and her rapid breathing. Where did he go, she cried to herself. She raised her hands out in front of her and took several steps. She was either facing inside the house or outside, either way, she needed to move. She couldn't stand in one place any longer. Her heart pounded faster in her chest. The warm musty smell intensified. She groaned as she felt herself begin a dizzying twist. Nausea washed over her and she fought to keep it down. Her arms reached out to either side in a panic to find a wall or something to steady herself.

"John? John!" she yelled out into the house nearly coughing up bile. This time, her voice didn't echo but was swallowed within.

She stumbled to the side and her fingers brushed against a wall. The wall felt unnaturally warm under her palm but she didn't think too much of it as she clenched her eyes shut attempting to stop the dizziness from overtaking her. Over her now ragged breathing, she heard noises coming from somewhere within the house. No, from under the house. Now it seemed to be all around her. Scratching, skittering sounds of something clawing, attempting to dig out.

Just then, the lights flickered on, bathing the foyer in a soft, warm glow. Emma blinked, her eyes adjusting to the sudden brightness. And then she saw it.