Part one

Chapter 1

Yes! We defeated you for all time! You will never rise from the ashes of your shame and humiliation!

I don't know how old I am. I really don't. You'd think I'd be keeping time, but I'm not. It's dark all the time, and I stopped counting meals a long time ago.

So I could be 45. Or 91. Or still 14. I have no idea.

It shouldn't matter, really. I tell myself it doesn't matter, but it does. It's just one more piece of me that's gone. My identity, my control, my world. Fading, like some kind of scar.

Scar.

I knew a boy with a scar. We knew each other as kids. He's just somebody. Somebody important, but I don't know why. I'm also angry at him. I don't know about that either.

I think I'm older than 14, just because I can't remember anything anymore. I remember faces, but even those are starting to fade. Getting all blurry. People don't visit me in the dark anymore, because I can't remember what they look like.

My hair is long but I can't comb it. My hands are chained behind my back. My feet are anchored to the ground. Somebody once told me that this is all for my own good, so I don't hurt myself anymore.

The dark isn't new though. It's always been dark.

"They're waiting on you."

What?

"They're waiting for you. They're watching you. Waiting for you to make a move. So do something."

"Who is there?" I try to say. I haven't spoken in so long that my voice sounds strange to me. Like I'm moving my mouth, but a different person is speaking for me. My voice cracks, and my throat feels scratchy and dry. It hurts, but I try again.

"Who is there? Show yourself!"

The command throws a memory to the surface of my mind. It's a shadow of who I was, but I cannot recall the details.

Nobody is there. Instead, my voice echoes around the chamber, reminding me that I am in a very small and cramped space, and I am entirely alone.

I start to panic, struggling against the chains. Pain sears through my wrists and ankles as flesh meets chain, agitating existing bruises. I need to get out. I can't breathe.

"Stop looking at me!" I scream, although I'm not entirely sure why. "Get out! You can't-" but words fail me after that, and I stop struggling. A sigh racks my body, and I fall back against the wall.

I want to cry, but I can't. Instead, a numbness creeps into my body, paralyzing my limbs and freezing my emotions. How long before I stop struggling? How long before I forget everything?

I don't know how much time has passed, but I believe it's the end of the day. I take a moment, racking my brain for any information; a place, a name, anything. But nothing comes to mind. I close my eyes to identical darkness and remember the one thing that I can.

My name is... my name is...

The darkness aids me in my answer. Like darkness was ever helpful.

I know you can't see me because it's dark in here, but I'm rolling my eyes.

... Ah that was fun.