Panic.

Daniel flew down seemingly endless corridors, the haunting calls of the Shadow close on his heels. The walls around him rattled with every step the sinister thing took towards him, footsteps heavy and thunderous as it came closer and closer. Just how large was it? It seemed monstrous, simply judging by the sound, but Daniel did not know. He simply did not know. All he knew was fear and paranoia as he fled, tendrils of flesh darting alongside him, layering the walls with decay and debris. But there, there was a door, there was his escape-!

A fleshy tendril snapped forwards and caught his ankle, yanking back with a vigorous tug. A strangled cry left Daniel's lips as he lunged forward, hand outstretched towards the door before him, fingertips grazing the knob before he was whipped away. He fought against the tendrils that wrapped around him but it proved fruitless, every struggle only increasing the pressure on his bones. Was this it? Was this how he was to die, to be devoured by this evil entity for his former self's crimes?

"No!" he sobbed, the door fading away as darkness consumed the hall around him. The Shadow's roar was ominous and deafening. "Please, have… have mercy! I knew not that artifact was so dear to you, I-"

Another roar silenced him and Daniel bowed his head, shaking uncontrollably. He clenched his eyes shut in an attempt to block out the horrors that filled it, to hold off the insanity that threatened to consume him. He was going to die, there were no two ways about it. He could only hold his breath and hope for a swift death, yet judging by the character of his captor, that was unlikely. The shadows whipped around him, closing in, tainting his very thoughts. Sobbing bitterly, Daniel turned his head skywards and mouthed an 'I'm sorry.'to the Heavens above, to which he hoped his victims would hear. Perhaps they would pity him.

And just like that, the noise suddenly stopped.

For a moment, Daniel thought he had died, that his soul had been devoured and now hung in limbo, or worse yet, was immersed within the Shadow itself. Yet he could still feel his heart pounding against his chest, his limbs were still bound, his mind… swallowing hard, Daniel inhaled slowly before cracking his eyes open.

There was nothing but an unnatural darkness, just as he had felt earlier in the Storage. He stared around bleakly, trying to make out a form or perhaps see the wall, but to no avail. He tried to move but could not, the tendrils that were snaked around him giving his body a slight squeeze, as if reminding Daniel just who he was dealing with. But if the Shadow was still here… where was it? Why hadn't it killed him?

"Hello?" his voice was small and timid as he spoke out, flinching at how defeated he sounded. Silence. He was truly alone in this realm of darkness. This must be his punishment for his sins.

Yet just as he began to despair, a sudden light erupted right in front of him and he cried out, eyes snapping shut once more. He slowly counted to ten, his heartbeat thundering against his skull, and opened his eyes once more… only to find himself staring into the sinister red gaze of the Shadow.

Its eyes were large and glowing red, pupils dark slits, almost snake-like. They were massive compared to Daniel's, confirming the immense size of the beast as he had thought. The longer he stared into them, the more his vision blurred and stomach churned. He felt terribly ill in both mind and body; he was going mad, if he weren't already. Daniel felt his mouth open and close loosely, as if trying to form words but failing. He was simply too terrified.

The thing cracked a huge smile, showcasing the multiple layers of jagged teeth it had and… was that a laugh? A slow sort-of chuckle rumbled throughout the room, emanating from the form in front of him. Even as Daniel watched, it began shifting, the darkness around it pulling into the shapes of limbs; long, unnatural arms and legs, huge talons and demonic horns… was this perhaps the fate it wanted Daniel to have? To be scorned for an eternity?

"Why must you drag it out, be done with it! Be done with me!" Daniel snapped, shivering still despite his forced courage in the face of such a fiend. "Take me and be on your way!"

The Shadow only seemed to snort at that, its maw cracking into an even wider grin. It considered Daniel for a moment, eyes narrowed and searching, before condensing itself into a smaller form. It was as if it had layers that collapsed upon themselves, the darkness shrinking away until its form was relative to Daniel in terms of height. It was still completely black with unnatural limbs and evil eyes, but it had become… smaller.

"No." The Shadow boomed, its voice deep and masculine, yet heavily distorted; it seemed to echo off the walls of Daniel's mind, chill his very blood. Daniel started stupidly back at the beast, amazed that it could even enunciate.

"You… what… you can speak!" Daniel stated in awe, the heinous cackle of the Shadow rousing him from his stupor. He shrinked away from the beast's claw as it extended one towards him, almost curiously. "But how?"

"You are a fool, my dear Daniel." The Shadow spoke again, withdrawing its talon. Daniel blanched at hearing his name. "You know nothing of me, of my kind. Of my purpose. No, I shan't end you. Not yet. Not until you've reclaimed my orb from your terrible master. Steal it from him, as you did me."

"Why are you sparing me? After everything I've done, after the things I've… had to do." Daniel wept, his tears falling openly onto the flesh that bound him, each drop causing the surface to sizzle. "You can kill Alexander so easily. I may not know you, but I know of your power. Why do you need me?"

The Shadow laughed again and loomed in, its face dangerously close. Daniel felt himself swoon and nearly passed out. "Because you are not like the others." It fell back then, head tilting to the side. "The other thieves that came for my artifact, seeking its power for their own miserable means. I've encountered many fools who thought they could use it, but no. Not one. Their hearts were greedy and contemptuous. But you…"

Daniel gulped, the Shadow laying an eerily cold hand upon his forehead.

"You were simply... curious."

Well its certainly been a long time since I've been driven to write any sort of Fanfiction, but with my recent love of Amnesia, I'm giving this a whirl. Its not canon, I suppose, but... the events leading up to this encounter can be considered as such. I'm making the Shadow into his own personality and character. I think it will be fun. As for how the two will bond in the future, well... we shall see, no? ;p

Let me know if I should continue or not. ;p Or any changes/suggestions, that would be wonderful.

Thank you!

-Omi