The cavern didn't move at first.It just… watched her.Every vein along the walls glowed faintly, like the entire chamber had opened a thousand eyes.
Evelyn swallowed hard.The lantern flickered in her hand, the flame struggling against the crushing atmosphere.
Then—the Heart pulsed.
Not a normal beat.Not the deep, thunderous throb she felt earlier.
This one was sharp, like a shockwave.It rippled through the floor, up the walls, and straight into Evelyn's chest.
She stumbled.Her pulse stuttered—then tried to sync itself to the Heart's rhythm.
"No…" she whispered, forcing her mind to stay clear."This is my heartbeat.Not yours."
The Heart responded with another pulse.Harder.Faster.Meaner.
The veins on the walls flickered violently.From the cracks in the flesh, something seeped out—thick, black, tar-like liquid that slid across the floor like living ink.
Evelyn backed away as the black ooze formed into rising shapes—not illusions, not shadows—but bodies.
Malformed.Incomplete.Writhing.Screaming without mouths.
The first one lunged.Evelyn swung the lantern—the light struck its flesh, burning into it like acid.The creature shrieked, collapsing into a puddle of wriggling darkness.
But more rose.Ten.Twenty.Dozens.
The Heart was creating them faster than she could move.
The shadow-Evelyn crawled across the ceiling, limbs twitching in rapid spasms.The mirror-Evelyn hovered behind the rising army, her fog pulsing like breath.
Evelyn gritted her teeth.Her heartbeat steadied—and the lantern flared brighter, responding to her focus.
"Fine," she whispered, stepping forward."If you want my fear—you're not getting it."
She thrust the lantern outward, pushing her will into the flame.
The light erupted into a blinding shockwave.The ink-creatures recoiled—melting, collapsing, screaming silently as their bodies dissolved into vapor.
The shockwave hit the walls.The veins dimmed.The cavern shook violently, pulsing like a wounded organ.
The Heart wasn't just reacting anymore.It was bleeding.
But then—a new presence stirred.
The mirror-Evelyn's fog thickened.Her glowing eyes narrowed.And when she spoke, her voice wasn't Evelyn's anymore.
It was the Heart's.
"You wound me…so now I show you what you truly are."
The fog behind her spread—and from it,shapes emerged.
Not creatures.Not illusions.
Memories.Twisted.Distorted.Weaponized.
Every failure.Every regret.Every fear Evelyn ever buried.
All crawling out of the fog with her face.
The Heart wasn't trying to scare her anymore.It was trying to break her identity.
Evelyn tightened her grip on the lantern, breath shaking.
The Heart pulsed again—and the memories lunged.