"Yup, I'm definitely dead this time!"
Heaving out a deep sigh, Duncan silently cursed his bad luck that had gotten him into this mess in the first place. As he took a breath, a strange musty scent, like that of fresh dirt dug from deep within the earth, tickled his nostrils.
Thump! Thump!
As he rapped his fists against the ground, a hollow sound greeted Duncan's ears along with the feeling of hard soil shifting loosely from his strikes. The space was cramped as Duncan lay flat on what seemed like solid earth, his head barely able to lift up a few inches before striking a solid barrier above him, letting down a trickle of dirt in the process that spilled onto his face.
It was dark, the lacking light making it impossible for Duncan to see, yet every single clue gathered pointed to a terrifying conclusion, one Duncan was unwilling to accept…
As he almost panicked, a sense of claustrophobia assaulted Duncan's mind, the darkness and tight space causing a strain on his wits that threatened to drive him crazy.
Fortunately, Duncan, who always carried a lighter with him, didn't need to probe in the dark for too long. After a bit of effort and with shaky hands, he was able to reach into his pants pocket despite the cramped space to retrieve it, then with much anticipation and anxiety, proceeded to light it—almost dropping the lighter in the process.
A weak light illuminated the surroundings, its glow summarily chasing away the cloud of anxiety hanging over Duncan, easing his nerves, thus finally allowing Duncan to focus on his surroundings and confirm his current circumstances.
Sigh!
Releasing a deep breath as if releasing all the fear and anxiety within him, Duncan finally spoke.
"How unlucky," he sighed to himself in frustration.
Above Duncan's head, the light revealed a solid black wall of earth blocking his sight—an additional look to both sides also revealing the same in a perfect rectangular frame—telling Duncan what he had already guessed all along.
He was buried alive—a most curious and baffling situation indeed, one that left Duncan shocked, albeit without much surprise or befuddlement present in his eyes.
How did this all happen?
Well, to answer that question, we have to go back to just a few minutes ago to when Duncan still walked the earth freely in the land of the living.
…
At 8 p.m., Duncan stood on a sidewalk. Across from him, on the other side of the two-lane road, was a street that looked like it had just been featured on an episode of a true crime series.
Yellow tape blocked off the entrance to the street with cautionary signs warning people to stay away mounted all over the place like Christmas lights.
The place was utterly deserted, not a single soul in sight. Like Duncan, most people stayed on the other side of the road, choosing rather to take a detour than walk in front of the street—but unlike Duncan, no one stuck around long enough to observe the street. They all kept their heads down and eyes facing forward with barely a few looking up to cast a quick glance on the street before quickly shifting their gazes away as if afraid to provoke some calamity to occur.
This behavior, strange as it was, wasn't unexpected given the rumors surrounding the street—rumors that had attracted Duncan to come here in the first place.
A few minutes passed and Duncan, having finished his observation, was finally ready to go. Despite the burning curiosity within him that urged him to cross the street to investigate the abandoned street like a tempting mistress inviting him into her boudoir, in the end, Duncan restrained himself and turned around to head back home.
Yet, who would've thought that even then, just as Duncan had taken a single step, he would suddenly find himself buried underground with no idea how he had gotten there at all.
…
"Damn it, I knew I shouldn't have given in to my curiosity and gone to that haunted street," Duncan reproached himself.
"Now look at the mess it has gotten me into. Sigh, once again, thanks a lot. As always, you're completely useless other than getting me into trouble," he said sarcastically as if blaming someone in particular.
After that, Duncan finally settled down, his emotions returning to calm as he began working to figure a way out of here.
With what wiggle room he had, Duncan moved the lighter around as his eyes observed his grave closely, trying to determine just how deeply he was buried.
The soil was a rich dark color with a deep earthy scent that was all too familiar to him. Meanwhile, his palm lay on the ground below him, feeling a moist texture that was partly loose to the touch, allowing Duncan to dig his fingers into the soil relatively easily. In doing so, he effortlessly dug out a handful of fresh soil, causing him to feel elated within.
This was good news because it meant he wasn't buried too deep into the ground and could easily dig himself out of this grave with some effort.
While this thought excited Duncan, it still couldn't completely cast away the shadow of a prior experience that had hung over Duncan's heart after realizing where he was, one that was quite similar to his current situation albeit torturously so, and had left him in a perpetual state of insanity for a very long time.
Snap!
"Get it together, man. You need to get a grip!"
Slamming his fist on the ground, Duncan forced away the memory of that event threatening to surface in his mind, choosing instead to focus on the matter at hand.
Clatter!
But then, clumps of soil—most likely knocked loose due to Duncan's fist strike—began to fall from above onto Duncan's face, prompting him to quickly turn his attention to it. Immediately, Duncan froze, his muscles tensing rigidly as he forced himself to remain motionless, even to the point of completely halting his breathing. Duncan was afraid he would stir a commotion that would cause the entire grave to fall in on his head, so he stayed perfectly still and waited for everything to calm down.
"It's not stopping."
A few seconds passed, and the soil continued to fall with seemingly no intention of stopping despite Duncan's effort. In fact, it was falling much faster than before, making it quite clear that a cave-in was imminent. But Duncan didn't panic. Instead, during all this, he was able to notice a certain detail that he had missed in the beginning.
As it fell, there was a ripple above Duncan as if there was an invisible layer or membrane present between Duncan and the soil above. As the soil fell, it passed through this thin invisible membrane that was like a pocket of air forming a barrier above Duncan's head, perfectly keeping the soil layer intact, creating a delicate balance that prevented the soil from falling on him.
That explained why, despite being buried underground without a coffin, there was a space perfectly fitting Duncan that allowed him to avoid being immediately crushed and suffocated to death. It would seem that whatever had brought him here in the first place made sure to prevent Duncan from dying instantly, meaning there was a much deeper purpose behind all of this.
Duncan didn't know how long he would have lasted trapped inside the ground if he hadn't caused everything to begin caving in on itself, but it was a pointless thing to think about because he would've eventually tried to dig his way out of the grave, which would've immediately set off the collapse just as well. In the end, rather than waiting here passively, it was better to take action directly and see just what exactly was going on here.
The soil continued to fall onto Duncan's body without any sign of stopping. Not panicked, Duncan first released the breath he'd been holding before turning off the lighter and returning it safely to his pocket, so it wouldn't be lost later. With that done, he positioned himself properly, bringing his palms up to his head and placing them on the soil located right above his face. In that moment, Duncan could feel a slight coolness on his skin pulsating through his gloved hand and sending a chill to the rest of his body. He shivered and almost instinctively let go, but forced himself to continue holding on.
Remaining calm, Duncan rapidly breathed in and out like he was hyperventilating, forcing copious amounts of air into his lungs and causing them to expand considerably. Then, with a final burst of conviction, he instantly dug his fingers into the soil, breaking through the thin barrier keeping him trapped, which immediately caused the entire thing to collapse and the soil to cave in on him, truly burying him alive this time.