The Figure

Lenna stood at the podium; a breeze caught her hair growing cold as it danced along her skin, sending a shiver down her spine. The people in the crowd before her all stared with empty eyes. Some had makeup streaks staining their cheeks, and others didn't look to have shed a single tear. 

Leena pulled her gaze from the people to the letter she held in her shaking hands. She wondered how the day had already ended, to the moment she stood before everyone giving her speech to family and friends about how the world took Venno too soon. 

Thunderstruck, but only sprinkles of rain meant she could still give her speech. It was the longest day of her life, but she could hardly process any of it except for the figures. The black shadows pulsated, creating a surge in the air, and though they scared her, she ignored them, focusing on the task at hand. 

"When someone leaves us too soon, there are never the right words to express how one's heart breaks. We are not only grieving the person but the future we will no longer have with them."

Lenna's eyes scanned the crowd. She rubbed her eyes, stumbling over her words. The rain sprinkles turned to steady rain as more figures entered the crowd. 

"uh, um." She looked down at her paper, trying to find her place in her speech. Lightning struck close by, making her jump but she took a deep breath and began to read again.

"But with these hard times, we must hold onto the good. Appreciate our time with Venno, and remember he is always here."

The figures slowly moved to the front of the crowd, now standing directly before her. They did not have a face she could see, just an emptiness—a void. 

She knew she must be imagining things. The lack of sleep mixed with the painkillers she had been taking for her pounding headache must not be mixing well.

"Venno was my best friend, and though our marriage was ending, he was still the love of my life. I will forever be grateful for the love we shared and the beautiful family we made together." 

A silent tear slid down her face, and just as it hit the ground by her foot, the figures pounced on her. She screamed, pushing the figures away. She cried for help, but nobody in the crowd moved. 

A black hole opened in the ground beside her, and the figures dragged her toward it. "No, please. Someone, help me!" Still, nobody moved. They just stared blankly as if nothing was happening, as if they were waiting for something. 

The figures consumed her before jumping into the darkness below. Everything went black and cold before she lost consciousness. 

Leena was pulled from her sleep by the ding of the seatbelt sign being turned off. How had she gotten on the plane? She took her phone from her pocket and turned off airplane mode. Text messages began to pour in.

"Leena call me, He's dead. He's dead. I found him in his room."

The memories flooded Leena as she realized where she was. This was where she was when she found out Venno had died. What was this, a dream? A nightmare? How was she reliving one of the worst moments of her life?

She shoved her phone in her pocket and turned to get off the plane, but all the people were frozen except the person beside her, who was turned away. They were saying something quietly, but she couldn't hear them. 

Excuse me, she said, tapping on the person's shoulder. They turned quickly. The person had no face. It was the figure from the funeral. It began to chant in a dark raspy voice, "Your fault, your fault, your fault."

Leena tried to push past the figure, but it wouldn't let her pass. She put her hands over her ears, trying to block the chanting from her mind. "Your fault, your fault, your fault." She sat back down, pulled her hoodie over her head, and screamed as the darkness consumed her again.

When she opened her eyes, she was walking down an aisle, a wedding aisle. She looked over to see her daughter, but not the daughter she knew. Her daughter was older, and she was wearing a wedding dress. How did so much time pass, she thought? 

She guided her daughter down the aisle, watching the crowd. There didn't appear to be any figures on the site. Had she imagined the whole thing?

 Leena approached the end of the aisle, and just before she could give her daughter away, she heard a raspy voice begin to chant. Leena turned to see the figure standing in the crowd. "Your fault, your fault, your fault." The people in the crowd joined in chanting along with the figure.

She turned to her daughter. "Do you see this?"

"See what mom, are you okay?"

"The figure in the crowd. Do you not hear the chanting." 

Leena turned to face her daughter, only to be met with a shadow. 

"Your fault. It's all your fault." the shadow said.

Leena grabbed the cloak of mist, pulling it from what was just moments before, her daughter. The shadowy figure exploded into mist and dissolved into the air. When she looked up at the face before her, it was one she knew. It was her own. The figure put its hands around Leena's neck, pushing the air from her body. Leena held just enough breath to say, "I forgive you," black mist exploded around her pulling her back into the darkness.

When Leena opened her eyes, she was back at the podium. It was just her imagination. Everything was fine now. She looked up from her paper, her friends and family were not where they once were. Only one person stood in the crowd. A cloaked figure. Leena felt her body go numb as the cloaked man slowly pulled the hood from his head. 

Venno stood where her family and friends once stood; a whimper fell from Lenna's mouth as Venno charged the podium. "You can run from the darkness, but it will always find you," he said before pulling Leena back into the depths below.