The Box

DAY THREE

I spent a full two minutes drinking the blood from my arm, before I finally stopped. My arm throbbed with a burning inflammation, but at this point, I was unfazed by any sort of pain. Two days within this relentless hell had changed me into something else, and I could barely grip any bit of sanity that may have remained within the deepest depths of my now-broken mind. Paranoia had taken over every bit of whatever remained within those depths, and in every second that passed, I felt like I was being stalked within the enclosure by not just Fluttershy anymore, but something else. Something more powerful and deadly.

I didn't bother wiping away the thick liquid that stained my entire mouth, seeing I could care less about my appearance anymore. I was in darkness, with only the hissing oxygen filter to keep my ears company. My mind seemed to be wandering in multiple directions at a rapid pace, as I returned to wandering the inside of the box, feeling as if I was slowly going insane. I held my head with my hands, angrily wandering throughout the enclosure with my bloodstained teeth gritted. I was angry, sad, but mostly lost. Here I was, an ungrateful asshole wandering in what seemed like endless darkness.

If anything, I deserved every bit of this torture I was receiving from who or whatever had put me here in the first place. That's all I thought about as I continued to storm angrily throughout the box, intentionally hitting the glass walls as additional punishment to what had gotten me stuck here in the first place. Arrogance, stupidity, betrayal, and just being a full out piece of shit to the one I cared for. She hated me now, even though I saw her die before my eyes. She was here, haunting me, torturing me, pushing me to my limits until I would snap out of it all.

The speed of my pacing increased with each hit, sometimes falling flat on my ass, then getting back up. My anger increased with every collision to the plexiglass walls of the box, eventually resulting in my legs speeding up to a running pace. Every hit was harder, but I didn't fucking care anymore. I had nothing to fight for, except myself. My own PATHETIC FUCKING SELF! THE ASSHOLE WHO HAD CAUSED THE DEATH OF A BEAUTIFUL INNOCENT WOMAN OVER BETRAYAL, JUST TO SAVE HIS OWN FUCKING ASS! I collided into a glass wall again, only this time I didn't just get back up and run again. This time, I remained still, staring at my faint reflection.

The reflection had begun to warp into something else, as I stood still, feeling a small stream of blood caress down my nose, dripping to the floor of the box. My only focus was the reflection, which had begun to manifest into some sort of shadow figure that resembled me. I wasn't running anymore, seeing that's only what this unknown shadow figure wanted. It was time to face what I had been running from ever since I had arrived here. Only in a state of insanity could I face what was hidden from me.

The figure had blood-red eyes, and a maw of a blind light and sharp teeth. The creature looked at me with an expression that most would fear, but at this point I had realized that all along, I had been running from... myself. I couldn't fear myself, nor could I run from myself any longer. This was my ultimate test, and I didn't care if I was dreaming or hallucinating at this point. In this darkness, I couldn't assure anything at all, because the things I had been seeing were my fears. Although they felt real and looked real, all along they were just the results of my mind's own creation.

Now that I had fallen to insanity, I could see things for what they really were. It was like I had managed to expand the limits of my mind, and now could see things in a whole different light. It was mesmerizing, yet terrifying at the same time.

"I'm not running from you anymore," I claimed. "I won't fear myself."

I continued to stare the manifestation of my own self, as it expressed a smile of pure terror, but fear did not even phase me anymore. I had finally found what had been hiding in plain sight, taunting me in my slow fall to pure insanity.

"You've been there since the day I beat that kid to the point of where he died, and I left him in the gutters," I confessed. "I should've called the police and taken the fall for my crime, but instead I ran and left him for dead, hoping the rats would decompose the body of that poor innocent kid."

I paused, feeling my anger start to rise.

"It's one of my biggest regrets in my life, next to not attending my mother and father's funeral. I should've been there... I SHOULD'VE FUCKING BEEN THERE! But, instead I was too focused on getting to third base! I am easily one of the most ungrateful assholes to EVER exist in this world, and now, I understand why I've been seeing these things that I have been seeing in this box."

My anger was at it's peak, as I wiped away tears from eyes, ready to dissipate the monster before me in the glass reflection.

"They're manifestations of my fears and regrets, including Cheryl. Fluttershy; the pony I fear the most for what I experienced during the events of the survey. The monstrous creature with the face of Cheryl; my regrets for what I did to her. I should've made the right decision, but instead I made Cheryl take the fall! It's all obvious now, and now that I've figured out why I've been seeing and hearing these things, I can see that there's no possible way for me to make it out of this as a victor."

"Even if I make it one more day, what do I have left to go back to in my life?! What is left for me?! Absolutely nothing, except to keep living with those fears and regrets! I'll continue on, when Cheryl should've been the one to make it, not my ungrateful ass! There's nothing left for me in life, therefore, what am I fighting for?! You can continue to haunt me, torture me, and taunt me all you want, but in the end, you'll still be there, even in death! There's no escape, and that's just the harsh truth!"

I paused, feeling tears roll down my cheeks. Nothing was stopping me anymore. This was the climax of whatever reason I had been spared and brought into this relentless hell. I had come to realization that the environment I was in was really just a glass box, and that the things I had seen, felt, and heard were all smoke and mirrors. Fear had created these things, and now it was time to destroy them.

"I created you and everything I have seen, felt, or heard in this hell, and now that I see the truth of what will happen no matter the outcome of this demented test, I see there is no reason to continue this any further. You lose!"

With no further hesitation, I violently slammed my good fist down on the oxygen filter at a rapid pace, not holding back any force. The hissing of the oxygen had begun to dissipate very quickly, as I begun to let out a laugh of neither happiness or sadness, only of pure insanity, as I continued to violently pound against the oxygen filter. I didn't care anymore.

"If I'm going down, I'm going down my way, motherfuckers!" I exclaimed through a series of insane laughter.

After making sure the oxygen filter was completely unable to produce oxygen any further, I turned back to the glass, only to see the reflection of myself gone. I pounded against the glass, taunting at whatever may be behind the glass.

"Come get me! I'm all your's now!" I yelled, pounding my fists against the glass, feeling no pain or emotion.

I watched, as the bloody hoof from before once again caressed against the outside of the glass. I just continued to laugh maniacally, as I continued to taunt and pound against the glass, hearing an alarm ring from outside the box. In the midst of pure madness and the alarm, I could hear the sound of Fluttershy's voice faintly within the darkness.

"This isn't the way," the voice of Fluttershy spoke.

I just continued to laugh, not caring about what the voice said to me.

"Shut the fuck up, bitch!" I exclaimed.

The voice quickly dissipated, as I continued to laugh over the sound of the alarm, and proceeded to colliding to the floor. I could feel the lack of oxygen starting to take effect, as I continued to laugh and let out coughs from the lack of oxygen. In my final moments in the box, all I saw was the manifestations of what I once feared standing side by side, along with the normal Cheryl. Cheryl stared at me with tears in her eyes, as my vision faded to nothing but a blur of darkness and a faint light. I had no regrets in my choice. I had lost my sanity, my fears, and my regrets. All was over.

My eyes shot open, only to be greeted by a blinding light just above me. I was seated on what felt like a hospital bed in a vacant long hallway, and strangely, I wasn't restrained by any straps or anything like that. I proceeded to getting off of the bed, and placing my feet on the cold hallway floor. I didn't understand why once again, I had been spared. Didn't these bastards want me dead? I had no idea where to go, what to do, or why I was here in the first place. I didn't understand, as I carefully proceeded down the hall to wherever I was going next. I wasn't sure yet on the reason why I had been spared, but somewhere among the dark atmosphere of this mysterious place, I had a feeling that I'd find something. I just wasn't sure what... yet.