Personal Narrative

“The secret is how to die.” Those were the last words I heard before falling into what seemed to be a bottomless abyss. At last I hit the stony ground feeling every bone in my body cry out. I did not move, I did not speak. Darkness held me in its grasp not allowing me to move but eventually I stood. The room was no brighter than shoe shiner and damper than a fresh dew. I was able to make my way three strides in each direction before hitting a wall but I did find something. It was a 9mm pistol with a attached tactical light. Without hesitation I picked the pistol up, put it to my head and pulled the trigger. Once again I hit the floor with ear raising crack. I recovered the pistol similar in appearance but different from the last. I saw

a button blinking in the center of the room and brought my foot down on it opening a wall into a new chamber, I walked forward not glancing back at my body with the bullet buried deep in the skull.
Chamber two was dimly lit and noticeably less damp. Also the room I stood in now was twice the size of the last and had a roof about ten feet up, as I made my way to the center, the door I had come through was once again a wall. As I pondered, I gazed up at the ceiling that seemed to go on forever until I turned on my flashlight and that is when I saw it. A trap door so close but with no way to get there. I spent what felt like days to come up with a plan but eventually succeeded. My 9mm still had twelve bullets that were necessary to escape. I was going to shoot at the wall from an angle to create holes large enough for my fingers and toes. After making eight, one deep inch cubbies in the wall I was down to two bullets. I began to panic, I had only made it seven feet up the wall and what if I need any bullets in the next chamber. I also realized there was no handle on the trap door but luckily it was made of wood. I used my last bullets to make two more cubies, luckily I was only a few inches away from the softwood above me. I took a piece of stone and broke a chunk of the wood away. Immediately I was showered in water. I furiously worked as the water rose to the tip of my feet. I was now safe, sitting on mossy stone that use to be underwater. This chamber was massive in length but short in size with very little light, also the ground was covered in a foot of water making it hard to move without getting my shirt wet. My head brushed the ceiling as I walked around surveying my next puzzle. As I came back to my ledge that stuck out from the wall just above the water I stumbled upon a makeshift suitcase wrapped in a plastic bag. Once on the ledge I dumped the contents and immediately regretted it, clink clink clink, 3 grenades rolled around make their way towards the water. I dove on them as quickly as I could but I was too late.
I sat there looking at the now soaked grenade holding the other two i had successfully saved, Would it still work?

I began to focus on the rest of the contents that came from the bag. It held a backpack with an assortment of melee weapons, ammo, food, drink and a thing of rope. I looked around the room but began to lose hope as I saw no points of interest that could lead to an exit. I laid down and began to cry, this was the first time I had thought of my family and really questioned where I was. Why was I the only one who did not die from the explosions, why am I the only one down here? I stood up to a small tremor, then a violent shake accompanied by a molten rock shower. I had nowhere to go, the eruption had come from across the cavern but the molten rock was crawling its way slowly towards me. I was stuck between a wall and the little bit of water left in the room I had only one option. I was with my family when I saw them coming, hundreds of fiery streaks shooting out of the sky landing all over our city, making large flashes when meeting with the ground. We began to run for the underground tunnels dodging fallen trees and ruined building until was saw it, no more than a hundred meters away but we were too late. The gate was obliterated by a tall oak tree, we began to search for any other possible escape and that was when we saw it. A ominous cavern in the side of a hill. “That wasn’t always there was it?” I yelled. She replied “No, but that is our best option right now.” We each went to grab a kid but we couldn’t, they were in a better place. We began to run not looking back at the horrible scene we had just witnessed. Once inside way began to weep with the image of our children's bodies gone, replaced by a smoking crater. We knew they would find us here, I pulled out my 9mm and gave it to my wife and she nodded, put it to her head, and pulled the trigger. I awoke in the cold cavern, water splashing me in the face as I came to. They were the lucky ones, I

felt peace knowing they didn't have to suffer like I do. I stood up and unpinned the soaked grenade and threw it at the wall landing it among the others of its kind. I stood there as the wall in front me was turned to dust. I was finally at peace, Instantly the room was filled with light emitting a welcoming path. I stood on the ledge and leisurely made my way to the light. Once inside the room I continued down a path and turned the corner and that was when I was greeted by my family, my wife came up without an expression and whispered to me “The secret is how to die.”