Mia’s heart pounded as she sprinted down the dim corridor, the pungent smell of decay filling her nostrils. The damp walls seemed to close in on her, the shadows shifting and contorting into nightmarish shapes. She clutched the small flashlight tightly, its feeble beam her only guidance through this forsaken labyrinth.

Just a few hours ago, she had been carefree and full of youthful bravado, ready to explore the long-abandoned tunnels beneath Lankford with her friends. They had scoffed at the local legends of cult rituals and inhuman denizens lurking in the subterranean maze. Now those tales felt all too real.

One by one, her friends had been picked off by… something. First Jake disappeared around a corner, his agonizing screams echoing endlessly. Then Emma’s blood-curdled shrieks pierced the darkness as she was dragged away, her fingernails leaving jagged gouges in the stone floor.

Mia was alone now, hopelessly lost in the ever-twisting labyrinth. Each turn led to another identical tunnel, the claustrophobic confines closing in. She felt like a rat trapped in a sadistic maze, tormented by unseen forces.

A bone-chilling screech reverberated from the shadows behind her. She broke into a panicked sprint, her ragged breaths reverberating through the stagnant air. A putrid, wet appendage slithered across her ankle, nearly causing her to tumble. She let out a terrified yelp and picked up her pace.

The tunnels seemed to shift and change with every frenzied step. Doors, once sealed, now yawned open–hellish black maws leading to oblivion. Mia’s body burned with exertion, but she pressed onward, desperate for escape.

At last, a flickering light appeared in the distance–her salvation! She sprinted towards it, huffing out a relieved laugh. But as she drew closer, a creeping sense of dread washed over her.

It wasn’t an exit.

The flickering light revealed a vast subterranean cavern, the roof disappearing into inky blackness. Grotesque stone pillars twisted towards the unholy gloom, weeping putrid fungi and acidic mineral deposits. But it was the epicenter of the cavern that stole Mia’s breath away.

An enormous pulsating mound dominated the center, slick crimson folds undulating with a nauseating rhythm. Veined tendrils snaked outwards, slithering over the cavern floor with boneless flexibility. A deafening sub-bass thrum reverberated from the fleshy mass, filling Mia’s bones with mind-numbing dread.

She stood frozen, her mind unable to process the horrific sight, yet terrified at the mere thought of turning her back on the eldritch monstrosity. The thrum grew louder, more insistent, burrowing into her consciousness like a parasitic earworm. Mia clapped her hands over her ears, but it did little to block out the maddening cadence.

A series of wet pops and squelches erupted from the crimson folds as grotesque eyestalks emerged, fixing their multifaceted gazes upon Mia. Ichor-slick maws lined with fanged ridges spiraled open, releasing a collective shriek that sliced into Mia’s psyche like white-hot lances.

Her survival instincts finally kicked in. She spun on her heel and ran, tears of panic streaking her face. But the tunnels no longer offered the solace of confusing sameness.

The sibilant slither of questing tendrils echoed all around her, serpentine horrors seeking any opening. More appeared from adjoining tunnels like reinforcements boxing her in. Mia slashed at them with the beam of her flashlight, only wishing that the shaft of light could sever those extending appendages.

A thick tendril snared around her ankle with surprising strength, jerking her off balance. She crashed to the ground, her flashlight skittering away and extinguishing its thin ray of defiant hope. Panicked shrieks escaped her as innumerable tendrils encircled her limbs, binding her with horrific efficiency.

They began dragging her backward towards the pulsing cavern, each frenzied squirm only tightening their constrictive hold. Her final descent into the nightmarish depths filled her mind–pulled kicking and screaming into the throbbing maw of the gargantuan monstrosity.

Mia awoke with a strangled gasp, her sheets drenched with sweat. The snarled tendrils and thundering heartbeat were revealed as nothing more than her blankets twisted around her clenched fists and the pounding of her own pulse.

She let out a shuddering breath, relieved to be back in the comforting familiarity of her apartment. Just a nightmare, nothing more.

Pushing herself upright, Mia glanced at her bedside clock. The glaring crimson numbers seemed to mock her: 3:33 AM.

She reached over to take a sip of water from the glass on her nightstand and froze in horror. A thick droplet of crimson fluid clung to the lip of the glass, slowly inching downwards.

Trembling, Mia lifted the glass closer. Within the clear water, a single pulsating eye stared back at her.