Challenge 02

Challenge 02: “A character will take a bath, but the action goes terribly wrong.”

Cordelia Tsang stared down at her bath tub, perplexed by what she saw. She had expected, after a long day at the office, to take a long bath and forget about things for a while. She had even lit some incense and had brought over the latest trashy romance novel she denied reading. What was in front of her was not a freshly drawn bath, however. Not anymore at least. The once clear water had turned murky and clouded. Steam-like vapors rose from the tub, slowly spiraling up to the ceiling. To make matters stranger, Cordelia could swear she heard whispered voices speaking from the waters.

Her curiosity over taking her, she reached down a hand to touch the waters. She skimmed the water with her fingers, surprised at how light it felt. Cordelia dipped her hand in completely and then pulled it back out. Once past the surface, her hand did not feel like it was submerged in water. Instead, it felt as though she had placed it into fog or mist. Her hand wasn’t even wet. It was then that she heard it. The whispers slowly come together, forming a dull and constant snoring sound.

Okay, what is this? Cordelia thought, getting tired of this nonsense. She pulled her hair back and fastened it with a clasp. Holding her breath, she plunged her head into the swirling tub. It was like passing through fog. Looking around, she could tell she was definitely not underwater. The other side of the water led to a dimly lit cave, its surfaces well-worn from eons of existence. A pungent smell greeted Cordelia’s nostrils, causing her to gasp for breath. While the air was thick with something, it was still breathable. Barely.

“Hello?” she coughed out into the dim. The snoring stopped and a pair of glowing eyes emerged from the distance in response. “Hello? Can you explain why my bath currently leads to this, where-ever this is?” She did her best to seem nonchalant, despite the absurdity of it all. Loud footsteps echoed through the cave as the source of the eyes came closer. Cordelia could see it now, lit by some unseen source. It was large whatever it was, covered in a verdant and scaly hide. The creature’s mouth opened, letting loose a deafening roar. As it got closer, Cordelia could see it had several more sets of eyes, all opening up.

She pulled her head out fast and yanked on the tub’s chain, ripping open the drain. As the waters receded, a large set of mandibles emerged from the surface chomping in futility. The water spiraled down the drain, taking the creature and its portal thing with it.

Cordelia stared down at the now empty tub. Maybe she would just take a shower.

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Well, that took longer than expected. My weekend ended up being a lot busier than I expected. That, and a few other reasons, have led to Day 2’s challenge being released on August 6^th. I’m getting back on track with these things, don’t worry. August will just dip into September this year is all.