Silence Beneath Ruins

Ash filled lungs. Fire long gone. Dust kept rising. Jani walked slow. Eyes scanned walls. Cracks told truth. Hope felt thin. No more voices. Silence had weight. Rooms breathed alone. Footsteps felt loud. Air held secrets. Days turned cold. She found calendar. Red ink screamed: "Leave before silence grows sharp teeth.” Wind held breath. Metal groaned low. No rats moved. Shadows grew thick. Jani stepped back. Something was near. Beneath her feet a soft whisper. Not a ghost. Not a lie. But something real. Waiting in dark. Dust shifted slowly. She stood still. Eyes wide open. No time left. Floor cracked loud. She leaped sideways. Avoided sharp fall. Heart raced fast. Under broken rubble, She saw light. Faint, flickering glow. Not natural flame. She reached down. Light grew stronger. A hand rose. Not hers another. Fleshless, bone thin. Wrapped in metal. Gripping her wrist. She screamed hard. No one answered. Only silence fed. Jani was gone.