Almost

This could have been the end.

Caroline felt nothing, saw nothing, and didn't know what was about to happen.

She cried out, but couldn't hear her voice, as her body was no longer under her control. It was almost as if her mind was separated from her body. Almost as if her mind was the only thing in existence, floating in an silent and empty universe. She could have felt at peace. Almost.

But her universe wasn't silent.
It was filled with the noise of the never ending chanting of the acolytes. Words of terror that she couldn't understand.

And her universe wasn't empty.
It was filled with the terrible, pungent and cloying vapor that poisoned her body and kept her helpless.

Instead Caroline's universe was an eternity of dread and horror.

But as she was about to succumb into despair, something happened. Something changed. She realized that she was no longer alone in the darkness. There was something else. A glimmer perhaps. Very faint and distant at first, but she knew it was there. And although she didn't know what it was, as it grew brighter, she was certain that it wasn't just a figment of her imagination. It was like a newborn star, growing stronger. A light in the darkness. A light that gave her hope. A light that changed everything.

The chanting of the acolytes suddenly sounded less dreadful. The smoke smelled less repulsive. And she could hear the low whisper of a female voice.