4th Campaign's first flash fiction hallenge: "Shadows crept"

The first challenge in Rachel Harrie's 4th Writers' Platform Building Campaign is to write a story of 200 words or fewer, starting with "Shadows crept across the wall."

Rachel is adding points for ending with "everything faded," writing in your usual genre, including the word "orange" and making it exactly 200 words.

Challenge accepted. The following is exactly 200 words, not including the title but including the entry words; it includes "orange" and the challenge close; and not only is it in my "usual" genre (whatever that is), it actually continues the story I began in "Dark Clouds" and continued in "What Made Me Love You?"

Helen's prison

Shadows crept across the wall, then slithered across the floor. Their teeth reflected the orange sunlight that slanted through the dirty, narrow window.

Slumped on the floor, back against the wall, Matt watched it slide onto his thigh. It grinned at him. Its fangs tore wide rents through his jeans.

The shadow laughed, a sickening hiss. Its fellows joined it in shredding Matt's pants.
The lead shadow laughed again and sank its teeth into his skin.

Matt sighed and shook his head. Won't she ever learn?

The shadow teeth did nothing to him. How could they? They're just shadows.

All the shadows hissed, frustrated. They merged and faded into the gloom of the doorless cell. A new shadow appeared on the floor. It grew into Helen.

"So you are immune," she said.

"Hello, Mom. Do you have anything to drink?"

"Wipe that smirk off your face...you're no good to me here. And you are my son." A door appeared in the concrete-block wall and swung open slowly.

"You're letting me go?"

It was Helen's turn to smirk as she faded back into shadow.

The last of the sunlight disappeared. Matt crawled out the door just as everything faded.

Check out some other flash fiction challenges in Rach Writes.