Prologue of "The Alignment"

         The door slams behind Angela as the young girl walks into the house. She was lost, and had no way out of the house. She couldn't scream, she didn't want to disturb anyone, or anything there. She kept walking, longing to get out of the wretched hall she was in. She was terrified and was growing even more fearful with each passing second, she spent in the long dark hall.
         Suddenly, and unexpectedly, she heard what sounded like a low and menacing growl, coming from behind the far door. The only aspect of her personality that was even greater than her ever growing fear, was her immense curiosity. This was evident as she reached the door. She reached up, and took the handle of the door, in her little hand, turning it and pushing the door open. Not knowing what to expect, she immediately shielded her face, with her arms, and prepared for the worst. She stood, like that, for a good five minutes, before realizing that she hadn't been harmed at all. She slowly brought her arms down, and back at her sides, as she stood in awe at what was in front of her.
         There, standing in the middle of the room, was a large Great Dane. He would have looked mighty, had it not been for his paw. Clamped around the poor creature's front left paw, was a bear trap, cutting deep into the flesh of the wounded dog. He looked at Angela, pleadingly. She ran over to the creature and released it from its trap. That's when all the color drained from the dog, and it stood there, very pale, and looking past Angela, behind the little girl.
         Angela felt as if she were being watched. The dog's expression did not help, rather, it made her fearful that something was behind her. She felt something grasp her right shoulder, but when she turned her head, nothing was holding her. She still felt something gripping her shoulder, but could not see anything at all. As if on cue, everything went quiet. The dog started to bark, but Angela could not hear any barking.
         That was the last thing Angela saw before everything went pitch black…