Yesterday's Winning Vote:
Option 3 - Run while screaming “The voices! The voices! Too many voices!”

You fly along the path, complaining loudly to the world that the occupancy in your head is violating its fire code. The world acknowledges this complaint largely by going about business as usual. The only person who even blinks at your passing is a police officer who is unwilling to risk his newly purchased cup of coffee in a pursuit.

Reaching the exit of the park, it becomes evident that no one, inside your skull or out, is talking to you or is even recognizing your existence. You drop to the ground, drained from running a full two hundred meters. Smiling at this, between gasps you say, “Being—crazy—is—exhausting.” It's then that you see the shadow of a scorpion crawling up your leg...with no actual scorpion visible. The shadow snaps its claws at you.

*deded*

Before it can crawl up any further, you knock the shadow away with the back of your hand. Though solid, hitting the shadow felt like punching smoke.

*dededededededededed*

Jumping up and spinning around, you see a solid wave of darkness sweeping along the ground. You squint at the wave but aren't able to pick out any individual shapes.

*dededededededededed*

The few people around you seem oblivious to the coming...whatever the scorpion-things are. Shamelessly, what to call these things is the only thought going through your mind...until the wave reaches a little girl, who dissolves soundlessly into the darkness.

*dededededededededed*

The wave continues silently through the cop and a jogger next to him, dissolving both but bypassing two children sitting in a tree. Both start waving to you when they see you stare. Their mother briefly chides them to stop before the wave hits her.

Glancing down, you see several lone scorpions drifting towards, coalescing together as they near you. You rapidly backpedal and cross the gate marking the edge of the park. The small blob of shadow glides at you—and stops at the gate. Swirling angrily, it lifts up and jerks towards you but is again halted by something ephemeral at the park's edge.

*dededededEDEDEDEDED*

A beautiful woman tries to step past you into the park, but you instinctively swing an arm up, blocking her path.

“You don't want to go in there, ma'am,” you tell her, not dropping your arm.

“The hell I don't! And, ma'am? I'm twenty-one years old, so—you're bleeding...” She looks intently at a bloody patch over your sternum. Peeling away a piece of torn shirt, she looks up at you and asks, “Does this go all the way through your sternum? What did this to you?”

*DEDEDEDEDededededed*

Watching the shadows retreat towards the center of the park, you absently answer, “An umbrella.” The two children in the tree continue playing as if nothing happened.

“Ok...look, there's a free clinic around the corner. Why don't you let me take you over there?” She pulls on your arm, trying to drag you down the sidewalk.