Task Description:
Tributes are released and made to survive their first night in the carnival, little do they know they will be forced to face their greatest fear....

The ropes burned my flesh, searing the skin and making it feel as if I was roasting my wrists over an open flame. Common sense told me to give it up, the ropes weren’t budging and I was only hurting myself more in the vain attempt in escaping them, however instinct screamed at me to try, that it was possible if only I pulled a little harder. This, I realized, must be that deep seated, overpowering desire to live to see another dawn that kept us from running into the street and saying, “Fuck this. Life sucks.” The unclenching will to live is what keeps us humans bound in our misery, leaving us to slave on yet another day.

Looking back in retrospect I realize I should have killed myself. I should have killed myself the second this feudal game was declared for I never stood a chance, none of us did.

“You guys didn’t do that great.” The statuesque man said, sneering at the long line of innocents that sat tied up beside me. “It collectively took us twelve minutes to find all thirty of you. I think it’s time for a new game.” He raises his eyebrows slyly and looks toward  the girl who had manned the roller coaster.

She prowled up and down the line of us like a tigress trying to decide which of us she would clamp between her razor teeth. “You all need a place to rest, yes? Go on then,” She asked finally, snapping her fingers as the man steps forward to untie us. “You’re all going to sleep inside of an attraction. Other than the funhouse of course.” Something tickled in the back of my mind as I glanced at the funhouse, whose roof was just visible in the distance. I wondered why they didn’t want us to go in there….

The man with the chestnut eyes leaned forward to untie me, flashing a unnerving smile in my direction. I felt my heart skip a beat as I clamped my teeth shut, expecting him to pull out a pistol and shoot me even though I knew he was just going to untie me. “Sleep well, my friends.” He cooed, his eyes darting to the few people who he had already untied who were vanishing rapidly into the darkness. “Your worst nightmares will be with you tonight.”

He reached forward and grabbed my restrained wrists, his hands were freezing, enough to send chills through my body. They were only a mirror of what was truly frozen though; his heart, his mind, his soul, and everything that made him human.

The man yanked the rope free with moderate else and steadily moved on to Awren, who had been sitting beside me. I sit there a second, unsure of what I should do. I mean this all felt  so…. numb, confusing, terrifying. Why were these people doing this? I mean what sicko locked a bunch of people in an amusement park and played with them like we were no more than toys? I brought my wrist’s around to stare at the red torn skin. I stood up shakily, offering my hand to Cleopatra who had just been untied. A forced smile spread itself across her  freckled face.  “Well this is certainly turning out to be an interesting experience.” She looked toward the man who struggled with Maxine’s bonds. “So… Is this some type of twisted reality show or something?” She demanded placing a hand on her hip.

He let out a cruel laugh, one that seemed to twist through the silence like snake would around it’s prey, sending shivers riveting up my spine. He tugged one last time on the bonds that restrained Maxine and they fell to the ground. She rubbed her wrists for half a second, then with the strength and suddenness of a hawk swooping downwards to its prey; Maxine swung around and punched the side of his head. My eyes widened in surprise as the man crumpled to the ground with a gasp. Maxine leapt forward and clasped her hands around his neck, she lifted his neck up and brought it back, smacking to the dirt. “Tell me what the hell you people want.” She screeched, her emerald eyes flashing with caged fury.

I heard a click, the quick metallic click of a pistol being cocked. Maxine sat up straight, looking like a deer in headlights, as she stared in horror at the source of the noise. I felt my heart jump into my neck as I slowly turned to see the girl aiming the gun at Maxine’s head, a tight smile played out on her face, one of utter bliss. “Silly girl! We want to see you die!” She cackled closing one eye as she took aim.  Time seemed to slow as my world crumbled around me, any small hope that I might get out of this alive, that this might be some type of sick joke, dissolved into mist. This was real, very real, and a girl was about to die.

I ran forward, every shred of sanity that was in my body screamed at me to save myself. My mind just didn’t work like that though, perhaps I had read too many books about heroes and it had woven itself into me somehow- but I prefer to think that wherever there is evil, there will always be good to rise up against it.

I slammed into the girl as the sharp crack went off, a flurry of bullets flew from the nozzle of the gun. The girl’s eyes blazed with a wild fire, as her brain realized what had happened and she let out an enraged shriek. I looked over toward Maxine, my heart pounding, half expecting her to be dead on the ground. She was jumping to her feet unharmed, glancing in the direction of whoever had been next to her.

Burning vomit curled itself into my throat as I saw what I had caused by shoving the girl to the side, the bullets had still killed. They had simply missed their intended target. The russian girl, whose features had resembled a intricate porcelain doll, was now shattered like one who had been dropped. All I could do was stare at the caved in face, punctured and bleeding with multiple bullet holes. The back of her skull had been blown open completely, her brain lay in small bloody heaps mixed with the blood that had sprayed from the back of her head, painting the ground behind her with a deep scarlet.

God. What had I done?

The girl with the dark hair shoved me to ground with a frustrated growl, and began to get up. Arwen kicked the girl in the face and pried the gun from her hand. The girl shouted profanities as Arwen kicked her again. She looked around, her eyes wild with panic. “The gate.” She gasped, “If we can just get to the gate we can shoot the lock.” She took off sprinting,  the darkness engulfing her, Maxine was hot on her heels.

I felt Cleopatra yank me to my feet.  “Morgan! Morgan snap out of it!” She shrieked as the man with the chestnut eyes pushed himself to his feet, looking at us with a fierceness that made my blood run cold.

I forced myself to turn and run, to run with every fiber of my being, to push off the ground with each stride, I heard heavy footfalls behind us. I forced myself to run faster, trying to keep up with Cleopatra’s long strides, adrenaline infecting my veins, giving me the strength to push through the burn of my legs and the shortness of my breath.

Running footsteps through the night,

The words churned in my mind, sending a small wave on comfort through my body. I grasped onto this small serenity and continued my chant with every footfall.

Footsteps fill my heart with fright,

Darkness shields the enemy from sight,

Skeletons surround me, drained of life,

I will reach the beacon of light,

And I shall live to fight another fight,

I glanced out of the corner of my eye, searching for Cleopatra. My heart dropped and I slowed to a stop, my heart thudding heavily in my chest. My eyes scanned the broken landscape searching for her, but her lanky figure was nowhere in sight. I couldn’t even hear the footsteps of my pursuers anymore… everything was dead silent. In the distance I could see the towering gates, though Arwen and Maxine’s figures were nowhere in sight.

I shook my head, crossing my arms over my chest. This wasn’t right, where was everybody? I shivered, the temperature has seemed to drop ten degrees. I spun around taking in the looming booths and rides that seemed to hang threateningly above me. I suddenly felt small and insignificant. I shrunk backwards into the shadows, an ominous feeling clouding itself around my heart, making me shiver. Something bad was going to happen, something  very bad.

I took another few steps back- then I hit something. Something alive.

All the anxiety and fear that had welled up inside my chest explode, electrifying every nerve in my body. A scream ripped from my throat as a freezing hand clamped itself over my mouth shut, jerking me backwards as something cracked over my head. Lights exploded before my eyes, pain piercing my skull as the hand let go and I fell to the ground, my world spinning. The last thought that occured to me before I was pulled into the bottomless abyss of unconsciousness was a lyric. The final lyric to my poem.

Or perhaps I will die tonight…..

~

The first sensation I was aware of was noise. A rhythmic tapping of a foot echoed hauntingly through the room I was in. It smelled of mildew and decay like an old garage or an elderly person’s home. A deep throbbing echoed through my head.  I tried to move my arm upwards to rub my scalp, but I found my wrist was strapped to something.

I opened my eyes and shocks of pain stabbed my head. It was only then that I realized I was alive. I closed them again letting out a groan, what the hell had happened?

I heard the squeal of a chair sliding backward and the clicking of women’s heels advancing toward me. A small hand caressed my back, I could feel a presence standing over me. “Good to see you’re awake.” A woman’s voice cooed, “We’ve got another game to play.” A high, malicious laugh filled my ears and I remembered. I remembered everything.

I forced my eyes open, shuddering from the pain that pierced my head. I was lying on my back on a hard, plastic table, my wrists and ankles were tied down to each corner so I couldn’t move. A light hung above my head, shining downwards like a spotlight. The light reached only so far before it was overtaken by darkness, concealing the rest of the room from sight. The only thing that was visible besides me was a cement floor and a sinister figure that was all too familiar. “Do you ever consider Monopoly? I think it’s just a tad funner than torturing people.” I moaned, trying to ignore the agony from whatever had hit my head.

The girl with the black pigtails laughed, “Aren’t you just the sarcastic little twerp.” She spat sarcastically. Her voice was strained and venomous like she had all she could do to keep from screaming at me. “I don’t appreciate it when people push me.”

My heart flipped when I thought of Maxine, Cleopatra and Arwen…. If I was here… where were they? An image of the girl I had shot’s body flashed through my mind and I flinched. What if I was the only one left…? God! I couldn’t imagine life without Arwen, she had been my friend since I was young. She couldn’t be dead. “Where’s Arwen? And Cleopatra and Maxine?” I demanded, trying to keep my voice from cracking.

The girl’s fingers danced along my spine, and she let out a low hum of amusement. I realized that I wasn’t wearing my jacket. For whatever reason that only seemed to add to the haunting sensation that tickled my sanity.  “I think you need to be more concerned about where you are. You’re strapped to a table next to a sadist who knows your greatest fear…” She laughed wickedly, amusement twinkled in her eyes as she gazed down at me.

I felt a tremor of fear ripple through me as I looked upwards into her empty eyes… I was prompted to question if some people were born without a soul. “I can’t say I’m afraid of one thing in particular… And even if I was, how would you know?” I demanded trying to push aside the one case scenario in which I had broken down crying because I was so scared. It was stupid, and how could she know what it was? It was so bizarre it doesn’t even have an official name.

A laugh was the only response I got. A long, chilling sardonic laugh. She positioned her two hands on the small of my back.  “Take a deep breath in, Morgan, the breathe out.”

I froze, my eyes widening. She knew. How did she know? “Don’t you dare crack my back!” I yelled, tugging fervently at the bonds that secured my wrists and ankles, the coarse rope dug into my already raw skin. The girl’s hands came crashing down onto my back, I felt a jolt as a loud crack rupture my  body, I flinched. I took a few deep breaths trying to keep my heart rate down, it pounded heavily, feeling as if it were trying to break out of my rib cage and escape this horror.

Her hands moved up my back slowly, massaging the skin as she went. Her fingertips felt static as she made her way up my vertebrae. I felt myself begin to shake with anxiety, the fear of being absolutely helpless setting in. There was no one to save me. I was alone. Another crack shook my body, this time shooting pains accompanying it. “Stop it! Please!” I yelled, silently praying there was no nerve damage.

God, one wrong move and she would paralyze me! My stomach was wound into knots, shivers ran through my body like ice. Another crack hammered my body as I screamed out, all my horror, frustration and pain mutating into one long inhuman scream. I had to calm down. I had to or I was going to end up crippled or dead.

The chiropractor I had gone too all those years ago had told me to keep my muscles relaxed, or serious damage could occur- of course I had failed. I had failed at the hands of a moderately sane person, how the hell could I do it now at the hands of a maniac? I shuddered, trying to focus on my pulsating heart as the girl’s freezing hands moved to my neck. I closed my eyes and tried to relax as she pulled my head from side to side kneading my skin.

If she cracked my neck wrong I was going to die.

I squeezed my eyes shut even tighter preparing myself for the worst- then I remembered something, something so crucial it probably saved me in that moment. I remembered that words soothed me, they granted me this sweet, beautiful serenity that twisted outwards from my soul and washed everything else away.

I move through life like swimming in the sea,

The words felt like silk as they twisted into a poem with a familiar, soothing ease.

Many a storm has battered me,

My neck jerked to the side suddenly, it’s crack louder than than it’s predecessors. I took a deep breath and continued writing my story, tapping out a rhythm with my fingers.

Waves of destruction I have managed to outrun,

She cracked my neck to the other side roughly, I felt my stomach flip, I had nothing to fear but fear itself in this instant. I was perfectly safe as long as I didn’t tense up.

It’s as if I was created to overcome,

How I went to sleep in Heaven but woke up in Hell

I was stronger than my fear. I took a deep breath as she cracked my neck one endmost time before she let go suddenly. My chin hit the gelid table, I let out a ragged breath of solace.

Through all my trials I still remain.

A long vexed sigh entwined itself into my ears, sending a tremor down my spine. I looked up toward the girl who loomed above me, her pale lips were pressed tightly together as she stared down at me. “You’re not afraid anymore.” She frowned, clearly disappointed.

I didn’t say anything. I was still scared…. I had simply forced my fear into the uttermost depths of my heart, I had forced it into hibernation like it was a massive hairy beast that seethed with power, power that had potential to destroy me if I allowed it too. It still lived within me, dormant, awaiting the right trigger to free it. For now though, a numb, buzzing sensation was the only thing I was aware of.

“Well then… I guess you win.” She said, I could see the wheels in her brain turning behind her devilish brown eyes. “And the winner must get his reward….” I watched in sudden dread as her hand drifted slowly over to her pocket. Her long fingers closed around something and and I watched as she slowly withdrew a large knife, a smile playing over her lips. “...death.”

My blood ran cold as she clasped the blade in both hands and raised it above her head, preparing to stab it into my back. Adrenaline surged through my body as the blade sped downwards toward my weak flesh. I tugged desperately on my bonds, leaning to the right- the flimsy table tipped with my body. The knife missed it’s intended target, searing into my wrist instead. Agony riveted up my arm as I hit the floor sideways. My arm came free, I stared at it unbelieving for a second before pushing aside the throbbing of my hand and yanking at the ropes that bound my other arm. ‘The knife must have not only cut my wrist, but my bonds as well.’ I thought as they fell fell free. I looked up to see my captor sprinting toward me still holding the blade, only now it had a thin coating of roux ooze. I shoved her backward as soon as she was close enough with my now free arms. She leaped forward with the agility of a cat  as I yanked my left foot free. An animal-like screech left her mouth as she swung the blade at my neck, I ducked, pulling my right foot free as the razor sharp blade took a few hairs off my head. I scrambled backward, the grimy concrete digging into my palms.

She punched at me with the knife, it embedded itself into my shoulder. I cried out at the blossom of pain my my shoulder, I kicked her backward with all the strength I could manage. She flew backward out of the borderline of light cast by the lone light. I scrambled to my feet, not daring to look at the wound in my shoulder. I forced myself to sprint into the pitch black that surrounded that.

Miraculously I ran straight into the door, I fell backward from the momentum. Agony coursed through my body like a river as the crash from the collision echoed through the old room. A maniacal laugh came from somewhere behind me making my heart race faster than I knew it was capable of. I forced myself to my feet, ignoring the light headedness that made me sway as I jumped to my feet.

“I’ve got you now….” The girl cackled in the darkness somewhere behind me, my hands shook as I felt for the doorknob.  I tensed,  trying not to imagine her jumping onto my back from nowhere and sinking her nails into my back. My hand found the knob and I twisted it, stumbling outward into the cloudy night. I didn’t dare look behind me as I sprinted as fast as I could, the chilly night biting into my bare arms and stinging my lungs. I launched myself forward with every stride, mentally spurring myself to go faster. I streaked through the blurred landscape, terrified of what was more than likely behind me. I didn’t stop until my feet flew out from under me and I hit the freezing ground hard. I let out a moan as I pushed myself to my elbows, my stomach heaving from the blinding pain that blurred my vision.

I brought my wrist that had been stabbed around to just in front of my eyes and gagged as I saw the twisted flesh that surrounded a giant slit sat in the center of my wrist from where the knife had torn it open. Blood cascaded from the wound and ran down my arm. That was not good. I glanced at my shoulder, it was bleeding, but not nearly as badly as my wrist. I shoved myself to my feet, trying to determine my next course of action. I wanted to hide, conceal myself from these maniacs, but I also wanted to find my friends… even though they were most likely dead. I swallowed hard, forcing the large hunk of spit down my throat.

Suddenly something streaked out of a booth and barreled into me, almost knocking me over, I cried out, one second I had been minding my own business- the next a boy with wild ,stormy grey eyes was in my face screaming. His wet hands grasped my biceps as he shoved himself closer to my face. “I failed! I failed! Help me! Help me, please!” He cried out, desperately, tears streaming down his face. He shook me, his entire body trembling. Blood tricked out of the corner of his mouth. “Help me!” He screamed again, hunks of bloody spit hitting my face.

I nodded my head slowly glancing downward, vomit coiled up my throat. His entire stomach was slit open, entrails hung from the monstrous gash and trailed behind him, the largest entwinement of intestines hung around his knees, like bloody entangled snakes, becoming more untangled with every step he took. Other bloody mounds lay in heaps behind him, leaving a trail. Blood rained from his stomach, pooling at out feet. A bubble of bloody spit burst from his mouth as he screamed again, the blood painted his chin scarlet as it dripped downward mixing with the puddle of death at his feet  already surrounding us.

“Help me!” He screamed clawed at my shirt as he sunk to his knees, his right one landing in the slimy mass of entrails that hung from his stomach. He shrieked in agony, closing his eyes as the tears came quicker now, his salty tears mixing with his blood as the entrails squished under his weight, one bursting from the pressure and leaking a brown smelly liquid. I watched as he fell to his side shaking in his own pool of blood. “Please help me.” He whimpered, helplessly.

Trembling myself, now I knelt down next to him trying to rack my brain for something I could do, anything to save this poor boy. Rashly, I grabbed his bloody intestines. My fingers dug into the squishy mass. They were still warm, they throbbed in my hands like a living creature as the muscles constricted. Burning liquid poured from my mouth as I gagged repetitively. The mass of internal organs fell from my hands and onto the ground beside him. The boy screeched again, his screams ricocheting off my eardrums like fingernails on a black board. I stared at his blotchy red face, twisted into a knot it was only then that I fully grasped that there was nothing I could do.

He was going to die.

I swallowed hard and did the only thing I could do, the singular thing I could offer was comfort. I took his bloody hand in mine and I held it, unsure of if he was even aware of my presence. After a few minutes a final gurgle of hot blood dripped from his mouth and his eyes glazed over. I stared at the body, unable to fully grasp all of the horrors that I had seen tonight, they swirled around my head like a tornado, trying to fully penetrate my crowded head but unable to fit within.

I shuddered, letting his hand fall into the moist soil that had absorbed his blood, I reached over to close the boy’s eyes one final time.

I stood up, swaying with the strong breeze that seemed desperate to blow me off my feet. I walked over to the nearest concession stand and leaned against it trying to collect myself. The faces of the russian girl and the boy with the stormy grey eyes engulfed my thought’s. Their bodies in death were the only thing I could see whenever I closed my eyes.

I stood there until first hints of dawn started to color the sky, the sun acting like a prism and painting the sky brilliant shades of yellow and purple. I stared at it wondering why the sky dare to be so beautiful when I would probably die today. It was like a flamboyant flamenco dancer showing up to a grieving family funeral.

A hand grasped my shoulder, I didn’t flinch. I don’t know why I didn’t flip out, perhaps I had simply seen too much in one night and my brain couldn’t handle another terror. “Morgan! Morgan is that you?” A familiar voice asked, sending a wave of warmth through my body.

I turned to see Arwen looking at me. She looked terrible, huge bags hung under her eyes and her light brown hair was in disarray. My gaze floated over her shoulder to see Cleopatra and Maxine looking just as bad, if not worse. I closed my eyes and hugged Arwen, it felt so good to see her alive. I let go after a second and stood back, that numb feeling that had engulfed me lifting a little.

We all stood there looking at each other, each of us had undoubtedly walked through our own hell last night, but we were still alive. We were strong, it wouldn’t be long until law enforcement showed us to save us, I determined. I looked each one of my friends in the eye, “Its going to be okay, we’ll make it.” I said, a little hope rising in my chest like the dawn that surrounded me.

Looking back I can’t believe I actually believed that. We were in a war with a maniacs who took no prisoners. It was like I said earlier, we are all dead.