━━ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄!
❪ all up in smokes ❫

⋆        𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗜𝗥𝗔 𝗗𝗜𝗗𝗡'𝗧 𝗞𝗡𝗢𝗪 how to react, her breath becoming shallow. The lifeless body lay before her. The blood slowly drained from Roselie's body, staining the dark oak floor red. Claira's cheeks were stained with tears as she held Darling's hand to keep her stable. She may seem heartless, but she wasn't cruel.

"How could you do that to her? She didn't do anything to you, She―" Vanya yelled, her voice cracking at the last word in fury, but it was also out of desperation. Eleanor told Ivan to help her hold Vanya back, and he nodded, grabbing her arm softly as he didn't want her to get hurt. Claira felt terrible and confronted her to make sure that she was okay. She knew that Vanya didn't share the same mutual feelings, but they were all on the same page in this case.

They were all afraid of the same thing.

"Oh, my dear, she did. She knew too much about the Manor that you are standing in..." The Black Sorceress said as black smoke entered the room, creating an ominous space and making everyone shiver. Everyone's breath could be seen in front of their faces, the smoke rising amongst them all.

"What do you mean? What do you know?" William asked, his curiosity getting the best of him. Claira knew it was a dumb decision to confront the sorceress like that, especially knowing what she could do. Unimaginable things, things that could harm each one of her friends.

"Your father was a bad man. He didn't know what respect was. So he decided that this land, which didn't belong to him, was the best place to plant the grand Manor. But this land is full of angry souls that wanted― no, needed revenge. And still, you undelightful, ungrateful fools thought having a party and awakening everyone here was safe..."

"What the fuck are you even talking about? We weren't even the ones who wanted this part in the first place," Ivan said, looking confused for the first time.

"Please speak English for those who don't understand what the hell you are saying," Sedona said, crossing her arms and standing beside her friends. She didn't want to be alone in this fight, her heart beating as quickly as she didn't expect it.

"The Manor is built on a land full of curses and death... And they are returning to haunt the ones who least expect it," The Black Sorceress said as thunder could be heard outside. William and his friends started to gather in their small circle, not knowing what was happening to them. Before they could do anything, the thunder crackled once again. The Black Sorceress was gone, along with her strange monsters. All they left behind was the lifeless body of Rosalie, not knowing what to do.

"Well, so much for a 'party'. If my father wanted to let me know that he disliked my friends by disliking them, a conversation would have been pleasant. Instead, I have to watch my friends die. Thanks, Reginald, you're a perfect father," William said as he spat before covering his face with his hands.

"We need to cover her body," Samuel said as he broke the silence, looking at the others with sad looks. Jamie didn't know what to do as he held Darling in his arms, hoping that this was all just a joke. Ivan bent down, placing a hand on Jamie's shoulder but avoiding Rosalie's eyes, not liking the deathless look.

"Here, use the curtains..." William said as he gave Samuel the curtains from the Ballroom's windows that he tugged on. Samuel thanked him quietly, grabbing it as he got onto his knees, wincing as he got on his bad knee and putting the curtain over her body. Claira put her hand on Samuel's shoulder as he stayed near her body. Claira felt terrible, knowing that Samuel went through a lot in his younger years, which added a lot of stress to his shoulders.

"Does anyone want to say some words? It would be good to give all of us some ease." Darling asked the group, wiping her tears away with her free hand while the other was around Jamie's hip. Jamie didn't respond, trying to keep himself stable, but his eyes were full of tears.

"She was our friend... But we left her behind, which was the worst thing I could have ever let happen. Because of this, it's most likely that..." Willaim said as he paused and looked at the ground, avoiding everyone's eyes. Ivan stepped forward slowly, which caught William looking up and glancing at his eyes. Ivan tilted his head, his face holding a disconcerted expression.

"Why did you pause?" Abby questioned, sensing what Ivan was going to say beforehand. William gave a sad chuckle, suddenly overwhelmed by nervousness, and inhaled, letting his chest take all the impact.

"Dude... Why did you pause?" Jamie said, his breath shuddering, wanting an answer from William. Instead, William looked at him regretfully, knowing that the truth would hurt him more than it did the others.

"Not all of us will make it out of here alive."

━━━━━━

⋆        𝗔 𝗙𝗘𝗪 𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗨𝗧𝗘𝗦 passed, and everyone started wearying the sudden silence. The only thing on their mind was the information that William revealed. Yet, they weren't focused on that but on the fact that nothing had harmed them in a while. Everyone's heart was beating simultaneously to the same cursed music.

Nothing could harm them, or at least what Sedona hoped. However, she had this feeling inside her, and parts of her thought this was a bad idea, making the group like sitting ducks. It was a bad idea to stay in one place, where someone or something was, to kill them, just like they did with Rosalie. She sat in the far corner, hoping that no one would talk to her, but at that moment, she wished that someone would confront her, help her, or at least sit with her.

Everyone decided to give each other space, all becoming separated. They were all trying to think of what to do or how to get out of this hellhole. But Sedona didn't want to split up, worried someone would be retaken. It was already too much━witnessing someone's death, but having to see it again was already too much for her.

"Are you okay?" A voice spoke, and Sedona flinched, jumping slightly and looking up to see who the voice belonged to. Abby, who Sedona felt the most connected to, didn't want to admit it as she was supposed to be the brave one with the walls built up strong. He wasn't hoping to see those walls tumble right before her feet. But Sedona knew that those walls were meant to be broken down.

"Oh, Abby, I didn't know you were here..." Sedona said softly, looking towards Abby, who gave a small smile as she nodded towards the empty spot next to Sedona. Sedona tilted her head, accepting the invitation.

"I didn't mean to scare you, especially under these circumstances... I thought you might want some company during these drastic times..." Abby said as she slid down the wall. Sedona smiled softly without realising it, letting her emotions out, her walls crumbling down.

"I should never have come here," Abby said, resting her head against the cold wall. Sedona scoffed and nodded slightly, agreeing with Abby.

"I thought this was a fun thing, to let me finally get loose for once in a while, but now I am starting to regret everything, especially leaving my brother alone back home," Sedona said as she looked over to her friends, who were wandering around. Some were sitting, trying to come to their senses, while others devised a plan to stay alive.

"At least we are together and still breathing," Abby said as she smiled and looked at Sedona.

"I'm fucking petrified."

"Huh?" Abby questioned as she became concerned.

"I'm scared of what this mystic shit is, I'm scared of letting people in, I'm scared of losing brother, hell, I'm scared of every goddamn thing that is happening in this house―" Sedona started to speak, her eyes welling with tears as she began to cry. Abby felt like she couldn't do anything but listen.  ―You don't know what it's like to have this massive wall, and you hide behind it like a coward, waiting for everyone to leave you, for them to realise what an asshole you are. I try to be nice, but I just can't," Sedona said, her voice cracking at some moments. Abby sniffed, becoming emotional as she held her hand, comforting her.

"Hey, don't say that. You are one of the sweetest people I have ever met, even if you think that your walls are up and strong. You don't take no for an answer, which I admire about you, and you know what? You are sharing these emotions with me; that's you breaking them down and letting people in. I know that's hard for you, but I am so proud of you," Abby said, smiling at her words, and looked at Sedona.

"You think I'm sweet?"

"Yeah, one of the sweetest."

"You're probably the only person who ever said that to me," Sedona said before crying.

"Come here," Abby said, directing Sedona to lean in. Abby wrapped her arms around Sedona, who softly cried into her shoulders. Surprisingly, it worked when Abby shushed quietly as she kissed Sedona's forehead to calm her down. Sedona slowly smiled as she calmed down, her breathing coming to an average pace.

"Thank you, Abby. You're not as dumb as everyone says, and I assure you it's only for fun, not in a mean way. You have a way with words," Sedona said as she chuckled softly, feeling a light tap on her shoulder from Abby.

"I am the Journalist, after all," Abby said as she laughed softly and rested her head on Sedona's head, still holding her hand from previously. It was a comforting feeling and a reminder to Sedona that she wasn't alone in this and would never be alone. At this point, Sedona knew that she wasn't alone in this fight, and she was a little glad that her walls were slowly breaking down by the one girl she trusted the most. She is one with a heart of gold that no thief would ever think of stealing from her. Yet, here was Sedona, the dragon willing to protect it with all her might.

━━━━━━

⋆        𝗔 𝗦𝗠𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗚𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗣 was gathering between four friends to hatch a plan for everyone's survival. Eleanor looked over her shoulder to glimpse Vanya, sitting alone with her knees tucked into her chest. Ivan couldn't take his eyes off Jamie and Darling, knowing that those two wholesome people in the group would be at risk of losing their kindness in this manor. Claira was more focused on thinking than becoming emotional, while William glanced slightly at Samuel, who was blankly staring at the windows.

"What should we do?" Eleanor said, crossing her arms and facing the three others. Eleanor's idea was to separate so the others could regain their senses and gather their thoughts. William didn't like the idea of separating, but he understood they needed it, as they were stressed out and afraid of the situation.

He didn't blame them; he was afraid as well.

"We shouldn't split; we don't want the same thing that happened to Rosalie to happen to one of us," Ivan said, looking at the three of them, and was surprised to see that Samuel was walking towards to join the conversation, letting his courage control him for once.

"Have you guys noticed when those monsters were ripping Rosalie apart? That witch was smiling, which makes sense━ it's something she's enjoying━ but was also looking at that wall over there?" Claira said, pointing to the small wall near the stage. At this point, Vanya joined the conversation, putting on her brave face, yet she was still shaking from the sudden events.

"I don't know, but it can be something that could help us," Claira spoke as she tilted her head, walking towards William slowly, not wanting to rush into things. She wasn't sure whether or not she truly was hallucinating and acting on rash decisions rather than being intelligent.

"Or it could be something that could harm us," Ivan said harshly before looking over at Claria, prying to see why Claira would point it out now rather than before. He walked towards William, getting there before Claira with Samuel.

"Hey... Look at the stage's edges near the wall. That painting looks like it was moved," Samuel said as he pointed towards the area where the painting seemed to be tilted at an angle. Seeing that it wasn't straight, William became interested and decided to put on a brave face and walk towards it to investigate more closely. At first, Samuel's face revealed shock, not realising that William trusted his guts, and he nodded confidently.

"Here, Ivan, help me move it," William said as he pointed to one side of the painting, and Ivan nodded, sensing the same suspiciousness; something was behind it. He quickly ran over to help him, grabbing the golden frames. As the pair lifted it off the wall, Ivan spotted a strange opening: a piece of aged paper and a box.

"What is that?" Claira said, looking curious as the small group gathered around Ivan. Sedona and Abby came away from the wall to join them, and Vanya stopped being hasty and joined the circle.

"Ah, let's see, uh, it's paper," Samuel said, his tongue full of venom, raising his eyebrow. Claira tightened her grip and gritted her teeth as she glared at Samuel.

"Yeah, no shit, Sherlock," Claira spoke before scowling, crossing her arms. Samuel gestured his arms up, becoming fed up with the tension between the two. It seemed that it caught the eyes of the others, who were trying to see what was happening. William stepped forward, thinking it was best to break it up, but Ivan held his shoulder back. It wasn't best to get involved with it, especially if it had something to do with their past. New York was a time for Samuel and Claira, which they wished to forget.

"Someone hold the box while I read this," Ivan said, breaking the moment between Samuel and Claira before giving the box to William, whom he trusted enough not to drop it. At this point, everyone was gathered in a circle to see what was happening.

"For decades, the mystical powers of this have haunted many men in purgatory. You are the latest finds, trapped in purgatory, cursed by the Black Sorceress, and she would like to keep you here forever. But there might be a way out. The cosmic sphere within the vault can reshape space and time. It will also have the power to shut down the Black Sorceress' staff. But the vault can only be open with the eight jewelled keys, which are hidden throughout the mysteries of this Manor," Ivan started to speak, everyone becoming intrigued by the words.

"Is there a way to get these keys?" William questioned, and Ivan quickly searched the paper, turning the form around to see instructions. Ivan sighed, skim―reading the lines, only to pause momentarily. Ivan looked at the group, holding the exact look that William had before.

"Uh, yeah, there is. But to retrieve them, you must unravel the evil mysteries of the manor. Be swift, for the Black Sorceress will return with something frightening that will end in only death. Be warned that these are lost souls on this estate, wanting to gain your lives for the price of death." Ivan spoke as he finished reading the paper, his hands beside him. William's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, unsure of what would happen next.

"Wait, question, yes, so you're saying that no matter what, the price is always death?" Abby questioned, raising her hand to get the attention of the others. Samuel inhaled, not wanting to believe that it to be the truth.

"So... William was right?" As she realised what Ivan was reading would be the truth nonetheless, Vanya said. Even if she chose to ignore it, the price would be death. Death would be the punishment if they were elected to ignore the rules. It seemed that the Grim Reaper would enjoy the taste of her friends' blood with every last drop on his lips.

As Ivan was about to say something, a flash of smoke flooded the ballroom, and the luminosity became haunting, a curse to be reckoned with. Everyone began to move into their newfound positions, protecting one another. Everyone looked around to see what was happening, their eyes darting everywhere. Suddenly, someone appeared out of the smoke, but it was an unfamiliar face.

"Good evening; my name is Victoria."

𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐒!
✶ welcome to the fifth chapter of escape the night and i hoped that you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as i did!   am finally back for writing this gang, and i really miss writing them, as well as writing the plot twists! since i pre―writtened the chapters, i am hoping to publish a bit more often, but all i need to do, is just edit the chapters, and then post them! o bear with me if it becomes a while, as it's a lot to edit! onetheless, this is the last of act one, and soon, act two will be into action!

𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞𝗦 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚!