━━ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑!
❪ dead bites! ❫

❪ warning: there are major gore scenes in this chapter, specifically about descriptions of uncanny creatures with multiple faces and descriptions of a human being pulled and ripped apart; please be careful. you have been warned ❫

⋆        𝗥𝗢𝗦𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗘 𝗗𝗜𝗗𝗡'𝗧 𝗞𝗡𝗢𝗪 where she was, nor where she was doing. The Manor was massive, with multiple rooms that weren't important. Her hair flowed behind her as she ran through different directions, the hallways all looking similar. She panicked, trying to find the Ballroom, but cursed herself for not remembering such details. She wasn't the person to use her logic but her heart and kindness. Rosalie knew it would fail her, but she wasn't planning to give up so easily. It put her aside from her other friends, but at the same time, it was a sign of weakness.

"Will! Jamie! Ivan! Guys, please, where are you!" She screamed out, crying her sorrows.

As she stopped to breathe, she could hear voices around the corner, wanting to give her feet a break. She smiled before realising they were unfamiliar voices, a sign to keep running. She feared losing her life in this vast Manor when she entered another hallway. She had never had the opportunity to have the dream life she wanted, but she wouldn't give up that easily.

"Where the hell are you guys..." Roselie whispered to herself before running, the paintings watching her as she ran into a long hallway with no end in sight. Before she could stop, the sounds of claws grinding on the walls made Rosalie jump. Her feet began to ache, and she threw her high heels away, hoping that she would have gotten an advantage, being quick on her feet.

She then recognised where she was and began to run through the hallways, hoping to get to the doors at the end. The lights started to flicker as she ran, her steps beating to the sounds of the drum, her nervous system working against her as her nerves began to pile up on Rosalie, knowing she would never reach the doors. Nevertheless, Rosalie wanted to try at least; she wouldn't give up just yet.

"Help!" Rosalie started to scream, banging on the doors of the Ballroom. Her hands became sore from the impact, but she wanted to get the moment across. She prayed that someone would hear her attempts, but she was only greeted with silence. Before pulling on the door, her ankles were suddenly grabbed, and she fell onto the ground. Her mouth started to open to scream out to her friends, but Rosalie's mouth was covered with claws.

"Shh... It's okay, my darling. You are now finally home..." The voice echoed in her head, and she wasn't sure whether it was verbal or all in her head. Her ears popped because of the sudden temperature change in the room, and she couldn't respond to it as she was now being dragged to the ground.

And then, Rosalie's eyesight was soon removed from her.

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⋆        "𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗨𝗖𝗞 just happened!" Eleanor said as she paced back and forth, trying to find a reasonable answer to the unknown question. Vanya looked at her and stopped walking before pulling her into an okay―needed hug. Eleanor couldn't stop herself from sobbing with fear into her shoulders, but Vanya didn't mind. Ivan found himself looking at the both of them, feeling sympathy towards them.

"Do you think..." Abby said, her body uncontrollably shaking with fear.

"No, Rosalie can't be dead; it's impossible," William said, hoping his words were valid, but it was a long reach for hope. Knowing that the words were a lie, Ivan sighed, considering what he had seen around the corner. He knew that those things weren't human, but he wished he was wrong for once. But, unfortunately, Ivan didn't want anything to be the truth right now.

"Then why was she banging on the doors― if that was her banging on the doors?" Samuel questioned, his face full of fear and hints of fury that they had left someone behind. Knowing that his expression told another story, Ivan looked at him and nodded in agreement. Samuel thanked him, not knowing that he would get Ivan on his side, before standing stiff, his leg starting to cause him pain.

"That might not have been her... But we can't just rule that out right away," Darling spoke quietly, unsure what to believe. There were plenty of twists and turns; she just wanted to get off this horror ride.

"So then, where the hell is she!" Eleanor yelled, her voice rising as her hands started to shake. Vanya placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. Eleanor's body shook with anger, but Vanya could sense she was breathing calmly now.

"Whatever that was... It was not human," Jamie stuttered, breathing slowly and heavily. Darling grabbed his hand and stood beside him, placing his head on his shoulder. Everyone looked at each other, bracing themselves for the worst. Samuel looked confused, his eyes darting around the place, trying to find the answers, while Claira stepped forward, crossing her arms.

"So, you think this thing is not from this world? You're trying to say that this is a paranormal entity that has entered our plane of existence?" Claira questioned Jamie, her patience slowly thin, but she didn't want to take it out on him. So she buried it deep within herself, trapping the thunderstorm in her heart. Ivan stood still before seeing that Jamie was slowly breaking down and decided to pull him away from the group to calm him down.

"Would you excuse us, please?" Ivan said as he grabbed Jamie's shoulder carefully. William nodded, glad Ivan supported him as he knew he needed it. Darling nodded as she let go of Jamie's hand and watched the pair walk away from the group.

"Just try to stay away from the doors just in case..." Darling said as she lowered her voice, hoping Ivan wouldn't yell at her as he did earlier. Instead, Ivan turned around to face Darling and nodded softly as he directed Jamie towards the chairs near the catering table.

Ivan knew that Jamie had anxiety based on his observation among his friends. He thought some were interesting while others were hard to crack, especially Vanya and Sedona. But there was something different about Jamie; he could see a bit of him in Jamie, minus the jokes and the constant nervousness. 

"Are you okay?" Ivan whispered as Jamie sat on one of the chairs, biting his fingernails. Ivan sat across from him, looking into his eyes, seeing if Jamie was there. Jamie took a while before looking back at Ivan with a stare that concerned Ivan. Ivan wasn't sure whether or not he had made the right decision to pull Jamie aside, as this was fresh on their minds.

"No! Monsters just took our friends, and now I don't know if I will make it out of his place alive!" Jamie said, panicking before looking at the ground, trying to avoid eye contact. Ivan tapped on Jamie's knee, trying to remind him that he was there for him, but pulled away at the last minute.

"We don't know that―" Ivan started to speak, but Jamie interrupted him before finishing his sentence. The sudden interruption took Ivan aback, but he waited.

"You don't know either."

"Look, Jamie. You're right. I don't know everything, yet I try to stand up to help people. You can do that as well, Jamie. You don't have to be the only one; you can stand up and become brave to help others," Ivan said, putting his hand on Jamie's shoulder. He hoped the words would settle in for Jamie, and he felt Jamie shudder, but then he nodded and exhaled, letting out the nervousness.

"Okay, I'm ready."

"And I'll be with you, bud."

━━━━━━

⋆        𝗥𝗢𝗦𝗔𝗟𝗘𝗘 𝗦𝗔𝗧 𝗜𝗡 the darkness; her heart thumping could be heard from afar. Darkness was the only thing that surrounded her, and she didn't know where she was; her eyes couldn't adjust to the grimness. She didn't like being alone, making her less calm as the minutes passed. As she reached up to fix her hair, she felt shackles against her skin, and Rosalie's fear only heightened when she couldn't move.

"Please! Please let me go!" Rosalie cried out, seeing that her voice echoed in the room. She struggled to escape the restraints, but it seemed like a curse as it got tighter each time she tried. Finally, she went to scream some more, but Rosalie stopped as she could hear someone walking towards her. The footsteps echoed, making Rosalie try to crawl away, only to be forcefully dragged back to where she was.

"Oh, but my darling... You are so perfect..." A croaking voice spoke into the silence, and Rosalie couldn't help but become quiet. She started to breathe heavily before becoming angry and screaming against the stranger.

"Who are hell are you, and what are you doing with me!"

"I am no one you need to know... Now sleep, my child―" the stranger started to speak before Rosalie interrupted him with a scream that pierced her ears. The stranger wasn't happy, as she screamed, feeling the cold touch on her cheek, begging and begging to preserve the last of her body heat. Was this it? Before she could call again, the hand covered her mouth tightly. The dried blood could be smelt as Rosalie's eyes started to blink slowly, her mind thumping to the same beat as her heart. She could feel her blood begin to run through her body slowly, the thought of dying appearing in her mind.

"I told you to sleep―" The stranger groaned as the claws around Rosalie's mouth became tighter, and she couldn't help but sob as the tears ran down her cheeks. She tried to mumble an apology, but her breathing slowed down even more as she struggled in her place. "―but instead... You have failed me."

"No, please!" Rosalie screamed as she felt her neck tearing apart from the claws. Blood started to seep through her skin, and Rosalie's reflexes made her reach up to her throat, trying to stop the bleeding. She couldn't breathe, feeling like the air around her was strangling her. The blood was slowly seeping out as it clogged up her lungs. Her eyes began to sting from the pain as it finally hit her. She breathed heavily and blinked to get her tears out of her eyes. She knew she had no time, bleeding out slowly on the ground. Rosalie tried desperately to get air into her lungs, but the blood swarmed like bees around her chest. Her throat was barely there, just hanging by a thread.

But she was still alive. Just barely.

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⋆      "𝗗𝗢 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗞 it's safe out there now?"  Darling spoke timidly, and William sighed as he shrugged his shoulders, unsure how to answer. It's been a few minutes, and everyone started to get restless, but William understood why. They wanted to see if their friend was still alive, hopefully. But deep inside, William didn't have much hope. It was simple, but simultaneously, he had seen the monsters that chased them down the hallway into the Ballroom. For they knew they could be trapped, surrounded as bait for them.

"I'm not so sure. There hasn't been any banging on the doors, and there's no noise down the hallways," Abby said before Eleanor raised her eyebrow. Vanya was confused at what Eleanor was questioning.

"Y―you went out there?"

"Yeah... Samu also came with me―" Abby started to speak, pointing to Samuel, whose skin turned pale but still nodded to the response. "―The lights were on in some parts; it seemed normal. But then we turned the corner, and then..." Abby said before pausing, a tear rolling down her cheek.

"What is it?" Jamie said he prepared for the worst but was unsure whenever he wanted to hear what happened. Ivan crossed his arms as Vanya started fiddling with her jacket. No one seemed to want to know the answer, but it could clear the air.

"Blood," Samuel said, and everyone went quiet. Everyone stood still, looking at Samuel. No one knew what to say; they had never experienced something like this. They were usually strangers in the public's eyes, not fitting in with each other. But if you looked closer, the puzzle pieces fit each other; they were all close to each other regardless of their status.

"I regret coming to this now..." Sedona spoke, filling the silence as she looked at the ground; goosebumps appeared on her arm. Initially confused, thinking it was just nerves, she looked at the others, who were also getting goosebumps.

"Is it just me, or is it getting cold here?" Jamie said as he rubbed his arms together to create warmth, but there was none.

"It is getting colder..."

━━━━━━

⋆        𝗡𝗢 𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗞𝗡𝗘𝗪 what the hell was happening, Samuel didn't want anything to do with this. He already had enough problems, and now he had to add this to the stress. He could see his breath as the room got colder. By now, everyone was covering their arms, either with their jackets or their hands, even though it was warm outside. Samuel rubbed his arms to keep his body warm, but it wasn't working much.

"Here, Samu."

"Thanks, Will," Samuel said as he grabbed the spare jacket left on the chair from William. As he wrapped himself in the warmth. It wasn't a great jacket, but it did work to keep his body heat within himself. Then, the lights started to flicker again.

"Shit... I think the lights aren't responding to the sudden temperature change so they might shut down," William said as he looked up to the ceiling, seeing the lights flickering dangerously. His friends looked at him, unsure what to believe, while Jamie stuttered as he tried to speak.

"A―are you saying that in about a few minutes... We won't have any light sources?" Jamie said as he looked to William, who struggled to find the answer, but Ivan stepped up.

"It's possible."

"God, I was hoping not to hear that answer..." Samuel muttered to himself quietly. He regretted coming here but only came to forget everything that happened back home. He didn't mean to hit him, but the memory slowly faded and was replaced with this awful moment.

"Hey, Abby―" Sedona spoke before getting stopped by Vanya.

"Shh..." Vanya hissed at her, which took Sedona by surprise.

"Excuse me? I am allowed―" Sedona started to speak before Vanya shushed her again. Sedona stepped forward before stopping as she turned around to the noise source.

"You hear that too?" Vanya said again, which made Sedona nod reluctantly, only for everyone to shake. The hissing could be heard in the background, and fingernails pressed against the wall, creating a screeching noise.

"Greetings, my guests," the sudden announcement made everyone jump, huddling together in fear. In front of them stood a lady with a cane wrapped around vines. Her eyes seemed empty, the black void staring back at them, the darkness remaining still. Her black dress flowed to the ground, dragging behind her as she took a few steps forward. To William, she seemed familiar.

"Who the hell are you!" Sedona yelled, her voice remaining strong. Abby stood by her, trying to hold her back at the risk of Sedona making a mistake that would be grave.

"I am the Black Sorceress... You were the perfect souls to entrap, from which I rose with my slumber. I have been sleeping for too long... But your children awoke me," the woman in front of them said as she started to lift her hands, and black smoke suddenly surrounded the guests.

"What is that!" Jamie screamed out, nearly tripping over William as he helped him up, keeping a hand on him to stabilise Jamie. Darling was on the other side, helping William with him.

"What is it you want with us?" Ivan asked the Black Sorceress, walking out in front of his friends. He wanted to answer what was happening, but it was risky to answer a question that could kill him.

"Before you give me orders, boy... Do you want to know what happened to your friend?" She spoke, her face forming into a creepy yet sly smile. Everyone gasped before running back into the circle that they were in before as the doors slammed open. Different people came out; most wore black, but their faces were terrifying. They weren't even human. Other people had different faces, but their faces weren't their faces at all. Most of them were sewn on, and some had terrible stitching. But there was one that was the scariest one of all. His face was many faces sewn together, and it looked like at least five faces onto one.

"Rosalie!" Darling cried, looking at who they were holding.

"Darling... Please help..." Rosalie barely whispered before suddenly jolting into an uncomfortable position as the monsters carried her again. The Black Sorceress stood there proud as if this was a favourite game for her to play.

"What the fuck did you do to her!" William yelled before catching Darling as she collapsed to the ground in tears. The Black Sorceress didn't reply, still smiling as she looked at Rosalie before pulling out a picture of Rosalie and her family. Everyone was unsure of what was happening before the Sorceress started to rip it into pieces. The monsters on the sides walked towards Rosalie, who was struggling to crawl away. The group all tried to help Rosalie, but demons guarded them. They didn't want to disobey dark magic, knowing it would curse them all. Rosalie screamed as the monsters drew out their hands that weren't human, and the claws shined in the light. Darling couldn't help but cry as the nails dug into Rosalie's chest and throat, the pieces torn apart.

They were ripping her apart.

"No! Rosalie! Please―" Ivan screamed as he was about to run, but Vanya and Eleanor held him back, seeing that the guards looked towards Ivan. Everyone had tears streaming down their cheeks, unsure of what to say.

Rosalie reached out to the group with her hand, the voice disappearing from her body. Her throat was too torn, the blood dripping onto the floor. She drew one last breath, and her eyes rolled back of her head as the monsters started to pull her arms off. She was just a girl without her arms and throat. 

It was a sickening sight, and the friends could do nothing but watch.

𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐒!
✶ welcome to the fourth chapter of escape the night and i hope that you guys have enjoyed this chapter! i hate to admit it, but our first victim is taken! i hated writing her death because she was so innocent and deserved the world. our main villain has been revealed, so what do you guys think about her? she is heavily inspired by the real series of escape the night, but with more aspects of my ideas! she really is an arrogant villain who wants nothing but to cause people's fear.

𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞𝗦 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚!