Author's Note: Hey, guys! Yes, your eyes are not fooling you; two updates in one day! I wanted to put this one out because I wanted a quick follow up from the last part and to let you know some stuff about the last chapter I didn't clear up and a quick warning. Here goes:

1. From the last chapter, Lia mentioned Gear and Lana breaking up. They didn't actually break up, Gear just seduced Lia by saying this off-screen.

2. Also from the last chapter, it was mentioned you had to lock the Steampunk Twins up in jail. The other group did this off-screen as well.

3. This is the warning: This death could make you cry. Just saying, no spoilers. But, enough talk, let's get on with the chapter!

4. An ACTUAL trigger warning: This will contain a light remark about suicide. Just somebody says a line about it and that's it. I'm just warning you in case you are triggered by mentions of it.

And that's about it! And now, onto the chapter!

Your Author, Marbella. <3

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"We look at the center of the room and see..."

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Valentina's POV:

We look and see this strange... contraption in the middle of the room. It's some sort of glass chamber with a mechanism connected to it. And it's full of some sort of.... smoke?

Lia: 'This thing looks extremely creepy, and it basically looks like something out of a horror movie or a science lab. It's really scaring me.'

"I think this is the Toxic Chambers." Lia cautioned, standing in front of everybody, hoping we wouldn't die.

"Bitch, move! I'm 30. I can protect myself!" Zach shouted, pushing himself away from me.

"She was just trying to look out for us, no need to come for her." Lana intervened, hoping there wouldn't be another fight.

Vanessa found a note on the floor in front of the chamber and read it aloud to us. It read:

'Seal the Power Crystal in the power core above the chamber to open it.'

"Yeah, I won't be able to reach that." I fretted, trying to figure how the hell we could get up there.

"I'm the tallest." Gear interjected, raising his hand.

He grabbed the crystal, opened the panel, put the crystal in, and closed it before stepping down.

The chamber hadn't opened yet.

"Isn't it supposed to open by itself?" Vanessa queried, confusion apparent on her face.

"I think we need to open it." Zach disclosed.

He approached it, opened it, and all the smoke billowed out. It smelt like a blown-out candle and whenever I smell that, I cough and end up gagging.

That ended up happening.

"Val, are you alright?" Oli asked, rushing over to help me.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I confided, Oli immediately looking relieved. "It just smelt like that smoke right after you blow out a candle and it makes me gag."

After all the smoke cleared out, we found a note in the chamber. Lia approached it and read the note aloud.

It read:

'You have opened the Toxic Chambers, and regret will surely follow. To cleanse the Inventor's Goggles, they must first be placed in the chamber beneath her feet.'

Lia stopped reading as Lana put the goggles into a compartment beneath the chamber and kicked it shut.

Lia then continued to read the note.

'Then, one of you must be chosen by vote to give up their life and enter the chambers to be gassed. Once the door has been sealed and they have stopped banging on the glass, the goggles will be cleansed. Choose wisely; their death will weigh on your conscience for the rest of the night.'

"Wait, so one of us is gonna have to commit suicide?!" Zach trembled, backing away slowly.

"No, we just have to vote for somebody to go into that thing; right here, right now." I corrected.

I was terrified and was on the verge of having either a full-blown panic attack or a breakdown.

"Yeah, I'm stepping down; don't wanna get murdered." Lia keened, raising her arms.

"Would anybody think this is a plead-your-case moment?" Vanessa suggested, all of us huddling around.

Vanessa: 'There's no challenge, no chance to fight; somebody's gonna go in there and be betrayed by the rest of this group. This is by far the most crucial plead your case moment of tonight.'

"I still think it's obvious who's going in, though, if I'm being honest," Lia growled, eyeing up Zach.

"Let's not start this." Oli squalled, trying to calm the situation down. "Let's just plead our cases and then we'll know who's going in there."

I would tell you what happened here, but honestly, most of it was what people mostly said when we pleaded our cases; Gear talked of his strengths and that though he had an alliance, he cared about everybody.

Oli talked of his loyalty and that he would fight for this group, as well as the fact he had found the golden key to the Box of Dynamo.

Lana talked about that though she may be a little on the short side and she wasn't able to run the fastest earlier, she was one of the smartest people in the group, being able to solve codes quickly.

Lia talked that even though she had a thing for Gear, if it ever came that she had to choose between her crush and the group, she would choose to help the group, that she will do anything she could to help us.

Vanessa spoke of that even though she had just lost her twin sister, she was trying to be strong, helping the group at every opportunity and just being there for us.

And then I had to plead.

It was a little hard, honestly, but at least I had allies who agreed with me.

"I think that since we've got here, I've been carrying my weight; I've saved Oli's life, I've won the Dog Woman's challenge, found some bells, battled a Stone Man, and I solved most of the riddles in this shop. I honestly think putting me in there would be a grave mistake for all of you. I will do whatever it takes to get us out of here. And that's a promise." I reassured, trying my hardest to not break down.

Thankfully, Lana and Vanessa were there to give me a hug.

"It is time to vote," Heidi warned, a look of not compassion, but grave seriousness on her face this time.

"Tap the card with the face of the person you would like to go into the Toxic Chambers."

"Remember, the more votes for one person, the higher chance I have of pulling their name. I will then shuffle, but will only draw one. We'll start with you." She ended, motioning to Vanessa.

Vanessa: 'I swear, Zach is shady as hell, and he killed my twin sister. So, I'm sorry, but out of everybody in this room, you gotta die the most.'

Zach voted next. Then Lia.

Lia: 'As much as Gear has seduced me, I have a feeling that he's still with Lana, yet he's lying to me. So, I'm voting for Lana to ensure we can stay together. Nobody will take him from me.'

It was Gear next. Then Oli, then Lana.

And finally, as per usual, it was me.

Zach is the first major option because of all the drama he has been causing, but everybody's voting for him.

My mind then clicked; flip Gear's story of seducing Lia.

I had decided before this that I was going to reveal my vote, so I voted for Lia. I turned around and showed my card to everybody.

I don't think it went down very well.

Oli: 'Valentina turns around and shows us ALL that she voted for Lia. I am so shocked; she's taking too many risks right now and I'm worried for her. She better not get reckless; I won't let her!'

"Don't you dare try to seduce Gear in front of me again. I'm sorry, but I won't let you take him from Lana." I mutter, before giving the card to Heidi and walking back to the group.

"Val, what the fuck? I swear, you're going to get yourself killed!" Gear whisper-shouted to me, obviously either mad or concerned.

"Gear, listen; I know you were trying to seduce her, I was trying to bend it, so we could get that target on her back, kill her and then go for Zach later, see if he calms down," I whisper back, hoping he gets it.

He nods and goes back to his place in the group, holding Lana close to him.

"I will now shuffle, then draw one," Heidi announces.

I was so fucking scared; I could go in there and risk losing my life.

I can't go in there, I won't.

I know the group trusts me enough, but could Zach have been a fool and put my card in that deck?

"The person going into the Toxic Chambers is..." Heidi picked up the card, looked at it, and turned it around.

I see it and my heart sinks.

My hands cover my mouth, and my throat grows thick as I sob.

Not her. Anybody but her...

"The Sweetheart."

"No... no, please don't do this, please, please...." Vanessa begs, welling up.

"Grab her!" Zach shouts, grabbing Vanessa.

"NO, STOP! PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE! DON'T!" Vanessa screams, sobbing at this point. I can see through my tears, and she is literally kicking and screaming.

Gear: 'I'm honestly in pure shock watching this. Zach is literally dragging Vanessa across the floor to fucking kill her, and we can't do anything. I'm just over here making sure Valentina doesn't have a mental breakdown and just... being helpless.'

"NO, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE! NO!" Vanessa screams one last time as Zach somehow closes the chamber door on her.

The gas activates as Vanessa pounds on the glass, trying to call for help, but failing miserably.

Finally, it stops.

She slumps against the glass.

She's.... dead.

I'm still sobbing like there's no tomorrow as Lana tries to calm me down. Zach finally approaches us with the goggles, tossing them up and down in his hand.

"You guys could have helped me out, you know?" Zach scorned, a shit-eating grin on his face.

I wasn't thinking at all at this point. I was blinded by despair and rage.

This man had ruffled my feathers one time too many.

So, I approached Zach and... I punched him right in the nose.

"OW! WHAT THE FUCK, YOU FUCKING CUNT?!" Zach screamed, clutching his nose. Gear grabbed the goggles, and we all took one last look at Vanessa's body and the Toxic Chambers before leaving the room.

I just wanna go home. I just wanna be free from this.

That's all I want, to leave this horrible world with my life still intact.

But what I want more than that...

Is for Zach to die brutally and painfully.