The Arrow of Time

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"P-please stop!" Bandee pleaded. "I know you're still here! You have to be! Please let me go! This isn't you!"

The thing that wasn't their friend tightened its grip. "𝔽𝕒𝕤𝕔𝕚𝕟𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘. 𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝕤𝕖𝕖𝕞 𝕥𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕀 𝕒𝕞 𝕥𝕣𝕦𝕝𝕪 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕡𝕖𝕣𝕤𝕠𝕟 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕤𝕖𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕪𝕠𝕦? 𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝕞𝕦𝕤𝕥 𝕜𝕟𝕠𝕨 𝕓𝕖𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥, 𝕝𝕚𝕥𝕥𝕝𝕖 𝕨𝕒𝕣𝕣𝕚𝕠𝕣."

"H-hey..." They choked out. "Can't breathe... You're... taking me... for a reason... right? Shouldn't you... not be hurting me...?"

"𝔻𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕨𝕠𝕣𝕣𝕪. 𝕀 𝕨𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕜𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕪𝕠𝕦. 𝕐𝕖𝕥. 𝔹𝕦𝕥 𝕀 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕙𝕦𝕣𝕥 𝕪𝕠𝕦. 𝔸 𝕝𝕠𝕥." The grip loosened enough for Bandee to breathe.

"Uh, wha-AGH!" They were extremely aware of the sound of the skin on their back tearing open. A sound like an electric razor reached their ears, and the most intense pain they'd ever felt erupted from deep inside the wound in their back. It was so overpowering, they couldn't even scream. Or maybe they were screaming. If they were, they couldn't hear themselves. The sound died down, but the searing pain stayed. They went completely limp, having their will broken.

"ℕ𝕠𝕨, 𝕚𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕓𝕖𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖, 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕓𝕖 𝕒𝕝𝕝. 𝕆𝕣 𝕡𝕖𝕣𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕤 𝕟𝕠𝕥. 𝔹𝕦𝕥 𝕀 𝕘𝕦𝕒𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕖 𝕚𝕥 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕓𝕖 𝕨𝕠𝕣𝕤𝕖 𝕚𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕡 𝕠𝕦𝕥 𝕠𝕗 𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕖."

They felt themselves being roughly slammed into a wall, after which they lay on the floor that was beneath them and waited for their body to start responding to the idea that they should probably get up. Instead of standing, they cried. "Why..." It was the first actual word they had spoken in what felt like hours. Once they had finally gotten on their feet, they looked around at where they had ended up. The room was dark. Empty. They were in a transparent case, suspended in midair. The pain had only slightly subsided. They really wanted nothing more than to be back with the others. They started pounding on the walls of the case. "HELP! HELP ME! PLEASE! SOMEONE GET ME OUT OF HERE!"

The door behind the case opened and their assailant entered the room. They were holding Bandee's spear. Upon entering, they held the spear in full view of them. Wordlessly, they crushed it into splinters. They then opened the case, grabbed Bandee in one hand, and used the other hand to riddle their skin with the splinters. "𝕀 𝕕𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕣𝕖𝕔𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕥𝕠 𝕤𝕔𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕞 𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝕙𝕖𝕝𝕡." Bandee could hardly keep breathing, and it became all the more difficult when the electric razor sound started again, but was now louder.

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"I don't get it! How does someone just disappear from a stairwell?" Dedede loudly panicked. "It's a line! It's like vanishing halfway down a hallway! How do you do that?"

Magolor turned away from the others. "Not voluntarily, that's for sure." He scanned the vast chasm below them. "Looks like the scenery isn't the only thing that's the same. It seems like someone's been replaced as well."

An intangible fear took hold of the group. Daroach opened his mouth to ask what most probably, in their hearts, knew the answer to. "Replaced? What do you mean?"

Magolor squeezed his eyes shut. "It means there's a new OSO. And I can't imagine they'll be anywhere near as hospitable as the first."

Behind the door was a long hallway with four doors, and a door at the end. With the exception of the end door, it was identical to floor J. The group stuck together, not wanting to be taken away when alone and vulnerable. They went to the end door and tried to open it. It didn't budge. Even with everyone attacking it at once, the door didn't move. "Ugh. No good." Adeleine turned away in frustration. They decided to search the rest of the floor, all sticking together. In the garden, they decided to check the toolshed. They found a key.