Truth or Dare... and Die

Chapter 5

Now Cody and I stare at the horrific scene in front of us, both transfixed by the memories of what had once happened not too far from here. The air seems to grow even colder as we try to come to terms with what we are seeing.

Could this actually be happening? What exactly are we looking at? And more importantly... where are the others?

Thoughts race through my mind, and I'm sure Cody's head is swimming with wonder too. We have never figured out what had happened to those little kids all those years ago, and no one has ever told us anything about it. It remains a mystery, but little do we know.. by returning here, we have stepped right into a repeat of history. But this time, we're meant to be the victims.

"Okay... well, we can't stay here, obviously. I guess we should check out... you know where... just to be sure. If the others are there... we know to run. And I just want to see, after all these years, what's become of that mass grave," Cody speaks. I can tell he is trying to act brave and strong,as always, but he needs me to act strong too. I have learned to control my panic attacks for the most part, but this place makes my breathing labored.

And so, we walk hand in hand, both stepping with painstaking care and cautiousness. As we approach that tainted ground, testing fate, which we should know better than to do by now, the air seems eerily quiet. No wind, no clouds, no stars. only the moon, far off in the distance. Too quiet. And all too soon, here we are. And there it is- that mound of overgrown dirt that serves as an unholy monument to death. Beneath it lie the remains of those innocent corpses, once mangled and stole from this world long before their time.

My feet freeze in place as my head starts spinning, and I stabilize myself against Cody. "I... I can't... can we go now?" He nodded in agreement, though I could tell it wasn't just me that needed to leave this place. Having faced the scene of crime, and found nothing new, our priority is to find the others. We see another path at the opposite side of the clearing. "That might lead to the old prison... maybe they went there instead of checking up on us at the camp."

Unsure of what we might find, the night closes around us as we venture deep into the darkening forest. I'm not sure when the fear truly hit me, but now I feel it weighing me down, as if it had descended on me in a cloud. Maybe it's the looming stature of that decrepit penitentiary causing me to feel this way, or maybe it's my gut telling me of some unseen threat. I don't know, but it's almost debilitating. Cody seems oddly unaffected by it; although, that might be his tendency to treat me like his fragile little sister. After what we experienced, I'm glad for it. Without him I would have lost my mind by now, not that there was ever much sanity in it to begin with. Even my own parents knew from the time I was little that I would be.. different. Not a crazy, lock me away kind of different, but an odd sort. More self destructive than a danger to anyone; I'm very kind to people, but I'm terrible to myself, if that makes any sense. It started long before I had any friends, though Cody soon learned my secrets. He knows me better than my own older brother does, given that my brother was shipped off to boarding school and hasn't been around for most of my life. Everyone's ashamed of me, no matter how intelligent I aim to be. I guess having a child who doesn't fit the perfect norms just doesn't work well with my parents.

And so, we approach the large metal gates, wondering how we could possibly get in, or how anyone could get out. There is an old guard tower, but no one at the post. No sign of life is anywhere to be found.

"I guess we should just..." As I'm in the middle of speaking, something falls at our feet, though neither I nor Cody saw where it came from. It is a small object, wrapped in dirty cloth. I can't tell what it is, so i reach down and unwrap it. I nearly lose the little bit of food I had eaten, when to my horror, I discover that it's a hand. And to make it worse- I recognize the ring.. Dylan's.

"What the HECK?" Cody exclaims.. "I... this can't be right. Dylan can't be... he, he has to be okay. Oh God.. what happened to him? This isn't supposed to happen!! Why... why did we insist on keeping that promise, why did we have to come here? I know we were just going to look around, I don't understand Dylan's obsession with this Truth or Dare game anyway...I..."

Cody keeps mumbling and shaking his head, despite my efforts to calm him down. I'm not sure I'll ever get him to move but.. Oh no. No! NO! The gates... they're opening. Men are coming towards us, yelling and screaming with bloody knives in their hands. Not thinking, I grab Cody's arm and jerk him back towards the woods. And so the hunt begins.