Bookview Valley 4

Chapter Nineteen: Want To Play A Game?

June 16th, Sunday

"How long until Lillith gets here?" I ask, analyzing the perfect moment.

"She's probably busy with more important things. Soon, I'm sure."

Well, that's helpful. I could be here for days, years, or just seconds. The time to strike is now. If I want to make it out alive, I need to hit the Crimson Skeleton hard. If I can kill them, great, but as long as I seriously maim them, that's all I need. If I can knock them out...that would be awesome. Maybe they have the red book on them. I could finish everything once and for all. Can I even kill the Crimson Skeleton with just the antler knife?

"How will we know when she's here?" I'm trying to distract, at this point. If I could get them to turn their back, it would be perfect. I won't be able to, I know.

"Oh, you'll know."

"How cryptic," I mutter, looking for the best opening. Either way, I'm going to have to fight the Crimson Skeleton. This is going to suck. The question is how do I get out of here once I knock them out? Maybe a magical door will just open when I do?

"You look constipated."

I realize my face is all scrunched up with how hard I'm debating this, "I kind of have to pee." The best lie.

"That must suck for you," The Crimson Skeleton doesn't budge, but keeps staring at me. Would we really just sit here and wait? Are they not bored out of their mind?

It's now or never. I launch out of my chair, knife in hand. I know I've got a second of surprise. My knife is close to their heart, but they snap out of their daze and knock me backwards. Scrambling up, I crouch down into a fighting position. I hate how many times I've done this.

The Crimson Skeleton laughs, "How exciting. Of course one of them gave you a knife. Let me guess, it was Ben?"

"Maybe," I circle the Crimson Skeleton, but they simply watch me.

"Bring it on."

I launch myself, aiming for their knees. I feel a hand on the back of my neck and I'm flung backwards again. Hitting an invisible wall, I crumble to the floor again. Letting out a cough, I right myself and prepare to attack.

They cross their arms and wait expectantly. They won't kill me. They're waiting on Lillith. In fact, they probably can't kill me yet.

"I can kill you. Lillith will understand, but you do know now that you've attacked me, your friends aren't off limits."

"Do not touch them."

"I think I will," With a snap of gloved fingers my friends are teleported into the void. They hit the black floor with a thud; even Ben in here, "Welcome everyone."

"You promised!" Bri exclaims, rising to her feet, but she instantly falls back down.

"I wouldn't try to stand yet," I tell her, cringing at the thought of my teleporting experience.

"It's different for everyone," The Crimson Skeleton informs me, "Don't worry, I won't hurt them, yet. That would be overkill."

"You're playing with us," The realization dawns on me, "You're just killing time."

"Precisely." The void around us begins to warp and shift. My eyes are trained on the Crimson Skeleton, but they begin to turn fuzzy once more, "Let's play a game."

My heart skips a beat as panic begins to creep up my throat, "What do you mean?"

My friends begin to fade away with the room. The skull mask is all that remains in my sight, "You have until midnight. Each friend you find, I'll teleport back to the real world. When time is up, those you didn't find, will die."

"No!" I scream out, "Leave them alone!" Except, now I'm alone.

. . . . .

The halls are a pale yellow, the floors are wood. There's no doors, no windows, and no way out. My feet carry me down each and every hall. I don't know how much time is passed, all I know is I'm getting more tired by the second. My grip on the antler knife remains tight. I have to find my friends, I have to get them out of this.

Finally, a door. A singular, red door. In the middle of all the yellow, it's very ugly. I turn the knob and step inside. The world turns into a forest of tall trees and very green moss. It's deadly silent, not a bird, or a whisper to be heard.

"Guys?" I call out, the panic rising higher and higher by the second. I'm going to lose everyone I love, "Where are you?"

I walk the forest path, each tree looks the exact same. Every stone, flower, and plant seems to match the one before it. It's like it's copy and pasted. Very creative. My feet keep walking and it seems like forever before I spot a cottage in the middle of these infinite woods. There's smoke trailing out of the chimney of the cottage. I come to a stop in front of the door when I notice something very strange.

The cottage is made out of candy. All of it is candy. The front door is a chocolate bar, the windows are licorice, the front path is a vanilla wafer. The walls are made from white chocolate, the roof is a type of cookie, and the designs are different candies. My feeling drops with dread, this seems familiar; like something from my childhood. Is this what I think it is.

My eyes stop on a corner of one of the windows. Leaning towards it, I realize what I'm looking at. The corner of the window has a bite mark. Stepping back quickly, I try to catch my breath, my heart beating out of control. This is exactly what I think it is.

I take in the cottage and know that I'm actually standing in front of the house from the childhood story, Hansel and Gretel.