Truth or Dare?

Chapter Three - Aspen

I saw two other black vans in front of us and there was one behind us. I was surprised no one questioned the black van party.

Danny was looking out the window with earbuds in and Zane was trying to keep his cool, like me.

I sighed and looked out the window myself. We came across a very old looking sign that read "Oheka Castle". We drove up a huge hill and found ourselves at an enormous mansion. The vans parked at different ends of the ancient parking lot and we were all escorted out of the vans by the cloaks as I like to call them. They gave us our bags and joined up to create an army of twelve cloaks. All of us vulnerable teenagers joined up and created the almighty powerful army of teens. If you can't sense the sarcasm then you have an issue.

The cloaks made a weird formation and they ended up in a pyramid shape. They walked towards the entrance and we all followed. In there, there were many men dressed as butlers who escorted all of us to our rooms and took our bags. Each of us had our own wing/tower. The butlers unpacked everything for me as well and I just sat on my bed with my knees to my chest. Once the last one left a cloak arrived in my room and gave me a note, then scurried off. I noticed a pattern with the cloaks and the scurrying.

The note read:

Meeting in the library for all members of the Truth or Dare Project. Seven o' clock.

Be there, or else.

-Chair Board

I sighed and folded the piece of paper into my pocket. I put my head in my hands and reached for my cell phone that I had in my pocket. Not there.

"What? And... how? And..." I whispered.

I looked at the clock on the wall and realized I had one hour. I looked for where the butlers put my makeup and fixed it up since it smudged from my teardrops.

I didn't want to meet the others. I didn't want to be in the mansion. I wanted to be back home. I also wanted to cry. So that's what I did.

I sat there and had a good cry.

And after I finished crying I felt like punching myself in the face and fixed my makeup again.

A butler guy was stood outside my door and directed me to the library. There were really old yet new at the same time looking couches with the walls covered ceiling to floor with books. Now this was my kind of place.

There was a huge TV screen where all the sofas were facing. I took a seat on an empty couch and waited for everyone else to arrive. A few minutes before the meeting started, a tall, blonde boy with bright green eyes stood next to the couch and smiled at me. "Hi, um, do you mind if I sit here?" he asked me.

"Oh, not at all!" I forced a smile back. I scooted over a little and he sat down next to me. "I'm Aspen by the way."

"Kieran," he told me.

The others were conversing and at seven o' clock on the dot, a red-haired boy came running in. "AM I LATE?" he screamed.

"Shhhh," someone told him and he took a seat on a chair, sighing.

All twelve men in cloaks filed into the room. "Pay attention," one of them said in a deep, mysterious tone. They turned the television on and filed out.

A presentation started. "Congratulations. You have been chosen to take part in the Truth or Dare project. Each night, each of you will be directed into a room where you will choose Truth or Dare. You must complete your truth or dare within twenty-four hours. If not..."

"IF NOT WHAT?!" the same boy from before yelled.

"Shut up Jack!" someone yelled and he sunk in his chair.

"This is a social experiment conducted by the Chair Board." The television spoke again. "You will be able to contact one another from inside the grounds of Oheka Castle, no communication with the outside world. We have provided cellular devices for each of you."

A man in a cloak came around and handed out cool high tech cell phones in different colors and patterns. I was surprised when I saw mine was chocolate brown with mint green polka dots, my favorite.

"You will see that each member of the Truth or Dare Project's cellular phone number is programmed into your cellular devices. You are to have these on hand at all times. There are no rules except you must receive your truth or dare every evening and it must be performed within twenty hours and you must keep your cellular device with you at all times."

The television shut itself off and the cloaks came back into the room. "We will take questions now." One said.

A boy with curly, dirty blonde hair raised his hand. "When is this over?"

"Until someone fails to complete their task." One of the cloaked men answered.

Danny interrupted. "Wait, so you're saying that all we have to do is not do our task and we can leave?"

"There will be great punishment for whoever fails to complete their task." Another cloak answered.

"So you're saying that we could basically be trapped here for our entire lives?" Danny asked.

No answer.

"At this time you will all be directed to receive your task. Azura, Maxine."

A girl got up, looking quite nervous, and left the room, escorted out by a butler. We all sat in the room for a while and then they called someone else. "Campton, Benjamin."

"This is gonna be a long night," I sunk down into the couch.