The Ghost of the Opera

Chapter 2

A vision fills my head, of two men cowering behind a table. They wear luxury suits and top hats, but they seem too old to wear such things. They look on horrified as the masked man walks away from them. I can see the victory in his eyes.

"The managers would come to understand payment of my salary was worth every penny..." The mans voice says through my mind, "... If they hoped to continue their production without incident!"

I wake with a start, still lying on the floor of the powder room. The mirror above me has shattered, and broken pieces lie around me on the floor. It is a wonder how I did not get harmed by any of them in their fall!

Behind the mirror, where the masked man had been, is not a large hole, leading into a room. Carefully, I follow onto a wooden platform. This seems like the way someone may have taken to get to the lower part of the stage.

"He must have been hiding behind the mirror. Perhaps there is a way out beneath the stage." I whisper to myself.

There is a single ladder leading down into darkness, and I have no idea what I might find down there. But the alternative is staying up here in hopes of finding a safe way out, which has thus far proved impossible. The way I see it is that my best hopes are by going down.

And so ever so slowly I crawl down the ladder, all the while expecting cold hands to grab me from behind. Thankfully I reach the bottom without incident, and I sigh in relief. Looking around there is not much to see besides a couple of doors leading to other parts below, and an old sarcophagus used in some of the performances I guess.

"The stage hand thought he could capture me? His curiosity was his undoing." The man laughs from everywhere.

I shiver again despite myself. The basement is cold, but not as cold as the masked man. So far he has not jumped out at me or harmed me in any way. I can only pray that he keeps things that way until I some how find a way to escape this mad house.

Feeling somewhat brave, I walk forward going further under stage. I am under the stage, so there would not be any window leading out, and I can only hope that there will be a door somewhere leading me to a path to freedom. Once I reach the road I will be fine, but I cannot risk getting lost in the woods trying to escape.

Under stage is littered with old rotting props, and nothing remotely useful. I continue on, and in a small secluded room I find another closed prop chest. This one has a lock on it, one that has rusted over the years and now lies unlocked.

Curiosity gets the better of me and I move towards it. Who needs to lock a props chest? What could they be hiding inside? Maybe something useful.

When I open the lid I scream, jumping back at the sight of the decaying skeleton inside. The body wears a fine suit and holds a single black rose in it's hand. I stumble backwards, falling to my knees on the dusty floor. Oh goodness, someone locked him in there! But who is he? And why would someone do this? Something tells me that I need to rose to find out.

After all, the phantom asked me to get it.

I quickly snatch it from the dead mans hands, half expecting him to jump up at me. With my prize in hand I run from the room, leaving the door closed behind me. If I had put on a brave face before, I am sure it has disappeared by now.

Back in the hall a door that I had not noticed before stands open. I move quickly towards it, not wanting to be in the proximate of that body for long. Inside is a broken orchestra pit. The piano lies in ruins, sheet music litters the ground, and the stands lie shattered on the ground.

The masked man stands in the mirror hanging on the wall, his hand outstretched towards me. He wants the rose. I move towards him and thrust it at the mirror. His hand closes around it again and the world goes black.