Whispers in the Dark

The Unhappiest Place on Earth

When everything settled down, the group headed to Nikita's house. Since her father was now dead, she was officially the second wealthiest person in town.

"An old god?" Kol asked, seeking confirmation from Eve. "There's no such thing as gods."

"That's what she said," Eve explained, examining her friend's lifeless body. "Said its power can trap the dead. We were gonna use it on you - well, this you - but never got the chance."

Luke uneasily eyed the bone on the coffee table. "I guess that's what happened to Oliver."

Martin got even more uneasy when that name was mentioned. "So he can't move on?"

"It also explains why I wasn't able to sense him," Kol concluded. "Gods may not be real, but whatever it is that marked Martin and trapped Pat-" He froze mid-sentence, catching his own slip-up.

"You ok?" asked Luke, still watching the bone as though he expected it to do something.

"I'm fine. Anyway, the spirit doing all this is very real, and very strong - stronger than anything we've come across before."

Eve sighed. "Stronger than a witch that can put an entire town to sleep, revive a zombie army, burn a farm down, and heal herself?"

Kol couldn't help but wince before nodding. "I think I'm reaching my limit. Is it ready?"

"As it ever will be," answered Eve, letting go of his body. "Be careful; You don't wanna hurt Igor in the process."

Kol nodded, then willed the boy's body over to his own, and made contact. Slowly, he untangled his and Igor's souls. He had to be as careful as a pyrotechnican; A single slip could mean eternal torment for both of them. Slowly, Kol's soul left its current container, flowing straight into its old one. As it did, Eve slammed a talisman against Kol's chest, revitalizing the husk just enough for it to pass as alive.

Igor's body slumped to the ground. Apparently, no one had thought to be ready to catch it. Thankfully, the boy was alright.

When Kol next opened his eyes, he was back in his own body. He sat up slowly, then tried moving his arms and legs a bit.

"Everyone home?" Eve asked, waving a hand in front of his face.

"I was a disembodied soul, not a car crash victim."

"I don't know, man. You look a bit out of it."

Kol tried to get up, but his sixth sense suddenly started flaring up. His body was both on fire and freezing at the same time.

Martin was feeling the same thing, too.

The symbol on the bone started to glow, so Luke immediately jumped back.

Nikita, who had been silently mourning her father, was now alert, too.

"What fresh hell is this?"

"Make it stop!" Martin screamed, feeling as though someone was pulling him forward.

Kol was the same way. Both he and Martin were reaching toward the bone, neither of his free will.

Eve grabbed Kol's hand in an attempt to stop him. Luke did the same for Martin.

Nikita reached for the bone to move it away from them.

All five of them wound up touching either the bone or a person touching the bone at the same time, and the mark on it exploded, enveloping the group in a bright light.

"I've finally got some more guests!" a child's voice spoke, then giggled. "We're gonna have so much fun together!"

To the group's surprise, when they came to, they were at what appeared to be an amusement park.

"W-What just..." Luke started, but was interrupted when a teenage girl bumped into him as she tried to get past him.

They heard a group of people scream, and instantly turned toward the source of the sound. It was just a rollercoaster.

"Welcome!" a teenager said, suddenly standing in front of them. "I'm Los, and I'll be your host on this fine, fine day." Kol looked the boy up and down. He was of average height, with shaggy red hair and cold blue eyes. He was as thin as Kol himself, but whereas Kol was pale, this boy was tanned. He was wearing biker boots, a pair of khakis, and an oversize hoodie. The clothing did not go together at all. "Now, could you all please direct your attention to your wrists?"

The group did, and noticed the familiar symbol was now marking each of them.

"What the hell is this?" Nikita grumbled. "Is this a brand? Like, so not cool."

The boy snapped his fingers, and Nikita's mouth disappeared. It didn't close. It didn't get sown shot. It just disappeared. She made a few muffled noises, eyes wide with panic, but Los waved her off.

"It'll go back to normal as soon as I've finished my introduction."

Kol tried to sense anything otherworldly about the teen, but couldn't. Whatever Los was, he was alive.

"Welcome to Half-Dead Wonderland!" the redhead exclaimed happily, throwing his arms into the air. As if in cue, fireworks exploded in the distance, perfectly framing the moment. "While only two of you got an actual invitation, all of you are here now, and so you'll all be playing. "Playing what?" you must be thinking. Well, let me tell ya; I've hidden five keys in this place. The exit can only be unlocked using all five of 'em. Even if you get one, you won't be able to leave your friends behind; Either you all leave, or no one does. You've got twenty four hours to find 'em all. Each one is hidden in one of the attractions here. Surely you've noticed there are more than five of those, eh? Well, not every single one has a key. Some of them take hours to complete, so careful when you choose! You can go together, or you can split up. Once you go on a ride or enter an event, there's no leaving til' ya finish, so careful with your time." Los snapped his fingers, but nothing happened.

Kol looked around to see if he'd missed anything, but couldn't catch a change.

"Up," the teen explained, and the group followed.

They realized the sun was fake. It was just a painting on a ceiling, and it even had eyes and a mouth. It was smiling with glee. Next to it was a giant clock face, which seemed to be levitating.

"That's your timer," Los informed them. "I'll now take a moment to answer any questions."

Eve was the first one to hit him with one. "What happens if the time runs out?"

Los shrugged, but it was clear he knew, just as it was clear he didn't care that they knew he knew. "I'm just the manager."

A little boy somewhere behind the redhead dropped his popcorn, then proceeded to wail.

Los rolled his eyes, then snapped his fingers. A new popcorn bucket appeared in the kid's hands, and he stopped crying immediately.

"Where is the exit?" Kol asked.

Los smiled at him. "Next to one of the keys."

"Are you the one Olivia was partnered with?"

Los shrugged again, with the same amount of bullshit. He snapped his fingers, and a sound similar to a buzzer sounded. "That'll be all from me, folks. Time for you to get searchin'. Best of luck!" He dissipated into steam and vanished. Nikita regained her mouth at the same time.

The group all looked at one another, equal amounts scared and surprised. Another group screamed, scaring them again. They all turned toward the rollercoaster once more.

Collecting himself, Kol took a cautious step forward. "I guess we play."