1 Chapter one
It was a warm day, the sounds of chattering students with their wide smiles, illuminated by the glow of the radiant sun that lightly peaked out the tall trees. The high schoolers tawny and white uniforms matched the dignity and ivory covered walls of the immense prep school. I take in my surroundings taking a deep breath in, inhale, and out, exhale. Then made my way to class.
I would like to believe the entire day went smoothly and normally that is until now, the last period of the day. As I sit in my hard seat waiting for class to begin I look upon the white walls of the classroom scanning my new surroundings. Occupying the right wall looking down upon the paved entrance of the school lies a large window ordained with realistic fake Ivy, and to the left a horizontally split wall one side regular wall and the other a thin clear glass allowing me view into the surrounding classrooms. All completely angelic in comparison to the one I am currently in now. The loud conversations of the students filled the room drowning out the desperation of the teacher.
"Quiet!"
the teacher finally yells as he slams his plastic ruler harshly against his large wooden desk, causing a loud resound CRACK to travel through the room, stopping the mass of rowdy students in their tracks, their words left unspoken. At last giving the attention to the now frustrated educator who promptly straightens out his blazer before clearing his throat ahem.
"Class, you might have noticed a new face among you today,"
Obviously referring to me, the new student as he extends his hand in my direction.
"This is our new student Carol Smith."
Suddenly a deep voice erupts from the back of the class.
"We don't care! No one even noticed she was here anyway. What a loser." He snickers "And, what's up with that name anyway, it's plainer than straight mayonnaise!"
Letting out a boisterous laugh as if he actually did something, with that moronic comment that could have easily been made by a second grader. Honestly that's embarrassing on his part.
"CaRol SmIth"
He says mockingly followed by snickers from his equally moronic friends in the back of the class. Two girls sitting on a desk fixing the makeup they were wearing, gliding the blood-red lipstick across their plump lips. The pigment spreading like paint on a fresh canvas. Along with three boys wearing messy, unbuttoned uniforms, missing their blazers and ties, with dirt stained white t-shirts underneath trying to show their "tough gangster male bravado" as if that even exists at a prep school. My guess is that they trying to show out in rebellion to their rich fathers who pay little mind to them, all the while their no longer young and beautiful sugar baby mothers spend their days getting plastic surgery in a vain attempt to get their husbands to even look in their direction again. Instead of properly raising their obviously mentally underdeveloped children.
The teasing continued until the end of class, all the students and teachers filing out of the classrooms forming a loud crowd into the halls. I begin to organize my books and pens calmly placing them into my bag. I then slowly walk toward the door to join my fellow classmates in the jumble of the mob when I'm stopped before the door.
"Where are you going, newbie?"
The dim minded boy from before tells me with an evil smirk more sinister than a cobra going in to surround its prey and strike at its most vulnerable, making it suffer a horrible and painful death before unhinging its scaly jaw and swallowing it whole. His group behind him with a certain sadistic gleam in their eyes that can only comes before torturing a pawn. However, before they had the chance to say anything else, the lights went out. Leaving us in the pitch blackness.
Silence
Suddenly a single computer screen lights up with a bright white glow. After a moment of staring, we begin to approach the computer. The once blank screen having large red words appear.
You have been chosen to play in this free trial of the game. Six selected members of each top class will participate. Making EIGHTEEN players in total. Please hold on as we will begin shortly.
"Game, what game?"
Questions the tall,dark haired Hispanic boy looking quizzically at the girl next to him.
"I don't know, but I don't care I'm leaving. This is probably some stupid prank."
The bleach blonde girl says angrily as she makes her way quickly toward the door. Her black heels clicking against the cold tile in the dimly lit room. As she extends her hand toward the doorknob a low humming noise begins emitting from the walls. Suddenly electric blue sparks begin going off around the windows and doors, doubling in size as the hum gets increasingly louder by the second. HMMMM
"What's going on?! This isn't funny, let us out now!"
Says the moronic boy who attempted to make fun of me before.
"I don't think this is a prank..."
I say hesitantly looking at the now blue-lit faces of my potential bullies. As the others murmur to themselves and the blonde girl tries to comfort her friend who's already shaking harder than a lost child.
"Hello."
A distorted robotic voice slightly glitching as the speaker drags out the chilling greeting.
"Thank you for your patience. We do apologize for the electric fence; we wouldn't want anyone leaving and getting hurt, would we? Now let the games begin."
He says with a sadistic crazy voice that echoes as much as its glitches.
"See you all in the arena."
His last statement rendered as gas quickly began filling the room, loud coughing coming from everyone's throats. Cough cough hack wheeze. Smelling of sickeningly sweet fruit and helium, the smell completely surrounding us as the world begins to spin before it fades into total darkness.
Ugh. I grunt as I push myself off the cold stone floor. I look around to see a concrete room with a metal ladder leading to nowhere bolted to one of the walls and a screen on the opposite wall. There are... a total of eighteen people including me here, some still knocked out and others standing in groups.
"Where are we?"
I ask no one specifically.
"Like we would know." Scoff
A girl with long blonde hair and a purple headband says while rolling her chestnut brown eyes.
"Just stand with your class, okay?"
Says a tall dark skin boy just as rudely as the previous girl. I stand with my group and wait as the others slowly begin to wake up and ask similar things to me, receiving the same answers every time.
Immediately as the last person wakes up the screen lights up. A man in a black and white mask begins to speak.
"Welcome players. Today's game is Witch hunt. The rules are very simple. The lights will go out and one of you will die, I will not appoint a killer who will be the witch. If you choose to kill will be up to you. However if one of you doesn't die within this time...I will end you all. When the lights come back on you will be given 30 minutes to investigate the scene and 30 minutes to find who the witch is. Now before the game officially starts, I will be introducing you all."
Immediately on the large screen a picture of one of the boys appears with his name, height, race, and class number next to it. It reads,
Kenedy Paula, African American, 6'0, 3
Followed by
Ricardo Velazquez, Puerto Rican, 5'9, 1
Eva Park, Japanese, 5'4, 2
Santana Wills, Korean, 5'4, 1
Brianna Rivarde, African American,5'4, 3
Carol Smith, African American, 5'0, 1
Callum Richards, American, 6'0, 2
Devonee Mathews, African American 5'4, 2
Rose Quarts, American 5'6, 3
Shawn Mcarthy, American, 6'0, 2
Third Zederburg, Thai, 5'9, 2
Arthit Young, Filipino, 6'2, 3
Veer Sharma, Indian, 5'9, 1
Trevon Michealson, African American, 5'9, 2
Samantha Willowson, American, 5'4, 3
Bridgette East, American, 5'4, 1
Antonio Zevarde, Italian, 6'2, 3
and
Alex Zederman, Korean, 6'1, 1
After the last picture showed across the panel, the screen flashed red and white before it showed a white background with a large Red Timer resting at 30. Then the lights went out. Click
We all stand silent. The fear bouncing off in dangerously large waves as we wait. Five minutes pass when finally, a noise, the sound of a person walking. Everyone stands paralyzed worried they would be the one chosen to die first. Then, a girl's shriek traveled through the air followed by
"Let me go! No! Please!"
As her shouts and screams fly out you can hear the sound of dragging and her screams getting louder. Her begging falling to deaf ears. No one willing to help her, all too scared to move, too scared they will take her place, and the room too dark to see.
A slam followed by metal ringing flies through the pitch-black room she lets out a muffled shout of pain. The smell of blood starting to fill the room as more banging getting louder and harder each time. bang Bang BANG.
Choked and forced back sobs peak through the noise here and there from the students.
Her yelps of pain turn to strangled gasps. A grunt followed by a small male shout of pain as glass shatters as it hits the ground.
The sounds of her gasping getting weaker as a pair of feet hit the floor. A minute passes and her gasps have stopped, and the lights come on.
A large ticking noise fills the room as the timer runs down and the smell of blood stings my nose. I turn to see a girl hung at the top of the ladder thick red blood dripping down her downturned face, her hair soaked in blood. Covering the ladders thick metal pipes.
A pair of goggles lied broken on the floor a few feet away covered in blood spatters and green shards surrounding it.
"I-I think I'm gonna be sick."
Bridgette says while hanging on to her crying friend Santana both looking ready to collapse.
No one else said anything as the continuous ticking continued going.
"This is evil, vile, and disgusting but the time is running out, and I don't want to know what will happen if we don't find who did this by the end of the count down."
Veer finally breaking the silence.
"Yeah, he's right. We need to investigate."
I turn and tell the group. No one says anything while they begin slowly walking toward the girl and the goggles.
