Escape
Helen Maxwell wasn't someone who was easily upset, but when she saw what I did to Jennifer she kind of lost it.
She came looking for me deep below the castle and half-sobbed as she called me names like 'inhuman', and 'monster', and 'murderer'.
She didn't understand that I didn't murder Jennifer. I loved Jennifer; she was the one who freed me from my former self, allowing me to move about and have fun however I pleased, just like my brother once did. I came looking for her just so we could play together. It was my way of thanking her for what she had done.
I enjoyed the game, but as games always do, ours had to come to an end. I made sure to finish it in a grand spectacle and I was delighted when Helen showed up to watch. I don't understand why she got so upset; anything less than what I did would have been disrespectful. Jennifer deserved the very best death I could give her.
Helen went through a lot of trouble to find me because she thought it was my turn to die. I laughed, because I didn't believe she knew how to hurt me. But then she pulled out that damned statue, fumbling and almost dropping it as she ran to set it in place. Fear wasn't an emotion I was familiar with, and it didn't strike me as hard as curiosity did when that strange door opened in the wall.
I wondered what lay on the other side. Was it as dark and horrible as everyone seemed to think? I almost wanted to find out—but not as much as I wanted to stay here, on this side, where I know it's safe. There are so many people here, and I want to play with them all.
Helen didn't like my resistance to the swirling energy that flooded the room and pulled everything inside it like a vacuum. I'm sure that if she had been in her normal frame of mind she wouldn't have tried it, but she was still enraged over Jennifer, so she pushed me.
She pushed too hard, and we both tumbled over the rail that bordered the crumbling path of rock. The rusted rail creaked and groaned as Helen hung from it. I had to drop my scissors as I clung to Helen's legs, and they disappeared into the black chasm below me. I never heard them hit bottom.
Helen screamed and fought as the energy threatened to seize us both, sending the two of us to a place where we would never be seen or heard from again. She kicked at me so hard one of her hands slipped.
Playing with Helen had been fun, but enough was enough. Using her jacket as leverage, I pulled myself up to a point where I could grab hold of the rail. It was groaning and tipping dangerously under our weight, but it was all I had. Helen continued to kick at me, and tried to hit me with one hand while she hung on with the other.
Her fingers inevitably slipped and before she knew it our positions were switched. Only instead of my legs, all she could grab onto was my shoe, which took little effort to wiggle out of. I almost laughed with relief as Helen was drawn into the vortex and disappeared forever.
Satisfied for now, the doors slammed shut. The shift in air pressure caused me to tumble over the rail, right on my head. I must have blacked out, because the next thing I remember is waking up under a pile of dirt and rock and feeling like I was suffocating.
The doors Helen opened were never meant to be touched, and the resulting release of energy had shook the cavern and castle above it to pieces, literally. My own energy was almost gone, but I fought and scratched my way to the surface, tearing my clothes and skin in the process. I lost my mask along the way, but it didn't matter. At least I was alive.
I clawed my way free and stood on shaky legs, my flesh torn and bleeding. But the pain was only an inconvenience; I can't die. Not like this.
It was late and dark, but there were people everywhere. Judging by their clothes, they were police officers, doctors, and reporters, all searching the rubble for survivors. I couldn't help smiling in the darkness; they would search for days and find nothing. I was the only one who survived.
It wasn't long before I was discovered. An officer shone his flashlight on me and, after looking shocked for a moment, began shouting to the others. People dressed in white rushed over with blankets and a stretcher. A woman was with them; a nurse. Perfect.
I looked up at her with the most pathetic face I could manage and said, "Help me..."
She instantly pulled me into her arms, wrapped the blanket around me and helped me onto the stretcher. It was just too easy.
I was eventually hooked up to a temporary IV and placed in an ambulance. Unnecessary, of course, but this was all part of the game. It's fun to pretend, to make people believe I'm weaker than they are. And it's best I wait a little while for the excitement to fade before I go out to play again. Only this time will be different.
This time, there will be no one alive who can stop me.
