Chapter One - Introductions Are In Order

Hey guys! It's Dagger, back again with another Miraculous Ladybug Fanfiction. This, however, is going to be much darker - unless I fail miserably - than the other stories I have written in this fandom. This is due to the fact that there is going to be a fair amount of violence. If that bothers you, then a highly suggest that you do not read this story. You have been advised.

Anyways, this idea sprung from other ideas I was reading about that people have written. It's not a very happy plot, as I have said previously. However, I will let you guys see this for yourselves and stop my rambling. Brace yourselves, because here we go.

Also, this will follow my typical style of first person writing! I will try to limit it to only one or two per chapter, but we will have to see.

Also also (last thing I swear), Adrien and Marinette and any of the other characters their age are all adults. Think of it as them being in their early 20s, roughly. Keep that in mind when considering how old other characters might be. It's the summer, so none of them would be at college if they chose to attend one. I apologize if I do a bad job expressing that in this first chapter. Besides that, everything else will be explained.

"Hell is empty and all the devils are here."

~ Shakespeare

Gamemaker's Point of View

I shove my keys into my pocket, taking my hand off of the steering wheel and opening the door. Once I've firmly planted both feet on the gravel below me, I shut my door and lock it. I've had this black pick-up truck for at least a year now, and she still works like a charm. That's impressive, if you are considering how much I have used her for. But she'd better keep holding up. After all, I have quite a bit in store, and she's going to help me do it. After all, she already has been.

Chuckling to myself at how easy this has been, I make my way towards the house in front of me. There's practically nothing around for miles, besides corn and other farms. There's a lone animal or two, but they've never been a problem. Maybe they sense something dark about my small, blue farmhouse. Well, if they do, then that's better for me. I won't be disturbed.

I slide my hand on the railing as I climb up the porch steps. It's so peaceful out here. It's actually quite calming. The house itself seems rather quaint, but I don't mind it. It keeps people away, whereas a big, grand house would call for everyone's attention. We can't have that. Shaking my head with another laugh, I pull out my key ring and unlock the three different locks on my door. After all, one can never be too careful. We wouldn't want anyone stumbling across my work out here. It's too precious to be lost, and I would lose it if anyone stumbled across it. Or something bad would happen to whoever found it.

I prefer the second option, although having it stay hidden would be more ideal than having it be discovered at all.

The door opens with a creak, and I look around one last time just to make sure I am alone. Once confident that that is the case, I step inside and close the door behind me. Most of the house still looks like it's covered in dust, which won't do at all. I know that I cleaned some of it yesterday, since I had the time, but I wasn't expecting it to be so dusty after only a few months without use. I'll have to spare some time to clean it, and I'm sure that I will have some. After all, this game is very well thought out this time. It is elaborate, with many players. Whose to say how long it will take?

It's all up to me. What a satisfying thought! Everything is always up to me in these games. Who plays, for example. I've chosen such wonderful players this time around. I am quite certain that this will be my favorite game so far, and I have so many fun things in store. The only thing that I cannot decide for sure is who wins. That is up to my wonderful players, but I like to think that no one ever truly wins.

No one except for me, that is.

I lock the door behind me before making my way over to my refrigerator. The kitchen is, sadly, not one of the places that I have done any cleaning in. However, perhaps that is the best. After all, it will certainly keep suspicions down if the house looks old and unused. In fact, despite the fact that I hate the grime, maybe I won't clean the house - at least not much - just to be safe. I'll have to hide my car when it is here, of course, but it would be yet another reason for them to not suspect this place, so long as they didn't come inside. After all, the range of suspicion will be so much wider with so many players.

Reaching inside the refrigerator, I grab a bottle of water. Thankfully, I brought some food to stock up this place yesterday, so I won't have to worry about that. I also used a different car then, so that should throw people off a bit if they were paying attention. I doubt anyone was though, besides the crows, and they don't tell tales. They never do. As I lean back against the counter to take a long sip of the water - it's colder than I expected from this pathetic refrigerator, so much so that I'm almost impressed - I reach into my pocket and fish out the portable speaker inside. It's one of my own inventions, hooked up to a special room in my house so that I can listen in at any time.

"Let's see if they're awake and yapping yet." I whisper with a chuckle, pushing the bright red button on top before taking another sip of water and letting it turn on and tune in.

"Where do you think we are?" Someone asks, and unless I'm mistaken they're doing their best to whisper. "We're going to die down here. We're going to be killed by some psycho!"

Another voice butts in, sounding hostile. "We are not going to die. There is no way that I am letting some psychotic kidnapper kill me. Just let them try!"

"Shut up, what if they hear us!" Yet another voice whines, sounding frightened. I like to hear that; it's quite satisfying. It's one of my favorite parts of this game.

"They won't." A voice says firmly. "And no one is going to kill us. It's probably just some sort of elaborate prank, and if it's not, then someone will find us."

Another person joins the fray. "If my calculations are correct, the room looks like one that's been sound proofed. You can't judge that necessarily, but it would only make sense, since this person kidnapped us. I doubt they can hear us." If only that were the case for them. It would make their lives easier.

I will have to make sure that they don't find out about my sound system, at least not yet. It's best if they do not know that I am monitoring their conversations. It will make things much more interesting.

"Then let's stop worrying about what this might be and figure out how we're getting out of here!" Whoever speaks now speaks with a voice of authority. "Look, there's no point in considering what might happen. That's what will happen if we give up, but we don't have to give up!" Wow, someone is certainly certain that they won't die. We'll just have to see about that. After all, it won't be up to them. "We just need to figure out what's going on after we're all free. Doesn't one of you have any idea for what we can do?"

"We have to go about this carefully. So please, all of you, shut up and calm down." This new speaker sounds quite sure of themselves, and very serious and authoritative. I'm almost impressed. I wonder if he and the previous speaker will clash. "Hysterics will do nothing for us. We have to think about this with a clear head and logically." I suppose that would be fair advice, but it will not apply in this situation. I have them hidden away too well. My game is too well planned for them to ruin it by escaping now. They will only escape when I allow them to. "Dang it, my ring is gone. Has anyone seen it? Did it slip off?"

"He probably took it and hid it away with everything else he stole off of us. Stop worrying about your stupid ring and help us come up with an escape plan. It's just a ring after all." A voice snaps in response. "You can replace it once we're out."

The one whose lost a ring sounds outraged at the thought. "I can't just replace the ring!"

Setting my water bottle down, I decide that perhaps it's time for me to join them. It sounds like now would be appropriate, as they descend further and further into chaos. Smirking and chucking, I slowly turn the volume down on the speaker. I don't want my ear drums blown off if any of them scream for some reason, and I don't want them to find out about it as I approach.

So far, this has been child's play. That's a thought I enjoy entertaining as I make my way to my back hallway. I'm quite pleased with how good I've gotten at this game while cleaning it up. Carefully I tug the blue rug in the hallway off the ground, pulling the trapdoor attached to it up along with it. I carefully place one foot on the ladder down and then the other, and after I have climbed down enough I tug the door down after me.

That causes someone to scream in the speaker. "They're coming! They're going to kill us!" I'd been wondering why they were getting so quiet.

"Calm down and keep your head on!" Another voice snaps in response. "We'll be fine. Freaking out won't help us!"

"Both of you shut up and just wait! We might be overreacting. Let's just see." Oh, if only that was the case.

I have to resist the urge to snicker as I push the red button again to turn the speaker off. Once I hear the satisfying hum that tells me it's definitely off, I shove it into my pocket. I won't be needing it in there. I set my hand upon the door knob, put on an even wider smile, and throw the door open.

Nine pairs of eyes stare back at me in complete and utter silence. The fear that saturates the room is exhilarating, and I have to keep the laugh that is bubbling in my throat down. Instead, I shut the door behind me, taking a few steps forward before taking a position to look around the room and examine everyone seated within.

Closest to me and chained in the corner is the first one I took: Max Kanté. He was easy to catch, as all I had to do was go up to the house and ask if he could come look at my map and give me directions. Of course the genius child wanted to help, as from my studies, he's a geography buff along with everything else that he is. It was easy from there. I take a few steps towards him, causing him to shrink back and try to push himself even further into the corner than he already is. Seeing as he's rather short, so there's not much he can do to make himself much smaller. As he sinks down, he moves one hand to push his glasses up his nose.

Which reminds me. I loom over him as he tries to push himself downwards further, scrambling for some way to escape yet refusing to make any noise, before I snatch the glasses of his face and carefully retreat backwards again to my spot in the middle. He slides himself up a lit, feeling his face and then trying to make me out. Apparently he's incredibly blind without these.

"Don't worry, Max Kanté." I say with false sympathy, brandishing them at him and causing him to flinch. "You won't be needing these. And if for some reason you do, well, I'll give them back." To add insult to injury, I drop them to the ground and stomp a foot down on it, twisting it and listening to them shatter for good measure. Then I stretch down, picking them up and shaking them as if astonished by what occured. "Oh my. Oops." Chuckling and struggling to contain it to be quiet, I shove the broken glasses into my pocket. I'll store them where I put all the rest of their stuff.

"H-Hey, leave him alone!" I turn my head to the girl seated a few feet away from Max, placed strategically so that they cannot reach. Her hands are bound above her head unlike with some of the others, whose hands are bound to the ground or to a chain that is attached to the wall, but that's because she put up more of a fight than almost anyone else. "Why don't you pick on somebody your own size?"

I snicker at her attempts to disguise her fear, walking up to her and putting a hand under her chin as she tries to escape. "Someone like you, Alix Kubdel?" She snaps at me, but I just laugh, dropping her head. "Don't worry your little head, pink hair. I'm not the one who's going to decide your fates."

Even as I go to move on, someone else asks, "Then who is?"

I turn my gaze to the speaker, who looks like she really regrets speaking up. She visibly shakes, and I consider how different she looks without her pink headband. That was confiscated when I first got her down here, more because I had the capability to than for any legitimate reason. I highly doubt she could have actually done something with it to escape, especially since she barely even out up a fight when I caught her, but I'll be curious to see if having her hair down puts her out of her comfort zone at all or not.

"Mylène Haprèle." I say, annunciating each syllable of her name. With each syllable she looks closer and closer to tears. This just gets more and more amusing, but this time I manage to keep the laughter bubbling up again in my throat down. "I'm surprised you even spoke up."

"Please don't hurt me." She cries out softly, tears streaming from her cheeks as her breathes grow shakier and shakier.

I come closer as she tries to twist away, amused by all the eyes on me that refuse to even try and help. She tries to twist away, but she isn't in a corner that would allow her to try and get away, and even then that would not help for long. I get down on one knee in front of her, reaching towards her and using my thumb to brush one of her tears away.

She freezes, staring at me with wide, terrified eyes as I whisper with the sweetest smile I can muster, "Didn't you hear me? I won't be the one to decide that." I suppose I could just reveal how this game will be working to them now. After all, I will be soon enough. But what can I say? I have a flair for the dramatics, especially in these games.

I pull my hand away, chuckling once more as I move on to the next person: Juleka Couffaine. She does not speak, just staring at me from the corner with her one, visible, copper eye. Her pale lavender lipstick is smudged and her intricate nail polish is chipped, but the black-and-violet haired girl does not seem to mind. She just continues to stare at me, and it's rather disconcerting. It's not a frightened look, which I was expecting to receive. No, her staring is more confused and curious, with only the slightest bit of apprehension.

I don't like her lack of fear. We will have to fix that.

I bend down, getting as close to her face as I can, which just seems to make her uncomfortable, not afraid. "Are you ready to play a game, Juleka?" She simply shakes her head, but it still has no fear in it. I have to resist the urge the grab her throat and squeeze it as I bash her head against a wall. How is she not afraid of me? "You're not afraid of me?" I force myself to calm down. Her lack of anger is disturbing, yes, but it can be dealt with. Besides, it is almost curious. We will have to see what is making her so resilient as my little game continues. I stand up, taking her arm as I do - which is more like yanking it further than her short chain will allow, which seems to be somewhat painful for her while definitely giving me slight satisfaction - and tracing an X on the back of it with my thumb. "You should be afraid of me. I suggest that you change that and soon, or else we'll be having quite a fun time later."

I drop her hand, which she pulls up against her chest as I once again move on to examine my next player. This one seems to have completely given up any attempt to put on a brave front for even a second, and instead looks like she's going to cry as I look her over. In fact, she's already covered her face in her hands, so that I can't see her sea green eyes at all to sense just how stressed she is. I have already stolen her white headband, so her orange hair isn't held back in any way.

"How about you, Sabrina Raincomprix?" I ask, squatting down in front of her and prodding her in the arm, which causes her to attempt to jerk away. "How do you feel about being a part of my game?"

I don't get any verbal response, but her whimper is almost as satisfying. Shaking my head and grinning, I carefully pry her hands off her face, causing her to cry out as she squeezes her eyes shut.

"Stop it! Why are you doing that to her? Can't you see that she's terrified?" This new voice that joins the fray catches me by surprise, although despite it's attempt to sound courageous and bold, I detect the fear laced just below the surface. I've grown quite good at doing that. "Leave her be!"

"What was that?" I ask, keeping my smile on my face as I snatch Sabrina's glasses off her face and then stand up once again.

"I said that you should leave her alone." The voice is shaky now, seeming much less confident as I turn to look at her in her corner.

It's amusing, watching her as she tries to keep herself from scrambling into her corner in fear. Of course, she's already pretty far back. Like Alix, I had to chain her hands above her head due to the fight she tried to put up. I suppose I should have expected nothing less from the legendary and persistent Ladyblogger, Alya Césaire.

"Alya," I comment as I smash Sabrina's glasses in my hand, causing the brunette's one hand to try and reach towards her glasses, almost as if to try and protec them, "I don't take kindly to being told what to do. You must be very brave to think that you would be any sort of exception, especially down here." My smile morphs into a sneer as I shove the glasses in my hands into my pocket alongside the first pair I took. "Or perhaps...foolish?" Her fear mingles with rage as she struggles against her bonds, probably wishing to inflict some pain upon me. I'd like to see her try. "I'd be more careful, or else my control might slip before it's time for it to do so. And trust me, no one wants to see that."

I leaver her glasses on, deciding that she will be more interesting without me stealing those away. As I move on to the next person, she tries to regain my attention. "What's the point of all of this?" She's practically screams the words, and I am sure if I turned I would see her lunging towards me.

My next player sits quietly, seeming quite composed for what he has gone through. Despite how he appears, he was relatively hard to catch, but that was because he was more resourceful than the others. More creative. I did not, however, chain his hands above his head. Instead, I chained him by his waist, limiting his room even more so than chaining his hands would have done. Like Juleka, his hair somewhat covers his eyes, but unlike with her, it's not enough for me to be unable to see either of them. His turquoise eyes look almost defeated, as if he has accepted what is to come and is just waiting for the inevitable. It's not a common response to these sort of things, and unlike with other uncommon responses, it actually intrigues me. I can feel my smile shift to a curious frown as I look him over again.

I hope that this Nathaniel Kurtzberg is one of the unlucky ones. I'd love to tear him apart and see what makes him tick so differently from the rest. Him and Juleka both.

I don't even bother to speak to him, deciding that this first reaction is good enough without speaking to him. I don't want to ruin his uniqueness, as I tried to do with Juleka. His is different. Less infuriating and more intriguing. I like that a lot, and so I will leave him be. His reactions will be very interesting to see. All of them will be. I can't wait to see them all fall apart, whether it be physically or mentally. This is why I love and treasure my game so much.

It's quite special. That's why no one can understand it.

I move on, quite pleased with that one. This next one, however, is completely different. She is the youngest out of all of them, this Manon Chamack. I have pulled her dark brown hair out of her signature ponytails, because she is old enough not to wear her hair like that anymore. Besides, if she wants them like that, then I don't purely on principle. I want to see her break, and that won't happen as quickly as I would like if she is in her comfort zone. She is quite short, and was quite easy to overpower, easier than every other person in here. This, of course, has to do with her age. She was weak and naive, and she still is. Still, she was ruthless as I tried to drag her inside, not that counted for much since she had no power to do anything with. Still, it amused me greatly. She is one of the youngest players I have had, if not the youngest. It will be very interesting to see how my young doll will change things. I might have chosen her even if I was not targeting people who knew each other. It is always interesting to have those younger and more vulnerable, because the others try so hard to protect that one little one, even if it costs them.

However, I always choose people who know each other now. I quickly learned that those who did not know each other did not make quite as good players. Their emotions were subdued. Their pain less raw. Their attempts less vivid. They were less careful, and it got boring far too quickly. I got impatient. I would lose control. It was less calculated, more risky, and more of a nuisance than a game.

However, I have learned and grown, and I am quite pleased with my developments. I have become an expert at this game.

"Manon," I croon, looking at the little girl before me, "are you-"

"Stop!" She screams before I can even finish, pushing against her binding in an attempt to cover her ears.

"Oh, little one," I say, kneeling down in front of her and snickering as her lip quivers, "would you please be a doll and not interrupt me. I get very testy when I'm not allowed to finish what I'm saying."

I'm not sure why that sets her off, but I'll take it. She throws her head back in a howl mixed with a sob as tears begin to run down her face. My smile grows, watching this distressed child writhe as if she is in physical pain. She cries out wordlessly, looking desperate for some sort of savior. Of course she will not be getting one, not yet at least. Even then, the chances are slim. The game is rigged so that it is hard to win. After all, where would the fun be if people were always winning? There would be practically nothing it for me. But with the way I play, there is almost never a victor, besides myself. I make sure of that.

I laugh again at the young girl's misery, resisting the urge to try to do anything to extreme to provoke anything more. I will save that for later. "Why, my dear, whatever is the matter?"

She nearly slams her head off of the wall as she waves about, trying to find some way to get away. "I want to go home!" Her cries are almost pitiful, probably arousing sympathy from those around her. I, however, view it as pathetic. Amusing, yes, but still pathetic none the less.

I open my mouth to continue, but before I can, my last player in this court decides to finally speak up. "Why are you doing this?"

I'm rather surprised that it took so long. If I expected to provoke someone sooner, I would have placed my bet on him, so I am curious to know what made this encounter any different than the others in his mind. Or maybe this was just the final straw in his mind. Either way, it is intriguing. I am quite proud to have gotten him. He was the one I had to plot the most to catch.

And then, of course, I found out his juicy little secret. That pleased me the most out of everything else. Playing a game with someone as powerful as him? Now that was something that would make it so interesting, especially when I found the match to his card. It was why I made sure to knock him out so quickly and get him last, so that I had had practice. Not to mention make sure his ring was confiscated so soon. I couldn't risk him trying anything funny before this encounter, and the knowledge that my game was not going to be ruined was more important than the satisfaction of his reaction as I ripped the ring off his finger. Some time I will bring it down and twirl it around between his fingers to see what he thinks, but now is not that time. For now, we will play the same way I have played with everyone else.

"Why, Adrien Agreste!" I declare as if I'm saying hello to an old chum of mine, spinning on my heels to look at the boy with the golden hair and personality. "Whatever brings you into the conversation? Trying to play hero?"

He doesn't seem amused by my puns. Funny, out of everyone here, I thought he would have appreciated them most. Oh well, I suppose he's just going to be quite the party pooper. "Why are you doing this to us? Stop dancing around the subject and tell us."

"You tell him, Adrien!" Alya shouts, sounding as if she's so proud of him. He's not doing much, so I don't see why. All he's really doing is risking getting his skull bashed in for a few snarky comments. Thankfully, I have control right now, so I will play fair. I have rules as well. I am not completely ruthless.

Not yet, anyways.

So, I decide to ignore the reporter - who is also begging to have her brains bashed on the floor for everyone to see - and instead let my lips quirk upwards as I look at the model boy before me, with his green eyes focused on me. He also does not seem at all interested in sparing Alya even a second to look at her and show that he appreciates her encouragement. I'm not sure if this is because he does not appreciate it, or if he does not feel safe doing so. Either way, he keeps his eyes locked on me.

Shaking my head, I declare, "I am not dancing around the subject in any way. Perhaps you are not asking correctly?" I quite an eyebrow with the question, leaning forward ever so slightly.

From his corner he glares, apparently still unamused. I can't imagine why that would be. I like to think of myself as quite funny, so he must have no sense of humor beyond his own puns. How rude of him to be so narcissistic! "Stop playing games and just tell us! You don't seem intent on getting along with the job, so what purpose are we serving? You've been cryptic enough, now give us something!"

He sounds quite impatient. I click my tongue condescendingly, shaking my head while wagging a finger at him. "Now now, Adrien, is that any way to ask for something you want? Tsk tsk. And here I was thinking Gabriel would have taught his son some manners in that big, expensive, lonely," I pause on that word, seeing Adrien tense up even more, if that's even possible, "mansion." I finish, looking at the frozen boy before me. Then I kneel down beside him, getting up close to his ear without any movement from him. After a moment, I whisper into his ear, "What, Chat got your tongue?"

That does it. I hear the chains clang as he tries to lunge at me, and pull back before he can smack his head against mine. I laugh, perhaps a bit harder, as I stand up to see him glaring at me once again.

"My my my, so the cat really does have claws to match its bite. What a pleasant surprise!" It really is. I can already tell that this game will be one of my favorites, yet we have barely even begun. "Now, if you would like me to answer your question, perhaps try to ask me again. Nicely." There's only a small hint of menace in my voice.

Now he looks worn out. Still angry, but too tired to continue to try and wear me down. "Psychopath." He mutters, before raising his voice and asking in a very unamused voice, "Will you please be ever so kind and explain to us what exactly is going on?"

I grin, counting this as a personal victory against the hero. Who knew he could break - even if it is merely a crack that he could probably quickly mend, if I give him enough time to recover - so quickly? My game must be very successful, or he must be very weak. Perhaps both? "Why of course, my little Agreste! Why didn't you ask sooner?" He growls, but I ignore it, making my way back to the center of the room to make sure I have their full attention. "You are probably wondering why I have brought you all here."

"Cut the crap and get on with it." This time the comment comes from Alix. I snicker and give her a wink, which causes her to mime committing. She is lucky that this is the first day. I lose more and more control as the game continues. If she were to do something like that later? Well, there would be consequences. She would not die yet, of course. That would be breaking my rules.

But that does not mean that she can't suffer a bit in the process.

"My, what a tough crowd. But fine, I will try and tone down the dramatics." I pronounce, acting as if I have been wounded. In truth, that is a reaction I normally receive. I can't imagine why. "You have been lucky enough to be chosen as the next players in my lovely little game." I pause for dramatic effect, despite my comment, and catch the fact that Max is muttering the statistics of being chosen under his breath. It's annoying, but I make no comment on it as I move on. "Each of you has been paired with a player in my other set of nine. You will have little control in what happens in our game. That could prove to be advantageous or disastrous. It really depends on your luck." I chuckle, glancing at Adrien, who still seems unamused. Hm, perhaps a joke about being lucky is not amusing to a black cat? Again, I can't seem to think of a reason for why that could be. "Either way, each of those nine people will be given a challenge from yours truly. I have made each in hopes that they will challenge each of your friends personally. Their success is vital for you, if you would like to continue onwards. For you see, each time one of them fails to do as I instruct, whichever one of you I have assigned them will die."

That has the attended affect. There is screaming, sobbing, shouting, yelling, howling, and the rattling of chains. I can feel the despair, misery, rage, pain, fear, and confusion whirl around me. It's truly exhilarating. Just that one sentence was enough to whip them all up into an emotional frenzy as they all try to free themselves, as if this will do them any good. It amuses me to no end, and I begin to laugh, clutching my stomach as I hunch over. This shuts them all up. The room goes silent as I continue to laugh for a good minute more, maybe two. Finally I lift myself back up to my full height, still laughing. This group has been incredibly satisfying for a first day. We haven't even begun the challenges yet! Will the other group be this fun? I will not know them as personally, but I will still be able to play with them. Theirs is the far more direct game, after all. Their damage is much different, perhaps even more permanent. They will be scarred much more permanently, perhaps because they cannot die but also must not be allowed to live unscathed.

"Does the thought of us dying because of you amuse you?" Alya demands, but she jerks back in fear at how fast I turn my attention to her.

I wipe a tear from my eye, still not fully recovered from my bout of laughter. "Why yes, Alya, it does. Why else would I be so eager to play this game once more? You are not my first group to play this game. You will certainly not be the last. But for now, we will enjoy our time together." I take another shaky breathe, almost laughing again when I remember their reaction. "Yes, the idea of killing you amuses me greatly. But the thought of the deaths your friends will experience, deaths that will be far less physical, amuses me even more so. I am quite pleased that I chose your group." I turn away from them all, heading for the door. "And on that note, I will take my leave."

As I step outside and go to shut the door, the room whips up into a frenzy again, causing me to chuckle as I finish shutting the door. Then I lock it up tight, before making my way back to the ladder. Yes, that experience was quite satisfactory. It went even better than I could have hoped for. How was that even possible? These games seemed to get better and better as they went. I'm quite sure that this will be my best one yet. Sure, I had the odd one here or there that was a flunk, but those were far and few between. I was quite sure that this one would be a success, based on those reactions alone. Perhaps the other group would prove me otherwise, but based on my studying, I highly doubted it.

Now to get upstairs and turn on my speaker. After all, listening to terrified people always helps me write important letters to important players.

Oh my gosh, this chapter has been a rollercoaster to write. I've been working on it for at least a week since I got the idea, and I have to admit I'm not sure how this idea will go. I have mapped out the whole story, and it is not pleasant at all, but I am excited none the less. I hate the Gamemaker immensely as a person, but while I won't say writing him is fun, I will say that it is very interesting. I don't think I have ever written a character who is quite as twisted, so it is interesting to experiment with this and such a twisted and dark concept. I'm not sure if this will scare people away, but I hope that even if a few of you read this, you will be interested and keep coming back.

Anyways, what did you guys think of it as an introduction chapter? Was it good? Bad? It was long, far longer than I intended for it to be, but I hope that is a good thing, as I would like to work to make my updates longer anyways. Hopefully this will set a good bar for me to aim for with the following chapters. What are your thoughts on the Gamemaker? Did I do a good job with them? What do you think of the characters selected for this half of the game? Who do you think will be the other nine characters that will be determining their fates? Any guesses on who might be paired with who?

I'm very excited to experiment with this plot, even if it's going to be a bit more messed up than what I usually try to write. Hopefully you guys are too! While not necessary, if you guys did enjoy this, please favorite, review, and/or follow this story! Your support means a lot to me, and it's always nice to see something that lets me know I am actually writing this for someone, and not just to let it collect dust on here.

Now, I'll move on. I have several one-shot ideas bouncing around in my mind, as well as one other new story I would like to add on here (I am restricting myself to only three unfinished stories at a time in this fandom) and an update for Strings, Knots, and Laces. But summer is coming, which means way more updates with less time in between! Hurray! :D

Stay tuned until next time!

~ Dagger