Here's the second one shot! Enjoy!
Disclaimer in first chapter!
WARNING: GORE, BLOOD, VIOLENCE, not for the faint at heart; this is a Horror-ish story, my very first one, be kind to me ;w;
Rating: M!
The Maze
Stephanie is kidnapped, one Halloween night, and must escape her prison, or else death awaits her...
Stephanie let out a gasp of agony, turning on her side and clutching at her stomach, her eyes fluttering opening. She closed her eyes and waited as the waves of pain subsided. When they did, she sat up, opening her eyes again, and looked around at her surroundings. She was in a bare room, made of grey concrete and stone. The only light came from the bare blub that flickered dimly, swinging in the air from wind that Stephanie couldn't see. There was a metal door on one of the doors , which hopefully would lead to an exit. The thing that worried Stephanie the most was that she didn't have her purse, which meant no cell phone, which meant she couldn't call Ranger. She also noted that she didn't have her panic button, which meant she was alone, no one would find her.
Stephanie got up onto unsteady feet, and stumbled over to the metal door. She wondered how'd she got into this situation. She hadn't had any stalkers in the past few weeks, nor was she bounty hunting, she gave that up and was now working full time for Ranger at Rangeman. She had gotten home from work, and had planned to relax this Halloween, shucking off all the invites to Halloween parties and events, she had really wanted some sleep. She had just opened the door to her apartment and then she had felt pain in her stomach, and that was all she could remember, before she passed out.
Stephanie let out a gasp, lifting her black Rangman shirt up and winced. In the dim lighting, she could see a black bruise forming on her stomach; someone punched the shit out of her. It had been so sudden too…
Stephanie placed a gentle hand on her stomach and then grabbed the doorknob of the metal door and pulled it open, wincing at the loud screech it emitted as she did. She hoped her kidnapper didn't hear it. Stephanie stuck her head out and looked out, finding that the door led into a hallway which was lit with bare blubs hanging from the ceiling, swaying gently in the air. The hallway was dank and made of the same stone and concrete that the room was made of. Where in the hell was she?
Stephanie stepped out into the hallway and began to walk down the hallway, hoping to make her way out of this place. As she walked down the hallway, she noticed that there were metal doors situated along the walls, the same metal door that she had to open, though some of them had windows looking into them. Stephanie could hear something inside of her telling her not to look, but, she had to look, to find out what was going on.
Stephanie walked up to one of the windowed doors, and peered inside. The room behind the metal door looked the same as the one she woke up in, though the light in this room seemed to be on the fritz, blinking on and off. Stephanie tried the doorknob, but found it locked, which could be an ominous sign. Stephanie looked down at the doorknob, and looked again, only to scream in horror as a face peered back at her through the window. Stephanie scrambled away from the door, her back pressed to the hallway wall. Stephanie's eyes widen in horror as the person in the room began to yell and scream, pounding on the window of the metal door, smudging blood on the window. Stephanie turned and ran down the hallway, she didn't want to stay in this area any longer. Stephanie let out a sound, seeing an archway that led out of the hallway, she would be out of this hell hole soon. Stephanie was one step away from the exit, when the floor gave way and she was falling. The sudden loss of floor didn't give time for Stephanie to prepare for it, so the shock came after she landed onto the cold stone floor. Stephanie let out a groan, sitting up and looking up. She fell about three floors down in this god forsaken area, into a bare stone room.
Stephanie turned her head up at the hole she fell in, hearing footsteps. A hulking figure was looking down at her, rubbing its chin as though they were thinking. The figure shrugged their shoulders and said, in a voice that sounded like it hadn't been used in ages, "It seems, you fell for one of my traps, not to worry, I'll be down to get you soon, my dear, we wouldn't want you to go waste now, hmm?"
"What do you mean?!" Stephanie asked, looking up at the person, "Was it you who kidnapped me?!"
"Hush now, you don't need to know everything, all you need to know is that you'll be part of a bigger thing soon." The person said, before walking away from the hole, "Hopefully, you'll survive by the time I get to you, I fear some of my pets have escaped and are roaming around the maze…."
Stephanie clutched at her chest, her eyes wide, she had to find a way out of this place or else she would be killed! Stephanie looked around in the dimly lit area and found an archway leading out of the room. Stephanie ran over to the door and found herself in a hallway, more fucking hallways. Stephanie ran down the hallway and paused in the archway that led into another hallway, but this hallway was filled with more archways that led into more hallways. It had Stephanie's mind reeling from it all, how was she supposed to escape this place?!
Stephanie ran into one archway, hoping to find a way out of this place, hoping she wouldn't get lost.
(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)
Stephanie was lost, no doubt about it, it felt as though she had been running around in circles for hours. Stephanie let out a pained breath, leaning against the wall of the hallway she was in. no wonder the person called this place a maze, where did the next hallway end, and the next one began? How long would it be before she was found, and possibly killed? She really wanted Ranger now, he knew what to do in this situation. They were just getting along in their relationship, maybe now, they would never progress further because she would be killed before he found her.
Stephanie let out one last breath and stood up, walking down the hallway she was in. She paused, her eyes wide with terror. She hadn't seen this while she was resting, where did this come from?! Stephanie took a step back, away from the hulking creature in front of her. it looked human, maybe it had been human, at one point. It was hunched over, dragging its arms along the floor, said arms were elongated and instead of fingers, it had talons that looked sharp enough to shred her to pieces. It was flesh colored, so the possibility that it had once been a human being is high. Its face seemed to have been melted away, leaving nothing but a gash for a mouth, and said mouth was full of razor sharp teeth. Stephanie covered her mouth and took another step back, her feet sliding against the stone floor. Stephanie paused as the creature turned its head to where she stood, as if it heard her feet slid against the ground. She watched as the creature lumbered over to her, hissing and making noises from its mouth.
Stephanie closed her eyes, turned and ran down the hall, blocking out the roar the creature let out. She didn't have to see that it was chasing her, she could hear it, sprinting towards her, making loud noises as it got closer to her. She didn't know where she could run to, she was lost, and the creature, thing, whatever it was, could hear her footsteps, she was going to die, oh shit, she was going to-
Stephanie let out a startled yelp as an arm shot out and pulled her into an alcove that was hidden in the hallway. She tried to scream out, but a hand clamped over her mouth and a voice whispered in her ear, "Shush, that thing will catch us if you scream."
Stephanie nodded her head, and closed her eyes, as the creature went barreling past their . When the creatures footsteps couldn't be heard any longer, Stephanie let out a sigh of relief, sagging into the body behind her and then she promptly turned around to see her savior, which caused her to gape in surprise.
"Diesel!" Stephanie said softly, looking at the man, who nodded his head, a small smile on his face, "What the fuck are you doing here?"
"Personal," Diesel said, looking out into the hallway, "I would ask the same for you, but I have a feeling, you didn't come willingly."
"Yeah, I was knocked out and then I woke up in this room, and…this person, and a trap, oh my god, you don't know how glad I am to see someone I know," Stephanie said, hugging herself, "Wait, are you lost in this maze too?"
"I am," Diesel said, turning back to Stephanie, "But, I'm willingly lost, the person who created this 'Maze,' took a friend of mine, and I'm here to get them."
Diesel grabbed onto Stephanie's shoulders and said, "But, I'm going to get you out of here, I know of an exit, if you can get out, I'll give you my phone and you call Ranger, I have to find my friend, no matter what."
"Okay, wait," Stephanie started, as they ran down the hallway, "You know Ranger?"
"I sure do, I know a lot of people, but, contact Ranger, he knows what to do in this situation." Diesel said as they cut into another hallway, "I have to find my friend and get us all out of here by sunrise tomorrow, or else, we're going to be stuck here, forever."
"What are you talking about?" Stephanie asked, looking over to Diesel who stopped them both, "What happens at sunrise?"
"This isn't a place that should be here," Diesel said, leading Stephanie down a narrow hallway, "It's supposed to be somewhere else, but on certain times of the year, it can…appear. I have to find my friend because something bad will happen if they're not found."
Diesel grabbed Stephanie's hand and led her through many twists and turns, they seemed to be walking for hours in this maze. With each turn, Stephanie could see Diesel's eyes harden with rage. Who had that person taken that meant so much to Diesel?
"There," Diesel said softly, as the two ran up to a blank wall, "Here's the exit, take it, Stephanie and call Ranger, he'll be here soon, the moment you call him."
Diesel placed a black phone in Stephanie's hand. He gave Stephanie a smile and said, "I don't know what he wanted with you, but he won't get you."
"Ah-ah, you pesky Unmentionable, that's where you're wrong," A voice said, causing Diesel and Stephanie to turn, "You must be a fool, to think that I didn't know how you got into my maze, now, you must pay the price for entering the Maze."
Diesel pulled Stephanie behind him, growling low in his throat as the same hulking person melted out of the stone walls, and along with him, several creatures, like the one that had chased Stephanie down. Stephanie took a step back, only to cry out in terror as hands wrapped around her waist, pulling into the stone wall. Diesel turned and shouted, "Stephanie!" just as the creatures let out roars and charged at Diesel.
(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)
Stephanie let out a grunt as she was dragged down another dimly lit hallway made of stone. It was all the same, the same stone, the same lights, everything, like a fucking maze, though, this time, the walls seemed to be covered in symbols written in blood, the metallic smell coming from the walls told Stephanie that the symbols had just been written.
"Where are you taking me?" Stephanie demanded from the creature that was leading her down the hallway, "Tell me damn it!"
The creature didn't make a sound, dragging Stephanie into an open room, instead, it led Stephanie over to a wall, and shackled her in the manacles that hung high on the wall. Stephanie wrinkled her nose, the stench of fresh blood strong in this room, though, it had her wondering, where the hell it was coming from. Stephanie turned her head slowly, hearing weak sobs coming from across the room. The sight she saw had her eyes widening in terror.
A woman was in the room with her, her arms shackled above her head, said head lolled forward, making it so that long black hair that was matted and dirtied hid her face. She was naked, dirty and looked as though she had been dragged through the grinder, strips of skin clung to her body by only thin connective tissues, her body was littered with cuts, which steadily bled away, draining into a stone basin that rested at her feet so that the blood could pool in it. it wasn't the cuts or scraps of skin that hung off her body that had Stephanie whimpering in horror. No, it was the gaping hole that was close to her left breast, where the woman's heart should be, that had Stephanie's eyes wide. How was this woman still alive?!
"What….how?!" Stephanie whimpered, looking at the woman's chest heave with agony, "Who did this?!"
"Please…." The woman whimpered, lifting her head up weakly, "Please…end my suffering, kill me…please kill me…"
Stephanie let out a scream of horror, looking into the empty, bloody eye sockets of the woman, what kind of place was this?!
"Please…kill me…please, end this agony," The woman said, turning her head to Stephanie's face, "Please…"
"Now, now," Stephanie turned away from the woman, seeing the person walk into the open room, a pair of monsters following behind me, "We can't kill you, my dear, if you die, then this will all be for naught!"
"Diesel!" Stephanie yelped as the pair of creatures tossed Diesel's prone body into the middle of the room, "Diesel, are you okay?"
"Good, never better," Diesel coughed, sitting up and looking over to Stephanie, before he turned to the other woman in the room. Diesel's eyes widen with horror and he whimpered, "Heidi…Heidi…what did he do to you, Heidi?!"
Diesel got up on his feet, and Stephanie noticed that he was trembling violently, his right arm hugging his stomach, just like her, when she woke up, what happened to him? Stephanie's eyes widen as she watched as blood dripped from Diesel's right hand, oozing in between clenched fingers, "Diesel…you're bleeding…"
"I'll be fine, just a nasty cut from one of those creatures," Diesel insisted, coughing again, this time blooding dripping from his lips, "But this fucker," Diesel turned to the person standing in the middle of the doorway, "This fucker is dead!"
"Mhmm, so you say," The person said walking over to the woman, who slumped forward again, "Ah, yes, soon, soon it'll be me free and you trapped in this maze, forever stuck between the worlds, yearning for freedom, so close, but never able to reach it…"
Stephanie looked over to Diesel, who wiped the blood from his mouth, "Hmm, so, that's what you're doing, you're shifting the foundation of the maze, so that Heidi's heart is tied to it, instead of yours, that way she'll become the maze master, but, why take her eyes?"
"Because, she'll wonder around, blindly, and never be able to find her way to the foundation, to the middle of the Maze, she'll never have the chance to trap me again." The person said, jerking Heidi's head up by her hair, before he turned to look at Stephanie, who glared back at him, "And all that's needed is the death of a human with a nice pure soul, a soul just like yours."
"Well, you better hurry up with your goal," Diesel said, looking down at his watch, "It's already four in the morning, and sunrise happens in a few hours, we'll all be stuck here if you're not quick."
The person made a hand motion, causing the creatures to grab Diesel and chain him to the wall beside Stephanie. Stephanie turned to Diesel and asked, "Diesel?"
The person turned to Heidi once more and stooped down, picking up the basin full of blood. He walked over to the middle of the floor and placed the basin down. His hands flew to the black robe he wore, and pulled out a heart, which was still beating. Smiling the person turned to Diesel and Stephanie and said, "Soon, I'll be free," before dropping the heart into the basin, "And soon, I'll bring destruction and death to this world!"
Stephanie watched with horror as the basin began to glow an eerie blood red, smoke puffing out of it. The symbols that were painted on the wall began to glow red, and the injured woman twisted and wither in her manacles, crying out in agony. The open chest wound she had started to smoke and fizzle around the edge, seemingly mending itself until there was nothing but smooth milk chocolate skin.
"Hmm, yes, yes, the pain, it's agony, isn't it," The person said, before he took out a dagger and made his way over to Stephanie, who let out a cry of pain, as her head was jerked back, exposing her neck, "And now, all I need is your death, and my heart will be free for me to take, and I'll be free, once again."
It all happened at once, the person raised his arm and brought the sharp tip of the blade down, right at Stephanie's jugular. Stephanie was sure she'd be dead, she was sure of it, but a loud crack filled the air, and Stephanie opened her eyes, to watch as the blade of the dagger crumbled into a million pieces, glittering in the dim red light as they fell to the ground. The person stumbled back in shock, looking at the dagger's hilt, "What?! What is this-"
Stephanie turned hearing Diesel chuckle softly, before he tilted his head back and began to laugh loudly. The injured woman began to laugh as well, tossing her head back and laughing cruelly. The woman stopped laughing and said, in a low voice, that was full of power, "You…fool! Did you not think I would have known about your little plan to free yourself?"
"What did you do, you bitch!" The person swore, turning to the woman chained to wall, "What did you do?!"
"It's simple…" The woman said, nodding her head towards the direction of the basin, "That wasn't my heart you took from my chest and used during the ritual…"
"It was mine," Diesel said softly, looking up at the person , "You used a demon's heart, instead of the god's heart, and now, this place will fall to ashes."
The woman named Heidi laughed once more, before she snapped the manacles off her wrist, freeing herself with ease. The person fell back with horror and said, "How did you escape so easily?!"
"It's simple, fool, I let you catch me, and torture me, until you deemed it safe for you to use the same ritual I used on you to bind you to the Maze." Heidi sighed, walking past the man and over to Diesel, as if she hadn't been blinded, "And all along, the god heart you've wanted for so long, resided in my lover's chest."
Heidi placed her hand on Diesel's chest and said, "And now that you've used the wrong heart, you've tainted the original ritual, and now, the boundary that the maze lies on shall be closed forever. It's time for us to go, darling."
"No!" The person roared, rounding on Heidi, who helped Diesel and Stephanie out of their shackles, "I will get out of this hell, I will escape to the outside world, pets! Kill this bitch! Kill them all!"
The creatures let out loud roars, and charged at the trio, but Heidi stopped them with a flick of her hand, causing the monsters to be engulfed in flames. Stephanie let out a yelp as the floors began to crack, the stone walls began to tremble and buckle around them. Diesel grabbed Stephanie's arm, to prevent her from falling.
"Looks like sunrise is coming, and the Maze is falling apart," Heidi said, accepting the bloodied flannel shirt Diesel took off, "Come along, we have to get out of here."
Heidi turned to the person, who stood dumbstruck in the crumbling room, "You should have just accepted your fate as the Master of Maze, now your fate will be doomed."
(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)
Stephanie let out a sound of happiness, as her feet touched the floor of the forest, and the crisp fall air bit at her face. She had never been so happy to be in the woods before. The sun was rising in the sky, flitering through the bare trees, shining down on them. Diesel leaned against a tree, holding his wound tightly, while Heidi leaned against him.
"Ranger will be here soon," Diesel said wrapping an arm around Heidi, "I'm so sorry, Stephanie that you had to be a part of this, we thought he would go after Ranger, he has a pure soul that would have worked for the ritual as well."
"Who was that?" Stephanie asked, looking over to the two, "What was all of that!?"
"That was the Maze, a defense mechanism that prevents belligerent creatures and spirits from entering different worlds and destroying them," Heidi said, turning her head to Stephanie, "And that person who did all of this, was the Master of the Maze, a god who tried to destroy this world. I trapped him and his creatures in the maze, tying his heart to the foundation of the maze, preventing him from leaving the maze."
"And those creatures?" Stephanie asked wrapping her arms around herself.
"Creatures and humans who had been kidnapped and transformed into monsters, protection for the maze," Diesel said walking over to Stephanie, "Don't worry about it, Stephanie, when you wake up, you'll think it was all a bad dream."
"What-?" Stephanie wondered out loud, before Diesel gently applied pressure to her neck, causing her vision to turn black, and to falling into his arms, out cold. Diesel placed Stephanie on the ground and went back over to Heidi, who collapsed in his arms.
"Come on, I have to go get you to the healers, before you pass out on me," Diesel said, picking Heidi up bridal style, "What about your eyes, Heidi, they're in the rubble of the Maze, stuck there, forever."
"It's alright, I'll make do with what I have," Heidi sighed, before she leaned her head against Diesel's shoulder, "Let's just go home, I hope you can handle having half a god's heart, Diesel, I'm afraid your heart has been destroyed in the maze..."
(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)
"S….Stephanie…Stephanie…"
"Babe….can you hear me….?"
Stephanie let out a moan, leaning into the hand that caressed her face. She must be in a hospital,she could smell the sterile scent that hospitals had and she could hear the steady beeps from the heart monitor. She cracked open her eye and sighed, see Ranger looming above her, his face etched with worry, "Ranger…you came for me….Diesel was right…oh no, Diesel!"
Stephanie tried to sit up, but Ranger gently gripped her shoulders, preventing her from getting up, "Babe, calm down, Diesel? Is that the person who kidnapped you and tossed you in the woods?"
"Tossed me in the woods?" Stephanie echoed, before she shook her head, "No! I was some kind of sacrifice in this huge maze, and Diesel was there, and this woman, they saved me, they saved us all from this crazy man who tried to-"
"Babe, you weren't found in a maze, you were found out in the woods, injured and dehydrated." Ranger said, before he hugged Stephanie tightly, "We couldn't find you, your trackers went haywire and by the time we got to your apartment, you were so far away, you know, we found you in the woods, somewhere in Canada."
"Canada!" Stephanie yelped, looking up at Ranger, "I was in Canada? But…didn't you see the Maze ruins, I was there, I swear I was!"
"It's alright, Stephanie, you just had a bad dream," Ranger said, petting Stephanie's hair, "I'm never letting you out of my sight again, I want you to move in with me, it's about time we deepen our relationship anyways."
Stephanie looked away from Carlos, "Okay, let's move in together, but….that place, that place was real, or….maybe it really had been a dream."
"You're safe now," Ranger said softly, before he laid Stephanie down and said, "I'll call Ella, and tell her to bring some breakfast. Go and get some rest."
"Okay," Stephanie said with a smile, lying back down, "Ranger? I love you."
"I love you too, Babe," Ranger said with a small smile, before he left Stephanie's hospital room. He pulled out his phone and pressed 0 on the number pad that resided on the phone's screen. Moments later someone picked up with a sleepy, "Yes?"
"She's safe, thanks man," Ranger said softly, smiling at the way the other person chuckled on the phone.
"Good, Ranger, take care of her, she's like a magnet for trouble, but she doesn't have to worry about something like that again, she's safe."
"Glad to know that, Diesel," Ranger said, "Alright, say Hi to Heidi for me, and tell her to rest before she's up and running again."
"I will, smell ya later," Diesel said before hanging up on Ranger.
Ranger smiled softly, before calling Ella, maybe they'll have chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast….
END!
(Well, there had to be at least one horror story in this group! What did you think about it? Reviews are loved, I love your feedback!)
Oh! someone asked how I came up with the name Fabio, from the first one shot. I was looking for Spanish names on the internet, and this one popped up, so I used it!
