Meanwhile…

" Unbelievable… " Noah reacts,shocked and traumatized.

" This is… disgusting. " Bridgette speaks next.

" Who could do something like that ?! " Courtney follows the others.

" Guys ! I found a small butterfly. It was so beautiful… What's going on ? Did someone crash a cat or… AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH ! "

In front of them stands a tall totem. But the most shocking wasn't the faces sculpted on the totem. The real reason of the disgust of our candidates is that someone was tied on the totem,upside-down. But he wasn't tied only : despite being tied all over his body,only his head was spared from the ropes. But the most disgusting feature was what was done to his face : his face was full of scars,his tongue was ripped off,as they cansee with his widely open mouth,his eyes are missing and his ears are totally cut off his flesh. Plus,his ribs are going down to the floor,sliding on the bloody ropes.

Leshawna,who is sick of it,pukes on the floor while Beth sits on the floor and cries on herself.

" We really need to get out of here… " Noah says. Before an unwelcome voice interrupts the sequence.

" You found the Chief ! " Max shouts all of a sudden. " Yeah. Sorry for the scene but he was blocking my view so… I kinda fixed him up. "

" Is that what you're calling fixing someone up ?! " Duncan blames angrily the small creature.

" Yeah,we don't have the same definition. But that's not the point. Don't worry, please get to your bedrooms and let me… take care of that guy. " He says that while lying on the totem. Everyone,ill-at-ease,unwillingly heads to their bedrooms.

" I can't keep going anymore… I need to leave this shithole ! " Duncan fumbles.

" Calm down,dude. " Geoff interferes. " If we keep thinking like that,that will force us to kill each other and satisfy this maniac. "

" You're right ! He wants me to kill ?! Over my dead body. "

" That must be the hotel. " Noah says,pointing at a big area where stands a giant building with small cabans separated by tall fences.

" Those aren't bedroom. Those are cottages ! " Courtney corrects.

" This Max dude is a dumbass ! " Harold comments jokingly.

" So those are the cottages,and the taller building is the hotel. We'd better remind that for the next time. "

" For now,we should head to the cottages… What ? " Suddenly,Noah stops talking as he spots,on the door of a cottage… a picture of himself. " That's me. "

" And that's me over there. " Bridgette notices,going further.

" Oh. That's me. I'm pretty stylish with this face ! " Harold notices proudly.

" So that means… This asshole already chose where we would sleep ? " Gwen conludes.

" At least he has already planned everything. " Trent says.

" In that case… Everyone get in your cottage. " And so does everyone.

At the moment Noah enters in his cottage,the first thing he notices is the big bookshelf lying on the wall next to the majestuous bed. The young man instinctively heads there and takes one of the books. He cylces through the pages and concludes it's not fake.

" Conan Doyle… Dickens… Dick… King… There are a lot of anglophone writers. "

" Yeah,and you are the only one with this bookshelf. " The voice instantly sends Noah to fall on the floor. Again,it was Max Jack Layton.

" What are you doing here ? "

" I'm just telling you that I made sure you don't get bored during this TV show,for example by bringing up to you alone your most beloved passion : reading. "

" Thanks. " Noah says,surprised.

" Now then,me and my clones are soon finished talking to all of you. I must go. " Mysteriously,Layton disappears in front of Noah who gets up and takes the dust off his clothes.

" Very creepy. What if I spend the rest of the day reading this nice book of Arthur Conan Doyle ? No. I should instead explore at least some of the hotel. "

Later,Noah enters in the hotel and the first thing he sees is Geoff and DJ playing babyfoot in the middle of the room,with Leshawna and Bridgette supporting them.

At the end,Geoff marks the final goal and celebrates by jumping on a sofa and playing air guitar. DJ, fair-play, applauses him happily.

" Now you can call me… The master of babyfoot ! "

" Calm down,cowboy ! " Bridgette interferes. " You only won a match. "

" Still,I won 6-4 ! I bet you can't beat me 10-0 ! "

" Is that so ?! You know,I am a very sportive girl. I take your challenge on ! "

" Wait… Maybe Noah wanted to play first… "

" Thanks but no thanks ! I have no interest into sports. Bridgette,make sure to humiliate him. "

With that,Noah climbs up the stairs. Up there,he finds Duncan staring at a very lot of foods set onto two large wooden tables.

" What are you doing ? "

" Have you seen all this food ?! You know what I'm thinking about ? "

" Since you're not one who has the habit to eat a lot,I would say… Nothing good. " Noah responds indifferently.

" Exactly ! I am planning… to ditch some of those nuts over there into… Into Owen's ass ! "

" I don't give my opinion about your childishness but… Are we allowed to get to the other team's hotel. "

" THANKS FOR ASKING A VERY VALUABLE QUESTION ! " A black statue,wearing a yellow bird's head,appears like in magic,making Duncan scream and lose his dignity.

" What the fuck again ?! "

" As Noah suggested,it is forbidden to get to the opponent's team ! Otherwise… This gentle Gatling Gun will give you your lessoning ! " He points at one of the miniguns hidden in the ceiling of the cafeteria.

" Damnit ! " Duncan spills out,armscrossed.

" Sorry but childish jokes must stay between teammates ! " And after that he disappears like he appeared.

" What's his objective ?! Each time he appears,it's to bring me more despair ! "

" What if that's what he really wants ? "

" What ?! "

" Isolating us in this island,preventing us from leaving,making us keep our phones at home,forcing us to kill each other… What if the only thing he wants from us is despair ? "

" But why would someone bring despair to other people ? "

" I don't know. Maybe he is a lunatic,a psychopath. "

" Just like Brian… Wait ! Where is this shithead ?! " Suddenly,both men turn their gaze at the corner of the room where… Brian is silently eating a sandwich,sitting to an individual table.

" Brian ?! " Noah says.

" Hello guys ! Sorry I wanted to eat a bite alone,since you clearly didn't need my company. "

" What did you do this whole time ? " Duncan asks curiously.

" Finding a way out of here ! " He says,nearly laughing. " Succombed by my natural despair,I searched every corner of this island to find an exit. "

" And... "

" I found nothing. Isn't this fabulous ?! "

" What's so fabulous about it ?! "

" Layton suppressed every way out of this island,only to fill us up with indelebile despair ! Such delicious ! "

" Should we really talk to him ? " Noah questions Duncan.

" Oh well… If you don't wanna hear my extasies,you can still depart on your own… And ignore my secret about the mastermind. "

" Wait what ?! "

" Yeah. I know something about the mastermind. "

" What is this ?! Tell us ! " Duncan orders.

" I know nothing ! Hahahahahahahaha ! "

Duncan,unhinged,gets out quickly of the room. But as Noah wanted to follow him,Brian grabs his forearm.

" You're the only person who is the most interesting to talk to. "

" What do you want again,freak ? "

" When I said I know nothing… I lied. "

" You… Lied ?! "

" Yes. Actually… I know a lot of things about him. Unfortunately… " He gestures Noah to look at the minigun. " I'm afraid HE puts an end to my life if I say something. "

" Wait… You know something but you can't tell it. "

" Exactly. "

" Why would you,among all the candidates,know something about the mastermind ?! "

" That,I can't tell it neither. "

" This is getting weirder. "

" And just so we're clear… This little secret stays between us. Okay ? "

" You haven't told me that secret yet ! "

" Of course ! If I told you that shameful secret,my despair would be crushed into pieces,dominated by hope ! "

" I think we have nothing more to talk about. " Noah concludes,leaving the student behind.

Later,at night…

After going out of the kitchen,Noah has done nothing more,except spend the rest of his time reading books. So now he lies on his bed,thinking about this whole situation.

" So let's recap… We were supposed to be participating in a boring TV show. But instead of that,some weird statue replaced Chris McLean and decided that instead of playing physical games,the only game he purposes is to kill each other. Afterwards,he would let the murderer leave the island. Now that I think about… This could be tempting… Killing someone to escape… No. I can't let myself be tempted. That's exactly what Layton wants. I gotta ignore that and continue searching the escape route tomo… "

" Hola,Noah ! " Suddenly,Noah screams wildly and falls off his bed to sit on the floor. He turns around and finds Max Jack Layton,sitting confidently on a chair,waiting for him to wake up.

" What do you want from me ?! " Noah asks,frustrated by the fall.

" Well… Nothing. "

" Nothing ? "

" I actually came here… for nothing. "

" What you came here,pissing me off by the way,just for nothing ?! "

" Yeah… " Max only responds,changing into a demon and looking away.

" Come on ! I clearly see you've got something important to say. Spill it out already. "

" Well actually… There's nothing to report… Unless… "

" Unless ? "

" Unless I came to tell you that a murder MIGHT happen in YOUR group. But I'm sure that's not it. "

" Wait. What do you mean " A murder might… " "

" Goodbye ! Sleep well ! And by magic,Max disappears. The little man has left a few interrogations to the young reader whl sits on his bed,thinking.

" A murder might happen in my group… Don't tell me… Someone's planning a murder… Wait. As far as I know,I am unable to determine who is gonna kill who. But I can't suspect anyone around. So I just gotta forget all of this and hope everyone doesn't get tempted by the urge of escaping. "

Noah,extremely tired,falls KO onto his bed.

The next morning…

" GOOD MORNING ! EAT YOUR BREAKFAST AND MEET ME IN FRONT OF THE HOTEL,TEAM FALCON. "

" What the heck ?! What's he up to again ?! " Noah grumbles,his head hidden into his pillow. Forcefully,he wakes up,not having worn a proper pyjama,then takes a fast shower before eating in the cafeteria. Inside,he finds Gwen and Trent talking around a table while the boy holds his guitar on his knees. They seem to get along well… A little bit too well. But that doesn't have any kind of importance for Noah. The only thing that matters is to get out of this island. But for now,he must eat the breakfast and hurry reaching the entrance of the hotel.

" Hey Noah ! " Trent greets him.

" Oh hello. How are you doing ? " Noah carelessly asks while sitting down to another table with a plate of toasts.

" Despite everything that happened yesterday… We're holding up pretty well. " Trent answers confidently.

" We were talking about our hobbies. " Gwen adds.

" Ah I see… Music and gothic style,I suppose ? " That answers makes the couple open their eyes wide.

" Wow… You knew that just by looking at us… " Trent starts to wonder.

" Don't think I'm stupid. Have you looked at what you're holding and wearing ? " With that,Noah keeps silently eating his breakfast. After he finishes,he heads for the exit. But when he passes in front of the bathroom door,he finds Harold waiting in the corridor.

" You waiting for the bathroom ? "

" Yep ! It's been ten minutes now ! Girls are so slow ! "

" Who is it ? "

" Beth. "

" Go easy on her. She must have been really traumatized by the dead body. " Noah calmly blames Harold for his behaviour.

" Oh… Sorry. " He says sadly.

" So… When you're finished,meet us at the entrance. That jerk has planned something else. " And with that,Noah leaves Harold… Just at the moment Beth finally opens the door and gets out,wearing a towel around her naked body.

A few minutes later…

Everyone has just reunited at the entrance. Noah,to kill the time,reads another book. Suddenly,he feels an unusual breathing behind him. He turns around… and finds Geoff spying on his book.

" What is it ?! " He asks gently.

" You won't understand. " Noah coldly responds.

" Come on please ! Don't be so grumpy. "

" Fine. Stephen King's Shining. Have you watched the movie ? "

" Yeah with the dude breaking down the door with his axe… "

" Jack Nicholson. "

" Who ? "

" *Sigh* Forget it. Have you read the book too ? "

" No ! It is the same thing,right ?! "

" No. Each time a director makes a movie based on a book,he changes some features for his work. "

" What's the interest ?! "

" There are multiple reasons for that… But it would be a drag explaining it to you. "

" Alright. If I manage,I'll read that book… Once we get out of here… "

" If you wanna get out of here,just one thing : Kill someone ! " Max Jack Layton suddenly appears behind Geoff,making him jump like a cat.

" Not you again. " Courtney complains.

" Sorry sorry,but I really had to call all of you. "

" Why didn't you call the other team too ? " Noah asks.

" Because I got a present… Only for you,Falcons ! Hahaha… Follow me. "

The psychopath leads them to the public park of the island,where there is a lot of picnic tables with wooden benches… and especially cardboard boxes on the table. The number of boxes is the same as the number of members of the team,including Brian who has just arrived,in good health but bored.

" Hi guys. Why calling us so soon ? Did your shiny statue burn at night ?! " Brian provokes calmly Max.

" Brian… Why don't you shut up ! " Max says,showing a big smile and a red face ; we can see he's hiding his anger,hating being called a statue.

" Sorry. " He responds,armscrossed.

" Anyway… In those boxes lies… A… MOTIVE. "

" A motive… " Noah repeats,confused.

" You don't wanna kill your own teammates ? I'll give you a reason for doing so ! Now open the boxes with your name on it…. "

" Wait a minute ! " Beth suddenly stands up and faces the antagonist. " Stop it ! I am sick of it now ! "

" What do you want again,little pest ?! " Max emotionlessly asks to the girl.

" First,you get rid of Chris,then you isolate us on this island,after you kill that man in a horrible way and now you are forcing us to kill… Please stop… " At the end,she can't restrain her tears anymore,hidding her face. Courtney quickly comes to hug her and consolate her.

" Mr. Layton,is this really necessary to make us endure this ?! " She asks angrily.

" Listen… If you keep resisting like that,I will get quickly bored. Plus,I am sure you got some PEOPLE you miss so much ! "

" What do you mean ? "

" Open the box and you'll understand. " Then the sadistic clown quickly leaves the participant,more frightened than usual. Noan makes the first steps and grabs the box carrying his name. He puts it on the floor then slowly opens it with his bare hands… and inside he finds something shocking : multiple pictures of his four brothers and four sisters,aged between 21 and 29 years old with brown skin and black hairs. All of them,with Noah in one of the pictures,hug each other for the family photo. But the young man finds something else under this photo.

He grabs it then raises it up and finds something macabre : the body of his siblings… without their heads ! Blood sinks everywhere in the room and a few knives are left on the floor with bloody blades.

" W…W…W… WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM ?! " He yells louder than before.

" Sorry. I was bored so I got… a little bit too much fun with them… Seems like I shouldn't have done that. "

Courtney,who has managed to grab the photo,nearly pukes.

" No… No… Impossible… The police would have already gone to arrest you… Unless this is fake.. "

" Yes… Yes ! It is fake ! Please tell me it's fake,asshole. " Noah pleads,at the edge of the tears.

" I really wanna say it's fake… But I'm afraid your cat can't say the same. " Suddenly,he raises from behind him… the head of a dead orange cat.

" MURRAY ! NO ! " Noah screams.

" Do you know this cat ? " Duncan asks,lost of more words.

" It… It was… My sister's cat… " He says,on his knees.

" And I didn't tell you yet what I did to your parents ! "

" NO ! What did you do,you bitch ! "

" Hola hola ! The only thing I can say for sure… Is that they won't breath forever,into where I put them. "

' WHERE ?! Where did you lock them up ?! "

" Somewhere in your house ! Hahaha… "

" I need to go there ! "

" There's only one thing to do in order to get out. And you know it very well ! "

" No. No you don't… " Courtney says suddenly.

" In order to get out of this island…. You must K-I-L-L someone. "

" I knew it ! " Courtney shouts. " You did that so that we got a reason to get out of the island by killing someone. That's your motive ! "

" Ding Ding Ding ! Courtney has found the correct answer ! You would have earned free candies ! " Max screams,turning into a golden trophy with black eyes.

" No way he is doing that ! Even for his family. And what tells us that his parents are still a… "

" Shut up,Courtney… " Suddenly,Noah speaks up,emotionally downed and still on his knees. " Silence… This sonofabitch kidnapped my parents and locked them up. Why wouldn't he do that after killing my siblings and my cat ?! You saw the picture. You saw the head yourself. I…I…I am sorry… I… I gotta get out of here… "

" Yes ! That's the spirit ! " The crazy man says,turning into a green pigeon. " You just have to kill… "

" Don't you make any instant conclusion ! Yes I wanna go back home to save my parents… But I don't have the intention of killing anyone. " That sentence brings a smile to Courtney and some of the other contendants. Then Noah points his index finger at the devilish robot. " I will get out of here,I will save my parents… And then I'll come back to finish you off. "

" Even if I think it is impossible to escape this island on your own… Good luck then ! Wait ! "

" What is it ?! "

" There are still the other boxes who aren't opened. "

" Oh hell no ! " Duncan expresses next angrily. " After what we saw,we damn right aren't gonna open those shits ! "

" You're right,Duncan ! Leshawna supports him."

" No one else will open those boxes. Seems like your plan… " Suddenly Brian,without speaking,opens his box and takes out a pictures… before dropping a cold,devilish laugh.

" What is it,asshole ?! " Duncan asks,tensed.

" This is exactly what I needed… TO TRIGGER MY DESPAIR RESEARCH ! HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAA… "

Duncan fastly reaches for the picture and sees… A lot of people murdering peopke and burning everything around… spreading despair around them.

" What… The fuck… "

" That. Is despair ! " Brian answers,taking the picture off the bully's hands.

" Well… Look at this ! If there is fire everywhere,it is obvious no one wants to open his box now. "

" Seems like it… So that means… You don't care about what happened to… your dear mother,Geoff ? "

" What ?! "

" That doesn't interest you to know that she… unfortunately dove head first into a shark's mouth ? "

" Whaaat ?! "

" Don't listen to him,Geoff ! He's lying. Bridgette tries to reason him. "

" And you,Bridgy ?! Did you know that your BFF mother took her last surfing… in Hell ?! "

" What are you saying… You're lying ! "

" And you,Gwen ? Your brother tried to drink twenty beer cans in a row… Seems like he won't drink anything ever again anymore ! "

" Whaaaat ?! "

" If you think I'm lying,read the news report I kindly stole,which are in those nice boxes ! "

At the end,everyone hurries to the boxes and opens them quickly. Whatever the reason,their history or their family,the reaction was the same : shock,sadness,denying… and anger toward the laughing boss. But as Duncan tries to punch him,he disappears in extremis.

Everyone doesn't dare to speak,still traumatized by their discovery. Even Geoff has his skin which is going pale.

" I'm pretty surr those newspapers are fake… " Harold tries to rationalize.

" No it's not possible. Courtney objects,nearly crying. Did you see at the bottom of the page ? This signature proves that the articles are real ".

" So we can safely assume it's real… Thanks. "

" Okay… Is everyone okay ? " DJ awkwardly asks.

" How can we be okay,right now ?! " Duncan responds angrily.

" Why… Why does he want so much that we kill each other ?! " Gwen,crying,asks herself.

" As I said to Duncan… " Noah continues. " The only thing Layton might want… is our despair. "

" But… But why ?! " Bridgette asks,shaking.

" Maybe… Simply he likes. For example,look at how he glorified Brian's Ultimate talent… "

" Wait… Brian ! Why aren't you shocked too ?! " Trent wonders suddenly.

" He's weird. That reason alone is enough… Duncan spills out furiously. "

" The only… Really the only thing I earned from this box… is that photo. " He responds,still armscrossed and with his usual smile. " And that alone is enough to incite me to kill… "

" OH HELL NO ! " Unexpectedly,Duncan grabs Brian by his collar and threathens him. But surprisingly,Brian doesn't seem afraid. Instead,his smile grows bigger.

" Listen,dipshit ! You ain't gonna kill anyone for your fun ! DO YOU HEAR ME ?! "

" I heard you too much,Duncan ! Chill out ! I didn't have the intention to kill you,actually "

" I was just… explaining how his motive worked to me. "

" You'd better not be lying… "

" Duncan ! Stop ! Look at Beth… " But as he drops Brian and turns around,the geek woman already falls on the floor and sleeps for a long time. Noah slowly follows her,first by sitting on a bench. But even if DJ supports him by the shoulder,Noah collapses too. Both of them are unconscious,on the floor. Leshawna and DJ are carrying each one of the sleeping lads.

" DJ,Leshawna,bring them in their respective cottage ! They are surely deeply touched by those pictures. Make sure to throw them away ! " Geoff orders.