Chapter Ten
Dwight was the last to wake up. Kate sat beside him, his head laying on her lap. Jake and Claudette were next to her.
"Where are we?" Dwight asked.
"The basement," Jake said.
"Dwight, Benedict took Meg," Claudette said.
"What?" Dwight asked.
"When we woke up, she wasn't here-" Claudette stopped.
The group could hear the basement door open. Benedict appeared with a candle, barely lighting up the basement. He walked over to them, standing by the cage they were trapped in.
"Where is she? Where is Meg?" Dwight asked angrily.
"Don't worry, Meg is safe. For now. I'm afraid she won't be for long. I told you, I found a way of escaping this place. And I need her... I need someone who has suffered the greatest pain." Benedict said.
"What are you going to do to her?" Dwight asked.
"Meg has suffered most of her life. Her father left her mother and her. Her mother became sick. They had very little. They only had each other. But you should know this, Dwight." Benedict said.
"You better hope we don't get out of here," David said.
"Why are you doing this?" Claudette asked.
"My wife..." Benedict began.
"She was the one who went insane..." Dwight said.
"Yes. All because the Entity believed she didn't suffer as much as I had. Suffering is what gives the Entity strength. And the only way to escape is to become as powerful as it. And to do so, means to feed those who suffer. That's why you're all here. That's why the killers are. We are all pawns in its sick game. I've waited well past my time here. This is the only way out. I have to do this. Benedict said.
"It's not! We can find another way!" Dwight yelled.
"I'm sorry, Dwight. But there is none. Meg will be sacrificed. And I will become powerful enough to leave this place forever... And bring her back... And I'm afraid that means leaving you all behind." Benedict said.
"What would your wife say? What would she want?" Jane asked.
Benedict didn't respond. He left the candle on the ground and walked to the door. He turned to the group.
"I am sorry," Benedict said. He walked up the stairs, leaving them to sit in the dark. They heard him walking upstairs. He had left the basement door open.
Dwight sat against the wall. He held his head in his hands. Kate, Claudette, and Jake sat beside him. Claudette put a hand on his shoulder.
"Dwight, we need to get out of here. We need to rescue Meg before he kills her." Jake said.
"We're not going to get out of here. You heard him. We were never going to get out of here." Dwight said.
"So you're just going to give up?" Feng asked.
"She's your friend, kid," Ace said.
Nea walked over to Dwight and bent down, looking into his eyes.
"She needs us, Dwight. She needs you." Nea said.
Dwight looked at them all. People he had only known for a short amount of time. People who needed him. He quickly stood, as did the others. He looked around the basement.
"There's no way out of here..." Dwight said to himself.
From the barely opened basement door, something flew down into the basement, landing next to their prison.
"You're okay!" Jake said. He smiled, surprising the others. "He can help us."
"How is your bird going to help us?" Adam asked.
"Trust me. He just can." Dwight said. He bent down and looked at the crow.
"Hey? Do you remember us? Dwight? Claudette? Jake? Meg? Meg is in trouble... Look, I know you can understand us... I don't know how. And I know you belong to Benedict but he's not a good guy. And Meg... I... We need your help." Dwight said.
"Did he just give a bird a prep talk?" Ace asked.
The crow looked at Dwight and at the others. It cawed once. Then flew to the lock. It stood on top of it. Then cawed three times.
"Sorry, Dwight" Ace began. "I don't think she can help-"
The crow exploded. The small explosion blew the lock off. The cage door blew open. On the floor in front of them were feathers, bones, flesh, and blood.
"Oh my God!" Dwight yelled.
"Shit!" Ace said.
The group stared at the corpse of the crow. In a matter of seconds, the bones began to reconnect. The flesh and tissue began to pull itself back onto the bones. The feathers quickly covered the reformed skin. In less than a minute, the familiar crow stood on the ground, looking back at them. They all stared at it in complete horror.
"Okay, we are definitely going to discuss this after we save Meg," Dwight said. The crow cawed and flew to Dwight's shoulder.
The group ran upstairs from the basement. They stopped as they began to hear chanting. Dwight walked alone for a moment, realizing where it was coming from.
"The library!" Dwight yelled.
The group followed him upstairs. A strong wind began to hit them all. They grabbed onto the open doors. Dwight tried to pull himself closer to the library. He now heard yelling. Dwight entered the library. Meg was on the table with Benedict standing beside her, reading the glowing book. He held a knife in one hand. Dwight looked at the crow.
"Explode! At him! Please?" Dwight shouted over the strong wing. The crow flew towards Benedict. He noticed and held his hand out. The crow was pushed back outside of the room. Jake grabbed her and placed her in his pocket.
"So you've turned my companion against me, Dwight?" Benedict asked. "Soon, it won't matter."
"You have to let go!" Dwight yelled.
"Let go?" Benedict asked. Dwight could see the anger in his eyes. "I will never let go!"
Benedict scrolled through the page and found what he was looking for. He read in an unknown language. After, the wind stopped and the others entered the library.
"It's over," Dwight said.
"No, my son," Benedict began. "This is the end for you all."
The group heard movement from behind them. The killers, all of them, heading down the hallway towards them. The Trapper was leading them all to them. David, Adam, and Jeff quickly closed the library door. The door began to move rapidly. The Nurse and Spirit appeared and pulled both David and Adam away. They held their weapons against their necks. The Trapper pushed the door open and Jeff retreated back with the others. The survivors were now backed against a wall of books. With the only escape blocked by those who chased them in the night.
Meg began to wake up and quickly kicked Benedict away from her. He dropped his knife and the book. Claudette grabbed the book. Dwight and Kate took Meg off the table and they all stood together. The Nurse held David. The Spirit held Adam. Dwight looked at all the killers.
"All of them were picked. Just as you were."
Dwight remembered Benedict's words.
"Suffering is what gives the Entity strength."
Dwight took a step forward. Kate and Meg tried to keep him back but he turned, giving them a knowing look. He stepped away from his group and went to the Trapper, who held his cleaver tightly. His eyes focused on Dwight.
"E-Evan...?" Dwight asked.
The Trapper stared at him. Something in his eyes gave Dwight a hint that he understood them.
"I... I know what happened to you... Your dad hurt you... Y-You've all been hurt... You all feel pain... Or anger... Or hate... And you're stuck here. Just like us. I know you might not have a choice but you do... You have to let go. Of all that pain. All that anger. All that hate. And all that fear. I was afraid... I was scared of not knowing what would happen. Being hurt. Being alone. But that's a part of life. I wish I could give you all... some of you... a second chance. But you all lived your lives. Or you tried to. And something bad happened. And now you're here. But you don't belong here. And neither do we. If you understand anything that I'm saying... Please... Please, move on..." Dwight said.
The Trapper studied him. Dwight looked down, waiting for his end. But instead, saw the Trapper's cleaver dropped. He looked back up. The Trapper began to remove his mask, revealing a younger face. He looked different, his eyes filled with innocence. The Wraith dropped his weapon and bell, slowly turning into the man he once was. The Hillbilly followed. Although he was the same, he appeared younger. His face is slightly less disfigured. The Nurse's feet touched the ground, and she let David go. He slowly removed the pillowcase over her head, revealing a red-haired woman. She gave him a small smile. Adam turned once The Spirit's sword dropped. The once cut up girl now appeared normal. She gave Adam a hug instead. He comforted the girl. Frank studied his knife. Julie took his hand. As well as Susie and Joey. They all removed their masks. The Doctor and Clown were reluctant but dropped their weapons too. The Doctor's face slowly returned to normal. The madness in his eyes faded away. One by one, each killer appeared normal and younger. The Hag, the Huntress after removing her masks, and finally the Plague. Each began to fade away. The Nurse, Sally, was left. She walked over to Dwight and spoke softly, before disappearing.
"Thank you."
Benedict grabbed the knife from the floor and began to walk towards Dwight.
"Dwight!" Meg yelled.
He turned around to see Benedict. A ghostly Evan walked through Dwight, and stabbed Benedict with his cleaver. The survivors stared in shock.
"No..." Those were Benedict's last words. As he died, the ceiling of the library fell. The survivors manage to avoid it. The morning sky was now dark. It began to rain into the library. But what the survivors saw sent fear into all of them. Legs similar to spiders appeared from the sky, reaching for them. The Entity. The manor began to break apart.
"What do we do now?" Feng asked.
The ghost of Max appeared before the group and walked to Claudette. He opened the book, and pointed at a passage.
"Thank you," Claudette said. The ghost of Max disappeared. She began to read. As she did, the survivors heard thunder in the dark skies. Lightning struck the top of the manor. Books fell off shelves. After Claudette had finished, a portal giving off a green glow appeared above them. It began to pull them up. They each tried to grab onto something. David was the first to go. Then Adam, Jane, and Feng. Ace grabbed onto Nea's hand. He gave her a small laugh, and she did too, before he let go. Jake held onto Claudette. The book left her hand, disappearing into the portal. Their pet crow flew out of Jake's pocket and cawed before disappearing too. Jake looked at Claudette. She smiled warmly at him. He did too. They both let go. Dwight, Meg, and Kate were left. Kate looked at Dwight.
"I'll find you," Kate said.
"Not if I find you first again," Dwight said.
Kate smiled and let go. It was only Dwight and Meg. The floor began to fall. Benedict's body fell through the floor. The Entity's leg moved closer to them.
"Together?" Dwight asked. He smiled.
"Together..." Meg said tearfully.
They held each other's hand and both let go, disappearing into the portal. The manor was gone. Benedict was gone. The survivors were gone. The killers were gone. Everything was white.
Dwight opened his eyes. He felt water hit his face. He sat up for a moment, then stood. He noticed his clothing had changed. He was wearing a different set of glasses, a gray waistcoat, a white button shirt, and brown trousers. He looked into a puddle. His hair was now brown instead of black and he had grown a beard. Before Dwight could comment on his new look, he finally noticed where he was. Dwight was on the rooftop of a city. The sky was gray and it was raining down hard. The sound of thunder traveled through the sky.
London, England, United Kingdom
1899
