Chapter 21

"Nico?"

She tried to say something else witty, but all that she could think of was, 'No way is this happening.'

The teen she had known for so long walked over to her, putting his finger to her lips. "Hush now," He told her, a wicked grin settling on his face. "It's rude to interrupt."

She did what she knew she needed to do and bit his finger. He recoiled, but soon enough she knew her act would do more bad to her than it would to him. More reinforcements came over to grab her hands, swiftly pulling her to a pole with chains. The guards attached these chains to her feet, hands, and her torso.

"I need to ask you some questions," He told her, not moving from in front of her face. "So promise me you won't do anything stupid."

She gave him the dirtiest look she could, but nodded anyways.

He nodded, impressed. "First question. Where is Chad?"

Sonny shook her head. "I don't know; I fell down a crack in the earth." She told him, her eyes suddenly lighting up with realization. "Are you… controlling all of this?"

His smile was enough to scare a little child. She cringed at it, never imagining it to fall onto his face. "It's a good thing you came to your senses quickly, young Sonny."

"I'm not young." She defended quickly. "How are you doing this?"

Christina smiled in the corner, and Sonny had forgotten that she was still there. "Christina is pretty good with killing people over there, and she's also pretty good with spirits. My assistant over there," He said, motioning to a guy Sonny had never seen before. "Is my assistant, and he's not half bad at manipulating people. You could call it psychic abilities. I'm rather good with managing the elements myself, and so is someone else you may know."

And there before her was one other person she had hoped never to see again in her life.

Portlyn.

"You're in on this, too?" Sonny asked bitterly, and if she could begin foaming at the mouth, she would have.

The girl nodded bitterly. "I'm glad you realized it."

"So wait!" Sonny yelled out. "You're just killing people for no apparent reason?"

Nico shook his head. "Of course not. There's an overall goal. Once enough people die, everyone will listen to me. I'll take over the world, even it out a bit. I'll end corrupted ways. Those who are strong will be able to help. Those who are not will die. I'll make it a better world. A world of strong people, those who deserve life. Just trust me."

At this point, it was too much for Sonny. "So you're doing that by killing millions of people? Oh, please! I thought Chad was bad! I should tell Tawni that she likes an asshole. Oh wait!" The brunette screamed, fighting against the chains. "You KILLED HER!"

But Nico just smirked and waved his hand. "I'm done with her; she's not giving me what I need.

"Kill her."

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Walking down the dark hallway and brushing his fingers against the cold, stone wall, Chad looked around at his dreary surroundings. A creaking noise sounded through the hallway, and he began running down to the end. But at the end…

There was no door.

Bewildered, Chad began running back to the place he entered. Footsteps echoed throughout the passageway. His breath turned to steam in the brisk air, and the air around him got colder. "At least I'm almost at the door," he said to himself. But when he reached the other end…

There was no door.

"Am I trapped in here?" He asked, panic beginning to set in. The blonde sat on the floor, rocking back and forth like a child. He had nothing else to do. Yet, the creaking he had heard earlier had set back in, and before him he saw a glowing figure. He recognized it well.

It was Tawni.

"What are you doing here? Are you really still alive?" He asked the enlightened figure, squinting at her brightness.

She shook her head, eyes focused sadly on the ground.

"Then are you a ghost?" He asked sarcastically, not expecting an answer at all. There was a reasonable explanation!

However, Tawni nodded.

"Ghosts don't exist!" He tried to convince himself. "I'm just seeing things!"

The Tawni just shook her head and began walking down the hall. Having nothing better to do, Chad followed her. She hovered slightly above the ground, bobbing slightly through the frigid path.

"Where are you going?" He asked, but soon stopped as she grabbed his arm and pulled him right through a wall. "Woah!" He yelled out, flailing his free arm in an attempt to… well, he wasn't really attempting anything.

And soon enough, they were in what looked like a break room, with chairs, tables, a kitchenette, and a sofa. Tawni let go of Chad's arm, but motioned for him to follow.

"Am I dead?" The teen asked, pinching himself in an attempt to wake up.

The ghost shook her head.

"It's official." Chad announced to no one in particular. "This shit makes no sense."

An entertained grin sprouted on Tawni's face as she led him down another corridor. She couldn't talk anymore; her voice had disappeared with her body. She knew that her best friend would have liked to see him again. And because she knew now that Sonny wasn't a killer, (You gain knowledge when you die.) all she wanted to do was to help her.

"What's so entertaining about my swearing?" He asked, pretending to be offended. That was Chad, after all.

She continued to chuckle, but quickly froze. Motioning for Chad to stop, she quickly floated through a door. Hearing a click, the door opened and Chad was pulled inside by Tawni. This began to frighten him. He had never been pulled into a room before by a ghost.

"Are you going to kill me?" He asked, beginning to walk to the door.

The Tawni smirked, but shook her head no. Then she handed him a dark cloak, darker shoes, and a fedora. He put them on, extremely confused as to where he was and what was happening. But as soon as he was pulled out of the room of clothing once more and into a busy hall, he was glad he had this ghost.

Everyone in the hallway was wearing exactly what he was: black jeans, a dark cloak, black shoes, and a fedora.

And for the last time, Tawni grabbed Chad's hand and began pulling him through the crowd of people, through a few more empty halls, and to a large pair of double doors. Quite frankly, they reminded him of the doors to Bowser's lair in the Mario video games.

"Is this where I need to be?" He asked her, his eyes filling with sadness. He had never realized it, but he didn't really hate Tawni all that much. And now, he could never see her again.

The ghost nodded, looking just as sad as he. And for the last time, he said, "I'll miss you, Tawni." The ghost returned it with a sad wave, disappearing into a flash of light.

And suddenly, everything around him was warm, and a scream rang out from the other side of the door.

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Hello, readers! Did you enjoy my little plot twist? It took a bit of work, but I kind of enjoy how this chapter turned out. I'd also like to say thanks to LiveLaughLovePeaceChocolate, who plays Courtney in this story! Your eyes sound really cool! I wish I could have them.

Oh yes, before I forget, have a Happy Halloween! Don't let the ghost Tawni get you!

Disclaimer: I own nothing, not SWAC or the Mario games or anything else. Need I say more?