Chapter 9: Smells Like Teen Spirit
(Hodges)
He could smell three different kinds of mold in the pitch black room. It also smelled damp, and he sneezed.
"Who's there? Turn on the lights!" a terrified voice yelled.
"David? Is that you?" another voice asked.
"Doc? Yeah, it's me." David replied.
"David Hodges is here too, folks." he spoke up.
"Who else is here?" David asked. They listened, but no one else replied.
"I guess it's just us." he said.
"Is anyone hurt?" Doc asked.
"No, I'm just handcuffed to a heater." David replied.
"Handcuffed to what I think is a sink here." he said.
"I'm handcuffed, too. Feels like a vent." Doc chimed in.
A TV turned on in the corner of the room, illuminating the area. Everyone looked around at their surroundings to the drone of static. Doc was in fact handcuffed to a vent, David to a heater, and Hodges was actually cuffed to the inside of a toilet tank.
"We're in a girl's bathroom." David realized.
Hodges was able to see David's and the Doc's feet, but that was all due to the stall door being closed.
The TV suddenly stopped producing static, but it still gave off light.
"What do you see?" he asked, trying to look under the stall.
"There's a man." David said.
"Hello Albert Robbins, David Phillips, and David Hodges. It's time for you to play our game. The three of you may not have direct ties to the murders your coworkers commit, but without you, the perpetrators may have lived. We know that rapists and murderers need to be put away, but how can you stand working with your colleagues every night, knowing that half of them have used deadly force? The tests ahead will see if you have what it takes for redemption. You must find your key and release yourself, first. Then you must follow your designated path. If you manage to save a friend along the way, then you will be forgiven, as will they. The purpose of our game is not to punish, as many of you may think. The purpose is to learn the errors of your ways, of our justice system's ways. Those of you who survive can take these lessons with you. Learn to change the legal system from within. That way, people like us will be seen as the victim, not the perp. Where was the justice when we were forced to commit crimes we did not want to? Perhaps justice should be more like these games, don't you think? Survive, and you are instantly absolved of your sins. That's the nail in the coffin today. Before you begin, we'll give you a slight advantage to find your keys. Open your eyes."
The TV clicked off and the room became dark again.
"Open your eyes? How will that help if we can't see anything?" he asked, patting around the base of the toilet for a key.
"Who cares, let's just get out of here. Those guys are obviously whackjobs." David said.
"Agreed." Doc said.
Hodges felt around the inside of the toilet tank and couldn't get a key. Not really wanting to, he opened the bowl of the toilet, gagging at the smell.
"Smells like decomp." Doc mumbled. Hodges stuck his hand in the bowl, trying to ignore the things he felt floating in the water. He finally grabbed something small, metal, and key-shaped, and pulled his hand out. He quickly unchained himself, laughing.
"Guys, I'm out!" he cheered, walking forward. He smacked right into the stall door and backed away, holding his nose.
"Ow…" he groaned, sitting on the toilet. He then remembered the mysterious floaters in the water and shot up, holding a hand out as he walked.
"I'm out. And Doc, I found your cane." David said.
"Thanks. Give me a second. I just found my key." the medical examiner said. A metallic 'click' was heard as Hodges slowly walked around the bathroom. He found a door handle and opened the door, letting in a dim, yet bright light. The three of them left the bathroom and saw two arrows. One pointed left, with the initials A.R. The other pointed right, with the initials D.P. and D.H.
"Well, I guess this is where we part ways." Hodges said uncomfortably.
"Are you sure that's a good idea? We could be going into a trap." David said.
"That man said our friends are in danger. We can't risk their lives." Doc said. The three silently said goodbye as they went down their separate paths
(David)
He soon had to leave Hodges, wishing him luck as he did so. He checked every door he passed, hoping to find something useful, but every door was a bust. He was forced to head up a flight of stairs and saw Sara bound to a chair at the top.
"Sara? Oh my god-" he started, running up the stairs.
"Get me out of this thing." she said, struggling against her restraints.
"Okay, um…okay, um…" he rambled, looking at the device on the back of the chair. Her hair was tied in a knot around some sort of rod, and there were gears surrounding the rod. As he looked, the gears started to rotate, pulling the rod down. Sara's neck continued to crane back until the gears stopped.
"It's been doing this every minute for the past five." she explained, panicked, but trying not to show it.
"Was there a message saying what to do?" he asked, trying to look away from the machine.
"Over there." Sara said, pointing to the left with one of her fingers. He looked over and saw the word 'HERE' on a door, quickly running over and opening it. The lights automatically turned on and he saw some papers on the table in the middle of the room.
He hurried over and saw a diagram of Sara's trap, along with sketches of its gruesome outcome. There was also a note telling him that she had ten minutes until her neck was broken, and after every minute, the gears would pull her head back. It continued on to say the only way to save her would be to shed their blood.
"Oh no way." he said, slowly picking up the nail gun.
(Hoffman)
After Brad's body fell to the floor, he quickly assessed his surroundings and saw the doctor closing the trunk of the car. Even in the dark of night, he could see the silencer-equipped side arm in the man's hand. He quickly moved into the closet, keeping it open a crack. Lawrence Gordon cautiously approached Brad's body, looking rather antsy.
His back was to him. Now was the time to strike.
"Oh no…" Gordon whispered as Hoffman silently pushed the door open.
"The pumps!" he hissed, spinning around and bumping right into Hoffman.
He easily snatched the gun away. "There are no pumps. I told them to tell you that to scare you." he said, pistol whipping Gordon.
The cripple crashed to the floor, trying to reach his cane, and Hoffman grabbed it at the last second.
"There's more to torture than just physical pain. Emotions can run high and cause the same panic that any of John's traps could." he said, throwing the cane out the door while keeping the gun trained on the doctor.
"So, what…you'll kill me, let those innocent people die, and then what? Sail off into the sunset?" Gordon asked.
"That's only partly correct." he said, shooting Gordon in the shoulder.
Gordon's hand shot up to his bloodied upper arm as he fell back, groaning.
"I'm not going to kill you, I'm not going to let them die if I can help it, and I don't have a boat." he said, smiling.