Saw: The Next Generation 2

Chapter 5

The cassette tape began rolling at a voice began talking. "Hello Daniel, Ivy, Alison, Maddie, Sofia, and Frank. I'd like to play a game."

Alison's face fell. She left the gathering and covered her mouth. Ivy's eyes closed in fear. Maddie gave a silent whimper.

The recording continued. "The six of you players find yourselves in a brand new building of our design."

"Our?" Ivy asked.

"He has many accomplices." Alison said.

"He-who?" Frank asked.

"Shh," Daniel said.

The tape recording went on. "You all will face multiple tasks or challenges as you might call them. Levels are what I prefer to call them. As I'm sure some of you have realized, you all have a connection to one other player."

Ivy and Daniel eyed each other. Maddie and Alison did the same.

"You each are close with someone who survived my last game. Jade. Kelly. And Maya. They are you salvation. Over the next three days of this game, you will make your ways closer to the finish line. But that means nothing if my three victors aren't there to meet you. There is a bomb on this building that will go off in 72 hours, unless they come to open the doors for you- those of you who make it that long."

The tape ended and clicked as it stopped.

The players looked at one another in silence and then the wall opened up.

The six players began walking down the dimly lit hallway. There were several doors coming from both directions. Daniel and Maddie checked then all. Locked.

"So is our first task a room or the hallway?" Ivy asked.

"Or the stairs?" Alison asked.

"Are we not going to talk about that tape?" Sofia said. "Who here knows my sister?"

"Your sister?" Maddie asked.

Alison raised her hand. "That would be me. Kelly is my friend."

"And who are you connected to?" Daniel asked Frank.

Frank was in the back of the line. "I can't be that hard to figure out. What does it matter anyway?"

"Do you know who kidnapped us?" Daniel asked Ivy quietly. "Did you know about Jade?"

Ivy nodded. "She told me. Well, I mean I'm so nosy that I was bound to find out."

"This is Jigsaw," Alison said. "That psycho did this to us."

"Jigsaw is dead," Maddie said. "It wasn't him."

"Jade said that the person who took them was a team. They knew one of them." Ivy said.

"So they're copy cats of Jigsaw?" Daniel said.

"Obviously this isn't the real Jigsaw," Ivy said. "He'd never kidnap a child." She gestured to Sofia.

Maddie checked another door and it opened. The group stopped and slowly huddled inside the room.

Daniel found the light switch for the room. The room had six stools, a large bar table, and a projector screen. On the walls, the words "Level 1" were written in red.

The players each took a seat. They were all labeled. Daniel sat in seat 1, Ivy in 2, Sofia 3, Maddie 4, Alison 5, and Frank 6. The moment he sat down, the screen began to play.

In their small section, there were 3 buttons marked A, B, and C.

"This is a test." Maddie said. "A real test."

"Great," Alison rolled her eyes.

The screen played old music as the first question showed up on screen: What College does Jade go to? A) Oxford B) Berkeley C) Stanford.

Ivy and Daniel quickly answered C.

"How would I know?" Frank asked.

"She goes to Stanford," Ivy said.

Everyone else answered C. A small compartment opened from the first section. A small, long knife came out and poked down quickly, piercing Ivy in the leg.

"Ahhhhh!" She screamed.

The knife removed itself and went back into the game.

"What the hell was that!?" Alison asked.

"Why did it do that?" Sofia asked. "We all got the answer right."

"I think you cheated," Daniel said.

"What?" Ivy said, holding her leg.

"You told us the answer," Maddie said.

Question 2 appeared on the screen: What is Kelly's real name? A) Kellianna B) Kellina C) Katerina

Maddie sighed and looked at her clueless players.

Sofia quickly answered B. Alison stalled before answering B. Daniel guessed C. Frank guessed B. Maddie answered B. Ivy guessed A.
A small bottle rose from inside Ivy and Frank's sectors of the game. The tension built as they dreaded why was to come. What could in that bottle? Pee? Acid?

Franks and Ivy were sprayed simultaneously with skunk spray.

Ivy coughed and wiped her face. It was all over her face. Frank cursed loudly, using his shirt of wipe off his face.

"At least it wasn't like poison," Sofia said.

"Shut up!" Frank said.

Question 3: How many boyfriends has Maya had? A) 0 B) 2 C) 6

Maddie looked down and answered A. She looked over at Sofia. She could tell Sofia didn't know the answer and her hand was going for B. Maddie let out a subtle cough and said, "Sof." Maddie made the ASL sign for the letter A on the bar between their 2 sections.

Sofia stared for a moment before realizing what it meant. She pressed the A button.

Alison guessed A. Frank put A. Ivy answered A. Daniel guessed B.

Daniel was shocked with a taser on his waist. He grunted in pain.

"I knew it was zero," Alison said. "Who would date her?"

Maddie's face tightened. "You really don't know anything."

Question 4: How many brothers does Kellina have? A) 1 B) 3 C) 5

Sofia quickly answered B and gave the ASL sign for the letter B to Maddie. Maddie answered B. Alison answered B too. Ivy guessed A. Daniel guessed B. Frank answered C.

Ivy and Frank were both hit with 20 need pellets. Red marks showed up all over them.

Ivy screamed. "Damn it!"

"How am I supposed to know that answers!?" Frank shouted.

Question 5: Who does Maya love? A) No one B) Harry C) Kelly

Alison leaned over to Maddie, "Who is Harry?"

Maddie ignored her and answered C. She was going to sign to Sofia, but she already answered C. Daniel and Ivy guessed C. Alison guessed A. Frank answers A.

Daniel, Ivy, Alison, and Frank all got pie splatted on them.

"What!?" Alison said. "She likes Kelly?"

"Loves Kelly, if you were paying attention." Maddie said.

Question 6 - Final Question: What is Jade's deepest darkest secret? A) Dying alone B) Being betrayed by everyone she loves C) She was raped

Daniel's eyes narrowed at the question.

Ivy looked down. "Shit." She answered C.

Maddie looked over at them. She guessed C.

Sofia was confused. "What does the last one mean?"

"It's-" Alison began to say. "I can't say. They're listening." She never met Jade, but she thought C had to be the answer. Why else would that option be there?

She answered C.

Frank answered A.

Daniel answer A as well. He didn't want C to be true.

Sofia guessed B.

A staple came out from Daniel and Frank's section and stapled their cheeks.

"Ah!" Daniel said. He tried to pull it out.

Frank ripped his staple out.

Maddie looked over at Sofia. She didn't have the right answer. She answered B not C. Yet she wasn't harmed.

"Level one winner: Maddie"

"Level one loser: Ivy and Frank." From up above, three gallons of liquid slime poured down on Frank and Ivy.

The projection shut off and a moment later, so did the lights.

Author's Note: Based on first impressions, which characters do you think will live or die?