─❈ 𝙲 𝚑 𝚊 𝚙 𝚝 𝚎 𝚛 𝟷𝟻 ❈─

43 4 24
                                    


Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.


──────────────── ❈ ❈ ✦ ❈ ❈ ────────────────


𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐑𝐈𝐋𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐒𝐌𝐎𝐊𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐖 welcomed the witches and wizards like beckoning fingers. Calling to them, tempting them to disappear into their ebony embrace. Jesse was the first to take a step toward the door, but a hand on his shoulder prevented him from going any further.

"Wait, it could be a trap," Penny warned him.  

"A trap?" Jesse retorted, his eyebrow arched in disbelief. "It's the front door, it's freedom!"

"But the host said that nobody could leave until they arrived," Jackson reminded him.

"Maybe they changed their mind!"

Jesse strained against Penny's grip and was eventually able to pop his shoulder free. With a shrug, he took another step towards the front door but he was stopped when he ran into Luc, who had quickly maneuvered in front of him.

"Just think about this, Plum," Luc cautioned him. "Look out that door. Does that look the same as you remember it looking when you first came through it?" 

Jesse peered over Luc's shoulder towards the inky darkness. The thick fog made it difficult to make out any familiar shapes, such as trees or rocks. "I mean, a little?" Jesse answered slowly. "I remember it being dark."

Luc raised his eyebrows, prompting Jesse to sigh and take another look. "Okay, maybe not. But what other choice do we have? Sure, out there could be death, but in here, there's certain death. We should at least try, don't you think?"

The rest of the group found it hard to respond. 

Jesse took a few steps beyond Luc, who held him firmly in his stare but didn't move to stop him. "Maybe it's not a trap, but a test. Maybe the host wants to see if we're willing to conquer our fears to gain our freedom," Jesse continued. 

Jesse tested his boundaries and took another couple steps closer to the front door. When he got a little too close for the group's liking, Luc took a step forward to stop him, but before he could reach Jesse, something else did. A tendril snaked along the floor towards Jesse's feet, but this one was much longer and much larger than the rest. It also appeared to be fleshy and purple in color. 

Before the witches and wizards could even notice its presence, it had latched onto Jesse's ankle, sending him crashing to the floor before dragging him towards the door. In the blink of an eye, it, along with Jesse, had disappeared into the darkness. 

"HOLY SHIT!" Jackson's scream occupied the space where Jesse's would have gone if he had had time to. "What the fuck was that?!"

Thomas leaned against the banister to support his weight, his knuckles paling as they gripped tightly onto the handrail. "He just...then he...gone, he's gone..." Thomas choked the words out, his forehead slick with sweat. 

𝚂 𝙷 𝚁 𝙸 𝙴 𝙺 // 𝘏𝘗 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘍𝘪𝘤Where stories live. Discover now