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Introduction
Residing somewhere in the great multiverse of the Cosmos, Lies the Dark Beyond. This string of dimensions is controlled by one of the Great Old Ones, known simply as “The Entity”. Powered solely on the pain and suffering of individuals, she has hunted through both space and time to find beings of great sorrow and unspeakable evil. In order to feed and grow stronger, The Entity uses her immense power to pull these beings into the Dark Beyond, a series of desolate “realms”, loosely interconnected realities bearing a resemblance to the ones that the kidnapped were taken from, now shrouded by the dark Fog she controls. Within these realms, The Entity feeds through ritualistic Trials. Here, the wary unfortunate souls she has accounted for are pitted against beings of great magic and unnatural forces. Within these trials, The Killers are each sent to a realm to hunt down and sacrifice the survivors, these survivors are given an opportunity to try escape from these killers (their fear continues to fuel the entity). Should they do so, they are merely sent back to the Realm of Fire, a sanctuary where the survivors rest and wait to be selected for Trial again, For Death is No Escape. With limited memories of how they got there or what is happening, they must band together to try to comprehend their misfortune, as the killers, bonded by The Entity’s power, must obey or be tormented themselves. These are the chronicles of their encounters, the happenings between Trials, and the tragedies of their never-ending pursuit of the light through the Fog.
The First Trial
Chapter one: Dwight Fairfield woke up gasping for breath, sweat beading down his forehead. Gasping, he swung his head around to take in his surroundings. He found himself lying down on a soft patch of grass but could hardly see his surroundings due to the thickness of the night sky around him. He could at least clearly tell that he was somewhere in a forest, with scattering large trees in every direction. He managed to slow his hyperventilating to a reasonable number of breaths, no longer heaving, and proceeded to stand up. Gathering himself after gaining his footing, he wiped down his wrinkled button up shirt, and patted his hands down onto his gray jeans. Adjusting first his striped tie, and then his bulky thick rimmed glasses, he then proceeded on his way. He walked slowly through the woods, unsure of what direction he was heading, looking for any type of indicator to where he was. Occasionally, he would approach ruined and crumbling walls made of decaying bricks, covered with moss and various stains. This did not leave much help, as often it was two or three half standing walls from what Dwight would assume were small homes prior? Everything he approached seemed fairly old and worn down, giving him the impression he was in some kind of historical abandoned city, now reclaimed by nature. What was odd was that he felt as if he was not alone. Tiny whispers seemed to tug his head in different directions, and he could not help but sense at least several pairs of eyes burrowing into his back, silently judging him. Just my imagination getting the best of me. Dwight thought to himself. Everything is always scarier at night.He hears a strange noise in the walls of an abandoned building up ahead, but more importantly, it appears it was illuminated. Approaching cautiously, he did not see or hear anything immediately, and peered from the corner of one of the still standing walls. The floor had been completely removed, leaving nothing but the dirt and grass on the ground. The illumination came from a hollowed-out metal keg, which had some kind of debris inside that had been lit on fire, creating dancing and flickering lights on the half standing walls. He entered and began to survey the small room. Immediately noticeable was a large portable generator that had been fastened into the old room, clearly out of place. It was something Dwight had seen families use when they had lost power due to a snowstorm in order to still heat the house or keep the refrigerator stocked and letting its contents go bad. It wasn't running, and the plating outside had been stripped, revealing the components, gears, and wires running throughout it. Still seeing no one around, he approached the generator and ran his hand over it. Upon touching the metal, Dwight reared back in sudden pain, his vision blinded by a sudden white flash that felt as if it had been seared from his eyes all the way into his brain. Ringing still in his ears, it took a moment to fully allow his vision to come back to him, as he lifted his glasses to readjust them yet again. He couldn’t describe what had happened to him, but upon touching the generator, for some reason he understood how it operated. He noticed the wiring that was undone, the components missing, how much coolant and other supplies were low. Whatever that searing pain was, had embedded the knowledge not just of how the generator operated, but what it needed in order to be working again as well. Ignoring the smell of what felt like fried hair follicles along his arms and head, he began to inspect the circuitry moving inside, not aware of the quiet footsteps approaching him from behind.Dwight let out an audible gasp when he felt an arm wrap around his throat, his neck resting comfortably on the crook of a green windbreaker. Before he could let out the little air in his lungs, a gray glove covered his mouth again from behind. A thin, husky voice whispered in his ear: “You trying to get us all killed, asshole?”Dwight struggled against his unknown assailant, until finally he was released, and he put some slight distance between the two, both now kneeling to face each other. Dwight was faced with a young Korean man, with a faint wispy goatee and mustache, and long, messy dark hair. His face wore a scowl as he sized Dwight up and down. He wore a large green windbreaker and heavy hooded sweatshirt underneath it, grey gloves, and he had on tan cargo pants ready to carry whatever he needed. On his hip sat a survival pack and thermos that was tied to his belt. His heavy hiking boots completed the look of an outdoorsman, clearly seasoned and dirty as if he had been out in this forest for a long time. Dwight stood in shock to him, and when he noticed the apparent fear and confusion and fear on Dwight’s face, his expression softened.“Oh…. this is your first time here, huh?” The man offered his hand and assisted Dwight in standing back up. “I’m Jake, Jake Park.” he introduced himself. “Dwight Fairfield…,” Dwight sheepishly said, shaking Jake’s hand that he noticed he was still holding. Jake grinned and nodded, letting go to clap his hands softly together. “Right! Where to begin…” he trailed off, looking around and clearly deep in thought. Dwight began to panic, purging all the concerns that had been pent up since he woke up, the fear bubbling to the surface. Hours of high tension had finally been released, and Jake was the unfortunate recipient who was along for the ride. “Where are we?”“Okay Dwight, I need you to calm down…”“I was out with my boss and some co-workers-”“I’m sure you were, but trust me they are long gone…”“They made me drink something, this is just a hallucination it has to be!”“I wish it was, believe me…”“Why are these generators here? I touched it and now all of a sudden, I-”“DWIGHT!” Jake grabs him and shakes him out of this stupor, allowing for the air to get quiet again, despite a few crows being startled and being sent into the sky. Dwight’s lip quivered and tears began to form, heating up the sides of his cheeks. Jake sighed, lowering his head before regaining his composure. “Look man, I know this is difficult to comprehend. I don’t know if you ever will. But at this moment, right now, you need to just listen and trust me.”Dwight took a moment to swallow his spittle growing in his throat and nodded quickly. “Okay, I trust you.”Before Jake could respond however, there was a sudden loud huff, like a person breathing heavily. Then the wall to their left exploded in a cloud of dust, sending both young men flying backwards. As the rubble settled, a mountain of a man stood before them, wearing messy and blood splattered overalls, and had several spikes jutting out from his arms and back. The insanely muscled and hulking figure held a massive cleaver, still dripping from blood, and wore a strange mask, similar to that of a skull, but with a broken jaw that had several jagged pointed teeth, that had been broken into the shape of an unnerving smile. Dwight felt his collar get tugged, as Jake hoisted him to his feet. “RUN!” he screamed at him, “C’mon, RUN!”.Dwight needed no more commands and sent dirt flying as he flew out of the abandoned building, following Jake as the heavy breathing from the terrifying figure continued somewhere behind them. Chapter 2: The sound of his own heartbeat pounded in Dwight’s chest as he hauled after Jake deeper into the ruins within the woods. The sound of the monstrous being following them wasn't far off, the huffs of its breathing as it briskly followed them, constricted by the tight overalls and heavy boots that were becoming more bloodstained and muddier with every step. As they approached a narrow opening, Jake stopped and ushered Dwight past, where he noticed there was a large wooden pallet, a solid construction roughly their size propped against the wall. Held together by rough, scratchy ropes, Dwight ran by it, and Jake followed, only to turn and with a large heave, throw it down with force. The strange giant, seemingly unaware, had continued to chase and was met with the pallet slamming down against him, knocking him back and letting out a loud howl of shocked protest. Dwight was caught up in watching this sudden brilliant move and was brought back to the present when Jake gripped his arm and yelled again. “Keep moving!” He shouted, and the duo continued through the woods. As they gained distance, Dwight seemed to catch something in the tree line to his left. Without a doubt, there was something moving. Eventually, the sound of the chase seemed to die down and eventually subside, which allowed the two men to stop moving and catch their breath for a quick second. “What the hell?” Dwight gasped, bent over, hands on his knees. “Congrats,” Jake said panting, “You just survived your first meet and greet with the Trapper.” “What?” Before Dwight could continue his interrogation, there was a loud electronic gong that sounded off, seeming to come from everywhere at once. Jake’s shoulders visibly relaxed at the sound. “Thank God…” he muttered under his breath. He stood back up from his resting position, and helped Dwight back up to standing straight up. “That noise means we can finally get out of this joint, c’mon let's make our way to the exits before Trapper finds us again.” “Trapper? That’s what you call that guy?” Dwight asked exasperated. Jake nodded solemnly. “You really aren’t familiar with this place at all are you?” he asked, studying Dwight. Dwight shifted slightly, self-conscious as this center of attention, with Jake’s eyes darting around his body, analyzing him up and down. A rustling in the grass next to them made both young men jump from their positions, only for a young woman to approach from a nearby bush, and approach Jake. “Glad you were able to finish things, Claud,” Jake said, embracing her for a moment. When they released, Dwight was able to get a better look at her. She wore extremely dark clothing, blending into her surroundings with a gray scarf over a heavy brown jacket, and had high boots with dark jeans. On her side, she had a satchel, which she reached into and pulled several small plants from, which she began to press against Jake’s bloody forearms, and held them in place with some bandages from the same pack. Her dark skin had sparkles of sweat, as she too had been running for her life. Her hair was high, an afro sitting atop her head, and she had large red round glasses that gave her face almost an owl-like appearance when her hazel eyes darted around in a sense of caution. Once she and Jake had confirmed his wounds had been attended to, she turned to face Dwight, blinking almost in surprise as if she hadn’t noticed him earlier. Jaked pointed at her and then gestured to Dwight. “Dwight, meet Claudette,” he introduced them. Claudette looked back at Jake bewildered, and began to speak, her voice a trembling soft nature Dwight recognized as being associated with the shyest of associates he had worked with back home. This girl was far from an extrovert, and it showed in her tones. “He doesn’t-” She started before Jake cut her off with a hand motion and vigorous shaking of the head, which had her turn back to Dwight and approach him, kneeling down to his level, “-oh you poor boy…” “What?” Dwight sat up straighter, concerned. “I’m not what?” His voice grew panicked as he tried feebly to swat away at Claudette’s attempts to inspect him for any injuries. “Look, Dwight, we’ll explain everything I promise, we just need-” “NO!” Dwight stood up, much to Jake and Claudette’s dismay, arms flailing as he became hysterical. “I’m tired of being strung along here! There’s something happening, I'm lost and not supposed to be here, and there’s some ‘Trapper’ trying to catch us, what even is this place? Why should I trust you people in the first place? Because you found me before him? I want answers now!” Jake stood up and approached him slowly. Dwight couldn't help but shrink back slightly at the intimidating stature of the man in front of him, who continued to get in his face until Dwight could pick up on the strange wisps of gray hair which contradicted Jake’s youthful appearance, and could smell the musk of what he assumed was several days without shower and dealing with mud and dirt, however he could also pick up faint scents of burnt meat, as if he had been barbecuing something to eat. He sighed heavily, never breaking eye contact with Dwight. “You want to know the truth? Fine,” Jake said with a suddenly eerily calm voice. Dwight looked past him to Claudette, who simply stared at the ground. “The truth is, you’re far from home. In fact, you’re probably never going back. You, just like the rest of us, have been abducted by something we only refer to as ‘The Entity’. There’s a lot more of us, and day after day we are sent into these strange woods and other random walled locations, and are hunted down by monsters and psychopaths, like that one you just met. If they catch us, they put us on giant sacrificial hooks to kill us as part of this weird ritual routine they constantly are forcing us to be a part of.” Dwight’s face palled at this information, sweat beads dripping down his head as his brow contorted in an incredulous manner. “All we can do is find these generators you already saw, scattered around wherever we are, and if we can manage to fully repair some of them, there are two large exit gates located on the edges of the woods. We can escape through there and no longer be hunted. That loud gong you heard earlier? It means we finished repairing the generators we needed.” “Then let's get out of here! What are we waiting for?” Dwight bounced in place in an antsy fashion, “Let’s go find those exits!” Jake held him in place with a firm grip on his shoulder, “Easy pal. It’s not that simple.” He looked back at Claudette, who nodded solemnly. “Whatever this thing is that took us, is sadistic as fuck. If we die in these ritual hunts…,” “We’re just brought back to life to be used again,” Claudette finished tearfully, holding herself tightly. Jake nodded. “The same goes if we escape. We always end up being taken back to some campfire deep in endless woods, until we are chosen to be used again.” Dwight stared at the two for a moment, and the trio sat in silence, as the wide-eyed brightness in Dwight’s eyes slowly dimmed further and further as he realized the gravity of their perilous situation. Their collective moment of despair was interrupted by a woman’s high pitched shriek piercing through the trees. “Fuck,” Claudette muttered under her breath. “C’mon,” Jake said, “We need to go save her.” “Again…,” She added in response. “Um, sorry, who...?” Dwight began, before Jake nodded at him. “Sorry, yeah you haven’t met the final part of our little band of survivors in this ritual. That scream? That’s our last friend, and she just got captured. Claud here will go find the exit gates and get them open, c’mon buddy, you’re about to go on a rescue mission.” Chapter 3: The two young men high-tailed it through the woods, with Jake in the lead, running through branches, run down stone walls, and overgrown brush as they made their way deeper into this “realm” as Jake had started calling it. Apparently, there were many others with similar features, but from random points in time and history, as well as locations. They finally reached a small, run-down wooden hut that was awkwardly placed inside a clearing. “Okay, that’s the killer’s shack. It’s where the connection to the Entity is strongest, so they love sacrificing people inside.” Jake continued his explanations. “Our friend is inside there.” As they approached, Jake suddenly stopped Dwight to show that at the open, dilapidated door, sat an open bear trap. Had one of them stepped in it, they would have been surely incapacitated. Jake reached down gingerly with a stick, slowly reaching the pressure plate in the middle, before exerting enough pressure on the branch to snap it safely away from their limbs. Following this, they continued down a flight of stairs once inside. Small whispers, animal growls, and a thick dark mist began to circulate around them as they descended. They only got stronger as they finally reached the end of the stairway and came to a scene that made Dwight almost hurl. Blood, guts, and various bones were scattered around the floor, and despite there being no lightbulbs, there was a strange pulsating red and orange hue that seemed to permeate from the cracks in the wood and the walls, illuminating dancing shadows that moved around the room at a sickening pace. There were red- and silver-colored lockers that were placed at the entrance and the far back, but it paled in comparison to the middle of the room. There sat an erected pole of sturdy oak, and in each of the four directions, sat a vicious looking spiked meat hood, waiting to impale something. On the hook facing them, hovered a young woman, a few feet off the ground, who was seemingly unconscious, with a hook speared through her left side of her shoulder, keeping her suspended. Slowly, strange pincers and claws that were being materialized out of shadows around the hook slowly inched towards her, as if to envelope her completely. Jake approached and reached up, gripping her hips before grunting and lifting her outwards and out of the hook, allowing her to fall forwards, resting against him, but still standing. “Ugnnnnnn,” she grunted as her head rolled back, and her eyes opened, and she became accustomed to her surroundings again, and Jake let her go, allowing Dwight a better look at her. The girl was wearing dark blue leggings, and had impressively worn-out running shoes, and despite the cold had a track jersey on, with white stripes that were barely visible thanks to an excess of dried blood and dirt that left it in a thrashed condition. A faded white number 19 was visible on the front and the back. She had a pointed, sharp and lean face that had seen plenty of fights, with her nose seemingly permanently smushed to the side from repeated breaks. Her red hair was pulled back tight into two braids, which went down her back ending below her shoulder blades. “Meg? Meg, can you hear me? You with us?” Jake gave her a quick one-over to see how she was, and Dwight noticed that despite the amount of blood she had lost from the puncture wound of the meat hook, it seemed to close itself off magically, but left plenty of blood behind, and left her slumped over, still favoring the other shoulder. She rolled her head back, before her blue eyes began to search around her surroundings and settled on Jake again. “Yeah…,” she said, with a surprisingly strong voice, “I’m fine, what’s our status?” Jake grinned and patted her on the back. “Claud is opening the doors as we speak.” Meg nodded, and limped forwards, before realizing Dwight was standing there with them. Instant recognition flashed across her face, that quickly turned to anger, and she whirled around back to Jake. “What is HE doing here?!?” Jake put both hands up, one to try to quiet her, and the other to try to bring down the tension. “Look, he-,” “Wait, you know me?” Dwight interrupted. He had never met this girl before, and would definitely have seen so intense she was, it wasn’t a person he’d likely forget. However, this question sent Meg into an even more aggressive stupor. “He doesn’t remember, and you brought him to the shack?!?” “He came with me because I thought he could help-” “He’s a Dwight!” “I know, I know, look we can sort this out later please can we just?” “How do you know my name?” Dwight interjected again, feeling nervous at her apparent hostility. Meg looked back at him, and married her eyes and pointed at him, shoving her finger into his chest. “Just don’t get in my way, Locker boy.” she sneered, and with Jake’s help, the trio limped up the staircase, and out of the basement. As they left the shack, avoiding another bear trap that Meg pointed out, they made their way through the woods yet again. As they traveled as fast as they could with the injured Meg, there was some noise that sounded like heavy breathing again. Dwight took a look over his shoulder, and his voice cracked with a new fear and alarm in his tone. “Guys! He’s behind us!” The Trapper, huffing, was storming after them, the blood still on his overalls, and with seemingly more spikes and shards of metal pipes and material lodged in his shoulders, back, and arms. His meat cleaver at his hip, was gripped so tightly, his hand looked nearly bone white. The unsettling grin of his toothy open-mouthed mask was only met with the dark crevasse of where one would normally see eyes. The trio kept trying to keep pace, but with the injuries Meg was still suffering from, they could tell that the Trapper was gaining on them. His huffs became more distinct and humanoid, as he was no longer a strange apparition but something very real-and very deadly. They cut along the tree line and saw the tall brick wall of the corners of the ritual area, and sure enough, there was a large stone outcropping, with a cobbled together pressure valve with three red bulb lights, all ignited, and a long corridor leading out into a dark, misty grassy plains in front of them on the other side. Claudette was standing there, and when she saw them, she began frantically waving her arms in a motion signaling them to hurry up. “We’re not gonna make it,” Meg said suddenly, a clear and surprisingly calm statement through gritted teeth. Dwight looked at her and Jake on the other side, whose brow was furrowed in concentration. “Nope,” Jake agreed, “We’re not.” Meg nodded and released her arms from the shoulders of the two men, limping on her own now. As the two kept running, she slowed down dramatically, until she came to almost a full stop. Dwight swung back, as they reached the entrance to the exit gate, and saw that Meg had slowed down to a full stop. Jake was with him and Claud, all watching. “What is she doing?” Dwight said frantically, as the Trapper closed the distance on Meg. Upon getting in range, he raised his cleaver and swung down. Dwight let out a yell, and Meg let out a shrill cry of pain, as he landed a glancing blow against her back, ripping part of her jersey and leaving a nasty gash, as she fell to the floor. Dwight looked at the two other survivors, both with blank expressions. Something stirred deep within Dwight, and he felt it rise to the surface and felt it leave his lips much harsher than anyone would have expected. However, someone needed to take charge, someone needed to be a leader. “What the hell is wrong with you guys?” He said, and looked back to the unconscious Meg, now being thrown over the Trapper’s shoulder, as he turned to walk back into the forest. Dwight attempted to run after them, but he felt a tug on his forearm. Looking down, he saw Claudette was pulling on him back, and simply pointed towards the leaving party. “Cause she loves to do this,” she said, with nervous annoyance in her voice. Dwight turned back around to see what would happen next. Meg, who appeared unconscious, was apparently faking. As she was lifted onto his shoulder, her eyes re-opening with a malicious light in them. Her one arm, that was behind her when she was lifted, reached down to the side of her leggings, where she had hidden something on the ground: a shard of jagged glass. As the Trapper went to hike back into the darkness, she used her strength to lift it up above them both, before plunging the shard down into the exposed flesh of Trapper’s shoulders, almost between his clavicle and neck. “URGHHHH!” The Trapper grunted in pain, dropping Meg as he kneeled over to clutch as his new obstruction. Meg on the other hand, miraculously landed on her feet. One hand gripped her own abdomen, which had some of her previously earned wounds reopening at the sudden motions. She gritted her teeth however, because there were other issues to attend to. Like the Exit gate where her three teammates stood waiting for her for them all to escape. Her free hand ended up on the ground in front of her like she was on the starting line, and Dwight watched as she exploded from her hunched position, barreling forwards with such speeds he was unaware was possible of a person. She finally reached the trio, and they watched as the Trapper, seeing they had entered the exit gates, began to saunter off into the distance. “He can’t chase us into here,” Jake explained. Meg caught her breath, leaning on Claudette who began addressing her cuts, and looked very annoyed about it. “You’re gonna fuck that up one day, you know that right?” She said tersely. Meg grinned confidently, and looked over at Dwight hovering near them all, as they four began to walk off into the dark plains. “Hey, with dorks like this around,” she said, punching him in the shoulder, “You’re gonna need me to take care of things like that.” Dwight didn’t say anything at first, flustered and intimated by the brass nature of the girl. Jake reached over and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. “The important thing is that we all made it out.” Dwight nodded and opened his mouth, but Jake cut him off again. “We’re heading back to our camp. We’ll explain the rest on the way, and when we get there, you can meet the others.” “Others?” “We’re not the only ones out here Dwight, there’s more you’ll get along with great, and I'm sure that they’ll be able to help you fill in all the blanks about why you’re not remembering your time here.” “I’ve been here before?” Dwight asked incredulously. Jake thought for a moment, choosing his words carefully. “In a manner of speaking, yes. But this is the first time You’ve been with us I suppose.” The others offered a somber grin in accordance with these words. “Huh,” Dwight mused to himself, “well, thank you all then. For everything.” They all share similar sentiments, as they continue trekking along through the perpetual night sky, the mist and fog floating around them in an infinite swirl. Four individuals were brought together. Four survivors.