"How can you say that? We have to go together." There was a challenging note in James' voice again. "Or do you want to be left alone in the forest?"
Damian looked at the house again. The dark windows were like empty eyes, staring back at them. The open door was like a mouth, ready to swallow. And there was something, he couldn't explain it, but there was something in there.
Every cell in his body screamed to run.
But then he saw Cedric, his face pale but loyal, not willing to leave him despite his fear. He saw James, his eyes flashing with a dangerous, unrestrainable curiosity.
Damian closed his eyes and clenched his fists.
"Fine," he whispered. "But if anything happens, don't say I didn't warn you."
Ryan let out a small cheer, and the group began to move towards the house. Step by step, getting closer to the open door.
Damian walked at the back, each step feeling like walking towards his own execution.
And as they stood in front of the door, staring into the darkness inside the manor that shouldn't exist, the wind suddenly blew, cold, unnaturally so for the season.
More than twenty students, almost all the participants who came, began to move and enter the door. Damian walked at the back with James and Cedric, his every step feeling like lead.
As soon as Damian's foot crossed the threshold, the air changed. A coldness pierced his skin, unlike the usual night cold. It was a cold that seeped into the bones, into the soul.
And then—
BANG!
The door behind them slammed shut with a deafening noise, the impact so loud that several students screamed. A few people rushed to the door, trying to open it, pulling the handle in a panic.
"It's locked!" Adrian screamed, his voice rising an octave. "The door is locked!"
Panic began to spread like wildfire. Screaming voices collided, students crowded the door, trying to force it open. But the door didn't budge.
And then the lights suddenly came on.
One by one, the antique crystal chandeliers along the walls lit up on their own, without anyone touching a switch. The light was golden yellow, but somehow felt cold, providing no warmth. The light revealed the room around them, and everyone fell silent.
They stood in an enormous hall, so large it could easily accommodate a hundred people. The ceiling soared high, perhaps six meters, with dark wooden beams crisscrossing it. The walls were lined with old wood paneling with intricate carvings that were hard to see clearly. The floor was black and white marble in a dizzying checkerboard pattern.
But what made everyone freeze was what was in the center of the room.
A table. A large table with a dark green surface, like a billiard table but bigger, longer. And on it, arranged in a perfect triangle formation, were human skulls.
Dozens of skulls, perhaps more. Some were intact, some cracked. They were laid out like billiard balls, waiting to be played. The dry bones were clean, maintained, as if someone had deliberately placed them there.
The first scream came from Lisa. Then Veronica. Then the others followed, scream after scream filling the huge room.
"GET OUT! WE HAVE TO GET OUT!" someone yelled.
Chaos erupted. Students ran towards the door, banging, kicking, some tried the windows but they were all locked from the inside with heavy, antique latches.