[ESCAPE] Main Floor - CONCLUSION p.11!

[Smerdle]

A cool breeze carrying an unfamiliar scent brushed past Brenley as the door in front of him finally creaked open. The odor wasn't unpleasant, it just wasn't one the desert-dwelling boil was at all familiar with. The sounds that reached him through the portal suggested that the Fracs had been telling the truth, however. They were on an island, or at the very least, near the water. He stepped into the darkness, feeling an equal mix of relief and fear as he met the damp chill of the outside world. He was free.

Instead of reveling in the fact that he had made it out, Bren froze as the door swung shut behind him, realizing that even though the hard part might have been behind him, this ordeal hadn't yet reached its conclusion. Had he been with friends, he would have called out for them, but he sincerely doubted anyone in that house would ever call him one. This was all up to him. If he made it back to civilization alive, he would make the effort to let someone know what had happened, even if his alert came anonymously. He owed Pachua that much.

The boil told his legs it was time to move, but besides a shivering twitch, they went nowhere. The waves were louder now, amplified by their echo off of the door behind him. Bren tried moving a second time, and surprisingly, his body obliged. He lurched forward, his foot catching on a protruding rock and sending him flailing through the darkness. Brenley landed hard on his hands and knees with a startled cry, and abandoning the little dignity that remained to him, chose to crawl in what he hoped was the direction of the ocean. Eventually, the tips of his fingers hit water, though he wouldn't have known it had a small breaker not promptly soaked his hands to the wrists. Bren chuckled breathily in the face of this new and very real dilemma. Unfortunately, hailing from the desert meant he also couldn't swim.

He had hoped that there would be a boat or bridge or at the very least it would be lighter outside as he made his escape, but it seemed luck was not on his side. He climbed to his feet, fully expecting to feel a bullet or a knife sink into his back, but he remained unscathed. It seemed he wouldn't even be granted a quick death, not that he deserved one. Bren closed his eyes, advancing into the water until it churned around his waist. He was certain he was going to drown, his waterlogged body left to bob at the bottom of the sea until his FEAR was no longer interested in remaining in the shape of a boil.

Brenley peered out into the water, still unable to make out the world around him. It was time to go. With a shaky intake of breath, the reaper continued forward and was quickly pulled to a spot where it was too deep to stand. He struggled the first time his head went under, but by the third, he no longer moved at all.  

[Kyribird]

ROLLIN ROLLIN ROLLIN  

[Kyribird]

ROLLING AGAIN AT ENOH REQUEST YO  

[Seussi]

Through the door, at first all that he could see was darkness. It was such a strange sensation, to not be able to see in the dark, his nocturnal eyes never failing him before now. At first, he thought he could make out faint shapes moving to either side of him, and assumed it was the others. "Hello!" He called to them, taking one small step to the side, but nobody replied.

He called out again, and again, nobody replied, as though the darkness was swallowing his words before they could travel through the air to the others.

He was alone, and in it's own way, it was almost a relief to be alone. He wouldn't need to be accountable to anybody else but himself, now.

His journey began, but it was precariously slow. There was certainly a need to act quickly, with the threat of the other students death looming with every hour that passed, but Mathias knew that there was no sense in rushing if that put him at risk of dying on his way as well. That would help nobody.

His feet slid over the ground carefully, each foot fall well thought out, his ears straining for any sound that he could hear, of the others, of a hint of him nearing the edge that he knew must be coming eventually. It was impossible for him to tell if he was even going straight, however, as he was relying on instinct alone.

But maybe, just maybe, instinct would prove to be enough.

It might have been hours later. It probably was hours later, when he first heard the sound of waves crashing against rocks. He had made it! The wind began to whip around him, causing torn up clothing to flutter and the fur on his ears to ripple, as he stopped at a cliffs edge, and hunkered down, breathing out a small sigh of relief.

One part of the journey finished, then, though how much more would he need to endure before finding safety?

At this point, Mathias sorely wished he had a map of his own. Had there been a bridge across the water that relentlessly crashed against the shore below? He could not recall, and a hand reached up to rub at his face as he considered his options, running through them in his mind quickly before coming to a decision.

He would climb down, and search along the coast itself.

It took some time, perhaps more then he wanted to think about, but he made it. It took even more time to find the small alcove, and the treasure that was tethered within. A boat, only a small one, but it was better then nothing. Better then swimming when he didn't know where he was even swimming to, an act that surely couldn't end well if he had attempted it.

He untied the boat and climbed aboard, picking up one of it's oars and using it to push the small rig out of the alcove and into open water. Both oars lifted then he began.

It was slow, again, as he knew it would be. They weren't meant to be able to do this, he didn't think. They weren't meant to make it in the time that was allotted them. Muscles in his upper arms and shoulders bunched up and relaxed slightly with every stroke, his joints beginning to protest the motion after doing it on repeat for what felt like and may have very well been several hours.

Still he kept on. He had opted to leave instead of letting somebody else go in his stead, and he would do everything he could to make it back. paddling through that water, however, he had to wonder if he had really done the right thing back there.....

He felt and heard the scraping of rocks along the bottom of his boat, his ears perking to attention as he leaned forward, sniffing at the air. Land, trees, grass, dirt.

He'd made it.

Without pause he jumped from the boat throwing the oars back behind him and continuing on his way. He was sore, his entire body aching from cuts and bruises, from the strain it had taken to row that small boat all of this way. He was lost and alone, and he didn't know where he was going, but he knew he was closer now.

At least...he hoped he was closer now. He didn't want to even consider the fact that he might have gotten turned around and ended up back on the island.

Lost and alone he would remain for several more hours, it would seem. The young wolpertinger stumbling through brush and undergrowth, claws scraping against trees that he gripped as he past them, finding paths and then losing them just as quickly whenever some large and formidably sized creature came sniffing along. He was growing colder, weaker, and at some point he stopped to patch himself up a bit with the supplies he had taken, sniffling to himself, eyes flickering around.

So lost. How was he ever going to find his way home?

And then, finally, a beacon of hope. After tripping over a cluster of upraised roots and tumbling ears over tail for several feet down a slope, Mathias came to a stop in what appeared to be a meadow.

And quite suddenly, Fear. He could feel it, surging into him, a sweet, gasp inducing sensation that had him nearly crying in relief. It strengthened him, it bolstered his spirits, and most and best of all, it seemed to be a guide to him now. Now he could follow the path of Fear. Now he could find his way.

Mathias got to his feet, and he made his way back to Halloweentown, a ragged and bloodied sight to behold.  

[Seussi]

He had made it back, but had no idea how much time had passed. Hours, many of them he was sure. He was exhausted, but feeling better, as he sat in the Halloweentown boogeymen office, with one boogeyman seated across from him at a desk, taking his information, interviewing him on what he had to say. There was much skepticism on the authorities part, but there must have been something in Mathias's face, in his eyes, that they believed. They would go and try and find this island that he spoke of, and the other students that had been left behind. They wanted to keep him for further questioning, however, and had taken him to an area where he could rest, while somebody watched over him.

He had done what he could. He had.

He just hoped that he hadn't been too late.

The Escaped

done and done~

 

[The Escaped]

For those who remained, an announcement would sound on the PA system every hour after Marzena's exit from the building. At first, it was the same announcement, telling them how many hours remained in the same almost bored voice of the Fracs, almost as if these had been pre-recorded. There was nothing special happening, no surprise visits from the gas-mask wearing minipet unless they were wanted, and eventually all they could do was sit and wait out the rest of their lives.

The PA system screeched to life:

Thirteen hours remain! The tone of this one seemed different than the last ones; it was more cheerful. I wonder if they got back in time, you think? The system cut out again, leaving the students to silence.

The next hour, it came to life again, with the same cheerful tone: Twelve hours remain! You know, I haven't seen anyone get out of the forest - maybe they're all dead? With a thoughtful hum, the system lapsed into silence.

It shrieked back to life seconds later: OH WAIT! There's Aurel! Lookit that, you lucky ducks might actually make it out! Sounding much too pleased despite what was happening, it lapsed back into silence.

Eleven hours remain! You know, I haven't seen anyone since Aurel. Maybe he didn't get help?

Ten hours remain! I just saw Mathias! Gosh, he looks terrible. I wonder if he'll even make it to Halloween...

Nine hours remain! Gee, looks like nobody's coming for you! That's...actually really sad.

Eight hours remain! I wonder where the other two are...

Seven hours remain! I haven't seen a single student or bogey in hours. Looks like you guys are out of luck!

Hours six through three were the same droning, pre-recorded messages they thought they were free of...or, perhaps, they preferred it to the Frac's eerily cheerful voice. Two hours remaining, and the announcement started with the usual message, but cut off in the middle, with a giddy cheer:

Oop! I saw a couple Bogeys leave Halloween just now! Tick tock, Bogeys!

One hour remains; your saviors are still en route. Say your prayers, little creatures! Maybe Jack will hear you, and save your pointless lives! The happy voice cut off, leaving the students in nervous but cautiously hopeful silence.

Thirty minutes remain. I'm recording this, you know. If you want to leave a final message, just start talking! I'll catch it on audio for your friends and family later. I'm such a good person! A giggle, and silence.

Twenty minutes remain. Your saviours have reached the beach.

Ten minutes remain. They're on the island! I hope they move fast!

That was the last of the announcements, it seemed...but the students were not without their ways to tell time. There were clocks in most of the rooms as a constant reminder of how much time they had left. When there was three minutes remaining, they could hear taps on the boarded and reinforced windows, and a couple of lucky students would hear muffled voices of creatures shouting - trying to plan their entry, in a place where FEAR was so scarce.

Two minutes remained, and something began to click in the vents of the building, whirring to life until it was a loud, steady buzz: something was powering up, and gaining a charge. One minute, and the whole building was filled with the deafening buzz; thirty seconds, and the buzzing stopped completely, leaving the silent seconds to crawl by in slow, painful ticks.

The last second sounded, and the last thing the students would hear was a series of loud, trembling explosions echoing through the building, just before the building came down on their heads.

xxxx

xxxx

xxxx

xxxx

xxxx

xxxx

xxxx

The Boogeymen managed to avoid the blast in time, but when it settled, they were treated to nothing but rubble. The building and everything inside had been reduced to nothing. Their search turned up nothing useful; no proof that the students had been there, no bodies to confirm the stories from both young men, no equipment that survived to give them any indication that anything terrible had gone on here.

Parker Freeman's work - if it had been Parker at all - had been obliterated.

ESCAPE'S CONCLUSION - THE END!

Your student has died.

Luckily, they are from Amityville Academy, and are naturally either very powerful, or just very lucky - those left behind wake up in various pumpkin patches on the edge of Halloweentown forty-eight (48!) hours after the building collapses. This includes Amphi and Pachua! Whatever they had on them when they were kidnapped is still missing, and since the building had been reduced to a fine rubble...

Your student may do whatever they wish from this point on. You may reply to what's happened above and write a death solo if you wish (either in this thread or in a separate one!). They are back home, mostly safe and sound, just down a few objects/clothing/pieces of mind/etc. Time-line wise, this event can take place where ever makes more sense in your student's timeline, considering it had extended far beyond what I had planned. However, they were all missing for three weeks, and that will remain the same across the board.

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, feel free to contact Enoh Love by PM or IM!

Thank you all for playing!

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Nyxtsuki Moon

Moonstone Dazzle

endejester

kyribird

kaiyumi

Melodine Cantus

Lilwolfpard

the_scowling_cat

Syusaki

Carhop Cavalier

Smerdle

Seussi

kuroopu