Zach Elsher doesn't know which is worse: being stuck in a mansion with these people, or getting lost on his own.
Probably the latter.
He's been wandering these twisted halls for way over fifteen minutes and still hasn't an inkling as to where he is going. At least when he was with the others, he had someone to talk to.
Now, there is only the deafening sound of silence to keep him company. He continues to trudge through the halls, passing door after door, each and every one of them closed.
Wait a minute...he steps back a few paces and smiles. A thick double door is slightly ajar.
Bingo!
Zach cautiously opens it with a loud creak and can't help but gasp at the sight. Before him is the largest library he has ever seen, with multi-story shelves on either of the walls, and a giant floor-to-ceiling window in the back, flooding the room with daylight.
He could spend a lifetime here, and still not even read half of the books. Although he doesn't like to read, Zach is impressed by the vast collection of publications. There's got to be at least over fifty thousand titles.
Exactly how rich is the person that owns this estate?!
He shakes his head in disbelief and runs his fingers across the spines of a row of books, each a different color, a different title, a different font. In the center of the spacious room sits a large oval table with scrolls and textbooks strewn across its surface.
Well, that may be a place to start. Perhaps there's a map of the mansion somewhere and he can find his way out. Zach sucks in a breath through his teeth.
This will take a while.
He's just about to start looking through the books when he hears a crash in the corner. He looks around one of the bookshelves and sees that a blonde-haired woman and a dark-eyed guy are making out. They don't seem to notice him.
Zach coughs, hoping to get their attention. When neither of them seem to hear him, Zach coughs again, though louder.
"Can you give us a minute?" The blonde has a look of disgust on her face, wrinkling her nose at the intruder before going back to playing tonsil hockey with the Italian.
Zach decides it isn't worth it to try to reason with these strangers.
As he's walking away, Zach calls, "Fine. Be like that. Good luck finding your own way out of this stupid mansion."
The blonde shares a look with the brown-eyed guy.
"I guess we can help you. Y'know, seeing as you're lost."
Zach smirks before turning around, "Care to share your name?"
"The name's Vivica, but you might've already known that." The blonde says, flicking a piece of her hair behind her neck, "And Handsome over here is Ricardo."
Ricardo leans against a shelf, crossing his arms. He doesn't look thrilled that Zach is there, but he couldn't care less about how he feels.
"I saw some books and scrolls on the table over there, and I am hoping to find a map," Zach explains. "Help me look?"
Vivica scoffs, "What's in it for me?"
"Getting out of this place sounds like a good reward."
With that final word, Zach starts looking around again. Vivica and Ricardo share a look before they, too, walk over to the table and start to look for a map.
***
"We've been looking for forever and we haven't found anything!" Vivica moans, throwing various papers on the floor.
As much as Zach hates to admit it, Vivica is right. They haven't found anything even resembling a map and they've been looking for a while.
"Why don't we just explore this mansion? It has to be quicker than what we're doing now." Ricardo says, never taking his eyes off Vivica.
"Ricardo's right. I'm leaving. Good luck on finding your map!" Vivica turns around and walks out the double doors, Ricardo trailing behind her.
"Guess this is no use," Zach mutters. With a sigh, he throws his papers down and follows Vivica and Ricardo.
They walk out into the hallway, which seems to stretch on for eternity.
Where are they supposed to go? Every door looks the same, just as every light looks the same. Except for...
"What are we supposed to do?" Vivica says, a look of frustration dawning upon her face, "Everything looks the exact same!"
"Are you sure about that?" Zach asks, pointing to a single gold chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Unlike the others, this one has an extra arm.
"Maybe it's just a mistake on part of the person who built this place." Vivica suggests.
"It's obviously pointing towards that door." Ricardo scoffs.
Zach really doesn't like this guy. He's too....Zach couldn't explain the bad feeling he got when he was around Ricardo. It was just there.
With a look around him, Zach walks up to the door and pushes it open
.
***
Zach walks into what seems like organized chaos. Standing by the fireplace, a man and woman are arguing. He squints his eyes and sees that they appear to be twins.
"Why do you never listen to what I'm saying!"
"He was insulting you."
"I could've handled it myself, Felix. I don't need you fighting for me all the time..."
Over in the corner, a teen is glowering at the siblings darkly, covering his left eye. Not far from him, a young german and blue-eyed girl are talking quietly on one of the navy couches.
"He's rude," the girl whispers, nodding toward Ricardo.
The boy says something back, but his reply is unintelligible.
Ricardo and Vivica go and make themselves at home on a vacant loveseat and continue what Zach had interrupted in the library. He knows that they are now oblivious to the people in the room. Not so surprisingly, no one notices them, too caught up in what they're individually doing.
Zach steps closer to the big group and loudly clears his throat. Slowly, they all stop their bickering and laughing and kissing to look at him, the room in complete silence.
"Someone explain what on earth is going on," he says, eyeing everyone with trepidation.
The teen with the black eye steps forward, and stretches his arms open wide in greeting.
"Welcome! I see you've finally found our hide-out!" he says.
"James, if you keep talking nonsense, I'll beat it out of you," a dark-haired girl warns.
"Zuri!" someone scolds, a petite and strangely familiar girl. "If I have to hear you two bicker one more time, I'm killing both of you!"
The girl, Zuri, sighs and turns away.
From the other side of the room, a voice says, "Oh. It's you."
Zach turns to see Katarina, one of the people that he abandoned on his search for a way out. Maybe he should've stuck with the group after all.
"Took you long enough!" Sam, another person he'd abandoned, says. He squints his eyes and sees that they are all there already.
The fair looking guy, Jason, the French woman named Sabine, evil Katarina, and whiny Samantha.
"Am I seriously the last one?" Zach groans, plopping into one of the navy armchairs. He suddenly hears a gasp from the shadows.
"Oh my God," a voice whispers. "It can't be him..." An older girl wearing black leather and spandex steps forward.
"Holy-" Zach jumps to his feet. "Liz?"
"Liz?" three people say in confusion.
Her hand automatically goes to her pocket, just like it always does when she is nervous.
"Hello, Zachary."
This time, it seems that the whole room joins in, "Zachary?!"
Zach groans as he eyes the room, "Would you not call me that?"
"I'll call you whatever I like." Liz smirks.
Zach realizes that it's going to be a rough time in the mansion if she is here. She drives him crazy in both the good and bad way.
Liz walks forward until she is only a few inches away from Zach. Her signature vanilla and coconut perfume fills his nostrils, sending his heart back to when they were still together.
To when she still loved him.
Slowly, he leans closer so that their lips are almost touching. Her bluebell eyes stare deep into his soul, igniting a spark he didn't think still existed, and it took all of his will to not kiss her senseless then and there.
Others are still intently watching them.
To both his relief and disappointment, she steps back and turns away.
"I-I'm sorry."
Zach is about to reach for her, but something catches his eye: a rolled up piece of paper sits on the mantle of the fireplace.
Seeing that he is looking at something, Liz follows Zach's gaze. He starts walking towards it, but his love is quicker. She grabs it and, standing on a coffee table, begins to read it aloud.
"'Welcome, Players!'" She begins, her voice projecting across the room. "'You have all been granted the pleasure of joining my Game. As you may have noticed, you are all some of the youngest, skilled, cold-blooded people in the world. You all have an objective: Find The Doll that is hidden somewhere in this mansion.
"'Of course, I am not asking you to do this for nothing. Along with The Doll, there is a treasure that is waiting to be claimed. As there is with any game, there are consequences for not playing. The last person to find The Doll or the treasure will lose their life. Only ten of you will make it out alive.'" Liz pauses for a moment to catch her breath before continuing on.
"Good luck Players, and enjoy your time here while it lasts. Sincerely, Your Host.'" As she finishes speaking, she steps off the table.
The room is silent.
Nobody dares to speak.
Then, the first words that break the silence are, "Game on."