"I'm scared they won't hear me, so I scream louder."
Aesop Carl - The Embalmer
The manor was heavily decorated with old Victorian fashion sense, only if the people ignore the slight cracks out in the open— paints on the wall being ripped as well as the curtains. Several windows broken, glass pieces scattered on the ground in and out.
It was not unpleasant, the place was tolerable. Despite the eerie vibe the manor gives off, the people living in it makes it lively and humane.
Why would anyone live in a manor in such a condition in a place like this? The Game. That was what brought people here. People were invited here to play the game, to win an award. Who would have imagined they would be trapped here?
People from all around the world with different backgrounds were gathered here, without knowing what was coming for them.
Including the embalmer, Aesop, for all he knew, all of them have been here for at least six months. None of them were ageing, none of them were injured or killed, it is something eternal. Many would have wanted it, but he most definitely did not.
The match would begin in approximately thirty minutes, a few of them were already in the waiting room for the names to be announced.
The game was seen to be difficult and scary at first sight, but they have all gotten used to it— it is no longer a big deal for them. Occasionally, there will be two hunter and eight survivors in a single game. Most often, a single hunter with four survivors. All you have to do is to decode five ciphers and open the exit gate to escape. The hunters may not kill you but they can send you back to the manor by putting you on a rocket chair or wrap you into a cocoon.
Aesop soon went down into the waiting room just in case he would be playing in a match. Most likely he would be chosen since he has not been in a match for around three days. There were a few people in the room as well, if he recognised them correctly they would be the mercenary, doctor, gardener and the seer.
As anxious as he was, he decided to keep a fair distance away from the rest until the names have been announced. A couple of survivors soon made their way into the waiting room as well, most of them were chattering along with one another. Only a few chose to stay afar from the rest.
A couple of minutes passed by, the monitor in the room soon lit up although in black screen. Four names were shown on the monitor.
He let out a sigh as he noticed his name was shown second on the screen after the doctor's. The last two survivors chosen were the mercenary and the seer. Weird combination, but they could make it work if each of them do their part in the right way.
He watched as his teammates made their way towards the table where they'll be waiting for the hunter's side to send out one of their own. The mercenary took the furthest seat away from the other two, the seer and the doctor were conversing as if they were already strategising. Hesitantly, he made his way towards the empty seat in silent.
Aesop watched as the two strategises while the mercenary across from him just sat in silence, if anything, the other seemed exhausted and honestly was done with everything and anything. Which was out of character since he would usually be going around the manor as if he's always on sugar rush. The grey-haired embalmer decided to not question it as he tugged nervously at his mask. He blacked out as soon as the screen announced that the hunter was ready.
• • • • •
He recognised the map almost instantly the moment he opened his eyes, he shivered slightly as he felt the chills down his spine. This map was definitely not his favourite, the town was just way too ghostly anyway.
The embalmer glanced around for a cipher to decode, he wanted to get this match over with. He sighed in disappointment once he decided that there was not one nearby his area, he began to head towards Southeast to hopefully find a cipher. Or perhaps he should place the coffin down somewhere. Near the gates would be too risky but effective if they are only a cipher down or so.
Just as he was dealing with his dilemma, he was snapped out of his thought by the loud flapping wings of the owl staring right at him. He would be lying if he said he did not jump at that. As if the two were having some sort of staring contest, the owl eventually flew away— probably back to the seer.
It took him awhile to realise that he had wasted a few minutes staring into space and running around in a possible circle. He ran passed a rocket chair placed nearby the graveyard towards the corner of the place itself. Well, a coffin in a graveyard, nothing suspicious at all.
He did not know who the hunter was just yet, so he would have to be wary in case it was the ripper who could be right next to him at any second or geisha who could just be staring right at him through a wall. That happened once, and he swear he almost had a heart attack.
Without any further delay, he went for the cipher in the graveyard and started decoding it. Every once in a while he would glance behind him in case the hunter was nearby, well, it is a habit.
It has been a few minutes and he was pretty sure that the cipher was halfway done. He managed to hit on perfect calibration for a couple of times, though nearly missed one as the sound of a teammate being downed rang in his comms. He mentally cursed as he held out the device only to see that the seer's icon showed that he was incapacitated.
"Focus on decoding!" The seer called out as he was chaired a few seconds after, it seems like he was nearby where Aesop was. He was about to go for a save until he was interrupted by someone dashing passed him. Well, of course it is gotta be the mercenary. He managed to recognise the face during their short-term reunion in the match. The embalmer let out a sigh of relief as the device soon showed that the seer was rescued. Though the mercenary seemed to have taken a hit for the seer as neither of them got caught after he's been hit.
He went on decoding the cipher in the graveyard, before it was done, he went ahead and drew the mercenary to embalm him if something goes wrong— after all, he is the best rescuer on their team. It took only a few minutes before he went back to finish deciphering, not to mention to signal the hunter where he was.
Without hesitation, he grabbed his case and quickly ran out of the graveyard. His device announcing that there were only three ciphers left. Good to know that the doctor was able to decode while the seer and the mercenary were distracting the hunter.
There were no cameras, rocket trails, puppets, ritual circles, tentacles, webs or any unnecessarily huge amount of fogs around. He could only assume it was geisha or the queen who has just arrived a while ago. If it was the gamekeeper he would have been dead by now. Wu Chang would most likely be distracted by the tram as of now if they were the hunter.
He instantly came to a stop once again, the seer was running towards him. His heartbeat instantly went berserk. He was confused for a second until he realised the hunter was right up to the seer's ass. The Queen. Mentally cursing, he sprinted as fast as he could alongside the seer who was obviously panicking.
Let's just say, it did not end up well for the two. The Queen decided to use her mirror on them and they managed to make it a tie. The doctor and the mercenary managed to escape while the Queen was distracted with the both of them during the decoding of three ciphers.
•••••
"I'm very sorry, Mr. Carl." They were back at the manor, the doctor was treating both of their wounds. The seer apologised for the fifth time, Aesop simply waved him off. At least they have gotten a tie instead of a loss.
It was near late afternoon after their match in the Eversleeping Town. Around 06:30pm, there were no matches until 09:00pm so he has got some time to spend. They already had dinner when they returned to the manor. Aesop sees no point in staying downstairs, he decided to wander up into his room since it was much more preferable than the noisy crowd downstairs.
His room was the second last in the corridor on the first floor. There used to be three empty rooms right next to his, but they were now occupied by the two new survivors. The bartender and someone else he has not met or heard of. The bartender has already went down and met up with other residents— unlike the other, they have not even left their room. It remained locked ever since last week. The doctor and the gardener usually brings food to their doorstep, they may be strangers but they are all in this together.
The embalmer went ahead towards his own room, only to hear soft sobs as he passed by the newcomer's room. A male. Well, that's quite a basic information. Noted. He would not let the curiosity get the best of him, he decided to ignore the sobs and rested in his room.