The second voting round was an absolute disaster. Thanks to me and three other co-conspirators, we trapped everyone inside of the hellhole known as Serendipity for another day. The guilt didn’t eat away at me as fast as the first day. Perhaps I’d lost more of my corroding soul with each passing day,

Every secret that I kept—every lie that I told—all of it hurt the other players one way or another. I felt that I could continue with my antics until I earned the money that I deserved. But someone amongst us was closing in on the others and me.

I sat alone in my room, going over the contents of the letter sent by a mysterious individual. I racked my brain, trying to figure out who wrote the letter and why they sent it to me of all people.

Did they send it out as an earnest warning? Or was it bait to draw us out into the open?

Either way, I saw it as someone trying to use me to ignite a fire. I refused to play into the hands of the mysterious sender. They wanted to spread drama; they’d have to do it themselves.

I set the letter inside my drawer once Caius’ came over the intercom, once again reminding everyone of game time. I left my room and met the other players inside the lobby.

Upon everyone’s arrival, the game moderator flashed his dreadful smile and proceeded with his announcement, “Now that everyone is here, we shall begin with the third game! I will now select the players!”

Caius pressed a button on his tablet and showed everyone the screen. Our faces raced across the monitor until coming to a halt on two players—Elena and me.

Surprisingly, I felt no fear after getting selected. Perhaps it had something to do with my excitement. After all, the time had come where I’d put my life on the line and win the money to save the bar. Or, it could’ve been my sense of security knowing I’d easily defeat Elena.

The woman seemed far from a challenge, or even a warm-up for that matter. I glanced over at my opponent and immediately spotted the paleness of her face, the terror in her eyes. She wasn’t cut out for the games.

How they managed to recruit someone like her into risking her life for money was beyond me. But, I didn’t put too much thought into it. It wasn’t my business.

All I knew was that easy money was coming my way.

Or so I thought.

Elena’s eyes filled with tears upon the horrid realization that she’d gotten selected. She backed away from Caius and shook her head, voicing her desperate refusal to playing. “No! I don’t want to play! I don’t want to die!”

It was a pathetic attempt—fruitless even. The wicked smile on Caius’ face practically gave away his uncompassionate mentality toward the woman’s suffering. He didn’t have to say a word for the others to understand that he wouldn’t save her.

“Now, now, Elena, crying will do you no good here.” Caius callously stated. “By now, you should know the rules. Refusing to play once selected is grounds for disqualification. You understand what that means, yes?”

Elena focused her petrifying gaze to the bracelet on her wrist. I could imagine the thoughts that raced through her head at that moment.

Death by lethal injection.

Caius warned us about the deadly punishment on the first day. Thankfully, none of us had witnessed it, and I doubted many of us wanted to see.

The precarious situation hit me all at once. What if Elena continued with her refusal to play, and Caius killed her? Would I receive her points? Would there be a game, after all?

I wasn’t much concerned about Elena’s life as much as I was about the money. That was all that mattered. If Elena died and I missed out on my opportunity, then God knows how long it would’ve taken for another chance to come my way.

I made up my mind and approached Elena. I offered my hand and ordered, “Get up.” Elena hesitated at first, but eventually cleansed her face and took my hand. Once I helped her to her feet, I continued, “Stop crying. It won’t get you anywhere.”

Crying solved nothing in the world. It was high time someone taught Elena that lesson the hard way.

“Go easy on her, Ambrose,” Iris calmly suggested with a worrisome tone of voice. “It’s terrifying watching those games, let alone playing them.”

“So you think crying will make it better? That the games will magically disappear? Do you expect someone to come by and rescue her every time she’s in danger?” I berated the girls with harsh questions. Elena flinched each time, but I didn’t care. I stared directly into the frightened woman’s eyes and asked, “Do you want to live, Elena?”

Her eyes dilated when I asked my question. She seemed to hesitate before answering, “Yes, I would like to live.”

“Bullshit!” I yelled. Elena flinched by the sudden rise in volume. “If you wanted to live, then you wouldn’t have dropped to the floor crying! Did you expect someone to step in and take your place? What if they died doing that? Would you be satisfied with that outcome?”

Elena brought her hands up to her chest and closed her eyes shut. That response alone brought Iris into the fold.

“That’s enough! Leave Elena alone! Can’t you see she’s scared?!” Iris confronted me. “Yelling at her won’t make the situation any better?!”

I respected Iris’ conviction to protect Elena from all trouble, but that wishful thinking did more harm than good.

“You think coddling her will? Elena and I are the ones that are going into that game room, not you. She’s alone in this.” I stated.

“She won’t be alone. You’ll be down there with her. You can help her if she comes into any trouble, can’t you?” Iris asked with pleading eyes. The old me would’ve fallen for that hook line and sinker.

“Why would I help her? The point of the games is to take points from the opponents.”

“I know,” Iris begrudgingly accepted that cruel fact of the games. “But it doesn’t mean that you can’t help each other survive.”

“Practice what you preach,” I countered. “Help me convince Elena to play. If she doesn’t, she’ll die right here and now.”

Iris looked at Elena, who remained silent throughout our conversation. The girl slowly reached for her friend, but Elena wouldn’t have any of it. She stepped back and shook her head in adamant refusal.

“Don’t! I won’t do it!” Elena cried out.

“Elena, I know you’re terrified. But you have to play. You’ll die if you don’t,” Iris softly reminded. If anyone could help push Elena in the right direction, it was her. The two were often always hanging around together.

I’d say those two were the only ones that considered themselves friends.

“I’ll die if I play, I know it,” Elena softly whimpered, fighting back the urge to cry in front of us again.

“You’re right. You’re going to die,” I agreed with Elena’s statement. “You’re weak, Elena. You do nothing but cry and rely on others to help you. If you want to live, then you need to change.”

“Change?” Elena echoed. She lifted her head and stared at me. “You think I can change?”

“Yes, change is possible for you,” Iris happily interjected. “What’s driving you to risk your life like this? You have a dream or goal in mind, right?”

Elena moved her hand to her chest once again, as if reaffirming her desire. The tears in her eyes dried up, perhaps thanks to the determination that replaced her fear.

“There is,” The woman revealed.

Iris smiled at the sight of Elena’s sudden burst of confidence. The girl approached her friend and set her hands on her friend’s shoulders. “Good! Then use that to march forward into the game room and survive!”

“Thank you, Iris,” Elena hugged her friend. Afterward, she faced Caius with a stern expression. “Caius, I am ready.”

“Excellent! Let us move onto deciding which game you two shall play!” Caius went along with his usual routine. With a press of a button, the game wheel appeared on the screen of his tablet. It spun at a high-speed before it stopped on a panel displaying two figures wandering through a maze. “Wonderful! Ambrose and Elena shall face each other in the maze!”

“The maze?” I asked.

“How exciting! Follow me!” Caius purposefully dodged my question and directed Elena and me toward the exit. We reluctantly followed the game moderator down the hallway.

We trailed the man in awkward silence until Elena suddenly broke it, “I’m sorry for all the trouble back there.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I dismissed Elena’s apology since I got what I wanted out of our exchange. “You’re not afraid anymore, are you?”

“Oh, no, I’m still terrified,” Elena shamelessly admitted. “But I won’t be able to change if I don’t make an effort.”

“Acting in spite of fear is commendable,” I informed her. She already made a tremendous step forward in the right direction. Now it was up to her the path she’d take.

“I wish I could be braver like you and Iris,” Elena said. “You two seem unaffected by all of this. Neither of you let anything that happens here scare you.”

“Don’t make assumptions like that. We may not let our fear show, but it doesn’t mean we’re not scared.” I revealed.

“So, does that mean you’re scared right now?”

“I’m on edge,” I corrected her. “We’re wandering into dangerous territory. But we have some idea of what we’re stepping into.”

“Do you have any advice for me?” Elena twiddled away with her fingers as she stared at me with eyes of expectancy. I didn’t know what she wanted me to tell her, but I gave her the best advice I could.

“Be careful, stay alive, and hope for the best,” I answered. I held those words of wisdom close to my heart.

“You say that line a lot, you know? Hope for the best?” Elena suddenly brought up with a smile. “It’s like your catchphrase.”

I rubbed the back of my neck and looked away from the woman. “My bad. The old man told me that phrase many times—he programmed it in my head.”

“Old man?” Elena asked.

I shook my head and dismissed the woman’s concern upon realizing my mistake. I nearly slipped up and brought up my past with my opponent. Elena’s meek nature made it easy to lower one's guard.

Caius suddenly stopped in the middle of the hallway, where the pathways split off into two different paths. “Here is where you two will separate. Head into the preparation rooms, and once finished, step into the game room.”

“I’ll be seeing you in there, Ambrose,” Elena solemnly said before she headed down the hallway without much reservation.

I went down the other pathway and entered the preparation room. It was a small area with a monitor on the far side. The screen turned on when I hovered my bracelet over the device.

Loads of information flooded my eyes as the rules of the game appeared on the monitor. They seemed simple enough. Elena and I would traverse through a maze to reach the center where the prize resided. The first person to retrieve the item of interest and return to the entrance of the labyrinth would be declared the winner.

A unique feature provided in the game were cards that had the power to alter the maze once inserted in a slot.

The last line of the rules caught my attention the most. It mentioned that if I gambled more than half of my points, then I’d receive certain advantages over my opponents. That one, simple line made everything click.

Everything began to make sense.

The mystery behind Frederick’s continuous strokes of ‘luck’ during the first game were the results of the game's shady rules. That’s how Caius manipulated the players into gambling away more of their points than necessary. Any desperate moron would jump at the chance to obtain more information on the games or their opponent.

Hell, I would’ve fallen for the same trap if my opponent wasn’t Elena. An easy mark like her wasn’t a threat to me. One point was more enough to set things in motion.

I followed the directions provided by the monitor and gambled away a single point of mine. Afterward, the door to the preparation opened, allowing me into the game room.

I entered the large, white room and stared directly across at my opponent. Strangely enough, Elena stood firm with a determined look on her face. However, the occasional shaking of her legs brought me some level of comfort that she hadn’t changed completely. Elena’s cowardice was essential to my victory.

My gaze shifted upward to the large, glass window where the other players stood. Iris looked down at me and waved with a bright smile.

How that girl continued to show such optimism was beyond me.

“Ladies and gentlemen, it is time to start with the third game, Maze!” Caius’ voice thundered over the intercom. On his command, a small area on the floor opened up. Out from the opening came a table with a small deck of cards. “Players, please take the cards.”

Elena and I retrieved the cards from the tables. They descended back into the floor.

“Make sure not to lose those cards, players. They are a matter of life and death,” Caius enthusiastically warned us. “Now, let the third game commence!”

On the moderator’s command, the floor shook vigorously. Elena and I nearly lost our balance as large sections on the floor split apart. Large walls rose from the open areas, constructing the maze.

I closed my eyes and concentrated on my goal. It was time to put everything on the line. If I won the game, I’d earn enough money to save the bar. I had to win, no matter what.

I had no idea what waited for me in that maze, but I wagered it wasn’t anything good. Whatever tricks or traps Caius had prepared—I’d tear through them all and leave the games as the winner.

I cautiously surveyed the immediate area. I didn’t spot anything suspicious, so I stepped into the maze.

“Player number twelve, Troy Ambrose, has taken the first step into the maze!” Caius announced.

The first few steps into the maze were simple. I made some turns here and there, but nothing happened. The uneventful walk throughout the room left me anxious. It wasn’t like Caius for something not to arise from out the gate.

On my fifth turn around a corner, a section of the wall split open. A torrent of flames shot out from the wall and scorched my shoulder.

I dropped to the floor in a panic and excessively patted my shoulder to extinguish the flames. Although it was just my shoulder, it felt like my entire body was on fire.

I couldn’t breathe. My heart pounded so hard against my chest. It was as if it planned to burst right out.

I scrambled to my feet and escaped to the farthest wall away from the flames. My heartbeat settled when the fire went away, and the wall returned to its original state.

“Looks like things are heating up,” Caius annoyingly commentated on my predicament. “Ambrose encountered one of many traps within the maze! Be careful down there!”

I ignored the moderator’s pathetic attempts at making jokes. I couldn’t let him in my head—not while risking my life in his sick game.

Despite my injury, I progressed onward into the maze. I didn’t have time to check on my wound, or rather, I didn’t make time. It was nothing more than a first-degree burn—second-degree tops. It was easily treatable.

On my next turn around the corner, I encountered another roadblock in the game. There were no other routes I could take. It was a dead end.

But to my luck, on the far end of the wall laid a single card slot. There it was—my opportunity to alter the maze. I approached and inserted one of my cards into the open spot.

Almost immediately, the walls around me began to shift, altering the maze. The wall in front of me never moved an inch, but the ones beside me did, providing me with alternate routes to take. I traversed through the nearest path without a second thought.

“Ambrose continues to advance in the game! He is the first one to find a card slot! The prize will be his at this rate!” Caius spectated. “Oh? What is this? Player number eight, Elena Brooks, has now entered her way into the maze!”

His announcement stopped me in my tracks. It certainly surprised me to hear that Elena, a well-known coward, and crybaby, decided to step into the maze. One wrong step for her, and she’d be dead.

Nonetheless, I put the thought of her dying in the furthest part of my mind and carried on. Wandering through the maze proved tiresome rather quickly. I had no map or indication if I was getting closer to the center or not.

Luckily, no traps activated. But who knew how long that would last.

The ground trembled vigorously once again. I recognized its significance and set my hand on the wall to keep steady. The maze shifted. The wall I used for support suddenly moved.

I lost my balance and fell to the ground. Another wall closed in on me. It would’ve crushed me if I hadn’t rolled out of the way in time.

“What a devious tactic by Elena! She nearly killed Ambrose by changing the maze!” Caius alerted.

“What?!” A frightened shriek came from the other side of the game room. “I’m sorry, Ambrose! I swear! I wasn’t trying to kill you!”

“Be careful next time!” I called out to her. Although Elena’s actions nearly cost me my life, I couldn’t stay mad at her. It was surprising enough that she even found the courage to enter the maze, let alone make it to a card slot.

While I wasn’t mad, Elena annoyed me. Thanks to her, my path to the center got blocked off. She forced me to find another way around the dead end.

The moment I peered my head around the corner, a volley of bullets raced past my face, missing me by mere inches. I retreated to the wall and took a bit to catch my breath.

Yet again, I encountered another deathtrap. It was a security camera with a machine gun linked to it. The absurdity of the game reached another level. If I had been one second slower—one second—my brain would’ve been splattered against the wall.

“How do I get around this one?” I looked around for another card slot. Perhaps I’d find one and change the maze to bypass the troublesome trap.

But there were none in sight.

Elena unintentionally screwed me.

I had two choices to make. One, I could’ve waited around and hoped that Elena would change the maze herself. Or two—somehow find a way through the machine gun trap.

The first option was the safest, but ultimately risky. I didn’t know if Elena would come across another card slot. There was no guarantee that she would even use it in the first place. Also, even if Elena used it, there was a possibility that my situation would only get worse. If I wasted any more time, she would eventually reach the center and win the game.

The mere thought of that woman snatching the victory from me fueled my desire to win by any means necessary. I wouldn’t rely on that woman to push the odds in my favor. I was in the game alone, and I’d win it alone.

I peered my head around the corner again. Gunfire immediately greeted me. I retreated behind the wall to avoid the onslaught of bullets.

Twenty.

The gun fired twenty bullets a second. It was a risky move, but I stuck my leg out into the open. About three seconds passed until the barrage of bullets returned. I quickly pulled my leg back.

Three seconds.

From everything I gathered, the gun fired twenty bullets a second and had a reload time of three seconds.

“I can make it,” I assured myself. My plan was suicidal, but I swore to do anything and everything to win.

Once I steeled my conviction to see through with my plan, I set everything into motion. I stuck my foot out again and watched the bullets fly. I used the three-second window to sprint down the passageway.

I made it about two-thirds of the way there before the machine gun activated again. My feet carried me as fast as they could, despite the gunfire that rained down toward me. Even when I reached the safety of the walls around the corner, I continued to run like my life depended on it.

Adrenaline pumped through my body, and I didn’t want to waste it. Too much time lost because of my hesitation. I had no idea how far Elena progressed throughout the maze.

It was annoyingly ironic how I convinced Elena to play so that I could get the easy win. But because I told God my plans—he laughed and cruelly twisted fate at his leisure again.

As if to further prove the point of my testament—my foot sank into the floor once one of the panels I stepped on lowered and activated yet another trap. Razor-sharp spikes shot up from the ground, stretching across nearly the entire passageway.

“Damn it,” I stopped and weighed my options. Once again, not a single card slot in sight. Turning back would only prove to waste more of my precious time.

The best path was the most dangerous one—forward.

I stepped back until my back pressed against the wall. After a few deep breaths to steel my resolve, I bolted ahead as fast as I could. I jumped and briefly ran across the wall.

When I felt gravity taking its course, I kicked off the wall and propelled myself past the spiked floor. I thankfully made it without sustaining a single injury.

I didn’t give the trap a second glance and proceeded. The next turn proved the best one, as it led me toward my destination—the center of the maze. A spotlight illuminated a lone table with a treasure box that rested on top of it.

“Gotcha,” I smiled at the sight of my meal ticket. The victory was within my grasp.

The moment I approached the center, a familiar rumbling caught me off guard. The wall shifted around me and blocked off my path to the center, my prize.

“No!” I rushed the wall and kicked it as hard as I could muster—a futile effort. The wall didn’t budge.

“What a huge upset! Elena closed Ambrose off from the center, thanks to another use of the card slot!” Caius callously mocked me through his commentating.

“Damn it!” I yelled out in frustration. Time after time, that woman proved more infuriating.

“I’m sorry about that, Ambrose!” Elena’s words carried over from the other side of the wall.

At that point, I wasn’t willing to listen to her—let alone believe her. My goal was beyond a thirteen-foot wall. I wasn’t going to bother looking for a way around.

If I couldn’t go around or through it—then going over it was my best option.

“The surprises keep coming! Elena has reached the center and retrieved the prize! If she makes it back to her side with it—victory is hers!” Caius' announcement forced me to pick up the pace.

“I don’t think so,” I muttered as I stepped back to gain some distance on the wall.

I sprinted forward then jumped, kicking off one wall, then to the other. I used the walls as steppingstones to help me reach the top of the medial wall. Once there, I caught a glimpse of Elena racing back to her side of the maze.

She was surprisingly quick on her feet.

But in terms of speed, I was faster. I decided to keep my advantage and run across atop the walls as I gave chase.

The game wasn’t over—far from it. Elena may have retrieved the prize, but there wasn’t a rule stating that I couldn’t take it from her.

“Come back here!” I shouted.

Elena desperately ran through the maze, clutching the prized box close to her chest. She picked up the pace the moment she looked over her shoulder and spotted me.

“I’m sorry, Ambrose! I have to win!” Elena apologized in advance for her actions. She passed by a card slot and slapped one of hers inside it. The walls shifted again and nearly threw me off.

I leaped across onto one of the still walls and resumed my pursuit. Throughout my chase, I found it highly suspicious of how Elena never triggered any traps. She ran blindly through the maze, but nothing happened.

I looked ahead and spotted the dead-end that Elena approached. When she made the rightful turn, I dropped down onto the floor, blocking off her on means of escape.

“End of the line, Elena. Hand over the box,” I demanded.

Elena held the box close to her chest and kept to the back wall. She shook her head and responded, “I can’t do that! I’m so close! I have to win!”

“The only way for you to win is by getting through me,” I stated before I slowly approached her. “I’ll do anything to win. Will you?”

My verbal challenge brought about a strange look in Elena’s eyes. The woman set down the box behind her and raised her fists.

She planned to fight me.

“I am!” Elena boasted before she charged me—everything about approach screamed amateur. She wasn’t a threat to me at all.

I stepped aside and easily evaded Elena’s wild punch. She put everything behind it—so much in fact that she lost her balance and fell to the floor when she missed.

With Elena ‘defeated’, I turned my back and headed for the prize box. But a sudden tug on my pant leg stopped me. I looked down and spotted Elena clinging to me with all her might. Even when it was clear that she stood no chance, she continued to push through.

I respected her tenacity. But I even I had my limits.

I removed her hand from my pant leg immediately and snapped, “Don’t touch me!” I raised my foot to strike her—but quickly came to my senses when I noticed her frightened expression.

Elena’s entire body trembled in terror as she glanced up at me with teary, pleading eyes. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Please don’t hit me!” She repeatedly begged.

An unwanted wave of nostalgia washed over me as I watched the woman desperately cower in silence. It reminded me of a memory I wished stayed buried and forgotten. The woman before me was no longer Elena—but someone else.

Somehow, a familiar person replaced Elena in my eyes. It was a young girl with piercing blue eyes and curly brown hair.

I stepped away from the girl in a panic and wiped my eyes in hopes of dispelling the illusion. “What are you doing here?”

The young girl slowly raised her head and stared at me with eyes void of presence—of life. However, an intense hatred burned within them. That soulless, yet detested gaze forced me to retreat even further.

My cowardice cost me dearly.

I stepped on one cursed panel and sank into the floor, activating another hidden trap. It all happened so fast. In a span of a few seconds, a sharp, burning, agonizing pain tore through my back—my flesh.

My excruciating screams echoed through the entire room. My legs gave out due to the pain and drove me to the floor in a bloody mess. It took a lot of my dwindling strength to look up and see what injured me.

Buzzsaws.

The jagged blades stuck out from the walls, ruthlessly spinning, decorating the area with my blood as if to taunt me. The searing pain in my back intensified as more blood poured from the open wounds.

“Ambrose!” The girl called out to me. She stood up and approached, unaware of the buzzsaw’s that extended toward her from behind.

“Get down!” I summoned the strength to stand and tackle the girl to the floor, saving her life from almost certain death. I kept her head down until the whirring of the blades ceased. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. But, you’re hurt,” The girl pointed out. She stood and gasped at the sight of the blood that pooled around us. “We’ve got to get you to the infirmary!”

She helped me to my feet, acting as my means of support as she led me through the maze. My vision blurred and distorted the more time passed. My head and the prize box in my hand felt heavy. My heart pounded crazily against my chest.

Staying conscious proved difficult, but I summoned the strength to stay alert until we reached the end of the maze on my side. I dropped to my knees as confetti rained down from the ceiling.

“This marks the end of the third game! Player number twelve, Troy Ambrose, is the winner!” Caius happily announced.

“It’s over,” I said weakly. I continuously dangled over the edge of consciousness.

“It’s okay, Ambrose. We’ll have you in the infirmary soon,” The girl assured me.

That alone brought a smile to my face. “Come on, Trish. You can call me Troy.”

“Trish? What are you saying? I’m Elena.” The girl corrected me.

“What?” I stared at the girl. She suddenly vanished right before my very eyes, reverting into Elena. Before she could say much more, the world around me went dark.