Chapter 3: ??? Hour – A Countdown to MIDNIGHT [Quarter to]

G.O POV

My head spun. 24 hours? Escape? Good luck?

What in the bloodiest of hells had I gotten myself into?! Everything around me was a blur, so thick and murky was the effect that I felt like I was submerged in water, half-hearing and half not. What the Ringmaster – ing presumption of a name it was – was saying half-passed me by, but I forced myself to listen.

“Explain.” The man called Seungho demanded, his posture still retaining a limp detachment as if he was still certain of our demise. However, his voice was spirited, like a campfire spitting embers in defiance – small yet growing in strength.

The Ringmaster just seemed to chuckle, his shadowy form flicking for a moment. [IN TIME] he smirked. [THE FIRST THING YOU NEED TO LEARN IS THAT I CONTROL EVERYTHING, NOT YOU]

This made me swallow hard. Because it was true. The Ringmaster was in control of everything from his identity to even our own. He knew everything and we knew nothing. We were five puppets dancing in the figurative palm of his hand. And knowing he could twist our strings with the smallest twitch of a finger scared me.

[AS I HAVE SAID BEFORE], the Ringmaster continued in his scratchy, static voice. [YOU ARE IN THE COLISEUM. AND YOUR GOAL IS TO ESCAPE WITHIN 24 HOURS]

24 hours. Escape. Okay, that was understandable.

[TO ESCAPE YOU NEED TO COMPLETE THE SEVEN LEVELS OF THE COLISEUM. EACH LEVEL CONTAINS ONE CHALLENGE. COLLECTIVELY, THEY ARE KNOWN AS THE BLOODY CARNIVAL GAMES] I could see a sinful smirk at the edge of the last few words and I knew this man was laughing at us. There was something more to the name that only he knew and it made him laugh at this inside joke. He knew we were ants in comparison to an elephant and he reveled in his standing of power.

“That simple?” The boy called Mir wondered aloud. I felt like facepalming because under no circumstances should anyone ever say the word ‘simple’. Reason why? It usually ends in things become a helluva lot more complex.

As usual, I was right.

The Ringmaster let out a rattle of dark laughter, like that of thunder storming overhead. [SIMPLE? WHY I’M SURE YOU’LL FIND OUT SOON ENOUGH, BUT THEY ARE A ‘CHALLENGE’ FOR A REASON’]

“Why should we go along with your little games?” Thunder – I believe that was his name – stepped forwards with a defiant glint in his eyes and spoke confidently. Part of me wanted to smack the guy on the back in congratulations for manning up and all. Deep inside, he was a fighter. And we needed one of those guys around.

The Ringmaster turned his gaze on Thunder. [BECAUSE I WILL GRANT YOU MORE THAN JUST A CHANCE TO ESCAPE. I WILL GRANT YOU PART OF YOUR MEMORIES BACK]

I stiffened.

“Our memories?” I hissed, unable to help myself. “Are you saying you’re the reason we are amnesiacs?”

The Ringmaster gave a self-satisfied nod. [OF COURSE. I HAVE WIPED YOUR MEMORIES IN ORDER FOR ALL FIVE OF YOU TO PLAY FAIRLY. BUT FOR EACH LEVEL YOU COMPLETE, I WILL RESTORE PART OF YOUR PASTS]

“So if we complete the game, we get our memories fully restored?” I asked for confirmation. The shadowy Ringmaster nodded.

[CORRECT]

“And how do we know if we can trust you?” Lee Joon spat, all arms crossed and glittering eyes. “Don’t just give us your ‘word’. That means nothing.”

Inside my head, I silently agreed with him. But I don’t think I would ever voice that comment out loud. Some instinctual manner told me that standing in the spotlight was not the sensible thing to do in a place where you have no grasp on reality.

[WELL,] The Ringmaster sounded deeply amused as he looked down up Lee Joon. [I’M AFRAID THAT’S ALL YOU’LL HAVE TO WORK WITH. BUT,] he continued just as Lee Joon’s muscles tensed with anger and his face turned into an expression of pure fury. [I WILL PROMISE SOMETHING ELSE]

My body stilled. What other surprises was this Ringmaster going to burst out on us. My body was tense, half with anticipation that it might be something good but also half with fear that it would just be another lure that would lead us to certain death. A little like putting cheese in a mousetrap.

[I WILL GRANT YOUR INNER-MOST DESIRED WISHES]

“Wishes?” I couldn’t help but echo him. The most blasphemous word to come out of his mouth – a wish. Seriously? Like those kiddy promises that fathers make to their children so they’ll got and all? Was this man/shadow/Ringmaster really planning to give us shopping vouchers or a bag of new clothes? Don't be ridiculous. 

It seemed to infuriate Lee Joon as well. “Don’t mess with us!” he snarled. “Wishes? What are we? Five-year olds?”

The Ringmaster just smiled benevolently, like a priest looking down on some particularly disbelieving children and thinking that in time they would learn but for now he would teach them and hope for the best.

[WISHES, PROMISES, NEEDS – CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT] he seemed to shrug. It was more like his image flickered more violently. [REGARDLESS, IF YOU COMPLETE ALL SEVEN BLOODY CARNIVAL GAMES AND ESCAPE, THEN THE WISH YOU HAVE MADE BEFOREHAND WILL BE GRANTED]

Beforehand? Had I actually requested a wish already? I casted my mind back and was met with nothing but darkness.

As if reading my mind, the Ringmaster answered my unspoken question. [YES. BEFOREHAND. YOU WILL NOT REMEMBER IT, BUT BE ASSURED THAT I DO AND THAT I WILL GRANT YOUR WISH SHOULD YOU WIN. IT IS AFTER ALL, ONLY FITTING FOR A WINNER TO BE REWARDED]

He seemed to grin there as if he knew a hidden secret, so assured was he that we would never gain the upper hand.

But something else worried me. This wish. What sort of wish was it? The kind that involved the trouble of completing seven challenges as a memory-less man? Was it even worth it? My mouth twisted in a grimace and the Ringmaster – that sharp sighted rat – turned fluidly to meet me and my unspoken thoughts.

[YES G.O] he seemed to grin. It was like he knew my personality and my character and I shivered at the way he said my name. [IT IS A WISH WORTH ACHIEVEING. IN FACT,] he mused here, tilting his head slightly to one side. [THE REASON ALL FIVE OF YOU ARE HERE IS BECAUSE YOU WANTED THIS WISH TO BE GRANTED AND THE PRICE IS TO COMPLETE MY CHALLENGE.]

I spluttered. “What?!” In that moment, all thoughts of self-preservation and standing on the sidewalk flew out of my head. “Are you saying we asked to be here?!”

The Ringmaster nodded. [IT IS OF YOUR OWN VOLITION THAT I HAVE BROUGHT YOU HERE]

“Are you saying you are doing us a favor?!” I couldn’t help but laugh out these words.

The Ringmaster smirked in response. [I AM] he said grandly and I felt my fists ball tightly. So assured of an he appeared that I couldn’t help the immediate response. He was acting like God, so proud and high-up that he thought his every action was a gift to us.

I would prove him wrong.

The Ringmaster then brought us back to attention with his final words. [THAT IS ALL: COMPLETE THE SEVEN LEVELS, ESCAPE AND YOU SHALL BE REWARDED. ALL IN 24 HOURS]

And then a sudden thought came to me. “What happens if we don’t escape by then?” I asked the dreaded question.

I shouldn’t have. I could practically hear the glee in his voice as he answered, [WELL THEN,] he seemed to grin and tilted his head in a bird-like way that made me shiver.

 [YOU DIE]

With a loud BANG! the Ringmaster was suddenly gone. Smoke radiated outwards, making us cough and back away from the spatter of gleaming red neon lights that rain down onto the ground like embers falling from the sky. 

For a moment, silence reigned as we all tried to grapple with the information overload. Death was not something one takes lightly. Death and survival and all that jazz.

Then the last person I would have thought to speak, spoke. “We need to work together.” Seungho said firmly, stepping forwards with a hard glint in his eyes that I couldn’t help but admire. I had to agree.

“We do.” I said a little reluctantly. The self-preserving part of myself refused to get close to others, but in an unfamiliar situation like this, there was safety in numbers.

Lee Joon seemed to have doubts though. “How do I know I can trust you though?” he hissed, taking a step backwards.

“Because we’re all the same.” Thunder spoke confidently. All of us looked to him, surprised at his comment. He blinked in surprise at the attention and then shrugged. “Well…I mean…none of us have memories right?”

We all nodded.

“So none of us know each other. This is our first meeting.”

And it was.

“We have no grudges or partnerships. We have no relation to each other.” He explained with hands wide open. “So why can’t we work together?”

I bit my lip. It was sound reasoning.

“Are you saying that because we’re in the exact same situation, we should just work together?” Mir asked in a voice that trembled slightly. He must have still been frightened from the vicious response the Ringmaster had given him.

Thunder nodded. “Yes. So can we?”

“We can.” Seungho said assuredly. “We have to if we want to survive.” He stepped forwards and held one hand out. “Are you with me?”

Thunder nodded and stepped forwards as well, reaching out with another hand to touch Seungho’s. “I am.”

“Me too.” Mir said, raising his head for the first time since we had arrived and joined the circle of hands.

“I will as well then.” I added as well. Somehow I felt that if it was these guys, maybe, just maybe, it would work out okay. I touched my hand to the pile. And then we all turned around to look at Lee Joon who still stood hesitating.

“Come on.” I urged him, extending my other hand towards him. He flinched slightly and I saw the raw fear in his eyes in that exact moment. I puzzled me and made me wonder about his past, but then a second later I realized even if I asked, he wouldn’t know.

So I tried to persuade him. “We have to stick together.” I said reasonably. “None of us will betray you, promise.”

He bit his lip, twisting his handsome features and took a deep breath. “Can I really…really trust that?”

“Yes.” Mir said. He stepped away from the circle for a moment and walked over to Lee Joon. “You can trust us. You can trust me. We all want to get out, so please, let’s work together.” He stared at the older man with bewitchingly brown eyes, eyes that radiated innocence and trust. “Please?”

Lee Joon stared into those eyes for a few moments, his own widening at the honesty he saw there. Then he let out a small cough and shuffled away. “Okay.” He huffed and walked over to us. “I’ll join you.”

Mir smiled in a self-satisfied manner and as he walked back, I patted the kid on the back. “Well done.” I whispered and he smiled sunnily up at me. I shook my head. Trust this little kid to be able to smile in such a grim situation. But he was another one we needed: our own personal sun in this dungeon of darkness.

“Well then,” Seungho said to us all now that Lee Joon touched his hand to the top of the pile. “Let’s go.”

I nodded, pulling my head down, but just as I was about to raise it, a static sound filled the air and my heart with dread.

We all spun around to see the Ringmaster floating in the air, strands of red light weaving around.

[IT’S NICE TO SEE YOU ALL GETTING ON WELL] he said in a bemused manner, evidently thinking it wouldn’t last long. [AND I’M SORRY TO INTERRUPT SUCH A…BROTHERLY MOMENT]The mockery in his words lit a fire in my stomach. 

“What do you want?” Lee Joon spat, oil to water and fire to gasoline.

The Ringmaster grinned. If he weren’t a holographic image, I think I would have seen a gleam of teeth. I’d like to image they were brown and rotting. [OH NOTHING MUCH] he said slyly and we all knew he meant the complete opposite.

[I JUST FORGOT TO TELL YOU ALL ONE MINOR DETAIL]

My heart sank. 

Oops~ Guess the Ringmaster forgot to say something *wink wink* hrmmmm which you shall find out in the next chapter~

Til then~