Round One ~ Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR

I couldn't think straight anymore. The chaos in the room was too much. People began to suspect their partners. They began to hit other. The other tried to choke someone. One even picked up his partner and threw her into the direction of an other team, forgetting that he has handcuffs on his wrists. This isn't supposed to happen! We must escape form this hell! I want this to stop, please, stop hurting each other!
As if they could read my thoughts, they stopped. Just like that, they stopped everything they were doing. Finally, some peace.
"What. The hell. Is THAT?"
The socked face of the woman in the cucumber green dress looked into my direction, no that's not right, she's looking at something behind me. I turn around, now facing the gigantic TV screen, which had blood red digits on it. The numbers 11:56:03, no wait, :01, no… the numbers are counting down!
"It seems we are given a time limit." A voice of a young man pointed out. Of course, why not? Just another piece of the rules. Great.
"I can feel it! The evil sp—"
"Oh would you shut up!"
"But I can—"
"NO BUTS, JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!"
The psychic, Mari-Ann, and the woman in suit, Judith, were fighting yet again. Their partners; psychic Samuel and suit-face Ronald, tried to keep them away from each other.
"LISTEN! We can't just stand here and do nothing! I say we go in teams of three couples, that way we can watch ourselves and find out who is this 'cat'! Please, just work with us for just twelve hours!" I was mad. I just yelled at everybody in the room. They're silent. I could see the faces of the people looking away, not wanting to accept this faith.
"I agree with him, to me he could prove himself worthy of me." Ryo answered with a big smile on her face.
"Me too," Sherry signed to her butler to go over here, and he does so. "If Ryo can trust him I can as well."
"Sister, don't go without me!" Vincent said while dragging the maid with him.
"That makes a team of four then."
"Anyone else wants to do this or not?" I yell harder at the people on the other side of the room. The only one who hadn't a troublesome face was the old lady named Joan. She just smiled at us.
"Well, we're going, so do what you want. Bye!" And so, with Murasaki leading the group, we proceed to the elevator that was waiting for us. We step into the lift, turn around and push the E-DECK button, leaving the people and the countdown in the bridge behind.

The beating of my heart went quicker than ever. I have no idea where I'm going nor who these people really are. A quick glance at Yuki tells me everything I need to know. She really doesn't have any emotion. Ryo is bragging about herself, which Vincent dislikes. And Sherry sits next to me. She seems to be in her own thoughts. I tried to ask her what she's thinking about but the butler shushed me. Waiting for the doors to open I tried to shake some emotion in Yuki and 'accidently' kicked her. The only thing I heard out of her was a single 'ouch', is that everything? I wanted to try something else but the doors opened at that exact moment. We step out of the elevator into the dark corridor.
"Murasaki, do you still have that torch you had earlier?"
"No, I lost it when we fell into the water."
"What water?" Asked Vincent. We explained all that what happened in the boiler room. When we're done I asked Vincent how he got up onto the Bridge with his maid.
"I really have no idea, when I woke up I was in the elevator with Miss Sue." We all looked towards the maid who was looking at the floor, ashamed of what position she is in now.
"Is this true?" Sherry asked still half lost in thoughts.
"Y-yes."
"Well then, miss Sue, tell us your story."
"I would love to tell you but…"
"But what? Why can't you tell us?" The only one who's paying attention to this is me. I'm not sure about Yuki because she doesn't have emotion, and Ryo is getting bored, I can tell by the way she jumps up and down.
"I just can't! You'll understand why later but for the time being—" She got cut off by a scream, a scream from a girl.
"What was that?" Ryo stopped with jumping. It was silent for a few seconds, after that the butler Walter spoke.
"Excuse me, miss, sir, but I have to inform you that I have a spare torch with me," He then put his hand inside the pocket of his jacked and flicked the torch on. "Should we proceed?"
"I'm not done with you." I gave the maid a quick glance as we all walked further.

We follow the light shines before us, which is hold by the butler Walter. Neither one of us says a single thing; even Ryo was quiet. I mindlessly followed the group. Lost in my thoughts I wondered why that guy, Neo, was so familiar for me. That black suit, the mask, the voice, I know I've seen and heard that somewhere before! Why can't I remember anything? If only I could, maybe I know why I'm here. I abruptly stop thinking about it when I walk into Shizumi. He turned around and looked at me with his big, confused eyes.
"Oh, sorry. Why are we stopping?"
"There's a dead end." I was shocked, because Yuki said something again after all this time. I look at the light of the torch that was shining into a wall. But this isn't a normal wall, it doesn't fit with the other walls next to it, it was placed here for some reason. This was the only hallway. We didn't walk past any others so we can only turn back to the elevator. I turned around but before I walked away something caught my eye.
"Hey guys, there's a door over here." Everyone turned around and we all looked at the door. Walter shined the torch on the door. A rusty plate with the letters ROOM E-012, NICKOLAS GRAMM was written on it. I grabbed the doorknob and gave it a tug. The door flew open and as soon as it did a horrible smell came out of it.
"Who farted?" Said Ryo, trying to be funny. The face of her sibling was turning green and he threw up over the floor.
"SHIZUMI!"
"He can't do anything about it," Sherry looked at the boy and tried to comfort him. "This smell is horrible! Vincent, Sue, would you please take a look?" She grabbed the torch out of the hands of the butler behind her and passed it to Vincent.
"Sure thing sis! You two, come with me!" He pointed towards the Murasaki twins.
"But Shizumi refuses to go in there with that smell! Right?" She protests against the nobleman and his maid. The look on her face was concerned and looked at Shizumi. He looked up with his green face and nodded, when he threw up again.
"Okay then, you two then, and I don't take a no for an answer!"
Yuki gave a quick nod and walked behind him. Do I even have a say in this? The four of us walk into the room and the door shuts itself behind us.
"What the heck?" I turned around and gave the door a tug but it won't listen to me.
"HEY! SHERRY, MURASAKI!" I yell hoping that they can hear me.
"WHAT?!" Ryo yells back.
"CAN YOU OPEN THE DOOR FROM THERE?" I waited for an answer but instead I heard bouncing on the door.
"NO, THE DOOR IS LOCKED!"
If she can't open it, then it means that we are trapped in this room. The room with the rotting smell.