Hhhh... hhhh...
Okay, so stepping through that door was probably the dumbest thing we've done so far.
And trust me, we've done a lot of dumb shit.
The darkness hit me like a wall. Not the "oh it's nighttime" darkness. The "I literally can't see my own hand in front of my face" darkness.
Fuck.
"Lucy?" I called out.
Nothing.
"Gery? Somi?"
Still nothing.
Great. Just fucking great. We get separated immediately. Because of course we do.
Hhhh... hhhh... hhhh...
My heart was pounding so hard I thought it might break through my ribs. The cuts from Act I were still bleeding. My arm hurt like hell. And now I'm alone in the dark.
Again.
Why is it always the dark?
Then, light.
Not a lot. Just... small flames appearing on the walls. Like someone lit candles one by one. Slowly revealing where I was.
A corridor.
Long. Really long. Like the kind of corridor you see in horror movies where you just KNOW something bad is going to happen.
The walls were covered in masks.
Hundreds of them.
Thousands, maybe.
Every type you could imagine. Happy masks. Sad masks. Angry masks. Neutral masks. Scary masks. Beautiful masks. Ugly masks.
All of them hanging on the walls, watching me with empty eye holes.
Hhhh... hhhh...
"Nope. Nope nope nope. I don't like this."
I started walking anyway. What else was I supposed to do? Stand there and wait for something to kill me?
My footsteps echoed. Each step sounded too loud. Too clear.
And the masks... I swear to god they were following me with their eyes. Even though they didn't have eyes. Just empty holes.
But I could FEEL them watching.
After walking for what felt like an hour (but was probably like five minutes), I found the others.
Lucy was standing in front of a section of masks, staring at them like she was hypnotized.
Gery was further down, his sword out, looking at the masks like they might attack any second.
Somi was examining the walls, running her fingers over the edges of the masks.
"Guys?" I called out.
They all turned at once. Thank god they were real and not some creepy copies or something.
"Sidd!" Lucy ran over. "Are you okay?"
"Define okay."
Before anyone could answer, that voice came back.
The Usher's voice. Still sounding like he was right behind us even though we couldn't see him.
"Welcome to Act II: The Gallery of Masks."
We all tensed.
"In Act I, you fought what wasn't real. In Act II, you'll wear what isn't you."
"What the hell does that mean?" Gery muttered.
"Each of you will choose a mask. You will wear it through the gallery. At the end, you will face mirrors. If you can remove your mask and remember who you are... you pass. If you forget yourselves and keep the mask... you join the others."
"Join what others?" Somi asked.
As if answering her question, figures started appearing in the corridor.
People.
Or... things that looked like people.
All wearing masks.
Walking slowly. Aimlessly. Like puppets without strings.
They weren't attacking us. Just... existing. Walking back and forth. Forever.
"Previous challengers who forgot themselves. They're still here. Still performing. Still wearing their masks."
One of them walked past me. Close enough to touch.
I could see behind the mask—just for a second—through a gap.
Nothing.
No face. No features. Just... blankness.
The mask HAD BECOME their face.
Hhhh... hhhh... hhhh...
"Choose carefully," the Usher continued. "Each mask offers something. Power. Emotion. Identity. But each also takes. The longer you wear it, the more it becomes you. And you become it."
"At the end of the gallery, you'll find mirrors. They show truth. If you can recognize yourself and remove the mask, you pass. If you can't... well. You've seen what happens."
The voice faded.
We stood there, looking at thousands of masks.
"So," Lucy said quietly. "We have to choose one and... wear it?"
"Looks like it," Somi replied.
"This is fucked up," I said.
"Agreed," Gery added.
But what choice did we have?
We couldn't go back. The door behind us had vanished. Only forward. Through the gallery.
Through the masks.
I stepped closer to the wall of masks.
Up close, I could see they weren't just painted. They had expressions carved so deeply, so perfectly, that they looked alive. Some were laughing. Some crying. Some screaming.
Which one do I choose?
My hand moved on its own—reaching for a mask before my brain could catch up.
It was plain. Simple. A neutral expression. But when I touched it, words appeared in my mind.
The Truth-Seer. See yourself as you truly are. No lies. No delusions. Only truth.
I pulled my hand back like the mask had burned me.
"No lies? Are you fucking kidding me?"
I did NOT want to see myself truthfully right now. I was scared shitless. Covered in blood. Barely holding it together. The last thing I needed was a mask forcing me to admit that.
But... looking at the other options...
The happy masks felt fake. Like they'd make me smile while dying.
The angry masks felt dangerous. Like I'd lose control.
The sad masks felt suffocating.
At least Truth-Seer was... honest?
Fuck it.
I grabbed the mask.
It was cold. Heavy. Like metal, but not quite.
I looked over at the others.
Lucy was holding a mask with a hopeful expression—eyes looking upward, slight smile.
Gery had chosen a mask with a stern, protective look—like a guardian or soldier.
Somi held a mask with multiple expressions layered on top of each other—like it couldn't decide what to feel.
"Ready?" Somi asked.
"No," I replied honestly.
"Me neither," Lucy admitted.
"Same," Gery added.
"Good," Somi said. "Let's do this anyway."
I put the mask on.
The moment it touched my face, everything changed.
The world got clearer. Sharper. Like someone had turned up the brightness and contrast on reality.
But worse than that...
I could see MYSELF.
Not just my reflection. But... me. The real me. The parts I usually ignored or denied.
You're terrified, a voice said in my head. Not just scared. Terrified. You've been terrified since you woke up on that train.
"Shut up."
You pretend to be brave. You make jokes. You act casual. But you're drowning in fear.
"I said shut up."
Every decision you've made has been driven by fear. Running from the puppets. Hiding in the theater. Even choosing this mask—you chose it because you were afraid of the others.
Hhhh... hhhh... hhhh...
I started walking. Fast. Trying to outrun the voice.
But it was IN MY HEAD. I couldn't escape it.
The mask showed me everything.
Every time I'd run instead of fought.
Every time I'd hesitated.
Every time I'd let others take the lead because I was too scared to step up.
This is who you are, the voice whispered. A coward pretending to be brave.
"FUCK YOU!"
I screamed it out loud. Didn't care if anyone heard.
Because you know what?
Yeah. I was scared.
Yeah. I ran sometimes.
Yeah. I wasn't a hero.
But I was still HERE. Still walking. Still fighting.
Being scared didn't make me a coward.
It made me human.
The corridor stretched on forever.
The masked figures wandered past us—previous victims who'd forgotten themselves.
Some were mumbling. Repeating the same phrases over and over.
"I am the role I play."
"The mask is my face."
"I perform therefore I am."
It was creepy as hell.
Lucy was struggling too. I could tell because her steps were getting slower. More hesitant.
Her mask—the hopeful one—must have been forcing her to see everything positively. Making her believe everything would be fine. Even when it wasn't.
That sounds nice until you realize it means you can't acknowledge danger. Can't prepare for threats. You just hope and hope and hope until reality kills you.
Gery's guardian mask made him walk stiffly. Mechanically. Like his only purpose was to protect. Nothing else mattered. No food. No rest. No life outside of protection.
He was becoming the role.
Somi's mask—the Keeper—made her stop every few steps. She'd touch the walls. Stare at the masks. Her eyes unfocused.
She was remembering. Everything. Every mistake. Every failure. Every wrong choice.
The mask was making her carry all of it.
We were all breaking in different ways.
After what felt like hours (but again, probably just minutes in this nightmare time-fuckery), we reached a door.
A simple wooden door.
But above it, words were carved:
REMEMBER YOURSELF
OR FORGET FOREVER
"This is it," Somi said. Her voice sounded strained. Tired.
"The mirrors are through there," Lucy added. She was forcing herself to sound hopeful, but I could hear the cracks.
"We go in together," Gery said firmly. "We help each other remember."
"Agreed," I said.
We opened the door.
The room was circular.
Four mirrors. One for each of us.
And they weren't normal mirrors.
They showed us. But not our masked faces.
They showed our REAL faces. Our true selves.
I stepped up to my mirror.
And I saw... me.
Sidd. Dark hair. Brown eyes. Big nose. The same face I'd seen in the train window at the start of this nightmare.
But I also saw more.
I saw the fear. Yeah. It was there. Clear as day.
But I also saw something else.
Determination.
Every time I'd gotten back up after being knocked down.
Every time I'd kept walking even when I wanted to give up.
Every time I'd helped the others even when I was scared.
I wasn't just fear.
I was also persistence.
You're both, the mask whispered. Fear and courage. They coexist. That's the truth.
I reached up.
Grabbed the mask.
And pulled.
It didn't come off easily.
It HURT. Like ripping off skin.
The mask had started to attach itself. Becoming part of my face.
No. No no no. This is MY face. Not yours.
I pulled harder.
The pain was intense. Like my whole face was on fire.
But I didn't stop.
I am Sidd. I got transported to this death game. I'm scared but I'm still fighting. I make bad jokes because it helps me cope. I care about these people even though I barely know them. This is ME.
The mask came off with a final, agonizing rip.
I gasped, stumbling back.
My real face. I could feel it again. My real expressions. My real emotions.
I was me again.
I looked over at the others.
Lucy was struggling with hers. Tears streaming down her face.
"I'm not just hope," she was saying. "I'm also doubt. I'm also fear. I'm also human. I'M LUCY!"
Her mask came off.
Gery was gritting his teeth, pulling at his guardian mask.
"I'm not a tool," he growled. "I'm a person. I protect because I choose to, not because it's all I am. I'M GERY!"
His mask came off.
Somi was the last. She was crying silently, her hands shaking as she touched her mask.
"I can't carry everything," she whispered. "I can't remember every mistake forever. I'm human. I'm fallible. I'M SOMI!"
Her mask came off.
We stood there, breathing hard, holding the masks in our hands.
The masks started to crumble. Turning to dust.
The door on the opposite side of the room opened.
Light poured in.
We'd done it.
We'd passed Act II.
The door led us back to the theater foyer.
The same red carpet. The same golden decorations.
But now there were three doors.
Two closed. One open.
The open one was marked: ACT III
Above it, new words appeared:
THE CHOIR OF VOICES
Hhhh... hhhh...
We collapsed onto the floor, exhausted.
"Two down," Lucy said quietly.
"One to go," Gery added.
"Then the Queen," Somi finished.
I looked at my hands. They were shaking.
We'd survived the puppets.
We'd survived the masks.
But something told me Act III was going to be the worst.
That voice came back. The Queen's voice.
Cold. Beautiful. Amused.
"Well done, my challengers. You've kept yourselves. Most don't."
"But Act III... the Choir is loud. So loud. They sing together. Perfect harmony. Perfect unity."
"It's hard to remember your own voice when surrounded by a thousand others."
"They'll try to make you sing along. Try to make you part of the chorus. Try to erase your individuality and make you ONE with the performance."
"I do hope you resist. I do hope you stay yourselves. Because I want to meet you. The real you. Not copies. Not echoes. YOU."
The voice faded.
We sat in silence.
Recovering. Thinking.
"We rest," Somi decided. "Then we face the Choir."
"Together," Lucy said.
"As ourselves," Gery added.
"As us," I finished.
Tomorrow, we'd face Act III.
Tomorrow, we'd fight to keep our voices.
Tonight, we rested.
But the singing had already started.
Faint. Distant. From beyond the third door.
Hundreds of voices. Maybe thousands.
All singing in perfect, creepy harmony.
Tomorrow.
Hhhh... hhhh...
Tomorrow we face that.
I closed my eyes, trying to rest.
But the singing followed me into my dreams.