The sound of footsteps rippled throughout a vast and majestic hallway, the walls exuded an aura of timeless beauty with their pure marble and ancient engravings. Adorning these walls were magnificent paintings, carefully hung with precision. The red carpet covering the floor, made the silhouettes of two walking figures, stick out like fireflies in darkness.
Derlis was walking next to the glasses-wearing woman, she was his guide. They were walking towards the dorms. The woman glanced over at Derlis before speaking.
" I'm sorry for not introducing myself earlier, I'm Julia. But the dorms are only a couple of minutes away."
Derlis gave a subtle nod, as an uncomfortable silence engulfed him and Julia who walked next to each other in complete silence, even their footsteps were quiet being muffled by the thick carpet under them. Julia's eyes started to dart around nervously, until after a few minutes. A spiral staircase made out of pure spruce appeared.
Just like every element inside the building, the staircase was perfect. Not a single sign of warping or imperfection was present on the staircase. Julia let out a weak cough, before she spoke timidly.
" Our dorms are right up these stairs. Rebecca asked me to go over the rules, so while we make our way up, I'll explain them to you."
Derlis let out a "Hmm" as he walked up the stairs, holding onto the railing. Before Julia cleared her throat and spoke.
" The first rule is simple. Every mess you create, you must clean up by yourself. The second, is everyone must be in their dorms at exactly 10:30 PM. You can't exit your dorm afterward for any reason. And finally the third one. You will wake up exactly at 7:30 AM and head towards the classroom downstairs. "
" Why can't we leave our dorms? During night? "
" Umm, I'm not sure myself. But I wouldn't try it, the last person who tried to leave at night, hasn't shown back up. "
Said Julia letting out a weary grin, Derlis stared at this grin confused as he took one more step and entered a narrow corridor, with exactly five spruce doors, three on one side, two on the other. The walls were still made from marble and the floor was still crimson carpet. Derlis eyes glanced at these doors until Julia spoke.
" Your room is the last one on the left. And just a warning, the rooms are quite cramped. "
The inside of the dorms dawned two things. A single twin-size bed with a navy blue cover, and a mediumly size drawer. Compared to everything else in the mansion, the dorms are bluntly, dull, and uneye-catching. Derlis stared at the room before shrugging. And stepping inside the room.
He gently closed the door behind him using his left foot. After several minutes, the doorknob leading into his room turned, slowly creaking open, revealing Derlis wearing the same uniform as the other students. Delris glanced around the empty hallway before realizing that Julia had disappeared...
Back in the classroom, Rebecca could be seen drawing on the chalkboard writing a very complex math equation. Various numbers were written, flowing down the board until the oak doors leading into the classroom opened abruptly catching the attention of Rebecca who turned her head as Julia walked into the classroom.
Julia and Rebecca locked eyes before a gentle smile covered Rebecca's face and she spoke.
" My, if isn't Julia. You rarely speak, so it's quite surprising to see you enter this classroom by your lonesome. But what do you need? "
" I need to discuss, something, it's about one of my classmates. "...
Five hours later, the scorching hot sun has fallen. It was exactly, 10:20 PM, and Delris could be seen sitting on the edge of his blue bed, the rest of the day was filled with nothing but mathematical equations, that confused Delris severely not because he didn't understand them instead he couldn't understand their purpose.
Just as he was about to fall into a deep slumber, a sudden knock echoed through his door. Delris stared at his door with a sleepy gaze before he cautiously stood up. He walked to the door, grabbed onto the handle, and turned it. The door instantly popped open as Delris's gaze was met with pure blue eyes.
Delris took three steps back as Sarah entered the dorm, gently closing the door behind her. Sarah grinned at Delris before she spoke asking a question.
" So, what do you think about this place? "
Derlis stared at her puzzled before he responded in an unsure voice.
" I haven't been in this place for a full day, so it would be unwise of me to make a judgment. "
" Tch, are you a politician? What type of nonanswer was that? Just tell me what you truly think about it. "
"Well truthfully, it's odd, it's full of eye candy. Yet, something undoubtedly dark is happening in the shadows. '
" It's nice to see you aren't a complete idiot like David. Something dark is happening in this place, there's so much, I wouldn't be able to discuss it with you in only ten minutes. But I need to ask you a question, what do you think about escaping this place? "
Delris looked at Sarah confused before he murmured asking her a question.
" If you want to leave, just walk out of the building and walk past those shabby huts. "
" I would, if it was that simple. You see this entire place, is surrounded by an invisible dome. And before you ask, yes the dome does go underground. We tried to dig under it several times, but we would always hit it. "
" Then, how do you plan on escaping? "
" By sacrificing someone obviously, I think you arrived in a box truck like me. A box truck isn't some magical device that passes through invisible domes, so there must be a type of entrance. "
" And why would you need to sacrifice someone to find out this? "
As soon as Delris said this, a cruel grin crept onto Sarah's face before she muttered out in a cold voice.
" Oh, you're going to see. When you come, face to face with the grotesque anomalies that live with us. And then you will understand why. "
" But that's all the time I have to discuss with you Delris, but please be useful. And just a heads up never and I mean never. Leave your dorm at night. "
Derlis watched Sarah leave his dorm still baffled about the purpose of her entering his dorm. He watched the door shut, before he pondered, trying to figure out her motive. Despite her innocent facade, Sarah was easily the cruelest student, willing to manipulate and exploit others for the slightest gain.
These characteristics didn't escape Derlis, who instantly picked up on them, making his trust in Sarah waver. But even though Sarah is untrustworthy, there must be deeper meanings behind her words. Perhaps she genuinely desired to escape this place, or maybe she saw him as a way to improve her standings with the teacher. Deep in thought, Derlis tapped his chin before he sighed loudly. Obviously, this enigma couldn't be solved in a single day.
With these thoughts still in the back of his mind, Derlis laid on his bed, falling into a deep sleep however, this sleep didn't last very long...
Tap. Tap Tap.
The dorm was engulfed in an unsettling silence, broken only by the sound of tapping, this tapping jolted Derlis awake, his eye scanning around the dimly lit room. The feeling of inexplicable dread started to fill Delris's chest, he was about to sit up, until his nostrils flared as the smell of burnt toast entered his nose.
Delris sniffed the air confused, and that's when the rhythmic tapping transformed into an ominous scratching, this scratching was stemming from his bedside. Delris's gaze shifted down, before locking eyes with two piercing red eyes that gleamed in the dark. The entity's eyes widened before it scuttled away on all fours, resembling a hideous spider.
Delris glared at the creature straining his eyes barely able to see its silhouette, the creature slowly crawled up the walls, its body grinding together. The creature was enormous, its head adorned, with menacing spikes, and its body was supported by four grotesque legs. Delris's gaze was fixated on the abomination, refusing to let it escape his sight.
He stared at the monster, fighting his urge to blink. His eyes watering and twitching relentlessly. Delris tried his hardest but the dryness became unbearable, forcing him to blink. In that single fleeting moment, the monster vanished off the wall, shocking Delris whose eyes darted around frantically, searching for any trace of the creature.
The search didn't last long, as directly above Delris. Two blood-red eyes were fixated on him. Delris's gaze locked with the creature's eyes, its eyes piercing at Delris's chest. Beads of sweat trickled down Delris's face as his hands trembled uncontrollably. That's when a thunderous announcement was suddenly made.
"It's time to wake up, It's 7:30 AM! "
As soon as this announcement was made, the monster mysteriously vanished, without leaving a single trace...
