The Devil's Hand

Truth or Dare

I stepped into the darkness. Chloe slowly followed me, all of her former excitement was gone. I steadily kept moving forwards through the dark. The sound of my feet stepping down on rock tiles echoed across the path. I held my head up high and just listened to that sound. After a few minutes the sound turned from clanks to crunches.
        “What are we stepping on, Klō?” Chloe asked me nervously.
        “Bones,” I replied quickly. “Don’t let it bother you, keep walking.”
        And we did, continuously stepping forward as the layers of bones increased. We seemed to be heading up, walking on a staircase of skulls. The lanterns grew even brighter as we approached a door.
        The door towered over us, it was made of sturdy wood and soaked in blood. The skeletons at our feet made it seem like something from a dream. Chloe tripped on a bone and fell, and still I kept walking.
        As I reached the door I held out my hand and felt the blood. Like I thought, the blood was fresh, probably just put there to scare the living daylights out of Chloe. When Chloe finally caught up, I took her hand and placed it against the door.
        The door creaked open, swinging away from us. It led into a small, bright room, around the size of a classroom. The walls were white and grey like a hospital. A set of doors stood closed on the other side of the room.
        This time it wasn't me who entered first, instead, I stood staring at the ground. Written at our feet the words, Truth or Dare, lay in blood. I stood there wondering what to do when I heard a nervous cough come from beside me.         
Chloe took a step forward, slowly walking over the blood to the door. She took hold of a handle and tried turning it.
“It’s locked!” she yelled.
That yell broke my daze and I walked in the room too. I heard a loud slam and turned around just in time to see the door swinging shut behind me. It shimmered and faded into the white wall. I stared at the wall behind me.
“Now what?” Chloe asked. She must have already realized that this was all a deadly game. But she didn’t know the rules.
I understood the first four rules, but the last one puzzled me. Rule #5: All of the other rules will only be explained if someone breaks them. I was pretty sure the punishment for breaking the rules is death. I should have told Chloe the rules that I already knew, but, that last rule had made me wonder. What if one of the rules was to never say the rules out loud? That was a risk I didn’t want to take.
“Now we wait,” I said. This wasn't like the King, he never liked to wait. Then again, he must be playing the game with the others. But it was our turn now.
I threw a dagger across the room. Chloe looked at me in surprise. She may not know, but this was a signal to the King. The dagger marked patience. When I threw the dagger, it sent the message that it was time to play. And I awaited his answer.
Soon enough, the voice of the King echoed around the room.
“Well, well well. What have we here?”
Chloe jumped at the sound of his voice, but I just looked at the ceiling with a cold expression on my face.
“I see, a little game of truth or dare. Well then, lets start.”
I shivered, waiting.
“Klō, Truth or Dare?”
I shuddered then said, “Truth.”
“Well then, why did you survive the demon apocalypse?”
It was not the question I expected. This question would bring out my deepest secrets and the King knew it. I stood up and cleared my voice.
“Because I like killing. Don’t you?” I sneered, I had to be brave. I had to show them what it meant to survive. The flames of courage and insaneness had taken over my mind. “The blood on your hands! The power! Who doesn’t like power! You can control life or death. Everyone dies sometime, so what does it matter to them?” I laughed a cruel laugh, “Oh the power! The power of death! You watch them burn. Watch them burn in Hell!”
Chloe slowly backed away from me. I turned on her and yelled.
“Oh, whats wrong? Never killed anyone before? Why not? Killing make you feel alive! Oh, Just die already. Useless Clone!”
“What d-do you mean Klō? W-why are you saying this?” Chloe said, shaking in fear.
I clutched my head and yelled! “The blood, the sound of breaking bones. It brings you to life doesn’t it? Doesn’t it make you want to dance in their misery! Feel them die! Their life is on your hands! I make them pay! Dance! Dance in their blood! Doesn’t it make you feel alive!”
I shook in anger and an overwhelming feeling of power.
“And remember their name. Remember their face! Let them die in vain. The only way to survive is to kill!! Live! Live in the blood and sorrow of others! The power keeps you going! The only reason I survived was killing all that stood in my way! People are just your pawns! You can do anything to them! And once they become dead weight just cut their heads off! Cut their heads off like I did to pour. Useless. Relyt! If you have the power over life and death then dance! Sing in their pain! They’re better off dead!”
My laugh filled the room, I forgot all around. I threw my head back and yelled,
“Pawns! They’re just my pawns! Useless pawns! They are all better off dead! Dead like all of those that cover the earth! I control life and death! I will tell you when to die! I AM THE GOD OF DEATH!”
I spat on the ground and wiped my mouth. “So worship me you stupid clone!”
Chloe had her back fully pressed against the wall in fear now. Her eyes wide in horror. She slowly slid down the wall and cried. Her face was pressed into her arms as she wrapped them around herself.
I sneered. Useless crybaby.
“What do you mean? How am I a clone?” She mumbled through her sleeve.
I ignored her and shouted up at the ceiling. “It’s my turn now!” I rubbed my hands together and shouted. “King! Truth or Dare?”
As I yelled a searing pain spread throughout my chest. I gasped in pain. I collapsed on the floor and reached my hand forward, grasping for something, anything. I pulled my arm back and curled up into a ball.
“You broke rule number twenty-seven.” the King said as my eyes faded to black. “The game will finish when someone goes insane, after that no one can continue. I almost feel bad for you, how does it feel to be mad? Insane?”
The King taunted “But I can’t kill you just yet can I?”
My eyes faded to black I heard the voice of the old King, the one I played with, the one that didn’t go mad.
“Wake up, we haven’t finished playing!”