Chapter Text
The laminate floor echoed under Feng Min’s footsteps as she wandered around, somewhat confused. Everything smelled like cleaning supplies and disinfectants. Nobody was around, and the lights seemed to flicker with every step she took.
Swallowing harshly, Min crouched down to peer over a window ledge, wondering about the fancy offices littered all over. Then, the woman crouched at a generator looked over at her and hesitated.
Min ducked beneath the window, a flush rising to her face.
“No, wait! Don’t go!” the woman called out. “I’m Claudette. What’s your name?”
Min blinked, uncomfortable with giving herself away.
“I’ll have an easier time of this if you’re not slinking around the corner. It puts me on edge when people do that,” Claudette continued.
She hadn’t come over to the window, still working on the repairs to the generator as she spoke. Cautiously, Min lifted her head and peeked over.
Claudette had a steady focus on the generator, interrupted only by the way she bit at her lip while she worked.
“Do you want help?” Min asked before she could help herself.
“If you’re willing,” Claudette answered with a smile. “I can show you how to do it, if you want.”
“Yeah, sure.” Min climbed over the counter in the wall, glad Claudette didn’t seem remotely bothered by it.
Her knee flexed in protest, but Min ignored it, crouching down beside Claudette. Any time she was about to do something wrong, Claudette explained what it was and guided her hands back into position. It made Min feel warm in a ridiculous way.
Then they heard the screaming.
Claudette’s head jerked up, eyes scanning their surroundings.
“What was that?” Min asked nervously.
“That was…” Claudette’s mouth twitched. “No, that can’t be…” She shook her head. “I didn’t think Dwight could reach that octave.”
“Dwight?”
“A friend of mine. He’s…” Claudette trailed off. “He’s trapped here. Like us.”
“Trapped?” Min frowned. “No, there were exit signs. We’re not stuck here, surely.”
“Not in the hospital,” Claudette told her distractedly. “In the realm.”
“Uh, okay.” Realm? Min’s nightmares were just nightmares, surely. She wasn’t actually trapped in a game. No way.
The screaming echoed down the halls again, and Claudette pushed up her glasses. “I’m going to go see what’s wrong. You finish the generator, okay?”
“But-“
“So long as it doesn’t blow up, you’re safe,” Claudette told her. “If you’re scared, go slow. It’s a lot easier to keep control that way.”
Min nodded, eyes wide. “I can do this.”
“Then I’ll be back in a bit, okay?” Claudette smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “But right now, I need to check on Dwight. Make sure he’s-“
Claudette stopped abruptly, her eyes narrowing. “Jake…”
“Is he also one of your friends?” Min asked nervously.
“I…” Claudette shook her head. “Yes. I’ll be right back. Just keep working on the generator.”
“I can do that.”
Min’s lip curled in concentration as she continued working on the generator, finishing it without much trouble.
Then Claudette’s screams combined with the other man’s, and Min flinched, arms wrapped tightly around her middle.
She didn’t know what to do now. Claudette said she’d be back, but if this was happening… You’re no hero, Min. Shaking her head, Min stepped out of the room, peering in the direction of the screaming.
Min was terrified of what might happen if she was discovered, so she kept herself low to the ground, creeping around the hospital like a mouse.
That was before encountering the office clerk.
She ducked her head down, holding her breath as he walked into the room with her.
“Min?” he called nervously. “Claudette sent me to check on you. Since you’re not hurt, she can’t really find you.”
Min peeked out from behind the gurney. “Claudette sent you?”
“Yeah.” He smiled, a tight expression. “I’m Dwight Fairfield.”
Dwight. “You’re one of Claudette’s friends.”
“Did she say that?” Dwight smiled fondly. “I’m honored that she thinks of me that way.”
Min blinked. “What would you consider yourself?”
“Ah, well. Everyone always tells me I have the wrong way of thinking anyway,” Dwight replied dismissively. “How much did Claudette explain to you?”
“Not much, really. She showed me how to fix this generator and then ran off.”
“Probably to check on Jake,” Dwight muttered, his smile falling as his face darkened. “He never screams like that. Ever.”
“Oh.” Min blinked.
“This place, it’s…” Dwight gestured vaguely. “Well, it’s kind of hard to explain. We have to do the generators to escape. Five, to be exact. Then the doors are unlocked, and we can open them.”
“But,” Dwight said warningly, “that sounds simpler than it is. There’s always someone or something hunting us. Trying to sacrifice us to the Entity.”
“The Entity,” Min echoed. This really is like a video game.
“Yeah. We get put on hooks to be sacrificed, and you’ve got three chances to make it out. Third hook is instant death.”
“Okay,” Min nodded, absorbing the information. “Like a life system?”
“I guess so,” Dwight’s brow wrinkled. Then he smiled again. “Kind of. We respawn like video game characters too. Back at the fire. There’s no actual escape from here that we’ve seen.”
“Oh.”
“We also have personal abilities,” Dwight explained. “Normally I don’t get this far in the explanation before people think I’m nuts.”
“Of course not,” Min wrinkled her nose, following Dwight to another generator. “It is kind of insane, but I’ve been having weird dreams lately, so being in a video game is unsurprising after all that.”
“We’re not-“ Dwight frowned. “Well, we can’t be sure it’s a video game.”
“Fair enough,” Min shrugged. “So what’s this about abilities?”
Dwight gave her a look. “Well, everyone has different ones. For example, I can see where our teammates are within a certain distance. Claudette can heal us faster and see us when we’re injured. Jake’s abilities usually make him impossible to hear, but…”
“He’s been screaming.”
“It’s unnatural,” Dwight admitted. Then he jumped as they finished the generator. “Wow, you’re fast.”
“Teamwork,” Min replied simply. “How do I find out what my abilities are?”
“Trial and error,” Dwight told her. “That’s how we all learn.”
“By just messing with stuff.”
“Pretty much. Some cycle out too. I think Jake can sometimes sense where the totems are.”
Min nodded as if she knew what he was talking about.
Dwight’s head jerked up as Claudette started screaming again. This time, an outline flashed across Min’s vision as a tall man kicked at something. “Did you see that?”
“I saw Claudette getting hit,” Dwight answered grimly. “We need to move.”
“No, the other guy. Didn’t you see him kicking something?”
“I didn’t,” Dwight admitted. “But I believe it when you say you did. That’s not a hallucination. Laurie sees the killer’s aura sometimes. And I doubt you were seeing Jake.”
“Yeah, okay, sure.” Min shook her head, slipping her hand into Dwight’s for comfort. “Let’s just find another generator.”
Dwight let out a light chuckle. “We can do that.”
Min shuddered out a heavy breath as she pressed a hand to her gut, trying to stop trembling.
Electricity. That was what everyone was screaming about. They were being hunted by a crazy man shooting electricity from his fingertips.
Dwight’s screams echoed down the hallways as she zipped away, seemingly flying through a window as she made her escape. And then stumbled over something on the ground.
The shape let out a whimper, and Min stopped, assessing it. Or rather, him. His black hair was a complete disaster, something she’d thought only Dwight could get away with, and there was a nasty gash splitting open his shoulder.
Min approached cautiously, reaching out a hand. “Are you okay-“
He flinched as he sat up, eyes wide. “Nea?”
“That’s not my name.” Min swallowed harshly. “Do you know where you are?”
He shook his head mutely, looking around, somewhat disoriented. “Is Claudette okay?”
“I don’t know,” Min admitted. “But Dwight said-“
“Dwight,” he breathed, gripping Min’s wrist. “Where is he? Did the killer get him?”
“I don’t know,” Min replied helplessly as Claudette appeared from a doorway.
“Jake, he’s okay. For now, at least,” Claudette said gently, brushing hair out of his face. “I need you to take a few deep breaths while I heal Min, okay?”
Jake’s eyes lingered on Claudette as she wrapped Min’s wounds with practiced ease before turning to examine him. Min’s mouth twitched when Claudette tried to show her how to heal other survivors.
Reluctantly, she helped Claudette wrap Jake’s wounds, still scared he was going to jump up and grab her again.
“Is he hurt?” Jake asked faintly, still twitching a bit.
“He’s limping a bit. I’ll check on him after this, okay?”
Jake nodded, watching Claudette slip away.
“Is Dwight your boyfriend or something?” Min asked once they were alone together.
Jake’s face twitched, and he glared at her. “No.”
“Where are you going?” Min called as Jake stormed out of the shower room.
He turned, expression darkening. “To keep Claudette from getting herself killed. Obviously.”
“You’re a bit possessive of your friends, aren’t you?” Min asked, hating herself for making him more upset.
“You would be too if you’ve watched them die countless times,” Jake snapped. “Go find a generator or something.”
“They go faster with-“ Min curled in on herself as she let out a horrible scream.
Jake’s eyes widened, and he shot forward, shoving Min to the side as the monster from before slammed down his weapon. He clenched his jaw tightly as he staggered away from Min. The monster gave chase, and Min was forced to get unsteadily to her feet yet again.
Like it or not, he’s a member of the team, Min thought to herself grimly. I have to give it my all to try and save him.
She ran after them, determined to slip in front of the monster’s horrible stick at least once before he could catch Jake. Min’s feet hit the ground unevenly with every step, feeling electricity burn in her legs as she got close.
Min couldn’t help but let out terrified screams as whispers surrounded her, flashes of the monster in different locations appearing out of the corner of her eye, and her heart beating painfully in her chest kept her jumpy.
Still, Jake’s screams were more condensed, Min realized. He was crying out for people, not just in general. Min didn’t know who any of them were, but she was determined to make sure that he at least had the chance to realize they were okay.
Her fingers tangled into the sleeve of his jacket as she managed to get ahead of him, his unsteady breathing making her even more afraid. Min slowed down the briefest bit, allowing Jake the chance to break off in another direction as the monster changed focus back to her.
She screamed, tears burning in her eyes as his stick ripped through her shirt yet again. Her knee protested from the strain as she flung herself over a window and practically flew out of range.
Except he seemed to anticipate that, going around the corner and shocking her more. Min wasn’t sure what was real anymore, dodging away from the Doctor, only to keep ending up closer to his dangerous weapon until she finally crumbled to the linoleum tiles.
Min let out a desperate whimper as he laughed, hoisting her up like she weighed nothing before throwing her on a slippery and clean hook. The whispers and terror in her heart didn’t fall away, didn’t disappear at all as she hung there, trembling as blood soaked through her jersey and dripped to the floor.
“Please…” she whispered to the illusion in front of her face as it reached for her. “Stay back…”
The illusion pulled her down from the hook, a roll of bandages at the ready. Min blinked deliriously as she stared at her supposed rescuer. The monstrous figure of the Doctor led her away from the hook, gently speaking to her.
Take some deep breaths. You need to snap out of it. Min blinked some more before exhaling slowly. The voices in her head started to fade, and her heart returned to a regular pattern as she kept breathing.
“Are you feeling better now?” Claudette whispered.
Min stared. “You pulled me off the hook?”
Claudette nodded, shooting a nervous glance back toward the building. “I thought you could use some help.”
Min found herself laughing. “Yeah, no kidding.”
“I could tell what you were doing,” Claudette said faintly as they went back into the building. “Not a lot of survivors would do that for Jake.”
“He’s a member of the team, isn’t he? Just because he’s an asshole doesn’t change that.”
Claudette let out a short burst of laughter before covering her mouth. “I shouldn’t laugh.”
“Why not? I’m right, aren’t I?”
“Some people would agree with you,” Claudette admitted as they worked on a generator. “But not everyone knows Jake as well as I do. He’s a sensitive guy.”
“So teasing gets under his skin. Gotcha,” Min nodded to herself.
“Not…” Claudette sighed. “He’s a bit rude, and he hides his feelings. But no one can hide their pain from me. Not completely, anyway.”
“Because of your ability,” Min said.
Claudette nodded. “Jake’s holding back a lot of pain all the time. I wish he’d let us help him, but he doesn’t want to share the burden.”
“Sometimes it’s a painful burden to carry,” Min replied, thinking of the accident. “It’s hard to get the words out.”
“I guess I must’ve had a great life, compared to everyone else here,” Claudette said sadly. “No one wants to talk things out with me.”
“Maybe someday, Claudette.” Min said as Dwight’s screams echoed in the distance.
“I should go,” Claudette said quickly. “He’s already been hooked twice, and-“
“You haven’t been hooked once,” Min finished. “I’ll see if I can find Jake. Good luck.”
Claudette smiled gingerly. “Thanks, Min.”
It wasn’t difficult to find Jake, so long as she knew what she was looking for. And what to expect.
Still, the sight made her feel hopeless of getting out of here alive, as Jake was always curled up in a silent ball as he bled out on the floor.
Min shook his shoulder tentatively. “Time to take some deep breaths, Jake.”
“You never usually call me Jake, Meg,” Jake muttered as he slowly uncurled, rising to his knees to let Min heal him.
“Well, lucky for you, I’m not Meg,” Min told him. “I’m Feng Min. We’ve been introduced three times now.”
“…Min?” Jake squinted at her. “Where’s Claudette? Where’s-“
“Claudette’s healing him. Or taking a chase. I’m not sure.”
Jake made a noise of protest as Min snapped her fingers in front of his face. “You have to focus. We have three more generators still.”
Claudette’s cry echoed, closer than either of them expected. Jake jolted, his posture stiffer than a board as he fixed his gaze somewhere behind Min.
She turned, seeing the red aura of a survivor on the ground. Min swallowed harshly. “Have you been...?”
“Not yet,” Jake mumbled. “Can’t find me once he drives me insane.”
“Well, that’s something, at least.”
Jake smiled, a bitter expression. “Watch this.”
He shot to his feet as the killer picked up Claudette, ducking under his swing to fiddle with a hook. Min blinked, stunned as Claudette kicked out harder and broke his hold. She practically flew toward Min as Jake grimaced and ran the other way.
“Is Dwight-“
“He’ll be fine,” Claudette assured her. “Not physically hurt, anyway.” Then she frowned. “Although, it’s not really a good idea to leave him alone. Especially in a trial like this.”
“So we should go find him again?” Min asked hopefully.
She liked Dwight, his steady determination making her feel less afraid as they faced this guy. Sure, Claudette was nice as well, and her hands were quick with healing, but she didn’t radiate that same quiet determination that Dwight did.
“For his mental health, I’d say so,” Claudette agreed. She looked around, her mouth twitching as Jake screamed. “I’ll stick near Jake. Dwight is more likely to find you than you are to find him anyway.”
“Because he can see me?”
“Yep,” Claudette nodded. “Take care, Min.”
“I’ll do my best.”
She was quick, racing away from the Doctor as she scanned her surroundings for Dwight. It felt foolish, but she started peering in some of the red closets all around the building.
Min was even more startled when she opened a door to reveal Dwight.
He was stiff, eyes wide as tears poured down his face. Upon seeing Min, he didn’t really react, besides recoiling more into the back of the closet.
“Dwight,” Min said, trying to keep her voice even. “We need to go do generators.”
“Generators,” Dwight echoed. “It’s always generators. Oh, Dwight do this, do that. Make it so we can all get out and you can die.”
Min jerked back, surprised by the venom in Dwight’s voice. Then she noticed the dilation in his eyes, the way he wasn’t really focused on her. Min swallowed back her inhibitions and grabbed Dwight’s arm.
“You’re more likely to die in there,” Min told him as she dragged him down a hallway.
Dwight scowled, but he didn’t pull away. His eyes fixed on where she was grabbing his arm, and a strange expression crossed his face.
“I can do this without you,” Min said. “But it goes faster with two people. Claudette said so.”
“I was the one to tell Claudette that,” Dwight said distantly.
He wasn’t so much of a mess now, fiddling with one of his bracelets as he watched Min work. “That’s not the most effective way to do that.”
“Well, I’m learning,” Min replied, gritting her teeth.
She’d hated seeing what the Doctor did to Jake, but whatever was going on with Dwight felt a whole lot worse. He was a completely different person. Begging for pity, even. And it wasn’t in a good way.
Dwight grabbed her wrist and guided her movements. “If you do it this way, it’ll go a lot faster.”
Min blinked, surprised by the almost automatic way Dwight guided her into place before settling down at the generator himself. She didn’t comment on it, instead focusing in on the generator.
Her jittery feeling hadn’t completely gone away, and grateful as she was for Claudette’s support, Dwight had started muttering under his breath, something that was far more reassuring than anything else. Min’s fingers trembled as she worked, nerves still upset from the electricity.
They completed the generator just as Jake was dropped on a hook. Dwight’s fingers twitched, eyebrows scrunching.
“Claudette’s closest,” he eventually said. “And he’ll be coming our way.”
“So, we go look for another generator?” Min asked, reaching for Dwight’s hand.
He blinked at her, a slow smile spreading across his face. “Yeah. We do.”
Jake was dizzy as he ran from the electricity sparking up from the floor. Long gone was his focus as he nearly tripped over the corpses of people he cared about, trying desperately not to cry as he heard the finality of Dwight dying on a hook, of Claudette screaming in pain.
His heart was beating faster than ever when Jake fell and came face to face with his younger brother. Blood filled Jake’s mouth, but he couldn’t bring himself to do anything but stare.
Even as Claudette died somewhere behind him, he didn’t move. Even as generator after generator completed, he didn’t move.
Feng Min’s grip on his arm was tight as she had to practically pry him from his spot on the floor, her bandages pulling loose as blood seeped free. She was saying something, her voice muffled as Jake looked dimly at the way her mouth moved. He blinked slowly, letting the tears trickle down his face before something hit him hard in the back of the head.
“Jake! It’s time to move!” Min’s voice suddenly seemed much louder, and Jake found himself scrambling to follow as electricity burst from the floor yet again, making the pair of them cry out.
Even after running through the gate, Jake still couldn’t banish the corpses from his mind. Feng Min clung to his arm, her eyes darting around the stillness of the forest.
“Where are we?” she asked, sounding terrified.
“The fire’s along the path,” Jake found himself saying almost mechanically.
He wiped the tears from his face and swallowed harshly, unable to blink without watching a loved one die. Jake led Min back to the fire, telling Laurie to explain everything before walking over to Meg and burying his face in her shirt.
“Woah, what’s with all the attention all the sudden?” Meg’s voice was a mixture of alarmed and amused. She exchanged a look with Nea, mouthing for her to start the search for Dwight and Claudette. “Hey, look at me. What happened back there?”
Jake slid to the ground slowly, still clinging tightly to Meg. “They died.”
“Yeah, that happens sometimes.” Meg laughed nervously.
“They’re gone,” Jake’s voice cracked slightly as he spoke, and Meg pulled him into a tight hug.
“You know that’s not true, Jake. Dwight and Claudette will be back on their feet in no time.”
“They never scream like that,” Jake whispered, letting the tears fall as Meg held him in a way he hadn’t been held since he was young.
“Everyone has rough matches.”
“Not like that.” Jake sucked in a breath as Dwight limped back into camp, Bill and Ace supporting most of his weight.
Relief flashed across Dwight’s face as he pulled free from their support to stagger over and practically crash into Jake, clinging tightly to him.
“You’re okay,” Dwight whispered, squeezing Jake tightly against him.
“You’re alive,” Jake whispered back, burying his face in Dwight’s shirt.
“Did anyone else make it out?” Dwight’s question was directed over Jake’s head, toward Meg.
She nodded. “The newbie survived.”
“That’s good.” Dwight closed his eyes, trying to forget about the trembling man in his arms for a moment. “And Claudette?”
“Nea’s out looking for her as we speak,” Meg answered awkwardly. “I couldn’t just…”
“Yeah, no. That’s okay.” Dwight tried to smile at her. “You can check on her once she gets back. I think Jake needed you more.”
“Speaking of checking on people…” Meg grabbed a fully equipped medkit. “You’re going to patch up that nasty wound on Jake’s shoulder.”
“If he lets me,” Dwight replied, glancing down. “I don’t think I could wrap it right now if I tried.”
“Just get it done eventually.” Meg rolled her eyes. “And Dwight?”
“What, Meg?”
“You really think he’s still not in love with you?”
Dwight’s face burned at the implications, suddenly grateful that Jake seemed too far out of his mind to be listening to the conversation. “Some day, that mouth of yours is going to get you killed.”
“It already has.”
Laurie’s mouth twitched into a grimace as Claudette tried to bandage the wounds on Jake’s feet and legs. Electric burns roped along the skin, and Claudette was doing her best to finish bandaging him without trembling too much.
“Maybe you should let Bill handle it,” she suggested, gently guiding Claudette’s hands away. “You are still hurt too, after all.”
“No, I-“ Claudette’s lips twisted. “No, I need to do this. It’s my job.”
“Not today it isn’t.” Laurie wrapped Claudette in a tight hug as Bill stepped forward, nodding to Meg, whose expression was strained as she kept rubbing circles into Jake’s back.
Her eyes met Dwight’s for the briefest moment, and his eyes fluttered shut as he held Min closer as she slept.
Laurie understood, of course, why Ace and Nea were so determined not to help. One look at Nea’s face, and it was clear that she couldn’t tolerate the heavy implications of electric burns running up through their skin, and Ace volunteered to keep her distracted.
Still, with four survivors absolutely miserable after a trial, Laurie hated that Dwight’s role was still to comfort, even when it was completely clear that all he wanted to do was cling to someone else for support.
“You should get some rest,” Laurie muttered into Claudette’s hair, gently rocking back and forth on the cold ground.
“But Jake…” Claudette tried to protest.
Jake blinked blearily at her, reaching out to grip her hand loosely in his, a faint smile on his face. “You don’t have to worry about anything else, Claudette. So long as you’re safe, I’m okay.”
Claudette nodded numbly, glancing between him and Dwight. “We are safer here.”
Jake nodded. “Safe enough for me.”