Unmasking The Insanity *REVAMPED WAREHOUSE GAMES*

This is a revamped version of what I posted up here a year ago. A lot has changed and my book is near completion. I havent been active as of late - it is simply to do with trying to finish this book.

  At first, the sight of the man almost frightened Ben to the point of collapse. The assailant stood with an authority of arrogance �" legs apart, and arms crossed against his broad chest: the stance of a warrior. He stared back at Ben like a cobra seeking its prey with brutal and unfriendly eyes. His forehead was almost square, large and imposing, but not laughably so. He wore a white t shirt, blue tatty jeans and a black trench coat which reached down to his boots. The sheer size of him was a clear head higher than most people would consider tall. He wasn’t lanky though; there was plenty of bulk on him too; as muscles bulged from beneath his matt black trench-coat.

   Ben’s thoughts leapt feverously from fight to flight. His skin crawled as he looked into the big man’s face. His whole body went rigid in horror as for a split second, the air was sucked out from his lungs. But then he fought the urge to turn and bolt, and something grew coldly determined inside of him, which kept him on his feet and the rags of his temper finally gave way. He took a deep breath against the panic and began to speak.

  ‘Where is she!’ Ben demanded.

  The man didn’t reply, he simply tilted his head back and laughed mockingly.

  The sound left a bitter taste in Ben’s throat.  His next words came out with a more chilling, overflowing determination.

  ‘I said where is she, you sonofabitch!’ If you think you’re going to get away with this then I swear to God, you’d better think again. I don’t give a s**t about your games, threats, or all this Tall Man bullshit. Just tell me where she is you or I swear to --’

  The assailant finally spoke.

 ‘What’s the matter Ben?’ The assailant finally replied, with an edge of danger to his voice. ‘You seem a little anxious...edgy maybe. But before we go any further, I have a one simple question for you - how are those running shoes of yours holding up?’ The question was asked in deliberate casual manner, and quickly followed up with another short bark of humour-lacking laughter.  

  Ben’s fists clenched as anger enveloped him.

  The man continued to speak.

  ‘I realise you might be a little lethargic right now. What with all the exercise you’ve been doing tonight, it’s totally understandable that you should be feeling this way. But it would also be such a travesty if you haven’t conserved enough stamina for the rest of tonight’s entertainment. After-all, Halloween night is always loaded with high expectations, and mark my words, tonight will definitely be no exception.’

  ‘F**k this s**t man’ Ben shot back, spit now flying from his lips. ‘Why don’t you just cut the crap and tell me where the f**k she is!’

  The predator’s face then broke into a grin, light and fierce, his combat grin. He then advanced forwards with a confident swagger of a man who knew he had no equal.

  Ben backed up.

  The assailant then stopped.

  ‘Let me make myself crystal clear as to how all of this is going to work.’ The predator replied now with an edge of command now in his voice. ‘Zara’s life now solely depends upon your ability to stay alive and keep moving. And mark my words if you want Zara to live, then, keep moving you will. Your threats mean nothing to me… just like you - they are weak and futile. I have the ability to bury you deep into the ground, spit on your grave, and to do as I please with your pathetic excuse of a girlfriend. Right now, a fury of black rage is probably bubbling up through your blood, urging you on to engage in some sort of hand-to-hand combat with me and to try to assert some sort of macho bullshit dominance over me. Tonight, if you want Zara to have any chance of living, or to make it through the night so that she will live to see another day, then you will have to play a game. You will have to think fast, act fast, or a spilt second hesitation could mean the difference between life and death. If, however you choose not to participate in any of my games, then Zara will die right here, right now, right in front of your eyes.’   

   The man then crossed his arms, and smiled with malice.

   Ben glanced back at the monitor with a troubled expression. It hurt him to see Zara’s pained expression ravaged by emotion, and only deepened his concerns for what was to become of her.  Bitter agony welled up inside him as another person emerged from behind where Zara was sitting. The figure on the screen then yanked Zara’s head back and held a metallic blade up against her exposed and vulnerable neck. Zara’s screams deepened, and she began wiggling her body from side to side, trying to fight her restraints, but to no avail.    

  ‘Who the f**k is that?’ Ben asked, his voice beginning to falter ‘Why are you doing this to her?’

  ‘That.’ The assailant responded as it gestured a finger towards the screen, just as the accomplice looked up towards the camera which it was being film ‘That is my accomplice, who just like me, has a hunger for penance, and will not hesitate or deliberate in the spilling of sinners blood.’ 

  White hot anger ripped through Ben’s veins, his jaw clenched so tight he thought his teeth would crack.

  ‘So, as we have now gotten all the pleasantries out of the way, allow me to explain as to why I have arranged this nocturnal clandestine meeting of ours. I have brought you all here because you have shown you are unable to function properly in the real world. 

‘You lack moral responsibility and are unable to a get grip on bringing your gambling addiction which has you under its control.  Each and every month, you find yourself grappling with debt, scrambling around for each and every elusive penny just to make ends meet. You go from one month to the next, living on the edge, throwing good money after bad; barely having enough funds to cover your rent or basic living costs. The gulf between your wages and living costs is such that credit cards and loans are now fast becoming your financial sticking plaster. A rather frantic attempt to patch up the gaps left by an income that barely covers home, food, and heat… don’t you think?

 ‘I know this has been creeping up for quite a while now and it is only set to go from bad to worse. Like a house of cards, your world is on the brink of collapse. So, one way or another, I am here to put a stop to your misery, to bring an end to all your financial woes and to bring a closure to all those sleepless nights which I am sure you are having to endure. What I offer unto you is a chance where redemption can be gained, a chance where you will be able to rebuild your life and to start all over again.

 ‘But in order to redeem yourself, you have to play a game. But just like any other game, it comes with its own set of unique rules. Make a wrong move, step out of line, or fail to carry out any reasonable instruction, then prepare to reap the consequences. But, should you decide to turn your back, walk away and leave Zara here with me, then, you will leave me with no choice but to bring an end to Zara’s end of days. I will surely post her back to you bit by bit, a finger here, a toe there, maybe a leg, maybe a head.

  ‘If, however, you should decide to step up, be a man, and rise to the challenge that I will set before you, and show me that you have the ability to make the right choice at the right time then rest assured - Zara will be set free and delivered safely back to your place of residence. After that, you will never have to see or hear from me ever again. I promise you that. 

. ‘But heed my warning: I will always be watching, always listening, always lurking in the shadows. Always ready to hunt you down like a dog should you slip back into your treacherous ways. So now that you know what is on offer, are you prepared to redeem yourself, and partake in tonight’s entertainment? Or do you wish to walk away and abandon Zara here with me, in the knowledge that someday her bodily parts will surely drop through your letterbox to remind you of this night when you had the chance to save her life?  The decision is yours. Make your choice.’’   

    The tension in the air was now a viable living entity. Ben immediately felt as though a sponge had been lodged in his throat, soaking up water, swelling and clogging, leaving him struggling for breath. His urge to go down on his knees and then cross himself was like a primeval hangover of some strange superstition. But, he stood his ground, and shot back.  

  ‘I’ll play your fucked up game but, you’re forgetting one thing…’

  ‘And what might that be?’ came the immediate reply with an evil satisfaction.

  ‘Games can be won.’

  ‘Games can also be lost.’

   And with that response, the man took another step forward and spoke again .

  ‘Behind me, in the background, you will see that there are two solid steel doors. The door on the left has been inscribed with the word ‘Zara’ across it, the other has not. Each door requires a password to enable access to what lies behind. Seeing as this is Halloween, the password for the door marked with Zara’s name on it I have decided to aptly call ‘trick’. For the door on the right, the password is ‘treat’.

  `Once the door is unlocked, you will be faced with a corridor of blackness and blades. The corridor will be approximately twenty paces in length and five paces in width and littered with danger each and every step of the way, giving you a small amount of room for margin of error. A bare lightbulb will be your only saving grace to guide you through this haphazard pathway. The lightbulb I talk about will only illuminate at intermittent intervals. Once the light is off, the blades will automatically be triggered to come on. Each and every one of them will shoot up from the floorboards and in a clockwise motion they will begin to cut away at your precious pathway, giving you only milliseconds to react.  The only time they will power down is when the light comes back on. But, the light will only come on a maximum of five times. After that, it will be just you, the darkness and the treacherous task of avoiding the unforgiving razor-sharp blades.

  ‘Just like the lesson I am trying to teach you, it is of vital importance that you stay on the path of righteousness and not to cross over onto the dark side. For if you do, the consequences of failure with be of catastrophic proportions. For both you and Zara.’

  The man paused just as Ben looked back at the monitor. He saw Zara bursting into another fit of tears as the accomplice seemed to push its blade deeper into her neck. Once again she began shaking hysterically.  

 ‘Should you safely navigate your way to end of the corridor, you will be faced with a set of stairs. Make your descent down these stairs and you will be confronted with another door which will again lie directly in front of you. Open this door and you’ll finally discover if Zara is being held captive in that room or you will face another perilous predicament which you will have to find your way out of. But, I implore you to remember everything that I have said prior to all of this, because, just like you, this game is about deceit and deception. If, however, you’ve been paying full attention and have been listening carefully to my exact words, then you will know exactly where the clues have been lying. The only help I now offer you is to listen carefully as to where Zara’s screams are coming from. I asked you at the beginning of the night, so I will ask you again: How are the running shoes, Ben?

  ‘Whizzzzzzz.’  A loud, mechanical sound could be heard screeching from behind each of the steel doors, startling Ben, making his heart jump .

   Is this really happening to me? Ben thought. This can’t be happening. This is way fucked up. 

   He took one last quick glance at the monitor.

   Using whatever strength she had left, Zara ferociously wriggled her body on the chair, trying desperately to break free, but to no avail. The accomplice looked back at Ben whilst still resting the blade it held in its hand up against Zara’s throat.

    ‘Zara, sweetheart, listen to me,’ Ben said, trying to calm Zara down. ‘I’m coming to get you. Okay? �" Do you hear me. I’m coming to get you. Everything is going to be okay. Just hang in there babes, I’ll be with you as soon as I can.’ He then paused for a second and when he spoke again, he addressed the assailant who still stood in front of him.

   ‘Which door is it you sick f**k!’

  The tall man who stood in front of Ben just smiled, but the curve of his mouth had nothing to do with humour. He then straightened his shoulders, tucked his arms behind his back and stood silent with a stance of a warrior.

Author's Note

THIS IS A REVAMPED VERSION OF THE WAREHOUSE GAMES I POSTED A YEAR AGO. IF YOU HAVE SENT ME READ REQUESTS AND I HAVEN'T RESPONDED THEN IT'S ONLY BECUASE I AM BUSY AND WANT THIS BOOK FINISHED. I WILL GET ROUND TO THEM SOON.

MARK.

Reviews

[tp340]

Would love to read the finished book

[Patrick Jinks]

I find it amazing that you keep it so compelling even with little action. What I mean by that is that we've not even had 'the main event' of Ben walking down the pathway, but by the end of the passage you feel as anxious as if he had. I read the stuff you put up last year and this is a welcome new chapter of events you've got!

[Jarrod]

Sorry it took so long for me to read this but wow! Just wow! Loved every part of this. From the assailant taunts, to his twisted game. This is a story I would love to be turned into a movie. I'm gonna read it from the beginning. Absolutely outstanding! You've made me a fan!

[Hannah]

I like the full-circle ending, with the tall man standing with the stance of a warrior. Very intense, chilling writing. I'm looking forward to the release. In the first sentence, I think it would flow better if it was "At first, the sight of the man frightened Ben *almost* to the point of collapse". Also, it sounded strange to me when the man used the word "totally". Aside from that, he seems really well-spoken, despite being casual. Really good writing!

[Alexa Nichols]

Interesting. Well written; I like the dialogue. Keep it up!

[Makrix Mottle]

Astonishing, as per usual. I am really enjoying this book, and can't wait to see the finished product. Keep up the good work!

[Tabby Mac]

The images are chilling in this one Mark!! I can feel the suspense as I read. From a year ago to now the details you have added have taken it from Great to AWESOME SAUCE!! It leaves me the reader wanting more! I love how you describe the tall man. I don’t think Ben is the only one that realizes that this is unlike any other man! It sure opens my eyes that this villain means business!! Hope...what hope!! Haha i think that adds to the suspense of what will happen next!!!! You really have a talent with creating fear! For the record I will think twice about a slot machine when I see one!
Can’t wait till you finish this book!!!
This chapter ROCKS!!!
Tabby

[darkangle]

love it! the supence builds up well...i love how they munipulate ben by using zara's life...

[Rachid Amrani]

It can't get better than this Mark! Word by word, I found myself captivated by the events unfolding in this chapter. Like always, you put us there in the middle of the story as though we're watching it on screen. The sentences bears a lot of descriptive words that take us inside the mind of the characters. The dialogue is very vivid and reflective of the each character's persona. You've also shown us that -as a writer- you mention all aspects of knowledge: finance and money management as an example when Ben preached about "keeping the gambling addiction under control to make ends meet and get out of debt."
A stunning piece that only fueled my desire to read what would happen in the next paragraph.
Welcome back!

[Jacob Clifford]

Very chilling. I enjoy that fact that the villain here has a motivation. He's clearly not "normal" mentally, but it makes villains so much better when they have motivation. I definitely wouldn't want to be in any of the victim's positions. Very strong writing. Are you past the phase of writing where you would accept suggestions? I didn't notice anything major, but there were a couple of thoughts I had while writing. Again, your writing is strong and enjoyable. I know I've said it several times, but congratulations on how far you've come. Most people never get as far as you have. I wish you luck in the rest of your book-writing endeavors!