Chapter 66: Wrong Night, Wrong Victims
Edward glanced at Jennifer, then at Carrie who was clearly nervous, and nodded. "Alright. You two be careful."
He knew Jennifer wasn't screwing around—as a succubus, her danger sense might be even sharper than his.
She had her reasons.
The four split into two teams. Jennifer half-pushed, half-guided Maria into the mirror maze on the right, their figures quickly vanishing into the distorted reflections.
Edward and Carrie headed into the dark passage on the left.
CLANG.
They'd barely gone ten feet when the iron door slammed shut behind them, cutting off all outside light and sound.
The passage was pitch black, with only the drip, drip of water from somewhere below and faint mechanical grinding in the distance.
Carrie instinctively grabbed Edward's sleeve, her voice shaking. "Edward... it's really dark in here."
"You're fine. Stay with me." Edward's voice was steady, like the darkness didn't faze him at all.
He took Carrie's hand—her palm was cold and clammy with nervous sweat.
They felt their way forward about thirty feet when suddenly red warning lights started flashing ahead.
On both walls of the passage, dozens of rusty axes mounted on mechanical arms began swinging up and down erratically, blocking their path. The blades gleamed wickedly in the red light.
Even knowing they were props, the whistling sound and heavy mechanical presence made your skin crawl.
"How... how do we get past this?" Carrie's voice had gone up an octave.
"We time it and slip through," Edward said, but then paused.
Something felt wrong. The axes' swinging patterns—though they looked random—were actually blocking every safe route. And one of the axes had a mounting bolt that looked way too loose.
Just then, that loose-bolted axe suddenly broke free during a violent swing, spinning straight toward Carrie's head!
This wasn't a scare anymore—this was attempted murder.
Carrie's mind went blank. She didn't even have time to scream, just stared as the cold steel grew larger in her vision.
Edward was about to move, but an invisible force erupted from Carrie herself!
BUZZ—
The spinning axe stopped dead less than four inches from Carrie's forehead, suspended in midair like an invisible hand had caught it.
Carrie gasped for breath. She reached toward the frozen axe, her face shocked and disbelieving.
She'd done it—extreme fear and survival instinct had unconsciously triggered her power.
"Nice work, Carrie," Edward's voice came from beside her, full of approval.
Hearing his encouragement, Carrie seemed to snap back to herself. She took a deep breath, concentrated, then swung her hand sharply.
CRASH!
The axe flew away with tremendous force, slamming into the far wall and sending sparks everywhere.
"I... I actually did it." Carrie stared at her hands, voice filled with wonder.
"You always could." Edward patted her shoulder. "Come on, let's see what else they've got."
With that experience under her belt, Carrie got way bolder. She walked ahead, using telekinesis to push away the swinging axes one by one, clearing a safe path.
But just as they were about to pass through the axe gauntlet, a tall figure silently emerged from the shadows at the end of the passage.
He wore a park staff uniform, but his face was hidden behind a grotesque mask made of leather and metal, and he carried a massive sledgehammer.
What radiated from him wasn't fake menace—it was genuine killing intent.
Without a word, he raised the sledgehammer and brought it down on the master control box for the axe array!
BOOM!
The entire mechanical system let out a screaming wail and went completely haywire. All the axes began swinging wildly at insane speeds, turning the entire corridor into a whirling meat grinder.
At the same time, the killer used the chaos to rush straight at Carrie!
Meanwhile, in the mirror maze...
Jennifer and Maria stood in a world of endless reflections. Their images repeated everywhere, layer upon layer, making it impossible to tell which way was forward.
"Don't panic. Stay close," Jennifer's voice was calm.
As a succubus, her perception couldn't be fooled by simple optical tricks.
She could tell which paths were real.
But Maria couldn't.
She was already terrified, and in this environment she felt completely disoriented, with every mirror reflecting her own frightened eyes staring back at her.
"Jennifer... can we, can we just go back..." Maria's voice was on the verge of tears.
"Go back? Where's the fun in that?" Jennifer pulled her along, navigating the maze easily. "Relax. With me here, nobody's gonna hurt you."
The words had barely left her mouth when a figure that belonged to neither of them suddenly appeared in a mirror beside them.
Someone dressed exactly like the killer outside—only thinner, and instead of a hammer, he carried a gleaming boning knife.
He stood in the reflection, his grotesque mask facing them, like a demon crawled out of hell itself.
"Ah!" Maria let out a sharp scream.
"Tsk, finally decided to show yourself." Jennifer didn't panic—she smiled. She pushed Maria behind her and dropped into a defensive stance.
The killer's figure flickered rapidly between mirrors, using the complex reflections to create countless duplicates, making it impossible to pinpoint his real location.
Suddenly, cold steel flashed from Maria's left!
The killer! He'd somehow circled around and was attacking from their blind spot using the mirrors!
"Look out!" Jennifer reacted instantly, grabbing Maria's sheet-costume and yanking her backward hard.
RIP!
The sharp boning knife slashed through the white sheet in front of Maria, leaving a long gash.
If Jennifer hadn't pulled her back, that blade would've opened her stomach.
Maria collapsed to the ground, shaking uncontrollably.
"Hey. Your beef's with me." Jennifer stood between Maria and the killer.
The killer said nothing—just let out a low growl and lunged forward again, knife gleaming.
Jennifer, using her superhuman speed and reflexes, fought the killer in the confined space.
Her movements were fluid, each time barely avoiding a fatal blade.
Maria, meanwhile, seemed frozen in terror, just clutching her head, curled up on the floor, trembling nonstop.
Then, in a mirror right in front of her, the reflection changed—instead of her own terrified face, it showed Alan's face, looking both amused and exasperated.
"Hey! I'm talking to you! You just gonna lie there crying?" Alan's voice echoed directly in Maria's mind. "Look how pathetic you are! That woman out there is literally fighting to protect you, and all you can do is hide here shaking?"
"Alan..." Maria's tears spilled over. "I'm scared... I can't do anything..."
"Bullshit!" Alan's voice grew harsh. "Did you forget? What did Edward say about you? He said you were badass! Not me! You, Maria!"
"Don't forget—that asshole just tried to kill you! You just gonna let that slide? Getting attacked like this and you won't even fight back? You're embarrassing me!" Alan kept pushing.
Maria looked up, first at Jennifer desperately dodging in the mirrors, then at the relentless killer.
Fear still gripped her, but a new emotion—shame, anger, and refusal to be a victim—started burning in her chest.
Just as the killer swung his knife again, he exposed a tiny opening.
Now!
The thought flashed through Maria's mind.
She spotted a thick wooden support beam nearby, broken off by some previous visitor.
She practically crawled over to it, grabbed it with both hands.
"AAAHHH—!"
She let out a scream she didn't even recognize—like a cornered animal—raising the wooden beam and bringing it down with everything she had on the back of the killer's head!
CRACK!
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