Her skin whitened, and her breathing hitched.

I stifled a scream. She can’t be dead! Not when she was so full of life only moments before.

“Come on, Carson,” she said to me, “we have to make it through this last room and then we win!”

I’d believed her, grabbing her hand and allowing her to lead me into a dark room.

The door shut behind us.

“You want to win?” A voice hissed at us. “The game demands a sacrifice…”

A home in the floor appeared, lit with fire and dimly illuminating our surroundings.

“What kind of a sacrifice?” She asks the voice with that all to familiar courage.

“You.” It said simply.

“You can’t have her!” I yelled.

“Then you can’t leave,” it said plainly.

“Then I’ll stay here forever!”

“Carson, you can’t! You and I both knew it would some to this eventually.” She was right. We both had expected this, but I wasn’t prepared.

“What if I go instead?” I offered.

“Carson!”

“No, we will only take her,” the voice responded.

“I have to,” she said. “Love you,” she said, giving me a kiss on the cheek.

“Love you more.”

“Not possible.”

“Stop with the love fest! It disgusts the game…”

“Will you shut up about the game already!” She screamed. “We’ve already given everything for your stupid game!”

“YOU DARE SPEAK OF THE GAME IN SUCH A MANNER?!”

Suddenly a spear shot out of the ground and impaled her in the chest.

“NO!” I scream, grabbing her body before she hit the ground. “Hey, it’s okay, stay with me.”

“I- can’t,” she gasped. “I- love- you…”

“No, you can’t go…”

Her body went limp, her face paling.

And now she lay here, dead, leaning both of us trapped in the game.