A lone car pulled up to an old motel, the driver thankful that there was a vacancy. The light from the car’s headlights bounced off the bare white walls. Turning off the car, the car park was plunged into darkness, only lit by the moon above, and an old flickering lightbulb that was long overdue for a change.

The sound of the car door opening woke up the young man who was sleeping in the passenger seat. Rubbing his eyes, Marlon looked around in confusion. Where am I?

Before he could do anything, an arm wrapped around his waist and dragged him out of the car.

Huh? Still confused, he felt relieved upon seeing the familiar sight of the motel.

“Come on babe, I’ll get you inside.” Said a warm, deep voice.

Marlon turned his head upon hearing the voice and froze in shock as he stared directly into the eyes that had haunted his mind for weeks. The murderer had somehow returned, and Marlon had found himself in the arms of the man.

No! No! I need to get out of here! Marlon tried to struggle, but his body felt heavy and unbearably slow, as if it wasn’t under his control at all. He urged himself to move but couldn’t escape the tight grasp the man had on his waist. The man dragged him forward, as if Marlon weighed nothing.

“Hello, how long would you like a room for?” Marlon was almost brought to tears upon hearing his mother’s voice. Feeling unparalleled joy and relief, he tried his hardest to get her attention, but was only able to look up at her.

“We want a couple’s room if you have any. And just for the night please.” The man said, matching word for word with what he had said that night.

Marlon felt a strong feeling of déjà vu and was confused by why his mother didn’t seem to recognise the man. Looking into her eyes, he was overcome by a feeling of dread when he didn’t spot even a flicker of recognition from her. Mom! Mom, it’s me! Please help me! He screamed as hard as he could, but the words never left his mouth.

He despaired as he was brought back outside, and was led into the same room as that night. Is this all a dream? “Uugh.” He was roughly tossed onto the bed, while the man went to freshen up in the bathroom.

“Hello Marlon. You must be wondering why he is back. And it’s just as you feared. He has come back to silence you. However, you have been given a chance to prove yourself, and if you do well, you will be spared. Do you remember what you saw that night?

I hope you do, because you are about to go through the same things that happened to that woman. And just like what happened to her, a witness will spell your demise. If you are quiet enough not to attract any attention, then you will have proved that you can be trusted with his secret. Good luck Marlon.”

Just as the voice stopped speaking, the door to the bathroom swung open. The man was standing there, knife in hand, and wearing a sickening grin. Marlon stared up at the man and firmed his resolve. None of this is real. I’ll be fine. I can do this.

“I’m going to have a lot of fun with you.” Keeping the twisted grin on his face, the man stepped closer to Marlon. He tapped the blade on Marlon’s chest and gently glided it up, causing Marlon to flinch. “Sshh.” He said while lifting Marlon’s chin with the tip of the knife.

Marlon gulped but was able to remain silent.

“Good.” He whispered, setting the knife aside.

SLAP!

Marlon felt a stinging sensation in his left cheek. A red handprint was left on his face, and immediately started to swell. He winced at the pain, as tears already started to fall from his eyes.

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“Oh, come on. It wasn’t that bad. Cheer up.” He wiped the tears from Marlon’s face, and gently stroked his cheek while making Marlon face him.

SLAP!

He slapped Marlon’s other cheek, giving it a matching red welt. He continued peppering Marlon’s body with strikes, leaving bruises up and down his body. Blood dribbled down his chin from him biting his lower lip too hard.

Pain radiated from all parts of Marlon’s body. Please just make it end.

As if his thoughts were heard, everything stopped for a moment. Opening his eyes, he saw that the man had gotten off the bed, and was standing next to him, that sadistic grin still present. For a moment, the man seemed distracted, and was no longer looking at him.

Marlon’s eyes fell on the knife. This is my chance. With a burst of sheer willpower, he forced his hand ever closer to the blade. Just a little more. Feeling the cold metal at the tip of his finger, his heart screamed with joy, knowing that he was just a short moment away from turning everything around.

As his fingers reached the handle, he felt another hand grasp around the knife, and pull it out of his reach. NO.

“Why thank you! I got so excited that I almost forgot about this. It seems you’re very eager to get along to this part as well, I would feel bad if I kept you waiting.” Without any hesitation, he brought the knife down on the outstretched hand, slicing off the tips of the middle three fingers.

It cut through so cleanly that it took Marlon’s brain a moment to register what was happening. Blood sprayed from the ends of his fingers, as the tips fell onto the bedside table. Hearing them fall onto the table was all his brain needed to kickstart the pain again. The pain was unimaginable for Marlon, as it was unlike anything he’d ever experienced before. It was the worst injury he had ever experienced, but through sheer will and determination, he managed to stop himself from screaming.

“Now I wouldn’t want you to bleed out before we really got started, so let me just patch you up real quick.” A golden glow flowed from the man’s outstretched palm, gently surrounding the fresh open wounds.

Slowly, the fingers began to heal. Flesh and skin grew to cover the open wound, stopping the blood, but leaving Marlon with three stubs in place of fingers.

What? He was once again completely stunned. The last few minutes put into question everything he thought he knew about reality. He stared at his hand, failing to understand what was going on. The fallen fingertips and the blood being the only physical reminders of what had just happened. This has to be a dream. None of this is real... But the pain. Why does it all hurt so much?

The blade ran up his arm, shocking him back awake as he was left with blood pouring out of the entire length of his arm. Blood sprayed out crazily, as several veins had been cut through.

Marlon felt dizzy from the blood loss. The pain urged him to scream. To release everything in one monumental moment. But even as his mind started to fade, he held strong.

The glow appeared once more and was cast all over his entire arm. His body was repaired, but his mind was still reeling from the pain. Please stop. Just let it end.

The knife continued to dance across his body, coating his body in more blood than should even be possible. He was brought to the edge of death again and again, only for the injuries to fade away.

But the pain didn’t. Like a phantom, the pain continued to lash out at his mind and body. As if a thousand ghostly blades were repeatedly tearing his body apart.

To protect himself, his brain shut down, as he held onto the hope that it would all be over soon.

~

HahahahaHAHAHAHA. As she brought the blade down again and again across Marlon’s body, Zara grew more and more excited. The feeling of having the man’s life dance on the palm of her hand was addictive. It was the most exhilarating feeling she had ever experienced.

I wonder what will happen here? With a bout of unnatural strength, she sliced straight through his leg, but instead of healing the wound straight away, she decided to do something different. Picking up the calf, she turned it ninety degrees and pressed it tightly up against the wound. With a wave of her hand, the leg reconnected itself. Cool! I can have some fun with this!

As if it was a toy, she ripped Marlon’s body apart and reassembled it into a monstrosity. Marlon’s legs bent unnaturally, zigzagging in every direction. One hand grew out of his stomach, while the other grew out of his head.

Playing with the knife, she paused for a moment, staring at Marlon’s neck.

Delicately, she started cut along the neck, slowly twisting it while constantly using her healing powers to keep him alive.

~

With his mind completely shattered, Marlon’s body was working solely on instinct. He gasped for breath, flailing about in agony. His arm smacked into the bedside lamp, sending it crashing to the floor. In the last moments of his life, he stared out helplessly at the face in the window. It was the young woman who died that night. I’m sorry.

“Unfortunately for you Marlon, you were unable to stay silent. However, this is not your fault. Your captor went above and beyond the original means used by the killer they were disguised as. They stepped beyond their bounds, so they will be punished for that. Enjoy Hell Marlon, goodbye.”