Quinn counted all the way up to forty five minutes before his vision went blurry and time had been reversed.

This was still not enough evidence to continue moving forward though, so Quinn tested his hypothesis two more times before confirming that it was true.

“Forty five minutes… that's how long I have until time reverts back.”

Not giving even a moment's notice, Quinn started running through the cave tunnel. He wanted to reach the house in the woods as quickly as possible, that way he would have as much time as he needed to explore the house before time reset.

After making it to Oak Town, he had already shaved off ten minutes compared to when he walked to town, and after reaching the cabin in the woods, Quinn had gained fifteen minutes of time, which meant he had a total of twenty minutes until time was reversed.

Quinn opened the front door of the cabin, the rusted hinges creaked as the inside of the house began to appear. Quinn hesitantly took a step inside, checking his surroundings for any danger.

Once he realized that the room was safe, he calmed down and began to search his surroundings.

The house was dusty, musty, and trashed as if it had been raided by robbers. Cobwebs hung in each corner of the room and almost everything had been broken beyond repair.

Quinn took a step towards the left side of the room where the cabinets and old kitchenware used to be. Instead of finding anything useful, all he found was dusty tabletops and empty cabinets with doors that were falling off their hinges.

In the middle of the room, a broken table laid on the floor. Quinn checked around it for anything useful, but stepped away after realizing there was nothing to find.

On the right side of the room, ripped green couches and chairs surrounded a brick fireplace that was falling apart. If Quinn wanted to, he felt he could touch the fireplace and cause the bricks to turn to powder. He was surprised they were still capable of standing.

Quinn walked to the back of the house where two doors stood in a hallway. Opening the left door, he stepped inside to an old bedroom. A broken bed frame laid on the floor, the mattress was nowhere in sight. Just like the rest of the house, the room was filled with dust and grime.

After checking around the room with a quick glance, Quinn stepped away without finding anything of use. He then made his way to the room on the opposite side of the small hall, revealing it to be a dirty bathroom. The white bathtub was shattered and chipped, rendering it unusable. The sink was in a similar state. Quinn tried turning the knobs, but not a drop of water escaped from the tap.

Above the sink, a mirror hung on the wall, but all the shards of the mirror were either too small to get an accurate reflection, or had fallen off of the mirror completely.

Sitting in the sink, a large sharp shard of the mirror was still intact. Quinn picked the palm sized shard up and looked into its reflection. His eyes wore a sharp but calm glance as he stared at his pale and dirty face that was in need of a wash. His cheeks had become much thinner since he had awoken in the mansion, caused by the lack of food and constant fighting that he had been put through.

Quinn pocketed the shard, believing that its sharp points could be used in the event of an attack. Quinn had felt vulnerable ever since he lost his sword, but having even the smallest weapon gave him comfort.

Exiting the room, Quinn felt disappointment that he found nothing of use, besides the unexpected glass shard. He hoped that he would find a hint, even a tool that would help in finishing the trial.

Just as he was about to leave the cabin, Quinn heard a loud creek as he stepped in the center of the main room. Curious, Quinn looked down at the floor and noticed something abnormal. The floor below him was different from the rest of the cabin.

It was very subtle, but the cracks around the floor had been slightly wider than the rest of the room.

Bending down, Quinn tried to pry his fingers under the floor. After grabbing enough surface area, he attempted to lift the floor up, and it was a success. The floor arose and revealed a hidden staircase.

“Isn't that interesting.” Quinn stepped down onto the creaky wooden stairs, following the staircase until he made it to the bottom. Below the house, Quinn was surprised to find a basement. Candles hung from the wooden beams that held up the first floor, coincidentally still lit.

Are the candles being lit just an abnormality of the mansion, or did somebody just recently light these? After stepping off the staircase onto the cold stone floor, Quinn spotted an old table that was still intact. Resting atop it, Quinn discovered an old bronze key and a folded piece of paper.

Quinn felt excitement, feeling that the note and key were a step in the right direction to finishing the trial. He grabbed the paper, unfolding it and reading the contents inside.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

To whom this may concern, follow the dirt path one hundred meters, then turn left into the woods until you spot the third tree. There, your destiny will await you. Quinn looked at the note in confusion. His eyes furrowed as he reread the note, trying to comprehend what its content meant.

Is this trying to give me a location? And where am I supposed to use this bronze key? Quinn took the note and key, shoving them into his pocket. He then turned and looked around the rest of the room. It was mostly empty, but sitting in the corner of the room was a ripped and torn puppet. One of its arms had fallen off, and strings poured out from the puppets' limbs.

That is… slightly horrific. It doesn't seem to be any threat though. After glancing around the rest of the room, Quinn decided to head back upstairs.

Just as he took the first step, Quinn suddenly heard a quick rustling.

“Behind you!” Golden Quinn spoke up, alarming Quinn. He turned around to spot the puppet from before standing right behind him. The puppet moved forward, extending its hand and reaching for Quinn’s neck.

Quinn swiftly pulled out the glass shard from his pocket and used it to parry the puppets hand, but that didn't stop the puppet from quickly jumping at Quinn and using its mouth to grab his arm, ripping the skin and flesh from his body.

Quinn gasped in pain as he dropped the glass shard and tripped backwards onto the stairs. He tried recovering himself, but the puppet had grabbed onto his neck, choking him. After Quinn couldn't move, the puppet gnawed at Quinn’s stomach, ripping him open and spreading his intestines across the staircase.

Quinn lost all his strength as he was torn apart, unable to recover from the puppets constant gnawing. The room began to grow dark, his vision faded and a voice could be heard yelling above him.

“Get up! You can't die here!” Golden Quinn watched as Quinn was ripped to shreds by the fierce puppet, unable to do anything to save him.

***

Quinn's eyes opened to the bright blue sky, his flesh could feel the warm soft grass rubbing against him. In fear, Quinn leaned up to look at his surroundings. He had died, ripped apart by the puppet from before. In shock, Quinn grabbed at his stomach, but found that it was still intact. Lifting his shirt, no scars or scrapes could be found across his belly.

I died… didn’t I? Quinn was surprised that he was still alive as he remembered being torn to pieces by the broken puppet.

Golden Quinn floated in front of him, noticing the fear and confusion Quinn’s face was showing, “Don't worry, after you died you were reverted back to how you were. Although for a few minutes, I thought that both of us were goners.”

Quinn stared at him, trying to comprehend what had occurred, “Then you didn't even know if I would completely die?”

“No, I didn't. Just because I know a lot doesn't mean I know everything.” Golden Quinn was a reliable source of information, even if he wasn't capable of telling Quinn everything, but that didn't mean he knew what would occur in the event of Quinn's death.

Quinn thought back to the puppet as it ripped apart his innards. The pain was unbearable, worse than anything he had ever felt. He could still feel the phantom pains of his innards spilling out and his flesh being ripped and torn, but it was still much more bearable than the actual scenario.

Quinn swayed as he made his way off the ground. Going through such pain had taken a lot of energy out of Quinn, even if his body had been reverted back to normal.

I don't think I could take much more of that. I never want to feel pain such as that ever again.

Quinn stepped forward, tripping and tumbling to the ground. The pain in his stomach began to subside, but his legs felt wobbly, his core felt weak.

“That really did affect you. You have to be careful next time.” Golden Quinn remarked.

Quinn had felt weak, his mind was foggy from mental fatigue. He could try running to the house once again, but it would take him much longer in his current state.

Golden Quinn watched Quinn slowly pick himself up off the ground, “It would be best if you rested for a while. Dying has caused a mental strain on you, so you will not be at your best performance.”

Quinn took another step forward, but fell to his knees as his energy was zapped from him.

“I told you, you aren't in any condition to move. Just relax for a few regressions so you can regain your mental energy.”

Quinn stood up from the ground and approached a tree, falling down beside it and leaning on it to rest. He sighed in disappointment, “The pain is beginning to fully fade, but you are right. I don't know if I could die again without causing severe mental problems to my psyche. Besides, the puppet is likely still there, so I wont be able to fight it in my current state.”

Quinn lied on the ground, repeating the memory of being ripped apart by the puppet, along with the image of Liz and Cally being torn and impaled right in front of him. He tried pushing those thoughts out of his mind, but they continued to return to him.

Deep inside of Quinn, something felt strange the more he kept remembering those images. His behavior as he repeated those thoughts in his mind began to change, and his lips slowly broke into a smile. It was horrific, one so abnormal it made Golden Quinn look at him with distaste.

His lips parted, releasing a small chuckle. The chuckle then swiftly broke into a full scale laugh. Golden Quinn watched the scene, incapable of doing anything about it besides giving Quinn a few words, “You need to calm down. The stress, pain… it has put a mental toll on you, and it's beginning to show itself.”

Quinn tried to calm down, but the laughter kept flowing like a river. A small tear rolled down from the corner of his eye and onto his cheek as the outburst continued.

Golden Quinn looked at him, recognizing that the effects of his death had come to fruition. The chaos in his mind began to reach out to him, trying to take control.

A tear, a smile, a laugh, all signs his mental mood had gotten worse. Golden Quinn felt worried, unsure if Quinn was going to be able to control himself, and if the demons inside Quinn would wake up sooner than expected.