“Therefore, the best way to analyze the set of data here is by linear regression.”

Katie’s eyes snapped open. All it took from her was a quick glance across the surroundings to make Katie realize she was in a large lecture hall with at least a hundred students among the seats. In the front of the grand hall was a professor in his sixties. He was talking about...some sort of regression? So...this was a data science class?

Interesting...also, where the hell was she?

Wait...Katie suddenly came to an awesome realization. She reached inside her pocket and pulled out her iPhone, which was easily unlocked by her fingerprint. Yay technology! And as she scrolled through the home page, it didn't take Katie too long to find one specific app.

Ghostscanner.

A simple check of her own face with the camera acting as a mirror confirmed her suspicions. She looked similar to her original self, but not identical. As a matter of fact, she looked just like the character corresponding to her in the movie!

This could only mean one thing...she was in the horror movie called the App! More specifically, she seemed to have taken over the body of one of the characters that looked like her!

Everything suddenly made sense now. It explained why she was in a place as boring as a college lecture hall. It explained why, as she reached into her pocket, she didn't find her trusty Knife. It explained why she didn't have Branches in her body. It even explained why she was wearing a grey jacket. Of all colors, grey! That was just unbelievable! She would rather be naked than wearing a grey jacket!

Yes, in the middle of a horror movie as a character who was going to die soon, Katie considered her sense of fashion to be the most serious issue.

As Katie, in frustration, took off the grey jacket and was slightly more satisfied with the white t-shirt underneath, the girl finally started thinking about her way out. She wasn’t really a fan of deduction, mainly because she would rather smash her way through anything and anyone in her way, but she was fully capable of using her head when she needed to...and not just to headbutt people.

In the plot, it took the characters a while to realize the true function of the app, and even longer to find each other. By the time they tracked each other down, the campus was already overrun by wraiths and monsters. That must be why, even with the help of the Ghostscanner, the characters were slain in the end.

Speaking of the true function...in the movie, Katie’s character first used the Ghostscanner app in one of the lectures she was attending. She took a selfie and was horrified to see that a girl behind her was completely different in the picture.

With that knowledge, Katie did the most logical thing and tried to recreate that. She didn't know if she was supposed to make the discovery in this particular lecture, but that didn't stop her from taking a selfie and uploading it onto the app.

When the app returned an image, it showed most of the background greyed out, but at the same time, two other girls that Katie included in the picture on purpose were completely different. Previously, they were facing the professor while carefully taking notes, but in the picture, they were staring right back at Katie. Their eyes were red, radiating sheer violence and naked aggression. They intended on pouncing on Katie, devouring her flesh and bone alike.

Katie turned around and waved at the two girls behind her with a wide smile on.

Honestly, if it was up to her, she would’ve just found an opportunity and cornered the two girls and slit their throats open. Given she was completely unarmed, this likely wouldn’t end too well for her, but...since when did she let that stop her?

Nonetheless, Katie decided against using brute force just yet. She wanted to see how this would play out.

Of course, that didn't mean Katie needed to sit here and listen to this boring lecture. She didn't hesitate before standing up, leaving the grey jacket in her empty seat, and leaving the hall with her bag and her phone. A few students threw her confused glances, but she didn't care.

Since when would the lead actress care about the opinion of extras?

----------------------------------------

In the original movie that Katie watched, the six characters, aside from the four boys that were already friends, had little connection other than that they all stumbled upon the Ghostscanner app. Then again, if she was sucked into the movie, then Katie assumed the others were as well. In that case, should she track them down first? Maybe they could work together to find a way out?

As much as the thought made Katie chuckle, she started looking for the others, mainly Gadreel. Thankfully, Katie remembered the names of the other five characters in the movie, and after quite a few phone calls and research, the brunette found herself facing five terrified boys. They met up in a Starbucks.

The group of four was just in terrible shape. This was the first time they met anything supernatural, which sort of justified why they were shaking in fear and saying absolute nonsense. Gadreel was a lot better, but he was still paler than he was.

“My powers are gone.” He declared solemnly as the two of them slightly deviated from the other four. “My weapons. My celestial connections. All gone. I can’t kill a chicken here!”

“Well...you do look really strong. If you have a sharp knife, I’m sure you can...”

“Katie!” Gadreel’s voice was furious. After all, he wouldn’t even be here if it wasn’t for Katie! She literally dragged him into a place that he told her was deadly! If she wanted to die, why would she drag him along? “I don’t know where we are right now. It may be a hallucination. Maybe our souls are extracted? I suppose it’s possible, given we’re on our opponent’s home turf!”

“So...any chance we can get out of here?” Katie wondered. “I mean...if they’ve decided to trap us inside a movie, then there must be a way out, right? Or maybe they just want to take their time killing us and y’all are all screwed? That’s possible.”

“Don’t you mean we are all screwed?” The Angel retaliated. “You’re here too. If we don’t make it out, why do you think you will?”

“Hmmm...call it a blind hunch.” Katie shrugged. If this cinema could really kill her, then she would be truly impressed. Maybe she would even write the owners of the cinema a thank-you letter if that were to happen? Who knows?

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At this point, the four other boys finally managed to recollect themselves. They made their way to Katie and Gadreel. Surprisingly, it was Aaron that spoke up.

“So, it would seem like we are in this mess together.” He said quietly, acting a lot smarter than he was back in the movie theatre. “I have to admit, Katie, that I don’t trust you and your friend, but if we have any chance of escape, then we need to work together.”

Katie grinned. Wow...such a wise character! He was tossed into a deadly situation with next to no knowledge, but he was already showing great potential simply by not acting like an idiot like most characters in horror movies. Honestly, he reminded Katie of her own girlfriend.

This thought made Katie bite her lips.

On the side, Gadreel nodded as well. He didn't know if he was killed here, he would still be alive in real life, but he wasn’t willing to take any chances. With that in mind, he started deducing.

“As far as we know, we are in the movie we just watched, and we’re currently in the opening scenes. In other words, we should have some knowledge of what is going to happen.” Gadreel tapped his chin thoughtfully. Much like Katie, he wasn’t the biggest fan of thinking either, but thinking was all he could do as of now. “The movie ended with everyone dying. If that happens, we as the characters will obviously die, but if we can somehow survive until the end of the movie…”

“I still don’t get how we are stuck here.” One of the boys, KJ, couldn’t help but frown. He was still lagging behind. “We’re in a movie? I mean...how does that even work? It...it just doesn’t make any scientific sense!”

“That is irrelevant right now.” Aaron shook his head. Science? Is now really the time to talk about science? Ignoring his friend’s meaningless comment, he quickly followed up with what Gadreel said. “We can only assume that if we live until the end of the movie, we will make it out. We have to. That’s our only chance.”

“Surviving shouldn’t be that hard.” Katie added to the conversation. “I mean...if the Ghostscanner can detect these ghosts, then all we have to do is keep taking pictures and keep running. The processing of the app is almost instant, so there’s no delay. After that...it’s just a matter of moving quickly.”

“Yeah...I guess.” James quickly agreed with Katie. “We just have to be cautious.”

Katie glanced at him. She knew the boy might have a crush on her, but that didn't change the fact that his words contributed a whole lot of nothing.

“And the others?” KJ couldn’t help but ask. He looked around the cafe and saw the other customers and the employees. “Is it possible for us to warn them? Tell them to at least get off the campus? That way...”

“Absolutely not.” Gadreel rejected the idea before the boy even finished his thoughts. “We don’t know who may be compromised, and if we try large-scale evacuations, the wraiths lurking in the shadows right now will no doubt come after us first. Plus, as far as we can see, those killed in the movie never returned to hunt the survivors. We simply shouldn’t take the risk.”

“That is just ridiculous!” KJ frowned. “They are people too!”

“Nope. They are background characters in a movie.” The Angel’s reply was casual and brutal at the same time.

KJ’s expression changed at Gadreel’s simple declaration. He knew that too, and trying to save others when he couldn’t save himself was just outright stupid. But at the same time, the education he has been brought through since he was a child prevented him from just treating what he saw as living, breathing people as meaningless and expendable.

He was about to say something else when Katie chuckled from the side.

“I’ll bet my life that you are going to be the first among us to die, my friend.” The brunette grinned. Her head was slightly tilted, and her left hand was tapping the back of her neck. “Isn’t that how things go in horror movies? Those too compassionate tend to die first.”

KJ bit his lips as his face turned red from anger, but he didn't say anything else. Even his own friends were tossing him glances, telling him to shut up.

Suddenly, one of the four boys, Luke, stood up.

“You guys keep talking,” He said quietly, glancing at the side. “I have to take a quick trip to the bathroom. I think this body’s former owner ate something that didn't quite agree with him...or me, depending on your perspective.”

Katie groaned. “Really? Going to the bathroom in a horror movie? Are you two trying to tick all the checkboxes on a list of things not to do in horror movies? I feel like I’m gonna lose the bet...”

Gadreel glanced at Katie. No one’s even betting against you...but at this point, he had already learned to ignore Katie just to preserve his own sanity. Either way, as he turned back to Luke, he realized this was indeed a dilemma. Then again, in the original story, the wraiths didn't start hunting until half an hour into the movie. A quick bathroom trip should be fine, right?

Gadreel knew very well this thought must’ve gone through the head of almost every character in a horror movie, right before they walked into the toilet and never came out.

“Fine, but keep using the Ghostscanner.” He said what everyone already knew. “If you see anything wrong, just run. Surviving is all that matters.”

Luke nodded and left for the bathroom. The idea of having someone come along with him flashed across his head, but in the end, he decided against it.

As the boy left, Katie suddenly remembered something. She took out her phone and snapped a few photos of the five of them and the surrounding area. Just as she expected, she saw nothing out of the ordinary. She was still her. Gadreel was still him. The boys, the waiters, and the customers in the cafe were all minding their own business.

It almost seemed peaceful.

With the surroundings cleared, Katie grabbed onto Gadreel’s hand. “Do you mind going to the counter with me? I wanna buy some coffee.” She gave Gadreel a small wink.

Gadreel could tell Katie had something to say to him in private. He nodded, stood up, and joined Katie at the line at the counter. Behind him, Aaron frowned, but he didn't think much of it. As he said, they were all on the same boat here.

When they were finally alone, Katie turned to Gadreel.

“So, it’s actually a long story, but I’ve had quite the experience with supernatural beings and their sickening games.” She scoffed even as she said that. Quite the experience was an understatement. “Either way, as far as I’m aware of, most of these games have their purpose. If this cinema can trap us inside a movie, then it should also be able to take us out with more direct methods, right? So why hadn’t it done that already?”

“Honestly, the answer is so obvious.”

Katie watched as Gadreel’s eyes flicker. She knew he came to the same conclusion she did, which was why she continued before he could say anything.

“Where do you think the camera is? I don’t know much about cinematography but I suppose this is a situation for a close-up shot?”

Gadreel shrugged, so Katie acted. An exaggerated smile climbed onto her cheeks as she stared directly into the front. An odd tone was in her voice.

“So...I truly hope everyone is enjoying the show so far. If you are having fun, awesome! If you aren’t, don’t worry, because I bet we’re gonna get a lot more bloodier very, very soon.”

At the same time, in the same auditorium Katie and the others were previously sitting in, a woman raised her eyebrows. She was the one who complained that Luke was being too loud. In front of her, Katie’s face was on the big screen.

The lead actress indeed.

As Katie made that declaration, the woman found herself raising her eyebrows. She turned to the figure sitting in the seat beside her.

“Who’s that actress? I like her.”

“No idea.” The figure replied without turning. He was an interesting being, How interesting? Well, he didn't exactly have any facial features other than a giant gaping mouth. He looked like one of those abominations that Katie gutted in the RCTV building. “Just wait until the credits start rolling.”

The woman nodded in satisfaction and turned back to the movie screen, and already, the bodies have started dropping.