It’s common knowledge that we humans have a natural urge to explore the unknown, some would say that it’s a part of us. Throughout the centuries, humanity has made extraordinary progress due to this, allowing us to better ourselves and understand the world around us………

  But there are people out there who desire more, those who would attempt to do things others would consider impossible, and in most cases, taboo, like reviving the dead, finding the elixir of life, and so many more. One man, however, went beyond all of that………………….

  The actions of this person would change the normal life of a young man into that of bloodshed, gore, unspeakable horrors, and misery………….but through all of this, he’ll keep moving forward, fighting for the sake of his loved ones and all of humanity…..

  This is…………. BLOODY HORRORS!!!

  X

  As dark clouds started to envelop the beautiful blue sky, an unknown young man, who stood around 5’9ft tall, approached the rotting doors of a worn-down mansion, which was overgrown with vines.

  The mere sight of this building was enough to send shivers down the person’s spine, causing him to gulp nervously as his hands shook uncontrollably. He knows full well the history of this place, what had happened here, and why so many people tend to stay away from it as much as possible. Just being this close to it made the young man start to have second thoughts………

  Despite this, he had a job to do. One that most likely would result in the loss of his own life, but that didn’t matter to him. Only one thing did………..

  “Hang on, Travis…..” The young man said, talking to himself. “I’ll find you…….”

  Breathing in and out as a way to calm himself down, the young man readied himself! Firmly gripping the handles of the withered door with steady hands, he proceeded onwards, not knowing of the dark future that awaited him…………..

  X A few days later X

  The year is February 11, 2011……

  In Springfield, Vermont, at the university known as “Infradon University”, it was another average day for the students as they were going about their usual business, roaming around the campus while talking with their friends, attending their assigned classes, and studying for upcoming tests. It was as normal and peaceful as it ever has been……..

  Around 3:40 pm, in the building “Armitage Hall”, one of these classes, which was teaching history, was nearing the end of its session. The students, who were all sitting at tables, were mostly focused on the subject, with a few of them straying away, whispering to their peers, or just texting on their phones.

  Among the students still paying attention, there was one who, with his pen and notebook, was writing down notes to use as study material later on. This person is………….. Derek Lucas!

  Derek was about 22 years old with white skin, long red brown hair, emerald green eyes, an orange shirt with the word “TITANS” on it, blue jeans, and grey/white shoes.

  As he was concentrating and jotting down any useful information, the student to the right of him wasn’t. Instead of making an effort to observe the lesson in front of him, all he was doing was lazing about and sleeping with his hand holding his head up, drooling a bit. This act caused Derek to shake his head with disappointment as he continued on with his thing. This may be hard to believe, but that man is Derek’s childhood friend, Travis Evans!

  He’s 22 years old, like Derek, with white skin, short spiky blonde hair, a magenta shirt, light blue sweatpants, and black/white slip-on shoes.

  Time was moving on as the wall clock’s hands reached 4:00 pm, and class was finally over. With that, the teacher dismissed everyone as they all got up from their seats, gathering their supplies as they left the room. While Derek was putting his stuff into his backpack and getting his red jacket on, his friend, Travis, was still sleeping. Derek simply rolled his eyes before a smirk appeared on him, prompting him to aim his finger right at his friend’s head.

  With a quick flick, Derek’s finger hits Travis directly on his forehead, causing him to wake up suddenly, revealing that he has brown eyes. The pain from the flick caused Travis to wince and groan, rubbing his forehead gently as Derek got a bit of a chuckle from this.

  X

  Now that their stuff is all in place, Derek and Travis, who was about 6’0ft tall and now wearing a purple jacket, left the room along with the others, saying bye to a few of them. The two then start to walk through the hallway with Travis still reeling from the pain of the forehead flick.

  "You know, out of all the ways you could’ve woken me up, why did you think that was the best option?” Travis asked his friend, questioning his thinking.

  “Why, you ask?” Derek asked back, getting a nod from his friend. “Because it was the only way,”

  “Really?!” Travis said back to him, clearly dumbfounded by Derek’s response. “The only way?!”

  “Of course,” Derek responded in a calm manner. “If I hadn’t done that, you would’ve slept like a rock till the next class or worse, throughout the weekend.”

  “Gee, thanks, Dad,” Travis spoke out in a sarcastic tone. “You’re so thoughtful, I don’t know what I do without you.” Both of them then start to laugh from that sentence alone. “Anyway, you heading back to the dorms?”

  “No, I got practice after this,” Derek responded.

  “Oh, right,” Travis said as he remembered. “You got a match coming up. Well, I’ll see you around then,”

  “See you,” Derek said back.

  As the two exited the building, they started going to their destinations. Travis was heading back to the residence halls while Derek went straight to the fitness center.

  X

  Upon opening the doors to the building, Derek entered the locker room, being greeted by his teammates, who were all in the process of changing into their outfits. Derek came upon his open-front wooden locker with his uniform on a hook as he started unloading, putting his backpack on a bench, and taking off his jacket before putting it on another hook.

  First, he started taking his shirt and jeans off, putting them on the bench, and then grabbed his outfit, putting on his jersey first, which has the word “TITANS” on it, and below it is the number “12”. Once his shorts are on, he hangs his shirt, jeans, and jacket on a hook and puts his backpack inside. Now that he’s geared up, he walks out with his partners.

  “Hey, Derek,” One of his teammates greeted him. “Looking forward to kicking some warlock ass this monday?”

  “You know it,” Derek said as he and his teammate high-fived.

  Going into the gymnasium, which had the team’s logo on the floor, a huge muscular hand clutching a basketball hard, the whole team started warming up, doing stretches and a bit of jogging until……..

  “Afternoon, ladies!” The coach shouted out, exiting the locker room and gaining the team’s attention, stopping what they were doing. “You all ready to work hard?!” He asked them, and every member answered with a loud “Yeah”. “Good, now let’s get started!!” The coach said as he blew his whistle loudly……

  X

  For the past two hours, the team worked hard on improving their various skills. Some practiced refining their footwork, and those who tried to shoot the ball into the hoop, with most managing to get it in, and some not so much.

  One group worked on their defense, attempting to block a shot, prevent a player from getting through them, and on offense, evade defenses to get near the hoop. Derek was among those improving on their offense.

  As one player tried his best to bypass the defender, dribbling the ball in the process, the defending player proved too much for him as he knocked the ball out of his hands. The teammate, angered by this, went straight to the back of the line, meaning it's now Derek’s turn, as he stepped forward and was passed a ball. He started running, dribbling the ball while the defending player attempted to put a halt to his advance, angling his body, getting down low, and reaching his arms out.

  While his defenses were solid, Derek’s speed got the better of him, using a spin move on him, managing to get around him, and then leaping up from the ground, shooting the ball towards the hoop, hitting the backboard instead, but still managed to get it in, earning cheers from his teammates.

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  30 minutes later, the coach blows his whistle, stopping everyone from doing what they were doing.

  “Alright, it’s 6:30! That’s a wrap!” The coach yelled out, allowing the team to take a breather. With one final whistle blow, the entire team started to form into a circle with the coach being right in the center.

  “First of all, I wanna say that today has been a good practice session. You have been diligent in trying to improve your moves, but for a few of you, I recommend doing better when Sunday comes around. Remember, eat, hydrate, shower, and rest up, cause this coming Monday, you’re gonna need the energy. We’re gonna show those Lovemin Warlocks who’s at the top of the game and kick their sorry asses!!”

  The reactions he got from the team were of excitement, with them shouting out “YEAH!!” while most went “WOOOOO!!”

  “Bring it in here!” The coach shouted out as every member started to put their hands together and started counting down.

  “1, 2, 3……….GO, TITANS!!!!!”

  X

  With practice finally over, the team went back to the locker room. A majority of them decided to hit the showers, washing away all that dirty sweat and soothing their bodies from the intense hard work. For Derek, he just changed back into his regular clothes, putting his uniform back into his locker and pulling out his jacket and backpack. Now that he has everything, he leaves the room, saying bye to his teammates before exiting the fitness center.

  It seemed that Derek’s whole day was over: he was done with classes, and practice went better than expected, so it seemed natural that he would head back to his room, rest up, do his hobbies, and enjoy the weekend, but no. There was still one more thing he had to do and that was……..visit the library and see someone.

  The walk to the library wasn’t that long, only a few minutes away from the fitness center. Setting foot into the place, he looked around, only seeing people reading, chilling out at the cafe while doing their homework or browsing on their laptops. Noticing that the person wasn’t on this floor, he took the stairs.

  He tried looking on the 2nd floor…….Nothing.

  The 3rd floor………Zero.

  Going further up, he reaches the 4th floor………..and there she was. A woman was placing books back onto the shelves, making sure they were in alphabetical order. He knew who she was by recognizing her long, silvery hair, this was his soul mate, the one he cared about more than anything, the love of his life………….. His girlfriend, Lily Brooke!

  She was about 21 years old, about 5’7ft tall with white skin, long silver hair with a ponytail in the back, violet eyes, a red shirt, black sweatpants, and grey/white strap-on shoes.

  As she was preoccupied with doing her job, Derek walked towards her, and when he was close enough to her……

  “Hey, Lily,” Derek said, calling out to his lover, who turned to him as her face formed a big smile.

  “Babe,” Lily said in a cheerful voice, holding books in her arms as both kissed each other on the cheek. “Back from practice?”

  “Yep, and what a session that was,” Derek said.

  “I’m guessing the coach had you guys work harder than usual, huh?” Lily asked.

  “I wouldn’t say hard, but he really had us going,” Derek replied.

  ‘Well, can’t say that I blame him,” Lily said.

  “Yeah, I know, the big game on Monday, but he could’ve toned it down a notch, you know?” Derek said as Lily giggled. “So, besides that, how was your day?”

  “Not too bad,” Lily replied. “A couple of people coming in to pay off late fees, but today’s been kind of a boring one. Just need to finish putting these books away, and I’m all done.”

  “You know…..” Derek stopped as he put both hands on Lily’s shoulders and started rubbing them. “I was thinking we'd head back to my room after this and do a little “practice” of our own.” He said, flirting with his girlfriend, who chuckled seductively, blushing red.

  “That would be nice…….” Lily said, aroused as she quickly went back to work, going to the shelf on the far left and putting the last of the books back in place.

  Derek simply stood around, observing the building around him while he waited for Lily. Unbeknownst to him, the silhouette of a humanoid figure was watching him from afar. With his back turned, the figure slowly crept up on him, like a lion stalking its prey. Once he was within its range, the figure pounced, wrapping its arms around Derek, scaring the life out of him.

  “Holy Shit!!” Derek blurted out as he turned his head to see who it was. Turns out…….it was just Travis who started laughing hysterically.

  “Travis, what the hell!!” Derek shouted angrily as Travis let go of him.

  “Take it easy, buddy,” Travis said, calming his friend down. “It’s just a simple prank.”

  “A prank?!....wha….I…..Wait, how’d you know I'd be here?” Derek asked.

  “I didn’t,” Travis replied, confusing Derek. “I was flat out bored in my room, so I decided to go out and get some dinner, and I saw you enter the library, and that’s when that brilliant plan came to mind.”

  “You mean scaring me half to death?” Derek asked again.

  “It worked, didn’t it?” Travis replied with no hesitation, leaving his friend speechless. “Besides, I got a little treat out of this.”

  “And what’s that?” Derek asked as Travis pointed to something behind him, turning his whole body around. What he was pointing at was Lily, who was on her knees, putting the last book away with her buttocks facing right at the two guys.

  “Mmm, now that’s one tasty piece if I say so myself,” Travis said as he wrapped his arm around Derek’s shoulder, who was a bit irritated at this point.

  “You can be a real jackass, you know that?” Derek said, displeased with how Travis talked about Lily.

  “What? I can’t help it if it’s true,” Travis said, as Derek rolled his eyes in annoyance. “But honestly, you’re one lucky guy. You have a loving girlfriend who’s not only beautiful but also a hardworking person, too. What more could one man ask for?”

  “Yeah,” Derek said, agreeing with his friend. “I’m truly blessed to have her.”

  Now that all the books were in their original position, Lily’s job was done. She went back to Derek, noticing that his friend Travis was with him, whom the mere sight of him caused her to sigh, but even so, she kept a smile on her face.

  “Travis, what a pleasant surprise,” Lily said with annoyance.

  “Nice to see you too, gorgeous,” Travis said right back, causing one of Lily’s eyes to twitch.

  “What, huh, what brings you here?” Lily asked.

  “Oh, you know. Just checking to see if you two lovebirds are getting along,” Travis replied.

  “Aww, that’s so kind of you,” Lily said sarcastically.

  “Hey, anything for my old pal here.” Travis said, patting Derek on the back while laughing. Derek and Lily just looked at each other while shaking their heads.

  X

  Now that that was dealt with, the three left the building as night fell. Derek and Lily strolled together, hoping to spend a little time together, but that wouldn’t happen as they all heard a voice coming from behind them…..

  “Hey, Derek!”

  All three turned around and saw three of Derek’s teammates only a few feet away…..

  Liam Thomas: An African-American man about 22 years of age, 6’2ft tall with a buzzcut hairstyle, blue eyes, a green shirt, and grey sweatpants.

  Garret Nickel: A caucasian man, 21 years of age, 5’8ft tall with medium-length dark brown hair, striped shirt with a blue and white coloring, brown cargo pants, and hazel eyes.

  Diego Alcaraz: A Hispanic man about 5’9ft tall, 21 years old, with short light brown hair, light blue eyes, yellow shirt, and white jeans.

  “Hi, guys. What’s going on?” Derek asked.

  “The boys and I are heading over to Craft’s bar to get a drink,” Liam said. “Would you care to join us?”

  “Thanks for the offer, but I’m gonna…..” Derek was about to finish, if not for Travis stepping in.

  “We would be delighted,” Travis said, confusing Lily and Derek.

  “Cool. See you over there,” Liam said as he and the other two walked away. Travis turned to his friends, who glared at him angrily, with Derek crossing his arms and Lily’s hands on her waist.

  “What?” Travis asked

  “What? What?! What was that all about, Travis?!” Lily asked, frustrated at this point.

  “Nothing, I just want you guys to have a little fun,” Travis replied. “Is that such a problem?”

  “It wouldn’t be, but considering how you just interrupted me, it is,” Derek said, mad as ever. “It’s been a long day, Travis. I just want to get back to my room and settle down.”

  “Okay, okay, but hear me out…..” Travis said as the two were all ears. “We stay about for an hour and have a few drinks. How does that sound?”

  Now that Travis had given them a proposal, Lily and Derek chatted quietly amongst themselves, with their friend in the background. After a few minutes or so, they reached a decision……

  “Alright, we’re in, but we’re only having one drink and that’s it,” Derek said, which caused Travis to smile happily and give them both a double thumbs up.

  X

  At Craft’s bar, it was dead quiet as the only customers there were Derek, Lily, Travis, his teammates, and a few civilians. Liam, Diego, and Garret were seated at a booth table, talking about silly things and laughing out loud while Derek and his friends sat at the counter, each drinking a beer and remaining silent.

  “Soooooooo……………….Enjoying your beer?” Travis asked, trying to break the silence.

  “It’s fine,” Derek said as he sipped his drink. “I’m still mad at what you did.”

  “Come on, man, can’t you just let it go already?” Travis asked. “I’ve been apologizing ever since we got here,”

  “I wish I could,” Derek said. “I was looking forward to a relaxing night and a little one-on-one time with Lily, then you had to come along and screw everything up,”

  “Geez. Sorry, man, didn’t mean to get you riled up,” Travis said, feeling bad.

  “No, no, don’t worry. I shouldn’t have said that,” Derek said as they went on drinking their beers, no one talking for a while

  “Hey….” Travis said as he once again broke the silence. “By one-on-one time, you mean like sex, right?”

  That comment caused Lily to spit out her drink while blushing bright red, as Derek choked on his, coughing as a response.

  “Ohhhh, looks like I was right,” Travis said, seeing their reactions.

  “J-J-J-Just shut up and finish your beer,” Lily said as Travis got a bit of a laugh from this before they continued drinking.

  Time passed on, and they were close to finishing their beverages, but the sounds of an argument stopped them. Turning their heads, they realized it was coming from Liam, Garret, and Diego as they overheard what they were saying……

  “I’m telling you guys, I’m not gonna do it!”

  “Wow, didn’t realize you were such a pussy, dude.”

  “Yeah, man up and grow a pair, will ya?”

  It looked as if Liam and Garret were picking on Diego, trying to force him to do something. Wondering what this is all about, Derek got up from his seat and approached them.

  “Hey, what’s with all this commotion I hear?” Derek asked them, gaining their attention.

  “Derek, nice of you to join us,” Liam said, dropping his tough guy act.

  “We’re just poking a little fun at Diego, that’s all,” Garret said as he joined in.

  “Really?” Derek asked as he noticed how distraught Diego was. “Then why does he seem so upset?”

  “Well, uh………” Liam tried to say as he and Garret looked at each other, nervous to explain why they were doing this. “You see……”

  “These two are daring me to spend one night at Death’s Mansion, that’s why!” Diego blurted, stunning his two friends as he just said it out loud…..

  When the words “Death’s Mansion” were spoken, everyone within the bar turned to the college men, all of them wearing terrified faces. Derek stood completely still, full of dread. Travis was surprised by this, but Lily……she didn’t react like them. Instead, she was just confused by what was going on, noticing everyone having the same expression of terror, almost as if they saw someone die right in the bar.

  “You…..You guys aren’t seriously going to make him do that, are you?!” Derek asked, his voice mixed with anger and fear.

  “No, no, no, we weren’t,” Liam said, anxious. “We were just joking around,”

  “Joking?! You seriously think this whole thing is a joke?!” Derek yelled out. “Did you really forget the history of that building?! Why it was condemned in the first place?!”

  “Yes, we’re all well aware of it,” Garret responded, feeling bad now. “But, listen….

  “No, you listen,” Derek said in a serious tone. “This isn’t some laughing matter, okay? People went missing from that place, never to be seen again. So you better do the right thing and drop this whole thing!”

  After getting that lecture, Liam, Garret, and Diego remained silent as Derek started to calm down, but it didn’t last long as someone looked to cause some trouble…..

  “Wow, wow, wow,” Travis said, intervening in the conversation. “Why drop it so easily? This seems pretty interesting.”

  “Travis, go sit back down,” Derek said to his friend, having the situation under control.

  “That I can’t do, partner,” Travis said, ignoring the advice. “Not when all of these losers don’t have the guts to even step foot into it,”

  That sentence alone was enough to piss the three off, as Derek just covered his hand, frustrated with his friend.

  “Oh, you think you’re man enough to do it?!” Liam said with rage.

  “I could, and you know what? I’ll do you one even better,” Travis said with such overconfidence. “I’ll stay inside Death’s Mansion…………for two days!!

  Derek and the others were speechless by that statement, thinking this man must be insane if he believes he’s gonna last two days within that cursed place! Lily, who was simply curious, was now worried about what’s going on……………