#I hope it doesn’t feel like it’s moving too fast óvò

[cherrycherryves]

Madness in Mansion Chapter II

Quid Pro Zal-go

“This is the photo, sir.” Tim stepped up to the desk with precision. He placed the Polaroid on the mahogany surface and shifted back, posture firm and strong. Brian had carefully pulled it away from Lazari as she slept, she had fallen asleep with the thing still in her hand. And now the picture that had brought her here sat unassumingly on the desk in an office that could only be described as grand.

There was a shift in the floorboards, a low sound similar to a sigh. Slowly, the being in front of Brian and Tim turned around, featureless face doing little to ease the men’s nerves. The Slenderman walked away from the window he had been peering out of and towards his desk, leaning over to gaze upon the image. An inky tendril snaked its way out of his back and he picked up the picture to get a closer look.

“Hmm…” His voice was deep, rich. “This photo was taken in Zalgo’s forest… And you said she is looking for her father?” Both Tim and Brian nodded in agreement, silent. The Slenderman set the photo back down, his tendril sliding it back towards his proxies before slinking back into the shadows of his black suit. Neither Tim nor Brian made any attempts to pick it back up yet. “I was expecting her to show up one day. Granted, I didn’t know it would be a her, or if it would be before the end of the world.” The faceless being turned back around, walking towards the window once again. He took a pause, gazing out at the garden and the vastness of the forest beyond it for a moment. He eventually continued.

“I know her father.” He admitted. Brian smiled a bit sadly.

“I take it nothing good happened to him then.” He sighed, tone attempting to remain lighthearted. Slenderman stilled, standing rigid like a tree himself. Unbeknownst to his proxies, the tall man was trying to form how to relay his information carefully. For humans, there’s a term called ‘putting things lightly,’ but for a creature like Slenderman, he could hardly ever bother.

“Her father is Zalgo.” The Slenderman’s statement was heavy, weighted, but almost said as if that notion was open-ended. Tim felt his stomach drop.

“Are you sure, sir?” Try as he may, his voice gave way to a waver despite his best efforts. A tendril from Slenderman’s back reappeared, darting towards a book on a shelf. He picked it up and brought it to his hands, long, skeletal fingers beginning to pick through the pages.

“For Zalgo’s plan to be set into motion, he needed a link to the overworld. An original, organic link of his own. To him, that meant an heir. Once the heir would be born, his plan for annihilation could, hypothetically, begin. There are many words to describe a child like her, but I think most humans would call her something like the Antichrist.” The Slenderman kept the book open, using more tendrils to lift it out of his hands and place it on his desk in front of his proxies, similarly to how he placed the Polaroid. Brian and Tim walked up to the desk hurriedly to read for themselves whatever their boss was talking about.

“Why would he need an heir?” Brian asked, more so out of his own curiosity than anything else.

“The last time we battled, I had significantly weakened him. Of course, you both know that he was the ultimate victor. But with the energy I had left, I made sure he could never get to the overworld again on his own. Portals open up all the time, but he cannot use them. His link to this human world, however, would be strong enough to open something and let him through. He plans nothing more than to use this child to get to earth.” Tim’s brows furrowed. He stepped away from the book, too tired to try and make sense of the sigils and nonsensical language.

“What do you plan to do?” It was Brian again who asked, following Tim in stepping away only after he was satisfied with studying the puzzling imagery.

“I will speak to her. You will bring Lazari to me in three hours.” Both Brian and Tim stiffened, worry creeping into their nervous systems. They feared the uncertainty of knowing what would happen to this innocent girl, but they were never in any position to argue. They stood at attention, nodded their heads once, and could say nothing else but:

“Yes, sir.”

— 🍝 —

Lazari grunted a bit as she shifted under the blankets, sunlight peeking through the planks on the window beside her. She felt herself stirring, the memory of the past day stitching itself together in her mind. That’s right, she had ended up in this cabin after being attacked by a creature she had never seen before. Her arm had been scratched and a dog saved her. And there were two men that helped her. They said they knew someone who might have known her father. Everything was coming back as she blinked her eyes a few times and finally rubbed them for good measure.

“Good morning, sleepy head!” Brian smiled, squatting down to look at her. Despite the mattress being much thinner than the young girl was used to, Lazari found she slept better than ever.

“Go-Good morning…” Lazari replied timidly, slowly sitting up and continuing to rub the remaining sleep from her eyes. She realized she had fallen asleep with her Polaroid picture in her hand. Carefully, she slipped it back in her pocket. “What time is it?” Her tired voice came out in a grumble, gaining a chuckle out of the man in front of her.

“It’s almost 8 o’clock.” He answered simply. Lazari’s eyes widened. She was surprised to hear it was so early; she felt like she had been sleeping for hours upon hours.

“Are we still going to see that guy? The one who might know my father?” She asked warily, more inclined to be suspicious now that she wasn’t exhausted and shaky from adrenaline. Brian exhaled out of his nose, amused by her wording.

“Yup. We were about to wake you up if you slept any longer.” He replied honestly, tone light. The brown-haired man got up and left Lazari to give her some space.

The young teen stood up, still in yesterday’s clothes. Considering the circumstances, she figured she’d wait to ask if she could change her clothes or brush her hair. Despite Brian’s kind way of speaking, a hint of urgency shone through in his words. She gathered her backpack, pulling the straps onto her shoulders, and finally tried to fix her bangs with her fingers.

“Ready to go?” Brian waited for Lazari to nod before he went to the door. Determinedly, the girl followed him to find Tim waiting for them outside.

“Ready?” His blunt question was directed to Brian, who smiled and gave a thumbs up. The shorter man put out his cigarette before wordlessly taking the lead in their trio. Once Lazari was walking behind both Brian and Tim, she noticed the quieter one had a shotgun strapped to his shoulder. The young girl didn’t know if she should feel uneasy or protected. After her encounter with that bizarre beast just last night, she figured it was nice to be around someone who could defend them. However, the thought that more creatures like that existed and wandered around these woods, therefore making the weapon mandatory, made her walk quicker than she usually did.

The trio was relatively silent as they traversed the unmarked and seemingly uninhabited forest. Lazari flinched at any noise she heard not made by her sneakers or their boots. However, when Tim muttered a “Careful” and told her to pay attention to overgrown tree roots so she wouldn’t trip, most of her attention shifted to that task dutifully. Brian would make conversation here and there, noting how sunny it was or how cold it was getting. He’d look over his shoulder and offer Lazari small smiles of encouragement from time to time. And though he meant well, Lazari couldn’t help but feel a churning in her stomach. That churning, though, didn’t last long as they had eventually reached their destination.

The forest opened up finally, making way for an intricate (but rusty) gate. As Tim and Brian stepped up to it, the doors slowly shifted open to let them in. Curiously, Lazari looked at the gate as she followed them through, wondering how such old looking metal could be automatic, but her interest was swiftly taken by the mansion once she laid her eyes on it. Before her was a building she felt only existed in extravagant tales. It was certainly old, antique would be a better word, but it was breathtaking. Even at her young age, Lazari could tell that the architecture was more so artistic than anything else. The mansion seemed like it was plucked right out of the 1800s and settled in the quietness of the forest. Tim and Brian continued guiding her until they got to the door. Before entering, Tim looked back at her and gave her her first set of instructions: don’t make a sound.

The two men entered first, the young teen following their lead. Brian had positioned himself almost as a shield to her as Tim took the gun off his shoulder and placed it down in the foyer they had entered. The taller man was just about to say something when quick footsteps interrupted them.

“Tim, Brian, is that you?” The voice that sounded was gentle, low and smooth and soft, androgynous. Brian stood up straighter and shifted a bit to be completely in front of Lazari. And despite this, the girl peeked at this new figure before them from behind Brian’s arm. The person she was looking at was fairly tall, their hair a pale blond and their bangs long enough to hide most of their eyes. Even though their eyes were fairly covered, Lazari’s breath got caught in her throat as she realized they were looking directly down at her.

“Yup. Just us.” Tim was the one to answer the question. He walked in further, towards the new person, but their eyes didn’t seem to move. The more Lazari stared, the more she realized that this person’s eyes seemed to be very large and also devoid of any color.

“Nina and I were just finishing up breakfast! Did you two want anything?”

“Just our usual, thanks.” Tim replied, voice more at ease than it had been since Lazari met him. The person smiled tenderly, nodding their head once, and turned away. Their footsteps were quiet and quick as they made their way back further into the mansion. It seemed they had no idea Lazari was there despite the eye contact. Perhaps, Lazari thought, they couldn’t even see her. Once they were completely out of sight, Brian and Tim turned to the young girl, faces suddenly grim.

“Alright, Lazari,” Brian started, the weight in his voice foreign to the teen. “You’re going to go up these stairs and make a left. The very last room at the end of the hall is where you want to be. Don’t stop for anything. Don’t talk to anyone. Just keep walking until you find the room that says ‘Operator’ on it. Do I make myself clear?” The abruptness of the men’s stern expressions made that churning feeling come back. Lazari nodded her head slowly, she comprehended the instructions. But she was still a bit confused.

“You both aren’t coming with me?” She asked timidly, fear seeping into her words just a bit.

“From now until explicitly stated otherwise, we are no help to you.” Tim informed rather harshly. He put a hand on Lazari’s shoulder, seeming conflicted. “Remember what I said last night? You’re gonna have to be strong.” His usual cold expression softened for a moment for Lazari to see it. “And you don’t need our help walking down a hallway.” He half joked, patting her shoulder firmly before letting her go.

Lazari took in a deep breath. She wasn’t so sure why Tim kept telling her to be strong, why things were more complicated now or what any of this had to do with her father, but he was certainly right about one thing; she could totally walk down a hallway on her own! With newfound determination, the young girl held onto her backpack straps and started to march up the stairs. Once at the top, she looked down the tremendous distance to Tim and Brian and waved shyly before turning left.

— 🍝 —

Despite it being morning, the hallway was dimly lit. There were no lightbulbs down the hall, just candles positioned on the walls in intricate holders. As Lazari turned left she was faced with an amazingly long corridor. Seriously, she didn’t think it’d be this long given what she had seen from the outside. Even so, Lazari squeezed her backpack straps and made her way down it.

The brunette passed by a couple doors, realizing that most of them had names. E.J., Toby, Nina, Natalie, there were gold plates on each door with the names engraved. Some of the doors even seemed decorated, the one with the name Natalie had clocks painted all over it in a beautiful design. However, as Lazari continued walking down the hall, the doors became blank. There were now no plates on them either, just plain wooden doors.

Lazari walked further down, the churning in her stomach becoming more intense. Sure, the hallway she was faced with was long, but it couldn’t have been this long… As she walked, she started to feel the floorboards shift underneath her. She heard them creak and groan softly. The more she stepped on them, the more they breathed, the more they squirmed under her Converse. That sensation in itself was enough to make her stomach turn. The more she walked, the more everything felt… wrong.

And then she felt something in her head. Her head started feeling fuzzy, almost like a migraine was coming on. She walked down the impossible hallway but at a certain point, she wondered if she had even been going the right way. She turned left, right? Brian told her to go left, not right, right? Or was it right and not left? Did Brian say to not go left? Did he mean his left or her left? Was there a difference? The confusion was nerve wracking, and it was at this point Lazari realized she was clutching her backpack straps so tightly that her knuckles were turning white. She took another deep breath, pressing on despite the nauseating movement under her feet and the terrifying nagging feeling that maybe she went the wrong way.

Her vision was grainy, snowy and for a second she felt like she might have blacked out. Despite all of this however, she kept going. She was going to find her dad, or at least she’d pass out trying. And Tim’s words started to make a bit more sense. “Be strong,” she told herself, “be strong.” Before she knew it though, her vision was back to normal. The movement under her feet stopped, the headache she just realized she gained was dissipating. And she looked up to the tallest door she had ever seen to see an engraved gold plate that read ‘Operator.’

Lazari hesitated for more than one reason. She was about to talk to someone who possibly knew her dad. Maybe this man knew him personally, or just where he was or what he was like. But Tim had mentioned that the answers she was looking for might not be ones she wanted to hear. So she wondered, did she really want to know? Would it turn out that her father and mother had similar fates? After her contemplation, Lazari realized she did want to know. Even if it hurt, even if it wasn’t what she was expecting, she had come all this way! And just as she was about to knock, the door creaked open. Lazari flinched back a bit as the door opened on its own, but found her courage and carefully walked in.

— 🍝 —

“Miss Lazari Swann, welcome in.” Lazari’s eyes widened as the booming voice took over the silence she had grown accustomed to. She gazed before the man sat at the desk at the center of the room. He was so tall, impossibly tall. And when her eyes traveled to his face, she nearly choked as she realized he lacked one. There were shapes to make up a face, cheekbones and jaw and indentations where eyes should be, but it was all smoothed over with white skin. Her only reference for such an impossible figure was the thing that had attacked her the night before, but the more she stared wide-eyed and terrified at this creature dressed in a suit, the more she started to notice their differences. This one was dressed, and talking to her, and seemingly much more intelligent. He was not animalistic in the slightest, and despite lacking a face, he seemed to be looking at her and awaiting a word.

“H-Hello…” Was all she could think to say. What does one say when faced with such an uncanny person? Was she still asleep and dreaming? She pinched her hand as nonchalantly as she could.

“I understand your trepidation, child. But I must ask you to sit.” He interrupted, skeletal hand gesturing to the chair opposite of his desk. Lazari shakily nodded, trembling legs bringing her over to the seat with a slight stumble. She took her backpack off and propped it up on the side of the chair after she sat down. “Now, let me save you the trouble of asking. You must be very confused. You might think this is not even real. But I assure you it is. And this world is not as you were taught.” Lazari let his rich voice fill her head, listening carefully to his words. Now Tim’s sentiment started to make much more sense. He knew who she was coming to meet. Tim and Brian know this man.

“Now, before any other questions, you’re here to try and find your father, correct?” Lazari perked up a bit more, nodding her head ‘yes.’ “Miss Lazari Swann, I must admit, I do not know how to go about telling you about him in a way you’d comprehend. I understand this is all a lot to take in, but news of your father even moreso.” The young teen shifted in her seat, now getting antsy. If this creature knew anything, she wanted to know. More than ever now, she wanted to know.

“Please just tell me!” She finally shouted out, eyes widening once again as she immediately clapped a hand over her mouth for a moment. “I-I’m terribly sorry, s-sir! But! I’ve come this far, I don’t care if it’s awful news, I want to know…! So… please…” The figure before her let out a sound similar to a sigh.

“Lazari Swann, the world is not what you think it is. Creatures you could not even fathom exist. The supernatural, as humans call it, exists. And evil… Evil exists.” The being paused to make sure she was taking in what he was saying. “Miss Swann, do you know who I am?” She shook her head. “I have gone by many names in all my time here on earth, but most recently humans call me Slenderman. And your father… Your father is called Zalgo.” Lazari sat up straighter in the chair, heart pounding in her ears as she ingested the information. That name, her father’s name, it made her skin crawl.

“Both of us have existed for millennia. I am a being of earth, your father a being of the underworld, what humans call hell. Miss Swann, your father is not a good man. He is the embodiment of evil. He is what humans would call a demon. He does not and will not love you. Do you understand what I am saying?”

Lazari sat back in her seat, eyes staring wide at the figure in front of her. No, her father wasn’t dead, nor was he just a bad guy… Her father was a demon. Her father was something incapable of feeling love. Her head felt like it would burst, explode in an extravagant display. She felt tears form and slide down her cheeks and the realization sunk in. This was real. This was all real. And her father was some sort of monster.

“Child,” A tendril from Slenderman’s back grabbed a box of tissues and pulled one out, wiping Lazari’s face softly. “You mustn’t cry. I am not finished explaining things.” The girl sucked in a breath to try and stop herself from sobbing. This didn’t work well, so she continued doing it until she could gain some control of her breathing.

“Your father wants nothing more than to bring chaos and suffering to this world. You could consider us enemies. I wish for this world to continue as it is, a place that I can live in just as anyone else wants to live. He is tremendously powerful and I fear a battle between us is imminent.” Lazari sniffled, taking another tissue offered to her to wipe her nose. But her tears would not cease. Why was he telling her this anyways? Just to reiterate that she had come here for nothing? That she had no family to love her?

“However, I now have reason to believe there is someone who would, hypothetically, be stronger than him. Perhaps stronger than both of us combined. Someone strong enough to save the earth as we know it.” Lazari froze. She blinked away at some of the tears clouding her vision and looked up to the faceless man.

“You… don’t mean….?” Her words trailed off. The Slenderman stayed silent. The brunette inched up in her chair, sitting just on its edge now. “How could I — This type of stuff doesn’t happen — I don't understand!” Lazari kept cutting herself off, brain short circuiting from the massive revelation of information.

“Lazari Swann, you are his child. You will never escape that fact. But you are better than anything he’d ever be. You’d need training, guidance, however I believe you could be the key needed to lock him away for good. Of course, I will not lie to you, I have personal reasons for wanting you on my side. But you do not have to succumb to any of his potential lies or betrayal. If you join me, I could—” The Slenderman paused, realizing what he was about to say so bluntly. An admission of humanity. He cleared his throat and corrected himself. “I will assure your safety.”

“And if you’re lying?” Lazari squeaked out, her tears finally starting to settle. The Slenderman clasped his hands together as they sat on his desk.

“If you find I am lying at any given time, if you decide I have gone against my word or it is your father who you’d rather be with, you have full permission to exterminate me as you see fit.” Lazari almost jumped at that. Did he mean kill him? How could she do that? She’d never do something like that! Still, it seemed that this being was desperate enough to lay his life on the line. And while she had not a clue what kind of potential or power he saw in her, she couldn’t deny that it made her feel special. She was half demon? She could save the world? Maybe this was a big prank! Maybe she was still dreaming! Maybe she had died in the forest last night and this was some weird purgatory! But whatever it was, it was winning her over. It felt much better than math classes and pop quizzes, much better than bending over backwards to take care of her foster siblings and being left behind as a result, it felt much better than her terribly mundane and heartbreaking life.

“If I help you… Where would I stay? I wouldn’t have to go back to Louisiana, would I?” Lazari queried shyly, her crying now completely over. If he could, perhaps Slenderman would have smiled.

“Nonsense, child. You would stay here, in this mansion, with everyone else who is helping me.”

“Everyone else?” This greatly piqued the teen’s interest. Perhaps it wasn’t too different from what she was used to.

“There are many others who are working with me to assure Zalgo’s end. You must feel conflicted, but I personally believe it is a good thing you have yet to meet him. I am glad we got to meet first.”

Lazari fiddled with her fingers, quiet as she thought over what had just transpired. Her father was a demon, a powerful demon, and he wanted to harm the world she grew up and lives in. The end of the world would be the end for not just herself and everyone everywhere, but specifically her foster siblings. And even if she never saw them again, they deserved to grow up and live beautiful lives. They deserved a better fate. She could be their hero.

“So… um… Do I get my own room…?” Lazari’s voice came out timid but sweet, only a bit apprehensive.

“That can certainly be arranged.”