After running through the casino to the show lounge, Conrad’s breathing was erratic. The place was pitch black, and the sound of the small monster that chased him was no longer scratching at the door. As he turned around, he saw a spotlight turn on and point its circular light at the stage. A card fell from above, glinting as it dropped onto the stage. Conrad stepped up to grab it. His breathing was returning to normal.

“The world…” Conrad said as he picked up the card from the floor.

The card showed a woman with half her skull showing. The red lights replaced the usual wreaths. The woman was wearing a white dress and standing in front of a microphone. Her red lipstick was smudged along with her mascara, and she had frizzled hair. Behind her was a spotlight in the shape of the Earth, but it was cracked and shattered.

He put the card in his pocket and walked around the stage searching for anything else. Whispers and scattered applause came from the empty chairs as he walked through the dim room. When he peeked behind the red curtains, it was pitch black.

“What am I supposed to be doing if I can’t see anything… ugh…” Conrad continued searching the area and finally stood in front of the spotlight that began to follow him around.

“ALRIGHT! ACTION!” A voice boomed from the rafters.

The curtains lifted, and he heard loud applause from the seats. He stepped back. One of the monsters he fought at the hospital gnashed its teeth at him while making a blood-curdling scream. Suddenly, he heard hooves, and there was the hoof man from the television who invited him. The horse-faced man grinned, baring sharp teeth at him, before letting the monster free from its chains. It quickly ran at him, and the hoof man exited through the door. He needed to get to the door marked EXIT.

The audience gasped as he dodged to the side. The monster was armless, but he remembered the sting of its teeth from his last encounter with one. He tripped it when it went for him again, and he slowly inched his way to the door, being careful to watch the monster.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of rope on metal, and a large sack fell on the ground beside him. It gave off a putrid stench of rot. It burst open, and a small creature looked at him and ignored him, then continued eating whatever was in the bag.

He gagged, and a sharp pain erupted in his shoulder. The monster bit him while his attention was elsewhere. He heard applause and horrified gasps from the empty chairs. He turned around and pushed the monster off himself.

The spotlight turned red as more bags of flesh dropped from the ceiling. He slipped in his black boots on the blood-slick floor.

“D-Damn it!” He cursed as he started to rush to the exit door while the monster did some kind of turtle roll to get back up on its feet.

When he got to the exit door, he pushed it open and found himself in an alley. The red spotlight continued to shine through the door. After the putrid stench of rotting human flesh from the bags, the alley’s fresh air was sweet. The monster ran towards the door, and Conrad slammed it shut.

He heard it banging its head against the door, and he started to walk down the alley into the near-impenetrable darkness, which was only lit by streetlights. At the end, he saw a red cave from which he heard people screaming and rusty metal creaking.

“Conrad! Please help us!” A voice rose from the red-illuminated cave, cutting through the screams of men and women.

“Shit’s sake anyways…” He muttered and descended into the cave from the alley.

Why am I always playing hero? he thought to himself.