Chapter 9: The Fourth Rest

Ryder carried Drew out of the room, with Larah, Channe, and the other contestants who survived; which glared at Ryder as they passed by. But he did not blame them. Even though he did not know what would happen, his heart still sank as his mind told him it was his fault; maybe it was, maybe the Brewmaster was right about what he said. Ryder looked down as they walked, his mouth turned into a deep frown with his eyes turning heavy, but a hand touched his shoulder; it was Larah, holding a sleepy Channe's hand. "…You okay?" asked Larah somewhat worryingly. Ryder turned his eyes towards her, "Yeah… Just — Drew is heavy that's all," he said, trying to sound convincing, but Larah believed it. They walked out of the door, and into a room where the entrance of the rest laid upon; with the metal door at the end of it. Ryder carried Drew by his hand towards and through the door, with Larah now carrying a tired Channe with her arms. As they walk through the door, they instantly saw the other contestants; with many of them laying their heads on the tables at the far end, possibly drunk or having a hungover. He searched the main room for any signs of Evelyn, but he only saw unfamiliar faces. After Larah followed through the door, she walked up beside Ryder with Channe; searching the room for someone as well, but just like Ryder, she didn't find anyone. "Seems like everyone is feeling like Drew," said Larah, looking at the tired people. "Yeah…" said Ryder, "I should go and lay Drew down in a room for him to rest, I don't want him waking up just to fall on the ground." "Yeah, and I should lay Channe down so him and I can get some rest," said Larah, turning her head towards Ryder, "I'll see you later then, Ryder." "Okay, I'll see you soon Larah." Ryder steadied his grip of Drew's shoulders, then started to walk towards the double door on the right, where a lot of people were entering and exiting there; but he was stopped, Larah called him before he took a step. "Hey Ryder," called Larah, making Ryder turn his head, "I'm… sorry for blaming you… I knew that there was nothing you could have done to same him; nothing could have saved him…" said Larah, her voice gritty and low. Larah was not expecting a reply, but Ryder did give her one; not by words, but a reassuring nod followed by a smile before he continued to walk towards the double door. After parting with Larah and Channe, Ryder went into a hallway where rooms laid on the other side of its many doors. Ryder picked the nearest empty one, struggling to turn the knob with his unoccupied hand; but he opened the door. He carried Drew into the room, quickly setting him to lay on the mattress on the floor; standing straight after he did so. Drew snored happily on the bed, with his arm over eyes; Ryder could feel his hands becoming hot and dry. After doing his best to make him comfortable, Ryder carefully exited the room; trying not to wake Drew with the sound of the metal door closing. And just after he closed the door behind him. "Ryder!" a familiar voice called out behind him, "How's Drew?" "Oh, hi Linsey," said Ryder smiling as he saw Linsey's face. "Do any of you need medical assistance??" asked Linsey, with Ryder seeing her hands carrying bandages. "Uh, no; Drew is just passed out drunk on the bed." "Oh, so it's just the same as many of us here," said Larah, trying to arrange the bandages on her palms, "I guess no one got injured." "Well…" Ryder lifted his hand, revealing his bloody hand where the Brewmaster's knife went through. "Oh no! What happened?!" Lynsey quickly took out one of the bandages and immediately grabbed Ryder's injured hand, hastily unwrapping the bloody sheet and replacing them with new bandages, "It's almost right through your hand!" "Yeah… just some disagreements with the Brewmaster," explained Ryder while Linsey bandaged his hand. "I knew he was ruthless, but I did not know he would take matters into his own hands!" "He did with ours two times: the first one was complaining, and so he threw a knife at his knee." "Ouch!" exclaimed Linsey, putting the finishing touches Ryder's hand, "What about you? Why did you get stabbed in the hand?" "Well… I wa—" "Linsey!" Another familiar voice called out from behind Linsey; Ryder tilted his head sideways to see who it was. It was Johnny, running towards them as he and Linsey's eyes followed him. He arrived beside Linsey, panting breathlessly but still managed to speak. "Linsey…" He took a deep breath, "Somebody needs help — a woman — after she said she drank too much, she began to shake and passed out— oh hey Ryder!" He waved his hand to say hi. At his surprise, Ryder hesitantly waved his hand; but hardly, for he and Linsey was still perplexed by what he said. After a brief talk with Johnny, Linsey turned around to face Ryder, "I have to go Ryder, please be careful with your hand; I don't want it to damage a nerve." "I'll be fine Linsey," said Ryder reasurringly, "I'll see you two later then, I have to go to a room to rest anyway." "Good, you do that; we'll catch up with you later Ryder!" said Johnny, walking away slowly to give Linsey time to say goodbye. "I'll see you later Ryder; take care!" And just like that, Linsey and Johnny quickly walked away; leaving Ryder outside the door. Seeing them go through the door, Ryder began to search for an empty room; specifically, a room near Drew's. After a few minutes, he finally found one near Drew's room; with only a quick walk needed to reach it. He turned the knob of his new room and opened the door, going through it as he turned back around to lock the door. He quickly walked over to the mattress, making his body fall on the bed; he took a deep breath before he let it go, gazing at the pipes hanging on the ceiling. The Brewmaster's words ran in his head: was it really his fault? Or was he just trying to blame Ryder to make him lower his guard. Nevertheless, he wanted to rest after the drinking game they had just completed; his ears were already becoming warm after the last drink. But like always, he feared he would dream again; he feared the figure would make it impossible to rest easy, but he continued to hope and pray — pray that no nightmare will enter his mind this time, and hope that it would come true. He slowly closed his eyes, making the pipes above disappear; and only darkness left in sight — in fact, time passed by and only darkness came into his view. He thought he was in another nightmare, but it was really just darkness made by his close eyes. And for the first time in a long time, he rested easy without a nightmare — without a dream. He drifted into the little comfort the mattress gave him, but it was already enough that he was given such a luxury in the entirety of the rests. But although there was no dream, there was still doubt lingering in his mind — the doubt of him surviving the games, and the doubt that his friends would survive. After the Brewmaster's game, there were only two games left to play — to survive. The prize money motivated all the contestants to stay and prevail, but Ryder questioned it — will they really be given the money? Or will the hosts and his servants, kill them all in the end? But Ryder suppressed the thought, for no matter the possibilities — if there is the possibility of him becoming a winner, then a new life will blossom as soon as he steps out of the games. An hour passed by, and he wakes up from his bed; yawning and stretching his arms. He hears a few contestants outside his door, passing by his room. He gets up from his so-called bed, looking around the room for new clothes; but he found nothing, and the sleeve on his stabbed hand was stained in blood. Without any choice, he gripped the sleeve and ripped it apart from his jacked; throwing the ripped fabric on the pipes above, making it hang. After a minute, he finally was ready to get out of the room, turning the doorknob as he goes through it. After closing the door behind him, he turned around; seeing the contestants slowly speaking, and others holding their heads with their eyes as they walked with their friends. He planned to go and visit Drew to see if he was finally awaking, but a noise came from below; greeting Ryder again with its loudness. His stomach grumbled, making his mouth wet and hungry for a bite. And so, he planned to go the main room to get something to eat, and he would visit Drew afterwards. He began to start walking towards the double door that leads to the main room, passing by the same contestants he saw before. He kept his eyes on search, trying to find Evelyn among them — but just like before, she was nowhere to be found. Ryder could only hope that she was alive as he walked through the double door, entering the main room where a few contestants were eating. After getting a can of food from the far end of the room, he sat on an empty table; opening the can before eating the food layered inside. Slowly savoring whatever flavor, it gave his tongue; which was a bit metallic and burnt. He ate peacefully for minutes, until a pair of legs caught his eye on the other side of the table. "Can I join you?" a voice asked. Ryder slowly lifted his head to see who it was; it was Trevor, the man who intervened when Sine was about to put a fist on his face. With Ryder's mouth full, he just gave him a quick nod; before lowering his head again towards the can. Trevor pulled the chair from the other side and sat on it, placing his can of food on the table as well; eating with Ryder. "It seems that you got out fine from the game," said Trevor, trying to break the silence. "Yeah… except for this." Ryder lifted his bandaged hand to show to Trevor, "I had some disagreements with the Brewmaster." "I can see that," said Trevor, staring at his hand, "