Instinct

You're a unfortunate sinner. You have misdeeds that brought misfortune to your life.

Now you're in the world of darkness. Whatever lurks in the dark will surely come to you. Do you have what it takes to survive? Or give up and be consumed in the void?

Hello everyone, you can call me GP75HT. Welcome to the thread called Instinct. It is a survival game that is like Maze Runner. Your goal is to survive as long as you can in this dark world, be it simple or complex.

I'll be playing the role as both survivors with death flags and the narrator. Characters will be limitless and this thread will be updated every 2 days. The monsters in the dark will be for you to imagine, preferably, the kind that mimics the person's fear.

To create a character, first this genre is post apocalyptic just like in the original Maze Runner. Adding both supernatural and fantasy, the monsters will have many variety to expect from. Try to create a character with a background of what misfortune they received before coming to this dark world.

How long will that character will survive is up to you. You're controlling their fate and they will leave it in your hands. Craft as many items you can get in the starting area, bring treasures back to the community, or become terror to the community.

I will begin the narration in the next two days. Lets see how you activate their instinct to survive.

Lets see who bit the dust?

Here I see a man named Kenneth Gutierrez, a middle-aged man helplessly roaming around in the dark. His supplies are critically low and he had lost his way. His eyes dilate and his breath goes hoarse. All he mutters is, "Where... Where... Where..." He is hopelessly lost, just like how he lost his career. His last words, "Why bother... Just... End it..." Kenneth Gutierrez is forever consumed in the darkness.

Lets see another one. I see one determined young lady who continues to run. Her name is Ashley Graham. She wanted to get out of this darkness whatever the cost. She survived all odds except for the present crisis. While she is confident at her pathfinding ability, that ability turned into her downfall, just like how her past reputation crumbled to dust. She faces a dead end, and behind her is a beast that viciously chased her. Her last words, "Not like this! Not like this! No!" She screams on top of her lungs as the beast lunge to their throat.

Lets talk about the last one. Hmm, interesting. So there is this one guy named Howard Jacqueline who is heavily bleeding out from his stomach. Instead of fear, his wrath shows up to his face. He is very angry for some reason. Could it be because he got left behind by his group? Just like how his best friend betrayed him? His eyes are red and his ears are fuming. No matter how hard he needs to try, there is no recovering from the deep wound he received. His last words are, "Curse all of you..." It took a very long time before his life expired.

Hello again. There are quite few deaths these days.

There is this bastard who pushed his friend to the pits in order to save himself. Derrick Carnaby is his name. He didn't even hesitate. Oh that prick did it again, doing misdeeds without consequences. He got alot of treasures and was a popular treasure hunter, or should I say, tomb raider. All he ever did was grabbing the coattails of others and hitch a ride. This huge mistake is his downfall in the darkness. He comes across a door that is locked tight with two panels at each side. They are easy to open with two people. But the asshat knew what he did. He frantically searches for an exit. It did not exist. His mind slowly degrades and he became crazy. After a while a group found his decomposing husk. His last word is a simple curse word, "F***...".

That was a fun end for that guy but what about a heroic one. There is an old man in his forties desperately saved all people trapped in the maze alone. With his shining beacon that brings hope to the survivors, Alan Christopher managed to save one hundred survivor with his selfishness. That selfishness is what killed him in the end when he willingly sacrificed himself in order to free the survivors from a death trap. When he was all alone in the trap, he rolls a grass with an old paper and burns one end using the torch he had. His final moments is simply smoking his low quality joint until he is crushed into pieces.

That is a man worth giving respect. However, not that long ago, the person he saved, Emilia London, unfortunately passed away from an accident. She was a stressed woman who panics alot. She was very frightened and feared death. She always argue with everyone she came with. She is just a poor woman so used to being stressed to the point she got delusional. She hits her head on the floor so hard that it was instantaneous death. All because her husband who was with her had enough and pushed her aside.

He appeared one day, out of the blue. All he knew was he was called "Yellow." Why, he didn't know.

Yellow found himself in the maze. He couldn't remember anything; likely amnesia. The horrors of the maze don't seem to bother him, at least, not as he stands. His aura is surprisingly strong, but this is for a simple reason- he doesn't remember what he has lost. Unfortunate or fortunate, misfortune weaves her tale, and Yellow is the star. Will he shine in the dark, or succumb to the horrors hidden within?

Yellow rests against the solid concrete, taking a short breather within the walls of this elaborate crypt. His short, blond hair glistens in the daylight as the sun's rays pour in over the high walls. "Say, is this place always so nice this time 'a day?" he asks, looking over at the woman traveling with him through the maze.

So far, the death toll is increasing. Survivors banded together but slowly broke into factions. This led to much interesting deaths.

The Beckel Group led by Vincent Beckel, tried to explore the darkness, marking the walls with blood, sweat, and tears, for others to navigate safely. Every traps that are activated mostly caused by the Beckel Group on purpose. Even the late Vincent Beckel suffered the same fate. Everyone called the Beckel Group the Group of Maniacs. For Beckel Group, being Maniacs are better than becoming sitting ducks. More people in this group will die trying to escape.

Other group explored the darkness, but not as crazy as the Beckel Group. The Snake Group led by Gath Forage, created tools for everyone. They are responsible for the construction of the safe area in the darkness. Composed of architects, engineers and scientist, they are strong contributors for the prosperity of humanity. However, the group is not as united as they seem, as branches of the Snake Group always tried to overpower Gath Forage for the leadership. This caused Gath Forage who once was a compassionate leader become a ruthless tyrant, killing everyone who opposed his rule.

Lets also talk about this one group, an unofficial group that should be called a Cult. These fanatics were once religious people who were lost in the darkness. They are very conservative, and also quite intimidating. They even manage to gather mass of followers that willingly follow their doctrine. For a Cult, they are well adapted to the dark and more ruthless in subjugation. They willingly kill for the greater good and will not tolerate harm with one another. They are the most lawful in the community. Ironically, the deaths in this Cult are mostly from ritual.

Alright enough with death, there is an interesting individual somewhere in the dark maze together with someone. He who had no memory of his own. He is called "Yellow". Despite having such disability, he is able to thread in the dangers of the darkness. I am interested in that guy, if he can perhaps break through the dark with his strange aura. Lets see how well his wellbeing.

To Yellow, who is the first PC who will play this game, you are together with a young lady in the darkness. I'll be giving you your first trial. Your first trial is to find the community in order to increase your odds of survival. Right now both of you and your companion have weapons to defend yourselves; the torches. Torches is both your utility and main weapon for the monsters in the game. Considering we're using luck in this game, lets use coin for an event. The head will be your fortune and the tails will be your misfortune. It is not my job for you to go through events that kill your character. Better leave it to luck with the coins. There are limitless tries of using the coin to find your luck. But remember, get 10 tails of misfortune in a row, your character will meet their end. Lets have fun.

The woman, Nia Prosser, casts a sideways look at Yellow. "Yeah," she answers sarcastically. She pants lightly, catching her breath. "Who are you?" she asks. They had simply crossed paths in the darkness, as many had before.
"Yellow," he replies, looking her up and down. "And you?"
Nia stands upright, stretching her shoulders a little. "Nia."
"Pleasure to meet you, Nia," greets Yellow, offering hand. Before Prosser can take his hand, a haunting echo of a hellish creature fills the halls of the maze.
Nia ducks instinctually, immediately searching the area around them for the direction from which the sound came.
They didn't have to wait long.
In the torchlight, the maw of the beast appears. The large, bloodstained teeth glisten in the light. The hot, putrid breath of the demon reaches forth, grasping at their throats.
"Oh, no," mumbles Nia. "Run!" she shouts, taking off down a corridor. The sound of the beast crashing behind them sends a horrifying chill down Nia's spine. Her lungs burn and ache as she runs, unsure if Yellow is still behind her. Seeing a familiar smear of blood on the corner of a passage, she turns quickly- into safety. Right now, her life is all that matters to her.

Yellow follows in wordless haste, trying to ward off the beast with his torch as he runs. He waves it behind him, trying to delay the creature. Landing a hit on the side of the creature's face, at approximately it's eye, the beast howls and falls back into the darkness. Looking back ahead of him, Yellow catches a glimpse of Nia's body turning into a different passage.
Nia looks over as Yellow slows to a stop. He looks both ways and steps into the passage, savoring the moment to breath. "Looks like we should find a Group," mutters Nia.
"Group? What do you mean? More people?" asks Yellow, leaning against the way for a brief moment.
"Groups are bands of people stuck in this hellhole, just like us. They have safe places, and structure," explains Prosser. "There are two: the Snake Group, and the Beckel Group. If we can catch Beckel Group, they'll be our best bet of getting out," she says.
"Then let's get going then. Do you know where they might be?" Yellow inquires, pushing away from the wall gently.
"I think so, but they move a lot. It's hard to say."

The pair travel the dark passageways of the maze in search of the Beckel Group. To Nia's surprise, they weren't far from them. They are in luck.

Yellow and Nia approach the Group, uncertain of the end they may seek.

Ah yes, idiotic fools who explored the maze unprepared. Always people always looking for opportunity but failed to so so.

I've come across a very stupid man named Benjamin Vicente who absolutely went insane after discovering what was in the darkness. That dude thought about being a protagonist of this world by discovering the truth. Well, he is an idiot. Just like he is back then. He isn't even a good player to begin with in the games. His last words before he is gone forever is, "Die monsters!" I can't believe that guy has the balls to face off monsters that he didn't understand.

Lets talk about this girl, Fio Chloe. She had been a great explorer in the darkness but there is one mistake so stupid that even she can't help but laugh. You see, she tried to scale on the walls using the sharpened stakes to see if getting out of the maze is possible above. She found the hard way that it was the territory of monsters. Her screams echoed throughout the maze as the monsters teared her limb from limb. Her final moment is her laughing pathetically.

Cole Haitian is a somewhat a genius. But his smarts just don't belong to this world of darkness. His knowledge were simply too profound to understand, even the real scientists called him crazy. True to what they've been saying, he is a mad scientist who tried to selfishly experimented many things unknown to everyone. Ironically, the Snake Group found out what he did with the poor people living like beggars. Everyone is out for blood for Cole Haitian, who simply collapse from a tincture he created. He foolishly drank his craft, mistaking it for alcohol.

I look at the two survivors, Yellow and Nia Prosser, who successfully reached the community. The place is a lot more safer with burning light from the torches and lightbulbs keeping the darkness away. Though united for survival, the people are tensed with newcomers who suddenly appeared from the darkness.

In order to find the Beckel Group, you have to keep on a lookout for people wearing survival gears and spears with badges with the indentation of letter B. They are the members of Beckel Group. They are crazy but reasonable. You need to be recommended by three people before you can join the Beckel Group.

I observe from the darkness on how the people would survive in the darkness. Again and again, they come and go. I can see fire in their eyes burning fiercely with hope.

Peter Edison, a former British Navy, led numerous expeditions and fought with the monsters with spears. He was a popular survivor because with his might allowed him to salvage materials that are hard to come by. He created his own military with the goal of fighting monsters for profits. With each expedition, Peter's military grew stronger in quality and quantity. But he is now old. He is on his sickbed for days and shows no sign of recovering. He looks over his son and his wife whom he protected for all his life. His last words for his son are," Be brave Tom. Don't let the dark give you fear." He is still alive at that point but he is no different from a corpse at that stage. He is peacefully slumbering on his supposed deathbed.

I also see a desperate man who never gave up. Alexander Johnathan is a father. His entire goal is to return back to his baby girl. He did everything he can to return, even if his body gets tired. His dedication to escape brought inspiration to the other survivors with families. But in the end, that man died in a horrible accident. The monsters tried to eat a small girl who is not even 10. The man springs to action and successfully saved the girl but in the process, tripped on a razor trap that crippled his leg. Luckily, he is in a group thus allowing the others to save the girl. "Get away from here! Leave me now!" is what he shouted to the others for them to get away. By the time they left, the monsters arrived at Alexander's location. He closed his eyes in his final moment and said, "I'm sorry Liz, daddy's not gonna bring back the milk home..." He became the monsters dinner.

How can I forget about Matthew Sidrius? That man is basically the most scarred survivor in the community. He is alive but badly scarred to the point he cannot move. It is a wonder how he is still alive with mortally fatal wound all over his body. He survived many mortal encounters during his time in the maze of darkness. That man should be dead, but his tenacity is so high, he is able to hold on much longer. Though this is not death, he is no different from the other dead people. Fatally crippled to the point he cannot move. All he could do is talk. A talking corpse.

Hello again. I have come to deliver the news of who have died thus far in the darkness. Let me open up a book for me to read.

According to the book, Cedric Tatsumaki, a half blood managed to kill not monsters but hundreds of humans that dared to stand on his way. His experience as a spearman both favored and feared. Something about him makes him powerful in the darkness. Everytime he runs, he always quote on quote "melt in the darkness". Like he was a natural nightwalker with the ability to traverse through the darkness. Eventually, everyone regarded Cedric as a Death God, for he is easily recognizable with his dark clothes and blood soaked spear. More deaths will pile up as long as Cedric Tatsumaki is alive.

Let us talk about a woman named Anna Evangeline. She is a survivor whose wits are more deadly than a smart killer. Her research about monsters of the dark enabled her to find out each weaknesses and strengths that they have. With that knowledge that she kept for herself, Anna is able to pick out who is best for the job and pick who should die in scavenge hunts. Unfortunately, she died from sickness and her research will never be seen again. Her last words are, "What is the use of surviving? We're in hell. We are sinned..."

Hm? Look what we have here. This guy has no name. But how in the world did he get to the inner sanctum? If I were a survivor, I find the outer sanctum. This idiot just opened the pandora's box without knowing at the cost of his own soul. No wonder more unique monsters have shown in the darkness. Look's like Miss Anna's research was after all not gonna be more useful now thanks to that mysterious guy whose name is unknown.

More deaths, as usual. I know I am just writing this and seemingly psychotic, but it is simply a strange way of immersion. I don't feel their pain, yet I can sense it.

Paulo Venezuela, a man with a good leadership skill, led a team to explore the darkness. They almost uncovered all the areas that are dead ends but found the hard way that the maze shifts every three days as they compared the maps to the recent ones. Not long after that, he explored the maze together with the team again, only to be trapped in a temple where they simply got crushed by a wall. They all panicked and screamed at each other at the moment of doom.

Reyna Angeline is a woman who mostly stays back in the community for safety. She was too scared to explore the darkness and won't commit exploring no matter what. A circumstance led her to be mocked by everyone. She was defenseless that led her being assaulted. The pain in her heart is very painful that she committed murder of five men before attempting a suicide. Her final words are, "I wish everyone burns."

Talking about brutality, lets talk everyone who came across the Death God, Cedric Tatsumaki. Ivan Donovan, Leo Matt, Leah Alonzo, Bianca Alonzo, Jack Ruger, Zen Xiu, and others. They were all brutally sliced, diced, minced by Cedric who appeared to be wielding a monster's claw like a sickle. Everywhere he goes, there are large blood pools from his victims. Everyone that tried to kill Cedric, soon disappear in the darkness and appear to be dead.

I didn't know there something like roleplay in the forum

Death is a scenario where a character leaves the stage. I believe this is has the similar quote from the game called The Sims whenever death visits the door of your sim. After all, deaths in this forum is just fake and not real. But the fact that there is death still remains a fact and not just a fiction written by a writer like me.

After all, Jacob Washington was killed not in the maze but in the community. What is the reason you may ask? I recall him being a troublesome man who does not contribute to the community. Only causing more trouble than help. Everything he did brought worse misfortune. To the point people from the Cult believed he is a devil in disguise. But the truth is that, Jacob Washington himself had bad luck. He genuinely tried to help the community but his bad luck doomed all the exploration group he was in, worse that he didn't get any useful information. The Cult silenced him forever and created a public execution just for this guy.

I also heard about an interesting drama somewhere in the darkness. A couple determined to get out no matter what. Each trial they face, they overcome it with the power of love. But one particular trial shattered their bond forever when it was found out that the woman, Elize Graham, cheated on her loyal husband, Troy Graham, with his best friend back in the real world before they come here. They aren't dead yet but their relationship is forever buried to the grave as Troy lost his faith for Elize. It is a depression that can crush a man to dust as he wallows in isolation. Elize on the other hand, didn't even sincerely apologized and continued of being his wife without understanding his pain, and called him a stupid man on top of all that.

Death is not all about physical death like how the Graham couple demonstrated. Another example spiritual death is about an unfortunate young girl named Bianca Patricia. She used to be very lively back in her real world. But as the darkness continued to taint her heart, so does her will. She questioned her existence. Why is she alive in this darkness, why does she deserve this, what should she do to return back to her normal life. Her eyes that once brimming with life are now gone. Her hands, feet and neck are shackled with chains. All she could ever do is feel. All she wished at that point is for it to end. "I... Want... To... Die..." are her final words before she lost her sense of oneself.

Hello again. I am the narrator, please refer me as GP75HT. If you're asking me why I am writing this kind of thread, my answer would be "killing time". Get it? Killing time. Alright, it is true that is my reason for writing this thread. I am looking for more kinds of death and it has gotten alot more interesting. Instead of me being the narrator, I unknowingly became a player myself as I explore the darkness using the eyes of the dying. The maze is built using my imagination but somewhere along the way, I kept on getting dead ends each time I stopped writing. Is this really worth it? Well, nobody told me to start this thread. I'll continue to write as long as I can write.

I am gonna flip the page. I see that Fred Johnson is able to discover new areas to scavenge materials for the community. After all, in order to live longer in this darkness, you need sources. Dirt in the real world is useless but in this world of darkness, it is the most important for expansion. The more dirt you have, the larger expansion you can so. Fred Johnson tried his best in his exploration to find resources like these. Because the maze lacked sunlight, their only farmable food source they can grow are mushrooms that grows in the dark. But bad luck is bound to happen as Fred Johnson died ironically from eating mushrooms. Farmers in the community need to becareful when growing mushrooms that they eat. Mutations of mushroom are inevitable. Even in the darkness, farming after all is a job that is naturally a must for a community's survival.

This ain't different but the killings of Cedric Tatsumaki still happening in the darkness. His notoriety kept increasing to the point everyone calls him demon. You're gonna ask me why does Cedric Tatsumaki seems to be my favorite. The answer is that it just happens. I was originally planning to make a serial killer die in the darkness but something on my mind says to keep him alive. After all, knowing death exists is much scarier than knowing death is dead. Though realistically this shouldn't happen when I said that all people that I mention will die. As a writer, I am quite surprised myself that Cedric Tatsumaki wasn't dead yet. But there are deaths whenever he is involved right? You can say that whenever he is mentioned, it meant that someone was killed by the Death God. Even bounty hunters like Richard Wellington got his head out of his body. Killing Cedric is simply hard to kill.

I kinda forgot to add this because we're focusing on the survivors. But what about monsters? Monsters that are being killed by hunters? You're gonna ask me why I am bothering to mention about dying monsters. Why do you think the reason is? Is it because they are simply named? Is it because there are good monsters that are innocent? Well, the correct answers would be the same for Cedric Tatsumaki, except it is the opposite. You see, why do you think monsters exist? How terrifying are they to the survivors? I specifically mentioned that some monsters mimic fears. But what if that fear meant that the monsters that the hunters had to face, is related to them. What do you think? Well, the monsters are the dead survivors who were revived in the darkness. And them being killed again by people who failed to recognize them bring forth more misfortune that they have. The only monster that traumatized a survivor is someone named, Jade Roxanne, whose features are distinguishable when she was alive, especially her tattoos. And the survivor who was traumatized, is none other than her number one pupil, Riana Montenegro.

Yellow looks around from yhe edge of the darkness, surprised by the amount of light and people in this place.
"C'mon," says Nia, leading the way into the community. The makeshift streets lead the pair through the heart of the safe haven from the darkness. Nia stops off and asks a shopkeeper a few questions while Yellow continues, oblivious to the loss of his partner. He looks up, above the streets, to find more small homes tucked away in the shade of the torchlight. "This place is amazing," mumbles the man, smiling to himself.
"Let's go," says a voice as Yellow feels a tap on his shoulder. He turns to find Nia walking away. Following Nia, she explains, "I got a lead on Beckel Group. They said they're in the community, so we shouldn't have to look far."
Yellow takes a moment to absorb Nia's words, then nods. "What do we look for?"
"Spears and the letter "B,"" answers Prosser.

The pair spends nearly an hour searching for the Beckel Group before any sign of the spear is made apparent. Nia pushes forward to get to the group, followed closely by Yellow. "Beckel Group!" calls Prosser, grabbing the attention of several members of the Group.
"We wish to join you," stays Yellow calmly. The blatant comment earns inquisitive looks from many of Beckel Group.

Welcome back. I'll shall play the interaction with the Beckel Group. I flipped the coin and it is a level 0 fortune, meaning no trouble happened in this interaction. The Beckel Group are happy to meet people like Nia Prosser and Yellow who are willing to explore the darkness in search for the way out.

In order to join the Beckel Group, one needs to be agile and dextrous. They have the parkour test and completing the course with the average grade of 25% will approve your entry. The supervisor will be Kenneth Ordon. You see him as a veteran who seems to be skilled in pursuit and the scars in his face tells the tale. There are three courses. The easy difficulty, the medium difficulty, and the hard difficulty. Choosing one difficulty meant increasing your coin count.

Easy: Normal 10 coin toss

Medium: Normal 5 coin toss

Hard: Normal 1 coin toss

You need to land more heads during the tossing stage in order to pass the Beckel Group parkour test. The test will determine how the Beckel Group reacts to you.

Consequences:

Failing Easy will bring negative outlook to you and Nia Prosser from the Beckel Group. The rest don't if you fail. If cleared Hard, the Beckel Group respects you. This is the tutorial and no deaths will appear for your character. Lets see the fortune of Yellow.

Now that I think about it, most deaths are caused by either humans or traps in the dungeon. Two do count but one is also consider a trap. Wanna know what I am talking about? If you do remember one bit, there was only one death directly caused by a monster. Though there was a human already considered as a monster, I will now tell the end of people by the hands of the monsters.

Lets start with Jane Foster. She was a tough woman who explored the darkness like many others. Her remarkable ability to observe in the darkness proved to be her strength. But her weakness was her reaction was slow that she can't notice a quick movement. Like for example, she can clearly see uneven floor that were possibly buttons for traps but her sense of touch was so weak she cannot feel the presence of anything she does not see. Jane Foster led her group to one corner and got immediately jumped on by monsters with long sharpened blades. Her last moment was literally seeing her legs slowly turning red before she lost her life.

Here is another one. Her name is Pauline Justin. She was very timid. She can't speak for herself, thus allowed others to boss her around. She was a helpful packmule. Because she did everything she can within the best of her ability, she was highly regarded as a sidekick. She was rather happy that she can do something and she belonged to somewhere. But foolishly enough, she ended up getting lost in the darkness due to the curiosity she had upon discovering certain plants that resembles a rose. No one tried to look for her due to her being easily forgotten. She tried to look for her way back, but unfortunately met a dog monster twice her size. She ran away by instinct. She ran and ran and ran, but she tripped and tripped, badly bruising her legs until it gave out. Pauline's struggled against the dog monster and kept shouting, "Please help me! I don't wanna die!". No one heard her scream and slowly, she was torn apart and devoured by the dog monster.

Was that brutal enough? I can be more brutal for this final person, his name is Conrad Lupinski. He was a stern man with a heart of gold. He saved numerous survivors from rescue missions no other people willingly took. His reason for saving them was, "We're comrades! We don't let one single men fall down! If you bastards stay here, I will save them for god's sake!". He was well respected and was one of the members of the Snake Group of the Military Branch that was once led by Peter Edison that joined after his death. Conrad Lupinski tried to find one particular group when he discovered that a runner coming to his way asking to be saved. Until he realized what was going on, monsters begun coming out of the corner. Conrad ran away together with the runner but find themselves stuck on a dead end. Obviously that runner dropped to their legs and shaken with fear. Conrad Lupinski on the other hand, raised his spear, prepared to fight to the death. With his mighty roar, he fought against the monsters valiantly until everyone of them fell. Winning the battle but he suffered heavily as his body received too many wounds, even his left eye and left arm got torn off. He falls down and the runner came to his aid. But it was too late, Conrad look at his eyes and whispered, "I remember you comrade... You're the one from the Beckel Group... Someone was waiting for you back there... You should return..." The runner cried out loud but he didn't give up. He carried the badly bruised Conrad Lupinski back to the community but at the time they returned, Conrad is no longer with the living. I just wanna say, what in the world? This is not what I even going for but it turns to this? Heck this is too cool.

What do you think about this thread? Is it just pointless murder of people? Am I the villain? Am I toying with lives of people? Writing in this fashion will make you think what purpose did you have to write this kind of story. All the deaths seemed pointless when you know in advance that they are gonna die. Because I am the narrator telling their short tales of their deaths. I am the bearer of the death flag. If I am gonna continue writing this, should I add more details? After all, simple deaths over and over and over again will be a bit boring.

Let's start with a group instead of individuals. There is one of the amateur group consisting of 5 runners. The leader, Shane McBell, the second member, Kylie Alcantara, the third member, Bhahim Abdullahan, the fourth member, Jonathan Skye, and the fifth member, Lisa Buck. They are new to this darkness and they were afraid at first. But after receiving care from the people in the community, Shane and the others are determined to help by exploring the darkness. They did their best in their first try, as they uncovered three places that were missed by the previous explorers. The first one being the location of a spring where they can collect spring water from. The second one is the existence of coal deposits, which are normally mined for daily lifestyle. The third being a trap where monsters that looked like giant spiders reside. They were lucky enough not to get close and marked the walls of the potential danger zone. In their fourth try, they realized Kylie had gone missing of all the sudden. They don't know where she went. They tried their best to look for her. Unbeknownst to them, Kylie was helplessly knocking on the ceiling. She couldn't breathe properly. She was tormented at the fact that she fell on a trapdoor and water began flooding the place. Her face full of tears mixed with water slowly turned lifeless as there was absolutely no hope of rescue. She quietly mumbles, "Ethan..." before the whole room was fully submerged with water, causing her to drown. For days Shane and the others never gave up looking for their missing friend until they see the wet remains of her former shadow. No one ever knew how this had happened under their watch. Scared of death, Bhahim panicked and ran away from the group. Shane and the others gave chase to Bhahim but it was too late. They ventured deeper to the darkness. Bhahim's torch immediately dies out, causing him to panic more. Shane tried to calm Bhahim. He looks for him in the darkness until he heard crickets. Noises from the darkness are never good news. Everyone are desperate to find Bhahim. They did, and they were shocked. They see the crickets on top of a skeleton that was standing up. His clothes belonging to Bhahim. Apparently, he died by being eaten by these crickets. Everyone discovered one fact that the crickets are too afraid of the fire. If only Bhahim's torch didn't die, he would've been alive. All they can do is to return. When discussing about what they should do now that two members of their group had died, Lisa Buck chose to stay in the community and joined the Cult. She couldn't stand being in the darkness anymore. She may be alive but her spirit is now utterly crushed to dust. Shane and Jonathan chose to continue to explore. Both of them accomplished more discoveries that will be a huge help for the community and encountered more and more dangers in the darkness. Yet their relation of one another turned sour when there are many things they disagree with. Especially at the fact that Shane was showing signs of despair. Jonathan hates being in despair. But in their 27th run, Jonathan was coughing up blood. Shane is worried that Jonathan is sick and he encouraged him to take a break. But Jonathan shouts at Shane to shut up and continue exploring the darkness. Shane didn't understand why Jonathan is acting like this. Jonathan kept his distance from everyone and always go on isolated places ever since they returned after the 25th run. This continued until their 30th run until Shane finally reaches the truth. Jonathan is severely ill with tuberculosis. He didn't want to be a burden, but he also didn't want to give up. He wanted to give his all for the people in the community. "Dying here is better than dying on a bed." he said as he continues to explore. Shane's heart is very hurt at the sight of his only friend in pain. He wanted to help but there is nothing he could in the darkness. When Jonathan's finally gave out, he takes this chance to give Shane a talk. They talk for hours about their worries, their hardship, their suffering, and their accomplishments. Jonathan felt pity on himself that he is gonna die in a place like there. Shane is crying. All he could do is watch his friend's life expire. Ever since then, after Shane came back alone, he is never the same Shane McBell. He turned into an entirely different person. Even Lisa who was friends with Shane knew. The deaths can change a person for the better or for worse. There are three physical deaths, one spiritual death, and one psychological death in this group.

If this is not a detailed story of how a group dissolved, I don't even know how much more detailed you want it to be. The concept of death in this part is obviously the death of Shane's group. Thank you for reading.

Yellow looks at the courses, opting for the hardest one. He starts onto the course, jumping from step to step. He successfully pulls himself up the wall that follows. Pushing off from the wall, Yellow reaches for the hanging rope. His hands grab the rope, but slip. The worn rope slides from his grasp, and he falls to the ground with a thud. He lays for a second, then looks up at the rope. "Huh," he thinks aloud at a mumble.

Every chapters are written with concepts. What should be written? What will be the story? If you see me, you know my concept is death. Death of characters in Instinct. After all, I mentioned being the bearer of the death flag. I am not such a great writer to create elaborate deaths. And I am not courageous enough to write more brutally and detailed death. Maybe that is why I am stuck in the darkness. I am too afraid to see the dark. Everytime I go further, the chills in my soul grew colder. I am not a therapist, but a storyteller. I may not be the best one, but still I bring the grave news.

Natalia Iggy, a woman in her late 30s, managed to create healthcare for the community with the help of the Snake Group. She was once a renowned doctor with exceptional surgical skills. Even with limited tools, she managed to save tons of people with her ability. However, this brought envy to her fellow competitors. In the community, when there is light, there is also shadow. You get what I am talking about here. And you know what will come. Natalia Iggy, was assassinated. No one knows who could have killed Natalia for her abilities are too important for the community. The killers disregarded about that fact and caused a tension inside the community. Everyone forgot about the fact that the people in the community are desperate people. Everything can happen if you are desperate enough.

Same goes for Steward Jazzy. He was a popular leader who have many successful runs in the darkness. His team had 90% survival rate with him being the lead. He became an important member of the Beckel Group but something happened to him. You see, in one of his run, he was betrayed by a false member when he stabbed him in the back when no one was looking. He was lucky to be alive there, but being alone in the dark made Steward lose his composure. He tried to look for his people before he realized what fate they had come upon. The stench of blood and flesh engulfed the air, causing a nauseous feeling. He failed to return to the community with the others. This is the first failure he achieved. Ever since then, Steward is nowhere to be seen. But reports show some zones that were mysteriously explored and marked by a Beckel Group member but none of the Beckel Group knows about this. Other reports talk about a mysterious hooded man saving everyone for being backstabbed by personally killing the backstabbers. Everyone became afraid of this mysterious man who seemingly resembles the Death God in that darkness, Cedric Tatsumaki.

Speaking of Cedric, there was a woman who is very obsessed of his very existence. That woman is Porche Esmeralda. She was once a private investigator, and mysteries are her hobbies to complete. Ever since she was in this world of darkness, she heard about the exploits of the Death God. She wonders what reason Cedric began killing all the people he met without remorse. Is he mentally insane to begin with? Is he a psychopath? Is he a serial killer? As more killings emerge from the Death God killings, Esmeralda became more obsessed to finding out Cedric's motive. Her mission will never be ever completed by her, as she passed away when an arrow struck her neck when she unknowingly stepped on a trap inside a crypt.

Well, we have our player Yellow, who just fell on the soft pad below when he slipped from a worn rope. The supervisor, Kenneth Ordon shakes his head and lend his hand to Yellow. His words are, "Though you do have the skills to traverse through the maze, I see that you've manage to pass above the quarter of the course. You need to train your body more if you want to survive. It is a suicide to explore the maze without preparation, you hear?" In his tone, Kenneth is quite responsible. Though he expressed his unsatisfaction, he urges Yellow to train more.

Do you know the genre Fantasy? There are alot of description about fantasy with the key definition of having magic or based on imagination. Fantasy complements to every genre. How so? Because we apply our own understanding of magic or what makes it special. You guys had read my previous threads that have fantasy in them. Seemingly enough, though this thread is about dark fantasy, it is also just the same as the others that I created. Everyone has their different fantasies, whether it came from real life experience or vivid dream.

People that are old in this world of darkness lost their hope. But they are alive. Why are they? It is because when new generation of survivors come to this world, their spirits lift up and they get the urge to become responsible adults. They are well adapted to change and they are the people used to the dark. Even new lives are born in here by people that cherished their lives. New families strive to create a safe community for their children. And hence, they did create and expand their safe zones through the darkness. Quite poetic doesn't it? Though the darkness kept on trampling the people's will, their embers in their heart burns brightly to shine. It is some sort of chain reaction where smaller flames get bigger and bigger as they spread in numbers. You may be quite confused as to why I wrote something like this when I was suppose to write death flags. This writing is just for my sanity that will inspire my mentality. I am not like the other writers who are very good at writing dark stories. But I still write this because I find it fun and thrilling. After all, I am exploring this mysterious darkness myself.

I am adding a little note here:
Why am I writing like this?