A JSE Fanfic
Part Three: The Studio
[This is part of a small ten-part series I wrote for Halloween 2019. There's a new villain in town, and Jackieboy is on his list. Jackie arrives at the location specified by the puzzles, and finds one of his friends.]
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Jackie was out of breath when he finally arrived at the studio, a stitch digging into his side. He stumbled to a stop, leaning against the nearest wall to recover. Just because he COULD run for a long time didn’t mean he felt good afterward. He should’ve taken this at a jogging pace, but time was of the essence.
After allowing himself a long break, Jackie straightened, clasping the box with the laptop to his chest and looking around. Of course, it was dark. Because the city didn’t pay to install lights in an area that was only valued for its history. So Jackie had no idea if film studios looked anything like he thought they did. But the large buildings did almost resemble warehouses, and that was something he understood. Now. Which building to search first? Jackie figured he might as well start with the nearest one.
And then when he opened the door to the nearest one and started to walk into the darkness, he ran into a plastic wrap strung across the doorway like it was a prank video. He scowled, then took a step back to read the note taped to the plastic. "Not this one!" it read in typed letters. "Next one over –>"
Welp. At least this guy had a sense of humor. Though Jackie suspected that sense of humor was more warped than it first appeared.
The next studio had its lights on, blinding Jackie to the point where he had to blink for a moment to get used to it. The studio was nothing but a wide, empty room. Vintage lights and other old-fashioned filming equipment were scattered about, probably for tours. What clearly wasn’t for tours were the bright red arrows painted on the floor, twisting around the equipment and leading down a hallway. Words were also painted on the floor, clearly written with use of a stencil. THIS WAY JACKIEBOY, the floor read. Jackie scowled, but he had to admit he appreciated the help.
He followed the arrows cautiously, almost afraid of what he’d find at the end of the trail. He’d been deliberately avoiding thinking about the aim of the game, but now it was twisting his stomach in knots. What state would the others be in when he found them? What if they were hurt? If this sick gamemaster did anything to them Jackie was going to track him down and fucking beat the shit out of him.
The arrows stopped at a discreet door down the hall, indistinguishable from all the doors around it. Jackie had no idea what these rooms were originally used for but it really didn’t matter. There was another typed note taped to the door: "I’d tell you to knock, but it’s not like he’d be able to tell you he was inside."
“Oh, you absolute bastard,” Jackie muttered furiously. “That’s not something you fucking joke—why am I talking to myself?!” He grabbed the door handle and tried twisting it open, only for it to stop suddenly. Jackie swore his heart stopped too. He jiggled it, but it wouldn’t turn further. “Jameson? JJ?” Jackie raised his voice, yelling through the door. “If you’re inside, I’m here! It’s fine!” He stopped trying to turn the handle and instead kicked the spot on the door right under it. He growled and set the box with the laptop on the ground. Then he grabbed the handle again and turned it at the exact moment he shoved his shoulder against the door, throwing all his weight against it.
The door immediately gave way, and Jackie fell flat on his face. Scrambling to his feet, Jackie turned his head on a pivot as he looked around the small room. It was stuffed with racks of costumes and accessories, a clash of colors in the yellow electric light. Hidden among the costumes was a chair, and tied to the chair was a familiar face.
“Jameson!” Jackie crossed the room in just a few bounds, skidding to a halt next to the chair. Jameson immediately tensed. There was a black cloth blindfold tied around his eyes, and though he seemed to recognize Jackie’s voice, he was also wary. “Hang on, hang on, I-I’m getting you out of here,” Jackie said as soothingly as possible, pulling at the blindfold. The knot was tight, so he pulled the cloth itself off until it hung around Jameson’s neck.
Jameson squeezed his eyes shut immediately. “Hey, it’s okay, you’re okay.” Jackie took a moment to place his hands on Jameson’s shoulders, an anchor to the rest of the world. “We’re gonna get out of here.” How long had he been here already? It had to be a few hours at least, right? Fuck.
After a few moments, Jameson opened his eyes, blinking and squinting at the sudden light. With his hands bound behind his back, he couldn’t speak, but Jackie could read questions in his eyes. What’s happening? Where are we? What about the others? “Don’t worry, I’ll explain everything,” Jackie said, a tired smile on his face. “Or, as much as I know.”
Jackie rushed out the explanation while wrestling with the ropes around Jameson’s wrists and ankles. By the time he finished untying him, Jameson was basically caught up. “And so now there’s…uh, four and a half hours left to find everyone else,” Jackie finished.
JJ was taking this surprisingly well. Or at least, if he was freaking out, he was doing so internally. 'Alright, I believe I understand,' he signed. 'But what do we do next?'
“I, uh, don’t know,” Jackie admitted. He pulled JJ to his feet, bracing himself as JJ stumbled a bit, falling against him.
There was a sudden high-pitched whining sound, followed by a crackling. “Maybe you should check your email.” It was the gamemaster’s voice, sounding tinny and small.
Jackie jumped, looking around. “Intercom,” he muttered, then raised his voice. “You’re not going to give us any sort of explanation, are you?”
“You know for what it’s worth, you’re going faster than I thought you would be. You might even have time to spare.”
“Gee, thanks.”
JJ frowned. 'I don’t suppose there’s a reward for being ahead of the curve, is there?'
For a moment, the intercom crackled. “Okay, I’m going to be honest with you, I’ve been trying to study ASL and BSL but it’s going pretty slow and I have no idea what you just said.”
JJ sighed, then made a gesture that most definitely was not sign language.
“Wow, okay, no need for that.”
“You know I actually think there is a need for it, you kidnapping freak,” Jackie remarked. He held up a hand. JJ high-fived it.
More intercom crackling. “Well anyway, I hope you didn’t break that laptop when you dropped it, because you’re going to need it. Check your email. You’re going to love this next set. You ever play Until Dawn? It’s a good game, a little cheesy, but fun.”
Jackie blinked. “Okay…?” He had played it, but not in a while. So if this puzzle set was composed of references to that game, he wasn’t going to get it without research.
“Oh, and I’ll remind you that the timer is still counting down. It’s currently 1:38am. That gives you four hours and thirty-two minutes to solve the other three sets. Good luck.” And there was a click, and the intercom shut off.
Jackie exhaled slowly. He fought the urge to sit down in the room’s single chair. Keep going. Find the other three. He could do this.
There was a hand on his shoulder. Jackie started, then looked over at JJ, who gave him an encouraging smile, accompanied by a mustache waggle. Jackie laughed. “Alright. You and me, buddy. We got to get to the others. Now come on. I don’t want to spend any more time in this place than I have to.”