"It... I-It's a s-sacrifice puzzle."
"What the heck is that!? Is this some kind of joke to you!? Sacrifice what!?" Lysandra had lost her composure at this point. She hadn't expected her life to be in so much danger without even fighting anything!
"Well, I've read about these before. Someone will have to stay in the western room while we spin it. It's likely that the puzzle wants..... blood." Curt stopped and gulped several times, trying to quell the nervousness in his voice. "There is a chance, however, that it connects to another room once spun to a different entrance." Curt sighed deeply. "Someone goes in, either way they won't be there when we rotate all the way around. They will have been killed by the puzzle, or they will have had to take another exit."
"How do we know if they died or went another way!?" Lysandra exclaimed in panic.
Curt stood there for a moment and pointed upwards with a sad look. "That's how we'll know."
The room was indeed circular like the rest, but instead of a dome ceiling, it was covered in spikes of varying sizes and shapes, all made of a sharp dark metal.
Essentially, what Curt was saying to the group was that during the rotation of the western room, at some point before coming all the way around, the ceiling would descend, killing anyone or anything inside. There were two possible reasons for this, to force the person inside to take the route leading another direction instead of being able to spin all the way around, or there was no way out, and the door they had seen before needed a blood sacrifice to be opened. They had no idea which it could be, and even if there was an escape, they had no idea where it would lead.
Everyone was silent again, this time, Trevor spoke up. "I'll go, Niss risked it the first time." He looked at Niss with a hint of a smile. "It's only right. I'm supposed to be the one protecting you guys anyways." He laughed, but it wasn't his normal hearty and loud laugh.
"Trevor..." Niss began to speak.
"Niss, no. I know you would do it, but I can't let you have all the glory around here." Trevor motioned at the group. "Now scram, go pull the damn lever."
Siarra gave Trevor a big, long hug before heading to the center. Niss hugged him as well, they had grown close over the past few weeks.
"I'll be waiting for you. We aren't leaving the dungeon without you."
"Thanks, Niss..."
With most of the group standing in the center, Niss took responsibility for pulling the eastern lever that would determine Trevor's fate.
...Creeeeaakkkkkk....
The sound of the stones rumbling and turning slowly echoed, feeling more ominous now that they all knew what was happening.
Trevor slowly slid out of view as the room spun.
'I'll wait a moment between pulls. That way, if he has an escape he can make it in time.'
'I might kill Trevor with one of these pulls.'
'That's so messed up.'
Niss pulled the lever again. The same sound echoed, and the room slowly turned.
'Is he dead? I feel like he isn't....'
'What does it feel like, to kill your friend?'
Niss started to panic a little bit, he didn't like this feeling of having no control.
'Two more pulls.'
Niss pulled the lever again. The group in the center room was so silent that the only sound was the rocks sliding against each other.
SHING!!!!!
The group heard a sharp slicing sound as if the ceiling had truly fallen down to impale whatever was in the room!
'Oh shit, oh shit.'
Niss pulled the lever again to bring the opening back around to the center.
'Noo.....'
'Noo....'
"TREVOR?"
The group saw puddles of blood, and pieces of Trevor's body were stuck to the spikes.
Curt collapsed to the floor, passing out from the gruesome sight.
Lysandra covered her mouth and eyes, trying not to vomit.
Siarra stared in disbelief, along with Niss.
'It really was a sacrifice....'
...
Trevor's POV:
The stone sliding away from the opening left a strange feeling in Trevor's chest. He felt he might be looking at his friends for the last time.
.....Creeaakkkk....
The first turn happened and Trevor was still fine, standing close to the middle of the room.
...Creeaaakkk.....
Second lever pull.
....Snap....Snap...Snap...
'Uhgg, what the fuck!?'
'It's raining blood.'
Trevor looked around for any way out. He knew things looked bad for him with all this blood suddenly raining down on him.
.....Creaakkkkk...
....Snap....
Suddenly, warm light shone in from an opening in the wall.
'YES! I'm gonna make it!'
'I thought I was done for!'
....SNAP!!!!.....
Just as Trevor was making a mad dash for the opening, the ceiling of spikes ripped loose and started flying down to crush him.
'Come on, body!'
'GO!'
SHING!!!!!!
'Ha! I'm not done yet! Trevor Thorne is alive, baby!'
....Creeaakkkk...
Final lever pull.
Trevor had tucked and rolled at the last moment into the opening that shone with a warm green light. Standing up, wiping the blood from his face, Trevor looked around. It was a small room, much smaller and this time rectangular, with only one thing present. There was a small pillar of stone rising up from the floor, and sitting atop it was a black stone cube giving off a small hum and green light.
'Wait.... How am I supposed to get out of here?'
...
Niss was shaking with anger.
'I killed my friend... I knew it was a risk, but is the world really that cruel? Did someone like Trevor deserve to die? Of course not! Why is this happening?'
Overwhelmed, Niss couldn't bear to look at the puddles of blood. Pulling the lever again.
'Stupid dungeon! Why can't we just fight! Why do you make it impossible for us all to live!'
Niss was pissed. He lost his cool for the first time in a long time. He let out screams of pain for the loss of his friend. Yanking hard on the lever and spouting obscenities at it, he wailed on it for a minute before giving it a final kick.
'Damn thing, how am I supposed to face the others when I just caused Trevor to die!'
Wrapped up in pain and rage, Niss hadn't noticed how many times he had pulled the lever.
....
"So, is someone gonna fill me in on why we're all crying?"
The loud and familiar voice echoed in the central room, canceling out all the little sobs.
"TREVOR!?"
"TREVOR!?"
"TREVOR!?"
"TREVOR!?"