Trenton

We walked into the shady prison of Alcatraz, looking for places that the note could be hidden. We were walking with a tour group, and the guide was speaking loud enough for me to listen for anything that could help us.

“The prison of Alcatraz was built for the baddest of the bad. That’s why it’s on an island- so no one can escape. Except for two. Two prisoners escaped by building a boat out of coats and rubber. They dug a hole after placing disguises in their beds.” That sounded promising.

“Hey guys,” I whispered. “Let’s check the escapee’s prison cell. It sounded promising.” We entered the cell where the two escapees were held until they escaped. We looked around, but to our dismay, there was nothing there. We sat down and tried to decide what to do next.

“Where could it be?” Dawson asked.

“It could be anywhere in this large prison,” Megan said. “This place is huge. It would take weeks just to search in every cell.”

“No,” I said. “It’s in this cell. I can feel it. This prison is dark and mysterious. People wanted to escape. These prisoners in this cell in particular. Maybe Slenderman was after them.”

“The tunnel!” Serena suddenly exclaimed. “What if it’s hidden in the tunnel they dug to escape?” We moved the bed off to the side and, sure enough, the tunnel was there.

“Okay. Who wants to go into the dark spooky tunnel?” Dawson asked.

“I will,” Serena and I said in unison.

“I’m going,” I tell her. “You can’t stop me.”

“Okay. If you insist.” I squirm my way into the tight tunnel and click on my flashlight. I look around and see nothing.

“Anything?” someone calls from above.

“I don’t see anything,” I reply. “I’m going deeper in.” I keep wriggling deeper and deeper into the hole, when suddenly I see something glimmering in front of me. I reach out my hand grasps a thin sheet of parchment. I shine my light on it. It says “LEAVE ME ALONE”. A small tree stands off to the side of the note.

“Found it!” I call back to my friends. I crawl back to the cell and show them.

Megan suddenly says, “What if the prisoners weren’t trying to escape the prison, but the Slenderman. What if he’s still here looking for them?” Realization of what she’s saying dawns on us, and we instantly become more wary. We’re about to leave, when Kylie starts screaming and thrashing around.

“What’s wrong?!” I ask, terrified.

“HE’S COMING! HE KNOWS WE’RE HERE AND HE’S COMING RIGHT NOW!” she screams at me. We rush out of the cell, but I see Megan grab a piece of broken glass lying on the ground. I think nothing of it and rush out with the others. Nobody is on Alcatraz anymore, which I find odd, but I suddenly feel dread creeping down my spine. I spin around to see the Slenderman right behind us. I yell for the rest of us to keep running faster, and then I remind them not to look at him. When I looked back again, he was farther behind and I realized he gave up pursuit. We all stop, and, being careful not to look at the Slenderman, look around to see where we are. Megan, however, stares directly at him, holding the piece of glass over her eyes.

“Megan,” I say. “What are you doing?!”

“I’ve played Slender a lot. One time, I grabbed a note by the red car and turned around. He was standing behind the car, so I could see him through the window. Except the screen didn’t fill up with static. Glass keeps him from killing you with a stare.” Although Slender wasn’t moving toward us, I got an unsettling feeling. I heard a shuffling sound coming from the fog enveloping the Slenderman. I saw two figures scuttling across the floor. When they emerged from the mist, I could see that they were dirty and bedraggled. I saw that they were wearing bright orange jumpsuits like the ones prisoners wear. They were moving with a weird gait, as though they had heavy weights chained to their feet. They looked like zombie prisoners. When I looked in their eyes, there was a milky film fogging up their eyes.

“WHAT ARE THOSE?!” Kylie screamed.

“I don’t know,” I yelled back, “but they can’t be good. Everyone run!” We scrambled to exit the prison, and in the scuffle, Megan tripped and fell. She skinned her knee, and blood started gushing out. The zombies immediately perked up and started running towards Megan. She screamed and tried to get up, but kept collapsing in the growing pile of blood. The zombies surrounded her and pounced on her like lions making a kill. Serena screamed behind me and started running toward Megan, but I yelled for Kylie and Dawson to take her away. They grabbed the struggling Serena and pulled her out of the prison into the sunlight. Meanwhile, I ran towards the zombies with a metal pipe I found lying on the ground. I pulled the zombies away from Megan, or what was left of her. I quickly looked away as bile filled my throat. I started beating the zombies, but they had gotten agile.

Like sharks when they smell blood, I think to myself. I knocked out Zombie 1, who seemed to be shorter and less agile, but Zombie 2 grabbed my pipe and crushed it in its hands. I threw my shoe at it and hit it between the eyes, then I ran away. As I was rushing out, I realized the Slenderman had dissipated into mist. As I exited the building, I ran into a stranger, and we fell to the ground.

“Watch where you’re running,” she said to me.

“I need to get off this island with my friends,” I say hurriedly. “Can you help us?”

“Of course I can. I have a boat parked at the dock; we can leave on that.”

“Thank you.” We find Kylie, Dawson, and a sobbing Serena by the docks. I explain the situation, and how to escape. I see that Serena must’ve passed out while I was explaining. We get aboard the boat and speed away. I clutch the page to my heart, knowing that we paid too steep of a price to get it. I resolve to protect my friends with my life. We arrive in San Francisco and the stranger says we can spend the night at her house.

“What’s your name?” I ask inquisitively.

“Quixote Gonzales of the Holy Shamolian Biholean Peninsula in Asia. But you can call me Quixote.”

“Thanks for the rescue back there,” I say. Without explaining too much, I tell her that our lives are in danger. She listens solemnly, and then says that what is hers is ours. We all get tucked into beds, and then everyone falls asleep. Well, not really asleep. Kylie is making a sad noise almost like a whimpering, and Dawson is sniffling. I myself am holding back tears.