It's true that the phantoms try to avoid the light. That's how we kept them away while we worked on the wall. However-

-The lights have turned into a neon sign pointing out we're here.

Not only that, but the lights doesn't actually kill the phantoms. It seems to just make them lose whatever form they're holding onto, which is why I think they avoid it.

"Are we gonna be able to deal with that?" Tyler asked out loud, addressing both himself and the group.

"Most of them will be distracted by the traps we set up." Ashlyn then stood up, contemplating her next steps.

I spent a month planning every little detail out,

Ashlyn's red hair gently swayed in the wind as she looked down at the group of ghosts with a slightly eerie expression. Y/N leaned back, looking over to see Ashlyn staring at the phantoms. She felt a sense of tension and took a deep breath to calm her nerves, closing her eyes.

And we've run simulations of the plan a million times. The Jeep is the first step to getting us out of this place and we're so close. After we've worked this hard...

...No way I'll let you scare us away.



"And hopefully, we will be ready when they attack us." Y/N said before climbing down from the wall, with the others following suit.

In this strange dimension, she felt like she was questioning her own existence due to the lack of logic. It may sound odd, but she even felt like she wasn't breathing the air. It was a peculiar sensation, to say the least. As she descended the wall, she had to first step onto the top of a school bus and then climb down a ladder to reach the ground. In those fleeting moments, she felt as though she had entered a fantasy world, but deep down she knew this was reality, not a fantasy. It was a nightmarish place, teeming with deadly creatures that sought to kill them every day. They had to rely on their survival skills from the real world to make it through. It was exhausting to the point where she just felt drained.

However, she didn't want that to hinder her. Her freedom was so close, and she didn't want to waste it by feeling mentally exhausted, even though that was a challenge for her. Even though she was struggling with exhaustion, she knew she couldn't give up now, especially when they had come so far.

"Alright, let's go over the plan one more time." Ashlyn was waiting for the others to catch themselves when a nervous voice interrupted her.

"...um- are we uh- are we sure we want to do this?" Taylor hesitated, expressing some doubts about the plan, even though everything was already prepared and ready.

"...what?" Ashlyn was taken aback by the question and seemed genuinely confused by the reply.

"I mean- y'know, m-maybe just staying in the graveyard every night wouldn't be... so bad, right? Especially with the lights up... couldn't we just hide here? Till the seven hours are up."

Logan responded, "I-I like that idea..."

"Are you serious...?" she asked in disbelief. "I thought you guys wanted to get out of here? And now you're saying you don't mind being trapped here for the rest of our lives?" Ashlyn looked at the group, but they remained silent. She turned her head and looked at Tyler. "And you, why are you being so quiet? You're the one who threw a fit wanting to go to Savannah, so why are you so passive about it now?" He flinched, knowing she was directing that comment towards him.

Tyler then argued back, annoyed. "That was before we knew about the light and before there was a horde of those things right outside the door!I'm not saying we should stop trying to find a way out- just maybe not with this particular plan. We don't even really need guns anymore, right?"

"And you chose now to bring this up? Now?!" She pushed her hair back, clearly showing her annoyance at hearing this at the last minute. "After all the prepping, the training, the sneaking around traps, and right before we actually do something, you want to back out?"

"There's to many right now!""

"That's why we have the traps!"

Y/N was left stunned as she listened to the argument. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. 'No, no, no, no, no... This can't be happening,' Y/N thought, clenching her fist in anger.

"No." The redhead turned around, trying to calm herself. "NO!" She then faced the group and said, "I'm getting that jeep. Even if we decide we don't need guns, we'll eventually need to go out there and learn how the place works so we can find a way out. That's what we agreed on!" She exclaimed.



"Hey, Ash... maybe you should-" Aiden tried to intervene, but his efforts were unsuccessful.

Ashlyn shouted in frustration, "Don't tell me what I should do!" Her outburst startled him as she turned to face him. "If you hadn't been so persistent in bothering me, I never would have gone to Savannah and none of this would have ever happened. You keep pushing my boundaries and I'm tired of it!"

Tyler – "Why are you so worked up?!"

Ashlyn – "Because we're ready now, but if something goes wrong in the future because I let us wait and not take initiative, it'd be my fault as leader."

Some of the others stood there awkwardly, watching as the two argued. Aiden noticed that Y/N had gone quiet and became worried. He checked on her and saw her looking down with her hands clenched together. Her breathing was becoming labored and she felt a burning sensation in her chest. The feeling was overwhelming, suffocating, and painful. She felt like she couldn't hold it in much longer.

"Yeah well no one said you had to be 'leader', you did that on your own!"

"Who else was going to do it?! I've been hearing those monsters all my life so apparently I have some werid connection to this place! This all happened when the phantom grabbed me, and I didn't say anything about it." Ashlyn's voice grew louder as she started to vent out her anger.

"I don't think it's entirely my fault, I'm just as confused and scared as you all are. But I'm the best suited to take 'responsibility' for what's happening, right?! To try and find a way out of this mess and protect you guys at the same time!" After expressing all her thoughts, she attempted to calm her breathing, which had become quite heavy.

Everything became quiet, no one dared to speak. In the middle of it all, Y/N was still attempting to control her emotions following Ashlyn's speech, but she couldn't keep them in any longer.

"You can't be serious," Y/N mumbled, the first to speak up and catching the group's attention. As she slowly raised her head, everyone noticed the change in her voice. "We did not just spend a week - no, a few weeks - getting everything ready for this moment, and now you're telling me you guys want to back down because of those things! Haven't we already been through hell already, so what's the difference now? You said it yourself."

Everyone, including Ashlyn, was stunned. Though they all understood the situation, no one dared to speak, not even Ashlyn. Tyler initially wanted to argue but soon realized that Y/N was correct.

"Don't even try to deny it," she said, narrowing her eyes. "Ashlyn is right. After all the times of wanting to rush through everything and hurry over to Savannah, you suddenly don't want to. This is ridiculous! Where is all the confidence?"

Tyler couldn't say anything, all he did was lower his head and clench his fist, showing a sigh of annoyance. Some in the group wanted to reach out and calm her down, but they knew there were certain things that needed to be said for progress to be made. Y/N could feel her throat starting to feel dry as she struggled to catch her breath due to her frustration. Doubts and concerns were swirling around the group's minds, and they all wanted the same thing - to be free. Sensing the tension, Y/N noticed the worry in some of their eyes and decided to try to ease the situation.

She sighed and continued speaking in a much softer tone. "I know it's never been easy for us, and I understand that you all are scared, frustrated, and stressed because of everything that's going on. I am too. But honestly, what scares me the most is not being able to get my life back. I might never admit it out loud, but..." Her voice cracked slightly as she fought back tears. "I love them, and I want to see them again without the stress of dealing with all of this and without them worrying about me too much. I just miss them. I miss my dad, I care about him. I want him to keep waking me up every morning, telling me that breakfast is ready downstairs, and listening to him talk with my grandparents. Even though it can get boring at times, at least I'll be there."

Y/N found herself thinking about her dad and the memories they used to share. She realized it had been a long time since they had spent time together. When everything fell apart in her life when she was young, it really affected her. She didn't feel like herself anymore and started to avoid spending time with her dad. Now, she wants to feel joy, laughter, and have fun again. For the first time in a while, she wants to spend time with her caring and loving dad.

She felt her head droop slightly as she thought about it, tears starting to well up in her eyes, but she remained strong.

"I really want to just walk away from this, but I can't. Not when it means we could have our old lives back." Y/N lifted her head, a sense of determination creeping in. "Don't you all want that? To have everything back to how it used to be, to finally feel at ease without constantly worrying about our lives. I've spent countless hours pondering when I can escape this terrible nightmare, but knowing there's still a chance is something we can't afford to ignore. If we don't take action now, we may never find a solution. So, it's either we stick to the plan, or we all remain here living our most miserable existence."

Her kind words once again resonated with them, even though it may not have seemed like it, she was offering them hope. She hoped that this would reignite their determination to keep going and keep living. Despite her own doubts about moving forward, she didn't want to miss this opportunity, especially after how far they had come and all they had been through together as a team. They were the ones who gave her strength to keep going. She didn't want them to lose hope after everything they had endured.

Ashlyn, as a great team leader, had guided them through challenges, made plans, and helped them see that they needed to push forward to survive and not let their fears hold them back. Y/N wanted to reciprocate that support and boost their spirits. Even though she was afraid, she wanted to maintain a positive attitude like Ashlyn. She wanted to demonstrate her own strength and, despite not being a natural leader, she wanted to motivate them.

Currently, the silence lingers. Even after everything, Y/N questioned whether their efforts were enough to ease the group's fear. However, doubt still seemed to linger in some eyes.

Y/N sighed, 'Well... I guess I'm not great at giving motivational speeches. What can you expect from an introverted girl who has been inside her house most of her life? At least I gave it a shot.' Her shoulders slouched slightly as she glanced to the side in despair of her attempt. However, just when she thought everything was futile, a kind soul descended from the heavens and spoke up.

Taylor – "I'm sorry."

"I didn't realize you were taking on so much pressure on your own. And your right… I don't want to be here for the rest of my life. The phantoms are just a fact of this place… No matter how many different plans we come up with, how long we put it off, or how many monsters there are, we'll still have to deal with them and get our hands dirty if we want out. The sooner we face and accept that, the faster we'll get our normal lives back. So forget what I said earlier. I just got a little overwhelmed for a moment." Taylor put her hand on the side of her head, realizing the mistake she had made earlier.

'Ah… so it wasn't all in vain...' Y/N was relieved that they hadn't given up hope of wanting to return home. Just like Y/N, she hoped she wouldn't let her fears take over.

"I still think there's too many out there." Said Tyler.

"Okay, detective, it's not like that's already obvious. But that won't stop me," she said with narrowed eyes as she glanced over at the wall where the phantoms were lurking.

He had a frown on his face because her annoying comments bothered him, but he decided to ignore it by looking away. "But… I suppose you aren't entirely wrong that right now could be our best chance. I'm sure those things will just keep growing in number rather than thin down anyway."

Taylor – "Right?? And Ben and Aiden don't seem opposed to the plan either!"

"Honestly if you guys don't hurry up and countine, I'm going to jump the wall on my own." Aiden smiled casually.



Ben anxiously displayed both of his hands with his thumbs up in response to Taylor's comment.

"Right… Haha." Taylor nervously laughed at that comment, but continued on. "See Ashlyn, we're okay now! Things are back on track. So you don't have to worry about coming up with a new plan or feeling guilty for something that would have been our own choice. Oh and! I'm glad you took lead of the group. Not because I think it's your fault, but because you've always been rational and your plans have already helped us a lot."

Ashlyn's emerald eyes widened in surprise at the sudden burst of positivity.

"Just don't forget to trust us with your thoughts, okay? If we had all talked about how we've been feeling up to this point, then maybe we could've avoided getting overwhelmed on our own. We all have to trust and support each other because that's how teams work, whether you're the 'Leader' or not."