Skizim

The first body disappeared before dawn. By sunrise, the blood was gone. Only one thing remained. A single word, carved into the old stone beneath Bellmore Academy's century-old bell. SKIZIM. No fingerprints. No footprints. No witnesses. Just silence. The school dismissed it as vandalism. The police called it a hoax. The students whispered a different story. "The bell has chosen again." For years, Bellmore Academy had been known for producing prodigies, champions, and future leaders. To the outside world, it was the perfect school. Inside its walls... Students obeyed rules no teacher had ever written. Never answer three knocks after midnight. Never enter the abandoned east wing. And if the school bell rings at exactly 11:59 p.m... Run. Because someone always disappears. Rain poured relentlessly over the empty campus. A lone girl sprinted across the courtyard, clutching a weathered leather journal tightly against her chest. Her uniform was soaked, her breathing ragged, and fear clouded her tear-filled eyes. "They can't have it..." She glanced behind. No one. Yet she could still hear footsteps. Slow. Measured. Following. She burst into the abandoned library and slammed the doors shut. Silence. Her trembling hands opened the journal. Every page was covered in names. Some crossed out. Some circled. One name remained untouched. Kai Arden. Her eyes widened. "They found him..." A cold breeze swept through the room. The lights flickered. Then every clock inside the library stopped. 11:59 p.m. The ancient school bell rang. Once. The girl's heartbeat froze. A shadow stretched across the floor toward her, though nothing stood behind her. A whisper drifted through the darkness. "You were never supposed to read it." The journal slipped from her shaking hands. Its pages scattered across the floor. One page landed face-up. On it was a photograph of six smiling students. Someone had scratched out every face... ...except one. The smile belonged to the boy who would arrive at Bellmore Academy the next morning. Kai Arden. Before the girl could scream— The lights went out. When they returned seconds later... She was gone. Only the journal remained. On its final page, written in fresh blood, were six chilling words. "The game begins when he arrives."