Horror Jigsaw Puzzle Novels & Stories

I nodded, trying to steady my voice. “Last night was Halloween. Our boss, William Zoo, booked out a rural horror-themed escape room. He said anyone who made it through without screaming would get ten thousand. “There were nine of us. After we went in…” I went through everything—the layout, mechanisms, and performance of the scarecrow character with the oversized pumpkin head. He didn’t move, just listened in silence. “You said the pumpkin-headed character chased you with a chainsaw?” “Yes. It was incredibly loud, just this constant buzzing.”

Blood, a stark and unwelcome guest, splattered across the floor and walls, a macabre tapestry of fear. Fear, raw and unyielding, gripped my heart in its icy embrace. Jenny, missing in a sea of scarlet. Panic clawed at the edges of my mind, threatening to consume me whole. Questions swirled like a tempest in my thoughts Who would dare to harm her? Why would they do such a heinous act?

Lower jaw unhinging and falling away, face split virtually in half, his maw gaped nightmarishly open so that the wanderers could come— Spiders spilled from him, pouring from the grotesque orifice as though being forced out from deep within. The cinnamon-haired girl’s eyes flew open in mortal dread, her whimpers rising into high, jerking stifled screams which caught in the back of her throat. The long-legged things scurried over the doomed teenager, swaying back and forth upon her before striking with frothy fangs.

the giant screen glitched, and a haunting scream echoed from within the screen. Willa’s eyes widened as fear gripped her. Her eyes stared in horror as Kimberly’s body fell apart, one piece after another. First, the puppets grabbed her leg, then her hands, pulling until it separated from the rest of her body. Blood spilled... tainting the marble floor.

Or maybe it was the terrifying pictures that hung down the walls that were the cause of the quiver running down my spine. On both sides of the foyer hung several pictures of demons, vampires and monsters. I bit my nails while I studied the pictures even though they unsettled me. I guessed at least half of the pictures were from the 1500s The first portrait that caught my attention featured a very tall, grey skeleton-like man who was holding several sharp objects in his hands. The skeleton man had worms and maggots in his belly and body, and his dead skin was hanging off his bones like worn-out rags.

I was in the wrong game? This was a horror game, not an otome romance? In just a few seconds, every strange detail suddenly made sense.

Not the simple hunting knives of Lunaris, but sleek, black guns, glinting menacingly in the dim light filtering from the hallway. Knives of all shapes and sizes, some with serrated edges that make my stomach churn. And then, a chainsaw, its metal teeth looking sharp and deadly. My gaze drifts to another shelf, and I freeze. Jars. Glass jars filled with… something. My heart pounds in my chest as I take a tentative step closer. Eyeballs. That’s what they look like. Pale, lifeless orbs staring blankly into the void. And smaller jars filled with what appear to be… fingers.

Under the blazing sun, the party walked for an entire half hour before arriving at the village square. "Is this a stone altar?" "Aren't altars par for the course when it comes to myths about the sea? What's there to be surprised about?" The party discussed amongst themselves carefully, before Afro exclaimed, "Wait, that altar isn't made of stones, it's made of human skulls! Wasn't this supposed to just be an A-ranked dungeon? How did so many people die here?" At the center of the square stood a massive watchtower built entirely from human bones.

Staring straight into those two bloody holes, their sanity plummeted. "Who ate my eyeball-popping candy? I'm taking an eye for an eye!" She slowly extended her hand. The player in front of her lost control, watching in terror as his own hand reached toward his eyes. The next instant, furious howling echoed again from behind. "My spicy human jerky!" The siren boss appeared at the entrance, carrying a crate of deep-sea treasure. When she saw her carefully ordered jerky trampled like trash, black mist erupted from behind her as she let out a soul-rending screech.

"Shit!" I clung to my Phantom Scooter's half-dead handlebars, flying over a hallway smeared with who-knows-what slime. Dashboard screamed in blood-red: 00:59. A literal death timer. "Overtime termination! Terminate my ass!" I roasted the system six ways to hell and floored it like I was chasing a warp zone. Third floor. Haunted High. The emergency lights flickered puke green over a ghost girl brushing her hair, back turned, dress in tatters.