Project: Death for Classroom Zero

Chapter 21: The Nest of Titan Arums

Tristan was quietly walking along with Rain under the shades of colorful plants. They were growing on fertile land, that is why as big as the tree is the growth of the plants which should have just been below waist of its usual height. 

Warily, they both were taking silent steps that would not bother or disturb any plants, harmful or not, from their slumbers. 

“This forest is kinda weird,” said Tristan. He was looking above, at the top of those giant plants, looking amused with its peculiar shapes and sizes. 

“Everything’s weird here, you should note that,” replied Rain. She was crouching on the ground. There was a species of grass laying on the ground that made her curious.

“I  know that. It’s just that… this is the first time I’ve seen something like this.” 

“You said that earlier, at the valley of the flowers.” 

Tristan laughed in silent whispers. “Really?” he asked, bewildered.

“You’re weird to enjoy these ‘beautiful’ places while also knowing that we’re inside a deadly place.” 

“Really, I just can’t help myself seeing this place as beautiful. But I don't also forget how dire and deadly this place is.” 

There was a pungent smell that slapped on Tristan’s nose soon after he said those words. Something a strong smell entered his nose and disturbed his insides. It was as if he was smelling a rotten dead body, thrown in the middle of a forest.

He immediately looked at Rain. Having Rain smell the same foul odor, she looked back at Tristan. They knew that it was the same malodorous scent they smell brought by the wind. But there was no wind that dragged the smell to them. The fettered surrounding is free from wind, and even from chaos. 

“Rain, this odor ...” 

Rain nodded to him, and said, “No wind dragging the fetid smell. I think we're close.” 

Feeling the excitement and fear from the conclusion, Rain and Tristan continued travelling. Tristan’s chest was pounding hard as he came to a thought that finally … they will be able to find the Titan Arum.

He was not sure however if they would encounter another problem. Another fear. They know that there will be, but they opt to wish, and hope, and pray … that horrors will leave them. 

That is a highly unlikely chance. But he wished. 

It was unfortunate however, that they won’t be able to quicken the pace of their movements. Despite the thrill and excitement, they were wise enough to be still and wary of the surroundings. 

Devil’s Traps are everywhere, appearing in a most unexpected time.

“I have a question.” 

Feeling the uncomfortable silence, Tristan jolted when Rain suddenly talked. “Wh—what is it?” he asked. 

“About earlier. Venus Fly Trap.” 

Hearing the name of the plant, Tristan suddenly remembered the horror of how two of their classmates being eaten by those creatures. By a specie of plant that eats human meat, instead of flies or insects. 

“What about it?” he asked grimly. 

“How did you know it.”

“About?” 

“The don’t move scheme. The motion sensor of those plants. The throwing of the wood that makes their mouth shut. The direction where to go?” 

Tristan fell silent. Instantly, he remembered the picture of those pixelated texts he was looking at … reading at … which gave him the clues. 

Those pixelated texts which were connected to the card he had received that tells the words ‘see you’. 

He knew then, that somehow, someone was looking at him. Watching him. From the dark. 

“Nothing. I just … I just realized that it was like that.” 

“How?” 

Tristan secretly swallowed the drying saliva on his tongue. He looked at his left side. He felt utter consciousness in his surroundings as if there were sets of eyes looking at him. Glaring like a predator. 

“Well… I—It was actually just an intuition. A guess. I realized that those human-eating Venus Fly traps suddenly appeared from the grass when there were a sudden and fast movement that occurred in the surrounding. Remember that it came out when the partner of the woman who attacked us, had suddenly run and tried to enter this forest before us? And when he was, ugh… eaten, I noticed that the plants were not moving their jaws, not even munching the ugh… body of the man and that woman they had eaten. And then I saw those plants that has not eaten anything still had an opened mouth, ready to snap it to close if food is somewhere near. That’s why I thought that maybe, as they snap-close their jaws, it might take longer before they could open it back again.”

Rain does not reply for a minute. She must be analyzing whether Tristan was telling the truth or not. Finally, after a minute, she said, “Make promise you’re telling me the truth.” 

“Promise.” Tristan raised his right hand, as if a child was giving a promise to his friend. 

It’s better yet not to tell this to anyone first, Tristan thought. 

He decided not to tell what happened to him to anyone yet, because it would surely give him a hard time—he felt that if he opened about the pixelated text clues that appeared on his front, there might be classmates of him who would try to befriend him because of that, or maybe some of them might betray him. Or worse, attempt to kill. 

He wants to keep it secret first. He was not trying to hide it for the sake of his own self. For his comfort. But, he was doing this for his own safety. 

There was another minute of tell-tale silence between Tristan and Rain as they walked in the hue shades of the forest. Rain, with ever dominating aura, was looking straight to the direction that leads them to the pungent smell. While Tristan was looking down; bothered once again with the question of who was the person behind those? Of the card, and of the clues?

Warm wind suddenly blew towards them. With the unbearable smell that has glided through their nose, a pang of gut-flipping sensation punched through their insides. 

The rotten flesh, rotten meat, rotten body scent they were following has become stronger. More terrifying if they would let it freely hurdle inside their lungs. 

Not far from them, Rain noticed an arc of leaves and blooming flowers beautifully creating a portal-like pathway. She hurried her steps, but was still alert to the surroundings. Tristan followed her. 

Now they finally reached the gate of blooming flowers and twisted vines. What welcomed them was not as beautiful as those flowers.

Because they finally reached the nest of the Titan Arum. Ten Titan Arums reaching the peak of their bloom. It was growing in the fields of piled real people, real humans—dead, chopped, skinned, skulled, and … rotting. 

Tristan’s gut broke. Retched. He vomited.