"Halo. That's an unusual name," Sara said.

The devil's cold eyes studied her. He sneered. "Give Bentley my regards."

Sara glanced at Erin.

The other girl shrugged.

"Why don't you--" Sara began, turning back around.

But the mysterious boy was gone.

"A-MEN!" Erin said. She attempted to re-braid her hair on the side that had come undone. "That dude was mighty fine."

Sara felt herself smile. "Yeah. But his attitude wasn't."

Erin refastened the rubber band around her braid. "Who cares about his personality? Did you see his rock hard body? And those amazing eyes." Her face took on a dreamy, far-off look.

Sara waved a hand at Erin, clicking her fingers. "You're just boy-crazy."

"Am NOT!" Erin laughed. She attempted to swat Sara's cheek, but missed.

"Whatever. Let's dance," Sara said. She lifted her arms up above her head and let her body sway back and forth to the music. Her thoughts drifted back to the way Bentley had held her on the couch. And how soft and tender his kisses had been. She sighed. If only she knew what he'd tried to tell her. And if only she'd had time to ask him before that Wonder Twin had interfered.

As she held up her arm for Erin to do another spin, the lights suddenly went out in the nightclub.

The pounding music died instantly.

The people around Sara started to murmur in confusion. Others yelled aloud in annoyance.

-"What's the big idea?"

-"Turn the lights back on!"

-"Get off my foot, PUNK!"

-"You get off MY foot, A-hole!"

Sara slowly became aware of how dangerous a crowd this size could be, especially when everyone stood in complete darkness.

Several people pulled out their phones to turn on their flashlights. Given the size of the enormous room, the flashlights did little more than illuminate random faces of people in the beams.

Erin switched on her cellphone flashlight. "What happened?" she whispered.

A voice came over the loudspeaker. "Ladies and Gentlemen. No need to panic."

The crowd quieted, listening intently.

"This Halloween night is a time for celebration. It is also...a time for sacrifice!" The voice let out a deafening maniacal laugh.

Erin started to tremble, causing her flashlight beam to flicker in the darkness.

People around Sara hooted and hollered. They didn't seem afraid at all.

"Now, we ask that everyone, please, put away your cellphones...or face the consequences," the voice growled over the loudspeaker.

"This is GREAT!" a guy shouted.

Flashlights switched back off around the room.

Sara found herself again in complete darkness.

"Sara, I don't like this," Erin said.

Sara giggled. "Good grief, Erin. You're supposed to be the brave one."

Erin snickered. "Darn. I was hoping I'd scare you."

"Not a chance," Sara said. She tried to punch Erin's arm. But since she couldn't see a thing, she wound up accidentally hitting someone else.

"Watch it!" the girl Sara had hit screeched.

"Oops, sorry about that," Sara said. She crossed her arms to avoid hitting anyone else by mistake.

"Touchy, touchy!" Erin hissed to Sara.

Sara snorted, pinching her nose. The last thing she needed right now was a random catfight in the dark.

A clanking sound erupted around the room.

Sara saw a platform begin to rise up from the center of the floor.

People who still stood on the platform quickly jumped down, taking their places among the crowd of onlookers.

"Whoa, neat!" someone yelled.

The platform was now almost twenty feet high. Its width stretched from one side of the room to the other.

A cloaked figure of a Grim Reaper appeared in the dim light on the raised platform. He spoke into a mic.

"We meet at last, humans." The Reaper did another maniacal laugh.

The crowd laughed, too.

"Take a look around," the Reaper said. "As you can see, this large platform I'm standing on has now divided the entire room into two halves."

He waited a beat to allow people to murmur quietly together.

"By now, you should have realized...anyone on the left side of this platform is now cut off from the people on the right side." The Reaper paused, eyeing the nervous expressions of the crowd below him.

"Therefore, I regret to inform you all...only half of you are safe."

Audio recorded sounds of thunder and lightning exploded from hidden speakers around the room.

Sara screamed, immediately feeling foolish at the obvious jump scare.

"We're NOT afraid of YOU!" a boy behind Sara shouted.

The Reaper turned his empty cloaked face towards the boy's voice. "Let's find out how brave you really are," the creature cackled.

Behind the Reaper, a metal cage was lowered from the ceiling. It settled with a bang on the platform.

The Reaper walked towards the cage and opened the small door. He whirled around in a flourish towards the crowd.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! It is now time for me to decide your fate!"

The crowd laughed.

Two slim female figures dressed in skeleton costumes appeared on the platform with the Reaper. Each of the skeletons carried a long sword.

The Reaper raised the mic to his cloaked face. "I would like to introduce you to my two drop dead gorgeous assistants."

The skeleton women bowed.

"On my right and representing the right side of the room, is Agony," the Reaper said.

Agony waved her arms in the air as the crowd around Sara screamed in delight.

"And on the left side, please meet my other lovely assistant, Demise," the Reaper said. "She represents everyone on the other side of the platform."

Demise twirled in a circle for the crowd's applause.

The Reaper paused for effect. "Whichever team wins, that side of the room is safe." He paused. "Whichever team loses, that side is unsafe."

"OUR SIDE IS BETTER! AGONY WILL WIN!" voices around Sara called.

"Yeah, our side ROCKS! GO AGONY!" Erin yelled, jumping up and down.

The Reaper raised his arms for silence. "And now," he said, his voice rising. "My assistants will...FIGHT TO THE DEATH! Let the battle COMMENCE!"

The crowd went wild, stomping their feet and clapping their hands.

The skeleton assistants approached one another, brandishing their sharp swords.

Agony raised her blade and brought it down hard across Demise's shoulder.

Demise screamed in pain as fake blood shot out into the air.

"COME ON, AGONY!" Erin yelled, pumping her fist. She was really getting into this.

Demise quickly retaliated by slicing her blade across one of Agony's arms.

"OOOH!" the crowd around Sara moaned.

Fake blood oozed from Agony's arm, spilling onto the floor and dripping down off the high platform.

People down on the ground below, shrieked. They hastily moved out of the way to avoid the dripping fake blood.

Agony raised her sword. She managed to poke the end of her blade in Demise's costumed leg. More fake blood appeared.

"Almost got her!" Erin said.

"How do we know who wins?" Sara asked.

Erin glanced at Sara. "One of them dies obviously."

Demise fell to her knees on the platform. She clutched her side as if in pain. More fake blood poured out of her wound. That blood was clearly for show for all the guys in the room.

The crowd on the other side of the platform yelled eagerly. "COME ON, DEMISE. GET UP. GO GET HER! GEEEET HEEER!"

Agony walked slowly towards Demise. She raised her sword high in the air. She smiled at the crowd through her skeleton face.

This was it.

"YEAH, AGONY!" the crowd around Sara hollered. They clapped their hands excitedly.

Demise stared helplessly up at Agony, waiting for the final blow.

Agony brought her sword down, but at the last second, Demise BLOCKED her sword.

Agony was thrown backwards onto the platform.

Demise leaped to her feet. With a predatory snarl, she ferociously struck her blade across the target in the center of Agony's costume, dealing her a death blow.

Agony let out a pretend moan of pain. With an exaggerated last gasp of air, she collapsed onto the ground.

"DEMISE WINS!" the Reaper yelled, appearing back on the platform.

People around Sara groaned while the crowd on the victorious side hooted and hollered.

Cloaked figures carried Agony away.

Demise bowed and, after a quick wave, hurried off the platform.

"And now," the Reaper said, gesturing to the left side of the room. "Demise's team, you are safe."

The crowd on the other side of the platform cheered.

"As for Agony's team," the Reaper said. He paused, listening to the silence. "YOU ARE DOOMED!"

Fire burst from the walls behind Sara.

Enormous muscled men wearing gruesome masks stepped out from the flames. They lifted terrifying chainsaws high above their heads. The sounds of the chainsaws roared loudly.

"GET THEM!" the Reaper cried.

The masked men ran into the crowd.

Girls around Sara screamed in utter terror.

Boys yelled in surprise.

Everyone started to run.

"ERIN!" Sara screeched, realizing she'd lost sight of her friend.

People pushed and shoved, trying to avoid the chainsaw men.

Sara veered sideways to avoid a guy who fell down near her. He kicked at one of the masked men who tried to run him through with the chainsaw.

It's FAKE. It's just for FUN! Sara thought wildly. But the reality was beyond horrifying. She tried to stay hidden with a group of girls who ran blindly around the room.

"Hey, nurse!" a girl's voice called.

Sara turned and recognized the friendly cowgirl.

"Watch out!" the cowgirl called.

Sara ducked just in time to avoid a masked man's chainsaw. She screamed in fright.

"Come on!" the cowgirl yelled. She grabbed Sara's arm and pushed her back into the crowd, away from the masked man.

"Thanks!" Sara shouted, trying to be heard over the commotion. But when she spun around, the cowgirl was nowhere to be seen.

"GOTCHA!" a masked man yelled.

Sara screamed in surprise as he clamped strong arms around her waist. He flung her over his shoulder.

"Put me down! Put me down RIGHT NOW!" Sara yelled. While she knew it was just an act, she was really scared.

The masked man laughed, ignoring her completely. He carried her flailing body out of the room.

The Grim Reaper appeared, moments later, back on the platform. He raised his arms high above his head to silence the crowd. "We now have our sacrifice from Agony's team."

The crowd murmured amongst themselves in curious whispers.

Two masked men appeared on the platform. They dragged a hooded prisoner behind them.

"Let's meet our victim, shall we?" the Reaper laughed. He walked over and pulled off the hood of the prisoner.

Sara blinked rapidly into the blindingly bright light. She shook from head to toe.

From somewhere out in the crowd, a deep male voice cried out in anguished fury, "SARA!"

The Reaper gazed down at her from behind his thick cloak. "Ah, sounds like someone is very upset to see you up here." He inclined his head towards her. "Sara is it?"

Sara timidly nodded.

The Reaper ran his hand through her long hair. "Say goodbye, Sweetheart."