probably the worst idea for a birthday for a cop is to order a detective quest. although someone may like it, but certainly not those who are up to their necks in these investigations. even if it's a joke. even if you don't know if you'll get out of here. even if it's possible the end.

yes, it was you who initiated it. you wanted to celebrate the twenty-three birthday of your partner, Mark Schrader, in this way. your other colleagues from the police station, whom you also invited to the quest, first thought you were crazy: they are not children who lack adventures on the ass. you were only able to lure them with a buffet.

Mark himself took his birthday quite coolly. Of course, he loved to drink and hang out at some party, but only for the sake of momentary pleasure, if not oblivion. He did not want to think about what he had seen at work, which was densely embedded in his memory from childhood or adolescence. He had barely let go of the death of his parents when a new burden fell on his soul. Perhaps he should have just rested in a sanatorium somewhere... No, that was a stupid idea. Schrader couldn't stay in peace and quiet, or his thoughts would consume him. So, for some reason, you chose a quest. And for some reason, he agreed.

At first, everything was going well. All the guests gathered in a designated area on the outskirts of Berlin, a one-story but rather large house. from the outside it looked unpleasant: gray stone walls with traces of dirt, a flat roof, in a word, a creepy huge cube. this did not bother anyone, because from the inside everything was really well decorated in the style of an abandoned house. artificial spider webs, ghosts, patterns of cracks on the glass — as if everything had been bought at a Halloween sale. all guests were greeted by the host, who explained the essence of the quest: those who came to the house of an old witch and her adopted son-butcher must find a way to get out of the house, because the owners do not like strangers... what a childishness.

Wandering around the house with Mark, you walked through the corridors (which really seemed huge) until you saw a suspicious lack of light in one of the rooms. You could hear the clinking of chains and... breathing. It was raspy, unnaturally low, as if it had been created in a program. Your curiosity got the better of you, and you decided to see what was hiding there: a record player with scary sounds, or one of the characters from the story? One step, then another. The room was dark, with only a stone floor visible. you try to look around, but unfortunately, the door closes... everything is plunged into darkness.

you open your eyes from the feeling of cold. your head hurts strangely, your eyes gradually get used to the weak light of the emergency lamps, but the room you and Mark find yourself in is not the same as the one you entered earlier. it is a basement, large, cold and quiet. there is not a rustle, only the swaying of a rusty pipe. this is abnormal. you both seem unharmed... but there's something that scares you even more.

—...do you see it too? — Schrader's eyes are fixed on you, and you don't want to look at him, because his intense expression doesn't bode well. You want to close your eyes, but your gaze involuntarily moves to the side...

a large silhouette hiding in the distant darkness. Most of it is obscured, but two white eyes stare out from the blackness. Two white circles are fixed on you, no matter where you go. two white eyes and a long row of teeth. it's not clear whether it was a picture or...

— and we don't have our service weapons with us... — Mark concluded with a hint of disappointment, realizing that if he had to fight anyone, he would fall without a weapon. He wipes the cold sweat from his forehead, his hand involuntarily trembling. — well, either we solve the crimes and our bonuses will increase... or we will send ghostly signals to the boss to rest our souls.