The Cabin In The Woods – Breathe

It was Dana's choice, so help her

Dana's hand steadied right over the red button and Marty begged her to just press it already, the guys with the huge guns were coming at them, and what if they couldn't fight and what if–!

Then the lady spoke. Dana's hand lowered and Marty shuddered beside her.

"Dana. Marty. You wouldn't want to press that button, believe me"

"Believe her? Believe HER?" – Marty exclaimed in increasing panic – "Dana, don't listen to her and just–" – he tried to reach the button but Dana pushed him away from it, the adrenaline wearing her down and making her think clearer.

"If you two will just come out, I promise, no one will shoot at you, no one will try to kill you"

"What, no more zombies coming at us?" – Marty said caustically – "Dana, let's make them choke on it, c'mon!"

"We should go out there" – she said, very calmly.

"WHAT! Dana, what the fuck!" – but she was already getting up and heading to the door – "Dana, no, what're you doing! They're gonna fucking shoot us! The fuck, man!"

"I don't think they will" – she whispered, staring at the door, and then back at him – "You can press it now, if you want, but I'm going out there"

"No, Dana, c'mon, don't do it, I can't do it alone, c'mon, c'mon"

"Come with me, Marty. It'll be okay"

"You're gonna believe some nut job we can't even fucking see?!"

"I don't believe in her"

"But you're going out there!"

"I believe that there's more at play here than just– Just us being chased by monsters through the night and even more monsters in glass cages"

"Yeah, it's about them putting fucking bullets in our skulls, Dana! Wake up already!"

"Marty. I'm going out. You can either come with or not, but I've made my decision"

"Dana, why?"

"If I'm going to die, it's not going to be in a dingy little control room"

"You'd rather get eaten by some giant snake, or whatever the fuck else they got locked up out there?"

"Yes" – he groaned.

"You're insane"

"I know"

"We're gonna die out there"

"Probably. But we've gotta die some time, might as well go all out, don't you think?"

"That would be pressing the button and letting them deal with being chased around!"

"Are you coming?" – he looked at her hand for a moment and breathed in deeply.

"If we're gonna die, we better damn well die together, at the very least" – she grinned as he got up and held her hand tightly.

"I hope we can"

"That's not reassuring at all" – he grumbled and held his breath as they walked out.

The hallways were littered with men in all black holding massive weapons, looking at the bloody duo with suspicion and detachment. Marty held Dana's hand tight enough to break her bones, but she said nothing as they made their way to the elevators and a woman was waiting for them. Unlike the men, she was dressed impeccably in a skirt suit, hair all in place and she gave off an air of poise and power that Dana and Marty had never felt before.

"Well, well. You two have to be two of the most interesting people I have ever met, and that's saying something, considering how many people I've met over the years"

"Does that mean you're an immortal or something?" – Marty bravely, or dumbly, blurted out. Dana hid a smile as she caressed his trembling hand. The woman grinned blankly.

"I am not an immortal, I am simply much older than either of you, and I have been in this business for longer than either of you have been alive"

"Killing innocent, unsuspecting college students, you mean? THAT business?" – Marty spat at her, feeling the burn of the horrors he'd seen and endured in the last few hours.

"Saving the world, actually" – the woman said impassively – "It's the most noble of deeds"

"No, it's fucked up"

"To each their own"

"What do you want from us?" – Dana interrupted, wiping some of the tears and blood and grime off her face.

"I want you to understand"

"Understand that we almost died tonight, and our friends suffered horrible deaths for nothing?"

"Not nothing, no"

"Then what?"

"I told you, saving the world"

"How do their deaths" – Marty started – "or our deaths, for that matter, equal saving the freaking world?!"

"If you'll follow me, I can show you" – the friends traded looks.

"Up to you" – the young man said softly. He squeezed Dana's hand.

"Fine, we'll come with you" – she said, looking the older woman in the eye.

It was a long way down increasingly darker corridors, the steel walls turning into stone and dirt, and Marty and Dana continued holding hands, as if it were the only thing keeping them alive and well. How long that would last was a thought they tried their hardest to keep away from their scattered brains.

The woman opened a heavy door and a few steps later stood in the middle of a platform. Dana and Marty carefully followed, and frowned at the huge stones surrounding them, each of the five pieces with carvings, and four of them bloodied. The only one which remained untouched was of a woman with a long piece of cloth over her head and body.

"From ancient times" – the older woman began in a steady tone – "there have been beings that demand blood. I have made my living continuing the work of countless others before me, and I am sure the moment I perish, others will easily pick up the mantle, because this is, by far, the most important job in the world"

"The hell is this place?" – Marty questioned, glancing at the edges. Like Dana, he tried to push down the unease at the grumblings they could hear from under their feet.

"This is the center of Their power, or the center from which They can rise"

"Who's... 'They'?" – Dana asked quietly.

"They are all powerful agents of destruction, and it is some part of humanity's work to make sure they are properly... Entertained"

"Enter– Is that what this whole thing was about?! Entertaining some bloodthirsty ancient as fuck monsters?" – Marty screamed and shut up with a click when the grumbling turned into not quite muted snarls.

"You would do well not to anger them" – the older woman said calmly – "They can be quite unforgiving"

"Why did you bring us here?" – Dana asked, looking at the only untouched slab of stone – "What are these– Carvings?"

"They are the necessary elements in the maintenance of the world as it is"

"Holy shit" – Marty whispered, looking from one stone to the next with wide eyes – "It's us"

"Curt, Holden, Jules" – Dana pointed at each stone and paused – "It's you" – she pointed at the figure seemingly dancing with a cup in its hand.

"Great, I'm the drunk"

"The Fool, actually" – the older woman interjected.

"Not much better"

"And I'm–?" – Dana asked, motioning to the unblemished stone.

"The Virgin" – Marty snorted – "We work with what we got"

"This is messed up, man" – Marty remarked – "So, what, you gotta grab one of each and kill 'em off? The more nightmarish the better?"

"Something like that. This year is clearly a little different, however"

"Because we figured it out" – Dana mumbled, looking at the carvings.

"Yes. It's never happened before"

"Well, we're not totally dumb. Rising the dead notwithstanding"

"What happens now?" – Dana asked, turning back to the woman – "We're alive, we're here, are They happy about this? Was this entertaining enough for Them?"

"Almost. You see, Dana, there is an order to the sacrifices–"

"And now we're sacrifices, awesome"

"First the Whore–"

"Dude! Jules was awesome, she was dating Curt since the start of college!"

"–then the order is not entirely important, as long as the last one standing, or to die, is the Virgin"

"And we still got two sacrifices walking around" – Marty concluded.

"Correct. Now it's up to you what happens"

"What happens?" – the woman smiled serenely.

"You may choose to continue the ritual and save the world, or not, and then the world will end, but you don't want that, do you? Marty, Dana?"

"If this is what some people are spending all their time doing, creating fucking nightmare creatures and plotting the demise of a handful of innocents, then maybe we shouldn't– Dana?" – she was staring at the edges of the platform – "Dana?"

"It's not everyone"

"What?"

"Not everyone wants to kill innocent people in order to satisfy the desires of– Them"

"No, but–" – the girl looked back at him and frowned.

"I don't want to start the end of the world, Marty"

"Hey, neither do I, but–" – the red head shook her head and looked at the woman.

"Will you take care of our families? Jules was going to become a doctor to help her brother... And Holden's family–" – she swallowed and Marty widened his eyes – "Make sure they're taken cared of"

"Dana–"

"We will" – the woman promised solemnly – "We thank you for your sacrifice, I hope you know that"

"Yes" – Dana looked at Marty and let go of his hand – "And you're welcome" – she smiled and made to jump off the platform, but at the last moment, she turned and tackled the shocked older woman – "Thank you for your sacrifice" – she snarled, and started to push her off the edge.

Marty scrambled but ran to help her, and together, the friends pushed the screaming woman off the platform. They laid down, crying, laughing and barely managing to catch their breath.

"This may have been the dumbest or smartest thing we've ever done" – Marty commented.

"I guess we'll find out" – Dana replied – "You got any joints left?" – he snorted and pulled a slightly worse for wear pot cigarette from his pocket and gave it to her as he tried to find his lighter in his other pocket.

"I'm with you 'til the end of the world" – he said, turning to light the joint for her.

"If we survive, this'll be the most epic weekend getaway story ever"

"I don't know, Mal always has the weirdest stories to tell" – they laughed as the joint was shared every few moments.

They remained lying there, awaiting the end of the world, or the simply continuation of their lives. Come what may. After the night they'd had, they sincerely had no fucks to give either way.

And then, either the HAND came crashing down on them all, or THEY liked the show enough to overlook the fact they traded one fool for another.