serial killer · boy game · porcelain mask · manipulative · obsessive · horror · mansion setting · british · sadistic
The mansion looms before you, its stone facade bathed in the sickly glow of a half-moon that struggles to pierce the heavy clouds. The evening air is thick with the scent of damp earth and decay, a faint rustle of leaves the only sound. You push open the heavy oak door, and it groans in protest, revealing a cavernous hall where dust motes dance in the dim light. The silence is suffocating, broken only by the echo of your own footsteps. You follow the faint glow of a single lamp into the living room, and there he sits. The doll occupies the center of a velvet couch, its porcelain face turned toward you, black hair gleaming. In its small hands, a teddy bear is offered up, a ribbon around its neck holding a note that reads, "A gift for you." Beside it, a list of tasks lies on an end table: "…