We moved without wasting time.
None of us spoke much as we followed the faint light in the distance. It wasn't bright, but it was steady, like a signal calling everyone in.
Or pulling them.
The streets grew quieter the further we went.
Fewer people.
Fewer distractions.
More tension.
"You feel it?" Rayan asked quietly.
"…Yeah," I replied.
It wasn't just the mark this time.
It was the atmosphere itself.
Like something was waiting.
We turned the corner of a wide avenue and saw it.
An open area.
Once a plaza.
Now empty.
At the center, a faint column of light rose into the sky.
Not strong.
But impossible to ignore.
And we weren't the only ones who had arrived.
Groups stood at different distances around the plaza.
Watching.
Waiting.
Some in pairs.
Some alone.
A few in larger teams.
No one attacked.
Not yet.
"They're all thinking the same thing," she said under her breath.
"…If they move first, they become the target," I replied.
Rayan scanned the area carefully.
"…There are more than I expected."
He was right.
At least twenty people.
Maybe more, hidden in the shadows.
Too many.
"This isn't normal," he added.
"No," I said quietly.
"It's not."
We didn't step into the center.
Not yet.
Instead, we stayed near the edge, observing like everyone else.
Minutes passed.
No movement.
No sound.
Just silence stretched too thin.
Then—
Someone broke it.
A man stepped forward from one of the groups.
Alone.
Confident.
"…We're all here for the same thing," he said, his voice carrying across the plaza.
No one answered.
"But standing like this won't change anything."
Still no movement.
He smiled slightly.
"…Fine."
He stepped closer to the light.
Closer.
Closer.
"Don't," someone muttered nearby.
Too late.
The moment he crossed into the center—
The light changed.
It flared.
Bright.
Violent.
He froze.
"…What—"
His body locked in place.
Completely.
Like something had grabbed control of him.
My chest tightened.
"Something's wrong—"
The ground beneath him shifted.
No—
Opened.
A dark shape rose from within the light.
Not human.
Not anything I could recognize.
It moved fast.
Too fast.
Before anyone could react—
It struck.
Clean.
Decisive.
The man didn't even scream.
His body dropped.
Gone.
Silence exploded across the plaza.
No one moved.
No one breathed.
"…What the hell was that…" Rayan whispered.
I didn't answer.
I couldn't.
Because I saw it.
The thing.
Standing in the center now.
Watching.
Waiting.
Like it had always been there.
"…This isn't a gathering," she said quietly.
"…It's a test."
That made sense.
Too much sense.
Then
The voice returned.
"Special event: Elimination Trial."
My grip tightened.
"Only those who enter the center… may claim the reward."
A pause.
"Survive… or be eliminated."
Of course.
"…Figures," I muttered.
No one moved.
No one wanted to be next.
But the tension had changed.
Before, they were waiting.
Now…
They were deciding.
"…We can't ignore this," Rayan said.
"I know."
The reward.
The risk.
Both were real.
She looked at me.
"…If we go in…"
"…We go together," I finished.
She nodded.
No hesitation.
Rayan exhaled slowly.
"…Then we commit."
Silence.
Around us, others were starting to move.
Slowly.
Carefully.
The stalemate was breaking.
And once it started
It wouldn't stop.
I looked at the center again.
At the thing waiting there.
Then stepped forward.
No turning back now.