I didn't notice when I fell asleep.
There was no clear moment, no sense of drifting off—just a sudden break in awareness, like my body forced a reset without asking.
When I opened my eyes again, the world felt… off.
Not darker.
Not quieter.
Just different.
For a second, I didn't move.
I stayed still, listening.
The building was the same.
The broken walls.
The faint light slipping through the cracks.
But something was missing.
"…Rayan?" I called out.
No answer.
I turned.
She was still there.
Sitting where she had been.
But her eyes were already open.
"…You feel it too," she said.
Not a question.
"…Yeah."
The mark on my hand pulsed again.
Stronger this time.
And then—
The voice returned.
"Phase Three initiated."
No warning.
No delay.
My chest tightened slightly.
"New conditions applied."
I stood up immediately.
"What kind of conditions…?" I muttered.
There was no answer.
Instead
Something changed.
The air shifted.
Not like pressure.
Not like before.
This was sharper.
Focused.
Like the world itself had become aware.
"…This isn't right," she said quietly.
I stepped toward the entrance.
Rayan wasn't there.
"…He wouldn't just leave," I said.
"He didn't," she replied.
I looked back at her.
"What do you mean?"
Before she could answer
The voice spoke again.
"Rule One: Isolation."
Silence.
"…What?" I said.
"Participants will be separated."
My grip tightened.
"…Separated how?"
No answer.
Only confirmation.
"Teams are no longer valid."
That was bad.
Worse than bad.
I turned to her.
"We need to move. Now."
But the moment I took a step
Everything shifted.
Not gradually.
Not slowly.
Instantly.
The ground beneath me disappeared.
Or maybe
I did.
For a split second, there was nothing.
No sound.
No light.
No direction.
Then
I was somewhere else.
I stumbled forward slightly, catching myself before falling.
Different ground.
Different air.
Different place.
"…Damn it."
I turned quickly.
She was gone.
Rayan too.
Just like that.
Alone.
The silence here was heavier.
More real.
Not like before.
This wasn't a shared space anymore.
This was
Isolation.
"…Rule One," I muttered.
Of course.
I exhaled slowly, forcing my thoughts to settle.
Panic wouldn't help.
Not now.
I looked around.
The area was unfamiliar.
Narrow streets.
Collapsed buildings.
Shadows stretching further than they should.
No movement.
But that didn't mean I was alone.
"…Think," I said quietly.
If everyone was separated…
Then this wasn't just survival anymore.
It was control.
Divide.
Then eliminate.
Simple.
Efficient.
Dangerous.
The mark on my hand pulsed again.
This time
Sharper.
More urgent.
Then
The voice returned.
"Rule Two: Elimination grants advancement."
I froze.
"…So that's how it is."
No ambiguity.
No disguise.
Kill.
Grow stronger.
Survive.
Same as before
But now without support.
Without backup.
Without her.
I clenched my fist slightly.
For a brief moment
A thought crossed my mind.
Not fear.
Not doubt.
Something else.
If I kept fighting like this…
Alone…
Would I still be the same person when this ended?
I exhaled slowly.
"…Doesn't matter."
One step at a time.
That was the only way forward.
I took a step.
Then another.
Careful.
Listening.
Waiting.
Because out here
The next enemy could be anywhere.
And this time
There would be no one to cover my back.