There were more than a hundred of them.Cries, short breaths, nervous whispers intertwined in the circular space.A place too smooth, too vast, too uniform.
No walls.No ceiling.Just this black floor, this light without source... and people, everywhere.
Some were still standing.Others crouched against themselves, nauseous or dazed.All had been ripped from their reality without explanation,thrown here like pawns cast upon a table.No one understood.
A rift opened — sudden, tearing.A teenage girl fell screaming.Another followed two minutes later, unconscious.Then another, then two.
The brutal selection continued.Random, cold, without cries or logic.There were the weak, the unprepared, the surprised.And then there were those who knew,or at least, those who had been chosen.
The first silent rift opened.Its shape was sharp, its opening slow, stable.
A boy emerged.He looked to be in his twenties.His hands still stained with the blood of his recent execution:cold. Methodical.
Apart from that detail, nothing distinguished him at first glance.A marked face, common features, average stature.But he exuded an invisible pressure.As if reality itself remembered his passing.
He cast a brief glance at the others present,froze,and calmly walked toward an empty area.
No words.No surprise.
He seemed to be looking for someone,with quiet insistence.
Then, in a low voice,almost to himself,he murmured:
— He was supposed to already be here, according to the Guide.
Suddenly...a brutal shiver ran down his spine.He spun around sharply.Instinctive. Defensive.
Someone had been staring at him.
And he saw him.
Another boy.Slightly younger.Sitting apart.Silent.
Their eyes met.
And Gravyor felt a vertigo —no, a collapse.As if his own instinct had thrown him to the ground.
It was not a look.It was naked predation.
He had just met the eyes of a super-predator.
Two truths slammed in his mind like an axe:— It's him. The famous Kael.— And never, I mean never, should I offend him.
Not if I want to keep my head on my shoulders.
Gravyor hesitated for a moment.Then he walked slowly toward him.
No sign of hostility.No challenge.
Just...a curious survival instincttelling him it would be wise not to ignore this.
Kael didn't lift his eyes.He had already seen him coming.
Gravyor stopped a few steps away.Not too close.Not too far.
He stood there, for a moment,arms along his sides.
Then, in a neutral but steady voice:
— Gravyor.I guess we'll have to survive in the same arena.
Silence replied.Kael still had not moved.
Gravyor waited a bit more,just long enough for the silence to weigh,then shrugged lightly:
— You're not much of a talker, huh?Good.
He let himself fall beside him,at a respectful distance.
Not back to him.Not facing him either.
Just...within observation range.
And they waited.One in his muteness.The other, strangely... calm.
A new rift opened.Slower.And above all... much cleaner.
No vibration.No cry.Just a perfectly symmetrical streak of lightthat sliced through the air,as if the universe itself held its breath to welcome it.
The figure that emerged placed a foot on the ground with precise timing,chin slightly raised,hand on hip.
She showed no sign of being lost.Nor even surprised.
Impeccable clothes.Glossy hair.A haughty gaze.
Her eyes slowly scanned the collapsed mass of candidates,curled up,dirty,scattered.
An annoyed sigh escaped her,as if all of this was just a bad joke.
She adjusted the collar of her topwith carefully measured disdain.
— So these are the "competitors"?
She wasn't speaking to anyone.She was merely stating a fact.
Then her gaze fell on Kael.Motionless.Silent.
And Gravyor, sitting next to him.
She squinted.A slight frown, almost imperceptible,but real.
She sized them up.One second. Two.
Then turned on her heel,and went to sit at a decent distance.Not too far.Not too close.
Close enough to be seen.Never ignored.
A new rift burst open,screaming this time.
Two silhouettes emerged —one rolled on the ground,the other remained lying, unconscious.
The others only raised their eyes,their expression extinguished.
The scene was starting to become routine.
Everyone knew:this place had neither logic,nor mercy.
Two more arrived then.A panicked boy who fell on his knees.An older woman,silent,standing stiff as a post.
The tension thickened.The air grew heavy.And the unknown remained intact.
Then the light softened.An almost elegant rift opened to the left.
Veda appeared,feet firmly planted,back straight,sharp gaze.
She analyzed the floor structure with a single glance,searched for an exit,then swept the entire circle with a clear eye.
Nothing was normal.But she still was.
She quickly noticed the only twowho did not seem out of place among the disoriented crowd:
Kael. Motionless.Gravyor. Silent.
She approached without hurry.Stopping a few meters away,she took one last look around...Then crouched to sit near them.
Not too close.Not too far.
— Hey, princess.
A masculine voice.Aggressive. Weak. Worn down by frustration.
She barely lifted her eyes.A man in his thirties,dirty clothes, greedy gaze.
— You think you'll make it playing the elite, huh?Come on over here,let me show you what your little rich girl look is worth...
She didn't move.Not out of fear.Out of calculation.
He stepped forward.One step. Two.
His hand reached for her arm —
— and was stopped cold.
Kael had stood up instantly.He didn't run.He didn't shout.He was already there.
The attacker's hand had not yet touched Vedawhen his skull exploded against the ground,with a dull, final sound.
He collapsed without a cry.
Kael, already turned,went back to sit in his place,as if nothing had happened.
Not a word.Not a glance.Total silence.
Gravyor blinked.A drop of sweat slowly ran down his temple.
How...?How could such a simple movement be so... perfect?
He wanted to speak.He wanted to flee.He wanted to applaud.
His entire instinct screamed at himto worshipor disappear.
Next to him, Veda blinked once.Then calmly, sincerely, she turned her head toward Kael.
— Thank you.
She didn't expect an answer.She already knew whom she had just spoken to.
A rift opened.Gently.Without noise.Like meditation coming to an end.
A man stepped out.Young,but already marked by silence.
He was twenty-eight.Bald head,calm gaze,slow breathing.
Barefoot, wearing a simple cloth robe,he placed one foot before the other without hurry.
He looked at no one.He didn't need to understand.He accepted.
He advanced toward the edge of the space,never quickening his pace.
Then he knelt.Cross-legged.Hands joined on his knees,back straight,eyes closed.
He sought neither contact,nor explanation.
He was there.And that was enough.
Some looked at him awkwardly.Others, with a hint of admiration.
Gravyor looked away.
That guy...he's a different kind of monster.
A new rift formed.It pulsed for a second.Then cracked.
The opening was neither slow,nor stable.
It wavered.Trembled slightly.
And Adam stepped out.
He first fell to his knees,hands on the ground.
He breathed heavily.Twice.Three times.
Then slowly lifted his head,as if he couldn't believehe was still alive.
No one spoke.But several eyes turned toward him.
He stood up awkwardly,brushed off his sleeve,then spun around to look for...something.Or someone.
His gaze stopped short.
Kael.Sitting.Silent.Still there.
Adam breathed in.No relief.Not yet.
Just a realization:he was not alone.
He didn't approach.Not yet.
He just stood there.There.
Like someonewho had just landed in a world he thought fictional.And who finally recognized a real facein the middle of a nightmare.
The silence thickened,almost tangible.
All the chosen were there.No one else fell.No more rifts opened.
And at that precise momentsomething changed.
The air trembled.The light bent,very slightly.
As if space itselfwas yielding passage to something older than itself.
Then he appeared.Standing.At the exact center of the circle.
The Guide.
Black suit, matte silk.Immaculate gloves.Invisible tie.
His face bore an expression... amused.Tired, perhaps.But precise.
He didn't look at anyone in particular.He looked at everyone at once.
— Ah. Here we are.