The capsules rose vertically, pillars of light cutting through the darkness as they ascended toward the surface.
Inside one of them, Reis sat in silence, watching the reflection of his face in the cold metallic wall before him.
A face stripped of fear or certainty, carrying only a quiet and unreadable calm.
The ascent was slow and deliberate, like a passage from the depths of the earth to another world.
Then the metallic light broke through the ceiling, and the capsule burst into the open air in a single blinding instant.
The glare struck him first; the light was so intense that his eyes needed time to adjust.
When he finally lifted his head, he saw the arena, a vast expanse stretching beyond clear sight.
The ground was immense, scattered with distant trees, rocks, and uneven paths.
At its very center stood a golden structure glimmering beneath the artificial sun: the Cornucopia.
A colossal vault overflowing with weapons, supplies, and medicine, everything the survivors would need to endure.
Around Reis, a hundred tributes stood upon small circular platforms, each isolated and surrounded by a ring of mined ground.
Silence ruled the field, and the air itself trembled with anticipation until the numbers appeared before their eyes.
A countdown from sixty seconds began.
A faint voice echoed within their minds, announcing the numbers and issuing a clear warning. One step before zero meant instant death.
Reis remained motionless, his gaze fixed straight ahead.
In the distance, he noticed a girl standing lightly on her platform, her eyes steady upon the field.
Black braided hair, a face of iron beneath fear.
He recognized her instantly, Katniss Everdeen.
A brief moment passed before he murmured to himself in a calm and deliberate tone. So we are inside the same story, but will the rules remain the same.
The countdown fell. Ten. Nine. Eight.
The world shrank to the sound of his heartbeat and the red digits flickering before his eyes.
When it reached zero, a twin explosion shattered the silence.
Calm turned into chaos.
The ground shook with the thunder of footsteps, and screams tangled with the clash of steel.
The first blood was spilled at the center, where everyone surged toward the Cornucopia.
Weapons were seized in an instant, knives, swords, spears, bows.
Tributes fell one after another, and within moments the field had become an open slaughterhouse.
From afar, Reis saw Katniss darting between bodies, grabbing a yellow bag and slipping from a boy's grasp.
A stray arrow sliced past her face, but she did not stop. She leapt over a corpse and ran into the forest without looking back.
Reis followed the chaos with his eyes, then moved quietly.
He advanced toward the edge and spotted a gray bag near a shattered platform.
He checked its contents quickly, a knife, a water flask, a few unknown tablets.
Lifting his gaze toward the distant trees, he murmured flatly: "Let the game begin then".
...
As he disappeared into the forest, the noise behind him began to fade.
The woods were dense and damp, swallowing every sound. Everything watched. Every shadow held the shape of death.
Tiny cameras hidden within the trunks flickered faintly.
Even the air felt artificial, controlled by unseen hands.
A cannon boomed suddenly, a deep sound announcing the fall of a contestant. Then another. And another.
In the first hours alone, Reis heard more than ten echoing blasts.
Each one marked a death, each death displayed at night as a glowing star in the sky.
When darkness came, Reis climbed a tall tree.
He tied himself to the branches with a rope from his bag to keep from falling while he slept.
He ate a small piece of dried food, drank a mouthful of water, and stared into the horizon.
The artificial sky above him flickered with shifting lights that changed every hour, until the faces of the fallen appeared one by one.
Faces that had run only hours ago now turned to symbols among the stars.
At dawn, the second phase began.
A cold wind swept through, carrying the faint scent of ash.
Reis moved silently, gliding between shadows, tracking faint noises.
...
In the forest, there was no room for trust. every tree could hide an enemy. Every trickle of water could be a trap.
The first encounter came by a shallow stream.
A thin boy knelt, washing blood from his arm.
He did not notice Reis until his shadow fell across the water, but the knife was faster. One strike to the throat and a silent collapse.
[Contestant eliminated].
[Reward: 200 coins].
Reis did not stop. He wiped the blade clean and kept walking.
The next encounters came scattered throughout the day.
Every few hours, a new tribute appeared, and more points filled his system.
A girl hiding among tree roots lunged with a short spear. He blocked it and snapped her neck in one swift motion.
[Contestant eliminated].
[Reward: 200 coins].
Another boy tried setting a trap only to fall into it himself. Reis watched him quietly until his breath stopped.
Others tried to chase him. Some fell to a single arrow, others after short, muddy fights beneath the artificial rain.
[Contestant eliminated].
[Contestant eliminated].
[Contestant eliminated].
[Reward: 200 coins].
[Reward: 200 coins].
System notifications followed every kill, every reward.
He moved like a silent shadow, not seeking blood, yet it found him at every step.
Fifteen scattered encounters across the forest.
Each one left behind only a trace of ash and silence.
Each corpse a testament to a coldness no longer human.
Then the air changed.
Heat began to rise unnaturally.
A hot wind blew from the west, carrying the stench of smoke.
Reis lifted his gaze and saw, in the distance, a red glow devouring the trees.
The fire crawled forward, but not at random. The flames moved in deliberate lines, as if someone were drawing a map with them.
Dry leaves ignited first, then branches, until entire trees burst from within.
The air grew suffocating, ash fell like rain, and the artificial sky turned a strange, bloody hue.
Reis understood this was no natural blaze.
It was a new game from the overseers, forcing him out of hiding.
He moved swiftly through the chaos, weaving between fire and smoke.
Everything around him was collapsing, even the air turned hostile, burning against his skin.
Yet he did not stop.
With calm eyes and an unshaken face, he walked through the inferno.
Until his figure vanished into the rising smoke, as if the forest itself had swallowed him whole, and the arena was preparing for yet another round of the game that shows no mercy.