2

Phil ran toward the massive walls without looking back, his frustration bubbling over into reckless action. The teenage girl he had been arguing with hesitated for a moment, glancing between Phil and the others, before reluctantly deciding to follow him.

"Wait!" she called after him, her voice shaky but persistent.

Meanwhile, back near the group, a man with a slim build and an uncertain expression approached the tall, muscular man. He cleared his throat nervously before speaking. "Excuse me... My name is Rafael. I've noticed you're one of the few people here who's managed to keep calm. What do you think we should do?"

The tall man turned to face Rafael. His piercing gaze briefly scanned the man's face, noting the indecision in his eyes. Then raised his voice so the others could hear him clearly.

"I know you're all scared, confused, and full of questions," he began, his voice carrying over the crowd. "I'm not asking you to stop feeling those things—I'm just as confused as you are. But we have a challenge ahead of us, and I don't know what will happen if we fail. So, I ask you all to remain calm. The rest will come later."

The murmurs among the group grew louder, some people nodding, others whispering to each other.

Rafael, still standing close, asked again, "What do you think we should do first?"

The man expression hardened slightly as he replied. "First, we need to organize ourselves. Figure out how many of us there are, gather supplies like food and water, and find a place where we can rest safely."

Before the man could continue, a sharp voice interrupted.

"Whoa, hold on, boy. Let's take this one step at a time," the woman said, stepping forward.

She was striking—dressed in a red dress with matching heels, her black hair cascading down her back. A pair of glasses perched on her nose gave her a sharp, analytical look.

"I'm Jyin," she said confidently. "Where I come from doesn't matter. I'm a journalist, so finding things and getting answers is kind of my specialty."

The group turned their attention to her, and for a moment, the tension seemed to ease slightly. The man gave her a brief nod of acknowledgment before speaking again.

The man stood tall, his authoritative presence commanding attention as he spoke again.

"I'm Kalyl," he began, his deep voice steady and unwavering. "I come from the military. The only thing I know for certain is that with discipline, we can overcome any challenge that comes our way."

He paused, letting his words sink in before continuing. "I also think we should assign ourselves numbers to make organization easier. I'll start—I'm Number 1. Kalyl." he said, turning to the journalist, "you can be Number 2. Rafael, would you mind introducing yourself?"

Rafael hesitated, looking around at the others before stepping forward awkwardly. "Well... I guess that makes me Number 3, then," he said, scratching the back of his head. "My name's Rafael. I'm a history teacher—not that it's particularly useful here. But, who knows? Maybe something about ancient Greece will come in handy."

He forced out a dry, humorless chuckle at the end of his sentence, clearly unsure of how to carry himself in such a strange and tense situation.

The group remained quiet for a moment, the atmosphere heavy with uncertainty. Kalyl nodded approvingly, acknowledging Rafael's attempt to contribute.

"Good," Kalyl said firmly. "Now, let's see who else is willing to step forward and organize themselves. The faster we get to know who's here, the better prepared we'll be for whatever comes next."

He turned his attention to the rest of the group, scanning their faces for signs of cooperation—or resistance.

An older man, appearing to be in his 60s, stepped forward with a calm demeanor. He surveyed the group briefly before speaking.

"My name is Laliel," he said simply, taking a step back as if to make space for the next person.

Kalyl nodded. "You're Number 4, okay? Whoever goes next, please state the next number in sequence along with your name."

A boy with bright red hair and freckles hesitantly stepped forward. His gaze shifted nervously to Kalyl before speaking.

"Uh, so... I'm Number 5, right?" he asked tentatively.

Kalyl gave a short nod of confirmation.

The boy straightened up a little, trying to appear more confident. "I'm Ângelo. I'm a high school student."

Jyin tilted her head, her voice curious. "How old are you?"

"I... I just turned 16," Ângelo replied, his voice wavering slightly under her scrutiny.

Before the silence grew awkward, a tall woman with an athletic build stepped forward confidently.

"My name's Carla," she said with a firm voice. "I'm a professional swimmer. Oh, and I guess I'm Number 6."

As Carla stepped back, a man with a slightly disheveled appearance took her place. His tone was casual as he introduced himself.

"I'm Rich. Just an ordinary salaryman. I used to handle finances for a company. Actually, I was in the middle of lunch when—"

Kalyl raised a hand, cutting Rich off.

"Okay, Rich, we'll get to that later. For now, just keep it brief. You're Number 7."

Rich chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head. "Ah, right, sorry. I get a little carried away when I start talking."

Kalyl's stern gaze silenced him, and Rich quickly stepped back.

Finally, a delicate-looking girl stepped forward, her voice soft and soothing.

"Well... I guess I'm Number 8, so that makes me the last one here, right?" She paused for a moment before continuing. "My name's Raye. Like Ângelo, I'm a student."

Before anyone could comment, Rich spoke up again, his voice tinged with concern. "Wait, weren't there two more people with us?"

Laliel nodded slowly. "Yes, there was another man. He woke up, panicked, and ran off in that direction." He pointed toward the south. "A girl went after him."

Kalyl crossed his arms, his expression serious. "We'll regroup with them later. Right now, we need to focus on setting up tasks and organizing ourselves."

Rich frowned, his frustration evident. "But isn't this whole thing ridiculous? How is it even possible that we were just somewhere else, and now we're suddenly here? You're military, right? Don't you know something about this?"

Kalyl's face remained impassive. "No, I don't know anything. And even if I did, there's likely nothing the military could do in a situation like this."

Jyin raised an eyebrow, her curiosity piqued. "What do you mean by that?"

Kalyl's voice took on a grim tone. "That laser that came down from the sky... it's likely some kind of advanced technology—teleportation, maybe. Whoever's behind this is light-years ahead of anything we have on Earth."

A heavy silence fell over the group as Kalyl's words sank in, the weight of their predicament growing more tangible with every second.

Kalyl clapped his hands together, drawing everyone's attention. "But that's not important right now. What matters is getting organized first. We can worry about everything else later."

He turned to face the group. "Jyin and Raye, you two go after the others who ran off earlier. Laliel and Carla, head north and see if you can find anything useful. Rich and Ângelo, you take the east. Rafael and I will go west."

He paused for a moment, scanning their faces. "Your goal is simple: find food, water, or anything that might be useful."

Rich raised his hand, his expression uneasy. "I don't think it's a good idea to split up. What if there's... something dangerous out there? We don't know what we're dealing with."

Ângelo spoke up hesitantly, glancing around nervously. "I don't think there's anything like that here."

Jyin arched an eyebrow, intrigued. "Oh? Why do you think that?"

Ângelo shifted on his feet, his voice uncertain as he replied, "Well… this place feels like a game. The panel, the mention of challenges... I think this might be the 'safe area' where players start and prepare before facing the real dangers."

Kalyl nodded slightly, as though the boy's reasoning aligned with his own thoughts. "I agree. If there were anything dangerous here, we would've encountered it already. But enough talking—we're wasting time."

The group exchanged glances, and though some hesitated, they began pairing off into the assigned teams. With a mixture of determination and unease, they set off in opposite directions, each group venturing into the unknown.