[Date: 21st April, 2021]
[Location: Rooftop | Eryndor]
A silence like no other hangs in the air.
The cloaked figure stands on the rooftop, his presence still suffocating, even as the city around them has vanished into an endless void. He raises his head — or what they assume is his head — and speaks again.
"To leave this place, you must play a game."
The gang stares, rooted to the spot.
"But it would be unfair…" he continues, "if I sent you in unprepared. So, instead—let us awaken the powers that slumber within you."
His words are followed by a low hum, like the groan of the universe straining at the edges.
Suddenly—
FLASH.
Each of Echo's friends is suspended mid-air, glowing with a soft blue light. Rings of symbols and runes swirl around their bodies. Their eyes go wide.
Cassian: "What the hell is happening!?"
Thorne: "Bro I'm levitating—WHY AM I LEVITATING!?"
Lior: "I'm not ready to die. I haven't even had dinner!"
Jarek: "This better not mess with my back again…"
Zayden: "Yo I think I peed a little. No, wait—nevermind. It's sweat. Probably."
Echo watches, helpless.
"What the… ???" he steps forward. "What's going on?!"
But he doesn't float. No glow. No symbols. Just the rooftop under his feet and the cold knot in his chest.
The light intensifies—
FLASH.
They're gone.
Echo blinks. They're… gone.
"No. No, no, no—what just happened!?" he spins around. "HEY!"
He charges at the cloaked figure—but instead of colliding, his hand goes right through.
"What is going on ???"
The figure seems surprised too.
"Curious…" he murmurs. "You weren't chosen. And you weren't sent."
Echo stares. "Sent where?"
The figure answers with the calm of a deity explaining a storm to a candle.
"A realm of training. A place where their latent potential is awakened. Like a… tutorial, in your gaming language."
"But—why not me!?"
There's no reply. The figure begins to fade.
"WAIT!"
But the shadow is gone.
Alone on the rooftop, Echo sinks to the ground. The cold wind offers no comfort. He waits.
Five hours. Six.
Then—
BAM. The rooftop door slams open.
Zayden bursts out, panting, wide-eyed. "DUDE."
Echo jumps up. "Zayden! You're okay!"
Zayden's eyes gleam with something between panic and excitement. "Bro. It's like a video game. LIKE A VIDEO GAME! I can jump like 20 feet! I can RUN ON WALLS!"
Echo blinks. "Can someone explain what the hell is going on ??"
Zayden pauses. "Wait—what did you get?"
"…was I supposed to get something ?," Echo says quietly.
Zayden's face falls. "Damn, man. So you were just up here? Alone? For hours?"
Echo shrugs, forcing a grin. "Yeah. Just me and an existential crisis."
Before Zayden can respond, the others start pouring in—Cassian, Jarek, Lior, Thorne—each with stories of impossible landscapes, monstrous trials, and how their bodies now feel different.
They hardly get a moment to breathe before the figure reappears at the rooftop's edge.
"The game… begins now."
"You must survive the waves."
"Your safe zone… is Apartment 806."
Cassian mutters, "That's my apartment."
Then—rifts begin to open in the air. Dozens of them.
POP. POP. POP.
Out pour creatures like walking nightmares—three feet tall, white and black spiders with twitching legs and dripping mandibles. Acid hisses on the concrete where they land.
Panic flares.
But the others… aren't panicking.
Echo watches as something shifts in their eyes—like instinct taking over.
Zayden moves first—blurring into motion, bounding up a wall, flipping mid-air, and landing a solid kick to a spider. "LET'S GO!"
Cassian follows, speeding through a cluster with impossible agility.
Jarek slams his palms together—a glowing force field erupts in front of Echo.
Lior, built like a tank, roars as massive glowing gauntlets materialize over his arms. He barrels through three spiders with a fist the size of a watermelon.
Thorne raises his hand—blue projectiles of pure energy shoot out, bursting spiders like balloons.
Echo tries to join up—but something bites his leg.
"AHHH!"
Venom courses through him. The world tilts. He collapses.
Lior doesn't hesitate. "I GOT HIM!"
He scoops Echo up like a ragdoll and charges down the stairs. Cassian's voice echoes behind: "MY PLACE! MOVE! MOVE!!"
Lior kicks open the door to the apartment and sets Echo down on the couch. Blood leaks from the bite.
"Hang in there, man. I'll be back," Lior says, and then vanishes back into the chaos.
Echo winces, breathing hard. His vision blurs.
Outside, the muffled sounds of battle thud through the walls.
Then—
A glimmer.
From under the table in the lounge…
A light.
Pale, blue. Soft, but growing stronger.
Echo turns his head, barely able to whisper.
"…What… is that?"