The lights around them flicker and pulse as a high-pitched siren blares through hidden speakers. Instinctively, all five drop to the floor, backs against the cold concrete, eyes darting toward the ceiling-mounted grilles.
Then the voice comes—cool, measured, unmistakable:
"Welcome," it begins, each word cutting through the alarm like a scalpel. "You've done exactly as I planned.
Shin pushes himself upright, heart pounding. "Dr. Fatal?"
The voice chuckles, deep and amused. "Of course. You didn't think a few hastily‐found videos and a broken override would stop me, did you?"
Evelyn scrambles for cover behind a control console. "He's everywhere…"
Dr. Fatal's tone grows cold. "Yes. I chose you—each of you—because you were perfect for my little demonstration. You had the curiosity, the persistence, the… emotional stakes necessary to drive you here."
Elie presses her hand to her trembling ankle. "Why us?" she demands, voice shaking.
"Because you care," he replies. "Elie, the girl haunted by first love. Kent, whose insight into human behavior made you curious—and predictable. Evelyn, whose artistic eye sees patterns in chaos. Alix, ever the steadfast analyst. And Shin, the skeptic who thinks he's always in control."
Alix's hand flies to her mouth. "You set this up?"
"Every twist, every breadcrumb," Dr. Fatal confirms. "I knew who would follow the trail, who would break protocol—and exactly when you'd slip, sprain an ankle, or need rescuing. All to prove my point: evolution demands pressure, and pressure reveals true potential."
A low rumble shakes the floor as hidden doors close somewhere beyond. The siren fades to a dull throb.
Shin meets Kent's gaze. "He's been watching us… testing us."
Dr. Fatal's final words echo as the lights stabilize into an ominous red glow:
"Enjoy the next phase. The real experiment is only just beginning."
With that, the speakers snap off—and the hatch above them clangs shut, sealing them inside.
Alone in the oppressive silence, they realize: there is no turning back. Their only choice now is to face whatever Dr. Fatal has designed… together.
A deafening roar filled the control room as the final syllable of Dr. Fatal's last broadcast echoed off the concrete walls:
"From being such great test subjects, you all deserve a reward… this world will be cured!"
A blinding flash swallowed the chamber, followed by the sickening crack of metal shearing and concrete fracturing. The blast wave threw Shin and Kent off their feet; debris rained down around them in shards and spark‑spitting wires.
Devastation and Unconscious Allies
When the dust began to settle, the room lay in ruins
Elie was slumped against a fallen console, her head lolling to one side, eyes fluttering closed.
Alix lay face‑down over a tangle of cables, motionless.
Evelyn was pinned beneath a steel girder that had snapped free, her breaths coming in ragged gasps as she tried to shift it off her leg.
Shin and Kent groaned in unison as they pushed themselves upright:
Shin's right cheek burned with pain where a shard of shattered glass had cut a jagged line from temple to jaw. Blood trickled down into his collar.
Kent clutched a similar gash on the opposite side of his face, blood matting against his jacket.
Both were shaken but conscious—and painfully aware that the timer they'd just stopped might have been a cruel lure into this very trap.
Shin staggered over to Elie, brushing a strand of hair from her forehead and checking her pulse. It fluttered faintly but steadily—she was alive.
"Elie… stay with me," he murmured, pressing a hand to her shoulder to keep her from slipping off the console.
Kent threw himself beside Alix, rolling her gently onto her back and cradling her head. "Alix, can you hear me?" he called, checking her breathing. A slow exhale answered him.
Evelyn's muffled groan caught their attention. Kent and Shin both heaved on the girder pinning her leg. With a final heave, it shifted enough to free her. She collapsed into Kent's arms, clutching her thigh.
"It's… twisted," she gasped, "but I think it's just bruised."
Shin tore a strip from his own shirt, fashioning a makeshift bandage around Evelyn's calf. "Keep pressure on it," he instructed. "We need to move—now."l
They formed a haphazard line:
Kent, carrying the stunned Elie in a fireman's carry.
Evelyn, leaning heavily on Shin's arm for support.
Shin, backing toward the ladder hatch as Alix began to stir.
Alix's eyelids fluttered. She sat up, dazed. "What—where are we?" she whispered.
"Safe for the moment," Shin replied, voice tight. "But only if we get out of here fast."
Kent climbed first, hauling Elie up the ladder. Behind him came Shin and Evelyn, each supporting one of their friends. Alix swung a leg over the beam and followed, wincing.
They emerged onto the service road under a sky streaked with ash and moonlight. The explosion had torn open part of the hillside; dust motes drifted in the cold air. Far off, they could hear the shouts of Dr. Fatal's enforcers—already searching.
Shin surveyed the wreckage. "He wanted us here. He knew we'd win that countdown… and he'd have an excuse to blow the place apart."
Kent nodded, gently lowering Elie to the ground. She blinked up at him, confusion and relief mingling in her eyes.
Evelyn flexed her bruised leg; Alix rubbed her forehead, now bleeding. "What next?" Alix asked quietly.
Shin drew the torn map from his pocket, edges singed. "We keep moving. We have the data—Dr. Fatal's plans, locations, everything. But now we know he's one step ahead."
Together, broken and battered, they stepped away from the smoldering hatch. The night air bit at their wounds, but their resolve burned brighter than ever. Whatever Dr. Fatal had in store, they would face it—united, and unafraid.
They tried to stand, each step a fresh stab of pain.
Shin half‑dragged Elie along a fallen log, her head lolling against his shoulder. Kent's own face throbbed, every footfall sending blood pounding behind his temple. Evelyn limped beside them, favoring her bruised leg, while Alix leaned hard on her good arm, her forehead pressed against the bark of a tree for support.
With the moon high, the forest around them felt endless—until, through the trees, they spotted it: a weather‑beaten cabin, its windows boarded but its door slightly ajar. No lights, no sound, just the silent promise of shelter.
Shin was first to reach it. He pushed the door the last few inches, wincing as rusty hinges groaned. Inside, the air was cold but still. A single tattered quilt lay draped over a wooden bench; a rickety table sat beside a stone hearth.
"Here," Kent murmured, guiding Elie to a beaten-up couch against the far wall. Evelyn sank onto the floor nearby, her leg stretched out before her. Alix dropped against the table, head in her hands.
Shin knelt beside them all, scanning their injuries by the pale moonlight filtering through cracks in the boards. "Rest," he said hoarsely. "Just rest."
There was no grand plan now—only the hush of the night, the ache in their bodies, and the fragile safety of four walls between them and Dr. Fatal's horrors. One by one, they closed their eyes, trusting that for these few hours, at least, the world outside could wait.
Shin eased himself onto the battered bench and swept a tired look over the others. "Rest here," he said, voice rough. "Kent and I will see if we can find anything to clean these wounds."
Kent nodded, gathering a few loose boards from the corner. "Stay put," he added gently to Elie as he passed. "We'll be back soon."
Evelyn settled beside Alix on the far side of the room. Under the dim shaft of moonlight through the cracked window, Alix traced patterns on the floorboards with her fingertip.
"I still can't believe what happened back there," Evelyn murmured, glancing toward the couch where Elie lay, eyes half‑open. "The explosion… Dr. Fatal's trap."
Alix nodded, her brow furrowed. "We should've seen it coming. But none of us expected that—"
Evelyn cut in softly, "Elie's having an even harder time focusing. It's not just the trauma… she's… distracted."
Alix gave a small, sympathetic sigh. "By Kent, right?"
Evelyn lips quirked into a half‑smile. "She keeps drifting off whenever she thinks he's around."
Alix laughed quietly. "High‑school heartbreaks die hard."
They shared a look, both understanding that Elie's lingering crush was a dangerous vulnerability in this fight for survival.
Outside, Shin and Kent stumbled through the lean‑to behind the cabin, lifting loose planks in search of anything useful. They found a battered trap‑door—rusted but movable—and pried it open.
Without warning, the rotten wood gave way. Shin and Kent tumbled into icy water below, the splash echoing through the night.
Kent surfaced first, coughing, blinking at the dank chamber around them—a forgotten root cellar half‑filled with rainwater. Shin emerged beside him, water streaming from his hair.
"Safe?" Kent called, teeth chattering.
Shin nodded, shivering. "Yeah… but soaked through."
They both stripped off their drenched shirts, wringing them out before draping them over a rusted beam to dry. In the cellar's corner, they spotted an old enamel basin and a cracked pitcher—enough to fetch water to rinse blood and debris away.
Kent filled the basin while Shin rummaged for cloth scraps—torn pieces of their shirts—to wrap around wounds after cleaning.
Moments later, they climbed back through the trap‑door, shirtless and dripping, boots slapping against the wooden floor. The sudden sight of two half‑naked, water‑soaked men emerging from the cellar made both Evelyn and Alix look up in startled unison—and promptly burn red to the ears.
"El—Elie!" Evelyn stammered, hastily turning away as she realized where she'd been staring. Alix tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her face matching her roommate's.
Kent cleared his throat, winding the first aid cloth around his wounds. "Found this down there," he said, nodding toward the basin. He poured water into a cup Shin offered, then handed it to him.
Shin knelt beside Elie and gingerly lifted her head. "Drink this—help you heal." Carefully, he used the basin water and cloth to rinse the worst of the grime from her ankle, then wrapped it in the torn shirt.
Alix moved to help Evelyn, dipping a cloth to cleanse Evelyn's bruised leg and then bandaging it. Neither woman could meet the men's eyes as they worked, the heat of embarrassment and relief mingling.
Once every makeshift bandage was secure, Shin and Kent replaced their shirts—damp but serviceable. The cabin settled back into hush, save for the soft drip of water from the cracked pitcher.
Elie flexed her ankle, testing its stability. "Thank you," she whispered to Kent and Shin in turn, gratitude and something more lingering in her gaze.
Evelyn offered a small smile to them both. "Rest now," she said, voice gentle. "We'll plan our next move at first light."
They all sank back onto the couch and bench, exhaustion pulling heavy at their limbs. Outside, the wind rustled the trees as if urging them onward.
For these few precious hours, they simply rested—body and heart momentarily healed by the quiet camaraderie forged in adversity.