In the depths of the fog-flecked subzone, where the air felt thick with secrets and uncertainty, Arin took a cautious step forward. His mutant rat skittered beside him, its mismatched eyes glinting with an intelligence beyond mere survival.
Arin glanced at his new tame. He had spent the entire previous day and night waiting for the rat to recover.
It was day 3 of the trial, and he still didn't understand the area he was in. So, he decided to scout the surroundings. He exited the building with his rat and chose a direction to explore.
As Arin explored, he saw collapsed factories and scorched ground all around.
I think it's ruined industrial zone… And this fog feels strange. It feels like ashes. If it is actually ashes then why is it not falling to the ground. Arin deduced but his deduction brought more questions in his mind.
Arin kept exploring but the fog or more accurately ashes limited his visibility, slowing his exploration speed. He didn't want to get lost in the fog or worse stumbled into the nest of monsters.
I think I can handle an average one now. And it should also be able to at least hold of another, Arin thought, glancing at his rat.
The rat isn't exactly pleasant to look at but it can be helpful, Right? Arin thought hopefully as he glanced at his rat.
Arin continued exploring until he sensed an abnormality; the gravity had become… fickle.
With every step forward, it tugged at him like a whispering ghost, making each movement feel both buoyant and heavy.
He decided to press on, as long as it remained bearable.
Then, Arin heard it. A faint sound, almost imperceptible, emanating from somewhere nearby.
Was it the wind howling through shattered spires? Or the soft crunch of something moving inside the floating ashes?
Arin didn't know, his throat grew drier with fear, the fear of unknown.
Now he had two choices: swallow his fear like an unknown medicine. It could be something beneficial or something poisonous. Then investigate the sound.
Or let the fear win, suppress his curiosity and fall back.
Arin thought for a moment and made his decision.
Fortune favors the brave. Arin told himself and with that he moved toward the sound.
Not long after, Arin encountered something both wonderful and bizarre.
Floating shards hovered in the air above him, suspended as though gravity had forgotten them.
They might have been grand towers once, Arin reckoned, but now they lay scattered like stars across the eerie dark night.
It felt wrong…yet alluring, as if each fragment held a piece of lost knowledge or a warning left unheeded.
His rat paused, snuffing at the ground before letting out a low chitter that echoed eerily. A ripple passed through Arin's mind, an unexplained connection to this creature that was once an enemy but now an ally in this strange land.
The rat sensed something. Its ear perked up and twitched.
Arin didn't have to wait long. He heard it too.
An unsettling symphony of muted thud and distant echoes filled the space, like zone itself was breathing.
He swallowed a mouthful of water and pressed deeper into the fog, each step a negotiation with gravity's shifting grip. Sometime tighter, sometime loose.
Arin drew his knife, the rat perked up at the sight of the blade. Its ears were twitching in sync.
Noticing the reaction, Arin whispered, "It's not for you." Then he continued forward.
"Stay close," he added more for his own comfort than the rat's.
They moved cautiously toward the source of the commotion; the sounds of struggle guiding them through the nebulous gloom.
As they rounded a jagged corner of debris, Arin's eye widened at the sight before him: A cluster of figures huddled together in desperation against a formidable beast.
The creature writhed and lunged, its maw gaping wide, full of jagged fangs that glinted ominously. It had the shape of the wolf or dog, sinewy limbs and scales like shattered glasses that glistened eerily as it fought a group of four, each desperately swinging crude weapons.
For a fleeting moment, Arin had urge to run, but he forced himself to think of a solution. It wasn't much larger than his tamed rat, yet he doubted his rat would be anything more than a snack to it.
Perhaps joining forces would offer a better chance of survival, Arin thought but then his eyes caught flicker of both determination and anxiety among the fighters.
One swung too forcefully and accidentally struck the another.
"Watch it!" One man shouted, anger bubbling beneath his voice. Instead of focusing on the monster, the other fighter hurled an insult.
The dog monster seized the moment. It lunged forward with vicious intent.
Panic erupted as the fighter scrambled, not just from beast but from each other too. Trust between them shattered like a glass. They began using one another as bait, stalling the monster while trying to flee on their own.
A sinking feeling spread in Arin's gut. He understood now: teamwork could make the survival easier but camaraderie could also dissolve instantly when fear or selfishness took over.
The sight disgusted him. Their bickering was tearing apart any advantage they had.
He hesitated on the edge of decision. Should he cast his lot with these strangers, already falling apart? Or retreat into solitude again?
But before Arin could decide, a primal roar erupted. The creature lunged at the nearest fighter with savage speed.
Screams replaced shouts as its jaw clamped down on an unfortunate woman. Her struggle ended in a sickening snap of bone. Blood sprayed across the ash-laden ground.
Arin froze, his stomach churning as the horror unfolded.
The men, now completely panicked, turned their back on one another and bolted in different directions.
The creature was relentless. With one brutal swipe, it caught another off guard, tearing through flesh like parchment.
In the chaos, one fighter; a lanky fellow with fearful eyes, suddenly broke away from the others. Realizing a fight meant death, he darted in a different direction.
Arin stared in shock. Why is he running at me? He hadn't seen me…had he?
NO. NO.Don't bring that thing here! Arin screamed in his head.
But the lanky man kept running without hesitation.
"Help me! It's right behind me!" he yelled then the shoved passed Arin and hurled himself into the fog.
Watching him vanish, Arin briefly thought the man looked more relieved than surprised to see him.
"Get away from me!" Arin heard another loud voice.
Arin turned back just in time to witness another brutal strike. The creature seized the last fighter with terrifying ease. Their eyes met for a split second then came silence, as life fled in an instant.
Arin could feel something bubbling up in his chest but before he could make sense of it, the creature growled deeply.
It had seen him or it remembered the direction lanky man escaped into. Arin wasn't sure and he was not planning to find out either.
Whether knowingly or not, Arin bolted in same direction the lanky man had gone, his rat following close behind.
The fog grew denser. Visibility dropped. Then something slammed into Arin's side.
"Move!" Arin heard the lanky man shout as they both stumbled before breaking into a sprint.
The fog thickened again. Every breath felt like inhaling darkness.
"Why did you run?" Arin shouted as they fled. "You left them to die!"
"They were going to get me killed. I'll take my chances alone any day!" the man spat bitterly." And aren't you the same? You chose to escape too."
Hearing the man, Arin thought back to what had happened. He could feel the anger flared beneath his skin, though whether it was directed at himself or the lanky man, he couldn't tell.
The growl around them grew louder. Closer.
Arin strained to hear where the creature was coming from, then something struck his shin hard, and he went down.
"Don't take it personally. It's either you or me." Arin again heard the lanky man mutter before vanishing into the fog.
As Arin pushed himself up, he heard the beast growl so close he could almost feel its breath on his skin.
But then he reminded himself. He wasn't alone, his rat was still behind him.
Except it wasn't.
Unknown to Arin, when he fell, the rat had not stopped. It kept running into the fog…to God knows where.