In Solara, the Soft-Lands Serena ruled.
Serena sat at her desk, buried in paperwork. After a moment, she pushed her chair back and stepped onto her office balcony. Her hair moved gently with the air. Glasses on. Absolutely stunning. A cup of coffee in her hand as she sipped and looked out over the land she governed.
Then—
something stirred.
A feeling.
The moment her domain activated for the four during simulation training, she sensed it.
A presence.
Something she had never sensed before.
She slowly removed her glasses and lit a cigarette.
"A monster has arrived..." she said quietly.
Back in the white room, nothing had changed.
Malak: "Anyone got a watch?"
Leilla: "Yeah. Thank God I wore mine today. I'll track the time."
Rose: "Aaaand? What do we do now?"
Ari: "This domain can't be infinite. Or that big. I bet. We should split up."
Rose: "Split up? Didn't you hear what that lady said?"
Leilla hesitated.
"...Let's split up, but in groups of two. Just like they told us in lecture. Never walk alone."
Ari nodded. "Alright. Me and Malak. You with Rose."
The four pulled into a tight circle and hugged.
Leilla spoke fast, serious.
"No matter what, we don't give the medicine to that damn dog until we're all together. Then we plan what to do next. For now, the objective is to find the dog. Once one of us does, one stays on it—follows it, leaves marks, anything to track it. The other runs back to the rendezvous to bring us to the location."
She exhaled.
"Honestly, the plan's not perfect. But I trust we'll draw toward each other. We'll meet at the right moment."
"...We'll meet back here in one hour," Ari said, clapping Leilla on the shoulder. "Let's do this. The four of us."
They nodded.
All: "LET'S GOOOO."
The two pairs turned and ran in opposite directions.
Ari and Malak moved fast.
Ari: "You scan the right. I scan the left."
Malak: "Got it..."
Leilla and Rose stayed side by side, Leilla never letting Rose drift too far. They ran until they reached the end of a street and turned—
The dog leapt.
Its mouth wide open. Too wide.
It kept growing as it flew through the air toward Leilla. Bigger. Wider.
Until its jaws closed around her—
Snap.
Leilla was torn in half.
For a second, Rose was frozen. Shocked. Staring at Leilla's lifeless legs.
Then the dog jumped again.
Snap.
Rose was torn in half.
Ari: "Seen anything?"
Malak shook her head. "Nothing."
Ari: "I'll keep checking. You go see the others."
Suddenly—
"ARI!"
Both Ari and Malak turned their heads toward the voice.
Leilla stood alone.
They ran to her.
Ari: "Where's Rose?"
Leilla's voice shook.
"Guys... that dog killed me. And Rose. I don't know how, but I just... respawned where we first got here. Like the room reset me."
She swallowed.
"And then Rose appeared next to me. Out of thin air. She's in shock. She can't move. She's just staring at the ground."
Ari: "What the fuck is going on here?"
That's when they saw it.
The dog.
Devouring people.
Screams erupted. Panic spread. People ran in every direction.
Ari and Malak understood.
Leilla cursed under her breath.
"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Malak, give me the vial. Since I already died, I'll sacrifice myself. I'll distract it. You guys finish this. No matter what. When it jumps on me, Ari grabs it. Malak injects the syringe."
Ari stared at her.
"Grab that thing? WHAT?"
"It's just a fucking dog," Leilla snapped. "All you need to fear is its mouth. Grab his ass. Here—Malak, give him the syringe."
She locked eyes with Ari.
"Ari, you better grab that fucking dog. I swear, the pain I felt—I don't want to feel it again for nothing."
She turned and screamed at the monster.
"HEEEEY! HEEEY! HEREEEE, YOU FUCK-ASS DOG!"
The dog snapped its head toward her and charged.
Leilla ran on instinct. At the last second, she turned—
Ari grabbed her instead.
The dog flew past them.
Leilla: "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!"
Ari: "If we do this, we do it together. Not by sacrificing someone. What if this was real life? What if you actually die? I won't allow it."
"RUN!"
They sprinted.
Ari shouted over the noise.
"We run together. When I say stop, we stop and face it. When it jumps, we dodge. When it lands, we grab it. Malak injects."
Leilla breathless. "Fuck you, man."
Ari: "STOP!"
They turned.
The dog was already there.
Charging.
Mouth open.
It jumped.
They dodged.
The moment it landed, they jumped on it—Ari pinning its neck, Leilla locking it from behind.
Malak rushed in, sliding across the ground, syringe in hand.
The dog thrashed.
The needle pierced its cheek—
—but it broke free.
The violent shaking threw Ari forward.
Right in front of it.
Silence fell.
They all knew.
Shock froze on Ari's face as the dog's mouth opened.
Just before it closed—
Those eyes flashed in his mind.
The world snapped.
Shattered.
They were back in the white room.
Everyone stood frozen.
Ari clutched his head, breathing hard—terrified of what he had just felt.
Serena felt it as well — the hollow space where her control should've been.
Something impossible had just happened.
And because of it, the entire Gift Society was now watching.