Vast, open sky.
Clouds stretched endlessly—familiar, yet wrong.
Debris scattered across the plateau. Jagged stones. Broken wood. Twisted roots.
The wind howled across the open land.
And above—
Shapes moved.
Wings sliced through the sky. Creatures circled, watching. Waiting.
A middle-aged man—late forties—stood frozen at the center.
Then it hit him.
Run.
Hide.
Before it's too late.
He dropped behind a low boulder.
Heart pounding. Face pale. Hands trembling.
"I… I was just at the amusement park… How… how did this happen?"
He looked out.
People were running.
Hundreds of them.
Scattered across the open ground like prey.
A shadow fell.
Too fast.
A man was lifted into the air—
Then torn apart.
A scream echoed across the plateau.
He pressed his face against the rock, bile rising in his throat.
Something hovered beside him.
An orb.
Eerie. Silent.
Almost… calling to him.
He didn't think.
He reached—
Light burst inward.
[Zodiac Orb Detected]
[Initializing…]
[Zodiac: Aries]
[Ability: ———]
[Status Panel Unlocked]
Move.
A voice inside him pushed.
Act.
No time to think.
No time to panic.
He grabbed a jagged stone.
Not much—
But it would have to do.
A shadow dived toward a child struggling to stand.
"Hey! Get down!" he shouted, sprinting forward.
The boy froze.
The creature was already there.
He swung.
The rock struck—but not clean.
The creature shrieked, its claws grazing his arm as he stumbled back.
Pain flared.
He almost lost his footing.
No time.
Another one was coming.
He rolled to the side, barely avoiding the next dive. Dust and loose stones scraped against his skin.
His hand found a broken branch.
He thrust it forward.
The tip struck the creature's body—but not deep enough.
It screeched, wings thrashing violently as it clawed toward him.
Too close.
He fell backward, kicking wildly.
The branch snapped.
"Damn it—!"
He scrambled, grabbing another stone and hurling it without aiming.
It hit.
Not enough to kill—
But enough to push it off.
Think.
Move.
Don't stop.
His breathing grew heavier.
His arms shook.
Every movement felt slower than the last.
Above him—
More shadows.
Too many.
Every single one of those things could kill him in seconds.
And his children…
If they were here—
If they were somewhere on this plateau—
He clenched his teeth.
I have to live.
Another scream rang out.
He turned.
A young girl stumbled, falling hard against the ground.
A shadow descended.
His body moved before his mind did.
He charged forward, swinging the broken branch in a wide arc.
This time—
It connected.
The creature was knocked off course, crashing into the ground beside them.
"Run!" he shouted. "Move! Don't stop!"
The girl scrambled up and ran.
He didn't wait to see where she went.
There was no safe place here.
No walls.
No cover.
Just open sky—
And death circling above.
He ran.
He dodged.
He fought.
Messy. Desperate. Barely holding on.
Every breath burned.
Every step felt heavier.
But he kept moving.
Because stopping meant dying.
Because somewhere—
Out there—
His children might still be alive.
I have to live.
I have to see them again.