Snap!
With the flick of Mr. James' fingers, the world dissolved.
No warning. No countdown. Just a sudden void.
We looked down.
There was no ground.
"Oui?"
"The ground is missing?!!"
"Uweeee!"
We plummeted.
CRASH!
Hard, cold stone greeted us with all the grace of a slap from reality. The familiar stale scent of dust hit my nose. We were back—in the dungeon holding chamber.
"Ugh! That hurts! Couldn't he just teleport us or something? Why does he need to make the ground disappear?!!" Isaac exploded, clutching his back and screaming like a tortured spirit.
I didn't bother getting up. Face planted against the ground, I groaned and turned over with the grace of a dying sloth. "There's nothing on the ceiling." I sniffed myself. "No dung too." I smiled in peace.
Trauma couldn't touch me. I had been knocked around like a ragdoll so many times that being slammed into concrete barely registered. Besides, compared to being sprayed with worm feces, this was paradise.
Meanwhile, Rona was skipping around the dungeon like she'd just returned from a theme park.
"Fun. Fun. Fun. I had lots of fun. Food. Food. Food. I tried so many different foods~"
She was spinning. Singing. Radiating innocence that didn't belong in a place soaked with blood.
"Isaac," I called lazily. "Chill a bit, would you? Try to be like Rona."
He stared at her. "If I was 1 year old, maybe."
I pointed at him like a disappointed mother. "If this is the clean freak talking again, I'm gonna give you a good whack. I need peace. Don't piss me off."
He shut up instantly. Smart choice.
A few hours passed in awkward silence.
Then the new arrivals appeared.
Kids—maybe ten, maybe twenty—stumbled into our dungeon like survivors from a warzone. Covered in dirt. Some in blood. Some crying for their parents. Others stared blankly ahead, no light in their eyes. A few huddled in corners, assessing everything like animals backed into a cage.
"...I don't remember seeing them before," I murmured.
Isaac nodded grimly. "They might be from the other dungeons."
"Other dungeons?"
He tilted his head. "You think it's just us?"
It made sense. Like some twisted competition show, except instead of singing for your life, you bled for it.
"I don't watch TV," I muttered. "I wouldn't know."
Then—
"KYAAAH!!"
A scream split the air.
A boy—skin pale, eyes bloodshot—snapped. He thrashed like a feral animal, fists slamming against the dungeon wall. "IS THAT ALL YOU GOT? HUH?! MORE! GIVE ME MORE BLOOD!"
We stepped back.
"He's cracked," Isaac whispered. "Stay back."
We nodded, then froze.
"…Wait. Where's Rona?"
Step.
Step.
She was approaching him.
Like it was the most normal thing in the world.
"Will you be my friend?"
My heart dropped. Isaac screamed, "RONA!"
The boy turned. His eyes twitched.
"Friend? I don't need any!" He shoved her to the ground.
"Rona!!" I sprinted toward her, Isaac close behind. I knelt, checking her limbs. "Are you hurt?!"
"Nope!" She leapt up cheerfully. "I'll make him my friend too!"
Before we could stop her, she chased after the blood-crazed boy like he was a carnival ride.
"Oui… she didn't fall for him, right?" I asked in horror.
"I won't give my consent!" Isaac snapped.
"She's a teenager! She can make her own decision."
"She's a teenager, not an adult! She still needs her parents' approval before she can DATE!!"
Isaac took off after her.
I blinked. "Since when were we her parents?"
The chaos didn't stop there.
When he finally dragged her back, she was sulking like a scolded puppy.
"What did you do, shorty?" I glared.
"Nothing," he grumbled, holding her by the collar like a misbehaving cat.
I smacked his wrist. "Then let go!"
"No! Later she'll sneak off again to meet that barbaric guy!"
Rona's puppy eyes activated. Isaac flinched but didn't budge.
"I will not yield!"
"You sound like some crusty old man thinking his daughter's being stolen away."
"She is my daughter, and I refuse to let her go!!"
"WHEN DID YOU ADOPT HER?!" I shouted.
They bickered like a divorced couple for the rest of the week.
Their cold war was legendary.
Rona sat far left.
Isaac sat far right.
The dungeon became the North and South Pole.
"Wow…" I said sarcastically. "Who said global warming doesn't exist?"
I eventually had enough. "Will you stop it already?! You're frightening the children!" I pointed at the other survivors cowering from their death glares.
They looked at each other. Pouted.
"PATCH IT UP!" I shouted.
They jumped in sync and muttered an awkward apology, then stared at me like scolded kids.
"Good. That wasn't so hard, was it?"
They nodded.
"Next time this happens, I won't be so kind."
Their faces paled.
I smiled and patted their heads.
They flinched in unison.
"Good boy. Good girl."
Eventually, peace returned.
I laid on the floor again, eyes closed, listening to the quiet.
Rona was doodling in the dirt.
Isaac sat between us, arms crossed.
"Hey. Got a minute?"
"No," I answered instantly.
He continued anyway. "I asked a few people how they got here."
I sat up. "Sure you did, Mr. I-Mind-Everyone's-Business."
He was quiet. Unusually so.
"Did his battery run out?" I asked.
Rona poked him.
He snapped out of it.
"Ah… sorry. I was thinking." Then he frowned. "They were all kidnapped. Black suits. Government tags."
My expression darkened. "So?"
Isaac looked at us. "What about you guys? For me… some agents came to my school. Said I'd been charged with illegal hacking. At first, I thought they were bluffing, but their ID was real. Secret services. I panicked, followed them into their car…"
He paused.
"Smelled something sweet. Passed out. Woke up here."
"Sounds cliché," I yawned. "What about Rona?"
Rona jumped. "Oh! My turn!"
Her smile was as bright as ever.
"I was walking back home with alcohol!"
"What?!" Isaac nearly combusted.
"My parents gave me money. Told me to buy alcohol and groceries. I was gonna explore since it was my first time going out alone, but I came back quickly 'cause they were home together!"
Isaac's face turned red. I patted his back.
Then Rona continued.
"There were a few men in suits in my living room. They were painting the house red! But it was messy—paint was everywhere!"
Isaac opened his mouth.
I clamped it shut.
"Let her finish," I whispered.
"They said my parents had a surprise for me. Told me to go with them."
Silence.
"...Have you seen your parents since?" Isaac asked softly.
"Nope! But this must be the surprise they were talking about!"
Isaac and I smiled awkwardly.
She beamed. "But I got to meet Lil and Isaac!"
I teared up and pulled her into a hug. Isaac turned away, trying to hide his face.
But I saw the glint in his eyes.