Chapter 4: The Silent Drop
Dawn broke slowly.
Pale light seeped through the jungle canopy, casting long shadows across the dirt path. Zayn Arif walked behind Max in silence, each step heavy with the weight of what they had seen in the Graveyard. The words of the Archivist still echoed in his mind:
["You were selected because your death matched the anomaly."]
["Origin Flagged: Earth\_Zone\_23 - Esports Sync Event"]
["Status: Watched"]
Zayn wasn't just a player who got pulled into the game. He was being observed—targeted. By what, or who, he still didn't know.
[Respawn Cooldown: 42 hours, 51 minutes]
[Vital Sync: 90%]
[Progression: 3%]
[Unlocked Fragment: 1/5]
As the trees thinned and the terrain sloped downward, the horizon came into view—low hills surrounding an open field where the grass waved in the wind. A familiar sound buzzed above.
Zayn looked up.
A cargo plane.
It tore across the sky, low and slow.
Then—
Click.
The side hatch opened.
A small crate ejected from the belly and plummeted toward the ground.
[Airdrop Incoming]
[Location: Ridgefield Slope]
[Estimated Time to Impact: 00:45]
Zayn squinted. "That drop's not far."
Max didn't stop walking. "Which means half the zone will head for it. Drops bring chaos."
"But also top-tier loot," Zayn murmured.
Max gave him a sharp glance. "And top-tier death."
Still, Zayn's eyes lingered on the faint smoke trail in the sky.
He wasn't planning to race everyone to it—but maybe, just maybe, he could *use* the drop.
As a distraction.
He looked at Max. "You said there are players who know more. Who survived longer. Where can I find them?"
Max sighed. "You're hungry for answers. That's good. But it'll get you killed fast."
"I don't want to wait until the system chews me up," Zayn said. "I want to know what's really going on before my second life runs out."
Max hesitated.
Then he pointed northeast. "Outpost Delta. About two klicks from here. Old communications base. That's where the Cartographers are."
Zayn frowned. "Cartographers?"
"They don't fight. They map. Not just terrain—but patterns. Drop zones. Kill points. System shifts. If anyone has noticed something strange about you, it's them."
Zayn nodded. "Then let's go."
—
They circled wide around the airdrop, the gunfire echoing faintly in the distance. A squad was already fighting over it—Zayn caught glimpses through the brush. Tracer rounds, quick footsteps, one player vaulting behind a tree just before being gunned down.
[Player "C4rtz" Eliminated]
[Weapon Used: M82B]
Zayn flinched. He recognized that weapon. Heavy sniper. Armor-piercing. Deadly in the right hands.
They kept moving.
Soon the thick trees gave way to open, broken ground. Communication towers loomed in the distance, tilted and rusted. Satellite dishes half-buried in the dirt. It looked abandoned—but not empty.
Max raised a hand.
Zayn dropped to one knee instinctively, scanning the area.
A figure stood alone by a rusted terminal, adjusting what looked like a long-range receiver. She wore a patched tactical cloak, her face half-covered by a scarf. She didn't seem armed.
Max approached first.
She looked up. "Max."
"Is Ludo in?"
"Inside. And this?"
"A new Cartographer's dream," Max said, gesturing to Zayn.
The woman studied Zayn silently. "Looks green. But his aura's messy."
Zayn blinked. "My what?"
"You've been touched by the Graveyard," she said simply. "Data fragments cling to you like oil. You're leaving tracks."
Zayn didn't know what to say to that.
They led him inside.
—
The interior of the outpost was surprisingly intact. Dusty consoles lined the walls, their screens glowing dimly. Dozens of maps were pinned across the room—hand-drawn with notes, arrows, and strange codes written in multiple languages.
In the center sat an older man hunched over a cracked screen, typing with slow precision.
"This is Ludo," Max said. "He leads the Cartographers."
Ludo didn't look up. "I know who's entered my space."
He finally turned.
His eyes were tired but sharp. "You're the one with the Respawn glitch. I've been watching your pings."
Zayn blinked. "My what?"
"Your digital footprint. Movement rates. System interference. That graveyard visit sent a pulse across the field. Most players wouldn't notice. But we do."
Zayn stepped forward. "Then tell me what I am. Why me?"
Ludo sighed and tapped a terminal.
A holographic map projected into the air.
"Out of the last 500 players dropped into this realm, only 7 had Respawn Systems. Of those, 6 expired within three days."
Zayn swallowed. "And the seventh?"
Ludo looked at him. "Still active. But missing. We lost track of him at 74% progression."
[Respawn System Data: 7 Known Users]
[Survival Rate Beyond 72 Hours: 14%]
[Progression Threshold Unknown]
[System Behavior: Unstable Above 50%]
Zayn felt his breath catch. "Unstable?"
"It begins to rewrite itself," Ludo said. "Abilities change. Notifications become corrupted. Some users reported hearing voices."
Zayn shook his head slowly. "What is this place? Why does it use Free Fire as a shell?"
Ludo leaned back. "Because Free Fire is predictable. Familiar. It creates a controlled environment. But the truth is, this world isn't a game. It's a test."
Zayn clenched his fists. "A test for what?"
"That," Ludo said, "you'll have to discover yourself. But know this—when you reach 10% progression, your system will awaken something deeper. And *someone* will come looking for you."
[Progression Goal: 10%]
[Status: Monitored]
[Current Progress: 3%]
Zayn stared at the screen. Just 7%. That was all he needed. But in a world where every fight could be his last, and his second life was on a timer…
It felt like a mountain.
Max tapped his shoulder. "Let's move. Staying too long in one place is asking to be tracked."
Zayn nodded slowly.
As they left the outpost, he glanced back at Ludo.
"Do you think I'll make it?"
Ludo didn't smile. But he said, "You've made it this far. That's more than most."
—
They moved under the cover of trees again. The gunfire near the drop had died out. The field was quiet—too quiet.
Zayn looked at the cooldown timer again.
[Respawn Cooldown: 42 hours, 17 minutes]
Every second ticked louder in his mind.
And somewhere far above, beyond the boundaries of the game's sky, something watched.
Zayn didn't know what would happen at 10%.
But he was going to find out.
Even if it killed him.
Twice.