Chapter 24: Shadows of the Living
The stairwell groaned under their weight.
Dust fell from above as Zayn led the squad through the hospital's crumbling core. His fingers tightened around the Core Server orb floating just above his palm, its glow steady but ominous. Every few steps, it pulsed faintly—as if mapping the world around them, or perhaps scanning for something unseen.
\[Status: Core Server Synced – Signal Strength: 72%]
\[Warning: Environmental Instability Rising]
"Which way?" Max whispered, his breath visible in the cold air.
Zayn paused at the next landing, squinting at the cracked emergency map. Most of it was unreadable. Blood smeared one side, and the corner had been half-burned.
"Through the subway station," Zayn replied, tapping the only legible exit icon. "It's our best shot at reaching the signal Iris found."
Kira glanced over her shoulder. "Let's just hope it's not another ambush."
They stepped into the main lobby.
Or what was left of it.
Broken chairs lay scattered across the floor. The reception desk had been crushed by part of the ceiling. The hospital's sliding doors stood open, creaking gently in the wind. Outside, the fog rolled thick across the ground, swallowing up the ruins of Dead City in every direction.
But this time, there were voices.
Zayn raised a hand, signaling the squad to stop.
Voices. Footsteps.
Not zombies.
Not the corrupted echoes of system code or the mindless snarls of the Revenants.
People.
\[Detection: Human Players Nearby – 28 Meters]
\[Squad Count: 1 | Status: Armed | Tags: Unknown Affiliation]
Iris crouched near the doorframe, raising her scope. "I've got eyes on them. Four players. They're headed this way."
Kira pressed against the wall, one hand on her rifle. "What do we do?"
Zayn hesitated.
Normally, in a Free Fire match, the answer would be simple: engage or avoid.
But this wasn't normal. This wasn't a match.
It was survival.
"Let's not shoot first," he said quietly. "If they're trapped here like us, we need answers."
They moved out from the hospital's entrance, weapons low but ready. The other squad emerged through the fog—four figures clad in armor mismatched and dirty, but clearly high-level players. One had a glowing mask, another bore claw marks across his chest plate.
Their leader stepped forward.
She wore a black tactical coat, long and worn, with an old Free Fire insignia on her shoulder. A sharp-eyed woman in her mid-twenties, rifle strapped across her back and a combat knife in hand.
She raised an eyebrow at Zayn. "Didn't think anyone else was dumb enough to enter Grave Sector."
Zayn lowered his weapon slightly. "We didn't exactly choose this."
Her expression didn't soften. "No one ever does."
\[Player Identified: "Reina" – Rank: Diamond IV]
\[Squad Tag: Wraith Unit]
Behind her, the others watched in silence—three players, each marked with unique kill insignias. Veterans.
Max shifted uneasily. "You stuck here too?"
Reina gave a humorless smile. "Two weeks. No exits. No respawns. No rules."
Kira frowned. "Two weeks? That's not possible. This map was locked until yesterday."
Reina shook her head. "Not for us. We were bait. Chosen to test the Grave Sector under Project N."
Zayn's stomach turned. "Project N... what is it?"
Reina's eyes flicked to the Core Server orb floating beside him. "You're carrying the source. That thing? It's a fragment of the original AI that ran this entire game. Back before Free Fire was a game."
"What do you mean?" Iris asked, voice low.
"It was never meant to be just entertainment," Reina replied. "Project N was designed to simulate large-scale survival under real stress conditions—war, decay, disease. It created worlds like this… to see who could adapt. And those who couldn't—"
She glanced toward the darkened street.
A low growl echoed from the shadows.
Zayn raised his weapon again.
Out of the fog came another wave.
But these weren't the slow, shambling glitch zombies from before.
These were faster. Their bodies twisted by code errors, glowing with corrupted energy. Some crawled on walls. Others leapt from building to building like insects.
\[New Entity Detected: Revenant Hunters – Variant Class]
\[Weakness: Light-Based Weaponry | Behavior: Aggressive, Intelligent]
\[Wave Begins in 00:20]
Reina's squad shifted into formation without hesitation.
"Talk later," she said, drawing her knife. "Fight now."
Zayn nodded. "Together, then."
The two squads merged, spreading across the narrow street as the monsters descended. Iris took to high ground again, while Kira and one of Reina's teammates laid traps at the alley corners. Max and Reina stood at the front, blades ready.
The Hunters came like a black tide—crawling, shrieking, coordinated.
Gunfire lit the street.
Mines exploded, shaking the earth.
Zayn moved with precision, blink-teleporting between cover spots, firing controlled bursts from his rifle. Each kill slowed the wave, but the creatures learned quickly, shifting formation, flanking.
A Hunter got past the line, charging Iris's perch.
Zayn blinked twice in rapid succession—appearing beside her just in time. He tackled the creature mid-leap, driving it into the wall, where Iris finished it with a shot to the head.
"Thanks," she muttered.
He gave a shaky nod. "Don't mention it."
The battle raged for five long minutes.
Then—silence again.
Bodies of digital monsters faded into ash, their code dissipating into the fog. The street was littered with cracked pavement and shattered gear.
\[Wave Cleared – Joint Defense Successful]
\[Temporary Alliance Formed: Squad #11 + Wraith Unit]
\[Safe Zone Reached – Signal 87% Synced]
Zayn exhaled. "Everyone okay?"
Kira nodded. "No major injuries."
Reina wiped blood from her cheek. "We'll need to move soon. This city doesn't rest. And the next wave won't give us time to chat."
Zayn looked down at the Core Server.
It was glowing brighter now.
And beneath the signal data, a new line appeared.
\[Project N Archive Fragment Found – 0/4]
\[Collect All Fragments to Unlock Exit Protocol]
Zayn's eyes narrowed.
"This place… it's not just a trap. It's a test. And I think we're the subjects."
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Author's Note:
Thank you for reading Chapter 24! We're deep into the *Dead City* arc now, and things are only going to get more intense as Zayn's squad uncovers the truth about Project N—and fights to escape this corrupted battleground. I appreciate you being on this journey with me. See you in Chapter 25!