Chapter Seven: The Girl in the Courtyard
Sameer's body moved before his mind could decide. He sprinted toward the voice, desperate for anything human, anything real. His footsteps echoed against the lifeless walls until he burst into the university's inner courtyard.
The place was as silent as before—benches empty, fountain dry, clock tower ticking too loudly in the still air.
Then he saw her.
A girl, standing near the base of the clock tower. Her hair was tied back loosely, her uniform rumpled, her face pale from exhaustion. She looked about his age, maybe a little younger.
She froze when she saw him, her eyes wide with the same disbelief he felt.
"You… you're real?" Sameer blurted out, his voice raw.
The girl raised a trembling hand, pointing at him. "Don't… don't come closer."
Sameer stopped, hands half-raised in surrender. His heart raced, half in relief, half in fear. "I-I'm not dangerous. I just… I thought I was the only one left."
She studied him carefully, her chest rising and falling quickly. Then, after a long pause, she whispered, "…You heard it too, didn't you?"
Sameer blinked. "Heard… what?"
"The voices," she said, her eyes darting nervously around the courtyard. "They whisper to me… call me by numbers. They tell me to return. To… to obey."
Sameer's blood ran cold.
"…What number?" he asked, his voice low.
Her lips trembled as she answered. "…Seventeen."
For a moment, the world tilted. Candidate Seventeen. Candidate Nineteen.
Sameer felt his stomach twist. This wasn't just about him.
The girl hugged herself tightly, shaking. "I thought I was going insane. I thought I was the only one left in this nightmare."
Sameer swallowed hard, forcing words out through his dry throat. "…What's your name?"
She hesitated. "…Mira."
The name hit him like a spark. A survivor. A real person. For the first time, he felt the faintest flicker of hope.
But before he could say anything more, the clock tower above them chimed.
DONG… DONG… DONG…
The sound was deafening, far too loud, reverberating through the courtyard. Sameer clutched his ears, grimacing. Mira fell to her knees, screaming.
And in the ringing silence that followed…
The voice returned.
Not in his ears.
In his head.
"…Candidates located. Retrieval in progress."
Sameer's heart stopped. Mira looked up at him, tears streaking her pale face.
"…They found us."