The lights inside the carriage flickered once… then held steady.
But it wasn't the lights that made Ravi's skin crawl.
It was the eyes.
Two molten-yellow orbs, burning low in the tunnel ahead. They glowed like fragments of a dying star, fixed on the cramped metro full of human prey.
The growl came next. A low vibration that crawled across the rails, shuddering through the floorboards until it rattled in Ravi's bones. The walls hummed with it. Every bolt, every steel bar in the carriage seemed to buzz with the promise of violence.
The thing stepped into view.
It had once resembled an animal, perhaps a wolf or a jackal, but that shape had been stretched and warped until it no longer belonged to the world outside the cracks. Its fur hung in rotted clumps, threaded through with black veins that pulsed as if something else lived beneath the skin. Its jaw sagged unnaturally, long teeth glistening with saliva that hissed when it struck the floor.
The air recoiled. The stench — scorched iron and rancid blood — spread instantly through the carriage. Someone gagged. Someone else whimpered.
The timer appeared before Ravi's eyes.
[Main Scenario #1: The First Hunt][Clear Condition: Eliminate the designated threat.][Time Limit: 29:47]
The countdown pulsed in the corner of his vision, cold and steady.
No one moved.
The crowd of passengers — players now — stared in mute horror. Their phones, their little fragile lifelines, hung useless at their sides. One man made the mistake of throwing his bag. The flimsy cloth struck the beast's shoulder and slid off as if the creature hadn't even noticed.
The monster tilted its head, jaws stretching open wider than bone should allow, and let out a sound that was half-roar, half-scream.
People broke.
A man hammered his fists against the sealed exit, shouting for help. A woman sobbed into her hands. Another whispered prayers, the words tripping over each other. The air reeked of panic.
Ravi didn't move.
He could still hear the static-corrupted message burning in the back of his mind.
@Unknown_Origin: I gave you another chance. Don't waste it.
His fingers tightened on the iron pipe.
Last time, no one had helped him. Last time, he had bled out on the cold metal floor, choking, while the scenario ticked down. His corpse had been nothing but a delay for the monster's next kill.
But this time—
This time someone was watching.
The beast lunged.
Ravi twisted aside, instincts pulling him just clear of the blur of claws. His pipe swung up in a wide arc, connecting with the side of the creature's skull. Metal rang against bone. The jarring impact shuddered through his wrists, up his arms, rattling his teeth.
The monster's head jerked—then steadied. It turned back toward him, unfazed.
It didn't fall.
"Shit."
Behind him, one of the passengers made a desperate dash for the barrier. Claws flashed. Blood splattered. A man went down screaming, clutching the shredded remains of his leg.
The rest froze.
The system didn't.
[Warning: Party morale is dropping.][Hint: Complete the objective or face elimination.]
The text flared across every player's vision.
"What the hell does that mean?!" a woman shouted, hysteria cracking her voice.
Ravi's lips curled into a grim smile. "It means if you don't fight, you die."
The monster roared, shaking the glass of the windows.
It lunged again.
This time Ravi didn't retreat. He stepped into its charge, jamming the pipe across its jaws and twisting. The sound of teeth snapping filled the carriage. Shards clattered against the metal floor. The creature thrashed, head tossing like a bull trying to throw off a yoke.
Still, the others didn't move.
They watched. Frozen. Hoping. Waiting for someone else to be the one who risked their life.
Just like before.
Ravi spat blood from his lip where the recoil had cut him. His voice lashed out, sharp as the ringing of the pipe.
"Form a circle! If it gets past me, you're next!"
No one moved.
The timer ticked down.
28:12.
He almost laughed. This wasn't fear—it was paralysis. They thought if they just waited long enough, someone else would save them. They hadn't understood yet. This wasn't the world they knew. There were no bystanders anymore.
From the edge of his vision, the text flickered again.
@Unknown_Origin: Prove you deserved this regression.
His jaw clenched. His heart hammered once, steadying his breath.
"Fine," he muttered. "I'll prove it."
The creature crouched low, saliva dripping, muscles rippling under mangled flesh. Its growl reverberated through the rails like distant thunder.
Ravi raised the pipe. His pulse slowed. His stance steadied.
This time…
This time he wasn't dying here.
The monster's muscles bunched.
It lunged again—faster, heavier. Its claws shredded the metal seats where Ravi had been standing an instant before. Sparks hissed, fragments of upholstery rained down.
The iron pipe cracked across its snout. Bone crunched. The monster howled, staggering back into the aisle.
Ravi didn't let it breathe. He stepped forward, pipe whistling through the air in a sharp arc. The impact rattled his arms. The creature reeled—but it didn't fall.
Its body was wrong. Too heavy. Too resilient.
Every hit that should have broken a spine only slowed it down.
Behind him, the passengers still hadn't moved.
Some pressed against the sealed doors, white-knuckled, as if sheer pressure would break through the barrier. Others clung to the poles, faces pale, waiting for the nightmare to pass.
Ravi's fury burned hotter than his fear.
"You idiots think this is a movie?! If you don't fight, you die! There's no hero coming to save you!"
The beast's claws slashed again. He twisted aside, pipe jerking up just in time to deflect the blow. The force flung him into the carriage wall. His back exploded with pain.
The timer ticked down.
27:31.
The system wasn't patient.
[Warning: Player inactivity detected.][Penalty Incoming: Lethality Increase.]
The text burned across their vision. The passengers gasped.
The monster roared again—louder, sharper, as its claws lengthened, tips gleaming like obsidian blades.
It had grown stronger.
Ravi spat blood onto the floor.
"Great. Fantastic. Thanks for the encouragement."
He dragged himself upright, pipe steady in his grip. His lungs burned, each breath ragged. His heartbeat hammered like war drums in his chest.
But his eyes didn't waver.
He wasn't the man who had died helplessly last time.
The monster lunged.
Ravi ducked low, sweeping the pipe in a wide arc that cracked against its knees. The beast stumbled, slamming shoulder-first into the seats. He surged forward, driving the pipe down toward its skull.
A claw lashed out.
Pain exploded across his ribs as he was thrown back into the center aisle.
He coughed blood. The pipe rolled from his grasp.
The beast loomed, drool sizzling where it struck the floor.
The passengers screamed.
And the system pulsed again.
[Hint: The designated threat cannot be defeated alone.][Hint: Leadership Qualities Detected.][Suggestion: Rally nearby players.]
Ravi laughed bitterly, spitting more blood.
"Leadership, huh? Guess babysitting was in the fine print."
He grabbed the pipe, dragged himself upright, and bellowed.
"Everyone! Attack together! Aim for the legs—make it stumble! You don't have to kill it, just slow it down!"
No one moved.
Fear chained them in place.
The timer ticked.
26:02.
Then—one man moved. The same man who had tried the barrier earlier. His leg was bleeding, but his eyes were wild with desperation. He grabbed a shattered seat armrest and swung it at the monster's flank.
The blow barely scratched it.
But the beast turned.
And in that opening—Ravi struck.
The iron pipe smashed into its temple. Blood sprayed. The monster reeled sideways, slamming into the doors.
"NOW!" Ravi shouted. "Everyone, NOW!"
Something shifted.
The passengers surged. Fear still twisted their faces, but desperation had found an outlet. They swung bags, poles, fists—anything they could grab.
The blows were weak, clumsy, but they landed.
The beast roared, staggering under the sudden storm.
Ravi pressed forward, pipe hammering again and again into its skull. Each strike sent blood flying in hot arcs. His arms trembled with the force. His ribs screamed with every breath.
But he didn't stop.
He couldn't stop.
Not this time.
[Morale Rising.][Player Activity Detected.][Threat Vulnerability Increased.]
The text pulsed coldly, almost approving.
The monster lurched, blood pouring from its shattered jaw. It staggered back toward the end of the carriage.
The passengers pressed in around it, shrieking with fear and rage.
The timer ticked.
25:00.
Ravi raised the pipe high.
"This is where you fall."
The pipe came down.
It sank deep into the monster's skull with a wet crunch. The creature convulsed, molten eyes flaring—then dimming.
Its body collapsed, twitching once before lying still.
The sudden silence was deafening.
The passengers stared at the corpse, wide-eyed, trembling. Some sobbed with relief. Others collapsed where they stood.
The system pulsed again.
[Main Scenario #1 Complete.][Clear Condition Achieved: Designated threat eliminated.][Survivors: 22]
Ravi staggered back, chest heaving. Blood slicked his lips, his ribs screamed, but he was still standing.
This time, he was still alive.
The others didn't look at him with gratitude.
They looked at him with fear.
The man who had fought back, who had dragged them into survival, who had cracked open the monster's skull… wasn't one of them anymore.
He was something else.
The system pulsed again.
[Reward Allocation Pending.][Error Detected.][Unknown Signal Intrusion.]
Static filled his vision.
Letters warped, flickering.
@Unknown_Origin: Better. You survived the first step.
The text dissolved.
Ravi exhaled slowly, leaning on the bloody pipe.
"…One step at a time, then."
The corpse twitched.
The passengers screamed.
Ravi turned, pipe ready, but the monster wasn't rising. Its body was melting, black veins unraveling into threads of smoke. The remains evaporated into the air until nothing was left.
The carriage was silent.
Until the system spoke again.
[Main Scenario #2 Approaching.]