Golden didn't move for a long time.
The ground beneath him was cold and uneven, the black stone cracked and scarred from whatever battle had taken place before he arrived. The violet sky above had begun to darken, its glow dimming into deeper shades that made the ruins feel even more lifeless.
Night was coming.
That thought alone was enough to make his chest tighten.
Slowly, carefully, Golden pushed himself to his feet. His legs wobbled immediately, forcing him to grab onto a broken pillar for support. A wave of dizziness hit him, and for a moment he thought he might collapse again.
He waited it out.
Breathing. Counting. Forcing his body to listen.
The wound on his chest didn't reopen, but every movement reminded him it was still there. Not healed—closed. There was a difference, and his body knew it.
"I need… somewhere safe," he muttered.
If such a place even existed.
Golden scanned his surroundings. The ruins stretched endlessly in all directions—collapsed walls, shattered platforms, twisted metal fused with stone. Some structures looked medieval, others unmistakably mechanical, cables and plates embedded into ancient-looking rock.
This world didn't make sense.
And that scared him more than the monsters.
He chose a direction at random and started walking
Each step was slow. Careful. He kept stopping, listening for sounds—footsteps, breathing, anything that wasn't his own. Every shadow made his heart jump. Every distant noise sent cold fear crawling up his spine.
He was painfully aware of how weak he was.
If anything finds me… I'm dead.
Eventually, he found it—a partially collapsed structure tucked between two massive slabs of stone. The entrance was narrow, barely wide enough for him to squeeze through, but inside it opened into a small chamber, protected on three sides by thick walls.
Golden hesitated.
Then he slipped inside.
The air was stale but still. No immediate signs of movement. No bones. No claw marks. That alone felt like a blessing.
He sank down against the wall, exhaustion crashing into him all at once.
His body trembled now that he'd stopped moving. Adrenaline drained away, leaving behind nothing but fear and fatigue. He wrapped his arms around himself, trying to keep warm, trying to stay grounded.
I almost died, he thought again.
The reality of it settled deeper this time.
Not like in stories. Not dramatically. Just… suddenly. Meaninglessly.
Golden swallowed hard.
"I don't want to die here," he whispered to no one.
The darkness crept in slowly. Outside, the violet sky faded further, strange stars beginning to appear—too many of them, too bright, arranged in patterns he didn't recognize.
As night fully claimed the world, sounds began to rise.
Distant roars.
Low, rumbling growls.
Something screeching far away, sharp and alien.
Golden froze, barely daring to breathe.
He pressed himself deeper into the corner of the chamber, eyes locked on the entrance. Every instinct screamed at him to stay silent, to disappear.
Minutes passed.
Then more.
Nothing came.
Eventually, his shaking slowed. His breathing steadied just enough for his thoughts to wander again.
Am I really alone?
The question crept in uninvited.
He remembered the moment before everything changed—standing in class, surrounded by people,their movement and their reaction.
Too normal.
Golden clenched his fists.
No… it can't be just me.
But the thought didn't comfort him the way he expected.
If I am here… then they were somewhere in this world too. Facing things just as terrifying. Maybe worse.
The idea lingered as exhaustion finally dragged him down.
Golden didn't sleep.
Not really.
He drifted in and out of shallow rest, waking at every sound, every shift of shadow. His body never fully relaxed, his mind always half-prepared to run.
The forsaken world didn't attack him that night.
But it didn't welcome him either
It simply waited.