The Recovery Hall felt colder than usual.
Maybe it was because the truth was heavier now.
Maybe it was because the players knew they were no longer just in a game, but in a controlled system.
Aiden stared at the collar around his neck.
The red light glowed softly, like a warning.
He felt like he was being watched.
He felt like he was being hunted.
The next game was in five hours.
Five hours.
He looked around the room.
Players were preparing.
Some were stretching.
Some were talking.
Some were praying.
Some were silent.
Aiden's eyes landed on Four.
Four was standing near the wall, staring at the screen.
His expression was serious.
He looked like a man who had seen too much.
Aiden approached him.
"Four," he said quietly.
Four looked at him.
"What is it?" Four asked.
Aiden swallowed.
"I need to know," Aiden said. "What is the game?"
Four stared at him.
He sighed.
"The game is called 'Loyalty'," Four said.
Aiden frowned.
"Loyalty?" he repeated.
Four nodded.
"The Arena wants to see who can trust others," Four said. "Who can follow orders. Who can betray."
Aiden felt a chill.
He thought about the first game.
He thought about the players who had been eliminated.
He thought about the debt.
He thought about the fact that the Arena was not just a game.
He looked at Four.
"How do we win?" he asked.
Four shook his head.
"We don't win," he said. "We survive."
Aiden's heart sank.
He looked at Kira.
Kira was sitting on her bed, staring at the wall.
She looked calm.
She looked focused.
She looked like someone who had already planned her next move.
Aiden approached her.
"Kira," he said.
Kira turned her head.
"Yes?" she asked.
Aiden swallowed.
"What do you know about the game?" he asked.
Kira's eyes narrowed.
"I know that the Arena likes to break people," she said. "And the Arena likes to make them fight each other."
Aiden nodded.
He looked at her.
"Do you know how many teams there will be?" he asked.
Kira paused.
"Two," she said.
Aiden's eyes widened.
"Two teams?" he repeated.
Kira nodded.
"One team will win," she said. "One team will lose."
Aiden felt a chill.
He looked at Four.
Four nodded.
"That means we have to choose," Four said.
Aiden's mind raced.
Choose who?
Choose what?
Choose to betray?
Choose to trust?
Aiden felt a sudden anger.
He looked at the other players.
He saw fear in their eyes.
He saw desperation.
He saw hunger.
He felt a sudden urge to scream.
He felt a sudden urge to break the collar.
He felt a sudden urge to run.
But he couldn't.
He was trapped.
The screen on the wall flickered.
A new message appeared:
TEAMS ASSIGNED
Aiden's heart raced.
He stared at the screen.
The screen displayed a list of players.
Aiden scanned the list.
He looked for his name.
He looked for his number.
He found it.
TEAM A
11 — Aiden
4 — Four
7 — Mira
13 — Jax
18 — Lona
22 — Sera
Aiden stared.
He looked at the names.
He recognized some.
He didn't recognize others.
He looked at the second team.
TEAM B
2 — Kira
5 — Ryo
9 — Kade
12 — Nia
17 — Haze
21 — Orion
Aiden's heart sank.
Kira was on the other team.
Aiden felt a sudden anger.
He looked at Four.
Four's eyes were serious.
"We're on the same team," Four said.
Aiden nodded.
But he felt a cold fear.
Kira was on the other team.
He didn't know if he could trust her.
He didn't know if she could be trusted.
He looked at the other players on his team.
Mira was a woman with short hair and sharp eyes.
She looked like someone who had survived a lot.
Jax was tall and muscular.
He looked like a fighter.
Lona was quiet.
Sera was nervous.
Aiden felt a sudden pressure.
He looked at the collar again.
He realized something:
The collar was not just tracking.
It was controlling.
He remembered the rules.
He remembered the elimination.
He remembered the punishment.
He realized that the Arena didn't just want players to compete.
It wanted them to obey.
It wanted them to follow.
It wanted them to become part of the system.
Aiden's mind raced.
He looked at Four.
Four looked at him.
His eyes were serious.
"We need a plan," Four said.
Aiden nodded.
He looked at Mira.
Mira looked at him.
She spoke quietly.
"We need to know the rules," she said. "We need to know how to win."
Aiden nodded.
He looked at Jax.
Jax shrugged.
"We just fight," Jax said.
Aiden shook his head.
"This isn't just a fight," he said. "This is a trap."
Lona spoke.
"We should stick together," she said. "No one can trust anyone else."
Aiden nodded.
Sera looked at him.
"What if the other team is stronger?" she asked.
Aiden swallowed.
He looked at the screen.
The screen displayed the rules.
RULES OF LOYALTY
Teams must enter the arena together.
Teams must collect three tokens.
Tokens are hidden inside the arena.
The team that collects all three tokens first wins.
The losing team will be eliminated.
The winning team will receive a debt reduction.
Players who attempt to escape will be eliminated.
Aiden's heart sank.
Debt reduction.
That was the only reward.
The only reason to play.
He looked at the other players.
He felt a sudden anger.
He looked at Kira.
He felt a sudden fear.
He realized something:
If his team won, his debt would be reduced.
But he would still be trapped.
He would still be part of the system.
He would still be a pawn.
Aiden's mind raced.
He looked at Four.
Four's eyes were serious.
"We need to decide," Four said. "Do we want to win?"
Aiden's heart raced.
He looked at Mira.
Mira nodded.
"Yes," she said. "We win."
Jax nodded.
"We win," he said.
Lona nodded.
"We win," she said.
Sera looked at Aiden.
Aiden looked at her.
He swallowed.
"We win," he said.
The team nodded.
Aiden felt a sudden surge of determination.
He felt a sudden strength.
He looked at the screen again.
The screen flickered.
A new message appeared:
ARENA DOORS OPEN
Aiden's heart raced.
He looked at the other players.
They were ready.
They were scared.
They were determined.
The doors to the Recovery Hall opened.
A guard stepped forward.
He held a device in his hand.
He spoke.
"Players," he said. "Follow the corridor."
Aiden's heart pounded.
He followed the other players.
The corridor was long.
The lights were dim.
The air was cold.
The walls were smooth.
Aiden felt like he was walking into a coffin.
The corridor ended.
The doors opened.
Aiden stepped into the arena.
The arena was different from the first game.
It was not a flat surface.
It was a city.
A city inside a dome.
Skyscrapers surrounded them.
Neon lights flashed.
The air smelled like metal.
Aiden's eyes widened.
He looked at the other players.
They looked around in awe.
The arena was massive.
The screen on the wall flickered.
A voice spoke.
"Welcome to the Arena of Loyalty."
Aiden's heart raced.
He looked at the other players.
He saw the fear in their eyes.
He saw the hunger.
He saw the determination.
He felt a sudden sense of danger.
The voice continued.
"You have 60 minutes to collect three tokens."
Aiden swallowed.
"60 minutes," he whispered.
The voice continued.
"Tokens are hidden in the city."
Aiden looked around.
He saw buildings.
He saw streets.
He saw cars.
He saw people.
But the people were not real.
They were robots.
Aiden's heart sank.
Robots.
He realized something:
The arena was a simulation.
The city was fake.
But the danger was real.
The voice continued.
"If you do not collect all three tokens, your team will be eliminated."
Aiden's mind raced.
He looked at Four.
Four's eyes were serious.
"We need to split up," Four said.
Aiden nodded.
They needed to cover more ground.
They needed to find the tokens.
They needed to survive.
Four assigned tasks.
He told Mira and Jax to search the buildings.
He told Lona and Sera to search the streets.
He told Aiden to search the underground.
Aiden nodded.
He moved toward the entrance of a subway station.
He felt a cold sweat.
He looked at the collar.
He felt the weight of it.
He felt the control.
He entered the station.
The underground was dark.
The lights flickered.
The air was cold.
Aiden's heart pounded.
He walked deeper.
He saw graffiti on the walls.
He saw abandoned trains.
He saw shadows.
He felt like he was being watched.
He heard a sound.
A faint sound.
A voice.
A whisper.
"Aiden."
Aiden froze.
He turned.
No one was there.
He felt a chill.
He heard the voice again.
"Aiden."
He looked around.
He saw a door.
The door was slightly open.
He walked toward it.
He opened the door.
The room was small.
It was empty.
But there was something on the floor.
A token.
A glowing token.
Aiden's heart raced.
He reached for it.
He touched it.
The token was warm.
He felt a surge of energy.
He picked it up.
He heard a sound behind him.
He turned.
A figure stood in the doorway.
It was Kira.
She smiled.
Her eyes were cold.
She held a token in her hand.
She spoke.
"You found one," she said.
Aiden swallowed.
"You're on the other team," he said.
Kira smiled.
"I know," she said. "But I'm not here to win."
Aiden frowned.
"What are you here for?" he asked.
Kira's smile faded.
She looked at him.
She said, "I'm here to stop the Arena."
Aiden's heart raced.
He felt a sudden fear.
He looked at the token in his hand.
He looked at Kira.
He realized something:
Kira was not just a player.
She was a threat.
She was a rebel.
She was someone who could change everything.
Aiden's heart pounded.
He looked at Kira.
He asked, "How?"
Kira's eyes narrowed.
She whispered, "The tokens are not just tokens."
Aiden stared.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
Kira's eyes flashed.
"They are keys," she said. "Keys to the system."
Aiden felt a chill.
He looked at the token.
He looked at the city.
He looked at the collar.
He realized the truth:
The game was not just a game.
It was a system.
A prison.
A trap.
Aiden's heart raced.
Kira stepped closer.
She whispered, "If we collect the tokens together, we can break the system."
Aiden's eyes widened.
He looked at her.
He felt a surge of hope.
But the hope was quickly replaced by fear.
Because the sound of the arena alarms began to blare.
The lights flickered.
The voice spoke again:
"Warning. Team A has collected one token. Team B has collected one token."
Aiden's heart stopped.
He looked at Kira.
She looked at him.
She whispered, "We don't have much time."
Aiden nodded.
He clutched the token.
He looked at the door.
He looked at Kira.
He made a decision.
He said, "Let's do it."
Kira smiled.
She whispered, "Good."
Aiden turned.
He began to run.
He didn't know where he was going.
He only knew one thing:
If they didn't collect the tokens, they would die.
And if they did collect the tokens…
They might become part of the system.
Or they might break it.
The underground shook.
A loud sound echoed.
The city above them began to change.
The buildings shifted.
The streets moved.
The arena was reacting.
Aiden's heart raced.
He looked at Kira.
She looked at him.
She whispered:
"Get ready."
Aiden's blood ran cold.
Because he saw something coming from the darkness.
A figure.
A guard.
A guard with a mask.
A guard with a gun.
The guard stepped into the room.
He raised the gun.
And fired.
Aiden's world went black.