A soft blue stretched across the morning sky, birds cutting through the light in lazy formation. Their wings flapped above a city still shaking off the sleep, while golden sunrays poured gently over buildings like a warm blanket. It was peaceful—the kind of calm that made everything feel still, just for a moment.
Saro trudged down the sidewalk, hoodie thrown over his head, eyes half-open and ringed with tired shadows. He walked like a ghost—feet dragging, shoulders slouched.
"Uhh… new morning…" he muttered under his breath.
A beat passed.
"…new beating."
He stopped, blinking slowly, like something was trying to rise up in his mind but got stuck halfway.
Wait… was I forgetting something?
Silence. A blank stare forward.
…Maybe not.
He sighed and kept walking, eyes dull. Before long, the path ahead turned chaotic—he'd wandered straight into a construction site. Dust clouds floated lazily, and the sharp whine of buzzsaws rang through the air. Workers shouted in the distance. Bright-orange barricades warned him not to go further.
"Uhhh…" Saro stood at the edge of the blocked path, voice flat. "What am I gonna do now?"
He looked around. Left. Right. Ahead. All that stretched out before him were messy, twisted streets—none of them familiar.
There's no specific way I know that leads to school…
He stared, unblinking, caught between irritation and apathy.
Hmm… should I skip school or not?
A glance to the side. Casual.
One day wouldn't hurt, right? he reasoned.
Better than getting a beating for being late.
With that, he turned away and began walking in the opposite direction.
"Let's go," he said, quietly, to no one in particular.
A few blocks later, he stepped inside a small phone shop bathed in neon lights. Walls lined with display phones blinked silently as he wandered past them. His fingers poked at a demo model.
"Uhm… browser…" he whispered, tapping the screen.
He brought up the search bar and typed slowly.
Search: "EXTREME HORROR PLACES NEAR ME"
A tiny grin crept across his face.
"Yeaah."
One result immediately caught his eye: a glitchy thumbnail of what looked like an underground lab. The title read:
"Unregistered Research Facility – Zone C (WARNING: Unmapped Zone)"
He leaned in closer.
"…What?" he muttered.
A second later, a small digital map popped up. A red dot blinked ominously—just half a kilometer away.
This thing's like half a kilometer from here? he thought.
He was already halfway out of the shop.
"Alright," he said. "Let's see."
Outside, he stopped at a local bike stand. A touchscreen displayed several rental options, and he tapped through them with impatient fingers.
Beep. Beep.
Soon enough, he was wobbling onto a rental bike—a bit too big for him, but workable. He found his balance with a slight grin tugging at his lips.
"Haven't ridden since fifth grade," he said. "What could possibly go wrong?"
And then he was off.
He rode fast, cutting through the quiet of an empty side road. The morning sun lit his path, casting long shadows behind him. The wind pulled at his hood as the city blurred by.
One detour. One stupid idea. One step closer to everything changing.