Aiden jolted awake, gasping for air.
The seatbelt dug into his chest as he lurched forward. Cold sweat coated his skin, and his ears rang with silence. Not the soft kind — the wrong kind. No crying babies. No flight attendants. No engine hum. Just... nothing.
The dim emergency lights flickered along the cabin ceiling, casting pale red glows across empty seats.
Where was everyone?
He turned his head slowly.
Bodies.
Some passengers slumped in their seats, unmoving. Others — gone. Empty seats soaked in blood. The air reeked of smoke, scorched metal, and something far worse — decay.
"What the hell…"
He unbuckled and stumbled into the aisle. The plane looked like it had been chewed up and spat out by the earth. The fuselage was cracked open at the middle, jagged metal cutting through the forest outside like broken ribs. Trees loomed just beyond the torn frame of the aircraft.
He passed the open galley. The food carts had tipped over, trays shattered. Something glittered under a shattered cabinet. He crouched — an emergency fire axe and a portable extinguisher.
Aiden stared at them both.
He reached for the axe.
"Better than nothing."
The cold steel felt heavy in his hands, grounding. He didn't even think about the extinguisher. Something in his gut told him he wouldn't be fighting fires today.
He pushed his way toward the cockpit, stepping over scattered luggage and a body sprawled across the aisle. His breath caught when he reached the front.
The pilot and co-pilot were still in their seats — eyes open, unmoving. Blood had dried along the control panels. They were… dead. Definitely dead.
Then why was the cabin door open?
Suddenly, something clicked in his brain. He was the only one alive.
No survivors. No rescue team.
And no clue where they had crashed.
He stepped out of the plane, axe in hand, into a fog-laced forest that swallowed the rest of the wreckage. The sun was gone, and the trees felt too close. Unnatural.
Then came the sounds.
Low, rumbling growls. Echoes of something massive moving through the woods. Unnatural chirps. Shrieks.
Aiden's pulse jumped. His legs moved before his brain did.
He ran.
Branches snapped underfoot. Leaves whipped at his face. Behind him, the noises grew louder. Footsteps — not human. Bigger. Faster.
Then, a shape. Tall, beastlike, with glowing white eyes and twisted antlers like a demon-deer hybrid. It burst from the trees.
"Oh HELL no—!"
He sprinted wildly, ducking under branches, nearly tripping over roots, breathing ragged and sharp. He didn't dare look back again. The creature was right behind him — he could feel it, every thundering footfall shaking the ground beneath him.
Then — light.
A fire.
Aiden broke through the last line of trees and into a clearing where a bonfire raged.
And there — people.
All the passengers. Alive. Terrified.
Even the pilot and co-pilot, standing pale and silent beside the fire.
Aiden's mind couldn't process it. Just minutes ago, they were corpses.
Before he could say a word, his phone dinged.
Battery: 1%
He fumbled for his pocket, yanked out the emergency power bank, and jammed it in just as the screen blinked to life.
A notification appeared:
[✓] Game #1 Completed — "Run and Don't Look Back."[▶] Game #2 Started — "Investigator."
Aiden stared at the screen, heart thundering. He didn't download any game.
But the game had started anyway.