Mist That Chokes
The third day began without dawn.
The forest no longer welcomed light. Fog smothered the canopy, thick as ash, swallowing even the faintest rays of the morning sun. Every branch looked like claws in the gray. Every sound, real or imagined, was swallowed into silence.
The trainees trudged through it with hollow eyes.
Sixty had entered this round. Already, nearly half were gone. Eliminated.
No corpses were left behind—only silence where voices had once been. That silence pressed hardest on those who survived.
Kaen's group pushed forward, weapons drawn, nerves taut. Their breaths steamed in the cold mist.
But even more suffocating than the fog was the weight on their minds.
Every step was a reminder: You might be next.
Cracks in the Team
By midday, their pace slowed. The forest had become a maze. Every direction looked the same—gray, endless, hostile.
Daren cursed as his boot caught on a root.
"Damn it! This fog's killing us more than those masked bastards."
Lyra's sharp gaze cut toward him. "Quiet. You're announcing our position."
Daren spun on her. "And what do you want me to do? Pretend this isn't hopeless? We're rats in a cage!"
The words rang louder than intended.
Fin flinched, hugging his knees where he sat on a fallen log. His lips trembled. "M-Maybe… maybe Daren's right. What if they're not even letting us win? What if—"
"Enough." Riku's voice sliced the air like steel. "If you collapse now, you save them the trouble of killing you."
Fin's eyes watered. "I-I'm not… I just…" His words broke into sobs.
For a moment, no one moved. The sound of Fin's crying filled the silence of the forest, ragged and raw.
Fin's Collapse
Kaen crouched near him. His voice was softer than the others, steady, carrying weight not through force but through quiet truth.
"Fin. Look at me."
Fin hesitated, then raised wet eyes.
Kaen's expression was calm, almost fragile, but unwavering. "You're afraid. So am I. Every moment, I think—maybe the next step will be my last. Maybe the next shadow hides a blade."
The others glanced at him. It was rare for Kaen to speak this much.
"But…" Kaen continued, his hand tightening on Fin's shoulder, "…we keep walking anyway. That's what surviving means. Not being fearless. Just choosing not to stop."
Fin's breathing slowed. His sobs quieted, though his tears still fell. For the first time, Kaen's words reached deeper than Riku's harsh discipline or Lyra's sharp logic.
He wasn't commanding. He was sharing.
And Fin, trembling, nodded. "…O-Okay."
Daren's Pride Cracks
The group pressed on, slower but together.
As the mist thickened, shadows moved in the distance—Special Squad figures, circling but never striking. The constant presence gnawed at nerves worse than combat.
Suddenly, Daren's voice cut through. "This is insane. They're toying with us." His fists clenched. "If they want a fight, I'll give them one!"
He started forward.
Riku grabbed his arm, yanking him back. "You'll get us all killed."
Daren snarled, shoving him off. His pride, always sharp, finally cracked. "At least I'd die fighting instead of hiding like a coward!"
Lyra stepped between them, her voice like ice. "And what about the rest of us? You'd throw our lives away for your pride?"
Daren's glare faltered. His chest heaved, rage battling shame. For once, he had no answer.
The silence that followed was heavier than any mist.
Kaen finally spoke, his tone low but steady.
"…Daren. Fight when it means protecting someone. Not when it means feeding their game."
Daren looked at him, jaw tight. For the first time, he didn't retort.
Cutaway – Another Team's Collapse
Elsewhere, another group stumbled through the fog. Their leader barked orders, voice cracking with desperation.
One member finally screamed back, "Shut up! You don't know what you're doing!"
Their unity shattered. In that instant, a masked warrior descended.
Steel flashed.
Screams cut off.
The camera lingered on the mist swirling where they once stood, before fading back to Kaen's team.
The Whispering Night
When night fell, they built no fire. Fire was a beacon, a death sentence.
Instead, they huddled in a hollow, cloaked in branches and silence.
The forest was alive with whispers—real or imagined. Sometimes it was wind. Sometimes it was the Squad. The line blurred until every breath sounded like an enemy.
Fin trembled, whispering, "I-I can't sleep. What if they come?"
Lyra, sitting nearest him, spoke quietly. "Then I'll cut them down before they reach you."
Fin looked at her, stunned. Her tone wasn't comforting—it was cold, sharp. But for him, it was enough. Her words carried certainty. A promise.
Across from them, Daren sat with his arms crossed, eyes closed but not asleep. The weight of Kaen's earlier words pressed on him. His pride burned, but underneath, he felt something else. Shame.
Riku sat like stone, sharpening his blade with methodical precision. Each stroke was steady, endless, the rhythm of control.
And Kaen… Kaen stared into the mist. His eyes weren't on the shadows, but on something far beyond. Memories. His father. His family. The night everything was taken.
Uncle… why? Why did you leave me with only silence and blood?
But he didn't speak it. He just sat there, the quiet weight of his determination holding the group together like invisible thread.
Breaking Point
Hours into the night, the silence broke.
A scream ripped through the forest. Distant, but close enough to chill the blood. Another team. Another collapse.
Fin covered his ears. "I-I can't—!"
Riku hissed, "Quiet!"
But it was Kaen's voice that steadied them.
"Listen."
They froze.
The scream had cut off suddenly. Too suddenly.
Kaen's jaw tightened. "…They're showing us what happens when we break. They want us to hear it. To lose hope."
Daren's fists clenched. "Bastards…"
Lyra's gaze hardened. "Then we don't break."
Her words were steel. But it was Kaen's calm nod that gave them weight.
He stood, looking at each of them in turn. His voice was quiet, but it carried.
"We survive. Not because they allow it. But because we choose it."
For the first time, his words weren't just for Fin. They were for all of them.
Closing Scene – Kaen's Awakening
As the night stretched on, the group finally drifted into uneasy rest, one by one.
But Kaen remained awake, staring into the mist.
A shadow flickered in the distance—a Squad warrior, standing still, watching.
Kaen didn't flinch. He met the gaze, even through the mask.
For a moment, neither moved. Predator and prey. Wolf and mouse.
But in Kaen's eyes, a spark burned. Not fear. Not despair.
Something else.
The shadow tilted its head, almost curious. Then it melted back into the fog.
Kaen exhaled slowly. His hand tightened on his weapon.
Not just surviving anymore. Leading.
The screen cut to black.