The sun didn't rise so much as drag itself up over the ruins.
Rynn sat on a rock, gnawing what was left of his ration bar and trying not to look at the cracked glass tower smoking in the distance.
Lyra crouched beside a campfire that barely counted as fire.
Jun snored with his head on his backpack, arm hanging off the edge like a lazy flag.
"Day two," Lyra muttered. "Seventy-two hours my foot. It already feels like we've been here a week."
Rynn tossed a pebble into the dirt. "At least we're alive."
"Yeah," she said. "That's the exam's definition of success: not dead yet."
---
The Rules of the Grid
A voice crackled from the wrist timer on Rynn's arm — a metallic announcement.
> "Reminder: only one relic core is required to pass.
Interference, theft, or murder are not prohibited.
Survive at your own risk."
The timer went silent again.
Jun, now half-awake, squinted. "Wait, not prohibited means it's allowed, right?"
Lyra groaned. "Great. So basically, it's a school project where killing classmates gets you extra credit."
Rynn tried to laugh, but the sound came out hollow.
---
The First Scream
The sound came from across the valley — sharp, human, and short.
They froze.
Dust rose in the distance.
By the time they reached the ridge, it was over.
Two examinees lay on the ground near a broken ruin. One was breathing. One wasn't.
A third person stood there, shaking, hands stained red and glowing faintly with relic energy.
Rynn's stomach twisted. The Guild had called it a test, but this wasn't a test. It was thinning the herd.
Lyra's voice was quiet. "This is what they meant by 'interference not prohibited.'"
Jun looked down for a second, then sighed. "Well. That's officially the worst team-building exercise I've ever seen."
No one laughed.
They left quietly.
---
Later That Day
They moved through the canyon. Heat shimmered. Hunger grew.
The Wild Grid felt endless—like walking through someone's half-finished dream.
Lyra's scanner beeped once.
"Relic energy nearby," she said.
"Please tell me it's food energy," Jun said.
"Nope. Just power. Which, you know, we can't eat."
Rynn smirked. "You sure? You seem like you'd try."
"Kid," Jun said, "I'd eat my shoes if they had nutritional value."
They all laughed, and for a moment the world didn't feel so cruel.
---
Ambush
That peace lasted maybe three minutes.
Something whistled past Rynn's ear — an arrow made of solid light, slamming into a tree trunk.
Figures dropped from the cliffs above: three contestants in scavenger gear, faces covered.
"Relic core or your rations!" one shouted.
Rynn blinked. "We don't even have a relic core."
"Then your rations!"
Jun groaned. "Of course. The day I decide to share breakfast…"
Lyra ducked behind a rock, pulled a small gadget from her belt, and twisted it until it sparked.
It exploded with a flash of smoke — not deadly, but distracting.
Rynn grabbed Jun and bolted.
They sprinted until their lungs burned, skidding into a dry ravine.
Jun collapsed against a boulder. "Remind me to hate cardio."
Lyra looked at Rynn, smirking. "Not bad, kid. You run fast for someone half-dead."
Rynn smiled weakly. "Thanks. I've had practice."
He looked at his hands. That faint blue glow again, veins pulsing softly under the skin.
He clenched his fists. The light faded.
Something was changing. He just didn't know what.
---
Nightfall
They made camp under a twisted metal arch.
The stars above flickered like they were too tired to shine.
Jun stared up. "You ever think about how big the world is?"
Rynn did. Constantly.
But right now, it felt more like a mouth than a sky—wide and waiting to swallow anything small enough to fit.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "I think about it all the time."
---
End of Chapter 3
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