I opened my eyes. The tunnel was still intact.

  "Damn you, old man!" I yelled into the empty space.

  "Huff… Huff…"

  My lungs burned as I sucked in air, my heart thudding like it wanted out. Sweat dripped down my face and soaked into the dirt below.

  Why am I having so many nightmares? What did I do to deserve this? I exhaled. Just a dream.

  "The next time I see that old man, he's getting a good beating," I muttered under my breath.

  Bang.

  Something smacked the top of my head.

  "Shut up, you crazy slug!" Isaac was glaring at me, his fist still midair, ready to give another strike.

  "Youch!" I sat up and rubbed my scalp. My eyes met a bunch of other kids staring. Their expressions were a mix of judgment and disbelief.

  Oops.

  I gave them a sheepish bow. They looked at each other, rolled their eyes, and went back to whatever they were doing.

  They probably think we're a bunch of lunatics...

  I smiled awkwardly.

  Rona turned me around and gently wiped my sweat with her sleeve.

  "Llyne had a nightmare? You were mumbling and squirming a lot in your sleep."

  I nodded. "Yeah. Sorry for worrying you."

  ...Thank you, Rona. Even a bit of kindness warmed my heart. Who wouldn't? Especially when you're trapped in this place with no escape.

  "You weren't just mumbling. You tried to destroy the wall," Isaac pointed at a dent nearby.

  "Ouish… That explains the leg pain." I stared at the dent, massaging my sore foot.

  "What nightmare is it? Share! Share!" Rona clapped her hands. That excitement from Rona immediately reminded me of how she gripped that red, zappy shackles. Kind... but weird. My body slowly moved away from her.

  Isaac crossed his arms. "Yeah. What kind of nightmare lasts two days?"

  "Two days?!" My head snapped toward him.

  Two days… in this place?

  "You're joking, right?"

  "No." Isaac rolled his eyes. "Tomorrow's the second game. We were too nervous to sleep while you were sleeping like a baby."

  I imagined being dragged through the tunnel like dead weight while I slept, and my throat went dry.

  "I had a nightmare, okay?" I groaned, placing my head on my hand. "Who knew I was out for two days…"

  "Now that I know it was a nightmare, I can sleep well." Isaac turned away, laid down and smirked.

  "Grr~ Why you…"

  Rona giggled, her hands covering her face, legs flailing around. "Isaac was worried about you the entire time because you kept trembling."

  Isaac's ear slowly heated up. "I wasn't worried. I was annoyed because she kept making weird noises."

  Ah... So he's that type huh? Aloof but close at heart. Heh!

  "Ohhh~ We understand." I said slowly, watching Isaac stiffen. "Tsundere-kun." I smirked.

  Isaac's face flushed red. "Don't call me that!"

  Rona tilted her head. "Tsun… what?"

  "Prickly outside," I said, grinning, "soft inside."

  Like a pufferfish. Ma used to say pufferfishes are poisonous, only qualified people can handle them. My eyes lowered to the grouchy red lobster. Just like him.

  Rona's eyes lit up. "Ooooh~ Isaac's a softie?"

  "Absolutely not," Isaac snapped.

  Before he could retreat, Rona suddenly pounced onto his stomach.

  "Oof! Get off! You're crushing me!"

  She rolled away, laughing until she wheezed. "Let's do it again!"

  Isaac scrambled back like a cornered cat, rubbing his ribs. "…Never again."

  If only I had popcorn with me.

  For a moment, the tunnel was filled only with Rona's laughter.

  Then it faded.

  "Big fat meanie." Rona pouted.

  "Small skinny meanie," I winked with a smile.

  Isaac's breath hissed through teeth. "Aren't you gonna talk about your nightmare already?"

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  "Okay, okay, sheesh." I took a deep breath and told them everything Master and I talked about, except Lyndall. That part stayed with me. Sorry Lyndall.

  Isaac stared at me blankly. "I get it now… You're trying to be Rona."

  "Me?" Rona beamed.

  Isaac sighed. "You're both fools."

  "Oii!" I lunged for Isaac's neck, but Rona grabbed my arms just in time.

  "Let me finish." Isaac brushed himself off while I glared at him. "Only a fool would trust a stranger. Especially a senile old man."

  "B-but..." I poked the corner of my index fingers together repetitively while staring at him.

  Isaac ignored my stare. "Besides, why do you trust him? Just because one of the Masters told you to? Don't forget that person killed your family and dragged you here."

  I froze. I had no comeback. Everything he said was true.

  "I… I don't know. I just felt like I could trust him. We need some info to survive in this place." Besides, I didn't smell any lie from Masta.

  I peeked at Isaac then at Rona. I doubt Isaac would believe me if I told him I could smell lies. Rona, well, would believe everything.

  "Maybe," Isaac replied flatly. "But it's still too risky. That crap about THE SYSTEM? Sounds like nonsense. He could be lying or testing you. Don't forget: he probably wants something from you."

  Oh? That last sentence...? I sniffled dramatically. "You do care about me, TsunTsun~"

  "Don't call me that!" Isaac growled.

  Rona blinked and shook her head lightly. "I still don't understand what you're talking about."

  I patted her head. "Don't worry, Rona. Everything's fine."

  Rona smiled with pride. "Okay. Me relief now."

  Isaac and I stared at her unable to comprehend what Rona's thinking.

  Isaac soon gave up and laid down again. "Sleep. The second game's tomorrow. We'll need our strength."

  Rona and I replied in unison, "Okay, TsunTsun~"

  Clack!

  Isaac chucked rocks at us.

  Rona and I giggled as we huddled closer.

  Soon after, Isaac and Rona fell asleep beside each other. Rona snored with drool trickling from her mouth right into Isaac's ear. His face scrunched up in annoyance.

  I giggled quietly and turned to the side.

  I hate the dark… but silence is even scarier.

  I glanced at Rona. Despite everything, she slept like it was just another day. Her presence made the weight on my chest a little easier to bear.

  "Thanks, Rona," I whispered and smiled faintly.

  I lay back, but sleep wouldn't come.

  What if they weren't here? The thought tightened around my chest. In the first game, I could've...

  I pressed my fingers into the cold stone beneath me. It was damp. Real. Somewhere beside me, Isaac shifted in his sleep. Slow. Careless. Alive.

  If he hadn't been...

  My heartbeat thudded so loudly I was sure someone else could hear it.

  I could've gotten them hurt. I could've killed them.

  "No," I whispered. "Stop."

  Ma's voice barged into my head, sharp and familiar. Positive thoughts, positive life.

  I almost laughed. In a place like this?

  Then I remembered her fist.

  …Yeah. That'd reset anyone's brain.

  My breathing slowly steadied. The silence pressed on my eardrum.

  I rolled onto my back, staring at the ceiling. "I miss Ma…" My eyes welled up.

  Eventually, I drifted off to sleep.

  The next morning arrived, however, being inside the tunnel, no one could really tell until your body's survival instinct clocked in.

  "Ne…lyne… Llyne!"

  A loud voice dragged me back from slumber. I thought I was in Iz's room again.

  "Iz?" I muttered. "Five more minutes…"

  Slap.

  "WAH! What was that for?!" I bolted upright, clutching my cheek.

  Rona stood over me with puffed cheeks and narrowed eyes.

  "Oh, Rona. It's you." I laughed. So everything wasn't a dream after all.

  "Did something happen?" I asked, poking her sides.

  Rona pouted and turned away.

  I turned to Isaac, who was happily watching our drama.

  "Oii, Piggy. What's up with Rona?"

  Isaac pointed at her stomach. "Probably hunger. I heard her stomach growling like a beast."

  This pufferfish. What does that have to do with me? I rolled my eyes. "So? Why is she ignoring me?"

  Isaac shrugged it off like it has nothing to do with him. "Who knows? Hunger temper? She ignored me too."

  Shing.

  A wooden door materialized at the tunnel's entrance.

  Creak… Creak…

  "A door now?" I squinted. "Before this, it was a translucent wall. What kind of cursed place is this?"

  Isaac crossed his arms. "We've seen monsters, vanishing doors, overdose lunatics, and floating boxes. This place stopped making sense on Day One."

  Crack. Crack.

  "Mic test, mic test." A familiar voice echoed.

  "Oh! It's Mr. James," Rona mumbled.

  Figures.

  Chomp. Chomp. Chomp.

  What's that sound? I glanced at Rona's mouth then her hands, then at the ground. I covered my face. It can't be...

  "SPIT THAT OUT! YOU! MONKEY!" I slapped her back.

  "Booooo…" Rona coughed up dirt, tears in her eyes.

  "Welcome to the 2nd game, little bunnies! Don't worry about your fans. They're safe from getting roasted alive."

  He paused.

  "We double-checked."

  Everyone turned to look at me.

  "It wasn't intentional!" I held my hands up.

  Mr. James continued, "Now, now. Look at me. I have the important information not that thing." Mr. James threw a snub at me, which I ignored then he continued, "Today's game is nice and easy. Just destroy the dungeon core."

  Dungeon core?

  I knew the term, but this wasn't a game. Nothing respawned here.

  "Oh, and if anyone doesn't make it inside…" Mr. James chuckled softly, as if remembering something fond. "…well. That happens. Like those RPGs you little freaks love so much. Simple, right?"

  "Straightforward like last time?" I muttered. "That 'welcome' included a giant flamethrower and a rolling death ball."

  "Yeah, right. Bet they've got another surprise," Isaac muttered, flipping the bird toward the ceiling.

  Mr. James ignored him. "Please proceed through the door. It'll take you straight to your designated dungeon. And better hurry," Mr. James said lightly. "Or something ugly might happen." He sounded almost curious.

  "Ugly?" I frowned.

  "Oh," Mr. James added lightly, as if an afterthought. "Do hurry."

  ROAWR!

  The sound didn't come from the air; it came from the ground, a vibration that rattled my molars. We turned.

  And froze.

  A grotesque mountain of wet, raw muscle was wedging itself into the tunnel. It was too large for the space, its own bones snapping and resetting with sickening cracks as it forced its massive frame forward. It didn't have a face so much as a collection of weeping eyes and a vertical maw that dripped thick, black bile.

  It didn't just crawl. It heaved.

  Roawr!

  It charged.

  The tunnel trembled. Children went down like pins. Mr. James yawned on the screen, the blue light reflecting off his bored expression. "Good luck, bunnies."

  The screen cut to black.

  "In! In! Go in!" someone shrieked, their voice cracking into a sob.

  The wooden door was mercifully close. We sprinted, the sound of our frantic breathing drowned out by a horrific, wet thud-thud-thud. The sound of the creature's heart beating against the tunnel walls.

  But not everyone was fast enough.

  Crack. Squelch.

  The monster didn't stop to eat; it simply plowed. It was an avalanche of meat and teeth. I heard the sound of a girl's ribs snapping. A dry, brittle pop followed by a wet "huff" of air as the life was squeezed out of her. Bodies weren't just hit; they were ground into the stone. Blood didn't just spray; it misted, turning the air into a red fog that tasted of hot iron.

  There was no time to mourn. We slammed into the door, a frantic knot of limbs and panic. I felt a hand claw at my cloak, desperate for leverage, but I pushed forward. We tumbled in, scrambling, panting, screaming.

  The last of us, Isaac, heaved the door shut.

  Bang!

  The wood groaned. Something heavy and wet slammed into the other side, the force of it nearly blowing the hinges. Then, silence.

  In a blink, the door didn't just close. It faded. The wood grain turned translucent, then vanished into the air like a dying breath. We were standing in a vacuum.

  The air tasted heavily of copper and the sour, hot smell of the thing. We stood there, trembling in the dark, the only sound the frantic, ragged sobbing of the survivors.

  Alive.

  Barely.

  Comedy before carnage. The calm before the real second game begins.

  The next chapter shifts tone again; we’re diving into the second dungeon. Expect survival, blood, and a few revelations along the way.