THE ELIMINATION ARENA ( One Hundred Enter. One Survives)

The Facility

Cold metal floor. Fluorescent lights buzzing overhead.

Kade opened his eyes. The desert was gone. He was lying in a corridor. White walls. Steel doors. The smell of chemicals and something rotten underneath.

Daniel groaned beside him. "Where are we?"

"Zone 2." Kade stood, checking his weapons. Machete. Two knives. Still there.

The system flickered.

[ZONE 2: THE FACILITY]

[OBJECTIVE: FIND THE EXIT KEY AND ESCAPE]

[WARNING: ZONE HAZARDS ACTIVE]

[PLAYERS REMAINING: 95/100]

A voice echoed through hidden speakers.

"WELCOME TO THE FACILITY. THIS ZONE REQUIRES INTELLIGENCE, NOT JUST STRENGTH. FIND THE EXIT KEY. ESCAPE BEFORE TIME RUNS OUT."

"TIME LIMIT: 48 HOURS."

"GOOD LUCK."

The speakers went dead.

Daniel looked around nervously. "Exit key? What does that mean?"

"Means we search." Kade started walking. "Stay close."

The corridor stretched endlessly. Identical doors on both sides. Some are open. Some are locked. The lights flickered every few seconds, shadows that played tricks on the eyes.

Kade checked the first open door. A laboratory. Broken equipment. Shattered glass. Old bloodstains on the floor.

"Someone died here," Daniel whispered.

"Probably more than one."

The system pinged.

[SCANNING ROOM...]

[ITEM DETECTED: MEDICAL KIT]

[LOCATION: CABINET, LEFT WALL]

Kade moved to the cabinet Inside there was a small medical kit. Bandages. Painkillers. Basic but useful.

"How did you know that was there?" Daniel asked.

"Instinct."

Daniel didn't believe him. But he didn't push either. Smart kid.

They continued down the corridor. More rooms. More death. Old computers with cracked screens. Files scattered everywhere. Kade grabbed a few pages. Research notes.

"PROJECT CULLING - PHASE 3"

"Subject survival rate: 12%"

"Recommendation: Increase psychological pressure. Weak candidates eliminate themselves."

Daniel read over his shoulder. "They've done this before."

"Many times." Kade dropped the papers. "We're not the first. Won't be the last."

"That's sick."

"That's reality. Keep moving."

A sound ahead. Footsteps. Multiple.

Kade raised his hand. Stop.

[HOSTILE PLAYERS DETECTED: 4]

[DISTANCE: 30 METERS]

[WEAPONS: PIPES, KNIVES]

Voices echoed down the corridor.

"I'm telling you, I saw two come this way."

"Good. We need their supplies."

"The big guy said there were no witnesses. Kill them quick."

Kade pulled Daniel into a side room. Dark. Empty. They pressed against the wall.

The footsteps grew closer. Passed their door. Keep going.

Daniel exhaled shakily. "That was close."

"Too close." Kade checked the system. "There's a group hunting players. Organized. We need to avoid them."

"Or?"

"Or we kill them first."

Daniel swallowed. "I was afraid you'd say that."

They waited until the footsteps faded completely. Then I moved again. Deeper into the facility.

The layout was a maze. Corridors splitting into more corridors. Stairs leading up and down. The system helped, marking paths and threats, but even it couldn't predict everything.

[ANOMALY DETECTED]

[UNKNOWN SIGNAL AHEAD]

[PROCEED WITH CAUTION]

Kade slowed. A large door ahead. Different from the others. Reinforced steel. A keypad beside it.

"What's in there?" Daniel asked.

"Only one way to find out."

Kade examined the keypad. The system scanned it.

[ACCESS CODE REQUIRED]

[HINT: CHECK ADMINISTRATION OFFICE - FLOOR 3]

"We need a code." Kade memorized the location. "Floor 3. Let's go."

They found stairs and climbed. The higher floors were worse. More bodies. Players who didn't make it. Some were killed by others.

Claw marks on the walls.

"What made those?" Daniel's voice trembled.

Kade didn't answer. He didn't want to know.

Floor 3. Administration. The sign was barely readable, covered in dried blood.

The office was trashed. Desks overturned. Papers everywhere. But in the corner, a safe. Small. Electronic lock.

[SAFE DETECTED]

[CONTENTS: EXIT KEY + ACCESS CODE]

[LOCK: FINGERPRINT REQUIRED]

"Fingerprint?" Daniel groaned. "Whose fingerprint?"

Kade scanned the room. A body slumped in the corner. Lab coat. ID badge.

"DR. HELENA VOSS - FACILITY ADMINISTRATOR"

He walked to the body. He grabbed the cold hand and pressed the thumb to the scanner.

The safe clicked open.

Inside, a keycard and a slip of paper. The code: “ 7749 “.

"Got it." Kade pocketed both.

A scream echoed from downstairs. Then gunfire ,then silence.

[PLAYERS REMAINING: 93/100]

"We need to move. Now."

They ran back down the stairs. The facility had become a warzone. Players fighting everywhere. Alliances forming and breaking. Trust was poison here.

Kade avoided every conflict. Slipped through shadows. Used the system to track enemies before they appeared.

They reached the reinforced door. Kade punched in the code. “7749”. The light turned green.

The door slid open.

Inside was an elevator. One button. Down.

"This is it?" Daniel asked.

They stepped inside. The doors closed. The elevator hummed..

[EXIT KEY VALIDATED]

[ZONE 2 COMPLETE]

[PROCEEDING TO ZONE 3]

[PLAYERS REMAINING: 93/100]

Daniel leaned against the wall, exhausted. "Six dead just while we were moving."

"It'll get worse."

"How do you know?"

"Because that's how these things work." Kade stared at the descending numbers. "Each zone is harder than the last. Fewer players. Higher stakes."

"And you think we can make it? All ten zones?"

Kade thought of Maya. Her smile. Her weak voice saying he always saved her.

"I don't think so. I know."

The elevator stopped. The doors opened. The smell of wet stone.

[WELCOME TO ZONE 3: THE UNDERGROUND]

Kade gripped his machete and stepped forward.

Eight zones left. Ninety -three players to outlast.

He wasn't stopping now.