Gandaska City never whispered—it screamed. Built on the ruins of lost empires and ambition, its skyline was a jagged wound of steel and concrete. Rooftops bristled with antennas and snipers. Alleys wept rust. Neon signs flickered like the dying pulse of a neon heart. Two things kept its citizens breathing: get rich or die trying.
For Shanazer, the third rule applied: run. And she had. Her name wasn't spoken in the streets—it was spat. Hunted. Hated. A walking, bleeding vault with a two-billion-dollar target strapped to her life. No one knew exactly why that bounty was on her head. But in a city like Gandaska, why didn't matter.
🌧️ The Forest — One Hour Outside the Eastern Slums
Rain slashed through the thick canopy like a whip. The forest groaned as wind twisted the old trees. Every leaf glistened with dread. Shanazer's breaths came in desperate gulps. Her boots slipped in the mire, blood mixing with mud on her knees. Her hands stung from white thorns embedded deep, and her pulse roared in her ears.
THWIP—THWIP—THWIP.
Three arrows hissed from the darkness.
She ducked instinctively, but a gnarled root caught her ankle and threw her down. The impact winded her. One arrow struck the tree above her head, the others vanished into foliage.
"Get up… or die," she hissed to herself.
Her body begged her to stay down. Her will refused.
She scrambled upright.
And from the shadows, three hunters emerged.
🏹 Drago: The Relentless
He crouched in the canopy, eyes narrowed to a slit. Wolf-like. Skin like ironwood bark. He barely moved as he drew back his blackened bowstring.
> She doesn't breathe right. Her rhythm's broken. Injured. Good. Less fun if it's too easy. > But something about her… reminds me of someone I knew. Before… > No. Don't remember. Just shoot.
"I'm the one who takes her," Drago growled. "No stray arrows in my hunt."
💰 Dexter: The Opportunist
He grinned behind a soaked scarf, crouched beside a mossy rock.
> Three million? That's more zeroes than my mama could count. Gods rest her soul—or not. > Let Drago loose the first one. I'll tail and clean up. Let the big wolf break the bushes, I'll bag the prey.
"You? Heh. I'll settle for four mill—winner takes it," Dexter smirked, knocking his own arrow to the string.
🎯 Aragon: The Precisionist
Clean-shaven. Eyes like glass. Calculating. He stood tall despite the rain, wiping droplets from his face like they offended him.
> This is beneath me. A wounded girl in a cursed forest. But money... money rewrites pride. > A heartbeat. That's all I need. A twitch in the leaves and—
He tilted his head.
"Gentlemen," he said softly. "Let's make this interesting."
Three arrows loosed like thunder.
Shanazer: The Flame that Wouldn't Die
Pain. Pure, red, crawling agony. Her body screamed with every step. But she ran, limbs shaking, vision blurred by rain and blood.
She zigzagged through the trees, every breath searing. Behind her, death hissed on feathered wings.
Then—lightning cracked.
She slipped.
And fell.
The cliff welcomed her like an open mouth. Air screamed past her ears. The trees shrank. Time slowed.
> Is this how it ends? Finally. > No mourners. No past. No name even. Only me and this cold sky. > Let it end. Let them chase my ghost.
She closed her eyes.
Then—a memory detonated in her mind like a bolt of lightning. Six years ago. A crisp, wind-kissed evening. The golden glow of sunset spilled lazily through the curtains, painting the room in hues of amber and coral. She sat curled on the edge of a velvety couch, the flickering light of an animated series dancing across her wide eyes. The air was calm, scented faintly with lavender from the oil burner humming in the corner.
BANG!
The door shuddered violently against its frame. She jolted upright, heart rocketing into her throat. Her eyes flew to the door just as it slammed shut behind the figure.
Her father.
He bolted the door with trembling fingers, his back pressed against it as if holding something monstrous at bay. His chest heaved in ragged bursts. Sweat shone along his brow despite the coolness of the evening. A thick folder clutched in one blood-slick hand trembled under the grip of panic.
She froze—unnerved. He was never like this. Her father was the quiet in every storm. The anchor when life howled. But now... he looked fractured. Terrified. Haunted.
Slowly, she reached for the remote, silencing the TV. The room fell into a charged stillness, the only sounds his desperate breath and the ticking wall clock—each tick a thunderclap in the silence.
"Father?" Her voice cracked under the strain of fear. Jaw clenched, she swallowed a leaden lump in her throat. "Are you alright?"
He didn't reply. His eyes darted toward unseen ghosts. Then—he limped forward. Only now did she notice the blood trailing behind him with every step. She stifled a gasp, rushing forward, her palms outstretched and trembling.
"Father, you're bleeding!"
But he dropped to his knees before her, his left hand firm on her shoulder despite its tremor. His face was a map of anguish and urgency.
"Princess, listen carefully," he rasped. Each word was a struggle, torn from lungs that could barely breathe. Pain radiated from his eyes. Yet it wasn't for himself.
Everything I've done for nine years… it's all for her. She must survive. She is the future.
He hesitated, tortured by the choice before him. To protect her was to condemn her to a life of shadows. But to withhold it was worse.
Then, from within the blood-streaked folder, he drew out a pill—deep violet edged in cobalt blue. Its scent burst into the room like ozone before a storm. It tingled in the air, prickling at her skin. Shanazer staggered back slightly, drawn by its pull, unsettled by its allure.
"I need you to take this. Now."
She blinked at him, brow furrowed, confusion blooming in her eyes. "What is it?"
But before he could answer— A roar shook the walls. Airships. Engines screamed from overhead, the skies growling like a beast unleashed. The house shook, windows rattling in their frames as a blinding light poured through the cracks.
Her father gritted his teeth, pure fear flashing across his face. "Take it NOW!" he shouted, the sound cracking with desperation.
And then she snapped back to the present. She was still free-falling through space, air howling past her ears. Shanazer blinked. How come I'm not hitting the ground? This must be the longest fall in history, she thought bitterly, arms still outstretched.