In one blink, they were in a white room. The next, standing barefoot in warm grass under a lavender sky, a gentle breeze carrying the scent of honey and something floral they couldn't name.
"...This feels illegal," Zack muttered.
"It feels like a trap," Liana corrected, already narrowing her eyes.
The field was endless, dotted with crystal-clear lakes and trees with silver leaves that shimmered. Birds chirped, but not normal birds—these sounded like music, each call a chord, each flap like wind chimes. A sun hung low in the sky, casting a lazy pink glow across everything.
"Welcome," Sia said brightly, stepping onto a cobbled path lined with blooming roses. "To the Sanctuary."
Sanctuary," Alex echoed, unimpressed. "Is this the kind of place where we wake up and realize we've been in a coma the whole time?"
"Nope," Sia said, popping a grape into her mouth. "This is the real deal. A slice of paradise for the handful of you who didn't completely disappoint me."
Kyle raised a brow. "Didn't we, like, fail?"
"Spectacularly," Sia agreed, chewing. "But failing creatively is worth something."
The group looked around. Each of them was dressed in soft, comfortable clothes, with no blood or grime in sight. A villa stood nearby, polished wood and glass, stocked with food, beds, and even hot showers.
"I don't trust it," Mia said, arms crossed.
"Good," Sia said, throwing her arms out dramatically. "Because it's not here to be trusted."
Sia hummed as she walked ahead, her black coat sweeping the dirt. "You know," she said, tossing a look over her shoulder, "most students are still in there. Dying. Repeatedly. For six more days." She clapped her hands once. "So—yay, survivors" She grinned. "Seriously, the respawn animation is hilarious."?"
Alex groaned. "That's not something to be proud of."
Liana muttered, "She's actually enjoying this."
Zack just blinked, still pale. "Did he punch my soul? I think Avork punched my soul."
They had barely stepped out of the simulation. The pain was gone, but the memory lingered like smoke in their lungs. Yet here was Sia, practically skipping, leading them away like they just finished gym class.
Welcome back to the land of the living!" she said with fake cheer. "Now, sit. Relax. Breathe. You're not bleeding anymore... probably."
They collapsed onto a bench in a strange metallic room. Bright lights above. No walls—just open skies and mist. A floating platform? A dream?
"No medics?" Liana asked.
Sia sat on the bench's edge, biting into an apple. "You're healed. Mostly. Cry about it later."
Alex leaned forward, fingers tangled in his hair. "Why us? Why pull us out?"
Sia winked. "Because someone decided to go all 'I've died enough times to awaken my wolf DNA!' Mid-simulation. Very dramatic."
Liana added, "And I might've mentioned awakening my vampire blood."
Zack shrugged. "I just said I liked explosions."
"That too," Sia smirked. "The system flagged your group as—how do I put this—freakishly interesting. So now? I'm your mentor. Surprise!"
They stared at her.
Alex whispered, "This has to be the weirdest break ever."
"Better get used to it," Sia said, biting into another apple she definitely didn't have before. "You're special now. With great power comes... really weird field trips."
"What the fu—" Liana started, but Sia cut her off with a sing-song "Language!"
They sat in silence, the air buzzing with disbelief and exhaustion.