The chair was cold.
The device in front of Aiden's eyes looked like a crown made of wires and light. It wasn't heavy, but the way it sat in his palms felt like it was already weighing down his thoughts.
The screen in front of him continued to countdown.
00:58:43
Aiden swallowed hard. His mouth was dry.
The voice had been calm. Too calm. Like a doctor talking to a patient before surgery.
But the voice had said one thing that kept echoing in his mind:
"To live… or to die."
He had never been given a choice before. Never in his life. Never in the city. Never in the system.
Now, the choice was in front of him like a blade.
Aiden reached for the headset. His fingers trembled as he touched it.
The voice spoke again.
"Do you accept the rules?"
Aiden looked up at the screen. The rules appeared, written in clean white text:
RULES OF THE DEBT ARENA
You will not leave the Arena.
You will not refuse to play.
You will not reveal the identity of other players.
You will not try to escape.
You will not attack the guards unless attacked first.
The last rule was highlighted in red.
Aiden's heart thudded.
"Can I ask a question?" he said.
The voice replied, "You may ask one question."
Aiden thought for a moment. He wanted to ask if his family was safe. He wanted to ask if the game was real. He wanted to ask why he was chosen.
But there was only one question that mattered.
"What happens if I win?"
The voice paused.
Then it answered, cold and precise:
"Your debt will be erased. Your family will be freed from the system. You will be granted a new identity."
Aiden's eyes widened.
"A new identity?"
"Yes," the voice said. "A new life."
Aiden felt a spark of hope.
"Then why does it feel like I'm being punished?"
The voice didn't answer.
Instead, it spoke again:
"You have 30 seconds to prepare."
The screen flashed.
30
Aiden looked at the headset. The wires glowed. The lights pulsed like a heartbeat.
He hesitated.
Then he put the headset on.
The world went black.
For a moment, he felt nothing.
Then, like a flood, sound and light returned.
He was no longer in the underground room.
He was standing in a huge hall.
The ceiling was high, covered with neon lights that shifted colors like a living thing. The walls were made of glass and steel. The floor was smooth and reflective, like a mirror.
In the center of the hall was a circle of white light.
And standing inside the circle were hundreds of people.
Aiden's breath caught.
There were men and women of all ages. Some looked scared. Some looked angry. Some looked resigned. A few were crying.
All of them wore the same grey uniform—a simple shirt and pants with a red stripe running down the side.
Aiden looked down at himself.
He was wearing the same uniform.
His hands shook.
A voice echoed through the hall.
"Welcome, players."
A giant screen at the far end of the hall lit up.
A figure appeared on the screen.
Not a person. Not a human.
A mask.
A smooth white mask with black eyes and a thin red line running down the middle.
The voice that came from the mask was calm, almost gentle.
"Today, you will play your first game."
Aiden felt a chill.
The mask continued.
"Your first game will test your speed, your courage, and your ability to obey."
The screen changed.
A large door appeared on the screen. It was a huge metal door with a red light above it.
"The door will open in three minutes," the voice said. "When it opens, you will see the first challenge."
Aiden looked around. The other players were whispering, looking at each other, trying to understand what was happening.
A woman beside him grabbed his arm.
"Hey," she whispered, eyes wide. "Do you know what this is?"
Aiden shook his head.
She looked at him, her voice trembling.
"I saw a video once," she said. "A rumor. They said the Arena was real. But I thought it was just a story. I didn't think it would happen to me."
Aiden stared at her.
"Why did you come?" he asked.
She swallowed. "Because I have no choice."
Aiden nodded.
Everyone in Neo-Arcadia had no choice.
The screen continued.
"Players," the mask said. "Before the game begins, you will be assigned a number. You will not use your real name. You will be known only by your number."
Aiden's stomach dropped.
A number.
A number was easier to kill than a person.
A voice came from behind him.
"Hey, new player," a man said.
Aiden turned.
A tall man with a shaved head and cold eyes stood beside him. He wore the same uniform but his posture was different. He looked like he had been through worse than this.
"What's your name?" the man asked.
Aiden hesitated.
"I—" he began, but stopped.
He remembered the rules.
No names.
He swallowed and said, "I don't know yet."
The man laughed softly.
"Good," he said. "You'll learn."
The tall man stepped closer and lowered his voice.
"Listen," he said. "This game is not just about survival. It's about who you trust."
Aiden's eyes narrowed.
"Who are you?" he asked.
The man's eyes flicked to the screen.
"I'm number 4," he said. "You can call me Four."
Aiden nodded.
The woman beside him whispered, "I'm number 7."
Aiden felt a strange connection to them, even though he didn't know them.
The countdown continued.
02:30
The hall remained silent. The players stood still, waiting.
Aiden tried to breathe.
He tried to calm his thoughts.
But his mind was racing.
He thought about his family. His debt. The city. The letter.
He thought about the promise of a new life.
He thought about the mask.
And then, suddenly, he heard a sound.
A low, mechanical hum.
The door at the end of the hall began to open.
The red light above it turned bright.
The screen displayed the first game.
Aiden stared.
The screen showed a long corridor.
The corridor was lined with tiles.
Some tiles were white.
Some tiles were black.
The mask's voice spoke again.
"Your first game is called The Neon Run."
Aiden's heart pounded.
The mask continued.
"You will run through the corridor. You must reach the end without stepping on a black tile."
Aiden looked at the corridor on the screen.
It looked simple.
Too simple.
"Wait," Aiden said. "How do we know which tile is black?"
The mask paused.
Then it said, "You don't."
Aiden felt a cold sweat.
The woman beside him whispered, "This is insane."
Four said, "Don't panic. We'll watch the first few players."
Aiden looked around.
The players were already moving toward the corridor.
They were being pushed forward by guards.
The guards wore black suits and masks similar to the one on the screen. Their faces were emotionless. Their weapons were sleek and silent.
Aiden felt a chill.
He watched as the first player stepped onto the corridor.
The player was a young man. He looked like he had been a student. His hands trembled.
He stepped forward.
His foot landed on a tile.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then the tile beneath him lit up red.
The player screamed.
The floor opened beneath him, and he fell into darkness.
The sound of his scream echoed through the hall.
Aiden's heart stopped.
The player was gone.
The second player stepped forward.
He walked carefully, his eyes wide.
His foot touched a tile.
The tile lit up red.
He fell.
Aiden watched, frozen.
The third player stepped forward.
He ran.
He ran as fast as he could.
He jumped.
He slid.
He moved like he was fighting for his life.
And then—
He stepped on a tile.
The tile lit up red.
The player froze.
He looked at the tile.
He looked at the guards.
He looked at the screen.
Then he screamed.
The tile opened beneath him.
He fell.
The hall went silent.
The players stared.
The mask's voice spoke again.
"Now you understand."
Aiden's hands trembled.
He looked at the corridor.
He looked at the tiles.
He looked at the end.
He looked at the number of players left.
His chest tightened.
He realized something:
This game was not just about running.
It was about risk.
It was about guessing.
It was about sacrifice.
The mask continued.
"You may begin."
Aiden's mind screamed.
He didn't want to run.
He didn't want to die.
But the rules were clear.
He had no choice.
Aiden took a step forward.
The ground beneath him was cold.
He looked down.
The first tile was white.
He exhaled.
He took another step.
The next tile was black.
He froze.
His foot hovered above the tile.
He looked ahead.
He could see the end of the corridor.
He could see the red light.
He could see the possibility of a new life.
His mind raced.
He didn't know which tile was safe.
He didn't know which tile would kill him.
He could only guess.
He made a decision.
He stepped forward.
The tile lit up red.
Aiden's body dropped through the floor.
The world went black.
For a moment, he felt weightless.
Then he hit the ground.
Hard.
Pain shot through his leg.
He screamed.
He opened his eyes.
He was not falling anymore.
He was lying on a platform.
He looked up.
The ceiling above him was dark.
He looked around.
He saw the other players.
They were lying on platforms too.
Some were screaming.
Some were bleeding.
Some were dead.
Aiden tried to stand.
His leg hurt.
He tried again.
He fell.
He looked down.
His leg was broken.
The pain was unbearable.
He tried to breathe.
The voice spoke again, calm as ever.
"You failed."
Aiden's vision blurred.
He tried to speak.
His mouth moved, but no sound came out.
The voice continued.
"You have been eliminated."
Aiden's eyes widened.
He couldn't die.
Not yet.
Not like this.
He looked around, desperate.
Then he saw something that made his blood run cold.
A small screen beside his platform lit up.
It showed a message:
ELIMINATED PLAYERS WILL BE REPLACED.
Aiden's heart sank.
He looked up.
The hall was empty.
The mask was still on the screen.
The voice spoke again.
"Players, this is only the beginning."
Aiden's vision darkened.
He felt himself slipping into unconsciousness.
But before he lost consciousness, he heard the mask say one final thing:
"The debt you owe is not just money."