No one spoke for a full minute.
The silence felt heavier than the monster.
Felix was still on the floor, breathing hard. "Okay… new rule. We never open doors again."
Lara nodded. "Agreed. Doors are cancelled."
Kai glanced around. "We might not have a choice."
The room was… strange.
Too clean.
Too normal.
Bright white walls. A wooden table in the center. Five chairs.
Exactly five.
"…Why does this look like a meeting room?" Lara asked.
"No windows," Kai said. "No dust either. That's not normal for an abandoned building."
Sarah stepped forward slowly. "Stay alert."
Mira didn't move.
She was staring at the chairs.
"Don't sit," she said suddenly.
Felix blinked. "Oh don't worry, I have no plans to relax in a haunted IKEA."
Then—
The door behind them disappeared.
Felix turned.
Saw nothing.
And immediately stood up.
"Okay. I take it back. Doors were better. I miss doors."
The lights flickered once.
Then a voice echoed.
Calm.
Cold.
"Let's begin."
All five chairs scraped backward at the same time.
On their own.
Lara grabbed Sarah's arm. "Nope. Nope. This is a trap. This is 100% a trap."
Kai nodded. "Agreed. But what happens if we don't play along?"
The voice spoke again.
"Sit."
The floor beneath them shifted slightly.
Like the room was warning them.
"…We don't have a choice," Sarah said quietly.
One by one…
They sat.
The moment Mira sat down—
The lights turned red.
Felix whispered, "That's not a good color. That's never a good color."
Words suddenly appeared on the wall.
Like they were being written by invisible hands.
"QUESTION 1:"
"WHO AMONG YOU DOES NOT BELONG?"
Silence.
Lara blinked. "Excuse me?! That's a terrible question!"
Kai frowned. "This is psychological. It wants us to turn on each other."
The lights flickered again.
"ANSWER."
Felix raised his hand slightly. "Can I say 'none of us' and we all go home?"
Nothing happened.
Mira looked down.
Her hands trembling.
Sarah noticed. "Mira…?"
The wall suddenly changed.
New words.
"TIME IS RUNNING OUT."
A loud ticking sound filled the room.
Like a giant clock.
"Okay, I don't like this," Lara said quickly. "This is how horror groups split up and die!"
Kai looked at each of them.
Thinking fast.
Then—
He said quietly:
"…Mira."
Everyone froze.
Felix turned. "DUDE?!"
Lara stared at him. "You did NOT just say that!"
Sarah's voice hardened. "Explain."
Kai didn't look away.
"She knew things before we saw them. She said the creature was herding us. She knew there was no wind."
He paused.
"…And she wasn't surprised."
The ticking got louder.
Mira slowly lifted her head.
Her eyes… didn't look the same.
"…You're right," she said softly.
The lights went out.
For a split second—
Something stood behind Mira.
Smiling.