The place where I must survive. Part one.

When it was fifteen minutes to six o'clock, Arlo and Zale were already standing near the hill. There were several other people around them holding bags. They were all young men who looked very unhappy and even frightened. They were obviously very anxious that they could not even look up and see who was standing next to them.

Of all of them, only Arlo and Zale looked like they were very curious. You could see a bright glow in their eyes, which was a very rare occurrence in the eyes of the inhabitants of this nameless world.

It was always very cold in the morning. But it was not the usual cold. This cold felt painful. As if millions of needles were piercing their skin, this cold caused pain in every muscle of the body.

The inhabitants of this world were in pain all the time, but over time, they got used to this pain, that they just stopped paying attention to it.

"The painful wind," was what they called this wind, which could be so strong that sometimes it seemed like it was about to break everyone's bones.

Feeling the pain in his leg and arm muscles the most, Arlo wanted to sit on a rock, but he decided that from now on he would try to be strong. He wouldn't let doubt enter his thoughts. And all his thoughts were occupied with grieving for his grandfather, whom he had left at home, whose door he had locked and stoned an hour ago.

As he left the home in which he had been raised since birth, Arlo remembered everything once more and thought once more about his life.

In 22 years of his life, he had done nothing useful for his grandfather. Thinking about it, he hated himself more and more so he instilled in himself the confidence that he was going to make it.

Looking up at the sky, which wasn't the sky at all, but just a thick fog that wasn't even fog at all, but just ash, smoke, and polluted air that had turned into a dark gray soup, Arlo took a deep breath.

The icy wind rushed into his lungs, but he struggled to hold back his cough. Then, he looked at his friend, who was holding a bag.

Zale looked sad. He could see in his eyes that he had been crying this morning.

The same age as him, Zale had always been a good son and brother who always did everything for the comfort of his family. He never thought of himself and if someone needed help, he was willing to do anything, even go where no one would ever go. With a kind heart and a responsibility that not everyone had, Zale chose his path long ago. And that path constantly stated that he lived for the good of others. Sometimes, Arlo even worried about his friend. For at times, such kindness and loyalty frightened him. After all, he understood that in this cruel world it would be very hard for such a kind heart to survive.

One too kind, the other too weak and dreamy, and so they both found themselves on the threshold of the most dangerous adventures, which one hundred percent led to death.

Everyone knew that no one would come out of here alive. But no one had any other choice. After all, no one could continue to live in this place that some people called - the Sewer of All Worlds.

"Who are we waiting for? Maybe we should go there?" suddenly asked a short guy with red hair and green eyes. He looked as if he were only fifteen years old. Stopping his gaze on Arlo, who had clearly become very pale because of his racing heartbeat, he added, "I think we should go."

"We were told to wait here. They're coming for us." said a guy with long hair and a huge bag behind his back. Noticing the scar on his face that was deep, Arlo felt a nervous aura around this guy who had obviously been through a lot.

"Do you have any idea what we're going for? We're going to meet death on that mountain, and not just death, but something even scarier. That's where people don't just meet their end. There they suffer so long that the end won't seem the scariest."

"And what do you suggest, Klaus? Let's go back home? Let's go on living among that stench and breathing in the ashes of those who died at least trying to do something?"

"I don't know! But standing here waiting to die is horrible, too!"

"Are you brothers?" the guy with the red hair asked, trying to defuse the tense situation.

"Yes. Unfortunately we are."

"Let's not fight. We still have our lives together, after all. Let's get to know each other. My name is Blake."

"Jasper," the guy with the scarred face replied, throwing his bag on the ground and making a sound like there were broken dishes.

"Klaus," replied a guy in a long leather cloak and with sparse hair that covered his face.

"Strauss," his brother replied, clearly worried that everyone would now start laughing at the similarity of their names.

"Are you twins?"

"No."

"We have different noses. But we look alike," Klaus replied, barely managing to smile.

"Standing here and getting to know each other like we should be friends. You can't have a friend in this place. Do you have any idea what lies ahead of you? The long and arduous journey up the mountain. And none of us can even make it up the first floor, let alone the second and third," Jasper said, sitting down on a rock and propping his chin with his hand.

"The first floor? What do you mean?"

"You don't know? The mountain is divided into ten floors, after all. That is, there are ten different worlds on this mountain that are not connected in any way. Don't make that face like you didn't know that."

"I thought there were only six worlds on this mountain."

"Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe not ten, maybe there are twenty worlds. But I've heard that there are ten worlds through which no one, not even a man like Bannard, can pass."

Upon hearing this name, Arlo's face even changed. He became nervous and made a mocking sound noticeable to everyone.

"What is it? Why are you laughing?"

"I'm not laughing."

"Take that sneer off your pretty face. Someone like you obviously must be convinced that he's lucky because you look good. But someone like you wouldn't last a second there," Jasper said, looking Arlo over from head to toe.

"Are you really interested in guys, since you say he's pretty? Be careful, you can't fall in love in this place," Zale said, ready to pick a fight with this guy who clearly wants to hurt his friend.

"Nice to meet you, I'm your new enemy," Jasper said, holding out his hand.

"Likewise," Zale replied, shaking his hand firmly and not letting go until they all heard someone else's voice.

"I'm very glad you made friends so quickly, but you must go now. And anyway, why are you standing here? Come on, everyone's waiting for you."

A girl of frail build, wearing a black vest and black pants, with heavy boots on her feet looked at everyone seriously and without saying anything else quickly walked forward.

"So pretty," Blake whispered, and the girl obviously heard him, for she gave him a disgruntled look and was outside the building in the blink of an eye. "And so fast."

"Be careful what you wish for. There is no such thing as boyfriend or girlfriend here. There's only survival and the weakness," Strauss said, nervously removing a strand of hair from his face.

"Will you stop talking," Jasper muttered and climbed up quickly.

"Are you okay?" Zale questioned as everyone walked forward. "Shortness of breath? Does your heart hurt?"

"I'm fine."

"Should we run away before it's too late?"

"What?"

"If anything happens to you, I can't stand it. At least you know it's hard in this place, even for those who are strong. And you, Arlo, you're in trouble."

"If you want, you can leave. I'll move on."

"Look, it's okay if we leave now."

Without saying anything else, Arlo quickly climbed up, and the girl opened the door with a serious face.

"Arlo!" Zale exclaimed, but it was too late. Arlo had already gone inside the building and there was nothing left for him but to follow him and thereby close the heavy door behind him.

"Hurry up! Come quickly!"

"Move! You didn't come to visit!"

Noticing Bannard, who was hurrying everyone, Arlo lowered his eyes to avoid meeting his gaze. Feeling dislike for him, he tried with all his might not to think of him. But the more he wanted to, the more Bannard was in his thoughts.

"Hurry up!"

"What are we in such a hurry for? What's the rush?" Jasper questioned, tossing the heavy bag to the floor.

"You think you came here to rest? Here you will not sleep, eat, sit. Here, you will survive. Here, you will try to transform yourself into a superhuman who manages to reach the top of the mountain. You think you're going to suffer here? No. Here you will have a chance to find a better life. Is that a bad thing? And I will make sure that under my leadership you all become superhumans. My squad must reach the top. And if any of you show that he is weak or tired, I will take his life myself," Bannard said and stopped his gaze on the three girls who stood not far from Arlo. "And I'm not going to treat you with respect," he added, now looking at Arlo. "Do you have any questions?"

"No," Blake answered for everyone.

"Follow me," the girl said with a serious face, pointing to the second floor.

Walking down the long and dark hallway, Arlo felt Bannard behind him. Trying to breathe quietly so that no one would hear his panting, he tried to think of his grandfather. Thinking of him gave him strength.

Snatching his bag from his hands, Zale quickly hid it behind his cloak so no one would see.

"Thank you," Arlo whispered, feeling relieved that he would now have an easier walk.

"I told you we could escape, didn't I? How are you going to survive in this place? How?"

"Be quiet. He's coming after us."

Noticing Bannard, who was wearing a long black leather cloak today, Zale made a strange sound.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Is he behind us?"

"Yes."

Suddenly, as everyone stopped, Zale crashed into Jasper, who was walking ahead of him. Dropping Arlo's bag to the floor, he didn't even notice that a small book, which contained a story about an elephant and a hedgehog, had fallen from there. Quickly grabbing the bag, Arlo began to walk on and there were still a few more steps to go before the girl said, with a serious face, "This is your room."

"What? We're all going to be in the same room?"

"I'm sorry, but you didn't come to rest. Come in. You'll be expected in five minutes in the same hallway."

"Are we going to be fed? I'm hungry!"

"Of course, there's everything here. Fruit, vegetables, meat, everything."

"Girl, you're so beautiful and yet so cruel," the man who looked the oldest said, laughing and taking a step toward the girl. "And what is your name?"

"My name is Alora. From now on you will see me every day."

"Alora. Her name is Alora!" the man shouted for all those behind him to hear. Turning to see how many people were gathered here, Arlo saw only Bannard standing directly behind him. Startled that he was standing so close, he quickly turned around and tensed his whole body.

"And me, you will see me every day. You will see me until the day you die," Bannard said, and Arlo thought he whispered these words to him. For no one else was paying attention to him.

Finally, when the door opened, Arlo quickly stepped first into the room, which turned out to be very cramped. There was nothing in the room but blankets and pillows. Stone walls and a few small windows and that was where the whole design of the room ended.

"I thought my house was the scariest house in the world. But it seems my house is a palace. What kind of room is this? Are you kidding me?" Jasper asked Alora, tossing his bag on the floor and again a sound was heard, as if there were broken dishes. Unable to stand it, Klaus said, "Do you have plates in there? What are you, a cook? I think you've already broken everything in there."

"In five minutes, get out of the room. We don't have time," Alora said, taking off her hood and now everyone could see she had short black hair.

"Excuse me, are you a teacher too?" Blake asked the question, smiling softly.

"Yes. I'll be teaching you how to shoot."

"What? Such a frail girl is going to teach shooting? Then what's this giant going to do?" Jasper asked with a laugh, referring to Bannard, who was immediately in the room, behind Alora.

Making a menacing appearance, Bannard furrowed his brow as usual. His gaze, which looked more like that of a hungry animal, silenced everyone and Jasper even moved a little farther away.

"A frail girl like Alora will teach you how to shoot. And I will teach you how to dance. Is that clear?" Bannard said, glancing again at Arlo, who was struggling to hide behind Jasper's broad back.

"Why is he always looking at me?" he asked his friend, who was in a hurry to find the bathroom in this place.

"Right now you can talk and laugh. But tomorrow you will forget about it. Tomorrow you will have a life in which you will cease to be you at all. So today I'm going to let you be you. Laugh, have fun, do what you want. The rules don't apply to you today. But tomorrow, you will see real life. Is that clear to everyone?"

Without saying anything else, Bannard took Alora's hand and led her away, closing the door behind him.

"He took her hand?"

"I thought so, too."

"He must respect her."

"Bannard doesn't respect anyone. He's scarier than any monster that dwells on the mountain."

"He's just an overconfident man who obviously thinks he can do anything," Arlo said and at that moment everyone looked at him.

"What's the matter with you?" Jasper suddenly asked, pointing to his neck.

"What?"

"You've got some kind of stain on your neck. What is it?"

"I don't know."

"You're all sweaty. Are you sick?"

"I'm just tired."

"Yeah, he's just tired. So let's turn this place into a normal room. I can't believe they gave us such a small room," Zale said, starting to unpack.

"At least we're all together. I've gotten used to you guys in this time," Blake said, taking a picture of his parents out of his pocket and placing it carefully on the windowsill.

"It's been five minutes! Come on out!"

"Alora is so beautiful. But I'm beginning to be afraid of her. I think you can expect anything from her."

"Arlo are you coming?"

"Yes. I'll be right there," Arlo said, surreptitiously showing his friend the little pouch in which he kept the dried herbs his grandfather used to get. He didn't know why or how, but these herbs provided a little relief from his illness.

"Are you all right?" Zale asked in a whisper.

"Yeah, go ahead. I'll be right back."

Unfolding the pouch, he inhaled and felt the faint aroma of something sour. Experiencing an unpleasant sensation in his throat that wanted to turn into a violent cough, he took another breath. At that very moment the door opened and Bannard entered the room.