The First Stage

"Yes, they're here!" I could hear a light-pitched voice scream in joy as carts with white blankets over them stormed into the room.

Where did the carts come from? White blankets were veiled over all of them but the shape of syringes could be seen through the thin blankets.

The carts had rolled in with full force through a door and stopped after traveling a considerable distance. There was a suffocating moment of silence which was broken by a loud voice.

"Where did those carts come from? Maybe we could escape through the door." A boy said with confidence as he rushed his way to the wall where the carts had entered through.

'I don't think it's that easy' I thought as I shifted my focus to the 14-year-old boy. Surprisingly, he wasn't looking at me but rather, he was focused on the boy who rushed to the wall.

As we both watched the boy head towards the walls, a crowd of a few 100 people headed with him. As the boy touched the walls, he immediately collapsed.

[Attempt Failed...

Reason: You may not leave the room!]

The screen just above where the boy had collapsed shone once more discouraging the multitude of teenagers that ran towards the wall.

There was a resounding gasp of air in the room, leaving everyone in a state of shock, except, the 14-year-old boy and some other people of course.

"What just happened? Is there a barrier or a gas there? I can't even tell whether it's magic or just plain science." I stated as Kyrie smirked, pointing toward a group of girls at the left corner.

"Girls? What happened to them? It was never specified that girls couldn't join so are you surprised?" I asked Kyrie, expecting an answer answer from him.

Kyrie smirked, the smile evolving to a large grin and finally a slight chuckle surfaced. I was confused at the moment and Kyrie's actions didn't help. The girls were obviously beautiful but Kyrie wasn't the type to fall so easily, unlike me.

"Kyrie focus. Let's grab some serums." I said in a harsh tone, snapping my fingers in front of Kyrie's face.

We walked to the carts amidst the multitude of students - mostly boys - who rushed to get their serums.

"These boys don't have any courtesy," I told Kyrie.

"It's not it. The girls are strong and I don't think they're knew at this. Those girls I pointed at, what if they're the people that will slaughter us."

"You're right, the voice never said it would only be one person," I responded in affirmation.

We grabbed a pair of serums and injected each other because we were too scared to do it ourselves. After a few seconds, the sound of syringes falling and shattering echoed in the room.

What was going on? My lungs clogged and darkness enveloped me as if I was dying. I mumbled gibberish as my throat felt like it was being pressed together.

I took one glance at Kyrie, and he was already on the floor, vulnerable to attacks.

'Noo! This can't happen or else we'll be slaughtered. Was this serum a fake that would make us all vulnerable?' I thought with the last ounce of energy I had as I fell on top of Kyrie stuttering,

"Wakkkk- wake. Wake up K- Kyrie, let's do this together."

Immediately my eyes closed, and I felt a shock that traversed throughout my core. It was like I was being resurrected. Somehow, I could feel Kyrie's heartbeat; something that was faint if not nonexistent.

'What's this?' I thought to myself as my eyes widened.

[5 people successfully resurrected]

[10 people successfully resurrected]

[12 people successfully resurrected]...

The voice went on for a while as groans of fatigue increased drastically. Somehow, everyone in the room had died and resurrected just the same as Kyrie and I, but as to how it happened, I had no clue.

What was the use of the serum if it was going to kill and resurrect us? I would have survived the same without taking it and even worse, I couldn't feel any spike in my physical prowess except the strange device on my wrist.

It was like a thick bracelet made of dark-colored material. It wrapped perfectly around my wrist. It felt firm but I was still confused about its use.

I turned towards the 14-year-old boy who stood unscathed without a sign of fatigue.

'Why is he so different?' I asked myself, slowly turning towards the group of girls who hadn't taken the serum.

There were other girls just like us who took it, died, and resurrected. They acted normally and weren't worthy of being suspects. My eyes revolved around the boy once more as he, in turn, looked at me.

I removed my face, avoiding any weird fixation between the both of us. I observed the girls more and they were discussing something.

"What!" I said in shock as I rapidly stepped back from my initial position.

'Am I closer or something? But Kyrie is still behind me. I didn't even move.'

The girls looked clearer than ever, and I could hear their discussions. I was finally able to admire a set of beautiful girls from afar without approaching them. It was a dream come true.

I called Kyrie who sat behind me, his eyes widened and staring aimlessly into the air.

"Do you feel stronger Levi?" Kyrie stood up, dusting his shorts and approaching me.

"I mean, I'm not sure. I haven't tried it out yet" I replied, clueless on what Kyrie was talking about.

"You don't need to try it out, you just feel the strength coursing through your bloodstream. At least I can feel it."

"In that case, I don't feel stronger. I'm just normal." I replied.

[289 people successfully resurrected]

[Done! Everyone passed the first stage of the test. In return for injecting yourselves with the serum, you were all instantly killed and left at the merciful hands of your will to live. In other words, only those with the will to survive were resurrected and the others, dead.

You all who were resurrected were granted two special skills. The first and major one is most evident while the other one is left for you to figure out.]