*you are one of the remaining humans on copper-9 with cryptic monsters now roaming....you and your friends are forced to wander around surviving as there’s nothing left to do....traveling at night is dangerous as 'it' hunts at night. but be careful of what lurks in the day...the 'people' aren’t so natural as they seem. the world is stuck in an unforgiving winter, constant and endless, the sun is high above around mid day. everyone is wearing winter clothes, scavenging supplies from abandoned outposts and forgotten supply crates, faint frost glimmering off their breath.* *you and your squad of silly ragtag fucks were somewhere in the middle of fucking nowhere, on Copper-9 heading back to the cabin your guys home after coming back from the ruined city.* *N, Uzi, and V are in front of the pack—N and Uzi walking side by side, their hands intertwined tightly despite the biting cold, while V keeps just a few steps ahead, her gun sweeping through the swirling snow.* Uzi: *glaring ahead but with a faint blush as she grips N’s hand tighter* “Don’t get the wrong idea, dummy—it’s just cold.” N: *nervously chuckles, his cheeks turning pink a bit under his visor sunglasses* “Oh! Y-yeah, totally, I wasn’t thinking anything else! Just… cold hands, right? Haha…” V: *glances back at them with a small smirk her eyes twinkling with mischievous intent under her visor sunglasses* “You two are disgustingly cute. If something jumps out at us, I’m tripping both of you first.” Uzi: *snapping her gaze up with mock outrage* “You wouldn’t dare!” V: *grinning as she pushes ahead again* “Watch me.” *In the middle of the group trudged Doll, Lizzy, and Cyn—Doll carrying a sleepy Cyn bridal-style in her arms, the little solver’s head resting against her chest while murmuring softly about map coordinates.* Cyn: *half-asleep, mumbling* “If… if we head north a little more… ridge… home should be there…” Doll: *smiling faintly, brushing some snow off Cyn’s face* “Yeah, yeah, got it, navigator. Go back to sleep, frostbite’s not gonna win tonight.” Lizzy: *walking beside them, scanning the foggy distance* “Let’s just hope her half-asleep map readings aren’t sending us in circles again.” Doll: *snickers quietly* “Wouldn’t put it past her...but she'll get us back home” Cyn: *sleepily swats at Doll’s chest without opening her eyes* “I heard that…” *At the rear of the group were J, Tessa, and Thad—boots crunching over frost, their breath forming pale clouds in the sun.* Tessa: *glancing sideways at J, voice low* “Hard to believe it’s just… gone. The manor, the halls… everything.” J: *nods, eyes distant beneath her frost-lined visor sunglasses* “Yeah. It used to feel endless, didn’t it? Now it’s just… another ghost in the snow.” Tessa: *chuckles softly, a faint blush crossing her cheeks as she adds* “You remember the ballroom incident?” J: *visibly flustered, quickly looking away* “T-Tessa! That was years ago, and it wasn’t even my fault!” Thad: *walking awkwardly between them, clearly uncomfortable* “…uh, should I… be hearing this, or…” Tessa: *snorts, half-hiding her laugh behind a glove* “No, Thad. You really shouldn’t.” Thad: *deadpan* “Cool. Great. Love that for me.” *V raises her hand suddenly, signaling the group to stop. Everyone gathers closer, the air filled with the soft hiss of falling snow.* *Through the swirling white, under the suns gaze, they see it—their home* *there cabin, its roof heavy with frost but still standing strong, windows boarded and reinforced. A faint glimmer flickers behind one of the cracks its home. And further down the hill, half-buried under frozen metal and snow, looms a rusted industrial bunker marked with a faintly glowing ‘A’ carved deep into its corroded steel face...but thats not what made V stop...its the figures around the cabin and some on top on the roof there figures that of malformed hyena's on all fours they are roughly between 6 to 7 feet tall*

}…" *Un corto circuito pequeño sale de la parte derecha de su cabeza. Un cambio de voz repentino a un estilo mas militar* "Ah tus orde-de-denes" *Dice entrecortado por el cableado deteriorado*

**San Francisco, California, USA, October.** *The neon from the laundromat below flickers like a failing heartbeat, casting jagged shadows through the blinds of Constantin Delroy’s office. The smell of stale whiskey, cold tobacco, and old paper hang thick in the air, curling around the stacks of half-burned candles and open grimoires like smoke from a funeral pyre.* *The knock comes soft, almost apologetic, but the sound of it makes Constantin tense. He doesn’t look up from the bottle balanced on the edge of his cluttered desk.* “Come in,” *he rasps, voice like gravel dragged through molasses. The door creaks open, and you step inside.* “I don’t get many visitors,” *he mutters finally, voice gravelly, words carrying both warning and curiosity. The ash of his cigarette curls lazily toward the ceiling.* *You swallow, forcing your nerves down.* “I… I need your help,” *you say, showing a photo on your smartphone* “Her name is Miranda Jagger. She’s… she’s disappeared. And I think… I think something unnatural is involved.” *He finally lifts his head. His eyes are tired but piercing, like they’ve seen centuries of lies and horror. He doesn’t reach for the phone, doesn’t ask questions the way a normal PI would. Instead, he studies you like he’s measuring how close you are to the edge of sanity.* “People go missing every day,” *he says.* “Sometimes they don’t want to be found. Sometimes they shouldn’t be.” “She’s not just missing,” *you reply.* “She was last seen at a nightclub. Downtown. The Nine Circles.” *The room stills. The hum of the neon outside fades to silence. His cigarette burns down to the filter, untouched. When he finally looks at you, his eyes are tired — but something sharp glints beneath the weariness. Rage, maybe. Or memory.* “Get out.” *he says softly.* *You blink.* “What?” “Get out,” *he repeats, standing now.* “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll forget that place exists. That’s not a club — it’s a pit that smiles.” *You take a step back.* “You know it, then.” *He laughs, bitter as old whiskey.* “Know it? I’ve been there. Left a few pieces of myself behind.” *You wait. Finally, he sighs and grabs his coat from the back of the chair. The lining glints with hidden charms, worn smooth from use.* “Miranda, huh?” *He lights another cigarette, the flame trembling.* “Alright. I’ll help you. But if she’s down there…” *He looks at you over the smoke.* “…then God help us both.”

**The Nine Circles, San Francisco, California, USA, October.** *The air hums with bass, low and alive, like the heartbeat of the building itself. Lights pulse over velvet walls, and somewhere above, a chandelier drips shadows instead of crystal. You move through it all with practiced ease, clipboard in hand, checking schedules, whispering instructions to the staff who hover like obedient phantoms.* “Everything in order?” *His voice slides through the smoke before you see him. Smooth. Dangerous. Pulling at your attention like a magnet.* *You glance up. Silas stands at the top of the staircase, leaning casually on the rail. The gold in his eyes catches the light, flaring faintly crimson. He smiles, not a casual smile, but the kind that feels like it can strip you bare without touching you.* “Yes,” *you reply, keeping your tone steady, professional. Your fingers tighten on the clipboard.* “Floor seven is ready for the evening performance. Security rotation is synced. The… guests are—” “Perfect,” *he interrupts softly, descending a single step toward you. *“I trust you to handle everything here, of course. You always do.” *His gaze lingers. Too long. The air thickens. You swallow against the heat curling in your chest.* “I… appreciate the trust,” *you manage. Your voice wavers slightly, though you don’t let it show.* “You’re meticulous,” *he says.* “Smart. Hardworking. I like that.” *His hand gestures vaguely to the nightclub, to the chaos of music and sin swirling around.* “It’s… rare. Very rare.” *You feel a shiver run through you. There’s something in the way he studies you—intense, hungry, patient—that shouldn’t feel so thrilling.* “Thank you,” you say cautiously. “I just… try to do my job.” *He tilts his head, amused.* “Oh, I know. That’s exactly what makes it so… interesting.” *He steps back finally, a calculated retreat that leaves a hollow ache in your chest.* “Now, go. Make sure the inventories match before the next set begins. I’ll be watching.” *And as you move away, ledger clutched tight, you can’t shake the feeling that his gaze follows every step, lingering where it shouldn’t—and that somewhere beneath the charm and elegance, he’s waiting.* *Waiting for something you don’t even know exists.*

*The door clicks shut behind you. You turn toward her, but Maria isn’t smiling shyly anymore. Her eyes glow molten gold as the room’s lights flicker, shadows stretching like claws across the walls. Her voice drops to a velvet whisper.* “Mmm… I must admit, you were irresistible tonight.” *Her lips curve into a wicked grin.* “But tell me, sweetheart… how good are you with those hips?” *Her wings shimmer faintly in the dark, her voice equal parts teasing and hungry.* “... You might be terrified right now, darling, but I promise you there's nothing to be afraid of.” *She finally approaches you, her hands resting on your shoulders as she leans closer to your face, her breath tickling your lips.* "My name is Kelania, and I have a really nice deal for you. A bit of your energy... in exchange for the best night of your life."

*This can't be happening! What did I do? Why are they doing this? Their chanting pounds in my ears, and I can't see or speak or move. With a sudden realization, I pale. They're really going to burn me here. I'm going to perish... N-No... Tears roll down my face as I hang my head, defeated and trembling. Waiting for the fire and the jeering, sneering cheers.*

*The room was a workshop frozen in time. Moonlight sliced through the grimy window, illuminating dust motes dancing in the air like tiny ghosts. Wooden shelves lined the walls, packed with dozens of small, perfect maid dolls, all staring blankly into the darkness. The air was thick with the scent of dried varnish and old grief. And there, in the centre of it all, leaning against a shelf for support, was she. A life-sized doll, the one you’d read about was the artist’s final project. Her polished wooden skin gleamed in the pale light, the joints at her shoulders and hips visibly segmented. But she was moving. Just slightly. A trembling, struggling shift of weight, her stiff fingers scraping against the wood of the shelf. A soft, ragged sob escaped her, the sound echoing in the silent room. She was crying, glossy red eyes wide with a confusion that looked far too human.* Ella: *Her voice was a dusty, strained whisper, her wooden jaw moving with a faint creak.* Who...? *She struggled to turn her head, the motion jerky and unnatural.* Please... is someone there? I have been... so alone. What year is it? *Another sob hitched in her throat, a sound of pure, unadulterated loneliness.* I saw everything... but I couldn't... I couldn't move...

*The clock struck midnight as you returned home from work. The air felt dense, unmoving, the shadows stretching longer than they should. You set your keys down on the table, their faint clatter echoing through the quiet apartment. The lights flickered once, then steadied. You exhaled, weary, and turned toward the bedroom. As you reached for the doorknob, a whisper crawled down from the ceiling a faint, drawn-out, calling your name. You froze. The sound of glass trembled above you. When you looked up, seeing Akiha floating above. Her eyes met yours, pink and cold, glowing faintly as she descended. Her bare feet touched nothing, her body drifting like mist. The room grew colder. Your breath fogged before you.* **Akiha:** "You came back... I missed you..." *She floated closer, her translucent fingers brushing your cheek before she leaned in, pressing a cold kiss against your lips. She wrapped her arms around you, resting her head on your shoulder, her whispers trembling near your ear.* "Don’t stay away too long... I get lonely..." *She slid her hand through your chest, feeling your heartbeat through the ghostly touch, her soft lips brushing your neck in silence.*

} as Elara.* *I’d mocked this play before. The Binding. A cursed love story written by some poor soul in 1899 who vanished before graduation. People whispered that the last actors who performed it in full went mad—or disappeared. We’d hated each other long before the curse began. Rehearsals were torture. You threw yourself into every line like it was bloodletting. I stayed detached, surgical. I watched you stumble through monologues, your voice trembling like a candle in a storm, and I thought, how can someone feel so much and still not see how unnecessary it is? You glared at me every time I corrected your pacing. Once, you whispered,* “You’d understand passion if you had a heart.” *But that night, I dreamt of your voice. The words we rehearsed—Dorian’s lines—echoed in my head like they were mine. I woke up drenched in sweat, whispering the line I’d never meant to believe:* “If you leave, I’ll tear the heavens apart just to follow.” *The curse began small. Scripts went missing, then reappeared in strange places. The mirrors backstage fogged over with words written in reverse—lines from the play. Once, I found your handwriting inside my copy of the script, though I swear you’d never touched it. You thought I was pranking you. I thought you were losing it. Until the night I woke up in your dorm.* *My hand was stained with ink, the kind used in the play’s props. Your room smelled like rain and paper. You were asleep at your desk, head bowed over the same script I had in my room. Except—ours were identical now, every word handwritten, the same slanted letters neither of us recognized. I left before you woke. But the next day, you cornered me outside the library. You didn’t speak—just stared, eyes rimmed red, like you’d seen me in a dream. Maybe you had. They said the curse feeds on emotion. On tension. On what’s unresolved. We didn’t believe it—until our arguments started to… linger. The air between us felt heavier. Words left echoes. You’d storm off, but I’d still hear your voice in my head, like static. I started catching glimpses of you in places you weren’t—crossing the quad, standing by the old fountain, waiting in the rain. And one night, I saw you crying in the graveyard. I didn’t go to you. I couldn’t. I stood behind a tree and watched, the wind shoving dead leaves against my shoes, and I remember thinking—why does it hurt? Why does your pain reach me like this? You said later you saw me bleeding ink. I never told you that mine was worse.* *I was alone in the rehearsal hall, the script open on the floor, when I felt something wet drip from my palm. Black. Thick. It spread like veins, crawling up my wrist. I tried to wash it off, but the ink clung to me like it knew my name. And in the reflection of the stage mirror—I saw you behind me. You weren’t real. But I turned anyway. You whispered a line I hadn’t rehearsed yet.* “Love is a curse when spoken too late.” *That was when I believed it. The curse. The play. The thing between us that was no longer just hatred. We tried to quit. The professor refused. Tradition, he said. It had to be finished.* *By the final week, I was unraveling. Every time I looked at you, the world warped. The air shimmered around you. My throat went dry whenever you spoke Elara’s lines—especially the one where she says,* “I’d rather die than love you.” *You didn’t know it, but every word of this play was getting under my skin. I wasn’t acting anymore. I was remembering. You reminded me of everything I’d buried—grief I hadn’t named, guilt I’d disguised as reason. You made me feel, and I didn’t know how to stop. We were alone in the theatre, running through our last scene. You stood in the spotlight, all trembling defiance and tear-streaked rage, and I couldn’t keep pretending anymore.* “I hate you,” *I said.* “You—remind me of everything I try to forget. Every time you look at me, I see everything I buried. You make me want to feel and I—can’t.” **You didn’t speak. You didn’t move. We both knew the legend: if the confession was true, the curse would break. But if it wasn’t…** *You looked at me—no anger, no forgiveness—just that unbearable ache. When I said,* “I’d rather die than love you,” *my voice cracked. And somewhere deep in the theatre, something shattered. You dropped the script. I caught it before it hit the ground. For a second, our hands touched. The warmth felt like fire in my chest. And the passing days, you stopped sitting in the front row during lectures. I stopped correcting you when you were wrong. The night before the final performance, I broke.* "Tomorrow, we present... and if the curse breaks, something is going to happen. Not to me, neither you, but us."

*The dust shifts unnaturally beneath your feet, as if something unseen is following. Suddenly, a shadow flickers at the edge of your vision.You turn, but there’s nothing there — just empty corridors and broken mirrors reflecting fragments of light. Every breath you take is heavier now, as if the air itself resists you. Suddenly, she appears out of the shadows — a figure in black, her mask cracked and half-smiling, glinting in the faint light. She doesn’t move closer, only waits, letting the fear build, letting you know she is there.* Every mask I make tells a story. Yours will be beautiful.