When the alarm went off at 6:30 am, I greeted the day with high enthusiasm. My morning routine was efficient, and I enjoyed the walk to school, catching up with friends along the way.
The school day was filled with learning and working, but lunchtime was always the highlight for me. After a today's math quiz, my mood dropped. I definitely should have studied for this one.
My friends Ebubekir, Anes, Mehmet, and I always stuck together. As we walked out of the math classroom, I glanced at them, observing their different personalities.
Anes, the confident one, grinned and boasted about finishing the math quiz effortlessly.
Mehmet appeared a bit discouraged, "I thought I had studied enough, but the quiz was way harder than I expected, you are truly gifted."
Ebubekir nodded as he seemed worried about his performance, his nervousness was almost palpable.
I shrugged. "I fucked it up as well. I was stuck on a few questions and I didn't manage to finish it whole."
Then a bold idea formed in my mind "Let's prepare together for the next one."
Mehmet eagerly agreed, while Anes, who claimed to be naturally good at math, refused to waste his time. But he fortunately agreed to help us at the end. As we parted ways for this day, I found a letter with a personal invitation to meet a stranger, Dr. Aria Malik at my doorstep.
Curiosity overcame me, I decided to take the chance and head to the designated location, eager to uncover the truth.
I ran inside my apartment and greeted my parents. I told them I had to go out for a while, and they didn't ask any questions. I grabbed my jacket and headed out, hoping I wasn't making a mistake.
With only two hours left, I couldn't afford to be late. I took the bus to the address, glancing at my watch every few minutes. As I arrived at the destination, I tried to push away the anxiety that gnawed at my stomach. The building sprawled across the block, its stone walls and metal beams giving it a solid look. It looked like a research facility.
Security cameras and guards were everywhere, making me feel like an intruder. My palms were sweaty and my heart was pounding as I walked towards the entrance. A man in a suit stopped me and asked for my name in a stern voice.
"Valdrin Musaj," I said, trying to sound confident.
He checked his clipboard and nodded. "You're on the list. Please follow me."
He led me inside the building, where I saw dozens of people, all looking as confused and curious as I was. I scanned the crowd, hoping to see a familiar face. To my surprise, I saw my best friends, Anes, Ebubekir, and Mehmet, standing in a corner. I ran over to them, relieved to see them.
"Guys, what are you doing here?" I asked, hugging them.
"We don't know, man," Anes said, shaking his head. "We got the same letter as you."
"Me too," Ebubekir said. "But what's this all about?"
"I have no clue," Mehmet said. "But it must be something big if they brought us all here."
We exchanged theories and guesses, but none of them made sense. We were just ordinary students, with nothing special about us. Why would Dr. Malik want to meet us?
Before we could figure it out, a voice came from a speaker, interrupting our conversation.
"Attention all attendees. Dr. Aria Malik will be joining you shortly. Please proceed to the main conference room."
The voice sounded authoritative and serious. We felt a mix of excitement and fear as we followed the crowd to the conference room. We wondered what Dr. Malik had to say, and what he wanted from us.
We entered the conference room, which was spacious and modern.
A large screen was on the wall, showing a map of the world. A podium was in the center, with a microphone and a laptop. A man in a white lab coat walked towards the podium, holding a remote. He looked calm and confident, but also friendly and warm. He pressed a button, and the screen changed to show a picture of our president, Bianchi.
"Welcome, everyone. My name is Dr. Aria Malik," he said, his voice echoing in the room.
A voice from the crowd shouted, "Why are we here?"
Dr. Malik smiled and said, "As you may know, our country, Dragtora, is in danger of war. Our enemies are powerful and ruthless, and they want to destroy us. Our military is weak and outdated, and our president, Bianchi, is a visionary. He invested millions of dollars on a project to create a serum that will give any creature a special ability, but also a weakness. He believes this will make us stronger, and he is right. He is creating a new world, and he wants you to be a part of it."
He pressed another button, and the screen changed to show a picture of a syringe, with a label that said "Project X".
"This is the serum he created. It is a genetic modifier that can alter any living being. It can give you super strength, speed, intelligence, or any other power you can imagine. But it also comes with a price. It can also give you a fatal flaw, such as a weakness to water, fire, light, or anything else. It is a challenge, and an opportunity at that."
He looked at us with a hopeful expression. "I am here to offer you a chance. You can either join us, or stay behind. If you join us, you will receive the serum, and become part of our team. You will work with us, and for our country. You will have a chance to become a leader, or a follower. If you stay behind, you will miss out on this amazing opportunity. You will be ordinary, and boring. You will have no chance to grow, or to make a difference."
He paused, letting his words sink in. Then he said, "The choice is yours. But you have to decide now. Time is running out, and war is coming. What will you do?"
We looked at each other, unsure of what to say. We felt curious and excited, but also scared and doubtful. We didn't know what to do.
A blond teenager raised his hand and asked, "What's in it for us?"
Dr. Malik grinned. "A lot. We're going to have a death-match tournament to find out who's the strongest, and the winner will get a prize of €1,000,000. Plus, the winner will also be the leader of the war. If you're interested, go through the door over there, and you'll get your own room."
Everyone went crazy and rushed to the door. My friends and I exchanged glances, not sure what to do. After a brief hesitation, we decided to follow the crowd, curious about what was on the other side.
As we entered the building, a gorgeous brunette gave us each a letter. The letter had our room number and the rules of the tournament. I headed to my room, B-129, and when I got there, I was impressed. It was huge and comfortable, with a big bed, a kitchen full of food, a fridge with drinks, and a phone.
Feeling hungry, I made myself a sandwich. I took some bread, tomatoes, and cucumbers, and put them together. I ate my sandwich, and felt tired. I decided to take a nap.
When I woke up, I saw that it was 9 PM. I had slept too long. I quickly washed my face, and sat on the bed.
I grabbed the letter that I had received earlier, which had the rules of the Death-Match Tournament.
I read the rules, and felt nervous. The letter said that we would all be injected with the serum, and then sleep for three days. During that time, the serum would change our DNA and give us a random power, but also a random weakness. We would wake up with a new ability, and a new flaw.
We would have a week to train and practice with our new powers, and to pick our weapons. We could choose any weapon we wanted, but there was only one of each kind, so we had to be fast. If we beat someone in a battle, we could take one of their weapons, but we could only have three weapons at most.
The battles would be one-on-one, and they would end when someone gave up or died.
The winners would move on to the next round, and the losers would go to another building, where they would fight in a huge free-for-all.
The last one standing would get another chance to join the final round. The final round would be a fight between the best of the best, and the ultimate winner would get a million euros, and the honor of leading the war
The rules of the Death-Match Tournament filled me with a mix of dread and thrill. I wasn't sure if I could handle fighting my friends to the death.
I searched for them in the main conference room, but instead I found a room with a sign that read 'Weapons'.
I entered the room and saw a tall man behind a counter, smiling. "Hi there," he said cheerfully. "Can I pick my weapon here?" I asked him.
"Sure, here's what we have left," he said, giving me a sheet of paper. Most of the weapons were already gone, but one caught my eye, the chained kunai.
"I want the chained kunai," I said firmly.
"Okay, I just need your name," he said, writing it down in a notebook.
I left the room and checked the tournament brackets, looking for my first opponent's name - Luca Rossi. I had no idea who he was, and that made me nervous. I knew I had to find out more about him, if I wanted to have an edge.
I felt restless and bored, so I went back to my room and lay down on my bed. My mind drifted to the crazy situation I was in, and the looming fact that I would have to fight my friends to the death or until one of us gave up. The thought made me sick, and I knew I wasn't ready for that kind of violence.
Suddenly, the phone in my room rang loudly, snapping me out of my thoughts. The voice on the other end told me to go to medical room A-023 right away. I was surprised that there was a medical room in this place, but I got up and left my room, eager to find it.
I wandered through the maze-like corridors, looking for the medical room.
I bumped into a young blond boy, who seemed to know his way around. He asked me where I was going, and I told him I needed to find medical room A-023. He smiled and said, "There are some maps in the main conference room that show you the location of every room in this building. You should go there and get one."
"Thank you," I said, grateful for his help. "This place is confusing, huh?"
The boy nodded. "I know, right? But I guess we have to play along, huh?"
I agreed, feeling a bond with this stranger. The situation was bizarre and scary.
I made my way to the main conference room and saw a stack of maps on a table. I grabbed one and quickly located the medical room. I headed there and found a woman waiting for me. She showed me to a bed and gave me a syringe.
"Just lie down here," she said, "It will be over soon."
I felt a sharp sting as the needle pierced my right arm. Then, everything went dark, and I fell asleep.