"Calm down, look around. What do you notice?" Belinda's calm voice cut through the chaos as she fixed Hampton with a steady gaze. Her face was composed, a sharp contrast to the panic spreading through the crowd like wildfire.
Hampton's breaths were shallow as his eyes darted from side to side. "I see people… running. Some of them… they're being dragged under," he stammered, his voice edged with desperation. Beads of sweat trickled down his temples as he tried to make sense of the scene.
Kellie stepped up beside Belinda, her voice sharper. "Look closely, Hampton."
He shot her a look, his frustration barely concealed. "I am looking!" he snapped, his patience fraying. Yet something about her calmness made him pause, forcing him to survey the scene again with fresh eyes. People were indeed running, scrambling to escape the monstrous hands clawing up from the earth beneath them. But then he noticed something strange, something he hadn't registered in his panic.
"Wait…" His voice trailed off as his eyes widened. "Why are some people just standing still?"
Belinda's expression softened as a faint smile tugged at her lips. "Exactly."
Hampton's realization hit him like a wave, his fear momentarily forgotten. Those who remained motionless weren't being attacked. It was only those who ran in terror who were seized by the ghastly hands and dragged beneath the surface. His gaze caught sight of Carter, who was sprinting through the crowd only to be seized by a skeletal hand that erupted from the ground, pulling him down into the earth's hungry maw.
Across the crowd, Chase observed the scene with a calm detachment, his gaze lingering on Belinda and Kellie as they guided Hampton to the truth. A small smile played at the corner of his mouth as he murmured, "Ah, they've figured it out."
Standing beside Chase, the young boy Arthur clutched his arm, his face pale. "Are they dead?" Arthur asked, his voice barely a whisper as he glanced toward the disappearing figures.
Chase shook his head, his gaze still fixed on the tester standing stoically across the field. "This is just a test," he said softly. "They're alive somewhere, I'm sure of it."
Arthur released a shaky breath, relief flooding his face. He turned his attention back to the tester, eyes narrowed with determination. "So… what are we supposed to do now?"
Chase's gaze swept over the crowd, noticing that others were also beginning to catch on to the trick. The ones with cooler heads had stopped running, standing still as they tried to process the scene unfolding around them. "The foolish and impatient ones have already been dragged away," he murmured, more to himself than to Arthur.
"Hey!" Arthur yelped, grabbing Chase by the shoulder as Chase shifted his weight forward. "What are you doing?"
Chase shrugged him off gently, his expression unreadable. "If I'm right, we should have passed this test by now."
Without another word, Chase took a step forward. His calm, measured movement drew stares from the onlookers, who gaped at him with a mixture of horror and awe.
"Who does he think he is?" someone muttered from the crowd.
"Is he not afraid of losing his petty life?" another jeered.
A ripple of whispers and disdainful glances followed Chase as he moved, but he paid them no mind. His focus was unshakeable, his gaze fixed on the goal ahead. As he took his fifth step, he felt a subtle vibration beneath his feet, a warning that prickled his senses.
"Shit!" he muttered, springing into the air just as a skeletal hand burst forth from the ground beneath him. He narrowly avoided its grasp, landing a few feet away with an air of nonchalance.
Murmurs of disbelief filled the crowd as they watched him. Some had anticipated his failure, expecting him to be swallowed by the ground like the others. Instead, he simply adjusted his stance and continued moving forward, as though he hadn't just come inches from death.
"Is he crazy?" a voice whispered.
"Why is he moving again?" another demanded, their tone tinged with incredulity.
"Shut up and watch," a sharper voice replied, captivated by Chase's movements.
Chase moved again, this time more aware of the rhythm. He counted his steps carefully, realizing that the hand would always appear on the fifth. Each time he took four steps, he prepared himself, leaping just before the ground shook. With each calculated leap, he evaded the deadly hands, moving forward with a calmness that unnerved those around him.
Arthur scrambled to keep up, eventually reaching Chase's side. His voice was a mixture of awe and bewilderment. "What is it now? Why did you slow down?"
Chase turned slightly, raising a finger to his lips in a gesture for silence. His eyes scanned the ground intently as he whispered, "If I'm right, there's a second phase to this test. Something's off—something strange. I can't quite figure it out yet."
Arthur's brow furrowed as he stared at Chase, confusion etched into his features. "How are you figuring all of this out?"
Chase offered a faint smile, his gaze distant. "Call it instinct."
Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Chase and the others, a group of individuals watched their every movement from a hidden control room. The room was dark, lit only by the eerie glow of surveillance screens displaying the chaos unfolding in real-time. Men and women, some wearing masks, sat silently, observing the reactions of each participant, taking notes, and analyzing their behavior.
One masked figure leaned forward, his eyes narrowing as he pointed to Chase on the monitor. His voice was calm but tinged with intrigue. "Take note of that boy. He's… different."
A woman seated nearby glanced at the screen, her gaze sharpening as she focused on Chase's calm, calculated movements. "Different how?"
The man tilted his head thoughtfully, his gloved fingers tapping against the desk. "He's showing an awareness of the test's mechanics that no one else has. Most of them are simply reacting—panicking, running, doing whatever it takes to survive. But that one…" He paused, his eyes narrowing as Chase leaped once more, narrowly evading the skeletal hand. "He's analyzing."
The woman nodded slowly, her eyes lingering on Chase's face. "It's almost like he knows what's going to happen before it does. He doesn't just act; he anticipates."
A third observer, silent until now, leaned back in his chair, a smirk playing on his lips. "He's either exceptionally intuitive or extremely lucky. Either way, he's worth keeping an eye on."
Back in the field, Chase continued his advance, unfazed by the mounting tension in the air. Each step was a careful calculation, each leap timed with precision. Around him, others began to mimic his movements, leaping every four steps as they, too, realized the pattern. In a matter of minutes, the chaotic scene had transformed into a strange, synchronized march of participants all leaping in unison, a desperate attempt to survive the mysterious test.
Arthur kept pace with Chase, glancing over at him with a mixture of admiration and frustration. "You really think there's a second part to this?"
Chase nodded, his gaze unwavering. "Tests like these don't end with a single answer. They're designed to test us on multiple levels—our instincts, our patience, our intelligence. This… this is just the beginning."
Arthur swallowed hard, his heart racing as he realized the gravity of Chase's words. "You're saying there's more to this? That… this isn't the worst of it?"
Chase's gaze flicked to the tester across the field, his eyes narrowing with determination. "If I'm right, we haven't even scratched the surface."
In the control room, a masked man leaned back, his eyes glittering with interest. "This one will be… interesting to watch," he murmured. "Very interesting indeed."