***
Kitsune's heart hammered in his chest like a frantic drum solo, resonating through his bones as he woke up. The cold cloth of the bed beneath his palms felt slick with desperation as he pressed against the bed, his eyes lit up. The guard's heavy footsteps echoed direly through the corridors, a haunting reminder that he was back in the prison.
"Damn," he muttered under his breath, his mind racing as fast as his pulse. He needed to think, but the panic that clawed at his insides made it hard to focus. His usual cool demeanor had evaporated in a mist of anxiety; this was no place for bluffing—only survival mattered now.
**Name: Kitsune Zenko
Level: 1
HP: 100/100
MP: 10/10
Money: $0
Sync: 28%
Mission: Jailbreak (3 stars)
Objective: Escape from the prison
Reward: $10,000 and a random item
Failure: Death**
Lives: 1
'Once again he saw a screen that showed my status. It was the same as what he had previously seen but something on there seemed peculiar. I saw that I had only a single life left. A message then popped up and it said "You now have only a single life remaining as you have previously died twice. If you lose all your lives, you will die permanently. Be careful!"'
*Sighed*
Then, up ahead, salvation—or so it seemed—a set of metal bars that rose into darkness, under his bed. Without hesitation, Kitsune leaped for them, fingers wrapping tightly around the cold metal.
*Boom!*
'Huh, an explosion? No...it's too soon for that. It should come in the next 15 minutes, so why now?'
A hole was cracked on the right side of the room. As he stood there cautiously scanning the room he heard a voice.
"Hey, you there!" the voice said.
The voice sliced through the silence, sharp and unexpected. Kitsune froze, one hand gripping the bar, the other reaching for the next hold. A voice—but whose?
"Who's there?" Kitsune called back, trying to keep his tone even. "Show yourself!"
Kitsune turned around and saw a figure approaching him in the smoke. He saw that it had long blue hair, red eyes, and a serious expression. She was wearing an orange jumpsuit and a metal collar, just like Kitsune.
"Quiet down, will you? You want the guards swarming us?" The voice was closer now, tinged with urgency and something else—familiarity?
"Great, just what I need, distractions," Kitsune thought bitterly. He had been so close to finding a way out efficiently and faster. Now, he has to waste time, suspended in uncertainty, his escape attempt thwarted by an unseen intruder.
"Come on, we don't have all night," the voice urged. It was impatient but not unkind—a fellow prisoner.
"Death here isn't permanent, remember? Besides the guards weren't alerted." Her smile was reckless, contagious.
"Clearly, delicacy isn't your strong suit." Kitsune eyed the gaping hole where the wall used to be. It was an opportunity, albeit a loud, messy one.
"Delicacy doesn't break you out of jail either," she retorted, her gaze scanning the corridor for guards alerted by the commotion.
"Look, unless you've got a map tattooed on you, I'm kind of busy here," Kitsune replied, but curiosity tugged at him. An ally could be valuable, even if trust didn't come easily.
"Busy getting caught, more like it," the voice countered with a hint of a chuckle. "You're going about this all wrong."
"Then enlighten me," Kitsune challenged, his grip on the bars tightening against the lock mechanism, applying steady pressure. He knew that time was ticking away, and yet here he was, engaging in banter when he should be escaping. But something about the voice beckoned him, a gamble he wasn't sure he wanted to take, yet felt compelled to explore.
"Fine," the voice said, "but let's make it quick." There was a rustle in the darkness below, and Kitsune knew he had to make a choice—continue his ascent into the unknown or take a chance on the mysterious stranger offering assistance.
"Yeah, do I know you?" Kitsune asked with a hint of curiosity.
"No, not at all. Your status showed on my screen." Mika replied
"Oh, so you are Mika huh?" Kitsune said as Mika's status popped up on his screen.
"Yeah, and I'm a player, just like you," she replied.
"Did you also die? How?" Kitsune asked.
"I died because...actually, I have no idea," Mika said, looking dejected. "I was trying to escape, but then here I am. I know that I died cause I received a message that I failed the mission."
'Oh, she doesn't remember? She might be lying or telling the truth but for now, let's see what I can gain from it. Although I also died I still remembered Chavo, the one who blew this building up.'
"Brace yourself!" Mika's voice was sharp, cutting through the tension like a blade.
**Boom!**
A sudden vibration shuddered through the wall to his right, a precursor to chaos.
Kitsune barely had time to shield his face before the explosion rocked the prison cell. Metal shrieked as it bent, contorted, and ultimately gave way, relinquishing its hold on the space. Debris pelted down, and when the dust cleared, there stood Mika, her blue hair dancing twirling around her face, red eyes ablaze with ferocity.
"Kitsune, you owe me one," she declared, stepping through the wreckage with a grace that belied the destruction she'd wrought.
"What the hell was that?" Kitsune spluttered, brushing mortar from his shoulders, his senses still reeling from the blast. "Another explosion?"
Before Mika could respond, another presence filled the room, tangible like a drop in temperature or a shift in pressure. They turned, facing the newcomer—an enigmatic figure who seemed to materialize from the shadows themselves.
"The name is Ikenie. I don't care about y'all names... but you should all just listen to me. You hear me?" He said as he made his way in.
"No reply? I will take it as a yes then!" Ikenie said.
"What the—, Why are y'all barging into my cell with explosions!?" Kitsune started, his words tapering off as he took in the tall frame of the man standing before them. Black hair fell in a curtain framing a face chiseled from stone and eyes dark. Ikenie, as if the name were etched into the air itself, brought with him an aura of command that demanded attention without a word being spoken.
"Unexpected measures, but effective," Ikenie mumbled, his voice a low rumble, disconcertingly calm given the circumstances.
"Effective at announcing our position to every guard in this hellhole, fuck you mean," Kitsune shot back, his mind racing. Ikenie and Mika's sudden appearance was a variable he hadn't accounted for. An adversary turned potential ally? Trustworthy or another complication?