Chapter 2: Mystery
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The sun was beginning to set behind the hills surrounding the preschool, bathing the second courtyard in a golden light. The children, tired but excited, settled at the edges of the courtyard with their candy and prizes. Some laughed, others exchanged treats, and a few, like 287, watched with curiosity at the giant who stood out among them all.
Unlike the others, who wore masks with simple shapes like circles, triangles, and squares, this giant had a different mask. Black, plain, without any identifiable symbols. His clothing was also different: a completely black robe that made him look like a walking shadow. He sat in the far corner of the courtyard, slowly chewing on a chocolate bar, watching the children with an eerie calm. Some of the children called him "The Boss."
287 sat with his red lollipop, still savoring the candy as he watched the giant surreptitiously. There was something about his presence that attracted and terrified him in equal measure. The other giants seemed to respect him, almost fear him. Whenever one of them came up to speak to him, they would bow their heads slightly, as if acknowledging his authority.
In one corner of the courtyard, the children who had been eliminated from the previous games stood in a separate group. Each held small rice candies in their hands as a consolation prize. Although they were not sad, there was a strange mix of relief and disappointment on their faces. Some looked curiously at the games that continued, while others seemed more interested in their candy.
287 watched them with growing unease. Why were these children, who seemed to have been pushed aside, not returning to the game? An oppressive feeling filled the air, a feeling that not even the candy in their hands could dispel. As they slowly chewed their prizes, one of the geometrically masked giants would always approach, without uttering a single word, and lean toward the eliminated children. He whispered something in their ears, something that 287 could not hear, but that he could identify in their gestures: a mixture of resignation and obedience. Then, one by one, the children nodded, as if they knew what awaited them, and stood up with empty steps, like shadows, heading towards a door that was in the darkest corner of the courtyard.
287 frowned, his curiosity overtaking him like a storm. "Where are they taking them?" he thought, his heart pounding in his chest. He wanted to ask the other children, but the atmosphere, charged with palpable tension, stopped him. Something in his gut told him to keep quiet. It was as if all the secrets of the place were hidden under a layer of mystery, and any attempt to reveal them would put them in danger. There was something dark, something deeply disturbing, that the giants did not want them to know. Something that could not be allowed to be discovered.
With a determination that he didn't know where it came from, 287 stood up from the ground. His steps were hesitant, but there was no turning back. The sense of danger surrounding the eliminated children pushed him forward. What was going on behind that door? Why weren't the children coming back? What was this game? Questions were piling up in his mind like an unstoppable torrent.
His body moved without thinking. He walked between the groups of children, who continued to laugh and play, completely oblivious to what was looming over them. Upon reaching the far corner of the courtyard, where "The Boss" was sitting, 287 paused for a moment, hiding from view. The giant, motionless and absorbed in his chocolate bar, didn't seem to notice his presence. But 287 couldn't wait any longer. His feet moved on their own, and before he could stop himself, he was already in front of him, his stomach in knots.
"What am I doing?" he thought, but the question was dissipated into the air when "The Boss" raised his head, his eyes, hidden behind the triangular mask, staring at him.
"What are you doing here, player 287?" the giant asked in a deep voice that echoed in the boy's chest.
287 swallowed, feeling fear take hold of his throat. The words he had rehearsed in his head faded away, leaving only a broken whisper.
"I just… wanted to know… where are they taking the other children?"
The giant stopped chewing immediately. Time seemed to stop. The atmosphere became dense, unbreathable, and 287 felt as if each second that passed was an eternity. The words got stuck in his throat. The answer he would receive would determine his fate, and the fear intensified.
The giant looked at the boy with an intensity that chilled his blood. For a moment, 287 felt like everything he had experienced up until that point had been a lie, an illusion, and that the answers he was looking for might be much more terrifying than the game itself.
Finally the giant bowed his head slightly, as if making a decision.
"Those children have finished their participation in the games. They rest now."
287 couldn't help the wave of questions that swirled through his mind. "Why don't they come back?" the question left his lips before he could stop it. His voice trembled, but he couldn't help it. The answer, though brief, left him more bewildered than before.
The giant stared at him, and 287 felt his gaze pierce through him, as if he could see through his being. The answer came with a cold, almost inhuman calm.
"Some answers are not meant for you, little player. Perhaps you will find them for yourself… if you keep playing."
The giant's words hit 287 like a storm. A chill ran through his body and mind. What did that mean? What awaited him if he decided to keep playing? What was behind such strange and frightening games?
That night, the lights in the preschool went out, but 287's sleep never came. The words of "The Boss" kept echoing in his mind, tormenting him. "If you keep playing." Those words kept coming back to him, over and over, like a dissonant melody. What was behind all this? Why did the giants seem to know more than they were saying?
Finally, in the darkness of the night, when silence reigned in the halls of the main building, 287 got out of bed. His body, although tired, was filled with an inexplicable energy. There was something in him that drove him to discover what was really going on in that place. Something called him to move forward, to enter the unknown. And he couldn't ignore it.
He walked cautiously, his steps light and silent. The cold of the hallway crept into his bare skin, but it didn't matter. Fear pushed him, and the need for answers dragged him into the darkness. He didn't know what he would find, but something told him that if he didn't, the answers would continue to elude him, and he would be trapped in ignorance.
Reaching a door at the end of the hallway, 287 noticed that it wasn't locked this time. The door that had always been closed during the day, the one he'd never had the chance to explore. With shaking hands, he pushed the door, which slowly gave way. The light of a screen flickered in front of him, illuminating the dark room.
On the screens, images showed the playground, the games, the giants watching his every move. But what caught his attention the most was one screen in particular. There, on that screen, he saw a row of eliminated children, standing in front of a metal door. When the door opened, a bright flash of light enveloped them, and then, they disappeared completely.
287 stepped back, an icy chill running down his spine. He didn't understand what he was seeing, but something in his heart told him there was no turning back.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps approaching. The sound of boots echoed in the hallway, approaching quickly. 287 hid behind a wooden box, holding his breath. His heart was pounding hard, almost palpably, as if it wanted to escape from his chest. Two giants entered the room, their voices whispering to each other.
"The Boss wants everything ready for the next game." The deep voice of one of the giants echoed off the walls.
"And the eliminated ones?" the other giant asked.
"They are already in the "lower level." Everything is under control.
"Lower level." Those two words rang in 287's mind like an alarm bell. What did that mean? Where were the children really? And, above all, what happened to those who were eliminated? What awaited them in the "lower level"?
Fear gripped him, but there was no time for hesitation. When the giants turned to stare at the screens, 287 seized the opportunity. He ran back to his bed, his heart still pounding in his chest, but his mind no longer had room for peace. The truth was now beyond his reach, and he himself had opened the door to the unknown.
That night, sleep never came. The answers would continue to elude him, but the questions that plagued him now were far more terrifying than any game he could imagine.
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