Simon Carter never wanted to be special.
He was seventeen, stuck in the deteriorating remnants of a city too stubborn to admit it was dying, surviving on the edges of society. His life was a series of abandoned promises, half-earned opportunities, and the kind of hunger that settled deep into your bones. The world didn't care about kids like him. You either made yourself valuable, or you disappeared.
Simon wasn't stupid. He wasn't weak. But he wasn't chosen either.
At least, that's what he thought.
The envelope appeared overnight, slipped beneath the door of the run-down apartment he shared with his sister. It was black, sealed with a strange, wax-like emblem depicting an intricate, twisting maze.
He almost threw it away. But curiosity was a dangerous thing.
Inside was a single card, embossed with three words that changed everything.
"Enter and Survive."
No sender. No explanation. Just an address—a forgotten train station on the outskirts of the city, one that had been decommissioned for decades.
Simon wasn't an idiot. This was a trap.
But it was also a door.
And for someone like him, doors didn't open very often.