He woke up with a jolt. A flash in his mind. A distant scream. Pain. Then... nothing. His eyelids opened slowly to a pale light. A single flickering neon above him, twitching on and off like it couldn't decide whether to stay alive. The environment around him was blurry, unrecognizable, too dark to be natural. The air pressed against his chest like liquid weight.
He sat up, short of breath. Under his hands, the floor was black, sticky, coated in a thin layer of greasy dust and moisture. He needed a moment to steady himself, then touched his stomach. Nothing. No pain. No blood. No sign of a fight. No sign of death. But this wasn't Lugnica. That much was obvious.
Above him, no blue sky. No breeze, no clouds. Just rusted steel beams, cracked concrete, and leaking iron pipes. The air reeked of stale oil, metal, and something unknown... almost acidic.
He stood up slowly, each movement heavier than the last. His body was intact, but he'd never felt so... displaced.
He had failed. Again. He wanted to save Satella, to sacrifice himself... but Elsa had bested him. Again.
And this time, instead of waking near the fountain, the shop, in daylight... ...he had woken up here. In an unknown world. Cold. Silent. Dead. No background music. No fantastical intro. No friendly NPC to explain the situation. Just him. And the smell of the end of the world.
He coughed violently, spitting black phlegm to the floor. The air felt used, like it had already passed through dozens of mouths before reaching his lungs. His throat burned. His mind still tried to make sense of it.
He didn't have the naive euphoria of his early days in Lugnica. No illusion of a grand adventure. Here, there was nothing to hope for. Nothing to dream about. Only one visceral need: get out.
He walked forward. Step by step. The floor echoed under his shoes, puddled and shadowed. At every corner, he listened. Nothing. No sound. Not even a human breath.
He turned down one corridor, then another. Walls covered in incomprehensible graffiti and indecipherable symbols. Doors sealed shut, welded by time.
He froze. Everything stopped. The air, the hallway, even his heartbeat. He wasn't running anymore. He barely breathed. His eyes locked onto her—that impossible vision waiting at the end of the tunnel.
She stood there. Still. Almost unreal. The faint light from a dying panel above reflected off her like a halo, tracing a pale crown around her silver hair. Every strand shimmered independently, slightly wavy, cascading over her shoulders like frost. A color too soft, too pure, too silent for this world.
Her eyes were crystal blue, sharp but not cold. There was calm tension in them, a clarity that bordered on cruelty. Not fear. Not anger. Just distance. A thin sheet of glass between her and the world. Even here, in this nightmare, she showed no fear.
She wore her school uniform, nearly pristine despite the filth. Black skirt, neatly pressed. Cream jacket with clean edges. Stiff white collar and a red ribbon tied with care. Her socks pulled up neatly to her crossed legs. An absurd image in this rust-covered ruin. And yet... she gave this place unexpected grace. As if the hive itself hesitated to collapse around her.
She sat on an overturned crate, legs crossed with elegance, chin resting in her hand in a lazy pose. One arm bent, the other draped loosely over her thigh. Her gaze was not surprised, not shocked, not even curious. She simply watched. As if she'd been waiting for him forever.
Around her, cables hung like thorns. Shadows like dead vines. The walls wept rust, machines around her scorched and broken by time. And in the middle of that void... she glowed.
He had no clear thoughts. No doubt. No logic. He didn't wonder if she was Satella. He didn't try to understand. He didn't question. He stepped forward. One step. Then another. Slowly. With absolute, almost religious tension. He didn't blink. He said nothing. He breathed only because he had to. She didn't move. She didn't speak. Their eyes met.
And in that near-perfect silence, a chill ran down Subaru's spine. Not from cold. But because deep down, he knew this moment would change everything. Forever.
No words. No scream. Just a boy walking. And a girl watching.
The silence broke. Not with violence. Just... a voice. Clear. Calm. Tired.
"Did you see a ghost, Alya?"
Subaru stopped cold.
The voice came from just behind her. A boy appeared, hands in his pockets, looking no more concerned than if he were walking into a classroom late. His uniform was wrinkled, tie crooked, a cut on his cheek. But he walked with that insultingly relaxed attitude, as if nothing mattered.
He stopped beside her, without sparing Subaru a glance.
"Didn't you say we were alone? You heard the footsteps, right? I thought it was some mutant who didn't know how to run straight."
Alya, still seated, arms crossed, eyes fixed on Subaru, replied without moving:
"I heard them. And I heard a voice."
A short silence.
Masachika followed her gaze, sighed, then raised an eyebrow at Subaru in his stained gray tracksuit.
"...What the hell is that supposed to be? Seriously. We're already lost, and now we pick up another lost guy."
He finally locked eyes with Subaru. No hostility. Just the same exhaustion that had clung to him for hours.
"Look at him. Same look as us. No plan, no clue, just the face of someone who wants to go home."
Alya nodded softly, then added with near-neutral tone:
"He's like us."
Two more voices arrived from the shadows, quieter, more cautious.
"Do we bring him in or avoid him?" asked Yuki, adjusting her glasses.
Masha, behind her, stepped forward with a shy smile toward Subaru, but didn't dare speak.
Subaru opened his mouth, searching for words. He swallowed, took a step forward, heart pounding. And, in an absurd reflex in this senseless world, he raised his arm slightly.
"I... I'm Subaru Natsuki!"
Masachika stared at him for two seconds. Then turned to Alya:
"Great. Now there's officially five of us who have no idea what's going on."
Author's NoteYo, it's the author here!Here's the first chapter of this fanfiction. Arc 1 will properly begin this Monday, so get ready!If you're enjoying the vibe so far, feel free to drop a comment or a like — it costs nothing and means a lot.See you Monday, same time!