Chapter 3: Awakening in Hostile Lands
The brilliance had swallowed me whole. For an instant, I was there, lost in that blinding light, and the next instant...
Silence.
The air was different. Heavy, thick. A scent of humus and decaying vegetation seeped into my nostrils, replacing the iron scent that had been imprinted in my mind.
I opened my eyes.
A forest. Unknown. Foreign. Suffocating.
The tree trunks, immense and twisted, formed a natural prison, their dense foliage nearly completely blocking out the sky. Only a few pale rays of light pierced through the gaps, casting distorted shadows on the moss-covered ground. The air was saturated with humidity, each breath seeming to weigh down my chest. The oppressive atmosphere crushed me almost as much as the lingering anxiety gnawing at me.
I placed a hand on my chest, trying to steady the frantic beating of my heart. My body still trembled from the aftermath of the previous events. Everything had happened so fast: the panic, the selection, the flash... and now this.
A rustling behind me.
I jumped, spinning around instantly, my nerves on edge.
There were six of them.
Six other people, scattered around me, just as disoriented. Some were still on the ground, catching their breath, while others looked around with wide eyes, trying to understand. I wasn't surprised. In truth, I had expected this.