"Phones out. Everyone."
Rafael didn't raise his voice, but the room shifted immediately.
Marcus reached for his pocket. Daniel followed.
Ethan unlocked his phone without looking down for long.
Diego was already moving, energy snapping back into him like a switch had flipped.
Claire stepped away from the couch. "I'm watching," she said.
"Good choice," Rafael replied.
Then his eyes moved to Li Shen.
"You too."
Li Shen took his phone out.
The screen lit up in his hand—clean, responsive. He was already used to that part. What came next wasn't.
"Search," Diego said, leaning over. "Type it—ZoneFall."
Li Shen typed.
The letters appeared instantly.
ZoneFall
A black icon. Minimal design. No unnecessary detail.
He tapped it.
Download.
A bar appeared.
Progress moved.
Fast.
Faster than expected.
"…Efficient," he said quietly.
"Wait till you see the game," Diego replied.
The download completed.
Li Shen tapped.
The screen went black.
No sound.
No delay.
Then—
A faint line of light cut across the darkness.
Sharp.
Precise.
It split—
And expanded.
The screen opened.
ZONEFALL
The word appeared in clean white text.
No decoration.
No excess.
Then it faded.
New screen.
Minimal interface.
No clutter.
A single prompt:
Name
Li Shen paused for half a second.
Then typed:
Li_Shen
Next.
Age
He paused.
He entered:
14
Next.
A brief loading symbol.
Then—
Tutorial Available.
He read it once.
Then tapped:
Skip
Diego laughed immediately. "Of course you skipped it."
Li Shen didn't respond.
He was already looking at the next screen.
Menu.
Clear divisions.
Campaign
Multiplayer
Training
Custom
His eyes moved across them.
Campaign → structured, controlled.
Training → isolated repetition.
Multiplayer → variable.
Unpredictable.
He glanced at the others.
They were already waiting.
"Multiplayer," Ethan said.
Li Shen tapped it.
New options appeared.
Battlefield
Battle Royale
5v5 Tactical
Custom Lobby
Different formats.
Different scales.
Different rules.
He didn't choose immediately.
He looked at Ethan.
Ethan nodded slightly.
"5v5."
Li Shen selected it.
Next screen:
Create Lobby
Enter Lobby
"Enter," Daniel said.
Li Shen tapped.
A list appeared.
Dozens of rooms.
Names.
Numbers.
Open matches.
Random players.
Too many variables.
Then—
A field at the top:
Enter Code
Diego leaned closer.
"Type this."
Li Shen waited.
"PartyHangout."
He entered it exactly.
Pressed confirm.
Loading.
Short.
Clean.
The world appeared.
Not a battlefield.
Not yet.
A staging area.
Interior of a modern ship.
Metal floors.
Soft lighting.
Weapons displayed along the walls.
Minimalistic.
Organized.
Purpose-built.
Li Shen's gaze sharpened slightly.
"…This is simulated space."
Rafael watched him from the side.
"Pretty much."
Five player slots.
Names appeared one by one.
DiegoRush
EthanCore
DanielHold
MarcusGuard
Rafael
Then—
Li_Shen
Connected.
The environment responded instantly.
No delay.
No lag.
He moved.
The character moved.
Exact.
No resistance.
That alone caught his attention.
A panel opened.
Purchase Phase
Weapons displayed.
Rows.
Categories.
Rifles.
Sidearms.
Close combat.
Utility.
Armor.
Li Shen paused.
"…What are these?"
Diego looked at him like that question had been waiting.
"Guns."
Li Shen's eyes stayed on the screen.
The designs were different.
Not crude.
Not heavy.
Clean lines.
Balanced weight.
No excess material.
Everything shaped for function.
"In my previous world," he muttered "guns existed."
"They were inefficient," Li Shen continued,
"Gunpowder-based. Low precision. High delay."
I seem to remember the name.
Musk..Muskets?
He tapped one of the rifles.
The model expanded.
Detailed.
Sleek.
Minimal.
"…This is different."
Rafael spoke this time.
"Modern design," he said. "Built for control and efficiency."
Li Shen nodded once.
That made sense.
Marcus was already buying armor.
Helmet.
Vest.
First action.
Consistent.
Daniel selected a weapon, then stopped.
Waiting.
Holding.
Ethan purchased quickly.
Precise choices.
No hesitation.
Diego bought aggressively.
Multiple items.
"No thinking," he said. "Just trust the vibe."
Rafael purchased last.
Minimal.
Exact.
No wasted credits.
Li Shen looked at the options again.
Weapons.
Armor.
Utility.
He didn't rush.
Didn't imitate immediately.
He observed.
This was not random.
This was a system.
He selected a rifle.
Balanced stats.
Moderate recoil.
Efficient range.
Then armor.
Then stopped.
"Ready?" Diego said.
"Always," Rafael replied.
The countdown began.
5
The countdown was still running when Diego started talking again.
"Okay, okay, don't overthink it, just—"
"I'm going light armor," Daniel said at the same time, half to himself, half to the group.
"Too late," Ethan replied instantly, already locking in his loadout. "You need speed here."
4
Diego pointed at Ethan's screen. "See? That. That's what I'm saying—just commit."
Marcus said nothing.
He was already finished.
His character stood ready, unchanged, waiting.
Li Shen was still on the weapon screen.
He scrolled once.
Paused.
Then again.
Diego leaned closer. "Pick anything, bro, it's not a philosophy exam."
3
"At least let him read—" Daniel started.
"Read what?" Diego cut in. "It's guns."
Ethan didn't look up. "He's taking too long."
"I'm not," Li Shen said quietly.
That stopped nothing.
Diego kept talking anyway. "If you hesitate, you die, simple—"
"I'm already in," Marcus said suddenly.
Everyone glanced at him.
His voice had no buildup. No explanation. Just fact.
2
Ethan clicked his final confirmation. "Same."
Daniel nodded once. "Yeah, I'm done."
Diego exhaled sharply like he had won an argument no one agreed to. "Finally."
Li Shen tapped once.
Selected.
Locked.
"…done."
1
Diego immediately clapped once. "See? That wasn't hard."
0
The countdown hit zero before anyone could respond.
The screen shifted.
The ship dissolved.
The map formed.
Tight corridors.
Open angles.
Multiple entry points.
Li Shen didn't move immediately.
Not this time.
He was watching.
Reading.
Understanding.
This was not just a game.
This was:
positioning timing awareness consequence
A battlefield—
compressed into a screen.
And for the first time since entering the house—
Li Shen felt something familiar return.
Not danger.
Not survival.
But—
focus.
"…interesting."
The round began.