It had been about a month since I had been brought here, though I wasn't entirely sure.
I had stopped keeping track of the days some time ago, so maybe it hadn't been thirty days yet—or maybe it had been more.
Some things had changed during that time.
The first was the awakening of Liam, Number 25.
It happened in the afternoon. The usual symptoms appeared, and when it was over, the guards arrived as always. But before disappearing to the lower levels for testing, Number 25 turned to us.
He looked at us and smiled.
At first, I thought it was a sign that his potential was higher than expected, maybe like me, stuck between two levels and unclear—but I was wrong.
We waited in our room, but even the next morning there was no sign of his return. When the door opened, it was only the guard, telling us to get up for breakfast.
Then I understood… that smile had been a farewell.
No shouting. No protest. Number 12 and I looked at each other, sharing a brief moment of the same sorrow.
I didn't know if what I felt for Number 25 could be called friendship, but I knew it had always been him speaking when the silence grew too heavy. He was the one who tried to lift the mood or comfort us.
His presence had been the last trace of humanity in this place… and now it was gone.
In a room meant for five people, we had gone from four… to three… and finally, one.
No, I wasn't alone because Numbers 7 and 12 had low potential. It was the exact opposite.
Number 12 was the first, and his results could only be described as incredible—or at least that's what the guards whispered while watching his awakening.
Apparently, awakenings differed depending on potential. Number 12's was very different from the others.
The air in the training field felt heavier than usual, and a process that normally took minutes lasted a full hour.
This time, the guards moved faster, and even Instructor Ronald showed, perhaps for the first time, a subtle change in his always-stoic expression.
The next day, when 12 returned to the room, he told us the results of his awakening.
"I have a five-star potential and two elements: lightning and fire."
I wanted to congratulate him, but seeing the state of my roommate, he didn't look happy, so I asked,
"Did something happen?"
12 looked conflicted.
"Because of my potential, they'll assign me a personal room, change my meals, and a new instructor will teach elemental control. He'll teach everyone, but mostly focus on me."
"As we were told on the first day… potential decides our fate. It wasn't bad being your roommate, Vic… I mean, 12."
"You can call me Victor when no one else is around. I'll miss you too, Kian."
I nodded, feeling a small warmth in my chest I hadn't felt in a long time.
I had grown used to watching the companions I trained with vanish without a trace, never to see them again.
So it was strange that in that moment, Victor and I were saying goodbye—and that we would continue to see each other—or maybe it was just strange that something as simple as goodbye could feel so rare and precious here.
A few days later, it was Number 7's turn, whose name I had never heard anyway—not that it mattered here.
His awakening caused a stir too, though not as much as Victor's. He had a four-star potential and two elements: ice, and probably mist—I couldn't be sure from afar as I ran while they trained in the center of the field.
He, too, was moved to a personal room, and I was left alone.
As Victor had said, a new instructor arrived in the afternoon to handle the awakened: Instructor Jin.
He was perhaps even more brutal than Instructor Ronald, which I hadn't thought possible.
Anyone making a mistake during an elemental control exercise was punished.
Nothing unusual so far—the problem was how.
The instructor's element was ice, like Number 7, and every time someone erred, a part of their body would freeze permanently for the rest of the lesson.
An arm, a leg, or the torso—they had to continue training all afternoon, staying focused in that condition and careful not to make more mistakes that wouldn't be forgiven.
I, along with two other children, were the only ones still worrying only about Instructor Ronald's whip.
After so much training, my body had adapted, and it no longer felt as hard as at first.
It was incredible, but training had become my favorite part of the day, because I was among others.
Returning to the room, however… it was hell.
The longer time passed, the worse my condition became, especially after I became the only resident.
The usual illusions grew more frequent and vivid, voices calling me louder, nightmares refusing to let me have a peaceful night.
I couldn't even talk to anyone about it—they certainly wouldn't listen to help me. Most likely, I would be taken to the laboratories to study my strange mental state.
I had reached my limit. I thought I'd soon be discarded without even awakening… but then it happened.
That night was quiet—and that alone was strange.
No illusions. No whispers of my name.
A deep silence, alien after everything I had endured. I hadn't realized I could miss it this much.
I lay on the bed, staring at the stone ceiling.
Breathing slowly, listening to my heartbeat.
For the first time in a long while, my mind was not under siege by images or traumatic memories.
Then something changed.
At first, it was a strange, almost imperceptible feeling. A small, foreign heat, centered in my chest.
Then it grew slowly, like a spark turning into embers.
It spread gradually—first the chest, then shoulders, arms, and legs—until it reached every part of my body.
My breath shortened, sweat ran down my forehead.
I tried to move—but I couldn't. My body no longer obeyed me.
The world seemed to tilt slightly.
The room… vibrated.
At first, I thought it was another illusion.
Then I realized.
The awakening.
I remembered what Instructor Ronald always did in the training field when someone awakened.
With enormous effort, I moved my body.
My legs shook as I lifted myself from the bed.
The heat inside me was becoming unbearable.
I sat cross-legged on the floor, trying to control my breathing.
My heartbeat raced. Faster. Stronger.
The heat transformed into something else.
It seemed to want to leave my body.
My vision began to blur.
The walls warped before my eyes.
I tried to stay conscious.
One more second.
One more…
Then everything went black.