The countdown read 11 hours and 48 minutes. The simulated city of the Time Room dissolved into shimmering particles, giving way once more to the pure, silent white of the System Space.
Tired, sweaty, but more alert than ever, the four members of Team Brazil gathered near the main panel.
Adam was activating and deactivating his Sharingan, watching the two tomoe spin slowly. It was still a newborn power, but enough to predict simple attacks.
— "Gonna try and hit me again?" he teased Thomas.
— "You asked for it." Thomas charged with a direct punch.
Adam dodged before the impact came. The fist sliced through empty air.
— "You turned into friggin' Neo," Thomas muttered. "But with anime cosplay."
— "I still mess up a lot," Adam admitted. "But I'm learning."
Janaína crossed her arms, her Raven Eyes activated. Her darkened pupils analyzed the subtle movements of her teammates. Erica, in the background, floated slightly as she toggled her spiritual key on and off.
— "If the next mission is something like The Blair Witch Project, I'll be a corpse in the first five minutes," Erica said, touching her pendant. "But at least now I can try to hang on."
A heavy silence fell over them, dense like fog.
— "Adam," Thomas said. "Before we met you... how many worlds had you been through?"
Adam lowered his eyes.
— "Three."
The group fell quiet, waiting.
— "The first was Friday the 13th. Larissa… she died there." His voice was hollow. "We were a group of six. Only I made it out. I wasn't strong enough."
Erica looked away. Janaína nodded with sorrow.
— "Then came Silent Hill. That place... it doesn't just kill your body. It tears pieces off your mind." He ran a hand over his face, as if brushing away memories. "And then came Hereditary. Almost the end of the line."
— "So why do you keep going?" Erica asked. "I mean... you could've snapped. Or just ended it."
Adam stared at the countdown screen.
— "At first, I just wanted to bring Larissa back. I thought if I survived long enough, the system would allow it. But now…" He clenched his fists. "Now I want to find whoever created this crap. Whoever plays with people's lives. And I want to destroy it. Even if I die trying."
Thomas nodded slowly.
— "I keep going because I've got no one left. Out there, it's just emptiness. Here… at least there's purpose."
— "I want to understand why," said Janaína. "Why us? Why these worlds? This isn't random."
Erica sighed. — "I just want to live. Even if it's running, screaming... I want to be alive."
Adam then turned to them, serious:
— "The system allows us to return to Earth. For two days. Then we're pulled back without warning. No prep."
— "So… no point running," Thomas commented.
— "Not for long," Janaína replied.
— "That's why we're here," said Adam. "Better to use this time to train. Better than pretending hell isn't waiting for us."
The group nodded. It wasn't easy to accept, but it was the truth.
— "After Friday the 13th, I started researching everything I could," Adam continued. "Urban legends, patterns, symbols. There's a twisted logic behind many of these horrors. Spirits, curses, entities… most have weaknesses. If not physical, then psychological."
— "And did you learn anything useful?" Erica asked, curious.
— "I learned that in almost every horror world, despair kills faster than monsters. And that knowing what's hunting you... is sometimes the only advantage you get."
With that, the new training began. They were still amateurs, but they were starting to understand their limits and talents.
Thomas trained punching combinations using his impact gloves. Janaína tested her movement reading against simulated targets. Erica alternated between defense and support, testing the limits of her spiritual shield. And Adam… trained against all of them, activating his Sharingan only at key moments.
Time passed.
4 hours left.
They were exhausted again, but alive. Connected.
They sat together to eat their projected meals. The taste was real. The peace… almost.
— "I bet the next one's The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," Thomas said.
— "You'd definitely be the first to become barbecue," Erica shot back.
— "Maybe. But I'll go down punching."
Adam laughed. A tired laugh, but genuine.
And in the end, lying beneath an artificial projection of stars, they all knew.
Hell was coming soon.
But this time… they wouldn't be easy prey.