note: a lot hppened when i was gone, sorry for not writing this sooner, and i hope u guys like it. i wrote it quite quickly so if its bad then thats why, enjoy i guess

Recap
Cory barely escaped a collapsing plaza with Jinx and the others, the city trying harder than ever to tear them apart. After narrowly surviving, Cory reluctantly agreed to stick with the group, though he didn’t trust anyone. Amj’s optimism grated on him, Jinx’s secrets made him suspicious, and he saw no reason to get along with Kash or Tia. Despite this, Cory couldn’t ignore how dangerous the city was, and staying alone wasn’t an option.

Part 3:

The group moved cautiously through the fog, the crumbling city stretching endlessly around them. Cory walked at the back, not bothering to join in whatever conversation was happening up front. It wasn’t like he cared what they were talking about—probably some pointless argument about where to go next.

“Cory,” Amj calld, snapping him out of his thoughts “You coming, or r you planning to sulk all day?”

Cory glared. “I’m not sulking.”

“Sure,” Amj said with a smirk.

Cory rolled his eyes but kept walking. He wasn’t in the mood to deal with Amj’s attitude— or anyone else’s, for that matter.

They hadn’t gone far when voices echoed through the fog.

“Wait,” Jinx said, stopping abruptly. “Do u hear that?”

“Yeah,” Kash said, looking around. “What is it?”

Cory strained to listen. The voices grew louder, and soon, two figures emerged from the mist—a boy with messy dark hair and a girl with a streak of pink in her ponytail. They were arguing loudly, their words overlapping.

“I’m telling you, we shouldve turned left!” the boy said.

“noobish, you don’t even know what ‘left’ means in this place!” the girl shot back.

They stopped when they noticed the group, their eyes narrowing.

“Uh, hi?” Tia said awkwardly

The girl crossed her arms. “Who r u supposed to be?”

“Who are YOU supposed to be?” Kash replied, grinning.

“No one important,” the boy, noobish, said quickly. “Just trying not to die. Same as everyone else, I assume?”

Cory snorted. “Great. More people to slow us down.”

The girl raised an eyebrow. “Wow, friendly.”

“Cory’s just like that,” Amj said, throwing him a sharp look. “Don’t take it personally.”

“Thanks, Amj,” Cory muttered sarcastically.

“What are you even doing out here?” Tia asked, stepping forward.

“Looking for answers,” the girl replied. “Not that it’s going well. I’m Aireali, by the way.”

“Noobish,” the boy added. “Don’t ask. It’s just my name.”

Before anyone could respond, another figure appeared in the distance, spinning what looked like a broken piece of metal in his hand.

“Hey,” he called out, walking closer. “Didn’t expect to find a crowd.”

“And who’s this?” Kash asked.

“Kooly,” the guy said, flashing a grin. “You all look as lost as we are”

Jinx sighed. “We should keep moving. The city won’t stay quiet for long.”

“You can come with us,” Amj offered.

Aireali exchanged a look with noobish, then shrugged. “Fine. But if this gets weird, we’re out.”

Cory groaned. “Of course.”

They started walking again, the group now larger and noisier than before. Cory hung back, trying to stay out of the conversation.

“So,” noobish said, “what’s your theory about this place? Video game? Simulation? Or are we just all dead and don’t know it yet?”

“We’re not dead,” Jinx said firmly.

“And how do you know that?” Aireali asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

Jinx didnt answer.

Cory smirked. “Yeah, Jinx. How DO you know that?”

Jinx shot him a look but said nothing.

Amj sighed. “Can we not do this right now?”

“No one’s stopping you,” Cory said.

Amj stopped walking, turning to face him. “Says the person who—” He clenched his fists, his face flushing. “Never mind.”

Cory sighed.

“Go on,” Cory said. “Say it.”

Amj shook his head and started walking again. “Forget it.”

The tension hung in the air as the group continued. The city seemed to press closer around them, the fog thickening.

Eventually, Aireali stopped. “This is where we split,” she said.

“What?” Kash asked.

“We don’t trust you,” noobish said bluntly. “And I’m pretty sure the feeling’s mutual.”

Kooly nodded. “We’ll take our chances.”

Without waiting for a response, the three turned and disappeared into the fog.

Cory watched them go, shaking his head. “Good riddance.”

Before anyone could respond, the ground beneath them began to rumble.

“What now?” Tia asked, her voice shaking.

The street cracked apart, glowing with a faint, eerie blue light. Jinx swore under his breath.

“It’s happening again,” Jinx muttered, his voice tight. “Run!”

The ground split open, chunks of stone collapsing into the abyss below. Cory didn’t wait for anyone else. He sprinted toward the nearest alley, the others shouting behind him.

As he ran, a voice cut through the chaos—Jinx yelling something, but Cory couldn’t make it out. He risked a glance back and saw the blue light spreading faster, swallowing the street.

“Move!” Cory shouted, forcing himself to keep running.

They barely made it into the alley as the street behind them crumbled completely, the blue light fading as quickly as it had appeared.

Everyone was breathing hard, no one daring to speak. Finally, Jinx broke the silence.

“This isn’t random,” he said, his voice low. “It’s getting worse.”

Cory glared at him. “You keep saying stuff like that, but you never explain anything.”

Jinx didn’t respond right away. Instead, he looked down, almost like he was debating something.

“I’ve seen this before,” he said quietly. “Me and Faiza M.Q spoke about it...”

Cory frowned. “Who-”

Jinx shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. Let’s just keep moving.”

But it did matter, Cory thought. And he was getting real tired of Jinx keeping secrets.