G.O.D Complex// Earth Prime

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Clang!

Kelly tossed Velvet's helmet aside and looked into her eyes.

"Feeling better?" she asked.

Stunned, Velvet glanced around. Her eyes landed on Mr. Fischer, who was seated on the ground, meticulously crafting something.

"How is it possible that we can breathe?" Velvet asked. "I thought we needed the suit's protection to survive?"

Fischer glanced at her briefly before returning to his work, though he still answered.

"In my opinion, we might be in a zone that supports human habitation... Maybe it used to be a human shelter. Still, it's clear—humans aren't in control here anymore."

He tilted his head toward the guards nearby.

Some walked on two legs, others on four. Their appearances varied: though they bore some human features, a high proportion of their genes clearly came from animals.

"What are they?" Velvet asked.

"They're called... or rather, the people up there call them 'beast men.' Apparently, there are different kinds. Despite their numbers, they're considered a minority—likely because their intellectual capabilities are very limited," Fischer explained.

He finished his craft and examined the results with satisfaction. Kelly, the girl who had accompanied him ever since he woke up in the complex, brought more wood and stones she had picked up from the ground. Fischer nodded gratefully and began sorting the materials.

"It seems like certain areas were more 'favored' than others," murmured Velvet, recalling the complex selection trials they had faced—being forced to kill the weak, or perform physical feats like jumping through hoops.

"They heck no," Kelly shook her head. She stared at Velvet with a fearful expression. "Our treatment was way better."

Fischer nodded in agreement.

"We were given puzzles and questions to solve. Those who failed were taken to another room... We never saw them again, but it's certain that—" Fischer paused, glancing briefly at Kelly, "—they were just sent back to the starting point to restart."

Velvet immediately sensed that something wasn't right.

"Were you guys given the ability to download knowledge?" she asked.

Both Kelly and Fischer nodded. Fischer raised his hand to show what he had been working on.

[Craftsmanship Skills]

That was one of the first things Fischer had acquired. With it, he could craft almost anything using whatever resources or materials were available.

After hearing the trials faced by those labeled criminals, he had come to realize his own experience had been relatively peaceful.

"Besides answering questions, what other trials were you given?" Velvet asked.

Kelly looked at Fischer before responding.

"We were given the power to judge the fate of people like you."

Velvet looked confused.

"We were sent into rooms," Kelly explained. "In those rooms, criminals were chained to the walls. We had to choose whether to spare them or condemn them to death. We were given only a few minutes. If we didn't choose within the time limit, the criminal was released—and we had to fight or die."

She grabbed her wrist tightly, her expression haunted by the memory.

"Only that?" Velvet was shocked by how easy that sounded in comparison.

Kelly looked up at her in disbelief. "How can you say that? Don't you have any remorse for the people you've killed?"

"Girl," Velvet replied coldly, "if I had to think of all the people I've slain, I wouldn't sleep at night. You'd better change your mindset. This environment doesn't appreciate baby faces."

"Okay, okay, let's calm down, ladies," Fischer interjected. "The drama was entertaining, but let's end it here."

"Why are we the only ones in this cage?" Velvet asked.

Fischer smiled and looked at her. "Take a guess."

Velvet frowned. She hated cryptic games.

"I guess... we're precious commodities? Meant to be exchanged?"

Fischer clapped softly while nodding.

"You and another group came together, but you were unconscious at the time. They carried you here and took the others somewhere else."

"Where?"

"I'm not certain," Fischer replied. "But based on the way the guards referred to it... it definitely didn't sound like a good place."

"Oh, yeah!" Kelly suddenly spoke up. "I kind of studied their language."

Velvet blinked, impressed. In just two days since their arrival, Kelly had already managed to grasp the foreign tongue.

"Some of what they say is just... nonsense," Kelly explained. "It's like trying to understand a dog talking to a cat. But occasionally, they use words or phrases similar to human languages. I just had to identify which ones and translate them."

"From their conversations, it seems the others who came with you were taken to a place they call The Garden."

"The Garden?" Velvet echoed.

---

"I have finished," Fischer said.

Kelly rushed over excitedly. "Is it finally completed?!"

Velvet thought he had crafted a tool to help them escape. She walked over in anticipation, but her expression froze as she looked down.

"A... board?" she asked.

Kelly and Fischer both nodded.

"How will a board help us out of this situation?" Velvet asked, visibly annoyed.

"Help us out?" Kelly tilted her head, confused. "Why would we try to escape?"

"Haha, sorry for the misunderstanding," Fischer laughed. "I wasn't crafting a tool or a weapon. That would be stupid."

"Are you both just going to sit here and wait to die?!" Velvet asked, frustration rising.

"Where do you want us to escape to?" Kelly asked. Velvet opened her mouth but no words came out.

"The world out there is hostile," Fischer explained calmly. "If it's not the air or environment trying to kill you, it's the creatures. And if not them, then our own kind—who see us as commodities to exploit."

He adjusted his seating position and began setting the pieces on the board.

"To sum it up, there's nowhere to run. We're just enjoying this brief moment of peace."

"By the way, do you want to play?" Kelly offered. "Chess is relaxing during stressful times."

Velvet ignored her and sat against the wall, quietly processing Fischer's words.

He's right... Even if I escape, where would I go? I don't even know where the colonies are, or how far they are from here... The forest zone is crawling with deadly creatures... Is this the end?

Her thoughts shifted to Linus.

Is he... even still alive?

As fatigue overtook her, Velvet realized how tense she had been all day. Now, with a moment of calm, she felt the exhaustion hit. Her eyes slowly closed.

"I think she fell asleep," Kelly whispered.

Fischer nodded and made his move on the board.

---

Dang!

The heavy door shut behind him.

Standing beside the worn-down but futuristic machine—something out of a space film—the man adjusted his advanced goggles, a relic of the old world.

"How unlucky... Why do I have to be the one sent to the Beastman territory?" he muttered.

He was a scavenger hunter. Along with his team, he gathered resources and information to help crumbling colonies survive.

His own colony had collapsed long ago, swallowed by a catastrophe that defied scientific explanation. Some believed it to be an SCP-like phenomenon—an anomaly that appeared, then vanished, taking half the population with it.

He had been separated from his daughter during the mass exodus. Ever since, he had worked as a scavenger, hoping to uncover which colony she had ended up in.

Today, his mission was to trade resources with a Beastman tribe in exchange for two green flags and a few red-flag Brains.

"Let's get this done before nightfall," he thought, eyeing the sinking sun.

Dudududu...

Suddenly, a tremor vibrated beneath him. Kneeling, he examined the stone displacement to identify the cause.

"It's not a horde... Not an abnormality... Not an SCP."

He studied the tremors carefully, not panicking. Running never worked in this world. If death was coming, there was no outrunning it. In such cases, protocol dictated that scavengers record a message—an "audio testament."

"I can't identify this one..."

Just as he reached for the recorder, the darkening sky lit up. He turned in shock.

"A colony exploded?"

He sprinted to his vehicle and activated the shield system. Iron pillars drove into the concrete as a shockwave slammed into the car.

---

Velvet awoke from the tremor, barely catching her balance. Kelly fell into her arms. Velvet instinctively caught her, only to toss her aside as she looked toward Fischer.

"What could cause such tremors?! An earthquake?"

"I wish," Fischer replied, hand on the ground. "But it feels more like... a nuclear bomb went off."

His expression twisted.

"Brace yourself!" he shouted, grabbing Kelly.

Velvet dropped to the ground just in time.

A massive shockwave tore through the tribe like a storm.

---

To be continued...