I slid through a dark, quiet, pipe-like passage for about twenty seconds.
Then I crashed hard into an iron cage, dizzy and disoriented.
Through the haze, rabbit-masked figures entered the cage and forced some kind of liquid down my throat.
Then I lost consciousness entirely.
When I woke again, I was still in an iron cage—but this one was suspended in midair, hanging over a pool of black water.
I blinked and looked closer.
The black water—it was the same swimming pool from the diving challenge.
But now, the roof above had retracted outward.
The indoor pool had become an outdoor one.
Looking up, I could see blue sky, white clouds, and blinding sunlight.
I stared for a moment, then remembered Quinn.
I turned to look beside me.
Less than a meter to my right hung another cage.
Quinn lay unconscious inside it. A layer of suspicious white powder caked the corners of his pale lips.
I suddenly remembered—someone had forced liquid into my mouth while I was out.
I swiped my finger across my own lips. The same white residue came away.
I reached out and grabbed Quinn's cage, shaking it hard.
"Quinn! Wake up!"
Quinn didn't respond.
Just then, the pool's PA system crackled to life.
"Congratulations to our two remaining contestants on reaching the final round..."
Quinn stirred, roused by the broadcast. "Where are we?"
I held a finger to my lips.
The broadcast continued: "The final round is a trivia challenge. The first to answer correctly will receive the master key to unlock the cage and a dose of the antidote. However, this is still a timed challenge—for every minute that passes, the cages will descend one meter. Please hurry. The game begins now. The contestant who finishes the donut first will answer the first question."
Donut?
I looked around.
Suspended above my head, tied to the top of my cage with a rope, was a single donut.
I'd need to jump to reach it.
I tried.
The first time, my hand swiped past it without grabbing hold.
As I landed, the entire cage jolted violently.
It dropped slightly—as if the structure couldn't bear the weight.
My heart lurched. I glanced over at Quinn.
I noticed our cages had shifted, now sitting a few centimeters apart.
Mine was closer to the water.
That put me at a disadvantage.
I looked up at the scoreboard on the arena's big screen. The red numbers were climbing steadily upward.
Unlike previous rounds, there was no countdown—just a running timer.
Every minute, the cages would descend another meter.
If the cages hit the water and we still didn't have the key, we'd drown.
I looked down.
The bottom of my cage was already only about three meters above the water.
That meant I had less than three minutes to get the key or die.
And I'd just shaken the cage—so my time was even shorter.
I grew frantic, leaping again and again.
And with every jump, my cage sank a little lower.
While I struggled, Quinn sat motionless in his cage.
He just watched me. No words. No expression.
Time trickled away. Only when the water touched the soles of my shoes did Quinn finally grip the bars and stand.
I watched him rise onto his toes, lift his arm, and effortlessly snag the donut.
I stood there, stunned. It hit me—Quinn was half a head taller than me.
In cages of the same height, his reach was the advantage.
I watched with burning envy as he ate his donut.
The broadcast announced: "Congratulations to contestant number 3721 on earning the right to answer first. Question one: What is the maximum lifespan of a human?"
Quinn answered without hesitation. "Approximately one hundred and fifty years."
I blinked. I'd read somewhere that the longest verified human lifespan was around 120-something.
That answer had to be wrong.
But the system lit up green. "Congratulations to contestant number 3721—correct answer. You receive one key."
I was dumbfounded.
What? The entire game was rigged in Quinn's favor?
I watched as a mechanical arm delivered the key into Quinn's cage.
He unlocked the door, plunged into the water, and swam for the edge.
I called after him instinctively. "Quinn! You'll bring me the key, right?"
But Quinn didn't look back. He swam toward the shore in cold silence.
I slumped against the bars, watching his receding silhouette, remembering Seth's death.
Quinn had killed Seth and Rosa. Now it was my turn.
On the far side, Quinn hauled himself onto the pool deck and walked to the silver briefcase containing the antidote.
As he opened it, the broadcast intoned: "We regret to inform you—there is only one dose of antidote left. You now have a choice: save your roommate, or save yourself. Time is running out. Please decide quickly."
At those words, a flicker of hope reignited in my chest.
The black water was already over my ankles.
I watched as Quinn slipped the transparent capsule into his pocket and swam back toward me.
My heart pounded.
2
Quinn gripped the bars of my cage with one hand and looked at me intently. "Do you want to survive?"
Under the circumstances, I didn't question why he'd killed Seth and Rosa.
I nodded emphatically. "Yes."
"Then I can give you the antidote. But you have to do something for me first."
Quinn leaned closer, his voice dropping to a whisper.
I pressed my ear against the bars. "What is it?"
Quinn's voice was barely audible. "I believe everything you said. This game has no prize—it's a scam from start to finish. I lied to you before. My brother didn't die in the Button Game. A few years ago, he and I entered this game together. We made it to the final round. He died—he gave me his chance to live. I thought I could bring him back, but instead they sent me to the operating room and modified me. They cut off my arm and replaced it with a mechanical one."
"What?" I could barely process it.
Quinn nodded. "Don't ask about the rest. Just listen—before they perform the transfer, there's a five-minute prep window. That's your only chance to escape. In the corner of the operating room, there's a storage closet. Inside, there's a window that leads past the patrols to an empty corridor. Follow it all the way and you're out."
He was too specific to be making it up.
I asked, my throat tight, "You're helping me this much—what do you need me to do?"
"After you escape, give this to the police."
Quinn handed me the antidote.
But in his palm, alongside the capsule, was a paper-thin button sticker.
I guessed immediately what it was. Worried about cameras, I snatched both items and clenched them tight in my fist.
Quinn whispered, "That's not a button—it's a pinhole camera. I've worn it on my body since I entered this place. It's recorded every murder the organizers committed. Once you're out, go straight to the police. Don't waste a second."
I nodded. "If I get out—I will."
Quinn exhaled with visible relief and even managed a smile. "I believe you. You're a good person. In the last round, I tested you—and thank god you didn't disappoint. Otherwise I wouldn't have known who to trust."
I thought for a moment, then asked Quinn why he'd killed Seth and Rosa.
Quinn looked guilty. "When we were searching for clues, I found a note. It said if only one person escapes, you can still survive. But if two or more get out, you'll be trapped underground. After thinking it over, I chose to save you."
My feelings were complicated. "Then why give the antidote to me instead of taking it yourself?"
Quinn glanced at his own arm. "Before they operate, they score the body. If they discover my body is... incomplete, I won't make it to the operating room—I'll be sent somewhere else and lose any chance to escape. So I'm betting everything on you. You have to survive this. You have to get out of this hellhole."
By now, my cage had sunk significantly.
Quinn had made his peace with death.
The playful mask he always wore was gone. His eyes were resolute and steady as he looked at me.
"Take it. There's no time."
I nodded, pressed the antidote to my lips, and swallowed.
And while I raised my hand to my mouth—I pressed the button sticker against my shirt, hiding it among the real buttons.