**CALCULATING PENALTY…** The words hung there. Nobody moved. "Here we go," Kai muttered, bracing like he expected the floor to open under them again. The screen flickered. Static crawled across the letters, breaking them apart and pulling them back together. **PARTIAL SUCCESS REGISTERED.** Noah, still flat on the ground with Elara's hands pressed to his ribs, let out a shaky breath. "Partial's good, right? Partial sounds good." "Partial sounds like a trap," Jax said. The screen answered for itself. **ONE LIFE MEDAL WILL BE CONFISCATED FROM EACH SURVIVOR.** For a second, nothing happened. Then a soft chime rang out — once, twice, over and over, stacking on top of itself until it sounded less like a notification and more like something laughing quietly in a language none of them spoke. Above every head in the chamber, the glowing numbers flickered. And dropped. Kai's went from three to two. He stared up at it like it had personally insulted him. "Hold on." His voice cracked
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