VOLUME 1

(OPENING SCENE) On one of the walls, completely covered with flyers about missing persons, one of which is being carried away by the wind. The detached flyer had information about the disappearance of a guy named A. The announcement drifts through the area of an unknown settlement, landing in one of the alleys. The fallen flyer stated that to this day, A is still considered missing.

PROLOGUE

Many offers for renting houses and apartments at a record-low cost start appearing online in a small tourist settlement (Nesemezh), near a small lake, surrounded by a forest somewhere in northwestern Czechia. This enticing offer quickly attracts people from various corners of the old continent, breathing life into the settlement. Responding to one of such offers, B moves into one of the houses on the outskirts of the settlement after arriving. Devoting her plans only to a close friend, B tries to find a way to shake off the nagging anxiety, seeking a change of scenery and some alone time in the hopes of getting rid of strange and surreal nightmares that haunt her. For a while, B manages to forget about her problems, but soon the girl starts experiencing strange nightmares again. In these dreams, she is covered in incomprehensible symbols, moving through a rugged tunnel (in the style of H.R. Giger's works). One night, B dreams of a figure approaching her from behind with a hood. In fear, she stabs the figure with a knife. Under the hood, B sees her extremely pale copy, choking on blood. In horror, she wakes up in another part of the house, not remembering how she got there. Seeing bloodstains on her hand, B tries not to attach too much importance to it, attributing it to a recent cut and the stress from the abrupt change of environment. Soon, B receives a sudden notification from the house owner with warnings about the imminent arrival of another tenant. This news disappoints B, and she begins to contemplate leaving, but the loosened atmosphere of the settlement makes her reconsider. A few days later, a guy arrives at the settlement and immediately heads to his destination – the house on the outskirts of the settlement.

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A slacker and a failed student named A, dressed in a constantly unzipped worn dark gray hoodie, baggy sweatpants, and scuffed yellowed sneakers with numerous creases and dents, rents a house in a small settlement with his last bit of money, responding to the last offer online. Upon arrival, A immediately heads to the destination, surveying the settlement and savoring the atmosphere of universal freedom. En route, A meets a group of newcomers who persuade him to visit a local establishment with them.

From his new acquaintances, A learns about local landmarks and legends. Rumor has it that during World War II, a concentration camp was located in the area where the settlement now stands, and the Nazis conducted experiments on creating portals, creating an extensive network of catacombs in the vicinity.

Continuing the fun with his new friends, A indulges in alcohol and various substances mixed with it. Only late at night, barely able to stand on his feet, A finally reaches his destination - a house on the outskirts of the settlement, passing out right at the doorstep. (INSERT) In the mist, the outline of a gigantic rugged structure with towers, on the roofs of which busts of humanoid creatures are perched, is visible. Upon waking up, A is bewildered to find an unfamiliar girl in front of him. The girl introduces herself as B and explains the situation, showing messages from the homeowner warning about the imminent arrival of another tenant.

Trying to coexist, A and B discover different aspects of life in the settlement. A prefers to disappear into various social gatherings until late at night, consuming alcohol and various light drugs, while B tries to isolate herself from the debauched daily life, spending more time alone, enjoying the local nature and the architecture of the Renaissance era, and only maintaining communication about her life here with her close friend. Over time, despite their different lifestyles, the random roommates find common ground, discussing their current lives and each other's problems.

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One of their casual conversations about the past brings them even closer. According to B's story, she was born and spent her entire childhood in Germany, and she came to the settlement to get rid of chronic nightmares that started after she enrolled in the first year of Berlin University. A confesses that he came to the settlement to temporarily forget about his recent failures due to his own carefree lifestyle: born and raised in the Netherlands, he was also sent to study in Germany by his parents but was soon expelled from the University of Cologne for poor academic performance.

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One night, in his dream, A tries to escape from dark silhouettes chasing him. Soon, these mysterious nightmares become constant, distorting reality and causing persistent paranoia. Waking up once again covered in cold sweat, A notices a silhouette resembling him staring intently into his window.

After discussing this with his acquaintances, A learns that all newcomers to the settlement have started experiencing similar dreams from time to time. A decides to inquire about this with B. She admits that after a while, her nightmares worsened upon arrival in the settlement, sharing her concerns about her friend named C, who found some information about the settlement online and then disappeared without a trace. (INSERT) In the dream, in dark gray tones, black silhouettes in cloaks, forming a circle, simultaneously detach from the ground and slowly rise higher through the falling snow.

Soon, the settlement is gripped by rapidly escalating madness. New arrivals start refusing to sleep, suffering from nightmares, bouts of sleepwalking, and paranoia. After just one day in the settlement, all communication is lost, and the first murder occurs, escalating into a mass slaughter. A and B are attacked in their own house by a group of possessed individuals.

They manage to fend off the maniacs with the help of a middle-aged man who introduces himself as D. D reveals some details about what's happening, mentioning the closure of the local psychiatric hospital, which coincided with the mass disappearances of newcomers in the settlement. This has been completely ignored by the local authorities. During their conversation, the man does not reveal his identity but mentions that he came to the settlement in search of his missing wife.

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After lighting a cigarette, D assures them that they need to get to the forest, where they can hide until help arrives. Following the man through the thick fog, A and B notice that the city streets, covered with various symbols of unclear meaning, are littered with corpses, and buildings and trees everywhere are hung with some occult paraphernalia. Hearing how they are surrounded by unknown people, the group rushes on the run, soon finding themselves in the thickets of the forest.

Moving through the forest thicket, the group was soon attacked by a crowd of distraught people. Trying to fight back, A passes B his hoodie. During the scuffle, the madmen severely injure A and kill D. The death of D gives A and B a chance to escape. On the run, the couple notices how a crowd of madmen is shot by suddenly arriving unknown men in raincoats covered with unknown symbols.

Terrified, B and exhausted A hide in the thicket of the forest, trying to hide. With the beginning of a light snowfall, B feels a sharp cold snap, falling asleep from impotence and trying to support A.

The girl opens her eyes to the sounds of footsteps approaching unknown people. Next to her, she is horrified to notice A bleeding and frozen to death. In tears, the girl removes hoodie A from her shoulders, covering his body covered with a layer of frost and ice.

Suddenly, B discovers the dark silhouettes of some humanoid creatures watching her from the side. After looking closely, the girl does not notice the unknown men in raincoats approaching behind her.

(INSERT) Through the clouds and falling snow, you can see a huge cooled crater, the edges of which are a mixture of living pulsating flesh, and some mechanisms that feed living tissue with organic liquids.