Reina had been having such a nice day until the building blew up in her face.

Reina had entered the auditorium with her friend, Pi. The hall, with its huge stage and a series of concentric rows of chairs, was packed full. The hall was a buzz of activity, with half a thousand colors of backpacks creating a confusing and difficult-to-navigate landscape. Reina searched the sea of people for her friends, specifically Felicie’s bright blue shirt–horribly tacky, but it made her stand out.

“Reina? I’m really glad that you helped me, but is it okay for me to hang out with your friends? I won’t be a burden?” Pi asked. The poor girl suffered from severe insecurity, and Reina had taken it upon herself to help Pi spread her wings.

Reina chuckled. “Don’t worry, they’re going to love you. Especially April, that mother hen. You’ll fit in great, I promise. Oh, and don’t worry about money for after school. I’ll spot you the money for boba.”

As Pi thanked her profusely and Reina waved it off, she continued scouring the crowd of first years. During her search, a flash of orange hidden in the crevasses of the ceiling caught her attention. She’d opened her mouth to ask Pi if she saw it too when the hairs on the back of her neck tingled. That was the only hint Reina had that everything was going to go horribly wrong…

Before it did.

The air sucked out of the room and for a brief moment, the orange was shining. Squinting, Reina had spotted a rectangular item which the blinking originated from. In the back of her head, Reina had realized it must be an explosive.

For a brief moment, time seemed to slow down to a crawl. Reina watched as a ball of uncontrolled fire exploded outward in a perfect sphere.

It was beautiful.

Then the moment ended. The noise hit her first, a thundering stampede of sound, a tumultuous roar. The shockwave was second, a ripple of force blasting through the thousands of mingled students. Reina flung her cloak over Pi and turned around.

Her ears were ringing, a steady pulsing in her head. Faintly, Reina heard the creak of metal and the sound of thousands of tons falling and something hit her on her head, and then - silence.

The first thing Reina noticed when she came to was the weight. It crushed her, every square inch of her back alight in pain. Reina shifted a little and a scream tore from her lips; a thousand knives were digging into her. Her body trapped her left arm underneath herself.

Reina’s breathing was rampant; every time her chest heaved, the enormous weight on her back pushed down further. Reina clenched her teeth, forcing herself to calm down.

Deep breaths in. Deep breaths out. Over and over again until her breathing stabilized. Reina could do this. She needed to focus on getting out of here before she was crushed to death.

Reina felt behind her, groping blindly until she touched something firm. Metal. Damn it, had the roof fallen on her? Reina positioned her right arm against the metal. Reina exhaled. This was going to hurt like hell.

Forcing energy into her legs and back, Reina pushed her body up. Instantly, she got shoved down again, the weight suffocating her. Her left arm throbbed in protest.

This was not how she was going to die! Reina tried again, pushing the slab of metal as hard as she could. Every part of her body screamed in agony, her bones creaked and her muscles ripped; but inch by inch, the weight lifted.

When there was a small gap between her body and the floor, Reina slipped her left arm out. Now that she had both arms supporting the weight, it was much easier to gain her balance. Spreading her feet out, Reina got to her knees. Only a little more.

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Growling in a mix of pain and exhilaration, Reina gave one last push. The slab of metal sprung off her, teetering on its edge. For a brief moment, panic overtook Reina at the thought of it falling back onto her again. Luckily for her, gravity got hold of the metal and it topped backward instead.

Reina panted, both arms excruciatingly sore, her back aching like there was no tomorrow. She surveyed her surroundings, and cold chill filled her body at the sight in front of her.

The devastation was everywhere. Smoke billowed from the auditorium and into the sky, gray smog blocking the rays of sunlight that should have shone through a prorupted hole in the ceiling. Small fires were everywhere, crackling and jumping from one spot to another. The stage, which only seconds ago had people on it, was now smithereens. The layers of lights had fallen and shattered, cooking in the surrounding blaze. It was madness.

And among it all, the things that stood out were the bodies. Most seemed dazed and unconscious at worst, but others. . .charred backs, amputated limbs. Reina shuddered as somebody nearby twitched before their movements halted.

What could she do in this situation? What could she do!? A little girl, screaming under planks of wood. Her house burned, her parent’s unseeing eyes bored into her-

[Congratulations. You have unlocked the Skill [Fortitude Rank D]. Unflinching and unyielding, you strive to achieve your task no matter the obstacles; punishing your own body if need be. Pain is lowered]

What the hell–? A voice had just spoken into her mind. Telepathy? Reina shook her head. Maybe the explosion affected her more than she initially thought. Reina recalled hearing that being in the vicinity of the bomb could rattle the brain against the skull. Reina's eyes darted around the wreckage. The voice had said something about a Skill, right? Perhaps. . .this Skill could help her.

"Activate," Reina murmured, feeling foolish. When nothing happened, red blossomed on her cheeks. Of course not. She needed to stop focusing on mindless things and get her bearings.

{Notice} [Do you wish to see statistics?]

'W-wha-?' Reina rubbed her eyes before opening them as wide as humanly possible. The only thing that lay before her was the destruction caused by the bomb. But whenever she stopped staring so intensely, she could see a blue box hovering in midair. Reina shook her head. 'Okay, super trippy.'

So these blue boxes didn't materialize in the real world but were instead only visible in her mind? That did not make it any easier to discount the going-insane theory. Still, these 'statistics' (whatever they may be), could aid in their escape.

"Sure?" Reina said hesitantly.

System port: Reina Romane Age: 14 years old Species: Human Strength: Agility: Endurance: B B B Circuit Maintenance: Luck: Skills: C C C

What the hell–this wasn't a video game! What was with these numbers and stats ripped straight out of a game?! And–Reina studied the blue box closer. What was with 'System Port?' It came before her name, was 'System Port' referring to her? Her lips curled up in disgust. Why did it sound so weird? And why did it imply she was human? What else could she be? An elf?

{Notice} [Confusion detected. Would you like to undergo a tutorial?]

And now it could sense her emotions. Wonderful. What was this, some invisible stalker? Reina exhaled. "How long will this take?"

{Notice} [To reach a complete understanding of the function of the System created by the [Creators], it is recommended you stay for the complete 130-minute tutorial.]

"Okay, yeah, that's a hard pass. I need to get out of here before this whole place collapses down on us. Any way you can help with that?" Reina asked, daring to hope this mysterious voice could do something to aid them.

{Notice} [Current location is unstable. Approximately 30 minutes left before total collapse. Recommended course of action: retreat and watch the tutorial.]

"Seriously? 30 minutes?! Thanks for stating the obvious, of course I want to escape! Anything else?!" Reina demanded.

The only response was her voice bouncing off the walls, the echo soon fading away into nothingness. The collapsed auditorium shook ominously, dust falling from the ceiling. Reina was alone again.