The safe zone sat in the middle of the street. Everything around it was wrong. Buildings leaned at unnatural angles, asphalt was split and buckled, debris lay scattered everywhere.
But the area marked in blue was untouched.
The ground inside the zone was smooth and intact. The air felt lighter and clearer. The constant vibration that had been crawling up Mina's legs vanished the moment she stepped close enough to feel its boundary.
A faint, translucent dome shimmered above the area. It was barely visible, like heat distortion, but it bent the light just enough to mark its presence.
They were not the first to arrive.
Dozens of people stood inside and around the safe zone. Some were fully inside the boundary, while others lingered just outside it, frozen in place. Strangers with weapons drawn and strangers with empty hands clutched to their chests.
No one looked relieved. Most looked confused and afraid.
