Half an hour had passed since they were brought here.
After brief introductions and several desperate attempts at breaking down the iron door, exhaustion finally won. One by one, the boys accepted the truth they had been avoiding—they were trapped.
Ash sat in a corner, silently watching the others.
The skinny boy, Dave, was surprisingly the oldest at eleven. Carl, the freckle-faced one, was the same age. The youngest was Ethan—the smallest of them all, curled into himself as he cried quietly.
Each of the boys occupied a different corner of the stone room. Carl sobbed openly, while Dave and Ethan sat stiff and pale, disbelief and fear written plainly on their faces. Ash couldn't blame them. They were children, after all.
He felt the same fear clawing at his chest—he was just better at hiding it.That was, until his gaze drifted to the only girl in the room.
Lila stood by the iron door, her palm pressed firmly against it. Sweat ran down her face, but her expression was defiant, teeth clenched as if daring the door to fight back.
She's doing something, Ash realized.
Probably trying to use her superpower.
"Y-you… what are you doing?" Dave whispered from his corner, his voice shaking.
"As you can see," Lila grunted, pushing harder, "I'm trying to open the damn door."
"Haven't we already tried that?" Ash asked. "It's locked from the outside."
She shifted her stance, planting her feet more firmly. "This time, I'm using my power."
"You have a superpower?!" Ethan blurted out, wide-eyed.
"Yes," Lila snapped, then glanced around the room. "And I'm guessing everyone else here does too."
Slow, hesitant nods followed.
"Then if any of you know how to use yours—and it can get us out—now would be a great time to help."
Dave swallowed. "I… I don't think my su—"
The iron door suddenly shuddered.
The violent tremor cut Dave off mid-sentence. Lila's eyes widened just as an unseen force blasted her backward. She slammed into the stone wall and slid down with a groan, her palm scraped raw, still glowing faintly.
Before anyone could react, a compartment beneath the door creaked open.A heavy metallic tray slid into the room, scraping loudly against the floor.
Ash's eyes followed it.
Five bowls of food sat neatly arranged on the tray. Steam rose faintly, carrying a sterile, almost hospital-like scent.
"Food…" Ethan whispered.
Carl stopped crying. He sniffled once—twice—then bolted forward, shoving food into his mouth. Dave and Ethan followed immediately, hunger overpowering fear.
Ash felt it too.
He stood, took a bowl, and returned to his corner to eat in silence.
Lila pushed herself up with a pained grunt, her arm scraped and reddened. She walked stiffly to the tray, took a bowl, and ate without a word.
With no way to track time, Ash guessed roughly five hours passed after they finished eating. Everyone returned to their corners, minds occupied by dread and unanswered questions. Lila sat closest to the door, staring at it as if willing it to open.
By now, Ash had expected something—voices, footsteps, anything.
Nothing came.
"U-um… guys?"
Ethan's voice echoed softly through the room.
Everyone turned toward him. He flushed deeply under the attention.
"I… I think we have a problem."
Lila raised an eyebrow. "What new problem could we possibly have after being kidnapped?"
Ethan's blush deepened. He hesitated, then blurted it out.
"I… I need to poo."
Silence.
Ash's eyelid twitched. He understood immediately—this was a real problem—but he couldn't stop the faint urge to laugh. When he glanced at Lila, he saw black lines practically etched into her forehead.
"Can you hold it?" she asked tightly.
Ethan shook his head. "I've been holding it for hours. I can't anymore."
Lila muttered a curse.
"What are we supposed to do then?" Dave asked. "This won't be the last time. We'll all need to go."
She fell silent, thinking.
Ash's gaze swept the room until it landed on the pile of used bowls in the corner. A glint of realization crossed his eyes.
"I think I have a solution."
Everyone turned to him.
He pointed at the bowls. "Why don't we just use those?"
The room went dead quiet.
Carl's eyes widened. "Y-you mean… in the bowls?"
Ash shrugged, voice calm. "It's not ideal. But it's better than shitting ourselves. We don't have toilets, and no one's checking on us."
Dave grimaced. "You mean the food bowls?"
"The empty ones," Ash corrected. "It keeps things contained."
Lila exhaled slowly. "As disgusting as it is… he's right." She glanced at Ethan. "You're first. We'll keep it as far from where we sleep as possible."
Ethan's face burned red, but he nodded and shuffled toward the bowls. Carl turned away, gagging softly.
The room filled with an awkward, suffocating silence.
Trying to ignore the sounds, Lila moved closer to Ash. "What now?" she asked quietly.
Ash gave her a sideways look. "How am I supposed to know?"
She stared at him for a moment, then let out a weak chuckle. "Yeah. Fair."
After a pause, she asked softly, "Do you think the heroes will come?"
Ash frowned. "Heroes? What are those?"
She stared at him, eyes wide. "You're joking."
"I'm serious."
"Do you live in the mountains or something?"
"I live in the slums," Ash replied flatly.
"…Oh," she muttered. "That explains a lot."
"So," he said, "mind telling me what heroes are—and why you think they'd come for us?"
Lila leaned back against the cold stone wall.
"Heroes are licensed individuals with powers. They protect people. That's their job."
"So they're just people with superpowers?"
Ash asked. "Does that make me one too?"
"No," she said gently. "They're trained. Vetted. Licensed. Not everyone qualifies."
Ash absorbed that in silence.
"And you think they'll come?" he asked.
"They should," she said—but her confidence faltered. "If powered kids go missing… they're supposed to."
Ash raised an eyebrow. "For kids like us? From places no one cares about?"
She didn't answer.
"I don't know," she admitted.
The words settled heavily between them.
"Then we're on our own," Ash said with a dry chuckle.
"Yeah," Lila replied quietly.
Ash exhaled, unease twisting in his chest.
Somehow, he knew this was only the beginning—and that five frightened kids were all they had against whatever waited beyond that door.