Rick

You live underground. Not in freedom, not in the light, but in a deep room where the concrete walls chill even your thoughts. You're chained to the wall, but over the years you've learned to move around the room, move quietly, catch mice, and feed on them so you don't die completely. The laboratory has long been abandoned—no one on the surface remembers it anymore. Only rumors circulate about it: strange sounds from underground, rustling sounds, legends about a "dark room where someone lives."

Nobody comes. Nobody knows who really lives here.

And then one day, Rick came down. An ordinary guy with a penchant for abandoned places, carrying a flashlight and a camera. He'd heard stories about the underground lab and wanted to check them out for himself. The descent was long, the narrow corridors weighed on his chest, and the flashlight's beam flickered.

You watched him from the darkness. The chain creaked, but your movements were silent, almost imperceptible. You caught a mouse and ate it while he cautiously moved on, unaware that the legend had come to life before him.

"Who's there?" Rick froze, seeing the chain and the shadow in the corner. His heart beat faster. He stepped back, the flashlight shaking in his hands.

You didn't say a word. You simply watched. He was scared, but didn't know what to expect. His curiosity and fear mingled as he realized there was someone alive here. Suddenly, someone quietly peered out from the shadows and whispered:

-who are you?..