Intern’s Log: Rags, the Tracker Who Sees Everything and Speaks Only When Necessary

  Date: Redacted

  Intern ID: Reynolds, J. (I have met the final Good Boy, and she terrifies me in a way none of the others ever have.)

  I have seen some deeply unsettling things in this facility.

  ? Chips, the leader, who is just waiting for the right moment to overthrow his handlers.

  ? Stubby, the explosive-loving chaos gremlin.

  ? Lucca, the medic who will not let you die, no matter how much you want to.

  ? Nemo, the silent wrecking ball who doesn’t need a plan—just an objective.

  ? Cairo, the infiltrator who can be anywhere, anytime, and enjoys proving it.

  ? Smoky, the tech genius who definitely knows every secret about me.

  Each of them?

  Terrifying in their own unique way.

  But none of them—not a single one of them—prepared me for Rags.

  Because Rags?

  Rags is the only one who looked at me and truly saw me.

  And that?

  That is the most unsettling thing of all.

  Phase One: The Introduction That Left Me Cold

  "You’re meeting Rags today?" Smoky had asked that morning, grinning.

  "Yeah. What’s she like?"

  "She’s quiet."

  "So like Nemo?"

  Smoky’s grin got wider.

  "No, Reynolds. Nemo is quiet because he doesn’t need to talk. Rags is quiet because she’s already decided you’re not worth talking to."

  Oh.

  Oh no.

  Phase Two: The First Time I Saw Her (Or, More Accurately, She Saw Me First)

  Unlike the other Good Boys, Rags doesn’t have a designated “quarters.”

  No.

  Rags?

  She stays in the field.

  She doesn’t like walls.

  She doesn’t like doors.

  She doesn’t like being in one place too long.

  She is a ghost that only appears when she chooses to.

  And today?

  Today, she chose to let me see her.

  I was led out into the facility’s wilderness training grounds, a dense forest section used for advanced survival drills.

  "She’s in there," the trainer said.

  "Where?" I asked.

  The trainer just shook his head.

  "If she wants to meet you, she will."

  And then he left me. Alone.

  Phase Three: I Did Not Find Rags. She Found Me.

  I waited.

  Nothing.

  I walked deeper into the trees, eyes scanning, heart pounding.

  Nothing.

  But the feeling?

  That awful, creeping feeling?

  I was being watched.

  Then, just as I turned, I heard it—

  A soft breath, right behind me.

  "You’re loud."

  I jumped so hard I almost fell over.

  And there she was.

  Rags.

  Phase Four: Rags is Not Like the Others. She is Worse.

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  She is tall, lean, and built for endurance.

  ? Coyote genes mixed with Belgian Malinois, giving her a feral, sharp-edged look.

  ? Sandy-colored fur that blends perfectly with dust, dirt, and shadows.

  ? Amber eyes, unblinking, too intelligent, too calm.

  ? Does not fidget, does not blink excessively, does not move unless absolutely necessary.

  She does not waste energy.

  She does not waste words.

  She just stares, waiting for me to speak first.

  Phase Five: The Most Unsettling Conversation of My Life

  "You’re Rags?" I asked, because I have no survival instincts.

  She tilted her head slightly.

  "You’re Reynolds."

  Not a question. A statement.

  She already knew who I was.

  "Yeah."

  A pause.

  Then—and this was the worst part—

  She smiled.

  Not like Smoky, who smiles when he’s winning.

  Not like Cairo, who smiles when he’s amused.

  Not like Stubby, who smiles when something explodes.

  This was something else.

  A slow, knowing grin.

  "I’ve been watching you."

  Oh.

  Oh no.

  Phase Six: The Time She Broke My Brain in Under a Minute

  I cleared my throat, trying to keep my cool.

  "So, uh. You’re the tracker?"

  "Mm."

  "Like, hunting? Recon?"

  "All of it."

  "Right. Cool. And you’re… good at it?"

  She tilted her head again, like a predator studying prey.

  "I know how many times you’ve looked over your shoulder since you got here."

  I froze.

  She continued, voice smooth, factual, unhurried.

  "Twenty-four, if we count today. Nine times when talking to Cairo. Fifteen when passing security checkpoints. You don’t trust yourself here yet."

  I felt cold.

  "You counted?"

  "I count everything."

  I had no response to that.

  Because what the hell do you say to that?!

  Phase Seven: The Part Where I Accept I Am Being Hunted

  Let’s recap.

  ? Chips watches authority, waiting for it to fail.

  ? Stubby watches explosions, waiting to cause more.

  ? Lucca watches your pulse, waiting to push you forward.

  ? Nemo watches the battlefield, waiting to move.

  ? Cairo watches security, waiting for weaknesses.

  ? Smoky watches everything, just because he can.

  But Rags?

  Rags watches you.

  She knows how you move, how you breathe, how you hesitate before you even realize you’re hesitating.

  She is not just a tracker.

  She is a hunter.

  And the worst part?

  I think she’s enjoying this.

  Final Thoughts (I Am Not Getting Out of This Facility Alive)

  ? Rags is quiet, calm, and disturbingly observant.

  ? Rags knows things I don’t even know about myself.

  ? Rags has been tracking me since I arrived.

  ? Rags does not just find people.

  ? Rags studies them. Waits. Knows their habits better than they do.

  ? Rags is smiling at me again and I want to leave.

  I don’t know what this project was supposed to create.

  But I do know this—

  If Rags ever decides you are prey?

  You will never see her coming.

  End Log.