Chapter 1 — The Invitation
The world was perfect. Too perfect.
Crystal towers stretched into the clouds, polished so clean they reflected the pale blue of the sky. Streets gleamed without a single crack, while people walked in calm order, their faces free of hunger, sickness, or poverty.
It was the kind of world where children played without fear, where no gunfire echoed in the distance, where the air was crisp and pure. It was a paradise. A paradise born not from kindness, but from scarcity.
Because most of humanity wasn't here anymore.
They had been swallowed by the World of Imagination.
Every person, at some point in their youth, risked receiving the dreaded Invitation Card.
The Invitation letter send by the military for those who had been selected to become citizens of the World of Imagination.
If you survived the "Invitation Phase" of your life, usually before twenty-one, then you were safe forever. No more risk of being pulled into that nightmare world.
And Luke Reins had survived.
At twenty-two, he had a stable government job lined up. The National Astral & Subconscious Studies Agency—NASSA. A name too long, so most just called it "the Dream Department." His acceptance letter was still folded neatly in his pocket as he clinked his glass with coworkers at a rooftop bar.
"To Luke," one of them cheered. "The man who beat the odds!"
Luke grinned, raising his drink. "To the rest of my boring, safe life!"
Luke laughed with them, his drink catching the city lights. For the first time in years, he felt truly at ease. The tight rope of anxiety he had walked throughout his youth, every day wondering if the Invitation would come was now gone. He had crossed the finish line. His life was no longer a gamble.
No more sleepless nights staring at the ceiling, waiting for a knock on the door.
No more checking his pockets in fear of finding a glowing card.
No more wondering which of his nightmares might one day be made real.
He had passed. The "Invitation Phase" was now behind him.
The night stretched on. Laughter, drinks, clumsy toasts. A few of his coworkers teased him about finding a girlfriend now that he wasn't living on a borrowed time. Luke just grinned and kept sipping, soaking in the ordinariness of it all.
A girlfriend would have to wait for now. Maybe in about two or three years from now he would consider it.
The night stretched on. Laughter, drinks, clumsy toasts.
By the time the celebration ended, the streets were nearly empty. A cool wind drifted through the spotless avenues, brushing against the glowing lamps. Luke shoved his hands into his coat pockets and began the walk home, humming tunelessly.
He felt light. For once, life was simple.
Well that was until he turned the corner.
A black vehicle waited outside his apartment building. Its engine was silent, but the insignia painted on its side made Luke's breath catch.
A silver crescent moon crossing through a single eye.
The mark of the Red Rose, a department group belonging the World Government.
This wasn't an ordinary department. They were the military division tasked with monitoring and delivering the Invitation cards. They delivered the cards and they escorted those who were chosen.
Three soldiers stood by the vehicle, their black uniforms catching the lamplight of the street. And the moment they saw Luke, one of them stepped forward as Luke froze.
"Luke Reins?" the soldier asked. His voice was low, steady, leaving no room for denial.
Luke swallowed. "…Yes."
His heart was already racing, dreading at the possible direction where this conversation was heading at.
The soldier nodded once. "Then this belongs to you."
He extended his hand. Resting on his palm was a odd card. It stretched about six to seven centimeters long in length and three to four centimeter in width. It was black, with its edges laced with silver.
The moment Luke saw the card, his knees weakened. He knew all too well what the card meant.
" No. This isn't possible. Not now. Not after l have passed the Phase."
With shaking hands, he took the card from the soildier. His name was etched across the top in bold, curling silver letters:
Name : Luke Reins
Date of Invitation: August 2nd, 10:43 p.m.
Age status: 22 (late candidate)
Congratulations. You have been chosen.
The soldiers didn't move. They just stood there, their gazes filled with pity.
Luke's voice cracked. "This… this is a mistake. I passed. I'm already twenty-two. The Phase is over. This—this shouldn't be happening."
The soldier's eyes softened slightly. "We know kiddo. We don't know what changed but it seemed that this time there are late candidates "
"Late candidates? " Luke asked shaken up by the sudden revelation.
The soildier nodded but didn't explain.
Luke already knew what this meant. They didn't have an explanation for this. It seemed even the Government was caught off guard.
As this realization kicked in, he wanted to cry. He wanted to throw the card away, to crush it in his fist, but he knew it would be to no avail. Not only was the card indestructible but if he were to throw it away it would be same as committing suicide. Given that the black card was something akin to an identity card in World of Imagination, and those who lost it or misplaced it, would become identiless in the World. And this was by far a fate worse than death.
The soldier spoke again, tone clipped. "You will come with us. A late Invitation is… unprecedented. The brass doesn't know what to make of it. But the rules of the world are clear: once chosen, you must enter. There is nothing that can be done about that."
Luke's throat went dry. "…When?"
"Right now," the soldier said. "Normally, candidates undergo three months of survival training before their first Entry. But you—" he paused, almost hesitating, "—you only have one day."
The words fell like stones in Luke's stomach.
One day.
A single day to prepare for a world that could kill him with a stray thought.
The soldier turned back to the vehicle. "Come. You'll be briefed at the base."
Luke stared at the dark card in his hand, the silver letters shining faintly. His entire future—the job, the peace, the safety he had celebrated hours ago was gone, just like that.