The room was too quiet.
No ticking clock, no rustle of paper, no distant street noise. Just silence.
Luca stared at the glowing blue screen floating midair like a hologram. His mind, trained over seven years to expect a reset, was running diagnostics—checking every detail. He looked down at his hands. Still his. Still bruised. He could feel his pulse. His breath.
This wasn't a dream.
This was new.
Welcome, Contestant.You have been recognized as a Pattern Breaker.Your previous loop has been retired.You are now eligible for Tier One Clearance.
The text faded. A new line blinked in its place.
Do you wish to proceed?[Yes] [No]
Luca didn't hesitate. He tapped Yes.
The room pulsed.
Walls dissolved into white static, then reformed around him into a massive hexagonal chamber with polished stone floors and six glowing doors, each marked with a sigil: a sword, an hourglass, an eye, a flame, a spiral, and a cracked crown.
Then the voice returned—not the masked man's. A different one. Female. Calm, precise.
"Luca Medricks. Human anomaly. Cycle retention: 7 years. Pattern drift: critical."
"You've pierced the membrane of your simulation. That makes you valuable. Dangerous. And necessary."
Luca's eyes darted around. "Who's talking?"
"An Overseer AI. You may refer to me as Axis."
"Axis," Luca muttered. "So what the hell is this place?"
"A fracture between layers of simulation. You broke containment. So now, you're being drafted into a higher game."
Luca stepped toward the sword-marked door, instinct pulling him closer.
"You mean... this was all a test?"
"Your world was one of many test environments. You were never supposed to gain memory continuity across resets."
He touched the door. It was cold.
"But you did. So now you're here."
"You're not alone, Luca. There are others. Pattern Breakers like you. Some arrived by force. Others by accident. Some... don't survive the transition."
He turned, suddenly unsure. "And the masked man?"
"Off-script. Rogue entity. We're still... observing him."
Of course. Even here, there were unknown variables.
"Your choice now is simple.""Enter. Compete. Survive. Unlock your truth.""Or refuse, and return to your original loop—memory erased. You won't remember any of this conversation."
Luca clenched his jaw. Go back? Seven more years of dying, reliving, screaming silently into a world that wouldn't change?
Not a chance.
He turned the handle.
The door of the sword opened.
Light swallowed him whole.