When Je awoke, there was no floor beneath him — only an infinite expanse of broken glass, each shard reflecting a different version of himself.

  Some were older. Some were dead.

  Some were not… human.

  [System Recovery at 43%…]

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  [Warning: Entity Trace Detected.]

  He staggered forward. His reflection in the nearest shard spoke without moving its mouth:

  > "You've already been chosen."

  The words crawled beneath his skin like insects.

  "You're just my imagination," Je whispered, but the shard shattered… and the voice remained.

  A distant tolling — a bell that did not belong to this reality — rang once, twice, thrice. Each strike made the shards tremble, spilling flickers of fire, ocean, and void into the air.

  [System Message: Do not answer the third call.]

  But Je had already turned toward the sound.

  ---