Chapter 147: Beyond the Choice
The world around Natasha shatters.
The door loses its power and shines when its shape distorts into a terrible form. Reality fights back against it as the flat surface of the door breaks into sharp glass shapes which spin away from one another. The continuous loud humming sound shakes Natasha's chest and blocks her ability to breathe properly. She automatically steps back with shock as the Between begins to fracture into pieces.
All around her, the glitch-ridden landscape convulses. Visual elements go haywire as static walls fall inward while colors mix together and the sky breaks into multiple pieces. The calm atmosphere that made Natasha feel trapped now turns into complete disorder. The pictures from her past begin to flicker before her eyes showing broken moments of laughter and tears with people who hurt her. The shifting static takes away her brother from view with his speechless stare and his gaze locked onto her before he disappears.
"What's happening?" As she speaks her words disappear in the background noise.
As her side companion Riven drops his traditional grin he now looks solemn. Riven shows his serious face while his eyes show the dying universe. The outcome was supposed to take longer. You pushed it too far."
"I didn't do anything!"
Riven doesn't answer. He raises his gaze when the voice from earlier returns in greater intensity and more chilling tones.
The system's rules are not meant to be disobeyed.
Thunderous shouts travel across the plane as it sinks while the speaker releases intense anger. She closes her hands over her ears but feels no relief from the noise. The voice addresses her thoughts rather than her ears. Her skin prickles as her body convulses with the weight of the message.
You have evolved from being a mere player Natasha. You are something far worse. You made too much disorder which cannot be undone now.
A strong feeling of sickness rises inside her. The Between had rejected Natasha completely while it continued to crumble. Her existence now acts like a dangerous software bug that can no longer be limited.
She looks to Riven expecting him to explain what the message means. "What did it mean by that?"
When Riven observes Natasha he shows his first genuine reaction. Not arrogance. Not manipulation. But sadness. The Between was not built to reveal itself to you. None of us were. Between existed to contain errors not to lock them up. The creators made this location to hide their failed experiments. Failed players. Broken data. Rejected code. The entire area was designed to disappear completely. Like me."
His presence shifts the realm as he takes one step toward her. "You serve a greater purpose than being a player Natasha. I worked on the first testing group of the project. He ranked among the earliest players who discovered the truth about the system. He was among the earliest players to uncover reality. As I went too far into my research they refused to erase me. They quarantined me. Here."
His laugh is hollow. "They called it mercy. I call it exile. But you..." The trembling man uses his shaking fingers to point at her. "You brought something new. Something the system couldn't predict. You share a strong connection with real life that cannot be explained through computer programming. It's memory. Emotion. And that's what's breaking it."
Natasha shakes her head. "You said I could leave. You asked me that the entrance would return me to my starting point.Riven doesn't answer. The transformation of the door into a living language-mass and energy vortex causes it to vibrate with menace.
From her jungle location Alison gazes at the heavens as her breathing halts. The healthy ecosystem has become disfigured. The branches of trees grow abnormally while their leaves lose their definition in mid-flight. The terrain pulses beneath her boots. He leans close to his panel as numbers race by too fast for him to understand while his forehead shows beads of sweat.
"Her signal's not gone. It's scrambled," he mutters. "No... hijacked. Something has her."
Alison clenches her fists. Our mission now is to locate a way to return our missing team member.
Ira meets her eyes. We have probably missed our chance to save her.
As Natasha looks at the damaged gate it transforms into her view. Our escape path now appears to lead toward danger. It feels like a trap. She feels the air weight pressing on her lungs as if she cannot breathe. She can only stand weakly because her legs shake uncontrollably. Her dread calls the atmosphere apart into pieces.
A gigantic tear in the sky shows millions of stars and unnatural static. From within, a figure descends. The figure appears as a dark shape at first. When the entity closes in her true form becomes visible.
A face half-human, half-code. The creature's body parts jostle to stick to normal existence like organic machinery. The creature's eyes display supernatural awareness that shines without typical colors.
The figure gently sets down in front of her. The space between them stays silent yet her breath halt as an energy spills from the figure. Natasha can't move. She can't breathe.It speaks.
The true story has only started Natasha. From this moment forward you will lead the rewriting of the game elements.
Riven moves away one step behind Natasha. "That's not part of the game. That's the Watcher. The system observes where reality ends and design begins. The system never needed to enter our domain.
"Why is it here?" Natasha asks, her voice cracking.
Riven's voice lowers. "Because you made it come. Your refusal to accept the code made the system activate its ultimate protection mechanism. And now..." He turns to her. The Watcher now recognizes you as a danger to the game.
The Watcher lifts a hand. As the Watcher approaches Natasha her feet sink into a field that flickers and fades to nothing. The Watcher begins to vanish while Riven stands stationary not reaching to her. His figure blurs faster because the Watcher destroys his elements from close range.
He releases his grip on life.
"What do I do?" she screams.
The Watcher tilts its head. "Choose."
The world stills. The storm of energy pauses.
Two paths open.
Through its powers the Watcher shows her two new paths. One leads back to her mission but feels faded and distant. The place looked familiar but lacked its original brightness just like a stretched-out recollection. A return to her mission, but not without a price.
The other, a staircase of light leading upward into the sky, into the rift. Beyond it? Nothing known. Only the truth. Users can explore all knowledge while accepting full risk of losing their existence.
Riven speaks to him so softly now that he barely hears her words. "This is your last choice. Your future choices will transform everything in the game and beyond. The game, the system, the world beyond it. This development has evolved from merely being a tale. You create the new game rules today.
Tears sting Natasha's eyes. Memories of her brother. Of Alison. Her thoughts return to all she built and defended. The burden of her past experiences hurts her heart deeply. With the cost of what lay ahead.
She takes a breath.
And steps forward.
The sky over the portal area bursts apart when her foot enters the doorway.
A new voice, more mechanical and ancient than the last, echoes through the collapsing realm.
You believe you direct your own destiny Natasha. We decide your path."
The staircase fractures. The jungle flickers. The decision breaks away from her control.
A strong light devours the sky. The ground suddenly sinks under her weight.
Riven screams, "No—!"
Natasha falls.
Endless darkness swallows her.
And the game...
Begins again.