Partial System Integration commencing in:
0 hours, 30 minutes, and 30 seconds.
Your world is on the brink of collapse. You may choose to fight for a future that may never come, but the path will be paved with blood and death.
Will you rise as one of the New Earth’s Forerunners?
[Yes/No]
I read the message for the millionth time today. My fingers traveled across the phone’s screen. Should I press it?
“So Zach, will you press it?” Leo’s voice called from my side, and I was snapped out of my musings.
The elevator was hot as ever, and even with just Leo and me there, my throat was as tight as a noose. Talking with Leo would probably help my mind travel to another place that wasn’t this tiny compartment moving inside a forty-floor building. You’re not helping, brain!
“I don’t know. Did you press it?” I leaned against one of the elevator’s walls and shoved the phone back into my pocket, making the strange message disappear. The mirrored door on our side told me that my black hair wasn’t as professional as it had been when I left home. My curls never wanted to stay put no matter how much hair product I used. Even worse was the small coffee stain on my favorite shirt because Dick from HR couldn’t keep his eyes off his phone and bumped into me at the reception.
“Hell no. One guy from accounting pressed it yesterday on his work PC, and I had to change his SSD. The fuckers behind the hack almost got some of the company’s bank accounts.” Leo leaned against the opposite wall, pointing at my sweaty forehead. “Are you okay, bro?”
“Yeah. I’m fine,” I lied, wiping my brow and returning to the conversation. “I read several stories on Reddit, and most of them didn’t mention a virus, much less one like this.”
“Don’t know, man. The only thing I know is that when I get home today, I’ll want to play some video games, not fix my computer or cell phone.”
“So, you’re sticking with the ‘Grand Hacker Theory’?”
I couldn’t help but hear Leo’s infamous snort, the telltale sound of whenever he thought something was funny. His button-up shirt struggled to contain the size of his mass, yet I knew he never cared if people made fun of his typical khaki pants and dress shirt outfit. Being in IT made him invaluable, and everyone had quickly learned mocking his size was a fast track to never getting your problems solved.
“I know I fixed a PC yesterday because of that button. It could’ve been just someone trying to take advantage of this. I never saw the page; it could be a mimicking one. One that can actually be traced with an IP.”
“Still the strange characters in the original message?”
“All the way, man. All the way. I don’t know how they’re doing it, but there’s no number on their IP. Nothing connecting the page to any address, with or without VPN.” Leo clicked his tongue as if the fact that he couldn’t get to the bottom of it messed with his pride.
I nodded as his words kept swirling in my head. We had discussed this before, and even though I wasn’t an IT expert, I knew everyone should have an IP address.
“No matter if they’re hackers, aliens, a prank, cyber war, or really some kind of apocalypse, don’t you think it’s strange how everyone seems fine with it?”
“I guess.” Leo shrugged.
“You’re talking about playing games when there’s this message saying our world is about to end.”
“Sorry, man. I just don’t believe it.”
I looked at the elevator’s screen and saw we had already passed the thirtieth floor. Soon, we’d reach our destination, and at least one part of my tension would be released.
“And your family?” I tapped my fingers on the screen, counting the floors to reach the office.
“No one pressed it. I don’t think my mother spared a single thought on it, while my father is saying it’s some kind of globalist conspiracy.”
“That seems like him.” I chuckled as my eyes traveled to the screen again.
I took a deep breath and watched as the numbers went up and the door finally opened. We traveled the rest of the way silently, but it didn’t bother me a bit. That was one of the perks of having a true friend; you could be silent around them, and no awkwardness would be spilled.
I exited the door and the cold wind bathed me. I looked back at the elevator’s closing doors and smiled. That was my daily challenge. I had no idea why I was claustrophobic, but tight spaces simply made me panic.
The day I came for my job interview, I arrived an hour early and climbed all the steps to the fortieth floor. The next day, after being hired, I decided to face my fear, and I did it every day for the last six months.
Leo seemed to have had a good hunch about my phobia, but he was nice enough to hide it.
We stopped before the reception of the law firm we worked at, and he grabbed my shoulder.
“You’re thinking about the kids back at Saint Jerome’s, right?” Leo had a gentle smile on his big face. “With those scars you keep trying to hide, I wouldn’t be surprised if you could actually kick some ass in the Apocalypse.
I buttoned the last button of my shirt to hide the scar borning from my neck to my chest and replied promptly, “Yeah, I’m thinking about them,” I had no reason to lie about it.
“So, I think you should press it. If it’s a damn virus, I promise I’ll fix it for you and even give you a new SSD if that’s the case.”
“Thanks, man. That’s actually a nice incentive.”
“I’m the best friend in the world, I know,” he said, hugging me.
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“Alright, alright. There's no need to make this weird.” I shoved him away while we chuckled.
“Go ahead and be a hero. If nothing happens, in forty minutes I’ll come to your desk and laugh in your face.”
“That’s fair. Did you bring lunch?” I asked, already moving to the left while Leo walked to the opposite side, toward the IT sector.
“Yep. I’ll meet you at the food court at noon.”
“Nice,” I replied, moving toward the lawyer’s office.
I received smiles and waves from some co-workers and returned the gestures.
All in all, I enjoyed working at the R&R Law Firm. People were friendly, there was no drama, and I was on the way to a full-time job when I graduated in a few years. Besides, the salary and perks were way better than most law firms paid for internships.
There was plenty of time to go to classes, work, and even help frequently at Saint Jerome’s. The place’s image popped into my mind as I sat before my desk.
I picked up my phone and looked at the countdown again.
Partial System Integration commencing in:
0 hours, 25 minutes, and 30 seconds…
However, it wasn’t the timer that caught my attention but the words.
You may choose to fight for a future that may never come.
The sentence fragment was ominous, but the message was clear. The future was uncertain, but some people would fight for one version of it.
I bet the government has several military, police, and secret services pressing it. Would I sit and watch others make a future for me when the same people failed me in the past, and many other kids, to this day? That was one of the thoughts that bugged me the most.
The fact that the press seemed so uninterested in the countdown also didn’t help. When it started popping up around the world one week ago, everyone only talked about it. But after a few days, poof! There was no news anymore—only the tabloids published about it, and it was all about conspiracy theories.
Only one theory gained traction when some people claimed they could hear the message in their minds. At first, it was the elderly who spoke about it, but it truly gained attention when individuals living non-technological lifestyles began making the same claims. This was before the press stopped covering the news, yet people continued to whisper about it as the ultimate proof something was really happening.
My favorite, though was the one about how some authors had predicted this in a niche genre of literature. I read about this and other theories, pondering whether I should pursue my instincts and press ‘Yes’.
Deep in my mind, I had decided a long time ago.
I’d needed someone to fight for me in the past, but all I had back then was my wits to survive. Ten years after my life took a different turn I could finally be that someone for the kids who needed it. I saw Marcus, Tony, and Isabela’s faces as I decided.
Will you rise as one of the New Earth’s Forerunners?
[Yes/No]
I clicked Yes. The notification disappeared from my phone for the first time since its appearance one week ago.
Besides that, nothing happened.
What was I expecting? I still need to wait twenty minutes.
That was the most excruciating twenty minutes of my life so far. I turned on my PC and scrolled through sheets and documents I needed to edit before sending them to the lawyer I was assigned to. I did nothing besides scroll and switch to different tabs on the PC.
Multiple web sites by a handful of ufologists had sprang up with to keep track of the countdown. If this is real, I’ll be surrounded by nutjobs, adrenaline seekers, and trained killers. The realization struck me, and I smiled for the first time since I pressed Yes.
I gazed up from my PC and saw some of my co-workers with a similar countdown on their screens. Some of the nutjobs are right here, or at least I hope they’re not the killers. I stared back at my screen.
One minute from the end of the countdown, my shirt glued to my skin, soaked with sweat, and my feet couldn’t stop stomping the ground.
With thirty seconds remaining, I was already biting my nails for the third time.
With ten seconds left, my phone vibrated. I picked it up, and a new message appeared.
Preparing to enter Proving Grounds.
The Gods are watching you.
Create a safe haven.
Dive the dungeons.
Climb the Tower.
Survive.
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
I heard a familiar voice calling me, and then, nothing.
----------------------------------------
Leo exited his room when the countdown reached one minute. He couldn’t wait to see Zach’s face when nothing happened. Some of his co-workers were excitedly waiting for it to reach zero as if the Lakers were tied with the Celtics in the last seconds of a final match.
Losers, he thought as he shoved Doritos into his mouth with one hand and watched the countdown on his phone with the other. “At least Zach has a good reason,” he mumbled with his mouth full as he crossed the reception.
When he reached the lawyers' sector, the countdown was already close to thirty, and when he finally saw Zach’s head over his PC a few lines away, it was only twenty seconds to the so-called end of the world.
Zach seemed so concentrated that Leo couldn’t miss the opportunity to scare him a little. Maybe I should fake the sound of an explosion. Considering all the tension with the countdown, his bosses wouldn't mind it. They’d probably even like that Leo broke the ice. At least, that was what was going through his mind.
Leo approached his friend’s chair as silently as possible and watched from over his shoulder. Is this a new message? It doesn’t matter, he told himself as the countdown neared zero.
“Doomsday!” Leo shouted, clasping one hand against the sack of snacks and making a feeble explosion sound.
Zach turned his head toward Leo, but the world exploded in red light before their eyes could meet. Leo heard the glass windows breaking but saw nothing but bright crimson. A strong force pulled him to the ground as if gravity had a personal grudge against him.
His face crashed against the cold floor, and his Doritos flew away. Nothing reached his ears besides a deafening ringing deep inside, as if he was flying in a fighter jet without ear protection. In the distance, he was sure someone was screaming, but he couldn’t actually hear it.
The minutes he spent there, blindsided and crushed against the floor, seemed to take an eternity, but slowly, his vision adjusted, and he felt the weight on his body slowly fading.
Leo grunted, moving up and hearing similar sounds everywhere around him. He inclined his head, searching for Zach, but he was nowhere to be seen. When Leo inspected his surroundings, he noticed that at least one-third of the people of the office had vanished.
Shit. It was all Leo could think as he walked toward one of the broken windows. The red he had seen was still adorning the sky, replacing the bright blue from before and making it as macabre as an expressionist view of hell. However, the blood-red morning wasn’t what caught Leo’s eye the most. It was the giant message floating in the sky in bright black letters.
Partial Integration Started
The Ascension Games will begin.
Wait until a winner is decided.
Root for the earthlings who chose to fight, as their competition will be fierce.
Hope for their win, but prepare for their loss.
There’s no place for the weak in the multiverse.