"yo! it's been a while." said my friend, a kind-looking bespectacled guy.

He sat in front of me still wearing a work suit. Maybe he come straight out of work. Even though it is already this late. That must be tough.

"Yes, it's been a while... how are you?"

"Nothing special, you know work, sleep, trash-talking my boss.. seriously that guy is a demon I tell you," he said sighing and flipping at the menu. His speech is unbefitting with his looks.

"If you don't like it that much why not just quit?"

"Because this shitty job is the only thing I can find even after pulling some strings... I'm getting Red-a107 how about you?"

"I'm not eating, I've got water."

"Now don't be like that... it's my treat okay, c'mon we are buddy right?"

"Then... I will get the same." I won't say no to free meals. After running around the whole day, I've been starving.

My friend, Jeffrey is quite the lucky one among our alumni. Getting a job within a year after graduation is no small feat with how the world is now. Even if it is by pulling strings.

Placing our orders, he then laid back on his seat, loosening his tie, "And you? how are you doing?"

"Nothing, still the same," I said trying to keep the gloom coming out of my voice. This should be a fun meeting after so long, can't ruin it with my moodiness.

"You haven't found a job yet huh"

"I've gone to many places but no one would hire me... I'm doing a miscellaneous thing for some money... but still need allowance from my parents from time to time.."

"Cheer up! It will get better!"

I just nodded.

The world's in crisis. With how land and resource couldn't keep up with the number of people, it is hard to find a job. The majority of graduates are unemployed. A bunch of people is laid off. My parents are lucky because they are old friends with their superior. But now unemployed people is the norm.

"But really, you only need to let up a little you know... I'm sure someone would hire you.. the world has become like this we cant be proud anymore my friend."

It is true. I'm actually very capable. Before the world changed I'm sure I would be the type to be welcomed. But now the time has changed. Resource is in the hand of a chosen few. It is even more harder now to squeeze between the rich even for the gifted and talented people.

There is no lack of talented people who would work for them. So talent is second, the first is servitude. My bearing is an eyesore to them. The thing is, I'm not prideful, I just don't know how to please people. But still... "Well... I will try."

With how the world is, I need to do it.

•••

23.57

Back at my rundown rooms, I laid down to rest.

Another failure today. No one is in need of another employee.

Sigh. I turned on my don't-know-how-many-hands-down tv to drown the suffocating silence. I will get depressed if there is nothing to distract me.

... today at 4 pm, Clifford Unlimited Corporation has announced to have invented yet another plant that is said to be similar to cassava. With this we can rejoice for our food increased in yet another variety...

I closed my eyes slowly, the fatigue of the day have caught up.

23.59

...The CEO of Clifford Unlimited Corporation, Mr. Louis Clifford, has spoken that they will continue their research to recreate our lost plants, as of now the number of plant Clifford Unlimited Corporaaatttiiion iiinnnvvveeennnttteeeddd hhhaaasss rreeeeaaaaccchhheeeeeedddd...

Has the old tv finally broken?

In my fading consciousness I can hear the sound coming out of the television become distorted.. then come the sudden feel of no gravity, before I could react I felt myself like a rubber being tossed, squeezed, and stretched.

00.00

Then come blackness.

•••

GAH!!

Opening my eyes, I'm greeted by a wide expanse of white.

W-What?!

Around me, various size of humanoid silver doll-like figure is standing around. The doll has no face, the body's smooth like some kind of polished silverware.

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Doll? No... these guys look like slender man dam**t!

The shock make me take a step back and bumped with the doll behind. Flustered I turn back and put a distance with the doll. The doll is doing the same. Panicked it is getting away from me only to bump with another doll and get even more panicked. The doll that is being bumped into also looks scared.

The dolls.. no.. the Slender men are scared of each other?

Now that I observed them, the gestures of the Slender man around is oozing uneasiness. And also, for some time now, my body feels bare.

Looking down at my hands my heart made another jump. The hell!! My hands look the same as the dolls around!! Tremblingly I touch my face, there are no eyes nose, or mouth!

No! I need to calm down!

Taking a deep breath to calm my racing heart (not that I could as I apparently doesn't have a nose and thus not breathing) I scanned my body.

Strange... I have no eyes but I could see the things around me...

My appearance has changed and become like those Slender men. Or is it not only me?

Maybe the Slender man is also like me, waking up and greeted by this ridiculous view. Cause they look as caught off guard as me.

But it is strange. There is around a hundred Slender man around. With size varying from Tiny palm-sized to over 3 Meters. That is in no way a normal human's height.

As for me, if compared to the 3 maters slander man, I look more than 2 meters. But my actual height is clearly 1.78 cm.

The situation now is confusing. The last thing I remembered is going to sleep lulled by the sound of the television. And that weird sensation that followed.

Am I dead?

That shouldn't be. There is no cause for death and I am healthy too. I didn't eat anything suspicious either.

Just as I go on reviewing my memory. The ground suddenly trembled. I hurriedly squatted down. Some of the Slender man around is falling on their butt.

The ground split, forming a thin root-like crater that joined together at the center. From there, coming out of the crater, something like a bunch of transparent blue vine coiled tightly around each other, forming an egg-shaped ball. Once it's fully revealed, the shaking stop.

That thing is big. The vines moved slightly. It's wriggling as if to separate itself from each other. Everything's still. No one dared to move. Afraid of triggering unexpected things.

Snap!

The vines suddenly released itself then shot up to the Slender man around and pierced the back of their neck. The movement is so fast you can hardly trace them with your eyes.

Run!

I immediately took off running. The Slender man around also did the same. But it's not long before they are caught one after another.

Pssiikkk

A vine goes straight to me. I instinctively dodged to the side and managed to avoid the vine.

Ssaakkk

But before I could stabilize my footing another vine shot up.

Pak!

I raised my hand and slapped the vine aside. With this opening, I hurriedly put on distance and run.

Seriously.. what the hell is going on!!

My mind is chaotic. There are only a few of the Slender man remaining. The rest is on the ground. The vines are injecting something to them from the way a liquid within their transparent body could be seen moving to their target.

As the Slender man still standing decreased. Many more vines go and target the remaining ones. Several vines rushed up to me. I desperately try avoiding those vines but it is too many.

Sukk

Hurts!! At last, I got pierced in the neck. I can't move my body!!

I could feel something cold flows from the back of my neck and spread to the rest of my body. Sometime passed like that. Then darkness.

•••

When I opened my eyes. I am submerged in water.

I looked down at my hands. It is still the Slender man body.

I looked around. My surrounding is filled with many stones floating around. The stones each have different colors and give out a soft subtle glow.

{Please choose your core}

W-what?!

A sentence suddenly appeared in my mind.

{Please choose your core}

The sentence repeated.

Core?

The only thing around is water and the glowing stone. So when it says choosing core it's most likely means the stone around me.

Should I do as it says?

Might as well, I don't have any other idea anyway. I approached the bluestone in front of me and reached out.

I don't know what core means and what is the difference between the stones. I can maybe imagine some kind of reasons or meaning by their color but it is just guessing either way. So I will go for my favorite color. Blue.

Hm?

My fingertips go right through the stones. It is as if the stone itself is an illusion. I goes to the red stones and the same thing happened.

I cant choose whichever I want?

Orange, green, yellow, violet, grey, pink, violet, black, white...

None of it can be touched. I tried to touch all the stones three times already.

This!! If there is no core... I can't be stuck in here forever right?!

Maybe it is not as simple as touching them. Maybe there is some secret within the stones. Widening my eyes (although there is no eyes), I stared. Not letting up even the smallest details. One by one.

Something caught my eyes. The glows of the violet stone is not even. From my point of view, the glows of the stone on the right side are more far-reaching than the left.

It is as if there is something you cant see blocking the light from the left. Maybe something is there. I reached my hand. And there... there is some sensation. I grasp whatever it is. It is transparent but from the feel, it is the same size as the glowing Stones.

Could it be.. transparent stone?

{The core has been chosen}

{Connection completed... Analyzing examinee's potential... completed... Analyzing core... Completed... Analyzing compatibility... Completed... Selecting examination room...}

{Please choose the type of trials below :

1. (Room 352) Lord's trials.

2. (Room 438) Lord's trials.

3. (Room 467) Lord's trials.

...... }

It is all the same though!! Whatever.. choose number 1

{Examination room has been selected...

The examination will now commence }