The world exploded into chaos and noise as a force seemed to rip through the room. I flinched and braced myself, hoping the increased strength of my aura would allow me to survive. I braced myself for pain.
For the pain that never came.
Instead, a blinding flash of blue and silver light enveloped the room, followed by a deafening boom that ricocheted off the walls. A rush of displaced air whirled around us, kicking up dust and debris. The smell of ozone filled the room, sharp and clear. A figure zoomed through the air and stopped the shotgun blast with one swift movement of its arm, deflecting the shot away from me and into the wall behind me.
Startled, I opened my eyes fully to find a figure standing between Albert and myself, his hand raised and bathed in a soft white and blue glow. He was dressed in a functional, but inspiring costume of blue and silver. The figure was tall and muscular, their features obscured by a helmet of the same striking color. He was dressed in a brilliantly designed costume that screamed ‘superhero’.
His outfit was tailored to resemble a suit of armor, woven from a metallic fabric that glowed subtly under the fluorescent lights. The costume was colored in various shades of blue and silver, creating an effect like sunlight dancing on a calm sea. Intricate, angular patterns ran across the armor in glowing silver, like a network of stars in the night sky. Wherever the lines met, they formed an intricate design akin to an infinity sign.
Albert raised his shotgun again, but with a blinding flash of light and a deafening boom, my savior threw up a hand, an iridescent shield forming in front of him. The shotgun blast slammed into the shield and ricocheted harmlessly to the side, leaving me unharmed.
With another immediate lightning-fast movement, he lunged at Albert, tackling him to the ground. He pinned Albert down, one hand securing the gun while his other hand held Albert's wrist in an iron grip.
I gaped at the source of the flash. There was a shimmer, a ripple in the fabric of reality, and a crack appeared in the air next to the mysterious newcomer. It was like looking at a tear in a painting, the world beyond filled with swirling colors and forms that were hard to comprehend. I stared at it in shock, trying to process what happened.
As he held Albert down, he spoke. His voice was low and serious, but there was a familiarity in it that gave me pause. "It's a dangerous thing to assume what you don’t know, Al," he said in a deep, baritone voice.
Albert struggled beneath him, trying to free his arm, but it was clear that he was outmatched. "Who are you?" Albert spat, his voice laced with fear and confusion.
"I never thought I would ever get to say it, as much as I daydreamed about this scenario when I was a kid, you know. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves." The man said, a touch of frustration and sadness in his voice.
"Wait, if you’re saying that to me," Albert said slowly, his voice raspy with disbelief, "then that means…"
The armored figure stood up, extending a hand to Albert. A moment passed in silence. Albert took the offered hand and slowly rose to his feet, his gaze fixed on the stranger in wonder.
The armored figure turned towards me. His gaze softened, a hint of familiarity shining in his eyes behind the visor.
"Sienna," he said, his voice no longer echoing off the walls but softer, as if we were sharing a private conversation. "I don’t have much time. My presence here has already triggered a Cascade.”
"I... what?" I stammered, taken aback as he turned around to face Albert. His words didn't make sense to me. This was all too surreal. "What are you talking about?"
"Albert, do you remember when you used to talk about the worst possible timeline? Well, here it is, buddy. That’s where you’ll end up before long," he said, turning to Albert. There was a solemnity in his voice that I hadn't noticed before. Albert, too, seemed to pick up on it. His confusion was beginning to turn into something more profound, more horrified. What was going on?
"The entity you defeated," the mysterious figure stated, turning back to me promptly, "There’s a lot to unpack here, but it doesn’t kill its victims outright. It’s a particularly fragile variant of what we designated ‘Boss’ class anomalies. A Judicator. This particular nasty variant pulls its victims into what we call Gossamer Echoes. Potential futures projected and rejected by the fabric of reality itself like shadows on a cave. ‘Incorrect timelines’ where an entropy cascade causes everything that can go wrong to go wrong for its victims. We’ve encountered four of these throughout my career, and they serve as assassins for whatever is attacking our reality. It cycles through myriads of possibilities to torment its victims. People with strong destinies are resistant to its effects, and will be cycled until their minds shatter. Then, they will be returned to the Prime timeline to wreak havoc downstream with the trauma induced by their experiences. Most victims, however, will be dissolved into the Sea of Imagination. You could say I’m from a walking paradox from one of these potential Gossamer Echoes.”
He stopped to catch his breath, before quickly continuing. “But, shit. It’s complicated. My ‘reality’ itself shouldn’t exist in the context of the Sea of Imagination. It’s never happened and never will now that I’m here. If Albert didn’t have almost as much of an imprint on the fabric as you, I wouldn’t be able to break the rules that I have. I am a representation of a future that will never happen, a mere shadow on a wall lit by dancing flames. My presence here has already destabilized this reality."
I blinked in confusion at his seemingly incoherent ramblings.
As he spoke, his form began to waver, like a mirage wavering in the desert heat. A ripple of transparent energy washed over him, the distortion flowing over his body in shimmering waves.
"I... I don't understand..." I stammered, my mind struggling to make sense of everything. "Why are you telling us this? What's the point? Who are you?"
He sighed, the sound echoing around us in the eerie silence. "You haven’t figured it out yet? I always thought you were the smart one. Well, I never thought I’d end up where I am this second with billions of dollars’ worth of gear and research put into me so I understand," he rambled on, before taking a deep breath.
“To sum things up, I’m here to correct the timeline,” he expounded frantically. “Give you two a way out through this rift before the Echo solidifies and fucks us all. These Judicators are particularly nasty because we just can’t trust our minds or the World System in these damned planes. Sienna? As soon as the paradox kicks in, Albert here is probably going to go woosh.”
The mysterious figure began to fade, the shimmering waves of energy washing over him more frequently. He reached out a hand, the holographic sheen making him appear ethereal. Albert, eyes wide, reached out and accepted the figure's hand only to pass clean through it.
“Tch, looks like I’m out of time. Just remember, both of you," the figure spoke, his voice a flickering echo in the cavernous room. "The future is never set in stone, only a myriad of probabilities and possibilities. Though your losses will be grave and many, fight on. Salvation will only come by your own hands.”
I furrowed my brow for a second, struggling to wrap my head around this surreal situation. Just who was this guy?
"Al? No, you haven’t been dreaming. All of this is real, as is everything you’ve kept. Don’t cause too much trouble for Kathleen this time around. We can be a real bonehead sometimes." His voice was quiet, and he was wearing a sad smile.
He took a deep breath, staring straight at me as he fixed his posture and held his chin up. “And… and Lux? It was an honor. I’m… I’m glad I could be your herald one last time. It’s been one hell of a ride.”
That line caused my eyes to snap wide alert. It was an insane idea, but he was…
“Wait! ” Albert and I shouted at the same time.
But it was too late. His figure dissolved into wisps of light that were swept away into the vortex of colors.
Albert blinked, coming out of his daze, and looked at me. The shock on his face was palpable. He looked like he had seen a ghost - and in a way, he had.
“Oh god, it’s really you…” Albert finally muttered, his voice hoarse with raw emotion. He reached out to me, before rushing in to wrap me in a hug. “You’re alive… you came back for me. Oh god, it's really you,” he stuttered, still dazed. His eyes flickered between me and the spot where the future Albert had been a moment ago.
We stood there for a moment, letting the echo of the stranger's words settle in. Slowly, the crushing reality of the situation sank in. We were alone in this eerie shelter, with nothing but the uncanny silence and each other. A shudder ran down my spine at the thought, the dread of our circumstances welling up inside me.
He stepped back for a second, and examined me with wide eyes. I’d been so stunned by the surreal situation we were just in, I hadn’t realized he still had his hoodie. A torn, identical version of the one I found and was currently wearing.
"As long as I’ve dealt with this. This is still freaky as fuck," he said, his gaze flickering between my face and the hoodie.
"I… I think I understand,” I replied with a whisper. A tremble took hold of my body as I realized the gravity of what had just happened. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that.”
The stranger's words echoed in my mind, ‘the future is never set in stone’. What did that mean for us? Were we supposed to change something? Prevent something? My mind was spinning with questions, but I didn't have any answers.
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
"I feel like I've gone crazy," Albert muttered, breaking the silence. His eyes were wild with a mix of fear and confusion, and I couldn't blame him. I was feeling the same way. "I just want to wake up in a straightjacket somewhere already. Just make this all end."
I placed a hand on his shoulder in a feeble attempt at comfort as the words poured out of him. But it was clear that we were both beyond comforting.
"I snuck out down to the central hub with some of the guys who worked here, you know? Talked them into checking and making sure we had a line outside," Albert continued, words spilling out of him in a panicked rush.
"I thought it would be safe. But then... then everything went to shit. We were attacked by something, and I... I thought I was going to die. What it did to me was worse. It feels like I've been in a series of nightmares and dreams for days, if not weeks or months, slowly losing my mind. I was back at Pewterstone right before this with mom, you know? There was even actual food and water. Everywhere that damned thing sent me. Every time I thought I’d woken up it was just a zombie or another one of those faceless shapeshifting fucks. Haven’t had real human contact in god knows how long. I’m still expecting you to go blue and lunge at me any second now."
"But Albert, you're here now. And you're alive. You're really here," I tried to assure him, looking into his wild eyes, hoping he'd see the truth in my words. "And I'm here too. I came back for you."
Albert was quiet for a moment, his breath hitching in his chest. I saw a glimmer of relief in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced with a look of horror as he glanced towards the still-open rift where the armored figure had disappeared.
"What about that... That future guy? What did he mean?" Albert's voice was unsteady, his fear bleeding into every word. "Are we stuck in some kind of... nightmare future? A bad end? Is that what he was talking about? You know, it’s crazy. I fantasized about it before, but the line he said to me was from Terminator. I joked to myself a lot that if I ever traveled to meet myself in the past or something like that, that I’d use that line to identify myself. I think I just killed myself to save myself or something ridiculous like that."
I shook my head. "I... I don't know, Albert. I don't know. This has all happened so quickly. But whatever it is, we're going to figure it out and we’re not going to give up. I’m here now. I came back for you.”
He stared at me, his gaze teetering between hope and despair. The moments that passed were some of the longest I'd ever felt. Then slowly, his eyes focused. A shaky, half-hearted smile stretched across his face. "You're right. You're here. God, you're here."
Just then, a loud, echoing screech filled the room, making both of us jump in alarm. The sound seemed to vibrate the walls of the shelter, sending tremors under our feet. I turned to Albert, my heart hammering in my chest. His eyes were wide with fear, and he opened his mouth to speak.
Suddenly, a chilling gust of wind burst from the crack in the wall, sending us both sprawling on the ground. "Sienna!" Albert yelled over the noise, but his voice was drowned by the deafening wind. I turned to look at the crack, my heart racing. The tear had grown bigger, revealing the shifting, swirling colors more clearly.
Then, Albert vanished.
The world pitched forward. One moment, Albert was there, his eyes wide with horror and disbelief. The next, a swirl of colors exploded from the crack, swallowing him whole. His scream echoed around the room, and then there was silence. My heart pounded a drumbeat of terror in my chest as I stared at the empty space where Albert had just been.
My best friend was gone again, just like that.
"No!" I scrambled to my feet, sprinting towards the crack. My hand shot out, diving for the swirl of colors.
I hesitated for a second before a sudden determination surged through me.
"Albert," I whispered, "Hang on, I'm coming." With that, I stepped forward, crossing the threshold and into the swirling unknown. The sensation was like plunging into a cool body of water, a shock to the system that caused me to gasp for breath. Around me, the world seemed to dissolve and reform at a mind-bending pace. Colors bloomed and faded in an instant, and reality warped and twisted like an unfinished painting.
I stumbled through the crack, feeling my surroundings change in an instant. The sudden shift was disorienting, but I was spurred on by the single thought of finding Albert. There was no telling what he was going through on the other side, and I had to reach him.
As the world around me solidified, I found myself in an unfamiliar place, the Shelter replaced by something else entirely. Panic bubbled in my chest. The new environment was alien, an unrecognizable swirl of colors. But there was no time to contemplate my surroundings; I had to find Albert.
Every step I took echoed in the eerie silence, my breath hitching with each heartbeat. My mind spun with thoughts and emotions, and my senses were on high alert.
Somewhere in this vast, chaotic place, Albert was there. And I would find him, no matter what it took.
"Albert!" I called out, my voice resonating in the unsettling silence. "Where are you?"
The echo of my voice was my only response. The world around me seemed to shudder in response, the colors wavering for a moment before settling once more.
The world around me began to change, the abstract scenery gradually transforming into something more recognizable. Trees sprouted from the ground, their leaves a bright, vibrant green. Grass carpeted the landscape, waving gently in an unseen breeze. Before long, I found myself in a dense forest, the scenery a sharp contrast to the surreal colors of moments ago. But it wasn’t normal grass, and that definitely creeped me out. It looked… It looked like something out of a video game. Almost as if it was 3-D rendered.
More than anything, it reminded me of an anime landscape, stylized and gorgeous.
"Albert!" I shouted again, the sound of my voice muffled by the thick foliage around me. Nothing but silence greeted me.
Suddenly, I heard the rustling of leaves, causing my heart to leap in my chest. I spun around, scanning my surroundings. "Albert, is that you?"
To my surprise, a figure emerged from behind one of the trees. But it wasn't Albert. It was a girl who looked slightly older than me, with long, waist-length dark blue hair and a simple, black robe and a large staff with a gem on top of it.
She had an aura of curiosity about her, and I was immediately weirded out by the fact that she… well. She looked human, but she had a weird-looking ahoge jutting out from her hair. In fact, she looked like she was 3-D rendered just like the environment around us. If I had to peg her age, it would be right around college age. She was a bit above average in height, and had long, slender legs that accentuated her robes.
That wasn’t important right now, though.
"Hm, a regular human?" The girl tilted her head with a curious smile in a surprisingly cute gesture. "Interesting. It's been a while since I've seen one of you. I guess you’re from one of the Earths?"
"I... what? Who are you? What are you? Where am I?" I asked, panic flooding my veins. My mind spun with possibilities and explanations, but none of them made sense.
"Well, let’s just say I used to be like you." she introduced herself nonchalantly, "From Earth, even. I am still very much human, or at last I consider myself to be. But that's not important. You're at a crossroads between worlds, of sorts. I happened to be a woman with a mission myself, and I no longer believe in coincidences, so I welcome your company."
"What do you mean, 'crossroads'? What about my friend, Albert? I need to find him." I was rambling, my words coming out in a rush. I needed to stay calm, but everything was spiraling out of control.
The girl regarded me thoughtfully for a moment before cautiously approaching me. “Ah, you have ample amounts of exogenous dream essence on you… a mana conduit given by a friend or mentor perhaps?”
"Y-yes," I stammered, my eyes welling up with tears. "Someone gave me a crystal."
"Hmm, could I see it?" she said, extending her hand.
She was asking for the crystal.
I hesitated for a moment before pulling it out from my pocket and handing it to her. She examined Twilight Aster’s crystal closely, her eyes scanning over its smooth surface. The color seemed to shift and dance in the soft light, casting tiny rainbows on her face. It was very much active now — not a dull, lifeless rock like it had been when I wound up in that ‘Echo’ or whatever it was.
"Well, isn't this interesting?" She muttered to herself. She looked up, her eyes twinkling with curiosity. "You've been given a wonderful tool.”
"What do you mean?" I asked, a cold fear beginning to gnaw at my insides.
“This was meant to draw mana and life essence from you, but it is a two-way conduit. Whoever created it was fully intent on sacrificing themselves for you if it came down to it,” the girl mused. “But it doesn't matter now.”
She turned it over, before holding it up to the light.
"In any case, I knew I sensed another passing through moments ago. Well, I’ll be glad to inform you that he has been pulled to the same world as this source entirely," she said, her voice surprisingly soft. She paused for a moment, as if trying to find the right words. "I suppose a Herald or as most of the worlds call it, a Duke sent you here? It’s a considerable distance, but one you should be able to cross rather quickly, with the pull of your destiny. Not just a physical distance... It's a dimensional one. A metaphysical one."
"A... dimensional distance?" I echoed, my mind spinning. I remembered the stranger's words, the hints of future horror and despair. “Destiny?”
"Ah, but don't worry about that yet," she said, a mysterious smile playing on her lips. "There's always a way. But that's not important. What matters now is getting you to your friend. Let me see what I can do with this crystal."
She held up the crystal once more, her eyes narrowing in concentration. Slowly, the crystal began to glow, bathing the girl in a soft, ethereal light. As I watched, the light swirled around her, forming into a shimmering, surreal road that seemed to stretch into infinity. The sight was breathtaking, a stark contrast to the fear gnawing at my heart.
"There," she said, the light fading to leave only a surreal, hazy, golden staircase into the sky in its wake. "This should get you where you need to go. Just follow the path, and it will lead you to your Albert."
"But... What about you? What happens if I take the wrong path or get lost? How will I find my way back?" I asked, my heart pounding in my chest.
She simply smiled, her eyes sparkling with an unspoken promise. "Don't worry. I doubt someone as interesting as you would wind up lost in this space.
Then, without another word, she stepped aside, leaving me alone at the start of the surreal road with a nod.
“Umn. Just for posterity’s sake. What's your name?" I asked, desperate for some kind of anchor in this madness.
She closed her eyes, and gave me a sweet grin that belied the air of stoic, all-knowing wisdom she’d projected minutes earlier. "Oh, I suppose you can call me Alice," she said, her smile widening. "Alice Liddell. But that’s a story for another time. It was a pleasure, Sienna.”
I blinked at her. I didn’t give her my name, did I?
I shoved the name and surreal encounter to the back of my mind, and stared up at my destination. A doorway that opened up at the top of the stairs.
As I walked away, I heard Alice murmur something under her breath. I couldn't make out the words, but they filled me with a sense of purpose. I was going to find Albert, and we were going to make it home. We had to.
And with that, I took my first step into the unknown, leaving the mysterious Alice behind.