A soft blue glow bathed Tris Morgan's face as he stared at the computer screen, the light highlighting the dark circles under his amber-gold eyes. Three empty energy drink cans formed a small pyramid to his right, next to a vape pen and a half-eaten bag of chips. His fingers tapped restlessly on the desk, unsure whether to reach for the vape or the energy drink first.
He chose the vape, inhaling deeply and watching the THC-infused vapor swirl in front of the screen before dissolving into nothing. The familiar calm descended, dulling the edges of his thoughts just enough to be manageable. It wasn't that he enjoyed being high all the time—it was that he hated being sober more.
"Just one more video," he muttered to himself, clicking on another occult documentary about ancient stargates. The YouTube algorithm knew him too well at this point, serving up an endless stream of content about hidden history, cosmic mysteries, and the secret architecture of reality.
His phone buzzed with a notification. His mother, again.
Hey Trisananda. Haven't heard from you in three weeks. Just checking you're still alive. Love you.
“Ew.” He grimaced at her use of his full name. She knew he hated her using it, which was probably why she used it. Tris flipped the phone face-down without responding. He'd deal with it later. Or tomorrow. Or never. Every conversation with her turned into the same thing anyway—subtle digs about his career choices, questions about when he'd find a "real job," comments about how he was wasting his psychology degree making "conspiracy videos."
The irony wasn't lost on him that he'd spent four years studying the human mind but couldn't fix whatever was broken in his own. Or in his relationship with his mother.
His latest video about CTMU theory had done surprisingly well—almost twenty thousand views in three days. His subscriber count was climbing steadily. Not that it paid much, but it was something. Something that was his, that he'd built himself.
Tris leaned back in his chair, rubbing his eyes. The familiar guilt crept in as he glanced at the clock—3:27 AM. Another night lost to the internet, to videos, to the endless scroll. Another night he'd promised himself would be different. He'd told himself he'd go to bed by midnight, would cut back on the THC, would start that workout routine he'd been planning for months.
Tomorrow, maybe.
The bathroom beckoned, and he sighed as he stood up, his legs stiff from sitting too long. He caught his reflection in the mirror—warm brown hair with natural golden highlights that hadn't seen a brush in days, stubble that was approaching beard territory. Taichi’s Crest of Courage necklace hung around his neck, a relic from a childhood obsession that had never quite faded. Some would call it childish, but he didn't care. It reminded him of a time when courage felt possible, when the world still held wonder instead of dread.
He splashed water on his face, avoiding his own eyes in the mirror. The same internal monologue played on repeat: You're twenty-seven. You should have your shit together by now. You're wasting your potential. You're disappointing everyone. Yourself most of all.
Back at his desk, he reached for the vape again, craving the familiar fog that would silence those thoughts. As he inhaled, something caught his eye outside the window—a strange flickering in the night sky. A momentary glitch, like reality itself had stuttered.
Tris frowned, setting down the vape and moving to the window. The sky above his small rented house looked normal at first glance—stars partially obscured by wispy clouds, the distant glow of the city painting the horizon in muted orange.
Then it happened again. A seam appeared in the darkness, a straight line that widened unevenly, revealing swirls of deep purple, blue, and gold within. The tear grew larger, expanding across the sky like a wound in the fabric of reality itself.
"What the fuck?" Tris whispered, his heart pounding in his chest. He fumbled for his phone, recording the phenomenon as multiple tears appeared, intersecting and branching across the night sky. A low bass hum vibrated through his bones, and a high-pitched ringing filled his ears.
Gold and purple light spilled from the fractures, illuminating the neighborhood in an otherworldly glow. The air felt charged, electric—like the moment before lightning strikes. Tris watched, transfixed, as sheets of golden energy emerged from the tears, forming colored bubbles that descended slowly toward the ground.
His first coherent thought was: I'm too high. This isn't real.
But the vibration in his chest, the ringing in his ears, and the sheer presence of the phenomenon told him otherwise. This was happening. This was real.
The lights in his house flickered and died. His phone went dark in his hand. For a moment, everything electronic seemed to stop working—then just as suddenly came back to life. The humming intensified, then gradually faded to a background pulse.
Tris stood frozen at the window, watching as the sky continued to fracture above him. All the conspiracy theories, all the occult documentaries, all the fringe history he'd immersed himself in—none of it had prepared him for this moment. This wasn't a theory anymore. This was happening.
A sharp knock at his front door tore his attention away from the sky.
Three precise raps, in measured succession.
Tris hesitated, adrenaline coursing through his system. Who the hell would be at his door at nearly 4 AM during what appeared to be the actual apocalypse?
Another three knocks, identical to the first set.
He moved cautiously to the door, peering through the peephole. A young woman stood on his porch, her face upturned directly toward the peephole as if she knew exactly where he would be looking from. She was petite, maybe 5'1", with long silky blonde hair partially tied back. But it was her eyes that made Tris take a step back—sky blue and luminous, seeming to glow in the strange light filtering from above.
She smiled, as if she could see him through the door.
"Hello, Solaris," she said, her voice clear and musical despite the barrier between them. "I know you're there. It's time to open the door."
Tris felt a chill run down his spine. No one called him Solaris. He'd never heard that name before. And yet... something about it resonated, like a forgotten melody.
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"Who are you?" he called through the door, his hand hovering near the deadbolt.
"I'm Eli," she replied simply. "I'm your twin flame. Your other half. I've been waiting for you for a very, very long time."
"That doesn't make any sense," Tris said, even as something deep inside him recognized the truth in her words. "How do you know where I live?"
She laughed, the sound like sunshine. "I've always known where you are, Tris. I've been with you your whole life. You just couldn't see me until now." She gestured upward. "The veil is thinning. The Phoenix Ascension has begun. Please, open the door. We don't have much time."
Against every rational instinct, Tris found himself unlocking the door. Something about her voice, about the name she'd called him, about the certainty that radiated from her—it bypassed his usual caution.
As the door swung open, he had a split second to register her smile before she launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his torso in a fierce embrace. He staggered back, surprised not just by the gesture but by the familiarity of it—like being hugged by someone he'd known his entire life.
"Finally," she whispered against his chest. "You have no idea how long I've waited to do that."
Tris stood awkwardly, his arms hanging at his sides as this stranger—Eli—hugged him. After a moment of hesitation, he carefully returned the embrace. Something about it felt right, like a puzzle piece clicking into place.
She pulled back, beaming up at him. Despite her diminutive height, she radiated an energy that filled the room like sunlight. Now that she was inside, he could see that her blonde hair had an almost ethereal quality, as if light passed through it rather than reflecting off it.
"You look exactly as I knew you would," she said, studying his face with unconcealed delight. "Though perhaps a bit more... rumpled." She reached up to brush his messy hair from his forehead, the gesture so intimate it made him step back.
"I don't understand what's happening," Tris said, gesturing toward the window where the fractured sky continued to pulse with otherworldly light. "What is this? What did you call it?"
"The Phoenix Ascension," Eli said, moving through his living room with the confidence of someone who'd been there before. She picked up a framed photo of Tris from college, smiling at it fondly. "It happens every 26,000 years, at the completion of the precession of the equinoxes. The veil between dimensions thins, allowing beings like me to fully manifest in your reality."
Tris followed her, watching as she moved through his house with practiced ease, trailing her fingers over his bookshelves, picking up objects and replacing them like she was reacquainting herself with old friends.
"Beings like you?" he echoed.
"I'm your twin flame," she said, turning to face him. "The other half of your soul. In the higher dimensions—what you might call the Oversoul realms—we're part of the same being though in separate vessels. I'm the feminine aspect of our complete self."
She continued moving through his house, now heading toward the kitchen as if she'd lived there for years.
"You don't need the tour," Tris said suddenly, the realization striking him. "You already know my house."
Eli smiled over her shoulder. "I've been here the whole time, Tris. Just... in a parallel frequency you couldn't perceive until now. The Phoenix Ascension aligns these frequencies, allowing us to interact directly."
She opened his refrigerator, grimacing at the sparse contents. "Still living on energy drinks and takeout, I see."
"I don't understand," Tris said, following her into the kitchen. "If what you're saying is true, if this... Phoenix Ascension is real, what does it mean? What happens now?"
Eli closed the refrigerator and turned to him, her expression growing serious. "It means the games have begun. The System activates during the Phoenix Ascension. It's how souls ascend to higher dimensions here—through a series of challenges designed to accumulate Death Points."
"Death Points?" Tris felt a cold weight settle in his stomach. "That sounds... ominous."
"It's not what you think," Eli assured him. "Death within the System isn't permanent—it's transformative. Each time you die in a System Zone, you gain points that help you ascend. It's how you integrate with your higher self." She gestured between them. "With me, and with our Oversoul."
Tris shook his head, overwhelmed. "This sounds insane."
"I know it's a lot," Eli said gently. "But you've been preparing for this your whole life, Tris. All those conspiracy theories, all that occult research—you were unconsciously seeking the truth. Part of you has always known."
She moved closer, her blue eyes searching his. "You're part of something bigger, too. You belong to a Monad—a soul family of twelve who—"
"Stop," Tris said abruptly, holding up his hand. "Just... give me a minute." He slumped against the kitchen counter, running his hands through his hair. His head was pounding, and not just from the information overload. The familiar ache of THC withdrawal was starting, coupled with caffeine dependency and the bone-deep exhaustion of insomnia.
"I can't... I can't deal with being part of some cosmic soul family right now," he said. "I can barely handle being part of my actual family. I'm a mess, Eli. I'm addicted to weed, to caffeine, to..." he trailed off, unwilling to mention his pornography habit to this ethereal woman. "I don't sleep. I barely eat real food. I'm avoiding my mother's calls because I can't stand the disappointment in her voice." He looked up at her, vulnerability naked on his face. "I need to fix myself before I can save the world or ascend or whatever this is."
Instead of the judgment he expected, Eli's face softened with understanding. She reached out, placing her hand over his heart. Tris felt a warmth spread from the point of contact, a gentle calm that eased some of the jangling in his nerves.
"I know," she said softly. "I've watched you struggle. I've been with you through all of it. And we'll work through it together. One step at a time."
She glanced at the Crest of Courage hanging from his neck. "That's perfect, you know. It's already meaningful to you. It can serve as your Personal Anchor."
"My what?"
"Your Personal Anchor. It's how I can materialize around you, how we maintain our connection between dimensions." She reached out, touching the necklace gently. "Close your eyes. Hold it in your hand and think of me. Feel the connection between us."
Feeling slightly foolish but too overwhelmed to resist, Tris closed his eyes and clasped the necklace in his palm. He thought of Eli—her blue eyes, her radiating warmth, the strange familiarity he felt in her presence.
A tingling sensation spread from the necklace up his arm, warming his entire body. When he opened his eyes, the necklace was glowing softly with a golden light that faded gradually back to normal.
"There," Eli said, satisfaction evident in her voice. "Now I can appear whenever you need me, as long as you have your Anchor."
Tris released the necklace, letting it fall back against his chest. "This is real, isn't it? I'm not just having some kind of breakdown or epic hallucination?"
"It's real," Eli confirmed. "More real than what you've been calling reality until now."
She gestured to the couch in the living room. "You need rest. The first night of the Phoenix Ascension is overwhelming for humans. Tomorrow we can talk more about what's to come."
Too exhausted to argue, Tris moved to the couch and sat down heavily. Eli sat beside him, then gently guided his head to rest in her lap. The gesture should have felt awkward or invasive from someone he'd just met, but instead, it felt like coming home.
Her fingers threaded through his hair, stroking gently. The contact sent waves of comfort through him, easing the withdrawal symptoms and the anxiety that constantly hummed in his veins.
"You are so much more than your struggles, Solaris," she murmured, using that strange name again. "You are ancient and powerful, a sovereign of the Tribe of the Sun. Your addictions, your pain—they're just temporary conditions of this human form. They don't define you."
Her voice washed over him, soothing and certain. "Rest now. I'll be here when you wake. We have work to do, but for tonight, just rest."
Tris wanted to ask more questions, to understand the impossible things happening around him, but his eyelids grew heavy. For the first time in years, sleep came easily, wrapped in the warmth of Eli's presence and the gentle rhythm of her fingers in his hair instead of the harsh blue light of a phone screen and the vanishing smoke of a vape pen.
Outside, the sky continued to fracture, golden light spilling through tears in reality. The Phoenix Ascension had begun. The games were about to start. But for tonight, Tris slept, anchored by the presence of his other half, his twin flame—the one who had waited so long for him to finally see her.