Killed or Be Killed
The first time Nile saw a man die, he didn't scream.
He should have. Everyone else did.
The blade flashed—too fast to process. One moment, the man was standing. The next, he was gurgling on his own blood, hands clawing at his severed throat.
The sand drank it greedily. The crowd roared.
Nile staggered back, breath ragged, hands trembling. His heartbeat pounded in his ears.
"What the hell is this? How did I get here?"
A golden throne loomed above the arena, casting a long shadow over the bloodstained battlefield.
Seated upon it, draped in royal crimson and gold, was a man Nile never expected to see again.
Greg.
The name struck like a bolt of lightning.
His mind reeled, fragments of a different life crashing together—a dull office, flickering screens, hushed conversations.
Greg.
His coworker.
Nile's vision blurred. The world tilted.
Then—
Darkness.
When the Gods Play Dice
"He's an odd one, isn't he?"
"Indeed. But he's… interesting. Your turn to roll the dice."
The god leaned forward, picking up a die and giving it a lazy toss. It clattered against the table, landing with a soft thud.
"Let's see what happens next."
Far below, in the mortal world, something shifted.
The Weight of a Day
Nile's eyes flickered open to the sound of his alarm blaring—shrill, monotonous, relentless.
He groaned, rubbing his temples as he forced himself up from the thin mattress that barely supported his aching back.
His small apartment was dimly lit by the soft morning sun filtering through a half-broken curtain. The air was thick with the scent of unwashed laundry and stale leftovers from last night's rushed dinner.
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
The day had barely begun, and already, exhaustion clung to him like a second skin.
He moved through his usual routine with mechanical precision—boiling water for instant coffee, brushing his teeth as the kettle whistled in protest, scrolling through messages on his phone.
Mail Notification:
📩 "Bills. Work emails. Missed calls from your wife."
His thumb hovered over the screen. A moment of hesitation.
Then—he sighed, locked the device, and tossed it onto the cluttered table.
His daughter was sick again. His wife had taken her back to his parents' home for better care. His job at the IT Managed Services Provider felt more fragile than ever, threatened by automation.
Every cent he earned seemed to vanish before he could even hold onto it.
A Game of Luck
By the time his shift ended, Nile was drained. The chaotic streets swallowed him once more—honking horns, street vendors shouting, waves of people moving like a current.
His phone buzzed.
📞 Ethan calling...
He swiped to answer.
The call dropped.
Nile frowned, staring at the screen. Strange.
Shaking it off, he kept walking—until something caught his eye.
Two kids sat on the pavement, playing Snakes and Ladders. One of them groaned as his dice roll sent him sliding down a snake.
"Man, my luck is terrible," the kid muttered. Then, noticing Nile watching, he grinned. "Hey, mister, wanna roll for me?"
Nile hesitated, then knelt down with a tired smile. "Sure, why not?"
He picked up the dice, gave it a quick shake, and rolled.
1.
The kid groaned. "Wow, your luck is even worse than mine!"
Nile exhaled, shaking his head. Even in a board game, I can't catch a break.
With a tired chuckle, he stood and walked away, the moment already slipping from his mind.
Just as he disappeared into the crowd, the other kid tilted his head, studying the board.
"He's not that unlucky," the boy murmured. "You only needed a 1 to win the game."
Nile didn't hear him.
But if he had, maybe he would have realized—sometimes, what feels like misfortune is just fate setting the final piece in place.
The Blackout
When Nile finally got home, his body screamed for rest, but there was still more to do.
Laundry. Dishes. A meal to prepare.
His hands worked mechanically, pushing through the dull rhythm of his life. One step forward, two steps sinking deeper.
As the night deepened, he finally collapsed onto his bed, phone in hand. He scrolled—news, social media, mindless distractions.
"Does he even know what's coming?"
A low chuckle. "He will soon enough."
📩 New Mail Notification.
Sender: Unknown
Subject: Tired? Where's your luck?
Nile frowned. The message felt... off.
No sender details. No body text. Just a single, clickable link.
He hesitated.
Even he knew this was probably phishing or a scam.
A smarter man would have ignored it. Deleted it.
But something gnawed at him—a whisper in the back of his mind.
Before he could stop himself, he clicked.
The moment he did—
The screen glitched. A brief flicker—then nothing.
The hum of the fan stopped.
The distant city noise vanished.
The air thickened.
Nile's breath hitched.
He reached for a paper towel—
And everything changed.