Ray looked around with tired eyes, ensuring nobody was around before going back to his phone.
He had the closing-shift as a supermarket cashier, something that he didn't actually mind too much because usually no customers were around towards the end. Something that let him avoid actually working most of the time.
"Hey man, you're not supposed to be on your phone," a young sounding voice spoke up from the aisle.
'If only there were no other employees', Ray thought to himself.
The complainer was Kendall, the only other regular employee assigned to the shift. A teenager, just out of high school with dirty brown messy hair that looked just like the mop he was pushing. He wasn't a manager or anything, but he took his job seriously and expected everyone else to do the same.
Ray responded by motioning with his eyes towards the one and only customer, who was clearly preoccupied at the moment. Too busy deciding between whole and 2% milk on the other side of the store to notice or care that Ray was wasting time on his phone.
Kendall just shrugged, disappearing behind the next aisle with his push-broom as Ray watched him go before going back to his phone. Tapping the screen to see it was almost one o'clock. Closing time. If only their customer would hurry up.
A pudgy man with a basket full of random items rounded the aisle a few minutes later, coming to a halt in front of the one and only open checkout lane. Continuing to peer between Ray and the self-checkout machine, as if thoughtfully considering the two options as Ray could only wait soullessly, hating his job more by the minute.
His phone vibrating in his pocket unexpectedly as the man shuffled off towards the self-checkout.
Usually nobody ever called him this late at night...
Taking his phone out only to see what appeared to be an emergency alert, warning ominously in bold words.
"We've failed. The integration has started. Forgive us."
"What is this? Someone pulling a prank?" Ray couldn't help but wonder aloud. Looking up from his phone towards the direction of the customer to see if they had gotten an alert as well, only to be greeted by an entirely foreign sight. A floating text box with a short description and three options to choose from.
Reality as you know it no longer exists, your integration into the overworld has been prepared. Integration is both a trial and a reward, the harder the path now the easier the path later. Choose your preferred difficulty. Easy (default) Moderate Hard
"You're seeing this thing right?" Ray asked, looking at the customer who was now waving both hands around like he was swatting at bees, trying to chase away the screen which had just appeared in front of them both.
Looking closer at the description it appeared like a countdown was ensuing, the number on the screen started at thirty and was ticking down with every passing second. The dwindling time to choose prompting Ray to consider which option he wanted to go with, whatever this popup box was he wanted to make the choice himself rather than let it choose for him. Ultimately going with the [hard] difficulty option, the part about better rewards stimulating his sense of greed.
The text-box disappearing unexpectedly along with the rest of the world as darkness filled Ray's vision. A halo of light appearing above him, illuminating where he stood, darkness encompassing the world around him, even the 'ground' that he stood on appearing shadowy and formless.
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Another light flickered on next to him, as a short woman in her fourties appeared, looking just as confused as he was. Another light appeared, and another stranger with it. The flickering of lights turning on all around him as more and more people appeared out of nowhere, each of them suspended in darkness and illuminated in a halo of light. His surroundings quickly turning into a sea of people, stretching on endlessly, much farther than he could possibly see, each of them equally spaced and arranged into neat rows, as if placed there by design.
Utter confusion filling Ray's mind as he witnessed the sight before him, and as if to answer his question another textbox appeared.
All of you that have been summoned here are those that have chosen the hardest path. The path of fate. Fate is the most important attribute of all. Only one of you will survive, the survivor will be selected at random. Good luck.
Everyone panicked after reading that verse, only one person would survive? How many thousands, how many millions of faces did he see when he looked around? It was too many to count. If this were happening across the world it could even be a billion or more... every single person who selected the hardest difficulty. It was a global lottery where everyone but the winner died.
Crying and hysterics broke out around him as everyone else came to the same grim conclusions. And then... there was silence.
All around him was darkness. Only his own halo of light remained.
Ray waited in stunned solitude, trying to comprehend what had just happened to him. Was the selection over? Did he survive or was this what happened when you failed? Was he going to die now?
Another screen appearing just as suddenly as the last, answering his confusion.
Congratulations, you are favored by fate. We will return to your newly integrated reality shortly. The other difficulties are still undergoing integration, please have patience during that time.
Ray blinked his eyes once and he was back at the cash register.
The customer that was by the checkout was nowhere to be seen.
"Kendall?" Ray raised his voice, calling out to see if his coworker was there. Hearing nothing back in reply.
He couldn't help but check the aisles, coming across a floor mop before long that was lying flat against the tiled floor. Kendall nowhere to be seen.
It wasn't a dream? Ray was having trouble processing the sudden events, waiting around for a few minutes, then an hour, as he waited absentmindedly for Kendall or the customer to appear. But neither of them ever did.
Walking shakily out to his car in the lone parking lot, Ray headed over to a particularly beaten up vehicle. A twenty year old civic that was already on its last legs. Openly the door with a creak and sitting down on the worn out driver's seat for a second, sections of cushion missing made the seat uncomfortable but he had grown used to it by now. Sucking in cold air as he tried to cool his head.
"I'm not going crazy, this is happening. I'm really not going crazy." He sat staring at the front of the store with the high beams on while the car engine ran, dozens of thoughts flowing through his head simultaneously as he mulled over the events that had just transpired.
"I almost died today, didn't I?" Ray said again, abruptly. Speaking to nobody particular but himself, the reality of his miraculous survival only now starting to set in. This was the closest he had ever come to death, and even now he wasn't sure how he had lived through it.
Creeping out of the nearly empty parking lot after he felt he had regained enough composure, slowly pulling out onto the empty streets, as he toured around the deserted streets. It was usually pretty slow this time of night, but he hadn't seen a single person so far.
Spotting another car that was stopped at a green light without moving, Ray slowed down to an idling pace as he drove passed. The car's engine was still running but the driver was ominously missing. Craning his neck as he passed, Ray searched the rest of the car with his eyes to no use.
Encountering similar sights all the way home as he drove the familiar route. Dozens of crashed or abandoned vehicles but no drivers to be seen. As if he were the only one left alive in the whole world.
Pulling up to his run-down apartment and walking up the stairs to his room number, the stairwell lights flickering on and off as usual. Dead-bolting the door shut once he was inside. Even if he didn't know if anybody else was left alive at this point, he still did it by habit.
Robotically following the motions of his normal routine, eating, brushing his teeth, and finally entering his bedroom. Exhausted both mentally and physically he fell asleep just as soon as his head hit the pillow.