Life at the Cost of Drinking a Cup of Time: The Simulated Dream

Part Six: Fractured Horizon

The laboratory was engulfed in an eerie silence, the hum of the machines drowned beneath the weight of anticipation. Alex stood at the center, sensors meticulously attached to his temples, wires snaking like veins into the heart of the system. Every breath he took felt heavier than the last, as if even the air resisted him.

Darcy hesitated, fingers hovering over the console. "This is the last chance, Alex. We don’t know what’s waiting for you on the other side."

Alex met her gaze unwaveringly. "We never will—unless I go."

Rosalyn placed a reassuring hand on his arm, though she couldn’t hide the tremble in her fingers. "Just… come back."

A faint smile ghosted Alex’s lips as he closed his eyes.

Darcy exhaled sharply and pressed the start button. The room vibrated with energy, the machine roared to life. Data waves surged across the monitors, numbers morphing into unreadable symbols. And then—Alex vanished.


---

He awoke in motion. Not falling, not flying—something in between. Time stretched, twisted, fractured, and reassembled itself in broken frames, like an old film reel skipping endlessly.

Then, he landed.

The air was thick with an invisible electricity, the scent of scorched metal filling his nostrils. Alex stumbled forward, his boots scraping against an unfamiliar surface—smooth, artificial, yet aged and worn. A city loomed ahead, its towers sleek but cracked, its streets abandoned yet echoing with unseen movements. Shadows flickered at the edges of his vision, too swift to be real.

And then he saw her.

Sarah.

Older, exactly as he had seen her before. But this time, she wasn’t reaching out to help him. She was running—toward him, her eyes wide with terror and urgency.

"Alex!" Her voice cut through the silence. "You’re not supposed to be here!"

Before he could respond, the sky above them split open, light erupting from within like a wound torn in the fabric of reality. From the glow, a form emerged—vast, shifting, watching.

And then, a voice.

Not words heard, but a presence felt.

"You are not the first. But you may be the last."

Alex’s breath caught in his chest.

This wasn’t just the future.

It was a warning.


---

"Alex! You are now synchronized with Tom’s brain signals. Focus!"

Darcy’s voice rang in his ears, and suddenly, the world shifted.

Alex found himself at home, on the morning of the accident. Sunlight streamed through the windows. Sarah stood in the kitchen, preparing breakfast. Tom, brimming with energy, chattered about his new friend at school.

Alex knew this moment defined everything. But how?

Sarah grabbed the keys to drive Tom to school.

Alex lunged forward. "No, Sarah! I’ll take him today."

She laughed, but there was something in her eyes—something he hadn’t noticed before. "You’re sweet, Alex. But life isn’t that simple."

Then she paused and softly said, "Look at the window, Alex."

He turned. And his breath caught.

Beyond the glass, another version of himself stood. In another room.

Then another.

And another.

In one world, Tom was slightly younger, Sarah and Alex still youthful. In another, they were older. Infinite versions of himself, Sarah, Tom.

But something was wrong.

He whispered, "What am I supposed to do?"

Sarah laughed. But it wasn’t her usual laugh—it was bitter, quiet, as if hiding a terrible truth.

"Only one person gets to leave this room alive, Alex. And that’s you."

Alex’s eyes widened. "And if I refuse?"

Sarah sighed, sorrow flashing in her gaze. "Then you’ll be trapped here forever. There is no exit. No escape. This is a matrix."

Alex turned to Tom. He was alive.

So he whispered, "I want Tom to live."

Sarah nodded slowly. "You’re a good father, Alex. But are you willing to be cursed forever?"

Alex smiled faintly. "Yes. If it means saving Tom, yes. And if I can see you this clearly again, what else could I possibly want?"

Sarah closed her eyes. "That’s your choice."

A heavy silence swallowed the room.


---

In the lab, Darcy stared at the monitors. The machines displayed unreadable signals.

"What’s happening?!" Rosalind asked, panicked.

Moments later, Tom gasped, his eyes snapping open, filled with confusion and fear.

He was alive.

But Alex?

He had fallen into a deep sleep, a coma.

Darcy murmured under her breath, "He’s trapped in another world…"

That night, Rosalyn returned home, tears in her eyes. She played the recorded session.

The tape was empty.

No sound, no image, no sign of Alex.

Only a faint whisper echoed in the silence.

Was he still there?
Was this an ending?
Or a beginning?

End of Chapter One