The Cycle

The rat race can be an endless cycle. Michelle Liew

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The rat race was too familiar to George Lim. He had dedicated a decade of his life to NexCorp, plodding through days and nights in exchange for a new executive position-perhaps a bonus.

He made his way to the CEO's office, each step filled with anticipation. The CEO pushed an envelope across her desk with an almost predatory look.

"You've earned this, George. The chance at both work and life."

He scanned the document. The CEO wasn't just making an offer. It was a proposal to SPLIT him.

"There will be two of you. One will stay here, working around the clock for the company. The other will get the life you've always wanted--Freedom."

George paused in thought. Could he have the ultimate balance between work and life? Would his duplicate provide time for family? Or make him obsolete?

He didn't need long to think. He signed the document.

The next morning, he felt the pleasant warmth of a latte in his hands.

He had NO memory of Nexcorp Robotics.

FREEDOM.

Until, on a shop window's surface., he caught a glimpse of someone.

HIMSELF.

In a dark suit, he was walking towards NexCorp.

A cold chill pierced his skin, and his mind raced. This version of himself did not balance scales--it was a trade-off.

George realized the awful truth---Nexcorp didn't just trap workers--it locked them in endless work cycles. The free versions? Just illusions that kept the 'useful' ones compliant. They were two halves of a whole, split to serve.

There were no incentives. No balance. Just a workforce in an infinite loop.

He had signed off on a lie.

George strode purposefully into the Nexcorp building. He'd been living a lie--he was a cog in the workforce system, formed on deception and control.

He stormed into the CEO's office. "It's over. I know what you're up to. You want to keep us all under your thumb. ENDLESSLY. Well, it won't work."

The CEO simply crossed her slim legs and laughed. "You think you can stop this? You are just one in a sea of duplicates!

George's eyes blazed with the furious fire of a person who had too much.

"I'm not your first. But I will be your last. You think they make you untouchable but you forgot something. What if they realize that they're pawns?"

He reached into his pants pocket for a little device with a label: "System Meltdown."

He faced the CEO. "You see, it doesn't matter if there are more duplicates. I press this, and your illusion shatters."

The CEO became frantic. "You're a fool! You can't erase the company--you'll become an obsolete memory!"

Without hesitation, he pressed the button. The walls trembled and alarms blared. It felt as if everything he had always known was coming apart.

Outside, the duplicates began to realize the truth--they were lost in this heinous cycle.

The CEO slammed the table, furious at his betrayal. "You've destroyed everything! We were unstoppable!"

George smiled, refusing to flinch. "No, you did."

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This text is entirely original. Any presence of AI tags is coincidental. The number of words in the story is 500.