After finishing his haunting game, Reever looked at the system timer. Only three minutes remained before he would be pulled back into his current timeline. With nothing left to do, he sat down and waited for the pull. Inside his mind, he prayed that this time everything would work as it should. No strange power cuts. No twisted errors. No sudden breaches in the system's defenses. He wished for one clean return.
This was one of the few days he would be human again. He could lie in a bed, feel softness, blink slowly, and sleep until his bones relaxed. He did not feel tired now, but living without simple human needs had become a curse. Hunger, sleepiness, even the ache of overworking were small gifts he missed. He wanted to eat until his stomach hurt. He wanted to sleep until a dream woke him up. Being what he was now took all that away. It was a cruel punishment for someone who used to be a proud foodie.
The timer hit zero.
Before he could greet the familiar pull of time, a message flashed across his view. He froze.
[ Due to the System's mistake and the player being tossed into the river of time, three gifts have been awarded to the player for surviving.
Gift one. One chance to play a match with your previous teammates.
Gift two. Player can communicate clearly with other players even as a bot.
Gift three. Player can hide his bot insignia for half a day. ]
Reever blinked at the screen. Of all the outcomes he expected, this was not one. These gifts were real blessings to him. The first one was the most precious. A chance to play with his old teammates. A chance he had long buried.
He remembered how his rank had been stuck at veteran three. No matter what he did, he could not climb. His team had been legendary for years, far above the current him. Meeting them in game had become nothing more than a dead wish.
So when the system asked if he wanted to join the match, he pressed yes without thinking twice. His vision shifted instantly.
B's voice echoed inside him. " Finally, the universe answered your prayers. I am starting to think you have a secret relationship with Lady Luck. You are getting rewards that men would sell their legs for."
Reever ignored him. He wanted to feel this moment. He wanted to breathe in this miracle.
He expected the system to drop him into a Battle Royale match. That would have given him more time with them. Longer play, longer talk. But he got a multiplayer match instead. He accepted it. Beggars had no room to pick what they wanted.
Voices poured in through the team comms.
" Yo guys, new player with us. Good thing too. We were missing one person."
Another voice added, " Hope you are not useless, bot sixty seven. Strange name you have."
A female voice chimed in. " Not as strange as Mandarin. Who names themselves that."
Reever froze. He knew that voice. He knew it in his bones. Even if he lost every memory he had, he would still know it. It was Tash. His wife. The younger version of her, back when she was still playing the game. Before she quit gaming, before she married him, before she became a mother and found a different life.
Another voice broke in. " Come on. Stop complaining. Let the game load. Bot zero sixty seven, do not disappoint us. If the game put you here, you must know something."
Reever knew that voice too. It was him. The past him. The stubborn and confident version who thought he ruled the whole map. Reever understood his tone well, so he let it slide without complaint.
But B never let him breathe. " You used to be this cold. What happened. Now you are slow, stupid, and alone."
Reever answered in a flat tone. " You are me. You are insulting yourself. And back then I was still running after Tash. She rejected me more times than I can count. So do not judge him. Let us focus."
The timer for the match counted down. The map appeared.
Nuke town. Team death match.
As soon as the match started, Reever moved like a calm storm. He had promised himself not to cheat. No camouflage. No bending rules. But he could not turn off his armor. Bullets bounced off him because life enjoyed being unfair. His rifle was also too strong. Even a shot to the leg could end someone.
Within ten seconds, he had three kills. All headshots. Half of a team gone.
Tash spoke up. " Bot zero sixty seven, your aim is crazy. Just like Reever. He is also a sniper and you both have three kills in ten seconds."
Reever laughed lightly. " Training. And good mood."
Inside him, B poked at his ribs. " Just tell her you are her future husband. You coward."
Reever rolled his eyes and glided across the small truck at mid. His movement was smooth, almost lazy. Past Reever was good, but present Reever was something else. Years of hunting across timelines turned him into a creature that understood movement better than breathing.
He peeked through the window of the yellow house. Two enemies ran straight. Free gifts. He snapped his rifle twice.
Crack.
Crack.
Both dropped.
" Five kills already. Zero sixty seven is showing off," Mandarin complained.
Tash added playfully, " Calm down bot. You will make Reever jealous."
Reever replied, " Your Reever needs to avoid dying first."
Past Reever clicked his tongue. " Talk again and I will mute everyone. I need to catch up."
Inside Reever's mind, B was cheering. " Look at you pretending to be calm while trying to beat your past self. Admit it. You want to crush him."
Reever fired another headshot. " If I lose to him, I will delete myself."
" Wonderful. I enjoy your pain," B said.
Reever entered the second floor of the house for a better angle. Past Reever was climbing the scoreboard too. His aim still sharp. His movement still annoying. Every kill he made brought cheers from Tash. The sound softened something in Reever. It felt like touching an old photograph.
Suddenly Tash shouted, " Reever, left side."
Reever reacted instantly. The enemy trying to flank him died before lifting his gun.
" Fast reactions," past Reever muttered. " Almost like mine."
" Almost," Reever said.
B laughed. " Two versions of you being shy. I want both of you to lose."
Reever dropped to the ground floor and ran toward the blue house. Bullets flew at him from the backyard. An LMG sprayed wildly. The bullets tickled him but did nothing. He fired three clean shots and ended three more players.
Mandarin gasped. " Who trained this player."
Tash joked, " Maybe he is a retired developer."
Past Reever added, " Keep pushing. I want thirty kills. We are ahead."
The scoreboard flashed.
Bot zero sixty seven: 23Past Reever: 19Tash: 16Mandarin: 12Steward: 12Rooney: 11
B chuckled again. " You are winning. Of course you are. A man who refuses to lose even to himself."
" Quiet," Reever said. " The match is not over."
The enemy team suddenly went serious. They brought a UAV. Then a sentry gun near the green car.
Tash groaned. " They are sweating early. Who uses a sentry in TDM."
Past Reever said, " Sixty seven, break it."
Reever answered, " Already moving."
He climbed the wooden stairs, took a clean angle, and destroyed the sentry with one shot.
Three enemies rushed him with shotguns. Reever smiled. They really thought shotguns would help.
B teased him. " Let us see if you can handle pressure without cheating."
Reever stepped forward and erased them one by one.
Mandarin shouted, " Another triple."
Tash asked, " Please tell me you are human."
Reever inwardly laughed as he knew that after his death, he lost his status as a human.
Past Reever asked openly, " Who taught you all this."
Reever breathed out. " Myself."
B laughed. " Still not a lie."
Reever checked the scoreboard again.
Reever: 28Past Reever: 26
His past self was getting close. Reever felt his pride stir.
" Alright," he said softly. " Time to remind him who owns this map."
He took position at the bus lane. The famous line. His throne. The place where he had ended thousands of players long ago. He could almost hear the echoes of old matches.
B cleared his throat. " The real battle begins now. Future you versus past you. Show me who the true king of Nuke town is."
Reever steadied his rifle.
The match heated like boiling water.
The air grew sharp. His heartbeat slowed.
The next few seconds would decide who ruled this ground.