A low hum filled the air. Leaves rustled. The scent of damp moss and strange flowers lingered.
Lucien stirred first.
His eyes blinked open to a sky filled with *two moons* and a blanket of distant, unfamiliar stars. The air was still, but electric — like the world itself was holding its breath.
He sat up slowly.
"Mira?" he called out, voice raspy. "Amara?"
Mira groaned nearby, rubbing her eyes. "Ugh… what just happened?"
"I feel like I got hit by a truck," Amara muttered, sitting up as well.
They all looked around. A *clearing in the middle of a thick forest*, mist swirling at the edges, trees unlike anything Earth held. Their bark shimmered. The wind whispered words that didn't make sense.
"Where... are we?" Mira asked, standing shakily.
"I don't know," Lucien said, checking his chest where the strange cube had disappeared. No mark, but something felt different inside him. Like static just under the skin.
Then it happened.
A soft beep.
A floating transparent screen flickered into existence before them — glowing faintly blue, with thin gold outlines. Text typed itself in mid-air:
> Welcome, User Zero.
> User ID: #00001
> Designation: Origin Host
> System Core: Active
Lucien's breath caught.
Mira and Amara stared, frozen.
"What... the hell is that?" Amara whispered.
Then a voice — clear, calm, synthetic — spoke from nowhere and everywhere.
"System Online."
Lucien stumbled back. "System?"
> Greetings, User Zero. You have been successfully integrated with Prototype Core #1. You have been chosen as the Origin Host.*
"What does that mean?" Lucien asked. "Why us? What is this place?"
> This is a Parallel Dimensional Construct. Codename: Sector Null. You were selected upon contact with the dormant core. Activation has triggered full transition.
"Wait, wait," Mira said, hands up. "How do we get back? Back to Earth?"
The screen paused — as if thinking.
Then, without a trace of emotion, it answered:
> You cannot return. Clones of your physical and cognitive profiles have been deployed on Earth. They carry your appearance, memories, behaviors, and presence. Your lives will continue seamlessly.
Silence.
Lucien's heart dropped. "What do you mean… clones?"
> Clones were necessary to prevent disruption. Your families, friends, employers, and digital systems will not detect your absence. Earth remains unaffected.
Mira's face twisted. "So we're just… gone? Trapped here? Forever?"
> Correct. Your existence in this dimension has no bearing on Earth's timeline. You are, for all purposes, considered still present on Earth.
Lucien clenched his fists. "This can't be real."
Then the screen blinked again — new lines appearing:
> Beginning World Integration Tutorial in T-minus 5 minutes.
> Prepare for Initialization Phase One: Survival Calibration.
The words faded.
And for the first time since arriving, they heard something else — deep in the forest.
Growls.
Heavy breathing.
Rustling leaves that didn't sound like wind.
Lucien's eyes met Mira's. Then Amara's.
Whatever this world was… it wasn't going to wait for them to adjust.