Darkness was not empty.
That was the first thing Aarav realized.
It moved.
It breathed.
It watched.
He was falling—or at least, it felt like falling. There was no wind, no sense of direction, just an endless descent through something thick and heavy, like liquid night. His body felt distant, unreal, as if it belonged to someone else.
Fragments of memories crashed through his mind.
A crown slipping from trembling hands.
Blood staining white marble.
A neon skyline collapsing into static.
A woman's voice whispering his name… again and again.
"Maya…" he murmured.
The darkness reacted.
Light split the void.
Aarav gasped and sucked in air so sharply it burned his lungs. His body slammed onto a hard surface, pain shooting through his spine. He rolled onto his side, coughing, his hands clawing at the ground as if he might fall again.
But there was ground.
Solid. Cold.
Real.
He opened his eyes.
The sky above him was not the familiar grey of rainclouds over Neo-Delhi. It was deep blue—too deep, almost unnaturally clear—streaked with thin, glowing lines that looked like cracks in glass.
Aarav froze.
The sky… was broken.
He pushed himself up slowly, ignoring the ache in his limbs. The place around him came into focus in pieces.
Tall stone buildings rose on either side of a wide street, their architecture sharp and angular, carved with glowing symbols that pulsed faintly like veins. Floating lights drifted lazily through the air, illuminating everything in a soft silver glow.
People walked past him.
They wore long coats, armor, robes—some made of materials he didn't recognize. Some had metallic implants glowing beneath their skin. Others carried weapons openly.
No one looked surprised to see him lying on the street.
No one looked at him at all.
Aarav's heart began to race.
"Okay," he whispered to himself. "Okay… I'm dreaming."
He stood up unsteadily.
The world did not dissolve.
The street did not fade.
A woman brushed past him, muttering something under her breath in a language he didn't understand. A child ran by, laughing, chased by a floating mechanical orb.
This was not a dream.
Panic clawed at his chest.
He reached into his pocket instinctively.
His phone was gone.
His jacket was gone too.
He was wearing unfamiliar clothes—dark fabric fitted close to his body, reinforced at the shoulders and chest. A thin metallic band circled his wrist, etched with the same glowing symbols he had seen on the buildings.
"What happened to me?" he muttered.
A memory surfaced.
The voice.
Love confirmed.
World stability compromised.
"Reset…"
The word sent a chill down his spine.
He looked down the street.
And then he saw her.
She stood near the center of the plaza, speaking to a group of people dressed in formal uniforms. Her posture was confident, commanding. Her hair was shorter than before, tied back efficiently. Her eyes were sharp, focused.
Maya.
Aarav's breath caught painfully.
It didn't matter that her clothes were different.
It didn't matter that the world was wrong.
He knew her.
"Maya!" he called out.
The sound of his voice echoed strangely, as if the air itself hesitated before letting it pass.
She turned.
Their eyes met.
For a heartbeat, the world stilled.
Hope exploded inside his chest.
She walked toward him.
Aarav's legs felt weak with relief. "Maya," he said again, his voice breaking. "Thank God, you're—"
She stopped an arm's length away.
Her expression was calm.
Professional.
Unfamiliar.
"Who are you?" she asked.
The words struck harder than any physical blow.
Aarav stared at her.
"…What?"
She frowned slightly, studying his face the way one might examine a stranger.
"I asked who you are," she repeated. "And why you are wearing a restricted-class combat suit."
His heart began to sink.
"Maya," he said softly. "It's me. Aarav."
Her eyes narrowed.
"I don't know you."
The sentence echoed.
Again.
Just like before.
Aarav swallowed hard. "You're joking," he said weakly. "This isn't funny."
One of the uniformed men stepped forward, placing a hand on the weapon at his side. "Commander, should we detain him?"
Commander?
Aarav's stomach dropped.
Maya glanced back briefly, then returned her attention to Aarav.
"No," she said. "Not yet."
She looked at him again, more carefully this time.
"You look confused," she said. "Lost."
"I just watched you break up with me," Aarav whispered.
Her gaze sharpened.
"That's impossible," she said flatly. "I have never met you before."
They took him to a holding chamber.
Not a prison—not exactly. The room was circular, smooth metal walls glowing faintly. A single chair stood in the center.
Maya stood across from him, arms crossed, watching him like a puzzle she couldn't quite solve.
"My name is Maya Ren," she said. "I am the Tactical Commander of the Aether City Defense Division."
Aarav let out a shaky laugh. "You hate long titles," he said automatically. "You once said they sound like people trying too hard to matter."
Her expression didn't change.
"You're very confident for someone who shouldn't exist in this district," she said.
"That's because I've known you for six months," Aarav replied. "I know how you take your coffee. I know you hum when you're nervous. I know you say you don't believe in destiny, but you still check horoscopes when you think no one is watching."
Silence.
For the first time, something flickered in her eyes.
Aarav leaned forward. "Tokyo," he said quietly. "The Orion Research Program. You were accepted."
Maya stiffened.
"Who told you that?" she demanded.
His heart leapt.
"So it is true here too," he said. "You're still you."
"I asked who told you," she repeated, colder now.
"You did," Aarav said. "In another world."
Her jaw tightened.
"This interrogation is over," she said sharply. "You will be scanned, memory-checked, and—"
"Maya," he interrupted, desperation creeping into his voice. "Every time we fall in love, the world ends."
The room went very still.
Her eyes locked onto his.
"What did you say?" she asked slowly.
Aarav closed his eyes.
And told her everything.
He spoke for a long time.
About the café.
About the rain.
About the breakup.
About the voice that judged his love like a system error.
About dying.
About waking up here.
When he finished, his throat was raw, his hands trembling.
Maya said nothing.
She simply stared at him.
Finally, she spoke.
"If this is a lie," she said, "it is the most elaborate one I have ever heard."
Aarav met her gaze. "You believe me."
"I believe," she corrected, "that something impossible is happening."
She turned and activated a holographic display. Lines of data filled the air.
"There is no record of you," she said. "No birth data. No identity. No genetic match in any civilian or military database."
She paused.
"But there is something else."
Aarav looked up sharply. "What?"
She hesitated.
"There is a temporal anomaly," she said. "Centered on you."
His stomach twisted.
"What kind of anomaly?"
"The kind that appears," she said quietly, "right before a reality destabilizes."
The lights flickered.
A low hum vibrated through the floor.
Maya looked up sharply.
"What's happening?" Aarav asked.
An alarm blared.
A synthetic voice echoed through the chamber.
"Warning. Emotional convergence detected."
Aarav's blood ran cold.
"No," he whispered. "Not again."
Maya stared at the hologram as red warnings flooded the display.
"Reality fluctuation increasing," she read aloud. "Probability of collapse—"
She stopped.
Her eyes widened.
"—seventy-eight percent."
The room shook violently.
A crack split the air itself, glowing with the same eerie light Aarav had seen in the sky before.
He looked at Maya.
"This is why you forget me," he said. "The universe is afraid of us."
She stared back at him, something unsteady breaking through her composure.
"What… are you to me?" she asked.
Before he could answer, the crack widened.
And from it, something stepped through.
Not a person.
Not entirely.
A tall, faceless figure made of shifting light and shadow. Symbols crawled across its form like living code.
The voice that had judged his love spoke again.
"Subject Aarav detected," it said.
"Unauthorized emotional bond in progress."
Maya raised her weapon instantly.
"What is that thing?" she demanded.
Aarav felt dread settle deep in his bones.
"That," he said, "is the reason we can never be together."
The entity turned toward Maya.
"Commander Maya Ren," it said.
"You are designated as the Trigger."
Her grip tightened.
"Trigger for what?"
The entity's faceless head tilted.
"Universal termination."
The floor cracked beneath them.
The sky outside screamed.
Aarav grabbed Maya's wrist.
"Run," he said.
She hesitated—just for a second.
Then she ran with him.
Behind them, the world began to fall apart.