Everett frowned deeply. "We built it to save the earth from radiation. We built it to keep humanity alive in the walled cities."The Overlord burst into loud, hysterical laughter. He threw his head back and laughed at the red, broken sky. "Save the earth?" the Overlord chuckled, wiping a fake tear from his eye. "Everett, the earth is dead. It has been dead for a thousand years. It is a burnt, toxic cinder floating in space. There are no plants. There are no rivers. The real world is gone."Everett felt a cold, terrible feeling creep into his stomach. "What are you talking about? We are standing on the earth right now.""We are standing inside a computer!" the Overlord yelled, spreading his arms wide to the glitching buildings. "This whole world, this sky, this dirt, it is all just a simulation running on a massive server buried deep underground!"Everett shook his head. "I know it is a simulation. But the physical bodies of the people are sleeping in pods. The System keeps their bodi

"This is madness," Everett whispered. His rough voice echoed strangely. It sounded like three different versions of his own voice speaking at once. He looked up at the ceiling. There was no ceiling. Instead, looking up was like looking down a massive, endless canyon of doors. Millions of doors floated in the sky above him. Some doors led to oceans. Some doors led to burning cities. Some doors led to pitch-black space. Gravity was broken, but it held Everett firmly to the flickering floor. "The Zero-Point," Everett muttered, remembering the red warning box. Rae had explained this to him once. If the System crashed completely, all the different folders, all the different timelines, and all the different backup files would collapse into one single directory. Everything that ever was, everything that ever will be, and everything that could have been, was now stuffed into this one broken building. Everett gripped the handle of his Null-Edge. The black iron sword felt heavy and real i

Everett gripped the leather handle of the Null-Edge with his pale, gray right hand. He did not feel fear. He did not feel panic. He remembered the lessons he had learned. He remembered the truth. “I am the Original Creator,” Everett thought. “I wrote the code. And I know how to break it.”"You are fifty cowards," Everett said softly. His deep voice carried absolute, cold authority. "And fifty zeroes still add up to zero."Everett commanded his right arm. “Swing. One, Mississippi.”The gold-suited Daniel pulled the trigger of his pistol. A golden bullet flew directly at Everett’s chest. But because the timeline was at zero percent, Everett’s mind was anchored to the absolute present, while his artificial arm was operating one second in the future. Before the bullet even left the barrel, Everett’s pale right hand snapped upward with blinding, terrifying speed. The flat side of the heavy black greatsword slapped the golden bullet right out of the air. The bullet bounced off the iron

The cold rain fell from the dark, cloudy sky. It poured down in thick, heavy sheets. The water hit the gray concrete of the alleyway with a loud, splashing sound. It washed the dirt and the dark red blood off Everett’s face. It soaked his torn, brown cloak. Everett knelt in the deep puddle. He did not feel the freezing cold. He did not feel the agonizing pain in his shattered left arm. He did not feel the throbbing ache in his crushed ribs. He only felt a deep, overwhelming, crushing heartbreak. He stared down the barrel of the massive, glowing blue plasma cannon. Holding the cannon was Alice. But she was not the sweet, innocent, nine-year-old girl with the red balloon anymore. She was a grown woman. She was a hardened, terrifying, scarred soldier. She wore heavy, dark red military armor. A jagged, ugly scar crossed her face, blinding her left eye. Her single good eye, a dark, beautiful brown, stared at Everett with absolute, pure, freezing hatred. "Execution authorized," Command

Alice stared at him. Her breath came in short, fast gasps. She looked at his broad, scarred chest. She looked at the bloody white bandages. She looked at the target. It was so easy. All she had to do was pull the trigger. The plasma would burn a hole straight through his heart. The nightmare would be over. Her timeline would be safe. "You think this is a trick," Alice hissed. Her voice trembled violently. "You are trying to play a mind game with me! You want me to hesitate so you can attack!""I have no weapons, Alice," Everett said softly. "I have 1 HP. My shield is off. I am giving you my life. It is the only thing I have left to give to make up for what I did to you."Alice stared at his green eyes. She looked for a lie. She looked for a trick. She saw nothing but absolute, pure, heartbreaking honesty. "Pick up your sword!" Alice screamed suddenly. She lowered the heavy plasma cannon. She unhooked a thick, heavy combat baton from her belt. The metal baton sparked with blue elect