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THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 155
Trapped Between RealitiesThe street shimmered.For a moment, everything—the asphalt, the neon signs, the people moving past—blurred, as if the city had exhaled and forgotten how to hold itself together. Then, just as quickly, it snapped back, like a rubber band pulled too far and released.I blinked hard, my pulse thrumming. No one around me reacted. No one even paused.Was I the only one seeing this?I clenched my fists, forcing my breathing to steady. I needed answers, and I needed them now.---The apartment was a mess of papers, half-empty coffee cups, and the faint hum of Kane’s research board—an ancient thing covered in tacked-up notes and tangled red string. Elias was pacing, his expression tight.The woman from yesterday—the one who had looked at me like she knew something—had vanished before I could get a single answer.Now, Kane was investigating.She barely glanced up when I walked in. “It’s getting worse, isn’t it?”I stopped. “You knew?”She sighed, running a hand throug
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 156
Darren’s Road to FreedomThe road stretched endlessly ahead, flanked by golden fields swaying in the breeze. The sky, untouched by towering glass buildings or neon lights, was a shade of blue so deep it felt unreal. Birds flitted overhead, and the scent of earth and wildflowers filled the air.I had never been anywhere like this.No surveillance. No coded messages. No silent voices whispering in my earpiece.For the first time in my existence, I was alone.And I had no idea what to do with that.Every step I took felt unnatural like I was walking in a dream I wasn’t supposed to be a part of. The world beyond the city had always been a vague concept, something I never needed to consider. The Organization trained me to operate in the shadows of steel and glass, to navigate the underbelly of civilization where people whispered in dark alleys and alliances were made over threats and blood.This? This was something else entirely.The wind was a constant companion, rustling through the gras
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 157
The First DisappearanceKane’s expression was unreadable, but the tight grip she had on her notebook told me everything I needed to know. Something was wrong.I watched as she flipped through pages, her fingers moving with a sharpness that betrayed her usual collected demeanor. Every so often, she would stop, stare, then press her lips into a thin line before continuing.Finally, she looked up. Her voice was quieter than usual. “Tony… do you remember Edrian Vului?”The name hit me like a whisper in the dark. Something about it tugged at the edges of my mind, like a song half-forgotten. I frowned, trying to piece together a face, a memory—anything—but all I found was an empty void where something should have been.“Edrian Vului?” I echoed, the name feeling foreign in my mouth.Kane studied my face like she was waiting for something to click.Nothing did.I shook my head slowly. “I… I think I do? No, wait. I should remember him, shouldn’t I?” My frustration deepened as I forced my mind
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 158
The Whispering VoicesAt first, I thought it was the wind. A subtle murmur, the kind that slithered through alleyways and curled around buildings like it had secrets to tell. But then I started hearing my name.Tony…It was never loud. Never intrusive. Just there, like an unfinished thought pressing against the edges of my mind. A whisper in a crowded room that no one else seemed to notice.Then, one night, I caught my reflection moving out of sync.I was in my apartment, pacing. Sleep had become a foreign concept, pushed aside by the weight of everything Kane and I had uncovered. My mind was a mess of names and places that didn’t exist anymore, and I was too afraid to blink in case something else disappeared while I wasn’t looking.That’s when I saw it.The mirror near my door. My reflection.I stopped. So did it.Then it didn’t.A fraction of a second—barely noticeable, unless you were already looking for something wrong. But I was.My breath came shallow as I stepped closer, watchi
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 159
Rewriting FateElias shouldn’t have done it.I knew it the second I heard the sound.A deep, unnatural hum filled the air, vibrating through my bones like the city itself had drawn a slow, shuddering breath. The light in the room flickered—not just dimming, but twisting like it was struggling to stay in place.And then the man appeared.His name was Michael Brandt. Or at least, it used to be.I had only met him once before, but I remembered him. A historian. Mid-forties. A face that always looked like it was deep in thought, stuck between curiosity and caution.But the thing sitting in the chair across from Elias?That wasn’t him.His chest heaved, his breath ragged. His skin looked stretched too tight like he’d been crammed back into his own body and hadn’t fully settled yet. His hands gripped the arms of the chair hard enough that his knuckles turned white.But it was his eyes that made my stomach drop.Wide. Wild. The look of someone who had seen something they weren’t supposed to.
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 160
The Turning PointI felt it slipping again.The weight of my body, the definition of my edges—thinning, unraveling, scattering like dust in a breeze I couldn’t feel.I had fought it for so long, tried to hold onto what I was. Who I was. But the cracks in reality weren’t just around me anymore. They were inside me.And I was tired.Kane and Elias sat across from me, their eyes filled with questions they were too afraid to ask. I could still see their world the way they did—the hard angles of the table, the faint hum of the overhead lights. But at the same time, I saw more. Layers of reality folding over each other. Threads of existence intertwining. The weight of possibilities pressing down on my skin.Or what was left of my skin.I pressed my fingers against the table, feeling its texture. For a moment, I was grounded. Present.Then I flickered.Kane sucked in a sharp breath. Elias muttered something under his breath and wrote something down—always the scientist, always taking notes,
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 161
Unseen and ForgottenI stepped onto the street, the weight of the city pressing down on me like a silent storm. The air was thick with exhaust and movement, the constant churn of people living their lives, rushing forward with purpose. I wasn’t sure what I expected. Panic? Recognition? Something?But as I moved through the crowd, something strange happened.A woman glanced at me and frowned as if I were out of place, a glitch in her perception. A man turned his head halfway, his gaze skimming past me as though I wasn’t worth noticing. A child pointed at me—wide-eyed, curious—before his mother gently pulled his hand down and walked faster, whispering something under her breath.By the time I reached the other side of the street, no one even looked my way.I stopped. Turned.No one remembered me.My chest tightened. “No. No, no, no.”I spun on my heel, backtracking, weaving through the same people I had just passed. They should have recognized me. Even if I had been just another face, s
THE ASCENSION SYSTEM CHAPTER 162
A Tear in the FabricThe world felt stretched too thin, like an old sheet about to tear.I could feel it in the air, in the way the buildings flickered at the edges of my vision, shifting slightly, subtly, as if they couldn't decide what they were supposed to be. The sky darkened for half a second, then brightened again, like reality itself was hesitating.And at the center of it all—me.I exhaled slowly, watching the air ripple outward from my breath like I was disturbing something unseen. Something fragile. The sensation had been growing stronger for days now, creeping in at the edges of my consciousness. Every step I took felt like I was walking across a frozen lake, knowing that at any moment, the ice might crack beneath me.“Tony.”I turned. Kane stood there, arms crossed, her gaze sharp but unreadable. Elias was beside her, his usual controlled expression betraying a hint of unease.They had that look again. Like I was a puzzle piece that didn’t fit anymore.Kane's voice was ste
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CHAPTER 220
Old Meets NewA cold feeling went down my back. It wasn't just cold; it was because everything around us felt wrong. Outside Kane's strong room, the city looked twisted, like a snake moving in a weird way. Buildings leaned at crazy angles, the sky was a purple bruise, and the air buzzed with a power that felt old and very wrong. My head hurt, a slow beat against the loud strangeness of this new world.The world went crazy, and we had to try and fix it.Kane looked hard at the glowing pictures above the table. Lines of code, a language I used to know well but now felt like a lost one, moved on the clear screen. She bit her lip, something she did when thinking hard. Her usual strong energy was still there, like a small fire that wouldn't go out in the dark. But I could see worry lines around her eyes.“Anything, Darren?” Her voice was rough and tired.I ran my hand over my thin hair. I could almost feel the old wires that used to connect to my brain. “Bits and pieces, Kane. L
CHAPTER 219
Seeing Things DifferentlyShaky light on worried faces around the bright map. Red lights flashed, showing trouble spreading. Kane looked hard, telling people what to do, a bit worried.My clear memories showed a scary pattern Kane didn't get. She saw now; I remembered long ago.Kane stopped talking. "Another dark spot, Tony. No why, no answer... gone." Her upset voice made me feel bad. I knew that lost feeling."Kane," I said, my quiet voice was clear. Everyone looked. I usually just helped, but the memories needed saying.She turned, tired but a bit sharp. "What, Tony? No time.""Not just happening, Kane," I said carefully. "It's happened before."People didn't believe me. Petrov laughed. "Before? Nothing like this in the books.""Books not complete," I said back, looking at Kane. She looked unsure. "Some truths hidden. Some things are forgotten.""Forgotten things?" Sarah looked surprised. "What are you talking about?"I went to the map, pointing at a dark spot. "Look ho
CHAPTER 218
Echoes in the GlitchThe cold voice in the small well-house felt like icy fingers touching my skin. Next to me, Kane held my arm so tight her knuckles were white. The strange key in her other hand glowed, making her scared face look even more so."Elias... Darren... they need to see this," she whispered, her voice shaky.My mind was racing. Elias, so quiet but always noticing things, and Darren, who first saw that things weren't right – they had to know about this. We weren't the only ones in this messed-up world, even if it felt like it."We go together," I said, trying to sound brave even though my heart was pounding. Whatever was behind that disappearing wall, we'd face it together.Kane nodded, her eyes looking strong. She was still scared, but she was also determined. We walked towards the shimmering opening. The buzzing sound got louder, and the air felt strange, making the hairs on my arms stand up.When we stepped through the wall, it was like being swallowed by darkne
CHAPTER 217
Pieces of a Lost WorldThe blue mark on Gareth’s arm disappeared, but we were all still scared, Kane. It felt like a cold weight in our stomachs. The strange things happening weren't just whispers anymore; they were shouting at us.I watched Darren. He’d been quiet since the motel, always looking worried, like he was fighting something inside his head. His broken memories seemed to bother him a lot. Now, when Gareth told us what happened, Darren looked far away, like he could see something we couldn’t.“Did it… feel like anything you’ve felt before, Darren?” I asked. Maybe his weird remembering could help us understand this.He blinked and looked back at us slowly. He shook his head, looking confused. “No… not really. But… there’s something… a feeling…” He stopped, rubbing his head.“Like what?” you asked softly, but your eyes were looking right at him.Darren waited, looking around. “Like… a lost rule. Something… broken.”A lost rule? Something broken? That sounded strange an
CHAPTER 216
Echoes of the Past, Seeds of OblivionMy head hurt bad, like something was trying to get inside. Pictures flashed in my mind – faces I didn't know well, cold white rooms, and a scary feeling of losing something important. This remembering… it felt wrong, like they were forcing it. I sat on the bed, my hands shaking. Each memory that came back was like a punch, not a friendly hello. A cold voice giving orders… a big empty feeling inside… the taste of fear. Who was I supposed to be? The me that wanted to keep you safe, Kane, felt weak, like a dream that could disappear.My stomach turned as a strong memory hit me: a bright room, straps holding me down, and a light shining in my eyes. I wanted to scream, but no sound came out in the memory. Had they done this to me before? I felt sure – this wasn't helping me remember; it was taking me back."Darren," Sarah said, her voice not kind like before. She looked worried. "This is hard. Try to stay calm."Calm? How could I be calm when
CHAPTER 215
Putting the Pieces TogetherSeeing Ben’s empty, blue eyes were stuck in my head. Martha, Elias’s kind Martha, moved like a puppet with those strange figures… it was a real nightmare. The ground still shook, and the twisted trees looked like monster hands reaching for the sky. We had to get away, but seeing our lost friends made us freeze, a scary warning of what could happen to us.“We can’t fight them here!” I shouted over the weird noises of the changing world. “We need to go back, get ourselves together!”Tony, looking pale but determined, nodded. “He’s right. They’re too strong for us here.” He pulled Elias, who was just standing there, looking at Martha. “Elias, come on!”We ran back to the part of the woods that still looked normal. The blue light went away behind us, like a bad eye closing. The air here was still, the trees looked like they always did, but we all felt really scared.Back in the mess hall, it was very quiet and sad. Elias sat with his head down, crying.
CHAPTER 214
Seeing What's Not RealThe memory of the starry ceiling stayed with me, making me feel cold and scared. Our world, the ground, the sky – was it all a lie? It made my head spin.Elias looked at me looking at the metal thing. “You didn’t sleep, Kane.” He knew.I shook my head. How could I explain seeing something that wasn’t possible?Darren looked serious. “Did anything… happen with that thing last night?” He looked at the metal thing carefully.I waited a moment, then nodded slowly. “The ceiling… it changed. For a second. I saw… stars. Not our stars.”The room got quiet. Everyone looked worried. The strange things before were bad, but this was unbelievable.Tony looked confused. “Stars? Kane, are you sure you’re okay? Maybe it was a dream.”“It felt real, Tony,” I said, my voice shaking a little. “Too real. The metal thing… it did something when I was near it.”It was scary to think about. If what we thought was real could change so easily, what else wasn’t true? Our memories
CHAPTER 213
The Enemy's MarkSleep was just seeing glowing eyes and hearing a voice in my head: You are the key. Morning showed tired faces.I walked around, giving tea and saying quiet things. My mind was trying to put the strange things together. The doll, tools, tree… there was a line connecting them. The Old Man looked at the cold fireplace. “The birds, girl,” he said quietly. “They don’t sing right. Like the song is wrong. And some songs… I never heard them before.”It was a small thing, but Hemlock knew the woods well, so it felt important. Another piece.The woman was giving out food and told me something else. “The water, Kane. When I went to get water, it looked shiny. Like oil, but with rainbow colors. Then it was gone.”Rainbow shine. Glowing tree. Light from the ground. Colors that weren’t normal.A pattern was starting: small changes to what was real, weird things mixed in with what we knew. Not just things disappearing; things were changing.Michael, still quiet, pointed at
CHAPTER 212
Strange WhispersThe old woman's face was wet with tears in the flickering light. Her hands shook as she held a mug. "The doll, Kane," she whispered, her voice weak. "Porcelain eyes... they looked right at you. Then... gone. Michael said it blinked."I leaned closer, the table hard under my arms. Outside, the wind howled. The woman, usually strong, was scared. Her fear made me feel cold."And then?" I asked.She swallowed hard. "It just disappeared. Like it was never there. Michael..." I looked at the big mechanic, his eyes empty. He saw a tree with blue leaves that turned to dust fast."Anyone else?" The Old Man nodded slowly, his face full of lines. "My wrench. Right here. I looked away to fix the fire... poof. Gone. Found it in the waters later, dry."A shiver went down my back. Quick pictures, seeing things together, stuff vanishing... it felt like what was real was breaking. We thought it was just stress, but it happened too much, and it was too weird.Yesterday, I saw
