*"Before gods ruled, they gambled. And from their bets, worlds were born."*
---
The air was thinner here.
Not like a mountain. More like memory—fragile, fading, sharp around the edges.
The **Game Nexus** was no ordinary room. It was a living cathedral of choice.
A great **circular platform** hung in the void, with twelve **towering doors**—each glowing with a different color and symbol—ringed around a **central board** the size of a small city. The board constantly shifted, mountains rising, rivers flooding, ruins rebuilding, as if time was being wound and rewound in fast-forward.
The group stood at the center, breathless.
> "What… is this place?" Lena whispered.
> "The real Playhouse," Merris answered. "Where gods play with real stakes."
---
A New Game Begins
A **pillar of light** shot upward from the board.
A voice boomed—not cruel, not kind. Just impossibly **ancient**.
> "Phase Two Initiated. Contestants: Kayaks. Lena. Merris. Eli. Iris."
> "Error: One external presence detected. Exiled Echo assisting without permission."
The Forgotten One, still wrapped in gray, simply bowed.
> "Let them try to erase me again."
The voice continued.
> "Divine Game #0023: *Echo Gambit.*"
> "Objective: Survive three Aspects. Choose your doors. Your choices shape your powers, and your punishment."
Twelve doors.
Twelve **Divine Aspects**.
And they had to choose **three**.
---
The Doors of Divine Aspects
Each door pulsed as they passed:
Wrath — Flames erupted every few seconds.
Mercy — Cool mist trickled from beneath.
Chaos— Symbols changed constantly.
Judgment— A scale balanced above it, never still.
Despair— Black liquid oozed down its frame.
Hope — So bright, they had to shield their eyes.
Memory — Whispers echoed beyond it.
Truth — The door reflected your face, aging and young at once.
Order — Gears turned in perfect rhythm.
Deception— Opened slightly, but never fully.
Instinct — Carved with the bones of beasts.
Dream— Stars shimmered across its surface.
> "We each choose one," Iris said. "But it'll bind us. Change us."
> "And the game's rules will be based on what we choose," Merris added grimly.
Kayaks stepped forward.
His hand hovered between *Truth* and *Chaos*.
And then, he did something no one expected.
> He touched the **Dream** door.
---
The door swallowed him in silence.
The world vanished.
He stood alone—except it wasn't just one him. Thousands of **versions** of Kayaks surrounded him. Tall, old, broken, godlike, monstrous.
> "Welcome to your possible futures," said a voice. "In this trial, you do not fight others. You must choose which version of you deserves to survive."
The mirror-Kayaks approached, whispering:
> "Choose me. I knew love."
> "Choose me. I killed the false gods."
> "Choose me. I became the last Patron."
Each version shimmered, made of stars and smoke.
Kayaks stepped forward.
> "I don't want to be you. Any of you."
The dream froze.
A **thirteenth version** stepped forward. Small. Quiet. Dirty hoodie. Empty stomach. The first Kayaks. The boy who slept under the bridge.
He offered Kayaks a hand.
> "Then choose me. I still have hope."
Kayaks took it.
The trial ended.
He woke up standing beside the Dream door—glowing slightly, as if the stars remembered him.
---
Lena had chosen **Mercy.** Her trial placed her in front of every person she had failed to save—and asked her to forgive herself.
Merris chose **Judgment.** He had to weigh the sins of his parents, the gods who abandoned him, and himself—only to realize he had judged without ever listening.
Iris entered **Chaos.** She danced on shifting platforms, facing riddles with no answers. She learned to smile in the madness.
Eli picked **Memory.** He was made to relive every pain, every joy, every lost connection. And when he returned, he remembered *everything.*
"Even the names of those who died," he said.
---
Once they all emerged, the Nexus board shifted.
Their doors locked behind them.
Three of the twelve Aspects now pulsed on the board—**Dream**, **Mercy**, and **Memory.**
And from each, new zones began to emerge.
A floating city of cloudlike thoughts—Dreamspire.
A flooded cathedral where sins wash clean—Mercy's Rest.
A living library that forgets you as you read—Memory's Edge.
A timer began to tick above their heads.
> 48 hours.
> "Survive. Complete three divine acts. Only then will you earn the right to speak to the Patrons."
> "Failure to act results in... Nullification."
---
Kayakz felt weird.
Something had changed in him.
His hoodie shimmered faintly with stardust now. His eyes reflected skies no one else could see.
> "You okay?" Lena asked.
> "I'm not sure," he said. "But I remember now."
> "Remember what?"
> "That I used to believe in wishes."
And for the first time, the Playhouse shuddered.
Not from fear.
But from **hope.**
*End of Chapter 9*