[December 31, 2025| 12:59 PM]
he stars shimmered with cold brilliance against an obsidian sky, their light mirrored in the glass facades of the skyscrapers.
Below, the urban sprawl was a sea of stagnant motion; a gridlock of vehicles sat idling, their headlights cutting through the dark as a cacophony of impatient horns heralded the impending change.
Beeeep! Beeeep! Beeeep!
Adjacent to the thoroughfare, a verdant park groaned under the weight of a massive crowd.
Then the rhythmic chant began - a primal roar that shook the air:
10! 9! 8! 7! 6! 5! 4! 3! 2! 1! Happy New Year!!!
The crowd erupted in a singular, jubilant chorus. Seconds later, the sky blossomed into a kaleidoscope of pyrotechnics, painting the clouds in vibrant hues to celebrate a fresh beginning. As the smoke drifted, the air filled with the hum of human aspirations:
"Finally I'm eighteen. No more forged IDs just to grab a drink."
"Here's to my final year of high school."
"Finally, this is the year I get my promotion."
The optimism was short-lived
Without a warning, a jagged fracture tore through the fabric of reality, shattering the space above the city like glass. From the void emerged a surreal figure that defied logic: a black leporid, clad in a pristine, tailored butler's suit. His eyes; golden irises with piercing crimson pupils set against a void-like black sclera.
If at the dawn of a new year, one were told they would witness a levitating leporid, they would have dismissed it as a rumbling of a lunatic.
"Humans are such droll creatures." The entity remarked, it's voice echoing with an unsettling cadence.
"Obsessively celebrating the mere feat of surviving another solar cycle."
The crowd below rippled with confusion. "Did you hear that?" A bystander murmured.
"Is it a hologram? High budget CGI?" Another questioned, raising a smartphone. "Record it. This is going to go viral by morning."
The creature's nose twitched in disdain. " We are offering you a reprieve, a chance to end your endless cycles of anguish."
"What is that thing prattling about?" someone scoffed.
"Regardless, I'm enjoying the front row seat to this production."
The leporid's eyes flared with a sudden predatory light. "It appears the gravity of your current situation eludes you. Perhaps a demonstration is needed."
With a sharp, resounding snap of it's fingers, the earth groaned.
Rumble!
Tremors escalated into violent seismic waves. Fissures raced across the asphalt, swallowing vehicles whole. Prominent skyscrapers didn't just fall; they disintegrated into cascades of lethal debris. Then, with a volcanic eruption of stone and steel, a colossal tower breached the earth's crust, piercing the sky like a jagged needle.
Boom! Boom!
Shockwaves pulverized the surroundings. Those caught in the epicenter were either vaporized by the concussive force by the sudden, roaring inferno.
"Aaaaargh!
Explosions blossomed across the cityscape. The air, once filled with the scent of gunpowder and celebration, was now thick, suffocating slurry of acrid smoke and the metallic tang of blood. Wails of agony replaced the New Year's cheers.
Desperate survivors clawed through the rubble, their faces streaked with tears that carved pale rivers through the soot on their faces. Corpses lay strewn across the fractured streets.
"Ah... the scent of terror, the rabbit mused, inhaling deeply. " What a sublime gift to commemorate the beginning of a new era." The entity chuckled before it's voice turned cold and authoritative.
"Listen well, mortals. A few among you have been selected as 'players'. They shall challenge this tower, a structure of a hundred floors. Should a floor remain uncleared within a month, calamity will fall again."
With a wicked smirk, the creature vanished into the void. That day, ten million souls were extinguished and fifty million more were left broken.
History would forever brand it: The Apocalypse
[January 30th, 06:00 am]
The distant, rhythmic crowing of a rooster pierced the morning haze, followed by the persistent trill of an alarm.
Riiiing! Riiiing! Riiiing!
A hand emerged from beneath a heavy duvet, groping blindly at the bedside table until it silenced the alarm. Reagan Greywoods sat up, his long, disheveled hair obscuring a face marked by exhaustion. His dark brown eyes were framed by the heavy shadows of chronic insomnia.
He sluggishly rose, his bare torso catching the dim morning light, and retreated into the bathroom.
The steam from the hot shower enveloped him masking the silence of the house. After dressing in his navy-blue tracksuit: crisp white stripes running down the sleeves, plain white t-shirt and a pair of white sneakers, he tied his hair into a practical ponytail and gathered his belongings.
In the dining room, his siblings, Laura and Telvin were already engaged in their morning ritual. Though triplets, they were fraternal rather than identical, separated at birth by precise one-hour interval. Reagan being the oldest followed by Laura then Telvin.
"Mom, tell Laura to give me back my potatoes." Telvin protested.
"Laura, share with your brother." Their mother, Mary commanded gently.
A widow in her early forties, Mary had built a life of resilience after being abandoned years ago by her husband upon hearing about the pregnancy. Her sole inheritance was the land upon which their three-story rental home stood.
"Morning," Reagan muttree, sliding into his seat.
"Potatoes again?"
"Study well," Mary replied with a tied smile, "and one day you can afford a more varied menu."
"And when you're rich, make sure you treat me," Laura added, her appetite undiminished.
Their banter was cut short by the flickering television screen.
"It has been one month since the towers manifested globally, " the anchor reported her voice strained. "Since the incident that was branded 'The Apocalypse ', the world has been in a state of panic.
Curiously, there have been zero reports of missing persons indicating that, as of now, no player has entered the towers."
Mary clicked the TV off. " That same news again? Now they brought up curfews..."
"At least we're closing the school early," Telvin noted as the school bus honked outside.
The trio boarded the yellow bus outside. Thirty minute drive ended at the fortress like school. It is a school sponsored by the army.
As Reagan navigated through the hallway, a hand clamped onto his soldier. "Morning, Nathan."
Nathan his only friend since childhood blinked in surprise. "How do you always figure me out?" he asked with a pout, sniffing his own sleeve. " I even changed my cologne."
"You are just unique," Reagan replied.
Nathan's expression shifted, the playfulness vanishing.
"Reagan... are you worried? About the towers? If today is the deadline..."
"I'm terrified actually," Reagan admitted, his gaze drifting to the window. "I just hope not to among the victims."
They reached their destination: FORM 4 WEST. Inside the room was filled with chatty students, some in groups. Nathan took his seat in the center of the middle column, while Reagan drifted to the back corner, claiming the desk by the window.
He leaned his head against the glass. He closed his eyes and whispered a command into the silence of his mind
'Status Window'