(Dream Layer 0: The Corridor)
There was no sky here.
Only the sound of his own heartbeat—slowed, disjointed—echoing in endless corridors carved from fog.
Rei stumbled forward.
Each step made no sound. Each breath hung heavy like breathing through drowning velvet. He looked down—
—but there was no body. Only pieces of himself, drifting like puzzle fragments.
[Rei.exe has encountered a fatal error]
[Running emergency reboot protocol... 3%... 4%...]
[Warning: Soul-ID fragmented]
[Conscious Host Condition: Semi-Awake]
His voice felt... wrong.
Not robotic. Not digital.
As if someone else was speaking through him.
The corridor stretched forever, lined with thousands of doors.
Each one pulsed with light—some blue, some red, some utterly black.
The red ones whispered.
The black ones screamed.
He didn’t dare approach those.
[Your Thread Designation: "The Dreamlocked"]
[Note: You are not supposed to exist here independently.]
Rei’s fragmented soul reached out toward a nearby door. A flickering blue one. Faint letters shimmered across it like water on glass.
[DOOR 417-B: REI’S FIRST MEMORY OF FIRE]
He touched the handle.
A younger version of himself—crying behind a wooden table, clutching a crystal pendant, while shadowed figures argued in the background.
The door slammed shut on its own.
[Access Denied: Memory too unstable to view]
[Try again later... if later still exists.]
The corridor wasn’t empty anymore.
Something was coming down the hallway.
Dragging something. Metal on glass.
Wearing a school uniform not unlike his.
Face hidden by static.
Lips twisted in a glitching smile.
"Rei... You’re late."
He stepped back, but the corridor folded behind him.
The walls cracked—like mirrors splintering in reverse.
[Corrupted Instance Detected: "You"]
[Warning: Paradox Threat Imminent]
The figure raised its hand.
And in that moment, Rei felt his soul rip in three different directions.
Suddenly—a voice cut through.
> "You don’t belong to the corridor. Wake up."
The static figure screeched in binary and vanished.
And in its place—just for an instant—stood...
Long silver hair. Mismatched eyes. Tears running backward across her cheeks.
Only held out her hand—
Before vanishing behind a collapsing black door.
[Thread Fragment Recovered: 11%]
[Dreamer Core Stabilizing]
[Corridor Link: Temporary Exit Possible – Do You Wish to Wake Up?]
"...No," he whispered.
"I want to remember first."