Clyde's breath was ragged as he sprinted through the labyrinthine corridors of the unknown facility. The walls pulsed with an eerie, digital glow, flickering between reality and something far more artificial. His mind was racing, trying to piece together the fragments of truth he had uncovered so far.
"This place... it's rewriting itself," he muttered under his breath.
The facility was alive, shifting, adapting, as if it was aware of his presence. Every turn he took led him to another corridor that hadn't been there before. It was a maze built by a mind that didn't follow the rules of logic. And at its center was something—someone—waiting for him.
Then, the whispers returned.
"You were never meant to wake up."
Clyde's vision blurred as a sudden wave of vertigo hit him. He stumbled forward, gripping the cold metal railing of the walkway. The voices weren't just echoes anymore; they were inside his mind, overlapping, fighting for control. He gritted his teeth, forcing them out.
"No. Not this time."
A static burst filled the air, and in an instant, the corridor in front of him twisted like corrupted code. A new figure emerged from the distortion—a man, clad in black, his silhouette flickering like a dying signal. Clyde's stomach twisted at the sight of him.
Because he recognized the man.
It was him.
Or at least, a version of him.
The other Clyde smirked. "Took you long enough."
Clyde staggered back. "What... what the hell is this?"
"The end of the road," the doppelgänger said, stepping closer. "For one of us."
Before Clyde could react, the world around him shattered once more.