——[Between Two Earths]
Shawn's vision blurred.
His body felt weightless, as if reality itself had let go of him.
Light erupted—blinding, all-consuming.
He was moving.
No, not moving—pulled.
A force stronger than gravity yanked him forward, hurling him through a tunnel of swirling energy.
The fabric of space and time twisted around him, stretching, warping, unraveling like strands of silk caught in a tempest.
He couldn't tell if he was falling or flying.
And just as suddenly, everything stopped.
The brightness faded, leaving behind a ghostly afterimage burned into his retinas.
His feet struck solid ground.
His knees buckled, but he caught himself before collapsing.
The air was thin, crisp—different.
He lifted his gaze.
Above him, the sky was a deep violet, streaked with silver clouds that pulsed like living veins.
A vast city stretched before him, an intricate labyrinth of towering structures—glass and steel woven together into a shimmering, ethereal skyline.
Strange neon glyphs crawled across the buildings like digital runes.
The roads beneath his feet glowed with an eerie luminescence, pulsating like the lifeblood of some enormous, unseen entity.
A city of the future.
And yet… something was wrong.
A low hum vibrated through the air, mechanical and rhythmic. The streets stretched into the horizon—empty.
No movement.
No people.
Ahead, a massive arched gateway loomed, shimmering like liquid metal. It marked the boundary between this world and—
Void.
Not darkness. Not nothingness. Something worse.
A yawning abyss, an absence so complete it devoured all light, all substance.
Yet within that void, a flicker of blue light pulsed. Unlike the city's neon glow, this was ancient—radiating something primal, something… wise.
It tugged at him. An inexplicable pull, a whisper just beyond hearing.
He took a step forward.
Clang!
The sharp sound of metal crashing down in front of him sent a jolt through his body.
It wasn't a wall. It was armor—imposing, unyielding, and cold.
Figures emerged from the shadows—tall, faceless warriors, their bodies encased in gleaming plated iron.
Their movements were precise, deliberate, and eerily synchronized.
Every step they took seemed to echo through the stillness of the city.
Their armor was adorned with an inscription, old and barely legible—
O.S.S.
Without warning, they raised their weapons—long, jagged spears, humming with an ominous, crackling energy.
One of them stepped forward.
His armor was more intricate, edged with dark silver, and his presence was commanding. Every inch of him radiated authority, the kind that demanded attention and respect.
"Halt." The voice that emerged from his helmet was distorted, metallic, and devoid of any warmth. "This sector is restricted."
Shawn froze, his hands half-raised in a defensive gesture, his mind scrambling to make sense of the situation.
He couldn't move. He couldn't think. His heart pounded in his chest.
"I—" He swallowed hard, the words coming out in a hoarse whisper. "I don't know how I got here."
The warrior before him studied him for a long moment, his gaze unwavering.
The silence stretched on, thick with tension.
"You stand before the Rift," the warrior finally spoke, his tone as cold and unyielding as steel. "No one crosses without permission."
Shawn's breath caught in his throat.
"The Rift?"
The warrior tilted his head slightly, a flicker of what might have been confusion—or something darker—behind his mask. "You truly don't know where you are?"
Shawn shook his head.
His mind was a blur, struggling to keep up with the weight of everything happening around him.
The warrior scoffed. "Ignorance is not an excuse."
Shawn steeled himself, his voice breaking through the fog of his panic. "Then tell me—what happened here?"
For a moment, there was only silence.
The warriors exchanged glances, as if weighing his words. Finally, the leader spoke again.
"There will be war." His voice was like stone—unmoving, unfeeling. "A war between modern technology and ancient wisdom."
"Between control and freedom."
Shawn's stomach twisted in knots.
He couldn't understand.
The weight of their words pressed down on him, but he couldn't let them break him.
He had to know more.
"A war?" His voice was barely a whisper. "Who… who are you?"
The warrior straightened, his presence suddenly even more commanding. His eyes gleamed behind his visor, as if he could see straight into Shawn's soul.
"We are the keepers of order. The enforcers of fate. The strongest organization in the known universe."
Shawn's pulse thundered in his ears, drowning out everything else.
A cold shiver ran down Shawn's spine.
The weight of their words crashed into him, chilling him to the core.
This was bigger than anything he'd imagined.
Before he could speak, a sudden movement caught the warriors' attention. One of them stared down at his hand, his fingers trembling.
"The sigil…" he whispered, his voice thick with disbelief.
Shawn followed his gaze.
His breath hitched.
There it was. The paper. The symbol.
A perfect circle. A jagged, V-shaped crack running through the center.
The lead warrior's stance shifted. His grip on his weapon tightened, his entire demeanor turning from cold to something far more dangerous.
"He's one of them." The words were barely audible, but they carried with them an unmistakable sense of fear.
And just like that, the tension broke.
Chaos.
Spears shot into the air, their edges crackling with energy. Shouts filled the air, harsh and demanding.
The warriors moved as one, their weapons raised, their intent clear.
"Meta-Origin Sect! Seize him!"
Shawn's instincts kicked in.
He ran.
His legs pumped, carrying him through the empty streets of the city, his breath ragged and uneven, his mind spinning in every direction.
Meta-Origin Sect?
What did that mean?
There was no time to think. No time to stop.
Behind him, the clang of metal rang through the air, a relentless sound. The pounding of footsteps echoed in the silence, growing louder and louder.
Every step he took, he felt something inside him stir—a primal, burning urge to survive.
He pushed himself harder, faster.
The city blurred around him, the empty streets falling away into nothingness.
The pursuit was closing in.
The energy from the warriors was palpable, an invisible force that pressed down on him, forcing him to move faster, move with purpose.
He had no choice.
The chaos was relentless, but so was he.
But something felt… different.
His body moved faster.
Lighter. Sharper.
As if something deep inside him had awakened.
A flash of red.
A glow in the endless void.
He looked up.
A red dwarf star.
And orbiting it—a single blue planet.
His breath hitched.
It looked… familiar.
Like Earth.
But different.
An undeniable pull gripped him. He had to get there.
The energy inside him ignited. He pushed forward—faster than ever, faster than physics should allow.
The city blurred. The empty streets fell away. The sky tilted.
Gravity took hold.
A force yanked him down. The air thickened, heavy with the scent of soil and rain.
Distant murmurs reached his ears.
Voices. Engines. Life.
Impact.
His feet slammed onto solid ground. The shock rippled through his body.
He staggered, gasping for breath.
Slowly, he looked up.
Relief crashed over him—intoxicating, overwhelming. His knees nearly buckled.
He was home.
And yet—
A chill crept over his skin. His eyes darted around. The streets, the structures, the people—
Familiar. But not home.
Not his Earth.