So, you wanna know my story?
Heh. It's not that interesting, really.
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What? You're still here? Seriously? My life is one boring day after another. 10,000 years of boring, day-by-day monotony.
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Ugh. Fine. Where do I even start though? Hm? My name? Oh, okay. Brace yourself—you might not see it, but I'm striking a pose right now.
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Come on. Use your imagination!
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Okay.
Here it comes.
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I'm…
RUMBLE.
Woah! The ground started to rumble. I'm losing my footing. Jeez. Sorry, but I'll do the amazing introduction later.
"She's here!"
Oof. Talk about double bad timing. Those guys again. They've been chasing me since earlier today, and let me tell you, they're relentless.
Who are they? Just some fellow 'treasure hunters.' Yeah, we do exist. Real shady types. What do they want from me? Oh, just this shiny little orb I 'borrowed' from them. Sure, they hired me to find it—but I'm the one who actually found it. That makes it mine, right?
Look at this thing! It's mesmerizing—like there's liquid light flowing endlessly inside. You ever see something so pretty that you forget you're being chased by angry mercenaries? Yeah. That.
Anyway, no time to admire it now—run first, gawk later.
This labyrinth is a nightmare. Winding tunnels, high stone walls covered in damp moss, and no helpful signs saying "This Way Out." And these guys? They're like bloodhounds on rocket boots.
Boots thunder behind me, echoing like war drums. I dash down a narrow passage, turn a sharp left—and slide to a stop.
A dead end.
Awesome. Just perfect.
In front of me is a shattered bridge, its other half yawning across a massive gap. Below? Pitch black nothingness. I can't even hear a bottom when I toss a rock over. Great.
"Nowhere to run, girl."
I turn slowly. Five of them. Big, ugly, and armed. Their faces are obscured by helmets and shadows, but I can smell their desperation—and greed. Their eyes gleam when they spot the orb in my hand.
"Come on, girl," Mr. Ugly #1 says, stepping forward. "Just give it back. No one gets hurt."
"Ugh. Fine," I say, feigning defeat. I walk toward them, tossing the orb lightly in the air and catching it. Back and forth. Their eyes follow it like cats tracking a laser pointer.
"Here you go," I say—and then I spin on my heel and sprint toward the edge.
"What the—HEY!"
"Here goes nothing!"
I leap.
And I instantly regret every decision that's brought me to this point.
There's no slow-motion cinematic flair. The movies lied. No triumphant music either. Just wind screaming past my ears and gravity yanking me down like an angry god.
"Oh SHIT!"
I overshot it. No—undershot. I don't even get close enough to the other side to try grabbing the ledge.
I'm falling.
Falling fast.
Wind howls. The orb slips from my fingers—but no, it doesn't. It hovers near me, almost cradling me, like the fall doesn't affect it. The swirling liquid inside glows brighter.
This is it. This is the end. My stupid, boring story ends with a stupid, boring splat.
A blinding light flashes.
Hot. Why is it hot?
Am I… in heaven?
Nope. Nope. That's concrete below.
"Oh no—"
SPLASH.
….
Huh?
I open my eyes.
Puddles. Water. I'm… intact? I sit up, slowly, trembling. No blood. No shattered bones. Just soaked clothes clinging to me like a second skin. Where am I?
It feels like I'm submerged in a dream. The water isn't just wet—it's alive. It flows around me in smooth currents, glowing faintly, like it's lit from within. I float in it, breathing easily. Not drowning.
And it looks—wait.
This looks like the inside of the orb.
That's impossible.
"Do you yearn for eternity?"
My head snaps around. The voice is everywhere and nowhere.
"What? Who's there?! What do you mean eternity?"
"Do you wish for more time?"
"Who are you?"
"I am you."
"Don't joke like that. How can you be—"
"Do you want to live?"
My breath catches. Outside the orb—there I am. A crumpled heap of broken limbs and blood. That's… me?
"Do you want to continue?"
Yes. Yes, I do. I want to live. I want to travel, explore, fall in love… I want a better story than this.
"Would you live for eternity?"
"YES!"
Wait—no!
Too late. The word echoes in the water like a bell tolling through time.
The water around me roars to life. It spins, pulling at me, dragging me into the center of a forming whirlpool. I try to swim away, but the more I struggle, the stronger the current becomes.
I can't tell up from down anymore. Everything blurs. I'm spiraling, spiraling—
Darkness.
Somewhere far above the broken bridge…
The treasure hunters look over the edge, their expressions a mix of frustration and confusion.
"She didn't make it."
"Yeah, well... she took the orb with her. Idiot."
But deep below, far beyond where the human eye can't reach, something begins to glow.
And in that glow…
Warmth.
Heavy and humid, clinging to my skin like worn leather after a long sprint. I could still feel my jacket brushing against my shoulders, the weight of the satchel slapping against my hip with every step. My boots—tight, scuffed—still pinched at my ankles.
Was I still running?
I tried to move.
Everything felt... wrong.
The ground wasn't stone anymore. It was soft, sinking slightly under me. Too smooth. Too still. There was a quiet beep... beep... beep in the distance. My fingers twitched, half expecting to find the cold curve of the orb still in my palm.
But there was nothing.
No orb.
No belt.
No weight.
I cracked my eyes open.
The ceiling above me was yellowed, with faint cracks spider webbing from the light fixture. A slow-turning fan cast long, lazy shadows across the room. The air smelled of disinfectant, dust, and the faintest trace of lavender soap. Somewhere nearby, a jazz tune played softly through a tinny radio speaker.
Hospital.
I was in a hospital.
I sat up too quickly and winced as a tight pressure bloomed in my chest—not sharp, but heavy. Deep. Like something was pressing out from the inside.
That's when I looked down.
Gone was my gear. My jacket, my gloves, my boots, all replaced by a faded blue hospital gown speckled with tiny green flowers. Thin and scratchy. Open in the back. A heart monitor sat beside me, its green line pulsing steadily in rhythm with my breathing.
But something was wrong with that rhythm.
My hand flew to my chest.
No bandage. No wound.
But there was heat. A warmth radiating from beneath my skin, steady and alive. I pressed harder.
And felt it.
A pulse.
But not mine.
Something was moving just under the surface—slow and fluid, like glowing liquid trapped inside glass. It shimmered faintly beneath my skin, not visible unless the light caught it just right.
The orb.
It wasn't gone.
It had fused with me.
No. Not even that. It had replaced something.
My heart.
The realization hit like a second fall. Cold sweat broke along my neck. My breath caught. That voice echoed faintly again in my memory.
Do you want to live?
I had said yes.
And now I was something else.
The door creaked open.
"You're awake," said a voice, warm and casual.
I looked up sharply.
A young nurse stepped into the room, balancing a small tray of gauze and glass bottles. She looked about my age—early twenties, maybe. Brown hair in perfect curls, pinned neatly beneath a white cap. Her uniform was crisp and bright, with white stockings and clean laced shoes that clicked lightly against the linoleum.
She paused when she saw me sitting upright.
"Well, that's a surprise," she said with a small smile. "We weren't sure when you'd come around."
I didn't speak. Still too stunned. Still holding my chest like I was afraid it might start glowing in front of her.
She moved to the side of the bed, flipping open the clipboard.
"You've been out for three days. Some boys from the West District found you in an old access tunnel. No ID, no personal items. Your clothes were…" She glanced at me. "Well, not exactly practical for walking around down there."
She offered me a glass of water. I took it, hand trembling slightly.
"You didn't happen to come in with, uh… anything else?" I asked carefully. "Something glass? A sort of—orb?"
She frowned. "No, nothing like that. Just you."
Just me.
Because the orb wasn't with me anymore.
It was me.
She gave me another kind smile. "You should rest a little longer. I'll let the doctor know you're awake. They'll want to check you over."
She turned and left the room, heels tapping away down the hall.
I was alone again.
I looked back at the heart monitor. The rhythm was steady.
Too steady.
Too perfect.
Like something was running the machine from the inside out.
I lay back slowly, staring at the ceiling fan, hand pressed over the steady pulse in my chest.
I had made a wish.
And the orb had answered.
Now… I had no idea what I'd become.