This place continues to connect us. But I feel as though something was made to break that connection.
I’m eager to stay and give her the oath of a thousand lifetimes, but just as my fears manifest in my mind, the world begins to change again. The beach deconstructs. The ocean dries, and the moon falls from the sky.
Suddenly, we’re standing on that cold, damp path again, and the machine’s heartbeat fills the air.
Just another trick. Another illusion.
My memories come back to me. Everyone I care about is gone. And this lost woman I’ve sought to find and protect in an infinite cycle of survival and exile is someone I am incapable of protecting. As strong as I am, as capable and confident as I used to be, I can’t pretend I’m not worried.
I feel it hit my heart, and she knows it too because I can see the worry in her eyes.
What am I supposed to do when all I have left is broken dreams?
And that's when I feel it. The drawing intensity. A curious rumble. And the screaming.
It’s louder than ever.
I cover Ava with my chest, and she squeezes her hands around my wrists. “What’s happening?” she cries.
A gunshot rings out. And then another. A barrage of bullets, raining over our heads. The metal beams above start to collapse. A fire burns somewhere between the grooves of steel.
“We need to run,” I say.
I turn to my left and see a corridor. I lead Ava in first, quickly following behind her. The ceiling crashes down, and I barely have enough time to get my legs inside.
A shivery feeling comes over me. I wonder if I'm going to survive, to see this love through to the end.
But standing at the end of the corridor is a man with a rifle. He’s got one hand outstretched, and he’s wearing a look of readiness.
“Come on, lovebirds. Let’s get you to safety.”
9
Ava
I’ve never known love before.
Not genuine love, anyway. Not the kind of love that doesn’t end up stabbing you in the back or making you feel even more alone than when you were holed up in your room.
I know how crazy all of this is. Falling in love with an alien is already far-fetched, but a cyborg? Well, that’s something else entirely.
It’s not just the sex that keeps me near him either. He has proven himself willing to save me, time and time again.
It’s also this place…
Being here has changed me. At first, I wanted to run away. Then I wanted to stay. Now, I don’t know what to think.
This world is constantly evolving, moving at a faster rate than our own. Who knows what might happen in a year’s time?
That must be why Elon brought me here. He knew I’d fall in love with a beast who’d do anything to protect me. He knew I wouldn’t be afraid to nudge him further into the simulation.
What else does he know?
I don’t want to think about it. I just want to be with him. But right now, we’re running through a shape-shifting, mechanical realm, and it’s definitely collapsing in on us.
With every step taken, another door closes behind us. I can feel the wind brush against my back as one nearly catches me, almost closing me into this realm for good.
Finally, we reach the end of the tunnel. A glass door opens outwards. Light streams inside, and I quickly realize we’re looking at the way back inside the regular simulation. Back where we came from.