Silence was a strange thing.
To some—
It was comfort.
A place to rest.
To others—
It was suffocating.
A reminder of everything left unsaid.
But Tia never hated silence.
To him It was sanctuary.
The wind howled across the mountain.
Biting.
Relentless.
But Tia Xu didn't feel it anymore.
He stood at the edge of the world.
Below—
The Rift.
Endless.
Silent.
No fear.
Fear was a gift—
For those who still had something to lose.
A slow breath left him.
Thirty years.
Or more.
He couldn't remember anymore.
His life had never belonged to him.
Not truly.
The memory surfaced.
Uninvited.
He remembered the heat.
The tension.
The silence.
The mockery.
His mother disappeared.
His endless search.
The memory faded.
The wind returned.
then—
He moved forward.
The ground disappeared.
No scream.
No panic.
Only falling.
Endless falling.
He gave one last glance at the sky.
Bright as usual.
Silence came.
Then —
Darkness.
Not death.
Not life.
Something in between.
Suddenly.
VRRRT—"
A screen flickered to life.
Floating.
Unnatural.
[Processing Soul…]
Tia blinked.
"…What?"
The screen stalled.
One second.
Two.
Too long.
Then—
"Bzzk—k—k—"
The screen stuttered.
Red light flickered.
Unstable.
[ERROR]...
[ERROR]....
A sharp pulse of pain ripped through him.
tearing him apart from the inside.
Ack!!..
Then—
silence.
The screen vanished.
The pain faded into a numb ache.
His consciousness began to fade.
Slowly.
Seconds later—
a voice echoed.
Cold.
Mechanical.
[Termination failed.]
[Selection confirmed.]
He froze.
failed…?
A pause.
Gradually—
Darkness swallowed him completely.
And in that final moment—
a thought surfaced.
Is this a blessing…
or…
something else entirely?