<<set $hasEMP to false>>
<<set $ryanTrust to 5>>
<<set $graysonSeen to false>>
<<set $injured to false>>
<<set $playerHP to 10>>
<<set $enemyHP to 8>>
<<set $fightLog to "">>
<<set $hasEMP to false>>The door creaks open just an inch. Dust swirls inside. A workbench. Rusted tools. And—
A computer tower. Old. Humming softly.
But it’s not plugged into anything.
Ryan whispers: “That’s not supposed to be here.”
A faint flicker of red light blinks from the darkness.
<<choice "Call Ryan over">>
<<goto "Ryan Backup">>
<<link "Reach for the tower alone">><<goto "Bad Move">><</link>>''[FIGHT MODE ENGAGED]''
<<if $fightLog != "">>
=== Combat Log ===
<<print $fightLog>>
<</if>>
=== Your HP: $playerHP | Enemy HP: $enemyHP ===
<<if $playerHP <= 0>>
You fall backward. The last thing you hear is Ryan shouting your name.
<<goto "Game Over">>
<</if>>
<<if $enemyHP <= 0>>
The projection sputters and vanishes, leaving only sparks.
Ryan helps you up. "You okay?"
<<set $hasEMP to true>>
<<goto "After Fight">>
<</if>>
<<choice "Punch the projection">>
<<set _dmg to random(2,4)>>
<<set $enemyHP -= _dmg>>
<<set $fightLog += "You strike and deal " + _dmg + " damage.\n">>
<<set _retaliate to random(1,3)>>
<<set $playerHP -= _retaliate>>
<<set $fightLog += "The enemy retaliates for " + _retaliate + " damage.\n">>
<<goto "Fight Scene">>
<<choice "Use EMP Glove">>
<<if $hasEMP is true>>
<<set _empDmg to random(4,6)>>
<<set $enemyHP -= _empDmg>>
<<set $fightLog += "You discharge the EMP glove for " + _empDmg + " damage.\n">>
<<goto "Fight Scene">>
<<else>>
It’s not charged yet!
<<goto "Fight Scene">>
<</if>>:: After Fight
Ryan crouches beside the tower. “This isn’t just an echo. It’s an access node.”
You both stare at the old machine.
“I think Mr. Grayson left us a backdoor.”
<<choice "Investigate the tower">>
<<goto "Tower Logs">>
<<choice "Return quietly">>
<<goto "Break In">>Your vision fades. The hum of the tower echoes in your skull.
''You were too late.''
You pass away.
At this moment in time this universe was lost to the Aether. This is what is know as a shatter point.
1 reality in a limited collapsing muliverse has faded away. The implications may be minor, or major depending on your actions. The ripples can be see throughout different dimensions.
<<choice "Restart">>
<<goto "Start">>
Thank you for playing!
You load the file.
Ryan nods.
“We’ll find a way to use it. To fight back.”
The chair creaks behind you.
But no one’s there.
You leave, carrying Grayson’s last words like a weapon.
[Return to base] → EndRyan stares as you press the button. The file vanishes.
No backup. No trail.
“We could’ve used that,” he says.
You say nothing.
Some things shouldn’t be saved.
You both leave.
The house stays dark.
[The end]
As you sit, the monitor glows white.
Memories pour in. Too fast. Too raw.
You see Grayson teaching you to fix the fence.
You see him dying.
You see Synaxis being born.
But the final image?
Your own face.
Split. Mirror image. One version walking into the light. One sinking into shadow.
Then the screen goes black.
“You understand now.”
Game Over.The office is empty.
No body. No blood. Just… dust.
A single chair faces the glowing monitor.
Not a modern one. A wooden one. Kitchen-style. Like the one Grayson always sat in when he told you stories.
The screen flickers. Static. GridOS popped up on the screen and flickered
Then a voice.
“You came anyway.”
Ryan steps in behind you, slowly, carefully.
“This is Grayson’s last log,” he says. “He made it before the split. Before Synaxis.”
You step closer.
The screen shows a timestamp.
Weeks before everything changed.
“If you're seeing this… it means I lost.”
“But I want you to remember something. I was real. I was good. I tried.”
The voice glitches, turns to static, then resolves.
“He doesn’t want to destroy you. He wants to rewrite you. Don’t let him.”
A prompt flashes:
<<link "Delete the log and walk away">>
<<goto "Delete the log and walk away">>
<</link>>
<<link "Copy the log to your glove">>
<<goto "Copy the log to your glove">>
<</link>>“I just… what if it’s not him anymore?” I whisper.
Ryan finally looks at me.
“If it’s not him, then we find out what took his place. And how to stop it.”
<<link "Nod and head to the side window">>
<<goto "Break In">>
<</link>>
<<link "Press him—ask what he really thinks happened">>
<<goto "Ryan Theory">>
<</link>>“What do you think really happened, Ryan?”
He pauses, then says:
“I think Synaxis got to him. Early. Before anyone noticed. Maybe before it even had a name.”
<<set $ryanTrust += 1>>
A cold pit opens in my chest.
“I think this house is the last echo of the man you loved. And I think if we’re lucky, he left you something before he faded.”
He looks away.
<<link "Climb in through the window">>
<<goto "Break In">>
<</link>>
I motion to Ryan and step back, circling wide. The grass crunches under my feet—too loud. Everything’s too loud.
The back door’s reinforced. No keypad. Just… sealed.
The garage light flickers once. Then dies.
Something’s watching.
<<link "Rush back to the window">>
<<goto "Break In">>
<</link>>
<!-- <<link "Try the garage anyway">><<goto "Garage">><</link>> -->
<<link "Try the garage anyway">>
<<goto "Combat Start">>
<</link>><<if $enemyHP <= 0>>
''The soldier twitches one last time, then collapses.''
<<link "Continue deeper into the garage">>
<<goto "Garage Aftermath">>
<</link>>
<<elseif $playerHP <= 0>>
''You raise your glove again—too slow. The last thing you see is the visor flash red.''
<<link "Try Again">>
<<set $playerHP to 10>>
<<set $enemyHP to 8>>
<<goto "Garage Fight">>
<</link>>
<<else>>
''You square off against the soldier. Sparks flicker from his mechanical arm.''
''Your HP: $playerHP | Enemy HP: $enemyHP''
<<if $fightLog != "">>
===
$fightLog
===
<</if>>
<<link "Strike with EMP glove">>
<<set _damage to random(2,4)>>
<<set $enemyHP -= _damage>>
<<set _retaliate to random(1,3)>>
<<set $playerHP -= _retaliate>>
<<set $fightLog to "You hit for " + _damage + " damage. Enemy strikes back for " + _retaliate + "." >>
<<goto "Garage Fight">>
<</link>>
<<link "Dodge and wait">>
<<set _retaliate to random(0,1)>>
<<set $playerHP -= _retaliate>>
<<set $fightLog to "You wait. Enemy attacks for " + _retaliate + "." >>
<<goto "Garage Fight">>
<</link>>
<<link "Yell for Ryan">>
<<if random(1,100) > 70>>
<<set $enemyHP -= 3>>
<<set $fightLog to "Ryan charges in and lands a hit. Enemy loses 3 HP." >>
<<else>>
<<set $fightLog to "No response. Ryan must still be outside." >>
<</if>>
<<goto "Garage Fight">>
<</link>>
<</if>>
Ryan enters cautiously.
“Still breathing?”
You nod, still shaking.
''Whatever Grayson left behind… it’s guarded.''
<<link "Return to the house">>
<<goto "Break In">>
<</link>>You carefully climb through the window.
<<link "Continue">>
<<goto "Upstairs">>
<</link>>''I crouch behind the rusted fence, eyes fixed on the dark outline of Mr. Grayson’s house.''
Ryan’s scanner emits a soft whirr beside me, brushing the wood siding like it's reading a pulse.
“He trusted you,” Ryan says without looking up. “That’s the only reason we’re here.”
<<set $hasEMP to true>>
''This house used to feel safe.''
But now... now it feels like a mausoleum for something that never died.
<<link "Check with Ryan again before going in">>
<<goto "Doubt">>
<</link>>
<<link "Head straight to the side window">>
<<goto "Break In">>
<</link>>
<<link "Walk around to scout first">>
<<goto "Scout">>
<</link>>Each step creaks under your weight. The glow of the monitor leaks under the office door.
It's on. Waiting.
<<link "Open the door slowly">><<goto "The Office">><</link>>
<<link "Go back and bring Ryan in">><<goto "Ryan Backup">><</link>>As you move closer, the light flickers once—then pulses violently.
A figure erupts from the shadows: cloaked, glitching, featureless.
A hologram... no, something worse.
It lunges.
<<goto "Fight Scene">>You turn the knob slowly.
The door creaks open.
A faint glow spills from an old monitor sitting on the desk.
A single chair sat there. Just the hum of power and the chill of something watching.
On the screen: a login prompt.
But it’s already bypassed.
The message just reads:
> *“You made it back. But who are you now?”*
<<link "Step closer to the screen">>
<<goto "Tower Logs">>
<</link>>
<<link "Sit in chair">>
<<goto "The Chair">>
<</link>>The monitor blinks, then shifts.
A voice — distorted — begins to play.
> “I don’t know what it is… but it’s rewriting everything. And it’s starting with me.”
> “It called itself… Synaxis. But it didn’t say it like a name. More like a fact.”
Static.
Then a single word appears:
**CONTINUE?**
<<link "Download the log to your glove">>
<<goto "End">>
<</link>>
Ryan enters the hallway slowly.
"You sure?" he whispers.
You nod. Together, you push the door open.
The monitor glows — brighter now. It’s… aware.
<<link "Enter the office together">>
<<goto "The Office">>
<</link>>
You walk out with the log in your glove.
Ryan doesn't say a word — but his face is pale.
Behind you, the monitor shuts itself off.
The silence means something’s watching.
> *You made it this far. That means you’re a threat.*
Only darkness remains.
<<link "Restart">>
<<goto "Start">>
<</link>>
Your fingers brush the case—
A spark. Then darkness.
A voice hums in your head: **“Welcome home.”**
<<link "End">><<goto "End">><</link>>
<<if $enemyHP <= 0>>
''The soldier stumbles and drops. You’ve won — but you don’t feel relief.''
<<link "Move on">>
<<goto "Victory">>
<</link>>
<<elseif $playerHP <= 0>>
''You collapse. The world goes dark.''
<<link "Continue">>
<<goto "Game Over">>
<</link>>
<<else>>
''The enemy steps from the shadows. A corrupted soldier of Grayson. Cold eyes. No fear.''
**Your HP:** $playerHP
**Enemy HP:** $enemyHP
<<link "Punch with glove">>
<<set $enemyHP = $enemyHP - 3>>
<<set $playerHP = $playerHP - 1>>
<<goto "Combat Start">>
<</link>>
<<link "Defend and wait">>
<<set $playerHP = $playerHP - 2>>
<<goto "Combat Start">>
<</link>>
<<link "Use EMP (only once)">>
<<if $hasEMP is true>>
<<set $enemyHP = $enemyHP - 6>>
<<set $hasEMP = false>>
<<else>>
<<set $playerHP = $playerHP - 2>>
<</if>>
<<goto "Combat Start">>
<</link>>
<</if>>
<div id="combat-log"></div>''The soldier twitches once. Then lies still.''
<<link "Move on">><<goto "Break In">><</link>>