Endless Paths
Altharus woke up in the familiar, dimly lit room. The scent of mold and decay filled the air once again. He jumped down from his bed, the unsettling sense of déjà vu washing over him once again. As the door creaked open, his parents stepped inside with the two men. Despite his confusion, he greeted his parents with a smile.
"Good morning, Mom, Dad."
"Morning, Altharus," they replied in unison, their faces etched with guilt and desperation.
"Who are these two uncles?" he asked curiously.
His parents exchanged a look with the two men. His father's voice trembled as he spoke, "This is him," he said, his voice trembling. "This is our son."
One of the men, eyes cold and calculating, stepped forward and grabbed Altharus by the arm. The grip was rough, unyielding. Altharus looked up at his parents, confusion turning into fear.
"Mom? Dad? What's happening?"
His mother looked away, tears streaming down her face. His father took a deep breath, unable to meet Altharus's eyes. "We… we need the money," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.
Altharus felt a wave of anger and betrayal wash over him. The men started dragging him out of the room, his small body struggling against their iron grip. "No! Please, don't! Mom! Dad!" he screamed, reaching out for his parents, but they remained silent, their backs turned.
He was dragged outside to a waiting car, its engine idling softly. The men roughly shoved him into the back seat, slamming the door shut. As the car started moving, Altharus pressed his face against the window, watching his home fade into the distance. His heart pounded with a mixture of fear and confusion.
"Where are you taking me?" he demanded, his voice trembling.
One of the men glanced back at him, a cruel smile playing on his lips. "You're going to a new home," he said. "A place where you'll be useful."
The car ride was long and filled with silence, the only sound being the hum of the engine and the occasional murmur of the men in the front seats. Altharus's mind raced with thoughts of escape, but the doors were locked, and the men kept a watchful eye on him.
They arrived at the grimy warehouse. The familiar sequence of events unfolded: the initial days of adjustment, the torturous experiments, the relentless training, and finally, the colosseum fight. This time, however, there was no raid, no rescue. Altharus fought his way through the ranks of the Spider's Web, his skills and cunning allowing him to survive and even thrive within the organization.
Years passed, and Altharus climbed the ranks, becoming a trusted and feared member of the Spider's Web. His ruthlessness and strategic mind eventually led him to the top, where he held the dual roles of the Body and the Mind, controlling the entire organization with an iron fist. As he sat in the darkened room, overseeing the operations of his vast criminal empire, a hollow emptiness filled him. The power he had amassed did little to soothe the deep scars of his past.
In another scenario, Altharus woke up in the same room, reliving the events once again. This time, he managed to escape the warehouse shortly after the initial days of testing. He found himself wandering the city streets, alone and afraid. He scavenged for food, slept in alleys, and avoided the authorities, fearing they might return him to his parents or worse, to the Spider's Web.
His life on the streets was harsh, filled with hunger and cold. He learned to steal to survive, becoming adept at picking pockets and finding hidden places to sleep. Despite his hardships, a sense of freedom kept him going. However, his story ended abruptly one night when he was caught by a group of older street kids. They beat him mercilessly, leaving him to die in an alleyway.
In another variation, Altharus once again found himself climbing the ranks of the Spider's Web. This time, he fell in love with a fellow member, a girl named Sora. They became inseparable, their bond giving Altharus a sense of purpose and warmth he hadn't felt in years. Together, they planned to betray the organization and escape to a new life. But their plan was discovered. Sora was executed, and Altharus was forced to watch, powerless to save her. The pain of her loss drove him deeper into the darkness of the Spider's Web, making him more ruthless and cold-hearted, which later led his deepest wish being to gain revenge on the organisation.
In yet another scenario, Altharus successfully escaped the Spider's Web and built a new life for himself. He found a mentor, an old man who taught him the ways of the sword and the value of honor. Altharus honed his skills, becoming a wandering swordsman who fought against the injustices he once endured. His life was filled with adventure and purpose, but it always ended too soon, his past catching up with him in one way or another.
The scenarios played out endlessly, each one starting with the same betrayal and ending in various forms of triumph or tragedy. Sometimes, he became a hero, other times a villain. He fell in love, lost everything, found redemption, or sank into despair.
After thousands of restarts, Altharus suddenly woke up again, but this time he wasn't in the same old room that had the scent of mold and decay. This time, he woke up floating in a dark space. In front of him floated a question in the same language he learned as a kid, whether in the organization or from his parents: English.
The question read: "So do you remember now? Traitorous Bastard. Well, which one of those is real and which ones were illusions? If you guess right, your trial will be counted as a success, but if not... well, you'll see."
Calmly, Altharus began considering all the possible scenarios that could be plausible. He wrote off the scenarios in which he grew old since he knew he was not old yet and this was his first trial. So, he began to cross off all the scenarios where he was over the age of 20. While he wasn't exactly sure of his current age, he was confident he was not older than 20.
Just as he was crossing the scenarios, another message floated out of the void saying: "Are you sure about that decision, though? What if those are future memories that will happen after you finish this trial and regain all your memories? What if you just made the wrong choice?! Oh, no, how horrible would that be, no?" This time the words seemed mocking as if taunting him.
This made Altharus think twice about his decision, but following his gut feeling that the message was just there to mess with him, he continued his process of elimination.
The void was quiet, the only sound being his own thoughts. Altharus methodically worked through the remaining scenarios, focusing on the ones that felt most real. He remembered the details, the emotions, the sensations. The ones that had an eerie clarity to them, a weight that the others lacked.
One scenario was from his first experience entering the Harbinger Seed. He remembered the tense moments after completing his first assassination mission, the thrill of catching his overseer off guard and killing him. The adrenaline, the cold determination, and the swift, decisive action felt undeniably real. He recalled the sense of victory, the rush of freedom, and the subsequent need to stay hidden and survive.
Another scenario had him rising to the top of the Spider's Web, becoming both the Body and the Mind. He remembered the ruthless climb, the power he wielded, and the emptiness it brought. But the memory of absolute power seemed too far-fetched, too grandiose for the young man he was now. The details were vivid, but something about the scenario felt exaggerated, almost surreal.
The scenario where he fell in love with Sora and planned to betray the organization struck a chord with him. The emotions felt raw, the pain of losing her real. But love, in the middle of such horror, felt too out of place. The depth of the relationship seemed too developed for the fragmented memories he retained.
Then there was the scenario where he was rescued by the cops during the raid. He remembered the chaos, the fear, the overwhelming relief when the officers broke in. The vividness of Viktor's fight with the cop, the details of his own sabotage, and the subsequent rescue felt incredibly real. He could recall the cold hospital room, the kind yet serious faces of the officers, and the sterile smell of antiseptics. The sharp pain of betrayal when his parents were mentioned, the determined decision to escape, the feel of the cold night air as he slipped away from the hospital—all of it felt undeniably authentic.
Another scenario was one where he was never sold by his parents. He lived a happy, uneventful life until his current age. He remembered mundane details: going to school, making friends, growing up in a normal household. The warmth of his parents' love, the comfort of routine, and the absence of trauma. This scenario was peaceful, almost too perfect. It felt like a dream, an ideal that was too good to be true given everything he had experienced.
Taking a deep breath, Altharus made his choice. "The scenario where I…."
### A/N : Before you move onto to next chapter take some guesses as to what he chose and which one was right.