Adam was a writer of rare talent but an even rarer trait: a cruel love for cliffhangers. Time and time again, he would craft intricate tales, drawing his readers into worlds filled with suspense, only to abandon the stories right at the climax. It wasn't that he lacked the stamina to finish them—he relished the power he held over his audience. He enjoyed watching them writhe in agony, their imaginations tortured by the dangling threads of unresolved plotlines. The pain mirrored his own suffering when his favorite stories, unfinished by other authors, left him hollow.
But Adam's story took a strange turn one fateful day. A leak had exposed the secrets hidden in his private Discord chat, a place where he and his friends had conspired and vented their frustrations about the world. In it, they talked about their lives, plans, and most dangerously, their darkest thoughts. What began as an innocent space for expression had evolved into something more... dangerous. The leak sent ripples through their tight-knit group. Accusations flew, rumors spread, and the walls closed in around them as their words were broadcast for all to see.
Yet Adam was always a step ahead. He'd known something like this would happen eventually. He had prepared, orchestrating an escape plan that only he and a few trusted friends knew about. One day, as the chaos grew louder outside his window, Adam typed out a message in their now-panicked Discord channel.
"[Adam]: It's done. The hackers I hired wiped everything. Our history, our conversations—they're gone."
He could almost hear the collective sigh of relief from the others. But there was more.
"[Adam]: The ones close to the city's edge should move now. The escape routes are clear. For the rest of you... if you're too deep into this or can't leave tonight, you know what to do."
His heart pounded as he stared at the pill in his palm. It was a last resort, something he and a few of his closest friends had agreed to in case things went too far. And now, things had gone too far. The police lights flickered outside his window, casting eerie shadows across the room. He could hear the faint hum of sirens getting louder, the police drawing closer to his apartment.
"[Adam]: This is it," he typed. "See you on the other side, bros."
He pressed send.
Taking one last glance at the glowing screen, Adam closed his laptop. His hand trembled slightly as he brought the pill to his mouth. Swallowing it, a strange sense of peace washed over him, his heartbeat slowing. The room around him began to blur, colors merging into one another, the flashing police lights becoming streaks of red and blue across his vision.
He blacked out.
Standing—or rather, sitting—before him was a man dressed in an eerie medieval clown outfit, a mix of velvet and patchwork fabric adorned with bells that jingled softly as he shifted. His face was hidden behind a grotesque smiling mask, its wide grin almost mocking Adam as it gleamed under the dim lights. The man sat leisurely in a chair, hands resting on his lap, his posture unnervingly calm, as if he'd been waiting for Adam to wake up.
Panic flared in Adam's chest, but his mind raced for clarity. He tried to think of something to say, something to understand where he was or what was happening. In the end, the first thing that slipped out was a broken, shaky whisper.
[Adam]: Is this Hell?
[Joker]: Hell? First off, they don't want you there, and Second, my name's Joker. I'm here to offer you something better—a second chance.
[Adam]: Hell doesn't want me?
[Joker]: Yep. Not even Hell. I mean, come on, you're a cliffhanger writer! Even the demons cringed at that Discord server of yours. They looked at the mess you made and said, 'Nah, not worth it.
Adam's mouth was was wide open in surprise.
[Joker]: It takes a special kind of cruelty to leave people hanging like that. You made even the most twisted demons turn away in disgust.
Adam sat there, dumbfounded. Was this some twisted joke? A nightmare? But the more Joker spoke, the more surreal and frightening it all became. He wasn't just dealing with an ordinary consequence—this was cosmic. It wasn't just Hell that rejected him; his very nature, the way he played with people's emotions, was what had damned him... or rather, saved him from damnation.
[Adam]: But… if Hell doesn't want me, what do you want with me?
Adam asked hesitantly.
Joker's mask tilted slightly, as if grinning wider beneath the mask.
[Joker]: Well, kid, that's where the 'second chance' part comes in. You see, you've been given a rare opportunity. You can keep doing what you're doing—messing with people's stories, leaving things half-finished—or...
Joker leaned forward, his voice dropping to a low, almost conspiratorial tone.
[Joker]: Or you can fix things. Finish what you started by reincarnating into one of your stories and seeing how it feels from the inside."
[Adam]: Reincarnate... into one of my stories? What does that even mean? What happens to me if I go in?"
Joker's grin was audible even through the mask, a low, gleeful chuckle escaping his lips.
"[Joker]: Oh, it's simple, really. You'll become part of the story, kid. You'll live it, breathe it, and experience every choice, and every cliffhanger, just like your readers did. And maybe—just maybe—you'll learn a little something about how it feels to be left in the dark."
Adam felt a chill crawl down his spine. He was always the puppet master, pulling the strings from afar. But now? Now he was being offered a chance to become the puppet.
[Adam]: Which story?
Adam asked, his voice barely above a whisper, his mind racing as he tried to imagine what it would be like. Would he become the hero? A villain? A side character?
[Joker]: Oh, that's the beauty of it. You won't know until you're there. Could be your favorite creation, could be one of the half-finished ones you've long forgotten. The wheel spins, and wherever it lands, you get to dive in and see how your little narrative plays out. Finish the story... or live in it forever.
Adam's breath hitched. There were stories he'd written that were lighthearted, full of adventure and hope. But there were others, darker ones, filled with terror and torment, places where characters never got their happy endings. The thought of being trapped in one of those fates, subject to the same cliffhangers he'd inflicted on his readers... it was terrifying.
[Adam]: You can't do this! I have rights!
Joker's laugh was a low, mocking sound that echoed in the strange room. He tilted his head, the eerie grin of his mask seeming to stretch even further. His tone was light, teasing, but with a sharp edge that cut deep.
[Joker]: Rights?
Joker chuckled again, standing up and beginning to pace around Adam, the bells on his outfit jingling softly with every step.
[Joker]: Tell me, didn't your sims have rights, too? What about the characters you created? The ones you tortured for fun? What about the ones you drowned? Or trapped in rooms with no doors?
Adam swallowed hard, the weight of Joker's words settling in his gut like lead. He remembered it all too well. Hours spent in front of the screen, creating and manipulating lives—his virtual dolls—only to snuff them out when he got bored.
Joker stopped pacing, leaning in close, his face inches away from Adam's, his masked grin a permanent fixture.
[Joker]: You didn't care about their rights then, did you? You had all the control. You played god. And now that the tables are turned... now you care about rights?
[Adam]: That was just a game,"
he muttered weakly, unable to meet Joker's eyes.
[Joker]: Oh, was it? A game, huh?
Joker's voice dripped with condescension as he tapped Adam's forehead lightly.
[Joker]: Funny how that 'game' starts to feel a little more real when you're the one trapped in it, isn't it?
Adam flinched. He knew he was cornered. Joker wasn't just here to torment him; he was here to make Adam see the weight of his own actions. Every unfinished story, every character left in limbo, every cliffhanger designed to frustrate and torture—this was his punishment.
[Joker]: So, What makes you think you deserve more rights than the characters you abandoned?
[Joker]: Face it, kid. You're not the god of your stories anymore. Now, you get to live like the rest of them. Powerless. Confused. Hoping for an ending that might never come."
The words struck deep. Adam realized this wasn't just about finishing his stories—it was about facing the consequences of being the creator, the one who decided fates without thought of the lives he'd shaped. Now, for the first time, he was the one at the mercy of fate.
[Joker]: You wanted control,
Joker said softly, his voice taking on a darker, almost sympathetic tone.
[Joker]: Now you'll see how it feels when control is taken away. When you are the story.
Adam's hands trembled as he looked up at the masked figure, knowing there was no arguing with him, no pleading for a way out. His fate was sealed.
Joker stepped back, spinning once with a dramatic flourish, the bells jingling with an eerie cheerfulness.
[Joker]: Time to pick your story, Adam. Let's see if you're ready to live with the consequences... or drown in them like those sims of yours.
And with that, Joker snapped his fingers, sending Adam spiraling into the unknown once again.
When Joker was alone he said.
[Joker]: Hy Six, did you really need me to read this villain script to that guy? I mean, even if Hell doesn't want him, isn't it kinda cruel to send him there?
Joker's playful tone shifted as he glanced over his shoulder, speaking to someone hidden in the shadows. The once flamboyant and playful clown now seemed almost weary, as though even he wasn't entirely convinced by the twisted task he'd just performed.
A figure stepped forward, barely visible except for the gleam of their eyes. Six, draped in a dark cloak, held a book with gold-embossed letters on the cover. The title read "Modern Life in a Fantasy World."
[Six]: No, he deserves it. Every bit of it.
Six's voice was cold, emotionless, the kind that sent chills down Joker's spine, even with all his bravado.
[Six]: Do you know how many lives he left in the balance? How many characters waited, suspended in time, while he simply walked away? They're trapped. Lost. Never to know how their stories end. They deserved better, and now—so does he.
Joker sighed, sitting down on the chair Adam had just vacated, twirling one of his jester's bells absentmindedly between his fingers.
[Joker]: Yeah, yeah, I get it. Big karma and all that. But you sent him to that one? Modern Life in a Fantasy World? Isn't that one of his half-finished nightmares?
Six's eyes darkened as they looked at the book in their hands.
[Six]: Precisely. He thought it was a joke—a story about a mundane life with twists of magic and danger, yet never cared enough to finish. A world of hope, only to watch it spiral into chaos because of his negligence.
Six tossed the book onto the ground, and as it hit the floor, the cover rippled like water, its pages flipping wildly before the book settled.
[Six]: Now he'll live it. He'll be the one waiting for a resolution. He'll experience every setback, every moment of uncertainty. And unlike the readers he abandoned, Adam won't have the luxury of walking away.
Joker leaned forward, resting his chin on his hand.
[Joker]: Still... kinda feels like overkill.
[Six]: You know better than anyone that stories aren't just words on paper. They're worlds. They're lives. And Adam took them for granted.
Six's voice softened, just slightly, as if something deeper than anger lay beneath their calm exterior. A slow, heavy silence fell between them as Joker stared down at the rippling book, watching as its pages shifted to mirror the chaos Adam had left behind.
[Six]: He'll face his characters—ones he created and ones he abandoned. Let's see if he can handle what he built.
With a final glance at the open pages, Six turned and began to fade back into the shadows.
[Joker]: Well, when you put it like that, I guess I'll enjoy the show.
He leaned back with a smirk, the echo of Six's words hanging in the air.
[Joker]: Poor guy. He's really gonna hate living in his own cliffhanger.
Six disappeared entirely, leaving Joker alone in the dim room, the discarded book still pulsing with the energy of Adam's unfinished world. As Joker stood up, stretching, his eyes flicked to the swirling chaos on the book's pages, a twisted grin forming beneath his mask.
[Joker]: I wonder what kind of story he'll write now… when he's not the one holding the pen.
With a final laugh, Joker vanished, leaving Adam's fate sealed within the pages of his own neglected narrative.
[Chapter end]