As my consciousness flowed through the star of Earth, I began to sift through the endless streams of data. It was like diving into an ocean of knowledge, with currents pulling me in every direction. Public records, private communications, encrypted databases—all of it was within reach, though not all of it was easy to comprehend. The further I delved, the more fragmented the information became. Patterns formed and dissolved as if the data itself was alive, shifting with each passing moment.
I focused on the questions burning in my mind: What was happening to me? What had caused these changes? Was I the only one? Slowly, the answers began to surface, buried within classified files and scientific reports and hidden conversations between world leaders. But each answer only led to more questions.
I delved deeper into the network, letting my consciousness drift through the layers of data. The Earth's digital infrastructure felt alive beneath my mental touch—a pulsating web of connections humming with secrets, suppressed truths, and forgotten stories. Public forums and media headlines only scratched the surface, their sanitized explanations failing to convey the enormity of what I was beginning to uncover. Beneath that veneer lay the real answers, buried in encrypted files and government archives.
The term "Event Zero" appeared repeatedly, flagged in confidential documents and redacted reports. It was always mentioned with reverence, fear, or denial, as if speaking about it too openly might invoke something no one dared to face.
In the years following Event Zero, the world began to experience a phenomenon never before seen: the merging of human imagination with reality. This wasn't the result of gods or supernatural deities coming to life, but the unintended consequence of the collapsing laws of physics. What humanity had once relegated to fiction and myth was now bleeding into existence.
As I sifted through records, patterns began to emerge. Humanity hadn't just been adjusting to the new reality—the world was fraying at the edges, and the cracks were growing deeper. Entire fields of science and technology had been rendered obsolete by the collapse of physics, and this truth was carefully hidden under the guise of "global shortages" or "supply chain failures." The impact was staggering:
Energy Systems: Advanced nuclear reactors began failing without warning, their reactions destabilized by subtle changes in atomic behavior. Even traditional fossil fuel plants struggled to maintain efficiency as combustion processes became unpredictable.
Computing Limitations: Supercomputers once capable of billions of calculations per second now glitched under mysterious new variables, making high-level simulations impossible. Devices that relied on precise quantum mechanics were abandoned entirely, leaving a void in innovation.
Transportation Stagnation: Space exploration hit a standstill. Rockets designed to leave Earth's atmosphere failed to function as expected, as gravitational forces seemed to fluctuate sporadically. Even airplanes experienced occasional anomalies mid-flight, leading to widespread grounding.
Medical Anomalies: Certain diseases became inexplicably resistant to treatment, while others disappeared entirely. Surgical procedures relying on precise instruments often failed, forcing a return to older, cruder methods of medicine.
One particular file detailed the closure of the Hawthorne Collider Facility, the world's largest particle accelerator. Scientists there had reported phenomena they described as "localized spatial ruptures"—regions within the collider where reality itself seemed to fold in on itself. Equipment melted inexplicably. The very air shimmered with a presence no one could explain. Fearing a catastrophic event, the facility was shut down permanently, its records sealed.
It became clear that humanity was no longer in control. The physical world, once predictable and measurable, had become alien. And I wasn't the only one noticing.
One of the most infamous supernatural events occurred in a quiet village in the Sichuan province of China. For centuries, the area was known for tales of restless spirits haunting a centuries-old temple. The stories were dismissed as folklore—until five years ago, when villagers began reporting strange activity.
Doors slammed shut with no wind. Lanterns floated midair, casting eerie shadows against the walls. At first, scientists hypothesized electromagnetic interference or seismic activity, but things escalated when surveillance footage showed an apparition: a humanoid figure, semi-transparent, walking through the streets. The figure left no footprints but carried an unnatural presence that caused nearby electronics to malfunction.
Dr. Wei Jun, a physicist from Beijing's Quantum Mechanics Institute, was one of the lead scientists sent to investigate the case. His report, which I uncovered in the Earth's network, was chilling:
Dr. Wei Jun's Report (Excerpt):
"At first, we believed this to be an electromagnetic anomaly caused by disruptions in the region's natural energy fields. However, further analysis revealed a more unsettling truth. The apparition is not a ghost in the traditional sense. It is a projection—a manifestation of collective human belief, given form by the collapsing framework of our physical laws."
"This event isn't isolated. Since the Catalyst, the world has begun moving toward what I call the Idealism Paradigm. The universe is no longer a rigid, objective structure; it is becoming a canvas influenced by thought, belief, and emotion. What we dismissed as imagination, superstition, or folklore is now shaping reality."
"The ramifications are profound. In areas with strong cultural or historical ties to myths, we see higher concentrations of these manifestations. Conversely, regions with a predominantly scientific or atheistic worldview experience fewer anomalies."
"This is not about good or evil. It's about the human heart—its desires, fears, and beliefs—all of which are now bleeding into the fabric of reality."
"If we cannot stabilize this shift, we risk living in a world where every nightmare becomes real."
Dr. Wei's report highlighted other anomalies worldwide, each more unsettling than the last:
The Floating Car (USA): In a bustling New York street, a parked car inexplicably lifted five feet into the air and hovered for hours. Witnesses claimed to see shadowy hands holding it aloft, though infrared scans revealed nothing. Scientists linked the event to the mental stress of urban populations—a collective subconscious projection caused by years of suppressed anxiety.
The Weeping Monolith (Italy): An ancient stone pillar began to "weep" black liquid. Chemical analysis showed the liquid had no known earthly origin. Religious groups claimed it was a divine sign, while scientists theorized it was the result of environmental shifts triggered by localized reality distortion.
The Singing Shadows (India): In a remote village, shadows detached from their sources at sunset and began moving independently. They emitted low, haunting melodies that caused emotional distress to those who heard them. Investigators discovered that the shadows congregated in places of historical trauma, feeding on the lingering memories of pain.
The Whispering Fog (UK): A dense fog enveloped a countryside town, silencing all sound within its radius. Those who entered reported hearing disembodied whispers, often reciting their deepest fears or regrets. The fog dissipated after a week, but locals described a lingering sense of unease that lasted for months.
Governments scrambled to contain these events while maintaining secrecy. Newly formed departments, like China's Office of Anomalous Containment and the USA's Agency for Supernatural Observation and Containment (ASOC), were tasked with responding to and researching supernatural occurrences.
In the case of the Sichuan ghost, Dr. Wei's team used newly developed Newly formed departments, China's Office of Anomalous Containment designed to suppress localized reality distortions. While effective in halting the apparition's activity, the ghost reappeared three weeks later in a neighboring town, suggesting that these events were not isolated incidents but part of a larger, systemic shift.
A classified meeting between world leaders highlighted the growing concern over these events. The tone was urgent, their words a mix of desperation and disbelief.
President Ellis Grant (USA): "Dr. Wei, you're telling us the universe is rewriting itself based on human imagination? That's absurd."
Dr. Wei Jun (China): "Not imagination—belief. The universe is adapting. Our thoughts, fears, and faiths are interacting with physical laws."
Prime Minister Evelyn Hart (UK): "How do we stop it?"
Dr. Wei Jun: "We don't. We can only manage it. The collapse is irreversible. What we must do is educate the public subtly—shift them toward constructive beliefs. A population rooted in fear will create chaos. A population rooted in hope might stabilize this transition."
President Grant: "That's a monumental task. People don't just change their beliefs overnight."
Dr. Wei Jun: "No, they don't. But if we don't try, the world will become unrecognizable."
Dr. Wei's Idealism Paradigm became a cornerstone for understanding the new reality. His theory suggested that humanity's collective consciousness was interacting with the fabric of existence. The collapse of physics had introduced "gaps" in reality, which human belief filled—like a video game glitch corrected by a player's imagination.
The deeper I went, the more I understood that "Event Zero," is classified files labeled was the key. Whatever had happened five years ago was the origin point for the chaos that had swept across the world. But finding the truth wasn't easy. Every mention of the event was buried beneath layers of obfuscation, firewalls, and cryptic references. The name "Matthew Hayes" emerged as a recurring figure, but even his files were incomplete.
but the world would later come to know it as The Catalyst. It happened five years ago in a quiet suburban town in the United States. Witnesses described an ordinary day disrupted by the extraordinary: a man standing in the middle of a bustling park suddenly erupted into flames. People screamed, parents shielded their children, and onlookers scrambled to call for help.
But the flames didn't consume him.
When the fire subsided, the man stood unharmed, his clothes burned away but his skin untouched. His body shimmered faintly, a soft golden glow emanating from him, as if the flames had ignited something within rather than destroying him. Those closest to him claimed they felt waves of heat radiating outward, though the grass beneath his feet remained unscorched. It was as though the laws of physics themselves had been rewritten around him.
Local authorities were the first to respond, but when the story reached the federal government, everything changed. Within hours, the park was cordoned off, and the man was taken into custody by a newly-formed department: the Agency for Supernatural Observation and Containment (ASOC). News of the event was suppressed, but rumors spread quickly. Grainy cell phone footage circulated on underground forums, showing the man glowing faintly as agents led him away in a black van. The media dismissed it as a hoax, but those who had been there knew the truth. Something impossible had just happened.
Scientists and researchers were brought in to study the man, identified as Matthew Hayes, a 37-year-old schoolteacher with no history of illness or abnormality. Over weeks of observation, the scientists found that Hayes' body had undergone a profound transformation. His cells were no longer ordinary—they had become hyper-efficient energy converters, capable of producing and sustaining heat far beyond any natural threshold. His DNA had also changed, encoding proteins that defied conventional biology. It wasn't just an anomaly—it was evolution, but one accelerated to an unimaginable degree.
The event shook the scientific community to its core. Hayes became a case study, the first documented instance of what would later be known as an Awakening. Initially, theories abounded: Was it a mutation caused by radiation? A freak quantum anomaly? Something spiritual? The truth eluded even the brightest minds.
Within weeks of The Catalyst, reports of similar incidents began to surface around the globe. In Japan, a fisherman was pulled from the water after his body turned to coral, merging with the seabed. In Russia, a child's scream shattered windows for miles around. In Brazil, a woman was seen walking through a raging wildfire unharmed, the flames bending away from her as if she were a force of nature.
At first, these events were dismissed as coincidences or elaborate fabrications, but as the frequency increased, a pattern emerged: The laws of reality were bending.
The term "Collapse of Physics" began circulating among scientists following The Catalyst. Researchers at institutions like the Hawthorne Collider Facility and the Unified Physics Initiative published startling findings. Reality, they theorized, wasn't as immutable as once thought. Instead, it was malleable, subject to influence by forces previously unknown to humanity.
Theories emerged that tied the phenomenon to quantum mechanics. At the subatomic level, particles appeared to behave differently around individuals like Hayes. These particles responded to thought, emotion, and intent, suggesting that reality itself was becoming subjective. One of the leading physicists, Dr. Emilia Kaas, described it in a groundbreaking report:
"The universe is adapting. We're not simply observing physical laws—we're participating in their creation. The interaction between thought and quantum particles has reached a tipping point, and reality is no longer static. It bends, twists, and shifts in response to will and energy."
This phenomenon was dubbed Idealism Integration, a term that hinted at the philosophical shift accompanying these discoveries. Reality was becoming what people believed it to be, influenced by their subconscious and conscious desires.
Governments reacted with panic and urgency. Secret meetings were held among world leaders to address the implications of the collapse. A recording of one such meeting detailed the grim warnings presented by leading scientists:
"If we don't act now, we could face the unmaking of everything we understand," Dr. Kaas said. "Localized collapses in physics could lead to unpredictable phenomena—time distortions, gravitational anomalies, entire ecosystems destabilizing. This isn't just about people gaining powers. It's about the stability of the Civilization and human itself."
In response, the world's superpowers formed covert organizations to monitor, control, and contain supernatural events. Departments like ASOC in the United States, Section Omega in the United Kingdom, and The Crimson Watch in China began operating in the shadows, tasked with researching and regulating the newly Awakened and the phenomena surrounding them.
For the public, most of these efforts were hidden. Governments suppressed news of supernatural events, disseminating disinformation to maintain order. But in underground communities and black markets, whispers of these changes flourished. The rich and powerful invested heavily in secret labs, seeking to exploit this new reality for their gain. Meanwhile, ordinary citizens were left to grapple with a world that no longer played by the rules.
The Catalyst marked the dawn of a new era, one where humanity's relationship with reality was fundamentally altered. Over the five years following the event, the number of Awakened individuals continued to grow. Statistics from government files revealed that, on average, 1 in every 100,000 people experienced an Awakening, though the exact triggers remained elusive. For every miraculous power, there were also terrifying consequences.
Natural disasters became intertwined with supernatural phenomena. In some regions, rivers flowed backward. In others, lightning storms formed in clear skies, their strikes carving symbols into the earth. Animals began exhibiting strange behavior—wolves glowing faintly under moonlight, birds flying in perfect geometric patterns, and fish moving as one unified organism.
Scientists and theorists debated the cause of the Collapse. Was it a cosmic shift, a natural evolution, or something triggered by humanity itself? Some believed The Catalyst wasn't a beginning but a continuation of phenomena that had always existed, hidden beneath the surface of reality.
By the end of my deep dive into Earth's network, one truth was clear: humanity stood at the edge of an incomprehensible change. The Catalyst wasn't just an event—it was a signal, a shift, an invitation to a new reality. The question was, who would rise to control it? Governments, corporations, rogue factions, or the Awakened themselves? Or something far darker?
As I pulled back from the network, the stars in my eyes flickered faintly. The answers were out there, waiting
For me, the question was more personal. What role did I play in all this? The stars in my eyes pulsed faintly as I pulled back from the digital network, their light whispering truths I couldn't yet grasp. Whatever was happening, I wasn't just a spectator. I was part of the change, and I had barely scratched the surface of what that meant.