"Hey guys, this one is waking up."
Ulim slowly opened his eyes. He was in a white room. Four silhouettes hovered over him. His vision gradually returned.
"Who are you?"
"Where am I?"
"Where is everyone? And the bus?" he asked.
One of the individuals stepped forward.
"Calm down, buddy. I'll explain everything—"
"Wait! You... you look like me. What's happening here?" Ulim said as he slid back in alarm.
The others stepped closer. Two more looked like him—one slightly more muscular, the other with glowing eyes.
One was a robot but wore a "Bumbo the Dinosaur" t-shirt—just like Ulim's. Another had black feathered wings. One wore a robe with a rune-covered necklace. Three walked toward him, and the one in the middle carried a massive sword. They all had his brown skin tone, but each had only one eye.
"So... where did you come from?" the three of them asked in unison.
Ulim was stunned. He tried to gather his composure.
"Is this some kind of sick joke? Okay, who put me in a hologram simulator?" he laughed nervously.
"We are real," the one who looked exactly like him said.
"Well, what's left of us is," he added.
"So how did your convergence event occur?" the robot asked.
"Convergence? What? I was just asleep on the bus and now... now—"
"Wait!" they all shouted at once.
"He's the one who trapped us here!" one of the Cyclops triplets hissed.
"Trapped? What?" Ulim asked, panicked.
The robot tapped buttons on his forearm.
"We've been stuck here. But occasionally, one of us gets access to a moment of freedom—each time inside your body. We can't move, but we can see everything," he explained, showing random footage of places Ulim had been.
"I've been to those places… but I don't remember any of it," Ulim said, eyes wide.
"It is him. Our imprisoner," the Cyclops triplets said.
"I say we kill him while we have the chance," the middle one growled.
"Don't be rash. Let's try diplomacy first," the one with black wings rebutted.
Ulim's head spun. He loved jokes, but this was cruel. The group argued over what to do with him—some wanted to kill him, others to understand what was really going on.
"Guys..." a voice pierced the noise. It was the one with glowing eyes.
"The black ball of energy is growing," said the one in the robes.
A dark orb pulsed in the corner of the room, growing larger. The energy matched the Unicollider's strange glow when it malfunctioned at Infiniverse Labs.
Everyone turned to face it.
"Where... am I?" a deep voice echoed from within the orb.
"Here we go again," Ulim's doppelgänger muttered.
"This one feels different," said the robed one.
"It feels hostile."
Everyone tensed.
"Well, here it comes. Hope you're all ready," the triplets said in unison.
The orb swelled. Its pulsations became more violent and then—
"Ulim."
"Ulim."
"Dude, wake up. We're at our stop."
Ulim jolted awake from the bus window. Delis jumped back.
"Dude, were you having a nightmare or something?"
Mark, still on the bus with a few other students, snorted.
"Already having nightmares about me being better than you, door-boy?"
Ulim wanted to reply, but his mind was somewhere else.
"Let's go," he said to his friend.
Delis looked surprised that Ulim didn't snap back.
"You sure you're okay?"
They got off the bus and walked toward home. The bus pulled away behind them.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired," Ulim murmured.
"Are you annoyed Mark got his father's boost? Don't worry. I bet we'll get even cooler boosts," Delis tried to reassure him.
"Yeah... I bet," Ulim said as he split from Delis, taking the opposite sidewalk.
"Finally, I'm home," Ulim thought as he opened the gate.
His house, like many in Eclipse City, was modern and spacious. In a city where most families were well off, five-bedroom homes were the norm.
"I'm home," Ulim called as he stepped inside.
"Welcome home, honey," his mother said, finishing up in the kitchen.
"Food is ready. Go take a bath and then come eat," she added.
"How was the trip, son?" his father called from the dining room, busy tinkering with something on the table.
"It was cool, I guess," Ulim replied.
"I heard that Mark boy got his superpower and stopped someone from escaping today," his mother added.
"News travels fast," Ulim murmured.
"Getting powers before everyone else… I guess being the son of a hero has its benefits," his father said.
"Yeah, I guess so," Ulim said, heading to the shower.
Behind him, his mom carried food to the dining room.
"Jerold, I told you—no tinkering on the dining room table."
"Honey, it's just a small fix. I'm already done," Jerold said, removing the device.
Ulim chuckled at the banter as he entered the bathroom.
In the shower, Ulim's thoughts raced.
"What was that weird dream? Why did they say it was real?"
Clink.
He heard glass falling. He yanked the curtain back. Just a small shard had fallen from his uniform.
"Maybe that blast at the lab did something to my brain," he thought, drying off.
"It's probably nothing. I'm just overthinking," he muttered as he headed to the table.
At dinner:
"Someone's hungry today," his mom commented, watching him eat.
"He's a growing boy, Diana. He needs the nutrients," Jerold said, going for seconds.
"You usually don't eat this much. Didn't they feed you on the field trip?" she asked.
Ulim quickly swallowed. "No, we didn't get any food due to the incident. We were just shipped home."
"So what actually happened?" Jerold asked.
Ulim sipped juice. "Well, the big machine—the Unicollider—kind of went crazy. It glowed with a dark light, shorted out the containment field, and some bad guys escaped."
He took another bite.
"Good thing Mark was there to save the day," Diana added.
"Hrrrk!" Ulim choked.
"What did I say about talking with your mouth full? Drink your juice!" Diana scolded.
Ulim quickly drank. Jerold tried not to laugh.
"I think I'll go sleep," Ulim said, trying to escape.
"Not so fast, young man," Diana said firmly.
Ulim sat back down.
"They're going to ask about my future again," he thought.
"I don't even know what I want. Maybe I'll just say Hero Training Academy—it always makes them happy."
"We have some news," Diana said, sitting beside Jerold.
"You're going to have a little one to look after soon," she smiled.
"WHAT?!" Ulim jumped.
"So how far along are you?"
His mother blinked in surprise.
"Two months—we've got time to prepare."
Ulim smiled at the thought of becoming a big brother.
"Since you're in such a good mood, washing the dishes should be easy," Diana said, pointing at the sink.
Ulim sighed and trudged to the dishwasher.
Later that night, Ulim lay in bed, still thinking about the baby. His body ached with exhaustion, and sleep overtook him.
"You again."
"You're the one who imprisoned me here," a deep voice said.
Ulim opened his eyes. He was back in the white room—but this time, a shadowy figure stood before him. Dark energy pulsed from it. Deep red eyes and fang-like canines glowed from its face. It stepped closer.
"Let me out," it growled.
Ulim looked around. The others were lying on the ground—beaten. The figure lifted Ulim by the neck.
"Let me out now—or die."
It squeezed. Ulim's lungs burned. He struggled, kicking weakly.
On the floor, the robed figure stirred.
"This is my chance," he whispered. He raised his hand and spoke a spell. The runes on his necklace glowed.
"You're still resisting?" the creature sneered, holding Ulim up.
Ulim couldn't respond. He couldn't breathe. Panic overtook him.
"Hey! Let him go—now!" the robed one shouted. The creature turned while still choking Ulim.
A glowing orb of rune-covered light hit the creature's chest.
"Is that all?" it laughed.
"Yes—and it's more than enough," the robed one said, before collapsing again.
The creature turned back to Ulim.
"Where was I...? Oh right," it grinned.
But then a light began to glow in its chest. Runes spread across its body.
"I can't move my legs," it said, dropping Ulim.
Its arms locked up.
"What did that brat do?!"
A glowing seal appeared on its face. SMACK! It flew into the wall. Runes lit up around it, forming a glowing circle. The runes on its limbs latched to the circle like chains.
Ulim lay gasping on the floor. He rushed to the robed figure and shook him.
"Ulim..." the figure whispered.
"Yes?" Ulim replied.
"Ulim."
"Ulim."
"Ulim! How long are you planning to sleep? You're going to be late!"
It was his mother's voice.
Ulim jolted upright, drenched in sweat.
"I'll be out in a minute!" he called.
He stood in front of the mirror, heart pounding.
That felt so real.
He looked at his neck. No bruises. No marks.
But his thoughts echoed.
"Who are those people... and why did they say I imprisoned them?"