Chapter 1 - Downfall
23:58
Rain drifted like a fine veil through the dark streets of the city.
Droplets slid down the glass, shattering the headlights’ glow into fragments.
Selara gripped the steering wheel tightly. Her fingertips had turned pale. Her breath left a foggy trace on the window.
“This exhaustion... It’s not just from lack of sleep. My mind weighs more than my body.”
Her eyelids felt heavy, as if they were closing on their own— but she was afraid to sleep.
How long had it been since she last rested properly?
Five days? Maybe more.
Even when she closed her eyes, darkness didn’t bring peace.
Only echoes of the past…
Muffled voices.
Unfinished sentences.
The radio was playing softly. An old song.
She couldn’t recall the lyrics, but the melody stirred something in her chest. She loosened her grip a little and took a deep breath.
“Calm down, Selara… It’s just one more night. A few more streets and you’ll be home. Everything will go back to normal.”
But nothing had been normal for a long time. Her life carried a constant sense of incompleteness. Silence at work. Superficial friendships. Loneliness at home. And an emptiness that echoed in her mind.
Suddenly, the song on the radio cut off.
Silence.
Deep, sharp silence.
Her heartbeat echoed in her ears.
Then— A whisper. Clear. Real. Right next to her ear:
“Don’t stop.”
Selara flinched and turned her head. The seat was empty. Nothing but shadows. She gripped the steering wheel tighter.
But when she turned her eyes back to the road— her heart jumped to her throat.
Headlights.
Blinding. Rushing straight at her.
She slammed the brakes— but the rain had turned the road into a slippery sheet of glass. The steering wheel slipped from her hands.
A crash.
The shattering sound of glass.
And then—
Darkness.
The sharp smell of antiseptic. The cold taste of metal in her mouth.
Her eyelids slowly lifted. A white ceiling. Bright lights burning her eyes.
Even breathing felt like a chore.
She tried to move her head— Pain pulsed from her neck to her skull.
Voices echoed in her ears…
Was it a nurse speaking from afar?
Or a sound crafted by her own mind?
She wanted to close her eyes again— but a voice stopped her:
“You’re awake.”
The voice was strangely familiar.
She turned her head. Someone stood at the door. Tall. Wearing a black coat. Shadows masked his face— But his eyes...
Cold. Sharp. Undeniably real.
Selara’s lips trembled.
“Who... are you?”
The man said nothing. He stepped forward—slow, deliberate steps that thickened the silence.
He came to her bedside. His face emerged from the shadows:
Sharp features. Eyes that held a depth she had never seen before.
“You don’t remember yet. But you will.”
“I... I don’t know you.”
“You don’t know me because you were always made to forget.”
Selara held her breath. The man leaned closer, voice a whisper now:
“At exactly 00:00, everything starts again.”
Her gaze flicked to the digital clock in the corner of the room.
00:00
She tried to scream— But no sound came out.
Her eyelids fell shut.
When she woke up…
Morning light burned her skin. She sat up in bed. Something felt off.
This was her home.
No sign of an accident.
No bandages.
No pain.
She took a deep breath.
“It was just a dream… just a nightmare.”
She reached for her phone.
07:12.
Everything looked normal.
Until— She noticed a white piece of paper on her nightstand.
A single sentence in black ink:
“Don’t look away. This is just the beginning.”
Her hand trembled as she picked it up.
The silence in the room became suffocating.
Her eyes scanned the walls, the furniture…
Something was different.
She turned toward her desk.
There was a photo frame. Her own picture.
But someone stood behind her. A faint shadow.
As she stared at the photo, an image exploded in her mind:
A five-year-old girl…
Crying. Alone in a room.
Her mother’s voice beyond the door— Cold. Distant.
“From now on, you’ll make your own decisions, Selara.”
Little Selara trembled near the door.
Then she saw something else:
A silhouette in the window. Tall. Face obscured. Watching.
The child squeezed her eyes shut in fear— When she came back to herself, she was gasping.
She jumped up. Pulled the curtain aside. Her eyes froze.
On the roof of the apartment across the street— Someone stood there.
Black coat.
Head tilted.
Watching.
Then a voice stabbed into her mind:
“This isn’t the first time I’ve seen you, Selara.”
