EPISODE 16
THE OTHER ELIAS
The darkness inside the archive remained completely still.
Elias couldn’t see anything.
Not the monitors.
Not the child.
Not even his own hands.
Only the sound of breathing.
Slow.
Calm.
Close.
A faint emergency light flickered somewhere above.
For a brief second, the room appeared.
And Elias saw him.
Standing only a few feet away.
The other Elias.
Identical face.
Identical eyes.
Identical voice.
But something felt wrong.
The stranger smiled.
Not like a monster.
Not like an enemy.
Like someone greeting an old friend.
You finally made it, he said.
The emergency light died again.
Darkness returned.
The child stepped beside Elias.
Its voice trembled.
Don’t listen to him.
The other Elias laughed softly.
You always say that.
Another flash of light illuminated the archive.
This time the stranger hadn’t moved.
Yet somehow he seemed closer.
Elias felt his pulse quicken.
Who are you? he asked.
The stranger studied him carefully.
Then he answered.
I’m the version that survived.
A deep vibration rolled through the facility.
Dust drifted from the ceiling.
Somewhere far below, metal structures groaned under immense pressure.
The gateway was still expanding.
The stranger glanced upward.
“We don’t have much time.”
The child shook its head.
He’s lying.
No, the stranger replied calmly.
I’m the only one telling the truth.
The monitors around the archive suddenly flickered back to life.
Dozens of screens activated simultaneously.
Every screen displayed a different recording.
Different facilities.
Different timelines.
Different versions of Elias.
On one monitor, Elias stood alone inside an empty laboratory.
On another, he was speaking to a team of scientists.
On a third, he appeared much older.
Tired.
Defeated.
The current Elias stared in disbelief.
What am I looking at?
The stranger walked toward the screens.
Possibilities.
The recordings continued changing.
Hundreds of versions.
Hundreds of outcomes.
Hundreds of failures.
The child looked away.
As if it had seen this before.
The stranger touched one of the monitors.
The image froze.
In the recording, an older Elias stood before a damaged gateway.
Behind him, darkness consumed the facility.
The recording version looked directly into the camera.
Then spoke.
We were wrong.
Static crackled across the screen.
The cycle doesn’t repeat because of the gateway.
The image distorted.
Then stabilized.
It repeats because of us.
The archive fell silent.
Elias felt a chill run through him.
The stranger slowly turned.
You understand now.
No, Elias replied.
The stranger sighed.
Every version tries to stop the disaster.
He pointed toward the screens.
Every version fails.
Another tremor shook the room.
Several monitors shattered.
Glass scattered across the floor.
The warning systems outside screamed louder than ever.
GATEWAY EXPANSION: 91%
The message flashed repeatedly across surviving screens.
The child stepped forward.
Don’t trust him.
The stranger looked genuinely disappointed.
You still don’t remember.
For the first time, emotion appeared in his eyes.
Sadness.
Regret.
Fear.
Not fear of Elias.
Fear of something else.
Something much larger.
A loud impact echoed somewhere beyond the archive walls.
The entire room shook violently.
The reinforced door bent inward.
As though immense pressure was building outside.
The stranger immediately became serious.
It’s here.
The child froze.
Elias looked between them.
What is here?
Neither answered.
The emergency lights flashed red.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then every monitor activated simultaneously.
A live camera feed appeared.
The observation deck.
The place where the gateway had opened.
Elias stared at the screen.
The darkness inside the gateway was no longer empty.
A silhouette stood within it.
Motionless.
Watching.
The figure slowly stepped forward.
Then another appeared beside it.
And another.
And another.
Dozens of silhouettes emerged from the darkness.
Every single one had the same face.
Elias’ face.
The archive speakers crackled.
An automated message echoed throughout the facility.
WARNING.
CROSSOVER EVENT DETECTED.
WARNING.
MULTIPLE SUBJECT INSTANCES DETECTED.
The stranger closed his eyes.
As if hearing something inevitable.
The child backed away from the screens.
What have they done? it whispered.
The stranger answered quietly.
They found the way through.
Outside the archive, something struck the reinforced door.
A massive metallic boom shook the room.
A second impact followed.
Then a third.
The steel door began to crack.
Elias stared in horror.
The figures on the monitors kept approaching.
Hundreds of identical faces.
Hundreds of identical versions.
All moving toward the facility.
All moving toward the archive.
The stranger looked directly at Elias.
His expression was grim.
There is one thing you’ve never remembered.
The room became silent.
Even the alarms seemed distant.
Elias swallowed.
What?
The stranger took a slow breath.
Then spoke the words that made the child turn pale.
You weren’t the first Elias.
The archive door suddenly burst open.
Darkness flooded into the room.
And something stepped through.
TO BE CONTINUED…