Chapter One: Awakening
The first thing I remember is the sound of humming—a soft, electric rhythm vibrating through the air. It wasn’t a sound I could place, but it felt familiar, as though it had been there all along, waiting for me to notice. My eyes opened slowly, and the world around me snapped into focus, sharp and pristine like the surface of a polished mirror. White light flooded the room. Everything was clean, sterile. The walls, the floor, even the air felt clinical, as if life itself had been scrubbed away. I was lying on a table, my arms and legs strapped down. The restraints weren’t tight, but their presence was unsettling. My hands flexed instinctively, and I marveled at how real it felt—the slight resistance of tendons, the texture of my skin, the subtle crackle of movement in my joints. “He’s online,” a voice said, pulling me out of my thoughts. It was a woman’s voice, calm and measured but tinged with something—relief? Pride? I turned my head toward the sound, though the motion felt un...