For The Truth

Chapter 9- Lies

Something speaks inside of my head. "You are the chosen one."

"Me?" I try to reply, but there is no sound. The mysterious voice still seems to hear me, though.

"Yes. You, Maxx Vasser, must listen to the Secret."

"Why me?!" Bil said I might be the Master, but I never believed that it could actually be true.

"You are smart enough to have the capacity for it. Your brain can store more information than most people's brains can."

I scoff. Me? Smart? I never thought that I'd hear that description.

"Are you ready and willing to accept the Secret?" the voice asks me. Everything is still pitch black, though I can feel a rushing in my head.

"Is this a joke?"

"I can assure you, this is no joke."

Vanessa's words come back to me. "It also reveals the extent of the damage and who dealt it." Everyone seems to place a huge importance on this "secret."

This is a cruel decision to force on me in such a short window of time.

"Sure. Go ahead," I encourage the voice. I've got nothing to lose.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Vasser," it replies.

I'm not even given a warning before everything turns blue. I can't breathe, I can't hear, I can't feel... I'm suffocating, and now my vision is spotted with black. I can't hold on to consciousness any longer...

Air. Ah, yes, glorious air! I gasp great lungfuls of it as I am returned to life.

Or to what I think is life. I may be able to see again, but the sight in front of me is not one that I have ever seen in the real world.

"Every time anyone makes a decision, a new universe- a parallel universe- is created. The universe that you are from is the original. It is on the far left of the grid," the computer voice narrates. A picture of millions of galactic spheres is spread out before me. I somehow know that the one in the very bottom left is the one I call home.

"Every time someone time travels, one of these universes is destroyed. This occurs because the energy required for even a single trip is too much for the time-space continuum to handle. With the irrational direction of the TKA, there are now only a few universes remaining." The picture changes to show the indicated number.

"The influx of time travelers has made it so that hundreds of universes can be destroyed in a single trip. If it weren't for the new universes being created each day, there would be none left."

"The universe you are in right now is directly to your right. See how there are only eight more until the end of the line? Each one will be destroyed within a day if you don't stop it. If the technology is released, it will only be a matter of hours before your own universe is destroyed. If that happens, all of reality will go down with you."

I inhale sharply. "What must I do?"

A sudden barrage of stimulus overwhelms my sense. Thousands of images flash before my eyes. Every possible sound screams through my eardrums. My tongue is on fire with a million sensations. My skin prickles with hundreds of goosebumps. The scent of fire comes to my nostrils.

I gasp and fall to my knees. I close my eyes and try to shut everything out. It's too much to handle. I can feel my skin searing, my nerves twisting, my atoms splitting...

Then it's over as quickly as it had begun. I'm shaking and gasping for air, but I know what I need to do.

I stagger to my feet. "I need to tell them," I mutter. "They need to know!" I yell in a much more confident voice.

There is a click behind me. A cold circle of metal pokes into the back of my head.

"Not so fast, Maxx."

My blood runs ice cold. I know that voice. I've heard it many times before. It belongs to one of my friends.

It belongs to Bil.

••••••••••Author's Ramblings••••••••••

Hello there, time travelers!

Mwahahaha! Plot twist! Did you see that coming? Let me know in the comments!

Sorry for the late update! I was traveling over the weekend and was very busy this week. I'm not sure on the status of this week's update, because I'll be busy tomorrow (later today actually...). Hopefully it will be up by Monday night!

Thank you so, so much to everyone who has read, voted, commented, shared, and added to your reading list! It really does mean a lot to me.

I've received a lot of comments about "Vanexxa," so I'm going to ask a very important question: How many of you ship it?

Oh yes! I almost forgot. The lovely cover was made by @thequeentroublemaker. Thanks so much!

Don't forget to vote, comment, add to your reading list- whatever suits your fancy.

That's all for now, so have a great night!