Kaiden stood outside Alex’s dorm room, his legs feeling like lead. His mind swirled with disbelief, his chest tight as though he had forgotten how to breathe. The world around him had dissolved into a dull hum of white noise, muffled voices and distant footsteps blending into a haze of unreality. He barely registered the flashing lights of the ambulance outside or the sea of students lining the hallways. Who had called the police? How long had it been since he found Alex slumped in his chair? Kaiden couldn’t answer any of these questions. Time had blurred into an endless moment of shock.

  The EMTs maneuvered Alex’s body down the hallway, the white sheet covering his frame doing little to mask the severity of the situation. The truth hit Kaiden like a hammer. He watched, unable to move, his feet rooted to the floor. The murmurs around him grew louder as more students stepped out of their dorms, craning their necks to catch a glimpse of the commotion. Some whispered in hushed tones; others openly speculated about what had happened. Their words bounced around Kaiden and none of it made sense. Every voice sounded faraway like he was underwater.

  “Mr. Summers?” A voice broke through the fog, startling Kaiden. He turned to see two police officers standing before him, but Kaiden couldn’t process words. They might as well have been speaking another language. His head swam, the weight of everything pressing down on him.

  “Mr. Summers, can you hear me?” the officer repeated.

  Kaiden nodded slowly, his mouth dry.

  “We’re going to need you to come with us. We have some questions,” the officer said firmly. He gestured for Kaiden to follow.

  ???°?°???

  Kaiden sat in a small, sterile interrogation room. The walls were a dull gray, and the fluorescent lights overhead buzzed faintly. Across from him sat a detective with dark brown hair slicked neatly back, his sun-kissed complexion and sharp brows giving him an air of authority. The man’s tone was steady, but exhaustion seeped into his words.

  “I’m going to ask you again, son. What happened to Alex Carter?”

  Kaiden’s throat felt tight, but he forced himself to speak. “And I already told you, detective. Alex introduced me to this new VRMMO game, Revolt The Sun.” His voice wavered as he recounted everything again, from their first moments in the game to meeting Naō, exploring the town, and joining Alex’s guild. He described the raid, the impossible monster, and watching it kill him to running into his dorm and seeing him actually dead.

  The detective’s pen tapped rhythmically against his notepad, his expression unreadable. When Kaiden finished, the man leaned back in his chair and sighed. “Look, kid. I’m trying to piece this together, but let’s be clear about one thing: it’s impossible to die inside a video game.”

  Kaiden’s hands clenched into fists. “I know that. But it happened. I saw it. He... He tried to say something before he...” His voice cracked. A part of Kaiden’s mind replayed Alex’s unfinished words again: ‘Don’t let...’ Don’t let anyone have it? The thought lingered like a dark cloud. None of it made sense, but Kaiden knew it had to mean something. He just didn’t know what.

  The detective studied him for a long moment. “You’re a good kid, Kaiden. I can see that. But this isn’t a game.”

  A knock on the door interrupted them. The detective excused himself, stepping out briefly before returning with a folder. His expression grew serious as he read its contents. Kaiden sat up straighter, his heart pounding.

  “Is that the test results?” Kaiden asked, barely able to get the words out.

  The detective hesitated. “Autopsy reports from the hospital,” he clarified. He flipped a page and continued, “The doctors determined Alex Carter died of a heart attack. Sudden cardiac arrest.”

  Kaiden shook his head vehemently. “No. Alex was fine. He never showed any signs. This doesn’t make any sense.”

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  “It’s rare, but it happens, young or old, healthy or not. Sometimes it’s genetic, other times it’s unexplainable.”

  Kaiden couldn’t make heads or tails of the situation. The look of utter desperation was on his face that even the detective could feel the heavy tension in the room. “It’s not finite, we still need to send it down to forensics and get a full blood sample to get a proper diagnosis.” Hoping that would ease some of his worries.

  He flipped to another page in the folder. “We also verified your gaming logs and checked the school’s video footage outside your hallways dorm. They both confirm where you were during the hours you mentioned, right up your eventful rush to your friend’s dorm.”

  Kaiden took a shaky breath. One some level, he was glad that he wasn’t indicated as a prime suspect.

  “So...am I free to go?”

  “You’re not under arrest,” the detective enunciated. “So, we can’t hold you, but don’t leave the state. We may need to follow up.”

  Kaiden nodded numbly, his thoughts spinning. “That’s it?” he asked, his voice shaking. “What about Alex? What happens now?”

  The detective’s expression softened as he closed the folder and set it aside. “Kaiden, I’m sorry. We’re going to do everything we can to make sense of this, but right now, there’s nothing else you can do. Its best if you try to get some rest, maybe go outside, clear your head a little. Stay out of the game world for a while. Go to your classes to take your mind off of things.”

  Kaiden’s chest tightened. Rest? Clear his head? Classes? How was he supposed to do that when nothing made sense. He wanted to argue, to make the detective see what he had seen, but the exhaustion in the man’s eyes made it clear that the conversation was over.

  Without another word, Kaiden rose from the chair and made his way out of the precinct.

  ???°?°???

  Two days later, Kaiden sat in his dorm room, the weight of Alex’s death pressing down on him like a stone. He hadn’t been able to bring himself to log into the game since the incident, despite his burning need for answers. Something about it scared him in a way he couldn’t explain. His classes had gone unattended; his assignments left undone. Nothing felt real anymore.

  A knock at the door pulled him from his thoughts. Slowly, he rose and opened it to find a curly brown-haired woman about his age, maybe a little older. Have I seen her before? She introduced herself as Francesca, Alex’s girlfriend.

  Kaiden nodded, stepping aside to let her in. He hadn’t expected to meet her. He didn’t know Alex even had a girlfriend, but he thought, maybe they just started dating?

  They sat down, and their conversation began with small talk of Alex his quirks, his laughter, the way he could brighten any room. But as the talk shifted, Kaiden hesitantly brought up the moment of Alex’s death. To his surprise, Francesca didn’t dismiss him.

  “I believe you,” she said, her voice low but firm.

  Kaiden blinked. “You do?”

  She nodded. “But I have to ask, did Alex ever mention something called the Photosphere?”

  Kaiden froze, his heart pounding. “He gave it to me,” he admitted. “Right before he...”

  Francesca’s eyes widened, her attitude changed quickly from grieving to something else he couldn’t quite pinpoint, but he squirmed on the edge of his bed regardless.

  “You have it?” she whispered. She leaned far too close to him, her presence changed from comforting to unnerving.

  Kaiden slowly nodded. “Do you know what it is?”

  She hesitated. Her gaze looked away from him but he had caught it, a flicker of uncertainty. “It’s... it’s a powerful in-game item, that’s all.”

  Kaiden narrowed his eyes. “You’re lying.” He couldn’t put his finger on it, but something wasn’t right about her. Albeit, at the time, it looked like she was stricken with grief but now as Kaiden watched her body movements and darting eyes, she seemed anything but grieving and more secretive.

  Francesca’s gaze returned back to him, but she didn’t respond to his accusation. Instead, she asked, “Why would Alex give you something like that? It only works for high-level players.”

  Kaiden shook his head. “I don’t know. But it’s the last thing he gave me, and I’m not letting it go.”

  Francesca’s expression hardened. “You should give it to one of his squad members. Someone like CrimsonCrow could put it to better use.”

  “No,” Kaiden said firmly. “It’s mine. Alex wanted me to have it.”

  Frustration flashed across Francesca’s face, her brows knitted together and her lips frowned, but she stood nonetheless without another word. “Think about what you’re doing,” she said before walking out the door.

  Kaiden stared at the door for a long moment before glancing at his watch. Class started in fifteen minutes, but he knew he wouldn’t go. Instead, he turned to his VR headset, resolve hammered in his chest. He had to go back into the game. He needed answers.