Path of the Endless

Boom!!

Michael's body catapulted across the room, the searing heat causing his skin to peel away, leaving only the remnants of a once-cherished bracelet fused with his melting flesh. As his consciousness clung to the fringes of existence, his gaze locked onto the colossal nuclear reactor, spiraling into chaos as radiation devoured everything in its wake.

[...]

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***

Michael jolted upright in a cold sweat, feeling himself falling.

Bam!

His head collided with something hard, eliciting a groan of pain. As he slowly opened his eyes, his vision blurred and dimmed, but a silhouette moved back and forth, seemingly occupied.

Suddenly, a bright light assaulted Michael's face, making him squint as he attempted to shield his eyes with his arm. However, his body remained unresponsive, a mix of pain, itching, and numbness overwhelming him.

'Am I dead?' Chaotic memories of his horrific demise flashed before him, witnessing his consumption by radiation, transforming into an unidentified blob of flesh and blood.

Panic seized Michael as he quickened his breathing, reliving the agony from the memory. "Michael!" A voice reached his ears, but he remained fixated on the pain. Hands enveloped him, holding him in a tight hug while soothingly stroking his hair.

Slowly, he calmed down, his eyes clearing to reveal the face of his comforter.

"Michael, everything is okay, Mommy is here," a gentle voice reassured him. This continued until the woman gently pushed him away.

"I thought your panic attacks were over. I guess that incident really got to you!" The woman, appearing to be in her mid-thirties with black hair and piercing blue eyes reflecting concern and care, spoke.

"Mom?" Michael had never seen this woman before, yet upon seeing her, he inexplicably recognized her.

"Yes, dear. Mommy is here. Are you okay now?" She smiled gently, her concern persisting.

Michael took a deep breath, nodding in confusion as his body finally responded. Standing up, he surveyed the unfamiliar surroundings.

"Lana, what happened?!" A man rushed into the room, casting a glance at the woman before fixing his gaze on Michael.

"Yeah, he had another attack, but he's fine now."

"Is it happening again? I thought the doctor said he should never have them anymore."

"He... had a bit of an incident at school today. He fought with some kids, came home, and went to sleep."

"Those bastards!" The man ground his teeth, delivering a punch to the wall.

"Calm down, dear. It wasn't them. I heard from the teacher that he started the fight himself with another group of kids, he was alone and got beaten up."

*Sigh*

The man sighed while walking over. "Michael, go wash your face and come sit down with us. We need to talk."

Still confused, Michael nodded and walked to the bathroom, instinctively knowing its location. Standing before the mirror, he was surprised by the sight of a kid, around 13 to 15 years old. Disheveled black hair, blue eyes accentuated by dark bags, and a thin frame adorned with bandages on his legs and arms created a sickly image.

"Who the heck is that?" Michael muttered, contemplating his reflection. Meanwhile, he overheard his parents' conversation.

"Has Lisa already left?" His mother inquired.

"No, she had breakfast, and she is still in her room getting ready," his father responded, followed by a moment of silence.

*Splash*

Michael opened the faucet, which looked old, and began washing his face, the cold water clearing his head. Determined to gather information, he contemplated his situation. "Whatever this is, I'll need to stay calm and get as much information as possible first," he thought.

Suddenly, like a flood breaking out of a dam, a complex wave of thoughts surged into his mind. Unconsciously groaning, Michael gripped his forehead as new memories swarmed into his brain.

"My name is Michael here too, and I'm in a different world?! What is this!!"

Diving into the unfolding memories, he discovered a world reminiscent of Victorian England, where horse-drawn carriages elegantly traversed cobbled streets, the rhythmic hum of steam-powered machinery filled the air, and finely crafted dueling pistols graced the hands of its denizens. In this alternate reality, Michael, who is a 17-year-old boy from a middle-class family with parents employed in a nearby clothing factory, had a younger sister named Lisa, two years his junior.

The lifestyle resembled that of the Victorian era he'd read about, but the memories clarified that this was not a time travel incident but a venture into a different world. Vague recollections surfaced of a past attack, where Michael suffered burns from a boy wielding fire in his palms.

"Magic? No... Think... Remember..." Michael massaged his temples. "A merger!" Realization dawned, at reaching 18 years old, people of this world underwent an odd test.

While ignorant of the testing process, Michael knew that a positive result led to recruitment by the military with a 3-year contract, where they teach and train the recruits while offering various paths known as the "endless" paths. Michael had no idea what they were or how many paths existed, but he was familiar with one of them, the path used by someone Michael of this world hated with passion, Hugo, the Merger with the path of the Pyromancer!