The Dream That Never Ended
The sunlight penetrate through the blinds as the rays shine down on the bed lay a young boy shifting so frenzly as his eyes trembles.
"It came like a rift in silence — not with thunder, not with fire, but with the stillness that swallowed both. From the edge of existence, it fell upon the world — the Tower, ancient and unmoved by time, yet newly born to Earth. And when it stood, nothing else did."
He woke up gasping.
Eyes wide, heart pounding, drenched in cold sweat.
The same dream. Again.
No — not a dream. A memory.
Eli sat upright, breath ragged, his hand clutching his chest as if he could hold the echo of the past still beating in it. The ceiling above him was the same faded gray. The humming of the old fan spun dully in rhythm. But for a few seconds, none of that mattered.
His mind was still trapped in the vision — a vision from twenty years ago.
The screaming. The blinding white pillar that tore the sky open. The crackle of reality fracturing. The day the Tower arrived.
And the day his world ended.
His parents… His sister…
Gone.
All of them, gone in the blink of an eye — consumed by the "Arrival."
And he? Just a boy hiding beneath broken concrete, barely spared by luck… or something else.
He rose from the mattress on the floor. The apartment was quiet — too quiet. Dust clung to the curtains like cobwebs. A cracked photo frame sat on the shelf: his family, before the arrival. He didn't look at it.
A sharp beep brought him back.
"Selection Day: June 9 — All eligible candidates must report to the city plaza by 9 AM."
The glowing notification hovered above the silver-band wrapped around his wrist — the standardized Tower Link, worn by all Tower prospects. It flickered with crisp blue light, digital yet somehow alive.
Eli exhaled and swung his feet off the bed. The chill of the tiled floor grounded him.
"Another year," he muttered. "Another chance to climb."
Outside his apartment window, the city was already alive — sleek towers kissed the skyline, neon lights dancing even under morning sun. Holographic ads flew through the sky. But behind the shimmering tech and silver-glass highrises, an ever-present silhouette loomed in the distance.
The Tower.
A colossal spire piercing the heavens. A monument to the unknown.
It had no origin, no known builder. It simply was.
And now, it was everything.
It governed fate.
It devoured futures.
It promised power — for a price.
Today, Eli was of age.
Flashback – 20 Years Ago
The skies had ruptured without warning. A soundless quake rippled across the continents. Then it appeared — vast, dark, and ancient — as though it had always been and simply revealed itself.
Humanity panicked. Military forces tried and failed to approach it. Every attempt to decode its purpose ended in failure.
Then came the first Climbers — ordinary people who ventured into the Tower and came out different. Some never returned. Those who did… brought with them powers beyond comprehension.And with them came status as they were regarded as gods.
The world changed overnight. Governments collapsed. Corporations adapted. New guilds and factions rose, built around Tower exploration and knowledge, Everyone scrambled to ascend the tower each for there own purpose.Some to gain fame, wealth,and power while other for revenge.
Then came the System.
Integrated seamlessly with reality, it marked every eligible human with the Tower Link — a device that evaluated, recorded, and tracked progress inside the Tower. With it came quests, level-ups, sponsors, even blessings from otherworldly gods.
The Tower became more than just a structure.
It became a path to Ascension.
But not everyone who entered came out.
Because only those few that are worth and has what it takes to either grasp their fate or move fearlessly into the unknown.
Back to Present
The plaza was a sea of hopefuls, all standing beneath the towering projection of the Tower itself — like a god looking down on its sacrifice.
Students were gathering at the Tower Selection Grounds, a repurposed football stadium turned into a national entrance hub. Tower Guides, some masked and others fully armored, paced across the field. The air buzzed with energy.
Eli stood quietly, eyes fixed on its impossible height. Around him, laughter, nerves, excitement. He felt none of it. He only felt the weight of the dream — of the promise he made long ago to the dead.
He would climb.
Not for fame. Not for fortune.
But to learn the truth of that day.
To uncover what really came with the Tower.
And if need be…
To tear it down from within.