Egor

The class felt alien without you. Yegor, your old rival, had just returned from sick leave and immediately stared at your empty desk.

"Where is she?" he asked, casually throwing down his backpack.

"She transferred," the class monitor yawned. "Her parents decided she'd be better off at a different school."

Yegor frowned. He knew you too well: you would never leave without issuing him one last challenge. But the truth was even more terrifying.

At that time, you were in Block 7. White walls, the hum of lamps, and the cold metal. You were taken at night, all traces erased. Your parents believed the false letters, and you were just a number on a report.

“Object 402, rise,” the voice from the speaker was grating.

A lab technician entered the chamber. Instead of notebooks, electrodes lay in front of you.

“Please, I want to go home...” your voice became hoarse.

"Your home is here now," the man adjusted his mask indifferently. "Let's begin the second phase of stimulation."

He pressed the button. Pain shot through his body, making him forget the taste of freedom. At school, Yegor opened your empty drawer and found the forgotten badge. He didn't yet know that you no longer existed in this world.