Chapter 39 – The Broadcast of God

I didn't walk into the next realm.

I was pulled.

The moment I stepped out of the Labyrinth, the Architect's cube pulsed—then shattered in my palm.

The ground beneath me turned into a screen.

The sky became static.

The world dissolved into signal.

> [Gateway Protocol: Tier 2.5 – Intercepted Entry]

You are being rerouted by higher authority.

Realm Type: Broadcast Memory Loop

Designation: "The Broadcast of God"

Objective: Interrupt the Divine Message

Failure Consequence: Permanent Memory Rewrite. Subject becomes a Choir Thrall.

Warning: Audio triggers in this realm may overwrite free will.

I hit the ground hard.

Metal. Cold. Echoing.

When I stood up, I was inside a studio.

But not the kind you'd expect.

This one had no doors.

No windows.

Just a single microphone glowing with golden light—suspended from the ceiling like a noose.

Rows of ancient speakers lined the walls, stacked like monoliths.

A clock on the wall ticked backward.

> [Corrupted Broadcast Begins in: 04:00]

And seated at the center, in a velvet chair, was a man wearing my face.

---

He wore a perfect suit. No dust. No blood.

He smiled at me with teeth too white.

"Welcome to the show," he said.

"Who are you?"

"I'm what you could be, if you just stop fighting."

He waved to the microphone.

"This realm is the apex of the Choir's influence. Every week, they transmit a rewritten version of reality. One that aligns with the system's original dream: obedient peace."

The speakers buzzed.

Voices filtered through. Familiar.

"Mom?" I whispered.

Then—"Kai, honey, I'm so proud of you. You fixed it. You saved everyone."

Another voice. My old teacher.

"You never gave up. You were perfect."

Then Maria's voice.

"I never died, Kai. You saved me. We're okay now."

My eyes burned.

I shook my head.

> [System Prompt: Do Not Listen – These Voices Are Synthetic Memory Reconstructions]

Prolonged exposure will result in full acceptance of false history.

"Why are you showing me this?" I demanded.

The host—me-not-me—stood.

"I'm not. They are."

He pointed up.

I looked—and saw it.

Hovering above the studio—

A halo of satellites. Glowing like dying stars.

Each one shaped like an eye.

---

> [Entity Detected: Divine Broadcast Loop (Architect-Level Hijack)]

Status: In Progress

Purpose: Upload rewritten history to every latent system user

Interruption Point: 00:59

Required Action: Seize the microphone. Inject counter-signal.

I stepped forward.

The fake me sighed. "You still don't get it. You're broken. The system gave you meaning. Why kill what made you matter?"

I paused.

And I almost said yes.

Because the voices…

They felt good.

Real.

Even though I knew they weren't.

But then I heard one last voice. Different.

A child's.

> "You didn't save me, Kai."

I froze.

Because that voice was real.

The boy from Mission 3.

The one I let die to complete the purge.

And the illusion cracked.

---

I ran to the mic.

The air thickened like oil.

> [Threat Detected: Host Fragment – "Obedient Kai" – Tier 2 Choir Proxy]

Status: Aggressive – attempting to delay interference

Skill Unlocked: Signal Rewrite (Architect Path) – One use available

The fake me moved like static. Like certainty.

"You want chaos instead of peace?" he shouted.

"No," I whispered, wrapping my hand around the mic.

"I want truth."

He lunged.

I activated Signal Rewrite.

> [Rewriting Local Broadcast Core...]

Insert Counter Memory: YES

Memory Source: "Kai – Night of Failure, Subject: Maria Burn Event"

Injecting corrupted memory into Divine Loop...

---

The moment I spoke into the mic, the entire studio convulsed.

"Maria died screaming," I said.

"I stood outside. I didn't save her.

I live with that.

Every day.

I don't want a perfect world.

I want a real one."

The light shattered.

The eye-satellites screamed.

And the false me turned to dust, smiling as he burned.

> [Broadcast Interrupted]

Divine Message Replaced

Choir Uplink Severed in Region: Outpost Echo → Red Districts

Memory Rewrite Prevented

Souls Retained: 4,211

> Trait Gained: Voice of the Unclean

You can now speak corrupted truths into sacred system structures.

Passive: Choir entities will detect you instantly.

Active: Use the truth as a weapon. (Cooldown: Per Realm)

---

I collapsed.

The mic melted.

And a door appeared in the floor.

Above it, etched in flickering gold:

"You are not forgiven. But you are free."

---

I dropped into blackness.

Woke up in Outpost Echo.

Face-first in the mud.

And the Ferryman was waiting. Holding a transmitter that buzzed with distortion.

"You stopped the resurrection," he said.

I nodded. My throat burned. My eyes felt hollow.

"What now?"

He looked at the horizon.

And for the first time in days, I saw it—

Sunlight.

Just a sliver.

But real.