Darkness.
Endless.
No walls.
No floor.
No sound.
Noah stood alone.
Or at least—
That's what it felt like.
"…Where am I?" he muttered.
No answer.
Then—
A whisper.
"You are inside."
Noah turned instantly.
Nothing there.
"Inside what?" he asked.
Silence.
Then—
"Inside yourself."
The voice echoed from everywhere.
Noah's eyes narrowed.
"Not funny."
"Not humor."
A pause.
"Analysis."
Noah clenched his fists.
"The Collector."
Silence.
Then—
"Label accepted."
Noah exhaled slowly.
"Good. Then we talk."
"No."
The answer came instantly.
"We observe."
Then—
Everything changed.
The darkness shifted.
Forming shapes.
Memories.
Fragments.
Noah froze.
"…This is my past."
Scenes flickered around him.
Crime scenes.
Faces.
Victims.
Every case he ever worked on.
Every failure.
Every moment he couldn't save someone.
"No…" he whispered.
The images intensified.
Voices overlapping.
"You were too late."
"You failed."
"You missed it."
Noah's breathing grew heavier.
"This is manipulation," he said.
"Correction," the voice replied.
"Exposure."
The images closed in.
Closer.
Louder.
"You couldn't save them."
"You won't save her."
Noah dropped to one knee.
His head pounding.
"Stop…"
Silence.
Then—
"Why?"
He froze.
"What?"
"Why should it stop?"
A pause.
"You failed them."
Noah's hands trembled.
"…No."
Silence.
Then—
"Denial."
The images shifted again.
Now—
Lina.
Screaming.
Breaking apart.
Disappearing.
"Noah…"
His heart stopped.
"No…"
"You will fail her too."
The voice was calm.
Cold.
Something inside Noah cracked.
But not in the way expected.
He stood up slowly.
"No."
Silence.
The images paused.
"You misunderstand," he said quietly.
The voice didn't respond.
"I didn't fail them."
A pause.
"I just couldn't save them."
Silence.
"That's not the same thing."
The darkness shifted.
Unstable.
The system reacted.
"Distortion detected."
Noah took a step forward.
"You want to analyze me?"
Another step.
"Then analyze this."
Silence.
"I don't break."
The words echoed.
Strong.
Certain.
"I adapt."
The space trembled.
The images shattered.
Fragments falling apart.
The voice responded instantly.
"Adaptive response confirmed."
Noah's eyes sharpened.
"You want evolution?"
A pause.
"Then you picked the wrong subject."
Silence.
Then—
"No."
The voice changed.
Slightly.
"You are… interesting."
Noah smirked faintly.
"I get that a lot."
The darkness began to collapse.
The test ending.
Or changing.
"Conclusion pending," the voice said.
Noah exhaled.
"Good."
A pause.
"Because I'm not done."
Suddenly—
Light exploded around him.
Blinding.
Overwhelming.
Then—
He opened his eyes.
Back in the real world.
Gasping.
Alive.
Different.
Mira rushed toward him.
"Noah!"