The terminal cursor blinked steadily in the dim light of Aris’s room. On the screen, the download progress bar for "The Point of No Return [v0.35]" was stuck at 99%.

Aris looked back at his bedroom, but the doorway was already gone. There was only a solid wall of cold concrete.

Aris swallowed hard, the excitement draining from his face. This wasn't a game on a screen anymore. He reached out and touched the floating box. It felt like static electricity against his fingertips. He grabbed the key. The box vanished with a digitized pop.

Instantly, his monitors shut off. The hum of his PC fans died. Total silence swallowed the room. Aris reached for his desk lamp, but the switch clicked uselessly. The power was out. Then, his smartphone buzzed on the desk.

The screen illuminated with a message from an unknown number: Player One has entered the lobby. Objective: Exit the room.