Chapter 1: The Illusion of Ascent
The sky above the mountains was a masterpiece of deception.
Pyxis stood at the edge of his silver balcony, staring down at the endless, shimmering city below. From this height, it seemed perfect—a world sculpted from light and glass, where every building stood tall and every citizen moved with purpose.
But the perfection was only a reflection.
The mountains, crowned with radiant colors, were not places of wisdom or divine guidance. They were towers of control.
• Gold: The Promise of Wealth.
• Crimson: The Enforcement of Order.
• Sapphire: The Gatekeepers of Knowledge.
• Silver: The Illusion of Truth.
And beneath it all, the city worked.
The people believed in the Step-Up System, a perfect cycle of reward. Work hard. Obey. Rise. A family could serve for generations, sacrificing everything, all for the dream of one day reaching a peak.
But Pyxis had begun to see the cracks.
The cycle was rigged. The peaks didn’t reward. They consumed. Taxes were levied in the name of progress. Laws passed to “ensure balance” only took more from those already struggling. Promotions, grants, scholarships—just illusions to keep the working class focused on dreams rather than truth.
The compass pulsed on his chest, a steady silver heartbeat. Tonight, it pointed downward.
Something was happening in the city below.
The Descent
When Pyxis stepped through the veil, he felt it immediately. The weight.
The air wasn’t crisp here. It was thick, damp, the scent of industry clinging to every surface. The digital sky above still shone bright—clean, orderly—but here on the ground, the people weren’t looking up.
They were too busy surviving.
Holographic screens broadcast a steady stream of messages.
“Stay Focused. Work Hard. New Prosperity Laws Announced. All Will Rise.”
And yet Pyxis saw the truth beneath it.
A merchant sweeping dust from his shop as new tariffs quietly erased his profit margins.
A young mother staring at a rejected housing application, while a Sapphire family broadcast offered “educational grants”—with terms only the wealthy could afford.
A news alert flashing brightly: “Step-Up Trials Extended! A New Generation Shall Rise!”
It was a cycle. Build them up. Let them hope.
Then take it away.
Pyxis knew what the families would say.
“We are keeping balance. The people must learn sacrifice.”
The compass pulsed again, brighter now. The lie was unraveling. Someone had noticed it too.
A Voice Against the System
In a forgotten corner of the district, a crowd had begun to gather. Small, but growing.
A figure stood atop a crate, the face partially obscured by a hood. The voice was raw, not with rage but truth.
“They promise us prosperity, but have you seen it? We work. We serve. They keep us working—not to lift us up but to keep us chained to the mountains.”
The crowd stirred. Nervous. Watching the screens, wondering if security would come.
Pyxis stepped back, hidden in the shadows, his pulse quickening.
“This has happened before,” the speaker continued. “The laws change, the promises shift—but they never mean to let us rise. They make us believe it. So we keep building their towers while they watch from above.”
A ripple of uncertainty. Fear. Could it be true?
And then, from the broadcast screens above— Crimson Lights.
A warning. A new policy
“Unauthorized gatherings are prohibited. Return to productivity zones immediately.”
The crowd thinned. Fear always worked.
Pyxis felt the pull of the compass, stronger now than ever.
“No more,” he whispered. “They don’t get to erase this one.”
Tonight, the cycle would break.
