"Hey, you! Get out of there already! You think it's cheap waiting on the goodwill of incompetent rookies?"
My head hurt.
In fact, my whole body hurt — as though I had been crushed and ground while my mind witnessed everything without being able to do anything. The first thing that reached me was the voice. Then, the light. And then the sensation of the viscous liquid over my body, something disgusting to feel but that, in that moment, I didn't care about. All I wanted was to verify whether my body was still whole.
The light began to dim, and I finally managed to see what was in front of me.
"Are you deaf?"
Before I could understand what was happening around me, I felt my body being pulled out of the liquid — and before me, a woman in uniform stared at me.
"Well, well. Seems someone's quite well-endowed. At least you must be good for something. Now move and go to the cleaning area."
My body was naked.
Very different from when I had left there, more than a year ago. And it was looking at myself that the memories began to come back, vague at first, then clearer. I was back. The hive remained as immense as the first time I saw it — but there was a difference. Capsules lined up as far as the eye could reach, and from many of them, people coming out.
It was strange.
On the day I entered, there was no one coming out. Now, dozens. Maybe I had chosen a day of intense movement — or maybe there was something about that flow I still didn't understand. My throat still hurt, and my body refused to move freely, but I advanced in the direction the uniformed woman had indicated. She still looked at me with an enthusiasm I preferred to ignore.
✦ ✦ ✦
"Hey, you! Get in line."
Another person shouted in my direction as I advanced among the capsules.
My eyes still didn't see well — it was as though I had every degree of myopia possible at the same time, diminishing little by little. I finally located what other people like me were doing. The line was long, and everyone seemed as tired and confused as I was. While I waited, my vision returned to normal.
In front of me, seven people in the same state.
Among them, a woman with purple hair — and it was on her that the guard who had shouted at me concentrated his efforts, in a clear attempt to get close to her somehow. But she showed not the slightest interest. And, of all there, she was the one who seemed least bothered by her own nudity. While the others and I hid our parts, she simply didn't care, with the posture of someone who had been through that too many times to feel shame.
At the front of the line, another man — this one seated, focused on writing something at a table while talking with each person. Fortunately I could hear, and they were only questions of identity and spawn location in the Oasis.
Finally, the moment was approaching.
Honestly, I had imagined that, as soon as I came out, I would find a crowd waiting for me — people ready to interrogate me, or worse. But, fortunately, I seemed to be just another one returning from the Oasis. Anonymous. Irrelevant. Exactly what I needed to be. The problem was that that man's questions would be the first barrier.
My idea was to invent a new name.
But I had no idea whether it would work — after all, my data was registered, with photos and everything. My mind spun between the possible ways to hide my identity as the line moved.
"Next. Name, spawn location, and level."
It was my turn.
The man didn't raise his eyes from the tablet where he was writing. From what I had understood, the moment I said my name, he would search for it in the system — the rest was information he had no way of knowing.
I made the decision in an instant. I would tell the truth. If I was already registered, lying would only put me in a worse situation.
"Leonidas Aquiles. Farm 22."
The man wrote quickly.
But, unlike every time I had seen that happen, nothing appeared.
For the first time, the man who hadn't raised his eyes even for the purple-haired woman finally peeked at my face.
"Could you repeat your name?"
"Leonidas Aquiles. I'm replacing my sister… lena. Helena Aquiles."
"I see. Your data seems not to exist. And I'm also not finding any Helena. Are you sure that—"
My blood ran cold for a second.
Not exist. What do you mean, not exist?
I had a record. I had photos. I had a sister. And yet, the system treated me as someone who had never set foot there. The implications began to multiply in my head faster than I could organize them — but, before the man finished the sentence, someone interrupted him.
"Robert! We've got twenty more arriving! Speed that up and send the guy off! Today I want to eat lunch early!"
It was the guard trying to get close to the purple-haired woman.
The man at the table — Robert — looked at his colleague, visibly uncomfortable with the situation. And then made the easiest decision.
"You can go. Follow the others. And don't worry — there's an area further ahead where they'll locate your data and deliver your prize. Good luck."
He dismissed me quickly. I didn't bother to wait.
But the phrase kept echoing as I moved away.
My data didn't exist.
✦ ✦ ✦
I left the hive and entered what seemed to be an enormous bathroom, full of showers.
Again, the purple-haired woman bathed unconcerned — and, of course, the only free shower was beside hers. There were no walls, partitions, or any protection between the stalls. It was all open, taken over by steam. I approached the free shower quickly and began to wash myself, wanting to finish as soon as possible. The uniformed man hadn't bothered to explain anything to me beyond following the others.
About the prize he had mentioned, I knew something.
There was a reward for those who returned from the Oasis. Nothing luxurious — from what was known, the right to a comfortable room at the headquarters and little more. While removing the viscous liquid from my body, I noticed something hanging from my neck.
A tag.
I had already completely forgotten about it. But, looking around, everyone seemed to have an identical one. While I held it between my fingers, the memory of my sister came back — and I caught myself rubbing the small metal object with an involuntary tenderness.
"Rookie. Wake up to life and follow me."
The purple-haired woman was talking to me.
She watched my face while I caressed the tag, lost in thought. Probably, the way I moved and reacted had given away that I was a rookie — and the way she didn't care about her own nudity made it equally clear that she, most certainly, was not.
"Sorry… Leonidas."
I raised my hand to greet her, but the woman simply laughed, turned off the shower, and wrapped herself in a towel I didn't see where it had come from.
"Let's go, big guy."
I turned off the shower quickly and followed her, trying not to lose sight of her — the steam and mist barely let me see a meter away. While I accompanied her, she grabbed something beside a shower and threw it in my direction.
Another towel.
I dried myself quickly while she went out a door, with other people accompanying her. Looking carefully, it seemed maybe I was the only rookie there. Which made sense — rookies were rare, given the Oasis's brutal mortality rate.
✦ ✦ ✦
What appeared in front of me was another room.
Smaller, ending at a counter where everyone formed a line. On the other side, a woman took the body measurements of each one and returned with a uniform — the same as the one I had seen everyone wearing. The uniform looked military, but was white and blue, with a feel that resembled snow. Anyone who saw it from afar would know it was government. And would know, too, that it was different from the army. That uniform was new to me — but maybe it was normal now, and I just wasn't used to it after so long away.
"Name and size."
The woman asked with her back turned, already waiting for the answer.
"Leonidas Aquiles. Size M or L, I don't know."
It was genuinely hard to know.
My body had gone through too many changes. The muscles shaped me in a way that made me lose track of what would fit — after all, the uniform I wore in the Oasis was self-adjusting, and I had never needed to worry about size. The woman just smiled.
"You must be a rookie. Don't worry, when you change levels that really does happen."
She finally turned, letting her gaze run over my body.
"You've got a nice body there. I think L will fit. It'll be tight and snug, but I feel like this place needed something easy on the eyes."
She laughed at her own joke before pressing a button that made several pieces parade by as on a conveyor belt, until it stopped at the one she wanted. She grabbed the package and placed it in front of me.
"Here you go, stud. Welcome back. Next!"
Before I could say anything, someone pushed me aside.
"The usual, my flower. XL."
"Go to hell, Romeo."
Before things heated up, I simply moved on to the next room.
✦ ✦ ✦
In this one, many storage lockers lined up, while people dressed and stored their belongings.
"Okay. But which one is mine?"
I began to advance among the corridors, which crossed leading to more and more lockers. After a while, I reached what seemed to be the end of the room, without the slightest idea how I would find mine — until an older man who was getting dressed noticed me.
"Hey, rookie. Pick any locker. Here it doesn't matter — it adjusts to you."
"Okay. Thank you very much."
The man just waved and went back to tying his boot.
I approached the nearest locker — and, as I got close, I felt something burning on my chest. I looked down. It was the tag. It glowed, and the locker emitted the sound of having been unlocked. Inside, it was larger than it seemed from outside — a kind of technology I knew humans already mastered. I placed the towel, closed the door, and sat in some corner to get dressed.
As the woman had said, the uniform was tight. It didn't get in the way, but it wasn't comfortable either. Just tight.
"Okay. Let's see if this is right."
Before leaving, I tested opening another locker.
This time, when it opened, there was only a towel inside — folded and dry.
"So it really works."
Unfortunately, since I took too long to finish, I was the last one left behind. But since there was only one exit door, I didn't worry. I advanced and opened it.
✦ ✦ ✦
What I found on the other side was something incredible.
The space was immense — in height, width, and length. An enormous hall, full of life, with countless people dressed like me. There was what seemed to be a large station at the back, and many counters scattered around. There was even something that faithfully reproduced the Colosseum's board, with crowds observing it. And there were enormous round gates, dark as night — dark in a way that seemed to steal the light around them. Some people entered them in groups and simply vanished. I still didn't understand what that meant.
While I observed, I located the purple-haired woman — now dressed, talking at a counter with another woman.
"Okay. I think that's where I get the prize and the information."
Honestly, the prize didn't matter much to me.
What I wanted was information — how to get out of there. I had arrived so long ago that I didn't remember that place, and had no idea whether I would still have a vehicle waiting for me, or in what state it would be after more than a year. I approached, but opted for a counter beside it, which was empty.
At it, a small girl with large glasses played on the computer, without noticing my arrival. A well-placed cough, and she finally raised her eyes.
"Good morning. How can I help you?"
The smile came out fake — but I didn't mind. I knew well what it was like to be interrupted at the best part.
"Sorry. I'm a rookie and I'd like to understand… everything."
The girl, who seemed bored, suddenly lit up.
"My God… seriously? How cool! I mean, this is also my first time. I mean… with a rookie. I mean, meeting a rookie… Never mind."
Her nervousness surprised me — but, most certainly, she knew more than I did. I just needed to decipher what she meant amid the confusion. The girl turned quickly to the woman at the counter beside her, who was still talking with the purple-haired one.
"Cleo, I'm going to take the rookie to see the place. Cover for me."
The one called Cleo looked at me surprised, but confirmed with a nod.
Before I understood what was happening, the girl jumped from the chair and opened a side door I hadn't noticed. She was really very short — but I realized that didn't mean she was young. Just that she was…
"I guess you've never seen a dwarf, huh?"
She smiled, without any embarrassment.
"Nice to meet you. My name is Sinfonia, and I'm going to show you everything around here. Sorry for being so excited, it's just that we're trained to do this, but it's rare, you know… a rookie."
"I understand. Thank you. I'm in your hands."
The small woman took my hands and we began to stroll through the great hall.
✦ ✦ ✦
"This hall is called the Spatial Interconnection. It stays connected to all the human planets, being everywhere and nowhere at the same time. I know it's hard to imagine, it would be something like…"
Before she finished, I completed it.
"A spatial interconnection capable of corrupting space-time and existing in parallel with reality, analogous to a fourth dimension."
"Well, well, well. Seems we have a learned one here. Mister…?"
"Leonidas. Sorry, Leonidas Aquiles. It's just that I like to study."
"No problem. Come with me, I know the ideal place to start the tour."
From there, I felt the small one stopped being just an enthusiastic woman.
She was intelligent. Very intelligent — I would say one of the most intelligent people I had ever met. Of course, I didn't know whether she really understood half the things she said or just repeated what she had been taught. But, on some subjects, she demonstrated a genuine and deep knowledge that can't be faked.
"This is the first place you should go. Unfortunately, everyone is required to pass through the meter. But this only needs to be done once, so…"
In front of me, a crystalline sphere connected to what seemed to be an enormous quantum computer. The model wasn't familiar to me — but, most certainly, it was something out of the ordinary.
"What do I need to do now?"
"Ah, yes, of course, sorry."
She approached and pointed to the sphere.
"You need to place your hand on top here and call the one responsible for your journey in the Oasis."
"You must be talking about Zeus."
"Oh, what a peculiar name! Of course it's not the most eccentric — would you believe I once saw someone call their assistant mom? Hahaha!"
For a second, the small girl lost herself in her own story, laughing uncontrollably. It took a while, but when she came back, she turned red, clearly embarrassed. I didn't mind.
"Okay. So I just need to place my hand here and call?"
I placed my hand over the orb and called for Zeus.
At that moment, the small one still tried to stop me — but I didn't understand the reason until it was too late. An enormous screen materialized, visible to anyone in the hall.
[ Leonidas Aquiles — Level 3… Insufficient data ]
And an avalanche of laughter began.
[ Unknown 2 ] — My God, look at that ridiculous level. [ Unknown 5 ] — For the love of God, these nobles are more shameless by the day. [ Unknown 8 ] — True. He must have hidden behind some sibling or something. [ Unknown 43 ] — Ridiculous.
What began as something trivial quickly took on larger proportions. At least until a shout silenced everyone.
[ Everyone quiet! Whoever needs to go, go. Those who stay, shut up and don't bother me. ]
At the back of what seemed to be a restaurant, a man seated with his legs over the table was playing something on his phone.
His shout was loud even seated in that careless way — and silenced the whole commotion at once. He looked at me for an instant, then looked at the screen, gave an ironic smile, and went back to what he was doing, as though none of it deserved more than those few seconds of attention.
"My God… you can't do things like that, without waiting for me to finish!"
Sinfonia passed by me and advanced to the computer, typing things I was unfamiliar with while sweating. Soon my name and level disappeared from the screen.
"Phew. Well then. This machine shows the individual's level, but you don't need to choose to display it on the screen. In fact, most don't. Let's go."
I felt she got a little upset about what had happened. But I didn't mind.
In fact, I knew my level was meager in any comparison — after all, I had focused exclusively on the kingdom, not on myself. I believed that, with a strong kingdom, I would still be capable of winning without necessarily needing to enter personal combat. What intrigued me was something else: the screen showed only my level, not my status. But the small one already had the answer before I asked.
"Actually, we only need to know whether you're you. The level is something that, unfortunately, we can't prevent from appearing — and that's why we normally make the discovery process something personal, not the way it happened. Through my fault, it ended up public. I'm sorry."
"Don't worry. Actually, I don't mind."
Again, I saw on the small one's face something that seemed to bother her — as though she had eaten something bad. So I decided to open the door for her.
"Is there something you'd like to ask? Feel free."
She hesitated. But after a few seconds, she finally turned.
"You know… it's very rare to see a rookie. And rarer still a rookie with no one behind them. How did you manage to survive at that level?"
It was a valid question.
But what intrigued me wasn't the question — it was how she knew I wasn't a noble. I made a point of asking.
Before answering, she pointed to a more secluded place. It seemed to be another counter — but this one was different from the others. More beautiful. More striking.
"All the noble rookies go there. They tend to be protected by their families, so they hardly go through any difficulty. It's not infallible, but almost whenever a rookie appears, they go straight there — because that's where they're directed to go when they return to Earth."
A pause.
"Honestly, just by the fact that you didn't know that, it's already clear you don't have anyone behind you. And that's why I wanted to know how you survived at that level. Any information that increases humanity's survival rate is mandatory to report."
I understood.
She wasn't being nosy. She was doing her job — she just needed an opening to ask, and I had given that opening. The problem was that I didn't have an answer I could give.
"Actually… I think I got lucky."
She looked at me suspiciously.
But there wasn't much she could do with that. I couldn't lie convincingly, but there was also no way to prove anything — and that, in a way, was funny. In the end, I knew she was fulfilling her role, and still the situation had a humor of its own. Before I thought too much about what could happen, she pulled me from the stupor.
"Anyway, in any case, we've arrived. This is a place you might like."