Ash sat at the worn wooden table, his fingers drumming a slow rhythm against its surface. Lyle and Ellen sat across from him, their expressions unreadable, as if measuring the weight of his thoughts. The air felt thick, heavy with the weight of revelation. He had spent his life believing in reason, in evidence, in the idea that knowledge was a tool to reveal truth, not obscure it.
And yet, here he was listening to a man and a librarian discuss an invisible war against a society that could erase people as if they had never existed.
He let out a breath, somewhere between a laugh and a sigh. "Alright, so let me get this straight. The Keepers of Concordia control history itself? Not just in a metaphorical, power-structures way, but in a literal, reality-altering way?"
Lyle nodded. "Exactly. Their influence is embedded in the very foundations of knowledge. Texts, records, even the memories of those who bear witness to certain truths if something threatens their control, it is either altered or erased. They do not simply destroy information; they replace it. That is why no one remembers Everett Miren. He wasn't just killed he was overwritten."
Ash scoffed, rubbing a hand down his face. "Fantastic. So I'm not just dealing with a secret society, I'm dealing with the editors of reality. Why not? Makes perfect sense." He shook his head, forcing down the nervous energy rising in his chest. "And this book? The paradox in my possession? It's, what, a broken tool of theirs?"
Ellen leaned forward. "Not broken. Misaligned. It was meant to be a conduit for their control, but something disrupted it. Now it acts as both a shield and a beacon. It protects you from their direct influence, but it also makes you visible. If they are cautious, it's because they haven't yet figured out how to deal with you without triggering unintended consequences."
Ash exhaled through his nose, his mind racing. So, in essence, he was a walking, talking typo in their carefully curated version of reality. If they could, they would rewrite him or delete him entirely. But they hadn't. Yet.
"So, what's the plan?" Ash asked, rubbing at his temples. "Because from where I'm sitting, my options seem to be: A) run and hope they get bored, B) die screaming, or C) somehow outmaneuver a group that rewrites the damn past. You'll forgive me if I'm not feeling particularly optimistic."
Lyle's mouth twitched, just slightly. "There's a fourth option. Fight them from within."
Ash blinked. "Excuse me?"
Ellen folded her hands together. "You are already entangled in their web. The book is not something you can simply discard. If you tried, it would either return to you, or worse they would take it back and remove any trace that you ever held it. Right now, they are watching, but they are uncertain. If you appear to align with them, it may grant us time. Time to learn more. Time to move."
Ash frowned. "And how exactly do I 'align' with them? Do I send in a resume? 'Dear Omnipotent Keepers of Concordia, I'm a huge fan of rewriting reality and gaslighting the universe, please consider me for your next opening'"
Ellen cut in. "They will approach you. Eventually. The book ensures that. When they do, you must act as though you are willing to learn. Gain access. Discover their methods. And when the opportunity arises… disrupt them."
Ash let out another breath, shaking his head. "So that's it. Infiltrate a secret society that can literally delete people from existence. A foolproof plan. What could possibly go wrong?"
Lyle's gaze was steady. "It is dangerous. But so is doing nothing. If we do not act, they will tighten their grip. There will come a point where no one will even be capable of resisting. We are losing time."
Ash leaned back, staring at the ceiling. His mind, always quick to rationalize, to dissect, to find the cracks in logic, was doing its best to keep up. This was madness. And yet, was it any more absurd than pretending none of this was real? He had already glimpsed behind the curtain. Already felt the tendrils of something vast and unseen shifting around him.
And the worst part? The part that made him sick?
He wanted to know more.
His whole life had been a pursuit of knowledge. The satisfaction of peeling back layers, of uncovering what lay beneath. It had always been about control. If he understood something, he could navigate it, manipulate it, protect himself from it.
And now, he had stumbled upon a truth so vast it made a mockery of everything he thought he knew. The only thing worse than facing it… was looking away.
He let out a slow, measured breath. "Alright. Let's say I do this. Let's say I let them reel me in. How do we make sure I don't just end up erased the moment they get bored of playing with me?"
Ellen tapped a finger against the table. "The book. As long as you are bound to it, they must be careful. It is an anomaly even they do not fully understand. That is our leverage."
Ash looked at the black tome, its cover as featureless as a void. A paradox, they had called it. A rift in their carefully controlled narrative.
He let out another humorless laugh. "Well. I always did say books could change your life."
Lyle nodded. "Then it's settled. We prepare. And we wait."
Ash stared down at the book, the weight of it pressing against his mind as much as his hands. The choice had been made the moment he first opened its pages.
All he could do now was turn to the next chapter.
And hope he wasn't written out of the story before he could finish it.