Ways of Life

As the echoes grew louder, it became easier to discern what their source was. Footsteps. A lot of them. 

A large army approached from the distance. They marched and marched, only coming to a stop once they were right in front of Rin. They all looked identical to him with only one thing separating them from each other. 

There was a number etched onto each of their shirts. 

#500 spoke first.

"Another one huh?"

#1300 spoke next.

"It's always hardest at the beginning."

#4132 spoke last.

"Don't worry. You'll get used to this place pretty quickly."

Rin's head was spinning. He was hyperventilating. There was a different version of himself everywhere he looked. 

The crowd became less organized. Multiple Rins tried to speak at the same time, a handful of them devolving into conversations among their own inner circles.

All the murmurs were too much. Rin couldn't help but cover his ears. He wanted to shut out all the noise. Despite this though, he could still hear everything. 

"There was no point in helping them, so I figured I'd drag them down with me.", One said.

Rin shut his eyes and pressed his hands into his ears even harder.

It affected nothing.

"At first I just pulled them in as soon as I could, but that led to some... complications. They never went through the same thing as me so they couldn't understand me."

Rin tried harder than ever to shut him out.

It affected nothing.

"That's why I started guiding them all the way to New Year's Eve so they could witness Lena's death. That way we could all feel better together."

Rin's arms had fallen to his side. Finally, he looked up at One.

There was a smile on his face as he walked over to the horde of Rins. It wasn't one of cruelty or arrogance though. It was terrifyingly human, as if it came from a place of genuine longing.

"You can see how calling everyone Rin would get pretty confusing, so you'll be given a number like all the others. How many does this make it now?"

#3000 answered immediately.

"5673. But now that he's here, who's going to bring in the next one?"

That question sent the rest into a frenzy. Now, everybody was scrambling to get One's attention. The herd quickly simmered down though as One raised his voice over all of them.

"I've already decided. We'll leave it to our newest member."

He turned to the Rin who was kneeling. No, he wasn't Rin anymore. He was just another number now. 

#5673 looked back at him in horror. Any control he'd gained over his life was stripped away from him in an instant.

"You're- You're crazy if you think I'm going to do that."

"A lot of us thought that way before, and yet here we are."

"No..."

#5673 shook his head.

"Leave me alone. I don't want anything to do with this anymore..."

"You'll have to get used to it. It's either that or moping around all day."

One looked down at him as he spoke again.

"All we have in here is each other... This is our way of life."

Silence. It was pointless to continue the conversation. 

"There are some others you haven't met yet. Talk to them and get their perspectives. Then come see me again."

One walked away from him. The rest of the crowd soon followed, leaving #5673 alone. There was no feeling in his body. He wasn't even able to tell what kind of face he was making. 

He knew he couldn't stay there forever though, so after what felt like an eternity, he rose to his feet steadily and walked deeper into the void. 

***

It was all he could do. He walked and walked with no end in sight, a blinding light enveloping him as he did. Eventually, he couldn't see anything anymore. Even so, he kept walking. 

The light eventually vanished, and he found himself at a hospital. There was nothing else he could do, so he wandered inside. He was met with a waiting room which looked typical in every way except its lack of color. 

Thousands of seats littered the hallways, and sitting on one of them was a person with the number 3500 etched onto his clothing. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted #5673 entering the building and waved at him.

"What are you visiting for?"

"...What do you care?"

"Well, you're one of us now, aren't you?"

#5673 couldn't help but scoff in response to that.

"As far as I'm concerned, I have nothing to do with you."

"...Look, when I was pulled in here, I was just as hurt as you. But I got over it after a while, and you want to know why?"

No response.

"Because I realized complaining about my situation wouldn't make it any better."

"You dragged me in here... to feel better about yourself?"

No response.

"How many times have you done it? A couple dozen? Maybe a hundred? Or do you only get one turn each? You know, to keep things fair?"

"...What would you do?"

"I wouldn't do this."

"That's not what I asked you."

The two fell into silence. 

"See? We have nothing else. It's the same reason you kept chasing after the stasis bomb. It was your only form of stimulation. Even if empty, it was proof of your purpose in life."

"...That's different.", #5673 said.

They locked eyes with each other.

"Well, there's no point in trying to convince you if you're going to be so stubborn."

#3500 got up from his seat.

"Thank you for reminding me.", #5673 said.

#3500 looked at him, curious.

"About the one thing that could end it all."

"...The stasis bomb?"

They stood in silence for a while before #3500 ultimately walked away, but not before making a suggestion.

"You're not the only, you know? There are others who hate what we're doing too. You should talk to one of them next."

***

#5673 continued walking. 

The hallways were starting to look different now. They were less open, narrower, and had cells lining the walls on both sides of them. 

He looked around at all the inmates, eventually stopping at one cell in particular. The person inside had the number 346 etched into his uniform.

"You can come in if you want. It's not locked.", he said.

"...Then why do you stay here?"

"Simple. I'd rather not deal with anything going on out there."

"So, you're hiding? Don't you care about what they're doing? You're really okay with just sitting around and moping all the time?"

#346 answered with zero difficulty.

"Why not? It's not that different from how any of us were at the beginning."

"...What?"

"It was all we could do before we met our future selves. Even if it's horrible, it's a lot easier going back to it than you'd think."

After saying that, he looked out his cell's window. 

"Because even if I did leave, it'd be the same. I'd still be trapped, just in a slightly larger cage."

He looked quite peaceful as he said that. #5673 responded.

"And what about the stasis bomb? Don't you think that'd destroy the cage? Why not try it?"

#346 looked back at him again. He blinked twice before answering.

"For the same reason you won't."

Silence followed. He had no intention of elaborating any further. The conversation had come to an end.

***

#5673 continued walking. 

He was inside the building no longer. There was a giant chain gate beside him. 

-Where was this? 

He vaguely remembered being here before. 

A memory resurfaced in his mind. One of him sitting alone in a rowdy classroom. He remained silent as everyone around him talked with one another. 

His eyes widened. He was back by the chain gate. The scenery was looking more familiar now. He'd walked this path several times before.

Another memory resurfaced. This time it was one of him walking home alone. Through the chain gate, he unconsciously started watching clubs practicing on the field after school. 

They looked like they were having fun.

He continued walking aimlessly. The only reason he kept going was because the act had been ingrained into him before.

A final memory resurfaced as he fully recognized the place. It was one of him coming back home and his mother sitting in the living room. 

She didn't even get up to greet her son. 

#5673 came to a stop, surprised to see what was waiting for him.

"That's right."

One's voice echoed out from somewhere.

"This world is made of our memories as well."

It wasn't his home for him, but Lena's.