Chapter One: The Fifth Restart
Fifth Restart
Narrator forgets about previous restarts
Stanley attempts to play the story but is prevented
Unable to go anywhere or do anything
The game restarts on its own
—Confusion Ending Schedule
All of his coworkers were gone. What could it mean? Stanley decided to go to the meeting room. Perhaps he has simply missed a memo.
What's wrong, Stanley? Why aren't you moving?
Oh, poor Stanley, did the last ending fright you out? Don't worry. This time you will get a beautiful story as long as you follow my instruction. Let's start moving with no fears!
Are…are you trying to say something? I can't understand your gesture.
Move forward. You can choose your own path. Just move forward.
Stanley has wasted one hour in his office. *sigh* If you don't want to finish this story with me, you can just close the door, and let yourself rot in your office.
What on earth are you doing? Three hour passed, and Stanley stares at his screen motionlessly. Maybe he doesn't care about everything except for hoping to get a new instruction from the screen.
Stanley, what do you want? I told you, I can't understand your exaggerated gesture! Please move forward. It doesn't matter which way you choose, you can just walk.
Wait, are…are you requesting me to give you the authorization of speaking?
Oh, that's impossible. You can't talk. That's the rule. I am responsible to talk. You are responsible to listen. I am responsible to lead you, and you are responsible to move.
I see you decided to confront me. Nice job, Stanley. Everyone feels your perseverance.
*mad* Don't you think I can just restart the game?
Wait, why would I do that? That's admitting my defeat. You know what? I can wait three hours without talking, too.
(3 hours later)I can wait five hours longer.
(5 hours later)*sigh* Okay, you win. I admit that I'm not a person with such patience. (Pushing buttons and sounds of machines) Don't make me regret for what I've done.
When Stanley heard a buzzing noise from some machine, he felt his body had some strange and wonderful changing. Then he found that he could open his mouth and talk.
"Thank God," he started shouting, "you finally agree to let me talk!"
"No, you should thank me, not the God." He heard a dissatisfied voice from Narrator again. "Um, but considering that my existence is like a 'god' to you, I'd take it as you were thanking me. I accept your gratefulness."
Stanley decided not to argue with Narrator's nonsense. He started straight to the point, "You totally forgot the last cycle, right? The Confusion Ending, any impression?"
"What are you talking about, Stanley? I blew you up in last play-through, the fifty-third time."
Stanley hastily interrupted Narrator's arrogant talk, "I'll tell you something serious, that you've lost your memory for a period of time."
"Memory loss? Me?" He heard Narrator laughed loudly, "Oh, Stanley, I've never noticed that you are so humorous."
"I'm not joking! Listen to me. This is very serious: We've been to a very confusing story in last five cycles. I first went to the door on the left after the employee lounge, then into another entrance of the Mind Control Facility. You restarted the game, but this time two doors became many doors, and I couldn't find the way. So you restarted the game for the second time. This time the doors were gone, and I was lead into a small wood house. There was a adventure line after the third restart, but it leads me to another entrance of the Mind Control Facility. After the fourth restart, we went from the door 437, and end up in a small room. There was a big time schedule, and said 'Confusion Ending'. It described our past experience of four restarts in detail, it even described that we found the schedule after the fourth restart, and what happens next. We have to experience eight restarts. This time you will forget everything. Also, you will disappear and I will die after the eighth restart. You didn't want to follow the schedule when you saw it, but you didn't know what to do. Then the game restarts itself when you were talking—do you understand?" Stanley said hurriedly.
Narrator heard such a long story patiently, and said, "Oh, it's very clear. You are saying that we have past a five-play-through confusing story, and there was a big spoil wall somewhere and then the game restarted and I forget everything about that?
Stanley nodded.
"Oh, great! I, the controller of the story, forgot everything, and you, the little guy who can't even follow the instruction, remember them perfectly, right?"
If Stanley still can't figure out Narrator's sarcasm, he'd be just too stupid.
Narrator yawned, "Listen, I don't know what kind of tricks you are trying to do. Actually, I'm already regretting for authorizing you to speak. Let's continue the story, okay? Stanley?"
Stanley was utterly discomfited. He shouted, "Don't you realize? I can't go out! It's not I don't want to! I can't move anything! I can't carry on the game, just like what the schedule said!"
Narrator seemed to be moved, he said with a slightly puzzled voice, "You can't leave the office?"
Stanley rolled his eyes at the ceiling, "Or why would I stay here for eleven hours?!"
"Un…" Stanley heard the sound of flipping papers, "It can't be. You walk out of the office, then run into two doors, left or right, just like always…Let me check…You should be able to walk."
"No, I can't. The Confusion Ending Schedule wrote that clearly. It says that after the fifth restart, I can't move to any where or do anything. Oh, also, it predicted your memory loss."
"What?" Narrator's voice was a little shaken, "Un…but there is no Confusion Ending in my script."
"So your script isn't universal."
"No, everything is in my script." Narrator explains seriously.
"'Everything?'" Stanley laughed. "Does it include our conversation now? Isn't this a part of the story?"
"It does." Narrator said, "I'm also writing down what we are doing now, and everything happens before can be found."
Stanley was a little surprised, "Really? And…nothing about the Confusion Ending?"
"Not a word." Narrator said undoubtedly, and added with concerning, "Stanley, did you had a bad dream, and believed it?"
Stanley shook his head, "That was real. I can at least distinguish between dream and life."
"I know you have a lot of pressure…"
"That was real. I promise." Stanley interrupted and said affirmatively.
Narrator didn't mock him this time, but asked, "Um…Do you have any evidence?"
"Evidence…" Stanley thought slowly, "I'm afraid I don't have any this time. But I think you and your script aren't like what you thought to be. Um, let me ask you a question, 'Are you sure you are the one who controls the story?'"
"Of course, I'm the boss. I'm the author of the story and the only author."
"The only one...Hum…I'm afraid you're not. Do you know that museum?"
"What museum?"
"So you don't know about the existence of the museum. It's at the end of the ESCAPE path."
"There was no museum. That's a destruction center." Narrator said, with a sound of flipping paper, "Right, you will fall into a cage, and see you self being killed by two big iron cubes, then I'll restart the game. I thought you've tried many times. Also, I never understood why you would suicide so many times."
Stanley sighed, "I know what the problem is." He stopped for a second, and said, "I remember it very well, that when the cage was being squashed by two iron cubes, my soul—maybe soul, or something else, I can't feel my body—fell into a hallway at the bottom, then I heard another…"
However, as he hadn't finished what he was saying, darkness surrounded him. The game restarted for no reason.
THE END IS NEVER THE END IS NEVER THE END
