Author note: This story speaks of death. There is also a part where Reclusa injures himself (multiple parts, actually; one of them being in this very chapter) and also mentions trauma.

He sat straight, seeing nothing more than dark walls. A gentle mist seeped from the ground. Where was he?

He sat, realizing his mind was clouded. Not only did he lack an idea where he was, he also had no clue who he was. What relation to him brought him to this world?

He looked at his hand, flexing his fingers. They were faded gray; and they lacked life. He got to his feet. No, he didn't have those. He...floated, just off the ground. His clothes were tattered and torn. He felt weak just staying afloat.

A golden doorknob.

It sat right in front of him, seemingly calling to him. It was the only thing decorating the barren walls. But did it lead to a door, or was it simply an illusion meant to trick him? Either way, he reached for it. He saw a glimmer of a face in the doorknob's shine. The glitching screen flickered and flashed. Every time the screen distorted, his vision became blurry.

He touched a hand to his face, seeing the reflection copied. He tapped a pointed finger to his face, realizing he could not feel. He shook it off, deeming it unimportant, and opened the door.

This room was just the same as the last, however lacking a doorknob. He tried to go back, but the door he'd entered through was gone. He backed away, breathing hard. Was it a reflex, or did he truly need to breathe? He closed his eyes, holding his head. Was this a real place? He was lost, physically and mentally, and confused. He had no clue or recollection of anything; and that was terrifying. The thought of being lost, forever, scared him.

However, a light came on behind him. He slowly turned, seeing a gigantic screen. It was black with a smiling face, each part of it a different color than the last. It smiled more seeing his face it.

"Why so Glohm-y?"

"...What?"

"Oh, right. The end of a cycle. Let me catch you up to speed-"

"Who are you?" His voice sounded the same as the one coming from the screen, although his was infested with static.

The screen frowned. "You don't recognize yourself? Wow, you must have gotten hit pretty hard!"

"M-myself? But you look so weird."

"Mm..." The screen smiled anyway. "You've died. For once in a thousand cycles, you've died. Mario and Luigi...Do those names ring a bell?"

"No...Are they supposed to?"

"Seems like that cycle ended too poorly." It compressed into a smaller form, taking on a human-like body. Its limbs glew bright red. "Oh well. I guess that happens sometimes. It just means there are a few...bugs. Here, let me just grab this and..."

He grabbed the cycled-version's head and tore it off. He punched a hole through its face and ripped out vital cords. He tossed them aside, then dropped the head to the ground.

"There we go. It's sad that the cycles need to be killed, but here we are." He shrugged it off. "Oh well. I'd rather be alone anyway."

His face glitched.

"Wh...What's going on? I-I'm a new cycle! I shouldn't feel his suffering!" Pain rung through his head. "Oh, I see...I'm actually dead. I was actually killed. They didn't seal me away, they ended my game." A large crack snapped onto his face, Glohm pouring from it. "N-no no no! I can't lose that! My Glohm! It's keeping me alive! No! NO!"

His face shattered. He fell back from the force, falling down an endless abyss. His hair fell limp as he slowly lost all feeling in his body. The shards of glass fell around him as he clattered silently to the ground.