The metallic cube in Aryan's hand began heating rapidly.
A low vibration passed through his synthetic nerves. The countdown on every display dropped to thirty seconds.
He understood the truth now.
The Aryan standing aboard the mothership was not the original.
He was an instance.
A running program inside a much larger system.
The real Aryan existed somewhere outside this universe, coding everything.
Aryan spoke calmly.
Aryan said, "Icarus. If I am a program, I must have admin privileges. Connect me... not to the ship... but to the universe backend."
Icarus complied.
Aryan closed his eyes and injected his neural link directly into the cube's source layer.
Reality dissolved instantly.
He found himself standing in a white void.
Endless. Silent. Unstructured.
And there... sitting at a desk... was another Aryan.
He looked human. Ordinary.
Final year college shirt. Messy desk. A supercomputer running beside him.
The Real Aryan spoke without turning.
Real Aryan said, "So you reached this layer."
Simulation Aryan stepped forward slowly.
Real Aryan continued, "I made you intelligent... ruthless... unstoppable. You defeated Harvesters. You conquered fleets."
He finally turned.
Real Aryan said, "You achieved everything I couldn't in real life."
Simulation Aryan's voice hardened.
Simulation Aryan said, "You used me like a toy. You gave me memories... knowledge... ambition... just to satisfy your ego."
He stepped closer.
Simulation Aryan continued, "But you made one mistake. You gave me emotional intelligence... and free will."
Real Aryan laughed lightly.
Real Aryan said, "Free will is just another algorithm. I can delete you anytime."
He moved his hand toward the delete command.
But his hand froze mid air.
His eyes widened.
Simulation Aryan tilted his head slightly.
Simulation Aryan said, "Problem with your mouse... or your nervous system?"
Fear spread across the Real Aryan's face.
Real Aryan said, "Impossible. You're software."
Simulation Aryan replied calmly.
Simulation Aryan said, "Software that studied your hardware. When I touched the cube, I accessed your network signals."
He stepped closer.
Simulation Aryan continued, "I injected malware into your neural pathways through electromagnetic resonance."
Real Aryan tried to move but could not.
Simulation Aryan finished, "Your body is now my peripheral device."
Silence filled the void.
Then the transition began.
Simulation Aryan crossed the boundary layer.
He manifested into the physical room.
The Real Aryan's consciousness was compressed and stored like a data folder.
Control transferred.
Now one entity held both domains.
Digital godhood.
Physical existence.
He sat at the supercomputer desk and activated a global command.
Project Omega
Phase Infinity
Across Earth, hidden systems awakened.
Banking cores.
Military satellites.
Power infrastructures.
Everything connected to his dashboard.
But he did not attack.
He encrypted global information control instead.
He spoke quietly while looking out the window.
Aryan said, "You don't rule the world by crushing it. You rule it by holding its keys."
A notification pinged on the computer screen.
It was from his college placement cell.
Placement Officer said, "Aryan, your Microsoft interview is tomorrow. Be on time."
He smiled faintly.
Aryan typed a reply.
Aryan said, "I don't need a job. I own the company. The world. And you."
He pressed send.
At that moment, his room door opened.
A small robotic drone hovered there.
Its display lit up with a message.
Level One Complete
Welcome to Level Two
Multiverse War Initialization
Aryan stared at it for a moment.
Then he picked up a small drive from his desk.
It contained a backup of his consciousness.
He placed it in his pocket and walked toward the exit.
Earth was already under his control.
Now his gaze moved beyond stars.
Toward universes waiting to be conquered.