LifeNet: The Price of Immortality

Chapter 6: A Glitch in the Routine

“Elara, did you hear me?”

The voice jolted her from her thoughts. She looked up to see Kira standing by her desk, giving her a strange look.

“Oh, sorry. Got lost in my head for a second. What were you saying?” Elara replied, shaking herself out of the daze.

Kira rolled her eyes, smirking. “I was asking if you wanted to grab a coffee break. You’ve been at it for hours.”

Elara nodded, getting up from her chair. “Yeah, coffee sounds good.”

They made their way to the break room, and Elara tried to brush off the lingering unease from last night’s warning message. But the words kept creeping back, “You won’t receive another notice.”

“So, what’s up with you today?” Kira asked, pouring herself a coffee. “You look like you saw a ghost.”

Elara forced a laugh, shaking her head. “Didn’t sleep well, that’s all.” She busied herself with her cup, trying to keep her face neutral.

“Join the club,” Kira said with a chuckle. “Liam’s been ranting about his dog’s birthday for, like, the fifth time this week. Can’t believe he doesn’t realize it’s getting old.”

Elara’s ears perked up at that. “Wait, he told you that today? About his dog?”

“Yeah,” Kira replied, frowning slightly. “He was talking about it just now, actually. Kept going on about the cake he ordered. Weird thing is, I swear he mentioned it last week too, almost word-for-word.”

Elara’s stomach tightened. It was exactly what she’d noticed the day before. “Did he say anything else?”

Kira shrugged, clearly amused. “Nothing out of the ordinary. Just the same story. Guess he’s excited?”

But Elara wasn’t sure. The nagging feeling in her mind grew stronger. She glanced at Liam, who was sitting at his desk, his eyes glued to his monitor as if nothing were unusual.

“Maybe he’s just really proud of his dog,” Elara muttered, trying to sound casual.

Kira laughed. “Who knows. Anyway, back to the grind.”

They returned to their desks, but Elara couldn’t shake the strange sense of repetition. The same story, the same enthusiasm, told with the exact same words. It was as if Liam didn’t remember that he’d already told it—or worse, he didn’t realize he was repeating it at all.

As the hours passed, Elara couldn’t stop watching her coworkers. The more she listened, the more these odd “glitches” began to stand out. She noticed Emma talking to another colleague, James, about the new client they’d signed on—something she’d just mentioned to Elara two days ago, using almost the exact same words.

“Yeah, and the guy from the client’s side was super picky. Made us redo the entire presentation, like, twice!” Emma said, laughing nervously.

James chuckled, but Elara noticed he didn’t respond with anything specific, just the usual polite phrases. She’d seen this interaction before. It was like she was watching the same scenes play out over and over.

At one point, Marcus stopped by Elara’s desk, snapping her back to the present.

“Hey, Elara, you good? You seem… distracted lately,” he asked, looking genuinely concerned.

“Yeah, just…” She hesitated, wondering how much to share. “Have you noticed anything… strange around here?”

Marcus tilted his head. “Strange? Like what?”

Elara lowered her voice, glancing around. “Like… people repeating themselves. Saying the exact same things, like they’ve forgotten they’ve already said it.”

Marcus paused, his face thoughtful. “I mean… I guess? People get tired, you know. We all run on LifeNet, and it’s a lot to keep up with sometimes.”

She could tell he wasn’t brushing her off, but he didn’t seem convinced either. “But don’t you think it’s weird? I feel like it’s been happening more often, like… like something’s causing it.”

“Maybe it’s just the stress,” he said, though she noticed him frowning slightly. “Or maybe LifeNet’s giving us all a bit of memory overload.”

Elara laughed lightly, though her mind was racing. “Maybe…”

***

The day wore on, and by afternoon, she’d noticed a pattern. It wasn’t everyone, and it wasn’t all the time, but the glitches—those small, unsettling moments—were definitely there. Liam and Emma weren’t the only ones repeating themselves. Even James, who was usually sharp, had stumbled over a sentence, paused, and then continued on as if he’d forgotten what he was talking about.

As she observed these small lapses, Elara began writing down each occurrence in her notebook, a habit she’d picked up since the night before. At first, she’d planned to jot down just a few lines, but as she documented each “glitch,” her notes grew longer.

After a while, she noticed Kira hovering near her desk again.

“Elara, seriously, what’s with you today?” Kira asked, half-jokingly.

Elara hesitated, not sure how to explain what she was seeing without sounding paranoid. “Do you… do you ever feel like something’s off, Kira? Like people aren’t… themselves?”

Kira narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean? We’ve all got our quirks.”

Elara looked around, making sure no one was within earshot. “I mean like people repeating themselves, saying the same things as if they don’t remember they’ve already said it.”

Kira laughed, looking at her like she was joking. “Well, you know, we’re all a bit robotic these days. LifeNet basically thinks for us.”

Elara forced a smile, but she wasn’t laughing. “Yeah, I guess.”

Kira gave her an odd look. “You’re not… planning on quitting LifeNet, are you? I mean, it would be practically impossible to do anything without it.”

Elara shook her head. “No, no, nothing like that. Just… thinking out loud.”

“Alright, well, don’t get too lost in your thoughts,” Kira replied with a smile. “LifeNet’s here to make things easier, remember?”

Elara managed a nod, but her mind was spinning with questions. Was LifeNet really making life easier—or was it controlling them in ways they couldn’t even see?

As she packed up for the day, she noticed Marcus was still at his desk, scrolling through his feed.

“Hey, Marcus?” she asked, trying to keep her voice casual.

He glanced up, his eyes tired. “Yeah?”

“Have you ever tried… turning off LifeNet? Just to see what it’s like?”

His eyes widened a bit, then he laughed. “Turn it off? Are you serious? I don’t even think I’d know how to do that, even if I wanted to.”

“Yeah, I know,” she said quickly. “I was just… curious.”

He raised an eyebrow. “What’s going on with you, Elara? You’re acting really… paranoid. Is everything okay?”

She opened her mouth, then closed it, not sure how to answer. “I… I guess I’m just tired.”

Marcus nodded slowly, but there was something in his gaze—a hint of worry, maybe even suspicion. “Alright. But just… take it easy, okay? LifeNet’s here to help. Don’t get too lost in conspiracy theories.”

She nodded, forcing a smile. “Right. Thanks, Marcus.”

But as she walked away, she couldn’t shake the feeling that he was watching her more closely than before.

That night, Elara sat at her small desk, looking over the notes she’d taken. The glitches, the strange pauses, the repeated stories—it all pointed to something unsettling beneath the surface.

Her eyes drifted back to the blank spot on her screen, where that warning message had appeared and then disappeared just as quickly. “Stay out of this. Your life depends on it.”

A cold shiver ran down her spine. LifeNet was everywhere. It was impossible to function without it, but at what cost? The more she thought about it, the more she realized there was no simple answer.

But she couldn’t stop now. The fear gnawed at her, yes, but so did the curiosity—the need to understand what was happening around her. LifeNet’s hold on everyone’s minds, these glitches, her mother’s mysterious warnings from long ago—they were all pieces of a puzzle she was determined to solve.

As she sat there, lost in thought, her terminal chimed, shattering the silence. Her heart raced as she glanced over, half-expecting another ominous message.

But it was just Nyx.

“Elara, are you there? Found something you might want to see.”

Her eyes lit up. Another piece of the puzzle.