Chapter Three: The White Platform

“She designed the selection criteria.” Seventeen years earlier, Xu Xi had vanished from a locked imaging laboratory. There had been no exit. In the photographs Xu preserved, an unexplained white light shone in one corner. Only now did Lin recognize its color. “Where is she?” Xu asked. The office lights flickered. For the first time, Zhou hesitated. “Still holding this road.” Xu lunged toward the screen, but it broke into static. A deep bell sounded. White outlines began climbing the waiting people's bodies. Zhao could see them now. He shook his head violently. “The door is closing,” Cen said, pressing the broken phone into Lin's hand. “You can take one person back.” “What about you?” “This isn't my first visit. I was selected six years ago.”