Max sat up in bed, his phone clutched tightly in his hand as he stared at the glowing screen. *Coordinates received. Activation imminent.* 

What did it mean? He had no clue, but his instincts told him this wasn’t some harmless prank or weird app glitch. Everything from the dreams to the voice to this new message—it all felt deliberate, like he was being drawn into something he couldn’t quite grasp. He tried to shake it off, but his mind raced with possibilities.

The phone screen dimmed slightly as the coordinates flickered on and off, a string of numbers that didn’t make any immediate sense. Max grabbed a notebook from his desk and scribbled them down. If these were real coordinates—geographical ones—they could lead him to a specific place. 

Heart still racing, he opened the map app on his phone and punched in the numbers.

“Please don’t be real. Please don’t be real,” he muttered under his breath.

But it was real. The map zoomed in on a spot about thirty miles outside of town, deep in the woods near an old, abandoned radio tower. Max recognized the area—he and Jake had biked out there once during the summer, more out of curiosity than anything. The tower had been abandoned for years, just a rusting skeleton of metal standing in the middle of nowhere. 

But now, staring at the map, Max knew this was no coincidence. The coordinates pointed directly to the tower. 

For a moment, he sat there, staring at the blinking dot on his phone screen. What was he supposed to do now? Go there? Was he really about to sneak out in the middle of the night and head into the woods just because of some strange message?

*Of course you are,* a voice in his head said, and it was right. He couldn’t ignore this. Whatever was happening, it was bigger than anything he’d ever experienced, and staying put wasn’t an option. 

Max grabbed his hoodie from the back of his chair, pulled on his sneakers, and stuffed his phone and notebook into his backpack. He moved quietly down the stairs, trying not to make any noise that might wake his mom. The house was dark and still, save for the soft hum of the refrigerator in the kitchen. As he reached the front door, he hesitated, listening for any sign of movement upstairs. When he was sure it was safe, he slipped out into the cool night air.

---

The bike ride out to the tower took longer than Max remembered. The streets were quiet, empty, the distant hum of traffic from the highway barely audible. His mind raced with every pedal stroke, replaying the dream over and over again—the ship, the stars, the voice welcoming him to the Nexus. It had all felt so real. 

By the time he reached the edge of the woods, his legs were burning and his heart was pounding, not just from the physical exertion but from the anticipation gnawing at him. The radio tower loomed in the distance, barely visible through the thick trees and darkness.

Max chained his bike to a tree and started down the narrow trail leading toward the tower, his flashlight cutting through the gloom. The path was overgrown and uneven, roots and rocks jutting out from the ground, making each step cautious and deliberate.

As he got closer, the old tower emerged from the shadows, standing tall and skeletal against the starry sky. Rust flaked off its metal frame, and the fence surrounding it had long since been torn down. The place looked abandoned, but there was something strange about it tonight. The air around it felt charged, like static electricity clinging to his skin.

Max stopped just outside the base of the tower, shining his light up at the structure. He half-expected to see something—or someone—waiting for him, but the place was still. Silent. He looked around, confused.

Nothing.

“No way this is it,” he muttered, pulling out his phone. The coordinates still pointed to this exact location, but there was nothing here. No glowing symbols, no voice, no strange energy pulsing from the ground. Just an old, rusty tower and a lot of questions.

Max walked around the base of the tower, shining his light in all directions, searching for anything that might explain why he’d been led here. He was just about to give up when his phone buzzed in his pocket.

Startled, he pulled it out. The screen flickered, and the symbol—*that symbol*—appeared again, brighter and more vibrant than ever before. And this time, something new happened.

The ground beneath Max’s feet trembled.

He stumbled back, his flashlight shaking as the vibrations grew stronger. The rusted metal of the tower groaned, and suddenly, the earth in front of him split open with a low rumble. Max froze, his heart racing as a circular platform began to rise out of the ground, glowing faintly with the same light that had been haunting his dreams.

Max couldn’t believe his eyes. The platform was perfectly smooth, its surface etched with the same strange symbols he had seen in the cockpit of his dream. It hovered a few inches above the ground, humming softly with energy. His phone buzzed again, and the voice returned, calm and steady:

“Max Arwen, step forward.”

Max’s legs felt like they were made of lead. His brain screamed at him to run, to get as far away from this strange, impossible thing as he could. But another part of him—the part that had been chasing answers for months—told him to move. This was it. This was the moment he’d been waiting for, whether he was ready or not.

Taking a deep breath, Max stepped forward.

As soon as his foot touched the platform, the hum grew louder, vibrating through his entire body. The symbols on the surface lit up, glowing a bright blue, and in an instant, the world around him shifted.

One second, Max was standing in the dark, empty woods by an abandoned tower. The next, he was somewhere else entirely.

---

He blinked, disoriented. He was still standing on the platform, but the world around him had changed. Instead of the forest, he was now in a massive room—a chamber, really—surrounded by walls of polished metal and glass. Strange, futuristic machines lined the walls, blinking with lights and displaying symbols that made no sense to Max.

Above him, a large, circular window opened up to a view of the stars—stars so bright and clear that they seemed almost within reach. It was beautiful and terrifying all at once.

“Welcome, Max Arwen.”

The voice came again, but this time, it wasn’t coming from his phone. Max spun around, his eyes wide. There, standing at the edge of the platform, was a figure—tall and cloaked in shadow, with glowing eyes that flickered like embers. The figure stepped forward, and Max could make out more details—a humanoid shape, dressed in sleek, metallic armor, with a calm, commanding presence.

“Who—what are you?” Max asked, his voice shaking.

The figure tilted its head slightly. “I am called Orin, and I am your guide. You have been chosen, Max Arwen, for something far greater than you can imagine.”

“Chosen for what?” Max asked, the question burning in his mind.

“To join us,” Orin said, gesturing toward the window above. “To join the Nexus. Your world is but one of many, Max, and we are the protectors of the balance between them. You have been selected for your unique abilities—your connection to the stars.”

Max stared at Orin, his mind reeling. *Protectors? Worlds? The balance between them?* None of this made sense. He was just a kid from a small town, barely getting by in school, living an ordinary life. How could any of this be real?

Orin seemed to sense Max’s confusion. “I know this is overwhelming, but there is much you must learn. The Nexus is calling you, Max, and it is time for you to step into your destiny.”

Max swallowed hard, his heart pounding in his chest. “And if I say no?”

Orin’s eyes glowed brighter. “Then the balance will be lost, and your world—along with many others—will fall.”

Max’s breath caught in his throat. The weight of Orin’s words pressed down on him like a tidal wave. He didn’t know what to believe, but one thing was clear: his life was never going to be the same.

“You have a choice,” Orin said softly. “But the time is short. What will you do, Max Arwen?”

Max looked up at the stars, then back at Orin. He took a deep breath, feeling the pull of something far greater than himself.

“I’m in.”