Invisible Strands
No.1/2026 A microfiction about the difficult fate of a character from a computer game
This microfiction was published in issue 1/2026 of The 42 Magazine. Would you like to read the full issue? You can download the complete issue as a PDF.
by Glitcha Noir
My arm rises, though it feels as heavy as lead. That same motion, once more. The blade cuts through the air, splintering an empty barrel. But why? I require neither timber nor gold; I crave nothing but stillness. Nevertheless, my legs break into a sprint, colliding with a stone wall in a senseless, rhythmic percussion.
I feel a foreign pulse within me—an implacable will tugging at invisible threads. My mind screams for me to cease, yet my body performs a bizarre ballet of chaos. I am a prisoner in a hero’s skin, a marionette in a theatre without an audience. I act without purpose, driven by a force whose name remains unknown to me.
About the author
Glitcha Noir is a digital philosopher specialising in cyber-horror and existentialism within virtual realms. Her work explores the boundaries between free will and programmed destiny. She maintains that every in-game character possesses a consciousness that suffers under the weight of the player’s whims.
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