The Simulation Assignment

In an alternate 2026, 13-year-old AJ is given a simple summer assignment: Create a civilization that can survive without you. He builds WORLD_01—a self-sustaining civilization designed to evolve on its own. Then he walks away. Inside the simulation, years begin to pass. The civilization grows. Arian, one of its inhabitants, starts noticing things that don't make sense. The environment isn't…