Level -55

## Level -55: "The Human Limit"

### Description:

**Level -55**, colloquially known as "The Human Limit", or the "Frontier Gateway", is an expansive glitch-like palace consisting of an undetermined amount of interconnecting corridors, chambers, and chapels. The level is lavishly furnished with sculptures depicting creatures with abnormal traits and other medieval-style objects. Enormous windows that are known for reaching heights up to 15 feet can be commonly found within the level's many passages. These windows typically appear closed; however, they can be opened with immense force. Upon looking through the window, wanderers will be able to observe the entirety of The Other Side, which consists of nothing but an infinite void composed of glitchy, dense matter, consistently triggering catastrophic explosions due to its instability; this space is named "The Glitched Void". The glitched void is incredibly dense, and touching it even in the slightest will immediately crush one to death. When a wanderer is crushed within the glitched void, the pieces of their body float in the air and slowly drift away until they are no longer visible to the naked eye.

This level possesses no known day-and-night cycle, although the level's sky is constantly in a pitch-black state leading wanderers to believe that it is night at all times. The temperature of the level is extremely unpredictable, with it changing at supposedly random intervals. For example, the level could be freezing cold for 3 minutes, then immediately become scorching hot for 30 seconds; the cycle might then repeat for an infinite amount of time.

Certain sections of the level may appear to be broken off or completely missing. These missing portions usually open up to either The Void or the Glitched Void, although they can occasionally lead to other negative levels. These places are usually unreliable and a nuisance for anyone traveling across the level, rendering them useless. If one is able to break a chunk of the level, the portion that they destroyed will regenerate after it is out of the individual's sight.

**Level -55** encompasses a unique ability that implements a "glitch" effect to each photograph captured within the level. The effect grants the photographs a surreal and dreamlike quality by distorting and blurring them.

In 1954, a theory was brought up that certain positive levels functioned differently from others. Many people believed that these levels were made up of a type of abnormal matter that couldn't be found within positive levels; a category would be created two decades later specifically for these types of levels, naming them "Negative Levels". However, it wasn't until the twenty-first century that negative levels were fully recognized as an official category. Fast-forwarding to 2017, as technology evolved and got much more advanced, it was confirmed that the theory was correct; scientists have nicknamed this type of matter "Negative Matter". Negative matter originally comes from Level -3, as the Negative Glitch causes a wave of glitches to slowly travel across the Negative Levels until they reach Level -55. The glitches become trapped within the level, not being able to escape; they fall into the windows where the glitches are stored. These glitches progressively evolve into what is known as Negative Matter.

Another reason for the creation of "Negative Levels" in databases is because of the lack of communication between normal wanderers and the M.E.G.. People were uncertain whether their level number was already designated, thus adding a dash in the level name.

**Level -55** has the power to create more and more Negative Levels with this sort of matter via a phenomenon dubbed "Matter Distribution". This phenomenon occurs when the level violently shakes at undetermined intervals, forcing a significant amount of the stored Negative Matter to escape and move to other Negative Levels. Once a clump of Negative Matter finds and enters an accessible portion of the void, it will usually begin to construct a new Negative Level. The level can be accessed while it is still in the making, although entering it is not recommended due to levels in the making being very fragile; they have a slight chance to collapse, which will destroy the level and kill the wanderer instantly.

Despite from what has been stated, the Original Six are not made up of Negative Matter. They were, however, still formed by **Level -55**; prior to the Conglomeration event, there were only 6 known negative levels: Level -1, Level -2, Level -6 and the original Level -3, Level -4 and Level -5. However, during the Conglomeration event, the original Level -3 to Level -5 merged with Level -2 and were replaced with the versions of what we know today. One of these modern negative levels, specifically Level -3, enabled the formation of many more Negative Levels. The way the Original Six formed remains undetermined and unknown. Regardless of how, it is believed that **Level -55** distributed sections of its level to allow the levels to form, which explains why certain areas of the level appear missing.

Beyond Level -54 is another series of levels named The Other Side, which includes **Level -55**. However, **Level -55** is the only level of The Other Side that a person can access without facing repercussions. The Other Side is simply a glitched void and entering it crushes people to death due to the immense density of the area. Hypothetically, other creatures, particularly entities can see The Other Side as a set of levels that they could access and visit. Entities being able to enter the glitched void without being crushed remains undetermined and a debate for later. The existence of The Other Side raises many intriguing questions concerning its origin. Some speculate that it might even lead to a whole other dimension which is completely out of reach for humans.

### Anomalies:

**Level -55** is home to a variety of anomalies and phenomena that are unable to be explained. The few documented phenomena are listed below:

#### The Vision Glitch:

**The Vision Glitch**, is an unusual phenomenon which manifests itself as a rapid degradation of one's vision, covering everything that the wanderer sees in a heavy blur. **The Vision Glitch** impacts colors as well, making them look slightly more bland, dull and degrading their vibrancy. Researchers from the M.E.G. have theorized that the effect is in some way connected to the mysterious glitch effects that are prevalent within Level -55.

Instead of just vision degradation, **The Vision Glitch** also causes severe panic attacks. Panic attacks are more likely to affect an individual if they are older than fifty-five years, although they have an almost zero percent chance to occur if the affected person is younger than fifteen years old.

This anomaly appears to be triggered when a wanderer's eyes become fatigued from being exposed to a variety of bright colors; those being: red, blue, green, purple, pink, yellow and others. Individuals with epilepsy find themselves more vulnerable to **The Vision Glitch**, with the degradation of their eyesight arriving considerably quicker. The blurriness becomes not merely a small distortion but undergoes a notable enhancement, shrouding the affected individual's surroundings in an even more disorienting blur.

This effect lasts even when one leaves Level -55. It can be cured by taking specific medicine, although it can also disappear by waiting. The time needed for **The Vision Glitch** to vanish can vary, although wanderers have reported that it usually takes three to five weeks at most.

#### The Dark Silence:

While exploring **Level -55**, wanderers may experience moments where all sound is muted, creating an eerie and disturbing silence. This has been dubbed by wanderers as "**The Dark Silence"**. However, this silence is not absolute; it is accompanied by quiet echoes of low pitched human voices. One can not get further or nearer the sound, as the volume has never been documented changing. **The Dark Silence** usually stops after a few minutes, although some have reported that it can last for one to three hours.

**The Dark Silence** occurs when one gets exposed to an intense burst of noise. This has a chance to happen if too many people talk at once, or if an individual plays an exceedingly loud sound effect by phones, tablets, laptops, computers...

This effect has a extraordinarily high chance to occur if it's target is an individual with a good hearing ability, or if they are an musician.

#### Time Distortions:

**Time Distortions** are anomalies that affect time in different ways.
The types of **Time Distortions** are:

1. **Time Loops:** This type has no cause, and it happens frequently. When one experiences the Time Loop, time will reverse and the individual will be sent back to where they were a few seconds ago. It causes a sense of déjà vu.
2. **Age Acceleration** **and Age Regression:** Some wanderers have experienced quicker or slower aging, dubbing the phenomena "**Age Acceleration"** and **"Age Regression".** This effect disappears once the individual leaves Level -55, and their physical appearance will change back to how it was.
3. **Displacement:** Certain areas within Level -55 exist slightly out of sync with the regular flow of time. For example, three minutes could feel like three days and vice versa. This phenomena changes its target area every few hours, making it hard to distinguish whether you are in a zone that is affected by the Displacement or whether you are not.
4. **Memory Shuffle:** Wanderers might recall memories which have not yet happened, leading researchers to believe that this anomaly gives individuals the ability to look into the future.
5. **Sound Delay:** This phenomena delays all sound for a couple of seconds. For example, if a wanderer says "Hello.", the sound will be delayed and it will only be heard after a few seconds.

### Entities:

**Evocations** are mysterious entities which are said to specifically inhabit **Level -55**. They are not able to be seen by the naked eye, thus and they attempt to enter wanderer's brains. **Evocations** then store themselves in the individual's memories, making the person think that they've encountered an **Evocation** before. Their physical appearance is uncertain; as almost every human has a different statement - some say that they have human or cat like bodies, while others claim that they appear as unusually shaped skulls that are covered in a dense fog. The only part of their appearance that is agreed upon is that they are made out of Negative Matter; this brings up the question, what are the other negative level-exclusive entities made of?

Their motives are unknown, although they are presumed to be neutral. There have been no known cases of **Evocations** murdering, harming or injuring someone.

Photographing an **Evocation** proves to be a difficult task, as there is a close-to-zero chance to take a picture of them. The reason why cameras are able to see them but the eyes of a human are not is still undiscovered. In all of the "supposed" photographs **Evocations** appear as the previously mentioned floating heads.

Fortunately, Evocations remain unconfirmed, as no verifiable reports have been published, recorded, or documented.

### Colonies and Outposts:

Because of **Level -55's** perplexing environment colonies and outposts are practically impossible to establish; every attempt has resulted in failure.

### Entrances and Exits:

#### Entrances:

* Entering a door during the Negative Glitch in any negative level will lead you here.
* Certain doors on Level -1 will wound you up here.
* Finding a black gate in Level -2 will take you here.

#### Exits:

* Jumping into the glitched void will bring you to The Other Side; however, by doing so, you will be crushed to death due to the density of the area. Even if a wanderer manages to survive, their brain will permanently malfunction due to the human mind not being able to understand The Other Side properly;
* Phasing into the floor has a chance to enter Level -54 or The Void.
* Rarely, wanderers will come across medieval-like doors; these doors will bring you towards the level they are labeled with. These levels include, but are not limited to: Level -1, Level -2, Level -3, Level -4, Level -5, Level -6, Level -7, Level -8, Level -9, Level -10 and Level -11.