Status Updates From الطابور

I'm still curious about what is going on and why, but this is a slog. I'll keep going but I've seriously considered DNFing.

It's an interesting premise, reminiscent of 1984 but more mysterious (how did this Gate come to be? Why does it care if this guy has a bullet removed?) - but the writing is also very dry, so that's dragging it down. Right now I'm at a 3.5/5 and it could go either way.