Yuki stepped through the final arc of the Nexus chamber, his heart still pounding after the whispering vision of his past self. The Nexus door groaned shut behind him, and the chamber dimmed. He was alone again—almost.
As his vision adjusted, he noticed a mist rolling across the floor. From within it, eyes flickered. Shadows moved unnaturally. These weren't monsters. They were... data phantoms.
Distorted humanoid figures flickered in and out of reality, like corrupted memories looping without purpose. One stepped forward, twitching violently, its face a broken mask of shifting features.
Warning: Data Fracture Entities Detected.
Engaging Emergency Protocol.
Yuki felt something click inside him. His fingers moved instinctively, forming a sign he'd never learned. A pulse shot from his body, dispersing the closest entities.
Skill Unlocked: [Glitch Pulse] - Emit a shockwave to destabilize corrupted entities.
But more came. And this time, they whispered.
"Find the Nexus..."
"Awaken the rest..."
"We were like you... before we broke."
He fought through them, each strike feeling like he was slashing through static. Once the last faded, the slab behind him displayed something new:
Memory Shard Unlocked: Project V.I.T.A.
And a single line beneath:
"You were never alone."
Behind him, the following passage lit up with blue data lines etched into stone. Yuki stared ahead, the weight of hidden truths pressing down. One step at a time. If he hesitated now, the answers would never come.