wenbmete

What if one morning you woke up with no memories? 

What if all you had was a video message you left for yourself, warning you that you were in grave danger? 

What if the only way to survive was in discovering what you forgot? 

And what if your biggest enemy was yourself? 

**

"There is a bug. It allows unmitigated access to the users' consciousness. You're the only one who knows. You must stop the release. You must stop them." 

That was the primal directive. Min needed time to understand, to accept. But time was the one thing he didn't have. 

He woke up with no memories. He only had the one video message he left himself to work with. The video told him he was a beta tester of Gaia, and he had discovered a bug that could very well be intentional. 

What he was asking of himself was to be a hero. But was that what he wanted? Was that really him in the video? 

If it was him, why go through all that trouble? Why did he delete all of his memories himself? 

Who were the people helping him from the shadows? Were they friends? Or, were they something else entirely? 

Who were those that were after him? Were they all related to Gaia? Or were there other secrets too? 

School was the perfect refuge. Friendless and unremarkable, he couldn't be hidden better. But with less than three months to graduation, he was running out of time...

osmosis

He was fine, but the silence seemed to last too long for her. 


 He didn't hold back from answering, because he wasn't trying to hide. 


 He didn't have to reply. What she said gave him a lot to think about. 


 Sia knew where his dorm was. She was obviously a student of the academy. And she wasn't far. How well did she know him? 


 Then, there was what he said. The old him seemed familiar enough with her to dispense with all formalities. There were even words for her that he didn't understand. Surely, the relationship was anything but normal. 


 But what was this feeling in his chest? What was the tightness? 


 It was as if there was a voice in his head, that didn't have words but was still asking him to leave. He didn't want to meet with Sia. Not yet. Not now. Maybe, ever? 


 It was almost the end of the day. His very first day. Everything that should be familiar was alien. All that he should know, he didn't. All there was in his head was emptiness. Still, he wasn't overwhelmed. Was that normal? He had been acting as directed. Was that like him? Was that why he felt this discomfort? 


 Then, there was the clue that had Sia rushing over. The riddle about the hiking club. It was clearly something she would figure out. If he was the old him, wouldn't he leave that for her? What was that telling him? 


 He was enlightened. The voice in his head was also a lot clearer. 


 He rushed out of the dorm, ran out of the hostel building, and hid behind a tree far enough from the entrance. He peeped so he could see but couldn't be seen, until he saw the back of a smallish girl running in. He didn't see her face, and even if he did would he have recognised her? But he knew who it was. Having seen Sia, he disappeared into the night. 


 There was no question in his mind about where he was headed. It was a longer and quieter walk to the library, that he enjoyed a lot more under the dark cover of night. 


 The library was open twenty four hours of the day. But it wasn't every night that entertained students. Tonight was a night of solitude, which was how Min realised he liked the library. Having it all to himself. 


 The lights above him switched on as he walked under, making him dazzle amid the faintness. He went straight up to the third story, which in the silence of the night was calling to him louder. The moment he set foot on the third story, he felt a calmness. But he couldn't be certain it wasn't just his imagination. 


 His eyes spanned the floor. And then, he walked past the books without glancing their way, to the middle of the sitting area where a circular table stood. When the light turned on overhead, the table glowed like a dazzling throne. But the small and yet comfortable chair remained low-key. 


 He afforded a smile as he sat. Gently tapped on the tabletop. And a screen floated up. The action was smooth, making him wonder if he was starting to worm into his place in the world. 


 He opened a browser and felt relief. Having escaped from under the thumb of the old him, he could start the way he would have otherwise. 


 Since this was all about Gaia, he should start just there.


B-8