Chapter One: The Mist Emerges

Chapter One: The Mist Emerges

Night always arrives faster than expected. Amid the flickering neon lights at the edge of Los Angeles, hidden in the dark corners of the city are secrets that neither you nor I could have ever imagined. For Elizabeth, this night is not just another starless early morning—it is a test of her soul and the beginning of the most bizarre assignment in her career as a "memory experiencer."

The name "Memory Black Market" has long circulated in underground circles, like a game of madness and betrayal, and Elizabeth is one of its most sensitive players. Accustomed to lingering on the blurred boundary between dreams and reality, she never imagined that an order from a wealthy client would lead her into an unpredictable labyrinth. The task was as simple as it was cruel: implant a memory of a murder into the client's brain. Yet, the moment she initiated the memory implantation procedure, fragments flashed before her eyes that sent a shock through her heart—a vague scene from her childhood, the home she once believed was forever sealed away, inexplicably appearing within the memory brimming with murderous intent.

"Why is my past here?" Elizabeth asked herself in a voice so low it was nearly inaudible. She had always believed that memories were merely accumulations of data, something that could be debugged, deleted, or replaced like lines of code. However, today's memory was not just a series of cold numbers—it was soaked in blood and tears. That night, as she adjusted her equipment under the dim light, images of childhood warmth and terror involuntarily surfaced in her mind: the wooden door of the old house, the time-worn walls that spoke of years gone by, and the father she never truly understood.

The identity of the wealthy client was shrouded in layers of mystery. The commission revealed little, aside from an unusually generous reward and a peculiar code—a triple-encrypted memory data file. When she cracked the first layer, only scattered and chaotic images emerged; in the second layer, the memory began to coalesce, yet there was always a subtle strangeness that kept her heart in suspense. The third layer of encryption resembled a forbidden relic, deliberately hidden by the system and intentionally forgotten. It was in this layer that she saw that deleted childhood memory, as if someone were using her recollections to piece together a story long predestined.

"This can't be…" she repeatedly replayed the images that had just appeared: in the dim memory, a blurry figure holding a bloodstained dagger—on that dagger was inscribed a number, the very same number that adorned the pocket watch her father wore before he vanished. Elizabeth's heart raced, as though she could hear the call of her past. Those long-sealed memories were like shattered mirror fragments, inadvertently exposing the deepest, most secret pain and mystery of her life.

In the moist, metallic-scented pre-dawn air, she sat in her shabby studio, where streams of data continuously scrolled across the computer screen. Every line of code, every piece of memory fragment, silently questioned: do you really know yourself? This path, woven together by technology and emotion, seemed to hint at an unavoidable truth: the past never completely disappears; it only reemerges like a demon on your shoulder at your most unsuspecting moment.

Through this pursuit, Elizabeth gradually came to understand that behind memory transplantation technology lay not just scientific progress, but also an exploration of the fringes of human nature. When people begin to alter memories with technology, are they truly saving souls, or merely letting them become lost? As a "memory experiencer," she spent every day interpreting the past of others, while neglecting the cries from the depths of her own heart.

Just then, the phone rang, shattering the silence. The screen displayed an unknown number, but Elizabeth wasn't surprised. She was long accustomed to conversing with the unknown. Upon answering, a cold, steady male voice said, "Ms. Elizabeth, we need you to complete this task. Remember, each memory implantation is a gamble of the soul. Please proceed with caution."

The tone was neither gentle nor cruel—it was as if the speaker had already seen through the human heart. Yet within Elizabeth, a storm began to brew—a feeling that this voice carried a mocking hint of future destiny. She asked, "Who are you?" but the voice simply replied, "Identity is irrelevant; you just need to trust our arrangement."

After hanging up, Elizabeth was filled with doubt and unease. The assignment seemed to hide too many unsolved puzzles, and that number—the one from the pocket watch her father wore before his disappearance—seemed like a ticking time bomb, ready to detonate her most vulnerable nerve. Her thoughts drifted, recalling the dust-covered years of her childhood, and the home that once exuded warmth and safety—what unknown secrets did it harbor?

Determined, she decided to start from scratch, reexamining each memory in an attempt to piece together the fragmented past. Outside her studio window, the city lights flickered like silent storytellers of endless tales, and she stood at the beginning of this endless narrative, facing a world full of both temptation and danger.

Elizabeth took a deep breath, her fingers lightly tapping the keyboard, each keystroke echoing as if unlocking the confines of her inner self. The data on her screen gradually revealed a seemingly chaotic yet cryptic schematic. As Mimi Meng once said, "Some truths always appear quietly when you least expect them to be safe." And this was precisely the intricate design fate had laid out.

As the memory implantation system activated, Elizabeth's thoughts began to drift. She saw indescribable images: a dagger glinting with a cold light, a shattered family, a history that had been tampered with… Every detail silently challenged the deepest fears within her. She could not tell whether this was a technological malfunction or a deliberate act—an attempt to use her memories to open a door to the past.

And just as she was deciphering the stream of data, a faint vibration came from the corner of the room. Elizabeth spun around abruptly, noticing a subtle glimmer beneath the desk. That light was not the result of a device error, but rather… a signal from an unknown interface. A strong premonition stirred within her: this was not merely a simple memory implantation, but the onset of a storm that would entangle the entire city's memory network.

Her hands trembled slightly, yet she stepped forward resolutely. As Mimi Meng once wrote, "When we face the unknown, we reveal our truest selves." And in that moment, Elizabeth was exactly that. She knew that this time, she must dive headlong into that dark ocean of memories to uncover the truth hidden within—no matter the cost.

The night deepened, and the city continued to slumber while brewing countless secrets. At this moment, as the mist began to thicken, a fierce flame ignited within Elizabeth's heart. She was about to stake her entire life on unraveling the complex puzzle interlacing her father, her past, and her future. She understood that only by untangling it all could she truly attain freedom; otherwise, the memory black market would eventually devour everything, leaving only endless pain and regret.

Amid the interplay of keyboard clicks and screen glows, she slowly pressed the confirmation key, launching the unknown program… Meanwhile, the hidden interface connecting to the city's central memory network processor was quietly activated. A countdown began—12 hours. In this brief yet seemingly endless 12-hour period, everything about her fate would be decided.

Elizabeth closed her eyes, letting her thoughts drift between the past and the future. She knew this was only the beginning, and ahead lay even more dangerous and profound mysteries… And there was no turning back.