The world didn't just shift this time—
It detonated.
White light turned into shards.
Shards turned into streaks.
Streaks turned into falling stars.
And the eight friends fell right through all of it.
THUD—THUD—THUD—OW—OW—WHO IS SITTING ON MY LEG?!
When the brightness faded, they found themselves in—
A giant circular room.
Silent.
Empty.
Echoing.
Walls made of cracked mirrors surrounded them, each mirror showing a different version of Elise:
Elise crying
Elise laughing
Elise running
Elise glitching
Elise forgetting
Elise standing beside Aiden with love in her eyes
Elise standing alone with fear swallowing her
The reflections flickered like broken memories replaying endlessly.
Rhea hugged herself. "This… this feels wrong."
Kian rubbed his face. "Bro… we fell inside a psychological drama."
Zoya sniffled. "Why is every reflection sad? My heart is not built for this."
Dev scanned the room. "Where's the masked creep?"
Yuvan gulped. "Can we… NOT meet him? Ever?"
Too late.
A cold breeze swept through the room.
The mirrors darkened—
one by one—
until the only reflection left was a single, tall, hooded figure standing behind them.
Ravi turned slowly.
Everyone followed.
And there he was.
THE MASKED FIGURE.
Black cloak.
Face hidden behind a smooth, faceless mask.
Dark, glitchy aura swirling around him like smoke made of corrupted code.
"Who…" Aria began.
The figure tilted his head.
"You should not be here yet."
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
Like someone who had turned off emotions years ago.
Mira narrowed her eyes. "Who are you? Why did you steal Elise's memories?"
The masked figure stepped forward, hands folded behind his back, like a professor lecturing a class on doom.
"Elise's memories were… unstable. Corrupted. Dangerous."
Ravi bristled. "So you erased them?!"
"No."
The masked man's tone sharpened.
"I extracted them."
The mirrors around them flickered.
Elise—in hundreds of versions—screamed silently inside the glass.
The masked man gestured.
"Her fear was powerful enough to create entities… monsters that walk freely in her story."
Kian muttered, "We noticed. It chased us like we owed it money."
A low chuckle escaped the figure.
"Her fear… is only one piece. The first piece. The smallest piece."
Aria clenched her fists. "Why us? Why drag US into this game?"
The masked figure's aura crackled with glitch energy.
"The game did not drag you."
He leaned in slightly.
"You opened the door."
Yuvan threw his hands up. "IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!"
The masked figure ignored him.
"You are inside a system built to test—"
The mirrors cracked violently.
The masked figure looked annoyed.
"The memory is collapsing. There is no time."
He raised a hand.
A glowing orb appeared—
bright blue, swirling with tiny fragments of Elise's laughter, her smile, her happiness.
"This is one of her lost memories," he said. "Take it."
Aria hesitated. "Why give it to us?"
"For the story to continue," he replied, "you must restore her truth."
Zoya wiped her eyes. "This is so tragic… I want to adopt Elise."
The masked figure turned to leave—
but paused.
"Be warned," he said quietly.
"Elise is not the only one whose memories were taken."
The friends stiffened.
Kian swallowed. "Wait… WHAT?! Whose else—?"
But the masked man was already glitching out of sight.
Before he disappeared, he whispered:
"Round 1 ends where her love ended."
FLASH.
He vanished.
The mirrors shattered like exploding glass.
The floor split apart.
The room collapsed.
The group fell—
again—
into the next memory.
---
THE HEARTBREAK NIGHT
They landed in a small chamber this time.
A bedroom—Elise's bedroom—lit by trembling candlelight.
The sound of thunder echoed outside.
The air felt heavy.
Sad.
Hopeless.
Aiden stood by Elise's bedside, soaking wet from the storm, desperation in his eyes.
"Elise, I'm here. Please… tell me what happened."
Elise sat silently on the edge of the bed.
Her hands shook.
Her eyes were empty.
Soft, terrified whispers slipped from her lips:
"I can't… remember… your face…"
Aiden staggered like she had stabbed him.
"Look at me," he whispered, voice cracking. "Please."
Elise looked up…
…but her eyes saw nothing.
Not him.
Not love.
Not memory.
Only fear.
The candles flickered.
The shadow-monster rose behind her.
Bigger than before.
Stronger than before.
Aiden didn't see it.
But the friends did.
"Oh no…" Mira whispered.
"It feeds on her forgetfulness," Ravi realized. "It grows every time she loses a piece of memory."
And it had grown A LOT.
The monster was nearly touching the ceiling now.
Aiden reached for Elise.
"Elise… I love you."
Elise flinched.
"I don't know you…"
The monster roared—
a horrifying, heart-shattering sound.
Rhea cried into her hands. "This is cruel… this is so cruel…"
Aria stepped forward. "We need to stop it—"
But the monster lunged—
directly at Aiden.
Aiden didn't even see it.
Aria screamed, "MOVE!"
The group charged.
Dev shoved Kian forward. "GO!"
"No! YOU go!"
"I AM GOING!"
"GO FASTER!"
They reached just in time—
blocking the monster's attack.
The scroll lit up:
FINAL MEMORY PUZZLE:
Face the monster born from love and fear.
Save Elise from the moment she lost everything.
Or the story resets.
The monster roared, glitching violently.
Aria tightened her grip on the glowing orb the masked figure had given them.
"Guys," she said, "we finish this."
The others nodded.
Ravi cracked his fingers. "Time to fight emotional trauma with violence and friendship."
Yuvan gulped. "Two things we're only slightly good at."
The monster charged.
And Round 1's final battle began.
---