Arceus exhaled deeply and turned his gaze toward Reinhardt, silently assessing his condition.
Reinhardt maintained his usual facade of impassivity, but the fear and anxiety lingering in his eyes were evident to those who knew him as well as we did. His serenity was a fragile mask that barely concealed the inner storm.
I gently pulled away from Arceus and observed our surroundings with renewed attention. Before us, as if the universe had decided to reward us for our resilience, an ornate door had appeared where only a solid, impenetrable wall had stood moments before. The three of us remained silent, regaining our strength and breath, assimilating the near-death experience we had just survived.
—That... —began Reinhardt, his voice unusually tremulous, breaking on the first syllable before he regained control—. That was the memory-altering monster, wasn't it?
Arceus nodded with a grave expression, devoid of the irony that usually characterized him:
—One look, a single moment of eye contact, and our minds would be rewritten forever.
I wiped away the last tears that insisted on welling up in my eyes:
—At least now we know we're on the right path —I affirmed, trying to reclaim my characteristic optimism—. The artifact must be behind that door.
Without the need for words, we advanced together toward the newly revealed entrance. We had come too far to turn back now. The freedom of all the orphanage children hung on what we would discover on the other side of that enigmatic door.
The room that revealed itself before us was a study in astonishing contrasts: walls of pristine white that seemed to emit their own light, creating a space that defied the grim logic of the rooms we had left behind. In the center, an elaborate mechanism immediately captured my attention, standing out like an exotic jewel in that ethereal setting.
A circle of polished marble rose to the height of my chest, serving as a pedestal for a fascinating structure that defied my understanding. Upon this immaculate base, a series of intense red cubes, decorated with intricate golden motifs that seemed to shift subtly under the light, were stacked to form a geometrically perfect diamond. The mathematical precision of the construction suggested a transcendent purpose, something beyond mere aesthetics.
—It's beautiful —I whispered with involuntary reverence, feeling how my crimson eyes reflected the golden glow of the cubes like living mirrors. Yet, I couldn't prevent my fingers from tensing slightly at my side, betraying the unease simmering beneath my apparent fascination.
Reinhardt approached the mechanism with the caution of someone nearing a sleeping beast.
—There's a pillar in the center —he observed, pointing to the cylindrical column that rose majestically from the marble base—. It seems to be some kind of control mechanism.
—But it's protected —indicated Arceus, his eyes fixed on the translucent barrier that enveloped the entire structure like an iridescent veil—. We can't access the mechanism directly.
The air in the room underwent a sudden and ominous transformation. A chilling shiver ran down my spine, and before we could react adequately, the nightmare we believed we had left behind materialized once more with its overwhelming presence. This time, however, the entity did not content itself with lurking in the shadows.
With a movement that seemed to mock us, the creature appeared behind me like a malignant shadow torn from primordial darkness. Its hands—if those amorphous limbs deserved such a designation—reached toward me with a clear intent: to force me to face its annihilating gaze.
Wait. Why was my body refusing to respond? The command was clear, desperate: dodge those hands, move to the side, escape its reach.
I remained petrified, not so much by the claws approaching inexorably, but by the horrifying realization that my body had turned into an immobile prison, while every fiber of my being trembled uncontrollably.
If my memories were rewritten under its nefarious influence, it would be no different from the most absolute death; I would cease to be who I am, becoming an empty shell, an automaton without will, obeying any command. I wouldn't lose my intellectual capacity, but my essence would be eradicated, reduced to a puppet without soul or purpose of my own.
Would my memories be altered? Having experienced so little of what life had to offer, having dreamed only of escaping that cursed orphanage with my adopted siblings?
I didn't want to forget. I couldn't allow myself to forget.
I resisted surrendering. I refused to experience again that devastating helplessness I had felt on that fateful day.
Not yet, it wasn't my time yet!
Now, more than ever in my existence, I yearned to preserve my memories as the most precious treasure.
I... wanted to live. With my family, with those who had taught me the meaning of love and loyalty.
I wanted to be happy. I wanted to experience a full life, overflowing with shared joy.
I couldn't die in that sterile place. I couldn't perish in such an undignified manner, reduced to a shadow of myself.
—No!
Arceus's shout reverberated through the room with the force of thunder as his body reacted on pure protective instinct. A blinding sapphire light emanated from his being, and in a flash that Reinhardt barely perceived, his fist struck the creature with superhuman force, hurling it violently against the protective barrier.
The impact echoed like a deafening explosion in the pristine room, but the creature rose with an unnatural fluidity, as if it had suffered no damage. Its movements were liquid, inhuman in their precision, and in less than a blink, its blackened claws closed implacably around Arceus's neck.
I lost control of my body and collapsed forward as my vision began to distort, transforming the world into a kaleidoscope of disjointed images.