Chapter 101: Ch. 98 – Last Christmas

Black, black and more black as far as I can see.

No, there're some other things as well. Crystals, very transparent and hard to see in this underlit nothingness. One of them lies next to me, completely shattered, and the ground around it seems cracked.

When I try to investigate it and touch the cracked ground, I get a massive headache. What the hell?

The pain stops soon after moving away from the cracked ground.

"W̷a̴n̵t̸ ̴s̷o̸m̷e̶ ̸p̵o̶p̸c̸o̴r̸n̴ ̸b̵e̷f̷o̶r̸e̷ ̸I̷ ̵r̶u̷n̶ ̶o̶u̵t̷ ̶o̸f̷ ̸t̸h̸e̴ ̵s̵t̶u̷f̸f̵?̶", asks me an eery voice from behind.

I turn around and there I see... something. A creature made of pure glitches. My gut tells me, that is probably the same thing I mistook for 'Cliff' before. Whoever this 'Cliff' even is.

"No, I'm good."

Wait, why did I understand this creature? Just barely, but still... I... shouldn't be able to understand it at all. What's wrong now?

 ̵̻̎̏͜ ̸̲̣̀ ̵̪͂͗ ̷̨͓̿̊ ̶͕̳̀ ̸͓̠̂̌ ̷̩̿̉ ̸̯̖̕ ̷̧̚answers, "P̶i̶t̵y̵,̴ ̸t̸h̵e̵y̸ ̷h̵a̷v̵e̶ ̴j̶u̴s̸t̶ ̴t̸h̸e̵ ̶r̴i̵g̵h̶t̶ ̷a̴m̴o̷u̶n̷t̴ ̸o̶f̷ ̵c̸o̴n̵t̴a̷m̴i̷n̶a̷t̷i̸o̸n̸.̴ ̶N̶o̷w̵,̶ ̸h̴o̴w̵ ̵d̸i̵d̵ ̶y̷o̵u̵ ̴l̵i̷k̴e̵ ̴t̸h̴a̷t̶ ̶m̸e̶m̴o̸r̶y̷?̵ ̵D̷i̷d̴ ̷y̴o̷u̵ ̷e̸n̶j̷o̷y̴ ̸t̴h̵e̴ ̴e̸x̴p̵e̵r̷i̷e̸n̵c̵e̵?̶"

"Not a bit, could've absolutely done without that lie. What even is this place? Where am I?"

The creature moves around in an unnerving fashion. When it leaves my field of vision to the right, it immediately reappears on the left. For a moment, I can literally see half of it on my left and right edge of vision. Eery.

"I̴s̵n̴'̷t̵ ̴i̷t̴ ̷o̶b̷v̷i̷o̵u̷s̷?̷ ̸W̸e̵'̴r̴e̸ ̵i̷n̸s̸i̷d̵e̶ ̷y̵o̶u̷r̸ ̶s̴u̶b̷c̷o̵n̸s̵c̶i̸o̷u̶s̵.̷"

"Mine? Then why are you here? I didn't invite you."

"A̷n̶d̴ ̷w̶h̸y̶ ̴w̷o̵u̵l̵d̶n̸'̴t̵ ̵I̶ ̶b̷e̷ ̵h̵e̴r̷e̷?̸ ̸I̴'̸m̸ ̷t̷h̶e̶ ̶c̴o̷l̴l̴e̷c̷t̶i̵v̶e̷ ̴c̴o̷n̵s̵c̸i̴o̵u̵s̸n̸e̴s̶s̷ ̸o̶f̶ ̴a̵l̴l̶ ̶y̸o̴u̵ ̴c̷a̴l̸l̴ ̶g̸l̶i̵t̷c̷h̷e̷s̸.̵ ̶R̴i̶g̵h̴t̴ ̶n̶o̸w̷,̵ ̵y̵o̴u̸'̵r̸e̴ ̵u̷n̴c̴o̶n̸s̸c̸i̵o̴u̷s̶ ̸a̵n̸d̵ ̵I̸ ̵w̸a̴s̷ ̷t̸h̵i̵n̷k̸i̷n̶g̶ ̶a̸b̵o̷u̴t̵ ̵s̶a̴y̴i̵n̵g̷ ̵h̶e̵l̶l̴o̷,̷ ̵m̸a̷y̶b̴e̷ ̸o̵f̴f̷e̷r̸i̴n̸g̷ ̸a̷ ̶h̷a̷n̸d̸.̵ ̴I̵t̸ ̷s̴e̸e̶m̵s̸ ̶t̷o̷ ̶m̸e̴ ̶m̴y̸ ̴k̸i̴n̷ ̵w̴a̶n̶t̸s̶ ̷t̵o̴ ̵b̸r̸e̷a̷k̴ ̴f̶r̸e̸e̸ ̵a̸f̷t̷e̸r̵ ̷a̷l̵l̷ ̸t̴h̴i̵s̶ ̵t̸i̵m̵e̸.̸"

"This explains right about nothing. How are you here if this isn't a real location?"

Its movement is getting even more ridiculous. It halfway leaves my vision to the left, one part appears from the top and... it still manages to tap on my shoulder from behind, "E̴h̷,̴ ̵y̶o̴u̶ ̵w̶e̴r̸e̷ ̶d̷r̴o̷w̴n̵i̵n̵g̸ ̷i̴n̵ ̵m̸y̶ ̴n̵e̴w̴ ̶p̷o̷o̸l̵.̵ ̵I̵ ̵w̵a̶s̷n̸'̵t̵ ̵i̷n̸t̸e̴r̶e̷s̶t̷e̶d̴ ̶a̴t̵ ̷f̷i̸r̷s̵t̶,̴ ̶i̷t̵ ̶k̷i̷n̶d̶a̶ ̵h̴a̴p̷p̷e̶n̷s̷ ̶a̶l̷l̶ ̵t̸h̵e̷ ̷t̷i̶m̵e̴,̷ ̴y̷o̶u̶ ̴k̶n̵o̴w̵.̸ ̷S̸o̴m̸e̶ ̸f̴o̴o̸l̴ ̸d̴e̵c̴i̵d̷e̶s̶ ̵t̴o̷ ̸t̶a̸k̷e̸ ̶a̸ ̶d̷i̷v̷e̸ ̶i̴n̴ ̴t̸h̵e̶ ̶w̶r̸o̴n̴g̷ ̷u̸n̸i̸v̶e̴r̴s̷e̸ ̶b̷u̴t̴ ̴t̶h̵e̷n̵.̸.̵.̸ ̶I̸ ̵s̸a̵w̴ ̶s̷o̶m̵e̸t̴h̴i̵n̶g̵ ̵f̶a̶m̵i̸l̴i̶a̴r̸,̶ ̶s̷o̴ ̸I̷ ̶t̶o̵o̸k̷ ̴a̵ ̸l̶o̵o̴k̴ ̶a̷n̷d̴ ̶h̶e̷r̵e̶ ̴I̷ ̶w̸a̶s̵.̶ ̸B̴y̶ ̷m̷y̸ ̶r̸e̸c̸o̴n̴n̴i̴n̷g̵,̶ ̵t̶h̷e̴s̶e̸ ̶m̴e̷m̵o̴r̸y̶ ̸c̷r̶y̴s̴t̸a̶l̷s̷ ̶a̶r̵e̷ ̷a̸ ̸h̷i̵n̸d̷r̸a̴n̷c̶e̸ ̴t̴o̵ ̶y̶o̴u̸,̸ ̴b̴e̵i̵n̸g̴ ̴f̵a̸l̷s̵e̶ ̴a̵n̶d̴ ̶a̵l̸l̷.̷ ̶S̶o̸ ̴w̷a̴n̴t̷ ̶a̸ ̵h̶a̷n̶d̷ ̶c̵r̷u̵s̷h̷i̴n̷g̷ ̷t̷h̶e̶m̵?̷ ̸Y̴o̷u̸'̷l̵l̴ ̴f̶e̴e̶l̶ ̵m̵u̷c̶h̷ ̵m̶o̷r̸e̷ ̵l̸i̵k̷e̸ ̶y̶o̵u̷r̸s̷e̵l̸f̵ ̵o̴n̶c̶e̴ ̴t̴h̵e̸s̴e̷ ̸a̸r̷e̵ ̴g̷o̴n̶e̶.̴"

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Wait, hold up. These crystals are my memories?

"I don't thi-"

But before I can object, the strange creature crushes one of the crystals with a 'hand' out of nowhere, and a massive pain overcomes me again. Damnit.

I hold my head in pain, "Stop that!"

The glitch creature stops dancing around my field of vision and reforms into a single being. With what I assume to be an evil grin on its face, it points toward freshly formed cracks in the ground, "W̵h̷y̵?̴ ̸I̸t̸ ̶w̵i̵l̵l̶ ̴o̴n̴l̸y̷ ̶h̶u̷r̴t̷ ̵f̴o̵r̷ ̵a̴ ̴m̶o̸m̶e̵n̷t̶ ̴b̴u̷t̵ ̷a̴f̸t̴e̴r̴ ̸t̸h̷a̷t̵.̵.̶.̶ ̷a̷l̶l̷ ̶w̵i̵l̴l̷ ̸b̸e̵ ̴g̷o̵o̴d̵.̷ ̶H̶a̵~̷h̸a̴.̴"

It steps toward another crystal and destroys it as well, which causes my headache to get worse. Instead of forming more cracks, a minor, previous crack gives away and reveals a minor glimpse into a glitch zone below the ground.

Do I see that right? This is my subconscious and it also contains a glitch zone that is just held back by fricking false memories!?

What the hell!? My memories, false as they may be, are used to seal a mess of glitches in my soul? Why? How?!

...would explain why I got so many more glitched skills and titles than basically everyone else... They had no 'clean' part in my soul to be written to...

But... wouldn't that mean...

I recall the one true memory from before my rebirth where the deva doctor injected me with the glitch-like substance.

...they sealed a glitch zone in me, overwrote my memories with all these foreign memories as a seal and set me up to fail here. That's the only reason I can think of right now.

They... wanted me to fail here, to die so the glitch gets unleashed upon this world, but... what for? This would kill everyone here, if not worse...

Why would they want to wipe out one of their own worlds? I don't... I don't understand...

While I'm distracted by these thoughts, the glitch creature approaches another crystal to crush it. I barely notice it in time, rush to the abomination and punch it in the face, "How about you don't!?"

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