Bittersweet Memory: Neo-Psychic Voltage
The rain over the abandoned industrial sector smelled of ozone and scorched copper. High above the shattered skylights, the colossal silhouette of a rusted dragon-like machine coiled around a decrepit crane, its green exhaust burning like a false star in the choked night sky.
Will Vandom pulled her jacket tighter against the damp chill, her eyes flashing with a sudden, sharp magenta light. "Someone is invading our dreams," she whispered, her voice tight with strain as she looked toward the towering figures beside her. "They’re using our newfound powers to manifest the effects of those dreams right here into reality. If we sleep, we reshape the world in their image."
Prince Phobos of Meridian narrowed his eyes, his long silver hair catching the sickly green glow of the atmospheric smog. Beside him, Masaki Karsu—the enigmatic, blonde-haired retriever from the ruins of the old Volts—remained silent, his gaze fixed on the shadows. Next to them stood Kyogi Kagimi, his sharp features masked in the dim light, looking every bit the tactical mastermind who had survived the worst the underground could throw at him.
They had crossed the jagged, surreal expanse of the Dark Continent, pushing toward the elusive fortress known as the Rose Morning Star. The journey had been a harrowing one.
"Seeing so many people that were suffering... it changed the way I think about evil," Takuya Kanbara said suddenly. He stepped forward, the goggles on his forehead reflecting the distant city lights. He looked older than his years, carrying the weight of two worlds on his shoulders. "Evil can confuse you when you are staring it straight in the face. You can hope the face of evil will change itself... but it won't. Unless you force it to change."
Phobos let out a low, mocking hum, but Takuya didn't stop. The fire in his soul was manifest, flickering around his clenched fists.
"Many times, we had chances to leave the Digital World," Takuya continued, his voice echoing through the hollow iron ribcage of the factory. "We could have gone back to our easy lives and our loving families. But we always chose to stay. We chose to try to change things—because evil, in all of its forms, must be stopped."
With that final declaration, Takuya kicked open the heavy, rusted iron doors, leading the vanguard straight into the surreal, twisting architecture of the inner sanctum: the castle of the Candy Coated Nightmare Queen. The air inside was sickeningly sweet, thick with the scent of burnt sugar and cosmic dread.
Suddenly, a shift occurred in the dark hierarchy of the room. Shadows lengthened, and the psychic pressure of the dream-thief pressed down upon them.
"Let's have you stop right there!" Prince Phobos shouted, his regal voice cutting through the heavy atmosphere like a blade as he leveled a hand toward a looming figure in the center of the warped control room.
Kyogi Kagimi stepped up right beside him, his purple-tinged eyes locking onto the mastermind pulling the strings of the factory's brain trust. He didn't care about the manifestations or the shifting nightmares. He only cared about the threat directly in front of them.
"So, you're Masaki Karsu, the last of the Four Kings of the old Volts," Kyogi said, his tone dropping to a lethal, quiet register as he addressed the opposing force trying to manipulate their minds. "You can't do anything here. Get out now—or the next time I see you, I will remove you completely."
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