3: Face of Truth

Aria jolted upright, her breaths shallow. The weight of her last vision pressed into her, and the message. There’s no harmony without memory throbbing in her mind like an unhealed wound. She stared at her DreamLink implant, still flickering red. The sight of it repulsed her, like it was some foreign parasite latched onto her mind.

Is this what DreamHub has been hiding? Memories… truths buried beneath layers of synthetic harmony?

A faint knock interrupted her thoughts, grounding her. Takumi's voice came softly through the door. "Aria? It's me."

She let him in, and his gaze quickly locked onto her distressed expression. “Did it happen again?”

Aria nodded, still piecing her thoughts together. “I think… I saw something from the original DreamLink framework. Memories that were… erased.” She met his eyes, the question hovering between them. “Takumi, did you know about any of this? That our harmony was built on suppressing people’s pasts?”

He hesitated, shameful, flickering in his gaze. “I’d heard whispers… but DreamHub tells us those were just rumors from the early days. All of us were assured that DreamLink’s integration was purely to unify us, to make life seamless. No one wanted to believe that it might mean… erasing parts of ourselves.”

She felt anger simmering beneath her skin, hardening into determination. “We need to know more, Takumi. Not just rumors. The real story.”

He nodded, his expression grave. “There’s one place where we might find the truth. It’s called Nexus, a control center for DreamHub, where they monitor and adjust the DreamLink sync patterns. If there’s any record of these memories or messages, it would be there.”

Aria felt her pulse quicken. The Nexus was one of the most heavily guarded parts of Neo-Tokyo, a facility where only elite DreamHub operatives were allowed access. Breaking into it was close to impossible but it was also her only chance.

Takumi must have read her thoughts. “There’s a way in. I know some of the guards… I could get you inside as an ‘observer.’ It’s risky, but we might have a few minutes to find what we need.”

Aria took a steady breath. “Let’s do it.”

They moved swiftly through the lower levels of the city, bypassing the main transport lines to avoid detection. Takumi led her through twisting alleys and deserted walkways until they reached a nondescript building. Unlike the polished, futuristic facades above, this structure was blank and cold, as if DreamHub had intentionally kept it invisible.

Inside, Takumi nodded to a guard, who glanced at Aria but gave no sign of alarm. “Fifteen minutes,” he muttered under his breath, then moved down the hallway.

They walked down dimly lit corridors until they reached a room with a series of monitors showing streams of data and visuals from connected citizens. Aria’s heart sank as she recognized familiar faces. People she saw every day, their minds open and vulnerable, their thoughts exposed for analysis. For the first time, DreamLink didn’t feel like a network of unity but like a vast surveillance net, trapping people in seamless patterns of thought.

Takumi pointed to a console near the back of the room. “This should access the core memory archives. If these dreams are remnants of something hidden, we’ll find it here.”

Aria sat at the console and typed in a few commands, her fingers trembling. Streams of data flooded the screen, layers of code interlaced with strange, encrypted files marked Archived: Subconscious. Her heartbeat echoed in her ears as she selected one file and let it play.

The screen shifted to a vision, not unlike a dream but far more vivid, as though she were watching a recording of someone else’s mind. She saw scenes of turmoil, a crowd of people protesting, chanting against DreamHub, their faces contorted with frustration and rage. A banner in the background read, “Remember Your Truth!”

Aria’s eyes widened. “These… these aren’t just memories. They’re fragments of an uprising. People who resisted the DreamLink before it became mandatory.”

Takumi leaned closer, his face a mix of horror and awe. “DreamHub erased this from everyone’s minds. They couldn’t have let people remember an uprising, or that DreamLink wasn’t built on pure harmony. This entire system is based on control, and these memories are breaking free.”

As they scanned through more files, Aria felt the weight of each recorded memory pressing against her, the raw emotions of anger, betrayal, and fear almost suffocating. They had been citizens just like her, trapped between a future of promised harmony and the sacrifice of their individuality. Each suppressed memory seemed to whisper a warning, a warning that DreamHub had buried too deep to reach.

Suddenly, a siren blared, jolting them both. “Unauthorized access detected,” a voice echoed throughout the facility.

“Go!” Takumi whispered urgently. “We have to get out of here!”

They darted down the corridors, barely evading the guards who had begun to search for the rooms. As they approached the exit, Takumi led her into a side corridor, hidden by shadows, and motioned for silence. She could hear footsteps approaching, the low hum of DreamHub operatives communicating through their earpieces.

When the footsteps faded, they made their way outside, blending into the bustling streets. Aria’s mind raced, replaying the images from the Nexus. She could still feel the echo of those suppressed memories, clawing at her thoughts, demanding to be recognized.

They found a quiet alley where Takumi leaned against the wall, catching his breath. He glanced at her, his expression unreadable. “Aria, I… I didn’t know it was this bad. This isn’t just about nightmares; it’s about control, erasing history to preserve a false peace.”

Aria’s resolve hardened. “We can’t let DreamHub continue this. If these memories are breaking free, maybe DreamLink is finally rejecting this forced harmony. We need to find a way to share the truth with everyone.”

Takumi shook his head, his voice low. “Do you know what would happen if everyone’s memories returned at once? It would break the sync, maybe even destabilize DreamLink completely. People’s minds aren’t prepared to face that trauma all at once.”

Aria clenched her fists. “But we can’t keep living in ignorance. We deserve to know who we really are, no matter the cost.”

Takumi placed a hand on her shoulder. “Then let’s do this carefully. We need allies. The Nightwatchers, maybe even former DreamHub insiders who were part of the original development. People who might know how to reveal the truth without destroying the city.”

Days passed, filled with clandestine meetings, whispered plans, and coded messages sent through DreamLink’s underground networks. Takumi introduced Aria to the Nightwatchers’ core members, survivors of the original DreamLink project, who had severed their ties with the system to protect their own minds. They were wary, even distrustful, but Aria’s passion convinced them to share what they knew.

Through them, Aria learned of a hidden network buried within DreamLink, a backdoor coded into its architecture that allowed selective memory recovery. If accessed properly, it could release fragments of the suppressed memories in controlled waves, giving citizens a chance to process them without overwhelming their minds.

But the network’s entry point was located within the heart of DreamHub headquarters, guarded by layers of encryption and elite security. Only one person could authorize access: the Director of DreamHub himself.

Aria felt the enormity of the task pressing down on her, yet she knew there was no turning back. This wasn’t just about her anymore; it was about the entire city and the lies it was built on.

One night, as she prepared for what lay ahead, Aria received a message through the Nightwatchers’ encrypted line. It was from the Director, a simple line that made her blood run cold:

“Your dreams are not yours to control.”

She stared at the message, her mind racing. The Director knew. He had been watching her, tracking her movements, likely aware of every step she’d taken toward uncovering the truth.

Yet something about his message stirred a strange feeling within her, almost a challenge, a reminder that even he, the architect of this illusion, could not escape the memories lurking within DreamLink.

Aria clenched her fists, her determination rekindling. The shadows of Neo-Tokyo whispered around her, urging her forward. She knew the road ahead would be perilous, but the truth was worth any risk.

Neo-Tokyo’s harmony may have been built on a lie, she thought, but maybe I can help it find a real one.

And with Takumi and the Nightwatchers by her side, Aria took her first steps toward the heart of DreamHub, ready to reclaim the lost memories of a city that had forgotten itself.