The Legacy of Dr. Vex (VOLUME I END)

I don't hate my body.

I realized that there's more to me than how I look. It's an appearance, something everyone had. There's nothing to be ashamed of. What is identity? The color of my hair, the raggedness of my skin. The green eyes that stood out amongst the ones that stared at me my entire life. Or was it the memories I held on to which fooled me into believing that the world was against me. 

I pitied their stares. Knowing what I know now, I would choose remembering over not even understanding what it meant to feel pain.

I was no more different than anyone else and that was okay. 

Seeing myself through the perspective of another showed me Experience. A lived moment that you shared with those around you. It's not what you remember, but the way you view them in respect of how to move forward. I could change and reimagine them. It was constant and evolving. 

But I never expected to relive that day again. 

***

It was me. 

I saw myself walk along the grided pattern of the green surface. There was an expression on my face that seemed so distant. All the buildings had a different feeling to me, all they did was glitch. But beyond that, I could see light emanating from them. I never noticed. 

"Reia...!" Daiya exclaimed. 

We all stood at the vantage point of Regal and watched the events of that day play out.

I was the only person walking along the street, as everyone else flew or jumped above me. I saw myself bend the corner, swiveling my head and glancing around frantically. He simply stared. I had yet to notice I was being watched. But I remember. I felt his presence. 

"No light...?" Regel muttered to himself.

 He looked around at all the citizens below ground and teleported sporadically through the crowd of people, checking every person in the surrounding area. Then I saw him in the sky. From above, Regel looked down at me walking along the grid. My head constantly moved to the left and right. I was panicking because I had almost made it back home. Then, I watched myself turn my head to meet his violet gaze for the first time. I remember that sense of dread. 

Regel teleported in front of me, directly in front of my building a few feet ahead. 

"Could it be...?" I heard him whisper under his breath, "Heighten internal responses, hm. I'll have to test her." 

He was testing me. 

I witnessed as I began to cross the street into the alleyway, hoping to escape. Looking back, it was foolish. There wasn't an escape.

As I walked in the alleyway, he appeared in front of me. Just as I remembered.

"Who are you?" He asked me and at the time, I was too scared to respond. 

"I said, who are you?" he repeated. A light emanated from his hand as he flashed it in my face.

I turned around, but he teleported in front of me again. "Who are you? I read no light from you."

It was hard to watch. I felt like I was reliving the moment over again. If he wanted to torture me by replaying this memory, then I had no need to keep listening. "I've seen enough," I muttered to Regel as he stood beside us.

"Do you remember what happened after you passed out?" he turned to me, "Watch until the end."

What happened after?

I saw Regel grab my face and slam it against the glitched wall. He kicked me in the stomach as I watched myself cough out blood and scramble on the ground for my glasses. I don't even wear them anymore now. 

"These glasses, what are they?" He muffled. "Always leaving us in the dark. Everything has to do with Experience. Who the fuck are you? You feel pain, have no light. You would've been smart to go above ground, where they track your light and enforce teleportation laws. But you can't, can you?"

"AGHHHHHHHHHHH!" 

"What the hell?!" Regal jumped back as I witnessed my body split in two. I had only felt the agony, I had never seen how it happened.

It was gruesome. Each cell detracted from each other as blood dripped from body to body. It began with my head, then shoulder and the rest of my torso. It contorted slowly until each part separated from the next, plopping my original self on the ground when my body double sprung awake.

"Woah..." Mira muttered.

It was her. Inner Reia!

She jumped and lunged an attack at Regel. Right before she could land the blow, a large yellow net of light wrapped around her body from above. Standing atop was a man in a grey suit with white, frizzy hair. It was Dr. Vex! 

"Well, well, someone needs some more training! Hahaha! You couldn't even react!" Dr Vex exclaimed as he floated down and stood on my double. 

Something about that angered me. Seeing him treat her so loosely as she fought relentlessly in the net. She was only protecting me! She always had!

"What the fuck...? Vex! Where have you been? The Director has been looking for you. Or his notebook I should say," Regal said.

"Hmph! You mean he sent you after me! I knew after some time you'd eventually come below ground! Well, what do ya think? Fun, right?" He looked at the people around, "They're mindless as ever."

My body double kept ringing around, struggling to free herself as he continued to speak standing on top of her. "You never cared. If you paid attention, you would've guessed. This is the true power of the Experiences. This version is probably only at 20%."

"20%?" Regal questioned.

"Yup, yup, yup! 20%. I realized something, it was Experience VI. After all the experiments, and test, pain, you know, they developed. They were the first one to show signs. Started thinking on their own. Manifest powers. Bend reality-"

"Reality is objective Vex-"

"Don't be so sure. It's often dependent on the viewer. They control everything, you know that." He pulled out the notebook. I was sure of it now; it was the exact one he gave me. Tattered and all. "How do you know anything in Nolan is real? They've manipulated the whole cityscape!"

Regal turned to walk away. "They? I see you haven't changed. You have no way to uncover this. What nonsense-"

"The lack of knowledge is the basis of ignorance. What don't you get about that? The Director is working with those things! They know the true ways of the world. How humans used to be, the wonders. The only people who can change reality are the ones who are immune to it. The ones with no light!"

Regal turned around, "So what will you do? What are you suggesting?"

"I made a plan long ago," Dr. Vex beckoned, 

"The Experiences change. They can adapt, develop abilities that counter light. Through a process of upheaval and a plethora of pain, they evolve and awaken their true ability. I will find and guide all of the Experiences to reach their full potential. This is my speculation, but they also have memories of the lost history of humans, and it starts at 8 years old when they manifest. It's right when neuron surgery begins. It's why the Director uses their pain to make artificial humans. Project Experience was necessary if anything for this moment right here."

"That won't work," Regal interrupted.

"It will," Dr. Vex mentioned, "This girl right here, I'm gonna take her with me and find the others. When you see her in the future, ask about the notebook. It's the key to everything. I won't live too much longer, but if I don't get to find out the true history, find it for me."

"I don't care about the past. I just don't want to be controlled by anyone. But why her?" Regal asked, looking at my body that laid still on the ground.

Dr. Vex smiled, "Because Experience II can split her body into an endless number of fragments. She has the memory of the entire world. If she reaches her potential and you find her, I guarantee no one will be able to control you. Oh, Regal. One more thing?" 

"What?"

"Why do you think he chose us? Many more have had intelligent thought like us,"

"It doesn't matter; it's in the past now."

Dr Vex laughed, "I figured you'd say that! Haha! Toodles!" He clasped his hands together.

With that, Dr. Vex, my original body and double disappeared into thin air as Regal sat in the middle of the glitched underground. 

The memory dissipated once again, and we transported back to the ground level of Nolan-70. The rusted Eiffel Tower shadowed far above us and the orange surface shined beneath my feet. People still carried on in between the white lines, interacting, holding hands. Chatter from the artificial humans filled the airwaves. Regal unloosened Experience III and immediately he began to start climbing the tower. 

Daiya and Mira said nothing as the three of us remained quiet. Out the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of my reflection on the surface. For a brief moment, I had a flashback of when I was in the hospital and visited Dr. Resin. I gazed in the holographic mirror and wondered what this body could mean. I couldn't bear to look at it.

It was small, and I don't know if it was real, but I saw it. My reflection smiled back at me.

 "Reality is objective. I believe that. Vex is still an idiot long after his death, but I can't say he didn't try," he looked at me, "If you have the notebook, maybe you can preserve the legacy of Vex and find out who's really controlling Nolan."

"What do you want?" I asked him, "You say you don't care, so why?"

Regal faced me. "I don't want anyone to rule over me. And you never answered my question: Who are you?"

"That's all?!" Daiya exclaimed.

I stayed quiet for a moment to think. Dr. Vex, he never stopped believing until the end. He affected so many people; I was one of them. He was like me. Imperfect. But I accept that.

Sometimes realizing who you are is the greatest change you could enact. I pulled out the tattered notebook and felt a warm rush of air breeze my face. It was his essence. I wanted to see more. I wanted to find out who I was. What it meant to be human in this strange world. He entrusted me to go beyond. 

 I still didn't know the answer, but I guess I'll have to keep searching. 

"I'm Reia Ozuma," I said, "I'm me."

We all got on the pink and green train and headed off toward the future.

Departing, Nolan-70. Departing, Nolan-70. Next stop, Nolan-71. Next Stop, Nolan-71.

***

End of Volume 1 of Experience II