The silver apparition took you to an open space; you were basically on the very edge of the city and couldn't sense any apparitions around. You chalked that anomaly being the silver apparition's doing. In the distance, there was a circular table and a pair of chairs across each other. At the centre, there lay an unlit candle. The humble yet endearing sight was only more charming with the graceful descent of delicate snowflakes from above.

"This is lowkey extra," you said.

"As someone with a lot of time on their hands, this isn't much if you think about it."

"You have a point."

The silver apparition gestured for you to sit down. Upon closer inspection, you noticed that the wooden table had several chips along the edges and several scratches on the surface. The chair wasn't any better off as well, but they were both still functional.

"Excuse the quality, but you can rest assured it's clean."

"Where did you get all of this?" you asked.

"People didn't want it anymore, so I figured it was alright for me to take it."

The fact that the silver apparition could very well rob an entire store with ease if he wanted to, but opted for such a humble action was oddly endearing. Well, there was also the fact that could have wanted to not draw too much attention to himself. The latter made a lot more sense, but the first pleased your fangirl heart.

The apparition took a seat across you, prompting you to shoot him a confused look.

"How are you sitting––"

"I'm only floating."

"Ah."

Your eyes looked at the box of matches resting on the table. Noticing your observation, the silver apparition spoke up,

"Unfortunately, I am unable to light the candle." To prove his point, he tried touching the object only for his hand to phase through it. "Care to do the honours?"

You picked up the match and struck it against the box. With the lit match, you carefully touched the wick, igniting the candle. You watched in awe as the snowflakes shied away from the flame, creating a small halo where the candle could illuminate steadily, undeterred by the cold winter; was that the silver apparition's doing?

"I thought this was a hangout," you remarked. Had you not said anything for next second, you would've been consumed by the moment of serenity. "Feels more like a date to me."

"It does, doesn't it? I didn't anticipate that you would insist on 'hanging out'. I'll keep that in mind for next time."

Next time. Do I wanna comment on that?

Then, a very obvious question slid its way into your head.

"Wait, so you prepped all this in advance? That meant that you planned to meet me at some point."

The silver apparition nodded. "After I discovered that you were at the city's edge, I spent a few days figuring out how I would approach you."

The thought of the silver apparition running through tests and simulation on how to approach you before deciding 'ah, yes. Attack her' was hilarious and worrying.

"You thought about me?"

The silver apparition looked at you as if you had asked the obvious.

"Yes? I'm always wondering what you're up to."

A hot ghost constantly thinking about you? Even if it wasn't in the romantic sense, you would be lying if you said you weren't a little giddy.

"Sooo, I asked for your name before," you said. "Can you tell me now?"

"Ah, right. A name." The silver apparition's gaze drifted off to the side. "It's hard to recall it, but I do remember the number assigned to me."

"A number?"

"I was researcher number zero."

Your eyes lit in interest. New information? Hell, yeah.

The silver apparition smiled. Your heart almost did several blackflips at the sheer shock at how gorgeous he looked and the fact that he actually smiled.

"Have I caught your attention?"

"You've kind of caught it since day one, but okay."

"I'm flattered."

"I'm flattered you're flattered."

"You have a way with words," the silver apparition said. "Since we are both curious about each other, we should exchange an equal amount of questions and answers."

"So like twenty one questions?"

"Twenty one questions?"

"You ask me a question, I give you an answer. Then, I ask you a question and you give me an answer. We do that twenty one times."

"Is there a reason why the number is twenty one?"

You furrowed your eyebrows. "I have no clue and now you're making me wonder if there is."

"I see... I'll play along, then. You may go first, but just keep in mind," the apparition paused, his gaze locking with yours. The ethereal silver colour of his eyes blended perfectly with the snowy scenery. "Both parties must provide honest answers, agreed?"

You nodded, almost in a trance. This game worked well for you. Hah. You knew withholding information during your last encounter was a good idea.

After a few moments to compose yourself, you said, "Alright, then. Let's start with your name. You said it was hard to remember it, but you never said you didn't know it."

"You caught onto that, huh?" The silver apparition said. "My name is Shen."

Shen... That was fitting.

"Good to meet you, Shen. What do you wanna ask me?"

You recalled the question he asked you during the second half of the SF trial.

"I'm pleased that you've decided to stop resisting," he said. "So, you were on the verge of death, yet you managed to go up the rooftop. Not to mention, your body had recovered to some degree. I thought about it for a while and I couldn't come to a logical conclusion. Is there something I'm missing?"

He was going to ask that, wasn't he? You should mentally prepare a response now––

"What do you like to do in your spare time?"

"Huh."

The sheer confusion and dumbfoundedness in that one 'huh' slipped out before you could stop it. At that, Shen tilted his head in confusion.

"Was that not an appropriate question?"

"No, no. It's just... not the one I was expecting?"

He nodded. "Do not fret, I will get to those questions. I am simply curious about who you are as a person."

That was... actually pretty flattering. But it was still a good idea to remain vigilant, just in case. Maybe Shen will try and slip in a trick question.

"I like to visit the AEI's library to either write or read. My friends would join me from time to time, but I always stay the longest," you answered. "At one point, Elias said he would give me the library if he could."

"I also like to read. I always come across fascinating information."

"I read cheesy romance while you probably read encyclopaedias. We are not the same."

"I suppose I should give the romance genre a try so we can share some similarities," Shen said. "To not get off topic, I wanted to say that there was one particular book that was very interesting..."

That piqued your curiosity. You waited for him to elaborate, but he never did. Oh. He was waiting for you to ask the question. Damn, sly bastard.

You sighed in defeat. "What was the book?"

Though the silver apparition's expression remained indifferent, you could sense a smug triumph in his voice, "It discussed the origins of apparitions."

You hesitated a moment before continuing. "Did you find it in the corner of the library––"

"Hidden between a wall and a bookshelf, the front cover missing, writing in a very light blue that almost blended into the paper, most of the words illegible, and unknown author?"

Your eyes widened. "Y-yeah."

That book only had a slim chance of the player stumbling upon it because of how unsuspecting the location was. A piece of hidden lore––it was only by pure coincidence that you discovered it because it was four in the morning and you were so out of it that you began to explore every crevice of the library. You uploaded a video online showcasing your discovery and it got quite the attraction, it became a turning point in Anomalous's lore.

"If I recall correctly, the book reads that there used to be a world where apparitions didn't exist. However, one day a human changed that." The silver apparition summoned a snowflake and it hovered just above his fingertips. "On the brink of death, their desire to make a wish was so strong that the universe had to grant it; they wished for a second chance at life. Since then, a new law has been applied to this world."

Shen summarised it well, you didn't have much to add.

"What do you know about it?" he asked.

You chuckled nervously. Now things are going to get tricky, especially with the mysterious system filtering out any words you spoke that hinted that this world used to be a video game to you.

"I encountered the same book a long time ago by pure happenstance. I know most people will think it's some old book that we shouldn't take seriously, but I have a strong feeling that it's important."

"I share the same sentiment," he replied. "Is that all you have to say?"

You couldn't exactly tell Shen the reason why you deemed the book important was because you encountered it in a video game, and that by video game logic all clues were useful to the story in some manner.

"... No. But I don't think I can elaborate."

The silver apparition remained quiet. Your nerves begged you to break the silence, yet you couldn't think of anything valuable to say. Adding in lies to elaborate your response seemed like a bad idea.

"Very well." Shen's expression conveyed no signs of displeasure, much to your relief. "I'll let it go. I believe it's your turn to ask me a question."

It wasn't hard to think of the next question. "What have you been up to all these months? For someone so powerful, your presence has been really quiet."

Shen nodded as if he had been expecting your question.

"As I've lost a substantial portion of my memories, I've spent most of my time rediscovering my identity through observation and exploration. Naturally, the more I learnt, the more my memories came back; though, there is still more to recover. I've also been experimenting with my abilities."

Just to show off, he held out his palm and conjured a small ball of frosty wind.

"Trial and error. I believe I am quite proficient now."

Hm, so pretty much exactly what happened in the original game

Sensing your dissatisfaction, Shen remarked, "You don't seem content with the information."

Startled, you quickly replied, "Oh! Don't worry, you told me more than enough."

"It's fine. I don't want you to feel cheated. Please let me know if you're already aware of what I've shared. Same goes for me––we want to ensure this is fair and beneficial to both parties."

That was very ethical coming from Anomalous's antagonist.

Shen tapped his chin in contemplation. "What else can I add... Ah, I'll elaborate on the observation remark I made. I've been observing how humans interact."

That part caught your attention.

Shen smiled, the action was subtle like a snowflake amongst a pile of snow. "If you want to know more, you just need to ask."

Again. Again with that sly tone of his. He was really good at controlling the kinds of questions he wanted you to ask, huh? You needed to watch out and not accidentally only ask questions that Shen directed you to ask.

Though a part of you wanted to ask an entirely different question just to spite him, your logical side yelled at yourself to calm down on the pettiness.

"What are your feelings towards humans?"

In the original game, the silver apparition's feelings towards humans could be summed up with one word; hatred.

He hated the complexity of human nature; their various types of greeds, motivations, desires, and so forth. Shen was a researcher, someone who valued conclusive evidence that you could measure, that you can qualify with data. Humans could not be measured.

Apparitions? They had one easy formula: they wanted to survive.

"I find them fascinating."

With your prior knowledge in mind, Shen's answer came as a shock.

"You're surprised," he said.

"... I just thought that you would feel more negatively towards us."

"And why is that?"

"That's using up a question."

"I am well aware of that."

Shen probably couldn't care less, but you felt victorious at the fact that you piqued a question out of him.

"You were locked up in a lab because of humans, humans tend to antagonise apparitions, and I'm sure you're no stranger to the chairman's... methods. There are a lot of reasons to hate us."

The silver apparition's answer was quick and smooth. "I find it unfair to hate all humans because I've been wronged in the past. And, besides, that would mean I hate you, a human. And I clearly don't."

His last words made you feel more flattered than you cared to admit.

"You're embarrassed," Shen said.

"Maybe."

"Oddly enough, that makes me happy." His voice dropped an octave. "I want to tease you even more."

Oh my GOD.

"Please don't."

Shen's voice almost sounded like a lullaby when he said, "No promises."

"When were you like this?"

"That's using up a question."

"Ugh. Another time then. I'm going to drop a pretty loaded question now."

"Ask away."

"What's your goal?"

A part of you was expecting Shen to just flat out refuse to answer your question. After all, it took you an arm and leg to get some hints of his motives in the original game.

"I plan to rebuild the current system."

A very out there response, but it made sense. In the original game, the silver apparition partially worked with the chairman. Keep your friends close and enemies closer, you suppose.

"Why do you seem surprised again?"

"I dunno, this is just very valuable information. You just handed it over so easily."

Shen nodded. "No one knows about this, and I expect to learn things about you that others don't know."

"When I was younger I thought we only had ten numbers because I only had ten fingers."

"... Not what I was anticipating, but I do find that piece of information amusing."

"Thanks," you said. "How do you plan––"

"Ah, ah. I believe it's my turn to ask a question."

Curses.

"Do your goals align with mine?"

You blinked. "That's kind of vague."

"It's fine, answer the question to the best of your ability."

You thought about it for a moment. "In a sense, yes. I don't agree with the current system in place. Antagonising apparitions so badly, the die hard mentality to sacrifice yourself for the citizens in the AEI, amongst other... confidential things. I want to change that." you answered. "Okay, my turn. How do you plan to rebuild the system?"

"We start from scratch."

"You're saying..."

"Destroy the current city and rebuild it," he said simply. "I'll take responsibility for when that happens and will do my best to minimise casualties for those who are innocent, but there are no guarantees. I will restore order and create a new system."

In the original game, Shen would never express that sentiment. Sacrifices were simply necessary, those who could survive would survive––that made more sense with his character from the original game.

"I think being human is a wonderful thing, apparitions and humans are more alike than we think. The instinctive desire to live is fascinating on both ends." He looked at you. "In this endeavour of mine, I'd love to have you as my partner."

Your eyebrows knitted together, uncertainty evident on your expression.

"I'm not entirely dismissing the idea. I think cooperation would benefit both of us. However, I don't agree with your solution by starting from scratch."

"Do you have a solution?"

That question got you thinking. You were so preoccupied with the subplots of the game and Amias's massacre that you never really considered the overarching problem; the evolving apparitions and the chairman's extremities to stop it.

"I have a theory that apparitions are evolving because exorcists are doing the same. Because the more we antagonise and fear apparitions, the stronger their need for survival becomes. Hence, they become stronger as apparitions while we become stronger as exorcists."

"That is a plausible theory. However, you didn't answer the question. How are you going to stop a belief that has been prevalent for so long in a few mere months?" Shen tilted his head. "You know that you don't have much time until it becomes too late to resolve things, right?"

You went quiet for a moment, conflict bubbling in your mind.

"I... I don't have a concrete answer," you admitted. "However, I'm confident that I can work something out."

"You are full of surprises, so I do not doubt that you'll make good progress." He smiled, but it looked a little disappointed. "I suppose we are still enemies to some degree. Our interests clash. A pity. I was hoping we would be friends by the end of this."

"I thought you were just curious about me. There's no need to be friends."

"That still has some relevance, but I've noticed that your company significantly lifts my mood."

"Really? How?"

"That's using up a question––"

"Yeah, yeah. I get it."

Shen found your flippant response amusing.

"I've never been bored, but I have been quite lonely. You can imagine how scarce my interactions are, you're the only person I can have a casual and lengthy conversation with. And it's not just that. I've been observing you quite a bit, you know? Your growth is quite remarkable."

Shen rose from his seat and approached you, his fingers caressing the surface of the table as he moved. Does this man know the effect his beauty has on his actions? If you didn't know any better, you would've thought he was going to seduce you.

In response to his actions, you began to sit up. However, the silver apparition suddenly held one side of your shoulder down with an icy touch that made you shudder. Woah, woah, woah. Where was this going?

"I'm not sure whether my feelings towards you are love or not, but my answer to the question you asked me a while ago has changed." He gazed deeply into your eyes. Because of that, you would've leaned back too far and fallen if it weren't for his hold on you. "If it came down to you or me, I'd choose to save us both. I do not want you to die."

"Question, if it were between you and me and one of us had to die, who would you save?" you asked.

The silver apparition looked at you as if you had just asked him the easiest question on earth. "Myself. Why?"

"... Not even a second thought about me?"

"Why should I? It's logical to prioritise myself." He tilted his head. "Though, I supposed it would be a shame if you died."

Damn, talk about character development.

"Though, you'll likely come back as an apparition. I doubt death can stop you. However, that is an existence that does not suit you."

The gentle smile that graced his lips was as delicate as the snowflakes that descended around him.

"It makes me envious wondering who you've touched with your hands. Maybe I should chain them up? Ah, but isn't writing important to you? Restraints would ruin that. I suppose I'll have to find another way to make you exclusively mine."

He hummed to himself while your brain was running at a billion miles per hour. Uhm, hello???? Did he just?? Chain you up?? Exclusively his??? Does Shen even realise what he was saying???

Shen continued despite the war of emotions and conflict waging in your head. "I envy your friends who see you every day. I wish you would stay close to me, talk to me everyday, exchange touches like... this."

His fingers glided down your arm, leaving behind feathery touches that made your breath hitch. Shen took a hold of your hand and pressed it against his cheek, making sure to maintain eye contact. You felt the chill of his skin and the tenderness of his grip. Then, he brought your hand to his lips and left a soft kiss on your palm; a sly smile on his lips.

The rush of emotions you felt was enough to melt the snow around you.

"Perhaps I should visit you more often. Seeing each other once in a blue moon doesn't please me. Do not fret, I will be discreet so you don't get caught with me. And if you do, I'll take responsibility." He paused. "Like now."

You were still dazed from what just happened, so your response was slow.

"Now––?"

"Someone is coming. Play along."

The silver apparition sent a violent torrent of wind that crashed into the table. Oh damn, that definitely snapped you out of your dreamy state. The furniture was long gone now, and you were also long gone from the spot as you leapt back to avoid the attack. At first, confusion seized you. But it didn't take long for you to put two and two together.

In the distance, a line of flames shot forth like an arrow. With the quick flick of his wrist, the silver apparition directed the fire away from him. Shen placed his hands in the pockets of his labcoat, a contemplative expression on his features.

"A long distance attack, they must be in a hurry," Shen said, turning over to you. "No hard feelings."

He snapped his fingers and conjured up a fucking snowstorm. If you hadn't reacted on time and dodged, you would've gotten a 'you died screen' in real life before you got laid.

No hard feelings my ass.

Suddenly, a familiar sensation washed over, enveloping you with a feeling of security. You realised that Alastor and the rest of the apparitions have returned to the book.

Uhm, what the hell happened while I was gone?

I'll explain later. Just back me up if it looks like I'm about to lose a limb.

The moment you finished that thought, a burst of flames erupted around you and the silver apparition. The shocking transition from cold to hot was a relief since you were no longer freezing, but it was also a bit too much for your senses to handle.

A familiar brunet entered your line of sight, the guy who was the source of the fire.

"(Y/n), are you okay?" Finn checked for injuries and sighed in relief when he didn't find anything severe. With a frown, he reprimanded you like a mother would to a child. "Why didn't you call me?"

"You were busy so––"

A powerful surge of ice and wind extinguished the flames Finn summoned. Shen didn't look amused in the slightest upon Finn's arrival. Despite his silver eyes being cold, his gaze burned.

"Fire, huh..." Shen mumbled. "You'll be a bit of a problem to deal with."

Finn's demeanour was void of any hostility as he inquired, "Are you the apparition that broke out of the lab?"

Ah, right. This is Finn's first time meeting Shen.

"That is correct."

"Why were you attacking (Y/n)?"

"It's simple. She's an enemy. Anyone part of the AEI is."

"That makes me one as well, then. Are you doing this out of revenge?"

You weren't sure if it was terrifying or funny to see Shen mildly annoyed at Finn's onslaught of questions.

"Do people usually ask so many questions during a fight?"

"I like to know the reason why I fight and exactly who I am fighting," Finn replied earnestly. "If you're not going to elaborate any further, then I'll have to attack you."

"I'm fine with that."

The storm grew harsher in intensity; the snowflakes that were once harmlessly floating down had now become thick and heavy snowfall.

"I can land physical attacks on him," you said. "He's also not good at hand to hand combat. As long as I get close and not get caught up in his ice, we should have a good chance."

Finn nodded. "I'll distract him while you look for an opening."

"Got it."

You made a break for it. It was like a flip was switched. Your movements were fluid like water as you continuously jumped, slid, and dodged. Whenever Shen summoned an avalanche of ice to block your path, you'd effortlessly leap over it and glide along the frozen terrain like some expert iceskater. The times where icicles were hurled in your direction, Finn's flames would devour it like some ravenous beast, keeping you safe and allowing you to focus on getting closer to Shen.

Sam and Alec, the twins who could slow down time for you momentarily, came in handy for those closer moments where you needed the extra second to think about what to do next. Mochi supplied you with strength and heightened your instincts, and Copper used his shadow-based abilities to help you melt into the ground to dodge the silver apparition's attacks at times.

On the surface, it was two against one. But really, it was five against one with the help of your apparition friends.

Finally, you were able to close the distance between yourself and Shen. The apparition was well aware that you had an advantage when it came physical combat (you thanked Lyle for putting you through that training even if it seemed like an excuse for him to beat you up), so he made a move to summon a wall of ice.

"Sam's eyes show that it has been a minute, Alec's eyes show three," Alastor noted. "Huh. I'm assuming Alec's eyes show how long the ability was used for and Sam's eyes showing what it was in real time. In short, in the span of one minute you did what you would've normally done in triple the time."

With that information in mind, you called out in your head,

Sam, Alec, slow down time for a second.

The world slowed down. With a clear head and an even clearer opening, you raised your leg and delivered a heavy downward kick to Shen's shoulder. Time reverted back to normal shortly after that. For the first time ever, you saw a painful expression flash across his beautiful features. You actually felt slightly bad.

However, the satisfaction of landing a clean hit after all that effort was undeniable. Your adrenaline was through the roof. If only you were able to abuse the twins' ability to slow down time, but alas you were nerfed. This was probably the only clean hit you'll get.

Nevertheless, your attack did affect Shen's ability to use his powers with the same efficiency as before.

"I suppose I should test this out..." he mumbled.

Uh, test what out––

You didn't need to finish that thought to find out.

A column of ice shot up from the earth, lifting Shen up from the ground. A swirling gust of snow and ice circled around him, fluttering his lab coat as he looked down at you with a frigid stare. You had to admit, if you were on a device you'd screenshot the hell out of this sight and make it your wallpaper.

It was like the entire earth was under the command of his fingertips as the terrain began to shift yet again. This was just another harsh reminder of just how overpowered Shen was. Seriously, god really has his favourites, huh?

Actually...

This display of power kind of reminded you of Alastor and his control over rain and thunder. If you asked for his help now, you'd stand a chance against Shen.

Want me to jump in?

No, it's fine.

You weren't here to actually defeat the silver apparition. That will be a battle for another time.

Finn's sudden movement snapped you out of your thoughts as he rushed ahead of you. Searing flames erupted from his hands as he countered the ice and snow. You took a step back, stunned. Thankfully, Mochi's instincts snapped you out of your daze and you got back to focusing on not getting swept up in the blizzard Shen created.

Finn's orange eyes blended well with the flames. "Stay back, (Y/n)."

His voice was commanding and your limbs were strung by them like a puppet as you obeyed his words.

The brunet clasped his hands together and extended his arm, his fingers pointing outwards to mimic a gun. But what shot from his fingertips was far more fierce than a bullet. It was as if there was a powerful flamethrower built into his hands as he unleashed an unrestrained inferno towards Shen. You had to close your eyes for a moment because of the bright illumination.

You weren't exactly sure what happened next, but apparently that split second where you closed your eyes was enough for Shen to counter Finn's attack and create a whole tornado, one that trapped you in it. You were in the eye of the snow storm. It was calm here, but complete chaos outside.

You glanced around wondering how in the world you were going to get out.

A moment later, Shen entered the space with you. He took hold of your hands and drew near to your face. A soft smile adorned his features and he tucked a hair behind your ear.

"We'll finish off the twenty questions another time. I'll see you soon. Be careful, okay?"

You didn't get a chance to respond when Shen disappeared into the snow.

What did he mean by be careful––

A whole ass avalanche came crashing down on you soon after. Copper swiftly created a shadow beneath your feet so that you could dodge the collision. Darkness consumed your vision and when you were finally back out, you found yourself needing to dig your way out of a layer of snow.

You gasped and wheezed, desperately trying to calm your panicked heart.

That little RAT.

That ability of Shen's to control his environment so powerfully––you saw it in its full potential during the boss battle much later in the game. Was he growing stronger at a faster rate?

Ugh, should I even be surprised that's happening?

You frantically glanced around to find Finn and, thankfully, it didn't take long to locate the brunet. He was looking around, searching for you. When his eyes landed on you, concern was written all over his expression. You almost gaslighted yourself into thinking you were gravely hurt because of how worried he appeared.

"(Y/n)! Are you hurt anywhere?"

Since your adrenaline had died down, you finally realised how freezing it was. You could already hear Lyle's voice ring in your head saying 'you should've trained with me during those early mornings instead of staying in bed.'

"Nothing serious.. Sorry I couldn't do more. We could've gotten him if I had backed you up well––"

"Ah! No blaming yourself." Finn tutted. "Besides, we gained some information on him. Isn't that a victory in and of itself?"

You smiled. "I guess so."

"You know so." Finn hummed happily. "Oh dear, your jacket is completely tattered. Here, you can take mine."

When he took off his jacket, it took your everything to not stare at his chest. Those upper body workouts are doing him so much justice.

"You sure?"

"Yup. I'm actually feeling warm after using my ability so excessively." Finn showed his arm to you. "You can touch if you don't believe me."

Maybe you were a little too enthusiastic about touching his biceps. Whoops.

"Alright, proof has been verified," you said.

Finn helped you put the jacket on. A little unnecessary, but it was like his character to do so. You basically drowned in his jacket. However, it was very warm and comforting. There was also a nice fragrance to it. Was it... perfume?

"This smells kind of familiar."

"You noticed? It's the perfume that Sara and Cecil recommended."

"If both of them recommended it, that's when you know it has credit."

"Right?"

"Oh! What was that move by the way? You almost incinerated the apparition. I was shocked, especially with how commanding you sounded as well." You lowered your tone and mimicked Finn. "Stay back, (Y/n)."

Finn laughed at your impersonation. "I took some inspiration from Lyle." He beamed with pride and made the shape of a gun with his hands, a more playful version of the one from before. "Cool, isn't it? Or should I say hot?"

Before you could roll your eyes at his play on words, your device beeped. Huh. Who was calling you?

"Amias?" you mumbled. "But he already did his daily check up on me."

"He calls you daily to check up on you?"

"Yuppp."

You answered the call.

"(Y/n)! (Y/n)!" You could feel Amias's pure sunshine smile from the other side. "Elias said that you can come back!"

You heard Elias sigh and say, "The chairman recently informed me. You were supposed to keep the information to yourself until he made the official announcement."

Finn asked, "Announcement?"

"I'm not giving away any more information." The exasperation in Elias's voice was kind of hilarious. "But yes, there will be an important announcement."

Finn frowned. "If we're coming back to the centre of the city, who will be there to protect the edge?"

"Additional teams will be stationed. Again, more information will be at the announcement."

Well, you didn't need anymore information since you've played the game. A new arc was approaching, and it involved the chairman finally announcing a project he's been working on. Weapons; the thing that the technology design division was working on.

The arcs you've gone through were intense, but they were honestly nothing compared to this one. More potential character deaths, introduction of a new character, more character arcs, and much more involvement from the silver apparition.