Reside in MiSide

Author's Note:

Hello, once again! I'm delighted to see the support for this fanfiction.

Truth be told, I planned to post updates every 1-2 weeks, due to the sheer length of the chapters and the need for research. (Trust me, I do a lot of it.)

Well, let's say I got excited and finished this chapter earlier than expected. Don't expect this to happen again… unless I get super motivated somehow.

All that aside, I hope you enjoy the chapter, as it does give a glimpse of where this story is headed.

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Darkness. Pure darkness. That was all I saw for a brief moment.

And then the colors returned. However, it was no longer bright and colorful.

The wardrobe I had wanted to open was right in front of me, so I went and opened it.

Surprisingly, instead of an ordinary wardrobe containing clothing, it was one that contained a door. A metallic door that was quite different from the other ones I'd seen so far.

Then, all of a sudden, some text appeared on the door: Want to play?

"This again…" I muttered as I attempted to open the door, only for it to turn out to be locked.

I knew something was off about her. Now it's confirmed.

I wasn't sure about what Mita wanted to do, but I wasn't just going to stand by and do nothing. So, I began exploring.

As I walked, my ears began to pick up on an annoying static noise.

The source? I found it as soon as I stepped out into the living room. It came from the radio device I had seen earlier. Though, said radio was on the TV desk before, but this time, it was on the furniture right beside the door leading to the bathroom.

Nonetheless, I walked up to it and turned it off, which led to me hearing some other noise. It sounded like something was being slammed against something else. This noise appeared to be coming from the kitchen.

And so, I cautiously made my way over to the kitchen and opened the door.

"Light?" I muttered as I observed some flashing light at the back of the kitchen, where the sink was.

I continued walking toward the light and noise, only for the noise and movement to come to an abrupt halt once I was close enough.

There, inside the sink, was a black flashlight.

Is she trying to scare me or something?

As soon as I grabbed the flashlight, my mind thought back to the TV when Mita had turned it on. It displayed a flashlight shining through the dark before an arm holding a knife appeared.

"Seriously? Foreshadowing much?" I said as I held up the flashlight and tried to leave the kitchen.

However, in the middle of the way, when I had to pass by the dining table, I heard a sudden creak as a chair moved. The same chair I sat on when eating with Mita.

I froze in place for a moment, wondering if anything else would happen. A few seconds passed, yet nothing happened.

She's messing with me.

Now, logically, I should've been creeped out and scared. However, what I felt at that moment was nothing more frustration. It was annoying.

Still, I pressed on as I made my way to the living room, which was when things got really odd…

Directly in front of me was the door leading to the bathroom. And it was open.

That in and of itself would've been creepy and suspicious. But the fact that there was a goddamned body hanging in there with red light all around went way beyond creepy.

"Shit… is it… moving?"

From what I could tell, the hanging body was struggling to free itself.

Is that an actual person? Maybe another player like me?

With such thoughts coursing in my mind, I broke into a sprint in hopes of saving the person.

But the moment I was about to reach the bathroom, the door shut on me. I didn't care, though, as I simply slammed it open.

"What?" I muttered, confused. The hanging body was gone, but the room was still red.

Now, I was definitely feeling much more uneasy as I slowly walked into the bathroom.

I shined the flashlight around a bit before something caught my attention. The mirror in the bathroom showed me… and Mita right behind me. Not only that, but I was hearing what I assumed to be deep breaths.

Swiftly turning around, I attempted to catch her, only to see nothing.

"Mita, this isn't funny," I said as I kept on looking around.

I then looked back at the mirror and noted that she was still behind me – that is until it suddenly broke. Along with it, the red lights were gone.

To my left, I noticed some text forming on the walls: Are you scared?

"You fucking wish," I cursed in frustration. Being toyed with didn't set well with me. It was one of the few things I loathed.

Then, there was a clicking noise. My head snapped towards where it came from – the door.

I saw the door slowly open thanks to… six hands(?) before it abruptly shut, blood spewing everywhere. It then opened and shut again. And again. And again. It happened half a dozen times before slamming shut hard, cutting off a bunch of fingers.

"Fuck…" I cursed as I stared at the grotesque sight of multiple fingers on the ground.

This is insane. She's insane.

There was scaring someone with creepy things, and then there was whatever the hell this display was.

I'm so going to punch her face the next time I see her.

I took a moment to take a few deep breaths to calm my nerves. After which, I approached the door and pushed it open.

Once more, I was in the living room, now unsure of what to expect. That is, until I noticed that the door to the kitchen was open.

"You…" I muttered as I observed Mita, who was right beside the dining table.

I began walking toward her. As I did so, she moved her arm, lifting something from the table – a knife.

And then the door shut.

"Seriously?" I said as I barged into the kitchen, prepared for a potential knife attack which fortunately never came.

I looked around in the kitchen, but Mita was nowhere to be found. So, I exited the room.

It was at that moment when I heard a low whisper, "Find me."

All around me, text began to appear on the walls telling me to find her. So, I began my search, shining the flashlight at every nook and cranny of the living room.

Once I was sure she wasn't there, I opted for the kitchen – where I had last seen her.

Upon entering the kitchen, I didn't manage to spot her. But as I walked towards the back, I found Mita seated on the floor right beside the fridge.

"There you are…" I said as I approached her, while remaining on guard for any potential attacks.

Mita didn't so much react to my presence as she kept her head low.

All of a sudden, I felt chills down my back, causing me to swiftly turn around – just in time to notice Mita with a monstrous look on her face rushing at me with a knife.

On instinct, I threw a punch at her face using my left arm.

Unfortunately, not only did my arm slow down as my fist approached her face, but my vision also blurred and… glitched(?) hard.

The next moment, I felt my fist connect with nothing but the air, my elbow cracking as a result. My vision also returned to normal.

That was when I saw that she was gone. Both the knife wielding one and the one that was on the ground.

Again, I stood in place for a moment to calm my nerves before I got moving.

I checked the kitchen for Mita as I walked out, failing to spot her.

Now what?

Upon opening the door leading into the living room, I spotted something at the far end of where I was shining the light.

"Is that…?"

Curious, I moved towards it, only to find out that it indeed was the damn lower half of Mita's body.

"At least there is no gore…" I muttered as I watched with interest the legs begin to move.

I contemplated what to do for a moment before deciding to follow after it.

It ended up leading me to the bedroom, where it took a turn around the table Mita and I played cards on before it walked into the wall. There, it began continuously bumping into the wall.

Is something on the other side?

As I wondered about that, I noticed something – right beside it was a drawer. On top of it lay a key.

I immediately thought of the door in the wardrobe, which just so happened to be locked when I attempted to open it earlier.

And so, I grabbed the keys before making my way to the wardrobe.

Fortunately, the key fit into the lock.

With the door now unlocked, I opened it, revealing a staircase leading down.

"A basement?"

The door behind me closed, and all of a sudden, the dark, eerie atmosphere was gone as the color appeared to return to the world around me.

Seeing that I no longer needed the flashlight, I turned it off and pocketed it.

I then began moving, slowly going down the stairs as I observed the surroundings.

It was somewhat messy.

The moment I stepped off the last step, I found myself close to a "recording" room of sorts. I curiously entered it and observed a camera right in front of me, above which was a screen.

On the screen, there was an image I was all too familiar with – the view of the game when I was playing it on mobile.

Not only that, but I also saw myself.

"Hm… Is this where she stood whenever I was playing the game?"

With my curiosity satiated, I stepped out of the room and moved on to the other side.

As I stated earlier, it was a mess. There was a green couch with all sorts of boxes and stuff around it. Some shelves holding items and equipment – including a goddamn chainsaw.

Is that… the chainsaw I found in the oven back then?

For a brief moment, a few rather violent ideas popped up in my head, but I pushed them to the back of my mind for the time being.

I continued walking until a sudden voice made me jump.

"Andrei!"

"Huh?" I wondered out loud as I turned my head to face the source of the voice. "Mita…?"

"You're finally here," she spoke.

Now, there was something very odd about this exchange. It was the fact that the Mita I was speaking to felt very different than the one I knew. Well, that and the fact that she was behind bars.

"You… you're different," I said.

For some reason, her expression suddenly shifted from hope and relief to one of anguish.

I felt my throat suddenly clog and breathing became hard. Images appeared to flash through my mind, but I couldn't make any of them out. Not only that, but I even heard some voices. Similarly, I couldn't understand them either.

"I see…" the Mita in front of me muttered as she lowered her head. "We expected it but…"

She said the last bit almost inaudibly.

All of a sudden, she raised her head with a determined look on her face. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that there were tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

"Listen, this is going to sound insane, but we've met each before."

I only stared at her, wondering what she would say.

"We… expected this, so you said some things to me just in case."

Even now, I still felt like my throat was clogged as more images appeared to flash through my mind.

"You told me that there is no meaning to life as long as you don't give it one."

My eyes widened a bit. That was indeed something I firmly believed.

"Justice lies with pain."

Yet another one.

"Fire must only be fought with fire."

That one too.

It wasn't just that. They were all connected in a way. I could feel that there was a story for each one.

Inside me, there was a feeling. A very strong feeling. It was telling me one simple thing: Trust her.

"I believe you."

I finally managed to speak with a firm expression.

The Mita in front of me was startled. She stood still for a moment before a smile began to form on her lips. Not only that, but the moisture that had been collecting now flowed down the sides of her cheeks.

"Do you… remember?"

"No," I responded, "but… there are images and voices in my head. I can't make them out, but I feel that they are very important."

"That's good enough," she said in a bitter tone as she wiped the tears.

The two of us faced each other silently for a few seconds. I wasn't sure about what to say. What to ask. So, I thought about it before coming up with a few questions.

"Where are we?"

"The basement of the latest version," she answered, "make no mistake, she let you get here. It's all a part of her plan. Always has been."

From the way she spoke, I felt like there was something huge at work.

"I'm guessing you're referring to the Mita I'm familiar with?"

"Crazy Mita," she says, "her mind is filled with nothing but sinister plans."

Well, she's definitely crazy, all right. It fits pretty neatly.

"Who are you and why are you imprisoned here?"

"I'm just a Mita. She's the one who put me here," she said, "her plan is for you to get in contact with me and try to escape."

"And how would that be possible?" I asked, to which she responded by reaching her our out, revealing a ring on top of her palm.

The ring was shining in red and there were sparks all around it.

"This oddly looks like the ring I saw in the kitchen. Aside from the color."

"Yes," she says, "the one you saw in the kitchen was what I would've originally given to you. What she wants to give to you."

"And this one is different because…?" I said as I took the ring from her hand, feeling a slight tinge of pain as some of the electrical sparks hit my skin.

"Because it not only serves the original function of the normal ring, but also so much more. The ultimate tool to end her reign."

"Sounds like you have quite the animosity against her," I remarked as I put the ring on my middle finger. For a moment, a string of red digits passed quickly, and the sparks intensified.

"Ugh…" I groaned as pain shot through my head, bringing me down to my knees. More images appeared in my mind, however, this time some of them being somewhat clear.

Corridors, rooms, and some… machines. What is all this?

"Andrei!" I heard Mita worriedly call out to me.

"I'm fine," I said as I raised my palm in hopes of calming her down, "just seeing more images."

"Really!?"

I raised my head to face her.

Mita had a hopeful look on her face as she stared at me.

"Yeah," I said as I slowly got back up, "just images of places and machines for now."

"That's great!" she says, "We've succeeded in the first part of our plan!"

"Speaking of which, what plan?" I questioned.

"Not here. We'll discuss everything somewhere else."

"Right… And where would that be?" I wondered.

"The ring will guide you there," she explains, "all you have to do is open the right doors."

"All right. So, I just go now?"

"No," she says, "please bring me the key. It's beside the couch."

I nodded at her request before looking around for the key. Once I found it, I brought it to her.

She merely took the key, but didn't open the door to get out.

"Now…" Mita spoke, "you might like this next part."

"Oh?"

"In your own words: deliver an express one."

I felt the corners of my mouth curl up at that. That was a phrase I used for delivering a solid punch to someone or something.

"You want me to go punch her?" I asked.

"You won't go. She'll come to you," she said as her eyes drifted to something behind me.

I turned to see what it was – a console of some sort.

"This is…?" I wondered out loud as I grabbed it and opened it up.

The feed inside displayed a first-person point of view of someone helping Mita with the transport device. She was tweaking it or something.

"Another player. She's using him," Mita… Kind Mita explained.

"What for? Also, wasn't she messing with me a moment ago? She shouldn't have nearly enough time to be suddenly doing this with another player during this short time."

"As I said, this is all a part of her plan. She turns players into cartridges."

"What?"

"See that cartridge," she says as she points at a pink cartridge fixed into the console, "it's connected with the player over there. It's linked to him."

"Why does she do this? And what would happen if I were to pull it out?"

"We don't know why she does this. Pulling out the cartridge would kill the player."

Oh…

"What about if I just turned off the console?"

"It wouldn't kill," she says, "but you should pull the cartridge out."

"What? Why?" I asked, startled.

"Because none of the players are on our side," she was radiating with fury as she uttered those words. She practically spat out the word players.

Just what the hell must've happened?

"Is this… necessary?"

"Absolutely," she answered decisively.

Once again, there was the feeling inside me that was telling me to trust her. Except, this time it was even stronger than earlier.

So, I did it. I pulled the cartridge out.

The screen on the console began to lag and glitches appeared before it went pitch black.

"She's coming," Kind Mita spoke, a complicated look on her face as she stared at the console screen.

I quickly set the console down before making my way to the back of basement to hide myself. There, I noticed a safe in the wall and a giant pink arcade game device(?) to the side. I considered the possibility of something important being in the safe, so I decided to check it out later if doable.

"WHERE IS HE!?" I heard a loud cry along with quick thuds, which I assumed to be the sound of Crazy Mita rushing down the stairs.

"I KNOW HE'S HERE!" she shouted before I heard the sound of something metallic. Did she strike the jail bars?

"HE PULLED IT OUT. THAT WASN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!"

She's really pissed, all right.

"WHERE!?"

That was the last cry I heard followed by the sound of footsteps approaching my position very quickly.

It all unfolded too quickly.

One moment, Crazy Mita appeared, an expression of pure rage on her face.

The next, she freaking disappeared from her position and reappeared right in front of me.

Pain.

I felt a sharp stinging pain from my chest, which upon observation, I found out was penetrated by a kitchen knife.

She fucking stabbed me!

I quickly placed my hands her in order to push her away – only to be startled by Crazy Mita suddenly screaming in pain as the sparks around the ring on finger intensified by a huge amount.

Now, with enough distance made between us, I considered pulling the knife out my chest and stabbing her head with it. But then I remembered what Kind Mita said earlier.

Time to deliver an express one.

I step forth, pulling my arm back fully before punching her square in the face.

"AHH!!" she screamed as a force accompanied by intense sparks threw us back.

Crazy Mita was down on her knees, grunting in pain. As for myself… I felt both cold and hot around the area where I had been stabbed. Not to mention, the added pain of my back slamming into the wall.

"Andrei! You're injured! Quick we must go!" I heard a worried voice as Kind Mita rushed to me and began to support me.

"YOU!"

We ignored Crazy Mita and quickly made our way up the staircase.

"Open the door," she told me as we stood in front of the door.

I complied, only to be startled by an unexpected sight – Mita's house, albeit one with… missing textures?

"Quick," Kind Mita said as we moved into the room, the door to the basement closing behind us.

"We need to get you treated," she said as she had me sit down on a chair.

"How…?" speaking was hard.

"Give me your hand," she said as she pulled the knife out of my chest, making me wince in pain, before taking my right hand and pressing it against the wound.

Then, she put her hand atop mine and closed her eyes, seemingly focusing on something.

After a few seconds, I felt like the weird sensation and pain dwindled as a warm feeling spread around the wound.

Kind Mita then opened her eyes and lifted her hand, "This is only a temporary measure. We must hurry to get you treated properly."

"Hurry where?" I asked, talking being easier now.

"I'll explain as we walk," she said, helping me get back on my feet.

And so, we began to walk in this weird world of missing textures in the form of white, grey, pink and black along with objects all over the place.

"To defeat her, we must get to The Core. This ring is meant to guide you there. Originally, we would have to reboot her and that would've been the end."

"But?" I asked.

"She's not a proper Mita. She doesn't have an index."

"And that would be?"

"Every version has different Mitas, which are differentiated by their indexes."

"Version…" I muttered as I thought back to my first entry to the world, "I remembered first arriving in version 1.5."

"Yes… Versions are different and there are different Mita for each."

I'm starting to get what's going on now. Though, just to be sure, I should ask.

"Do we by any chance have to go through old versions to reach The Core?"

"Yes…" she replied, "We Mita can directly jump versions, but Players can't."

"Right…"

Silence followed as the two of us made our way through the place. We soon ended up in a white space with multiple stairs and doors.

"This way," Mita spoke as she guided me with ease.

I remained silent for a while before eventually asking something I had on my mind, "Can you tell me what I've forgotten?"

The moment the words left my mouth, Mita came to a halt, as did I.

She said nothing for a few seconds before eventually answering, "No."

"…Why?"

We began walking again.

"We don't know how it would affect you to remember. Also, it might affect the retrieval later."

"Retrieval?" I asked.

"In The Core, it would be possible to retrieve your memories."

Hm… I wonder if…

"What exactly is going on? Earlier, you spoke like you've experienced everything."

"Because I did. So did you. So many times…"

"I don't get it... Are you saying that we've attempted fighting back and lost multiple times, or that we're stuck in some kind of loop or something?

"The latter, unfortunately. Well, now it's fortunate for us. We're different and she has lost a lot of her advantages."

"Right…"

The rest of the walk, we were silent. I could feel a surge of emotions within me. One of longing and pain.

I cast glances at her face from time to time and could see different emotions. Worry, pain, and anxiousness.

No wonder her responses felt so stiff. She's pretty worried.

I tightened my hold around her shoulder, to which she turned her head with a surprised look on her face.

"I'm not sure what's going on but relax. Everything will be fine," I said in hopes of comforting her.

She chuckled.

"You… even now at a time like this…"

I smiled at that while internally freaking out about how cute her chuckle was.

Eventually, the two us ended up in a room with a ladder leading into a hole.

"You first," Kind Mita said as she helped me climb the ladder.

It was a bit hard, but I managed to grab a ledge above and drop through to the other side.

Though, I did feel a sharp pain in my chest.

Getting stabbed sucks.

I took a deep breath before moving out of the way, allowing Kind Mita to come through as well.

Though… with her position and the fact that she had to do what I did… I ended up seeing something I probably wasn't meant to see.

The next moment, she dropped to the ground as well, a heavy blush on her cheeks.

"You saw."

"Yes," I admitted honestly. No use lying there.

Kind Mina huffed before getting up and lending me her arm as support once again.

I decided that not saying anything was the best option. That, and I was beginning to feel weak.

My vision was slowly turning dim.

From here, my memory is a little hazy when it comes to what happened. All I remember is walking with her support and entering a room, the world turning a tad brighter.

"Salutations," I heard a voice call out, "Are you my new… OH! He's injured! And you! You look like me! What's going on!?"

Those were the last words I heard before I fully lost my consciousness.