22 Threads

"So Mythus is the Aeon representing the path of the [Enigmata]. Fabricating and obscuring information, history and languages where they try to hide the past and distort the present?"

"There may be more but this is all I could find so far in the archives."

"Hmm…"

Yuuto swiped through the tablet Dan Heng had given him and did a double-take at the information that was currently available in the archives.

"So this path is basically the embodiment of purposely spreading misinformation..?"

Yuuto mumbled as he thought that this Aeon was strangely funny to him after learning more about the specific path they led.

"Did you say something?"

"It's nothing. I was just talking to myself."

Yuuto waved his hand telling Dan Heng not to mind as he looked deeper into the data bank to learn more about the Aeon that Nanook spoke of.

As he typed on the transparent keyboard floating in the air, Dan Heng quietly watched behind him thinking about the moment he walked into the archives.

'Did something happen during his time after the fight with the Doomsday Beast?'

Having only a few context clues in front of him, Dan Heng unknowingly guessed Yuuto's reason for his actions even if it was a thoughtless idea.

But despite this thought floating in his head, he didn't want to pry too much into it as it seemed to him that Yuuto had some solid bearings when it came to what he was looking for.

Plus the thought of Yuuo keeping secrets of his own wasn't strange as he especially kept some deep ones inside him that he wished to forget.

Everyone on the Express hides some of their own personal matters but he doesn't intervene in them unless it affects him or the safety of his friends.

As he thought of the word 'friends' faint images flashed through his head which passed by quickly.

Like a sea of fog hiding certain items but was quickly devoured by its thick haze.

A flicker of complicated emotions flashed through his eyes before they quickly disappeared as if they weren't there in the first place.

"You know you're going to bore a hole through my head if you keep on looking at me like that."

"Huh."

Dan Heng snapped out of his thoughts when he noticed that Yuuto was glancing at him with his lips slightly curled.

"I thought I had some food left over on my face but it looked like you wanted to ask me something instead."

"I'm sorry it was nothing, I was just lost in my thoughts..."

"No worries and you don't need to act so stiff, you know. Even if we just met for a while, I consider us friends so there's no need to be so distant." 

"I..understand.." Dan Heng relaxed slightly but felt a bit awkward when he was met with Yuuto's straightforward words.

Yuuto turned back to the terminal and continued to type on the floating keyboard. 

Hearing his stiff voice, Yuuto tried to hide his laughter but noticing his strange reaction just now made him think deeply at what he saw.

'[Clarity] really is an interesting skill that the neet book had given me.'

Exposing things that are veiled.

What would be considered veiled? Would it be an object that is being hidden by a deliberate external force? Or more so elements that are naturally invisible to the naked eye.

Yuuto had already tested the former with his experiment in unveiling the hidden words Nanook had said beforehand so what about the latter?

'Those memories that he briefly touched upon were probably the ones of his time as the Imbibitor Lunae.'

Focusing his use of [Clarity] on his eyes, Yuuto was able to see a person's [Nexus] in a whole brand new light compared to the time he had seen it before.

Previously all he saw were floating fragments that grouped up together into three areas while the [Core Memory] stood at its very center. 

He was able to see the different colors some of these fragments hold representing a strong emotion tied to them and that was all.

However, with [Clarity] he was able to see much more.

The previous plain [Nexus] was now filled with vibrant colors and each area was filled with much more activity than before.

Fragments basked in fog as if they were forgotten, some transparent as if they were about to disappear and others covered in faint chains tying them down.

But the biggest difference Yuuto would say he noticed would be the multitude of different-sized threads connecting each of the memories.

These faint white threads stemmed from the center where it began to intertwine each memory with others making for an interesting view.

"Hey, do you mind showing me how you get rid of these documents that are being stacked up?"

"Are you done with these?"

"Yeah, they were just some journals some researchers were writing so I don't need them anymore."

"Sure just wait a second."

Yuuto moved away from the terminal to allow Dan Heng to do what he requested but his eyes gazed steadily inside his [Nexus].

'[Prominent Memories] from [Language], [Sight] and [Psycomotor] had thick threads binding them together and one other thinner thread from outside connecting [Technological Skill] to these three…'

–CLICK

As Dan Heng continued to use the terminal, the faint threads glowed and quickly clicked these fragments together to create a larger one. 

Resembled the outline of an empty mirror where the fragments acted as shards of missing glass filling the previous bare object.

"It's done now. Do you need anything else?"

"Nope that was all. Thanks a lot."

Yuuto's pupils shook as his vision shifted from the [Nexus] to Dan Heng's face and watched as he returned to a chair where he sat before.

"The threads stopped glowing when he was finished so the connection between the different fragments must mean they work in conjunction together to create certain actions."

Staring back at the terminal Yuuto thought for a while taking in this new sight [Clarity] had brought him about this new view on memories.

Digging deep in his library he looked at the memories he had and noticed threads in the memories.

"The memories in [New Moon Phase] all have thick threads stemming from [Jingliu's Swordsmanship] as a base to other ones that focus on attacking with fast speed and precision." 

Seeing that the memory he made on his own seemed to have good compatibility judging from the thickness of the threads it showed, made him wonder if there were other memories he could add to this.

"With the foundation I can probably start to visualize the next phases in my swordsmanship."

Yuuto browsed for a while and searched for memories he could add to the [New Moon Phase] as a base and make a new 'branch' for him to grow from.

"What I need is specific offensive skills and defensive skills…defensive I could probably do now…"

Having an idea of what to do now, Yuuto pulled some memories to make a new phase.

In his mind [Taekwondo Footwork] and [Aerial Balance] appeared and when he tried to connect the two, the threads appeared thick showing their compatibility with each other.

"Hmm…"

Seeing this Yuuto tried to to put [Spear Formation] into the two and saw a very thin thread as it connected.

"Yeah as expected, these focus more on movement while this one focuses on the creation of an object."

Understanding more about how these threads work, Yuuto continued to look into his memories to see what else he could add.

"There was one other that I could use but I would need to replace the energy with the one that I have so it might be a bit different."

Yuuto glanced to his side where Dan Heng was sitting down reading and thought back to how he enveloped himself in that black and white wind that made him faster.

Pulling those memories of the time he had seen this happen from up close during the fight with the Trampler and the Doomsday Beast, he formed a rough memory.

[Psudo-Cloudlancer Movement] 

Yuuto was still missing parts in specific ways they would move but he understood a rough idea of how Dan Heng moved his feet and the way he circulated his wind to make him faster.

Now with [Taekwondo Footwork[, [Aerial Balance] and [Psudo-Cloudlancer Movement] to help tie things together.

–CLICK

Yuuto had the threads from each of the fragments connect and a satisfying click was heard in his mind when the three fragments formed a smoother larger one.

"I'm going to go back to my room. Thanks for helping me by the way."

"No problem." Dan Heng nodded as he watched Yuuto reach the door.

Feeling a bit excited to test this memory out, Yuuto walked out of the archives and went back to his room where he quickly closed the door and activated this new memory.

"[Load]"

Yuuto was able to feel the memory dissolving into his body and a pale silver aura surrounding his body once again.

He jumped for a bit feeling like his body was light and saw how the silver aura had a tint of blue ice within it.

"I had to replace the wind with a different energy so I guess this is how it shows itself."

Yuuto tensed his legs and ran forward. His speed was quick as he reached the other side of the room in just seconds.

Almost touching the wall, Yuuto jumped and kicked off the wall leaving specks of ice in his place and floated midair.

Upside down he twisted his body and used the ceiling to kick downwards where he landed back in the center of the room.

This went on for quite a while before he stopped and sat on his bed to rest.

"Holy shit that was really fun."

A bright smile was plastered on his face when he turned off the memory and felt some of the after effects of moving around his room for a while.

[Moonlit Steps]

This was the name of the first memory that would be part of the branching [Waning Moon Phase] from the [New Moon]

"But with this, I have to make my body stronger than ever if I want to keep using more memories on my body without my stamina going down the drain. "

Using [Heal] to restore some of his stamina, Yuuto thought about this issue and began to contemplate if he needed to go harder in his physical training.

But another thing was viable for him to use as he still hadn't tried its effects yet despite being a very useful memory.

"The [Antimatter Engine] should help me with this issue though."

Letting a black and white colored fragment float above his palm, the memory of the [Antimatter Engine] showed itself.

"Although I don't have any antimatter to use, I can still use it's mechanics to help reduce the use of excess energy."

Its efficient flow of energy that makes almost no waste was ranked high in Yuuto's eyes but he fell into deep thought as to what kind of energy he should use.

–THUMP

As he was deciding between two energies, his heart suddenly thumped and the thought of one other source flew straight to his mind.

"The Stelleron…"

Looking deeply into his body he saw the empty Stelleron and the pitiful residual energy it had but his instincts rang that this would be the best choice.

"I wonder how two [Core Memories] would work together.."

Bringing the two close to each other, he looked at the threads and saw that it was one of the thickest ones he had seen if he compared it to the [Moonlit Steps] he just made.

Yuuto slowly connected the memories and watched how the [Antimatter Engine] dissolved into the smooth glass-like exterior of his Stelleron.

The dim golden orb was now covered with the simmer of a black and white encasing.

"Now that the engine has a type of source it could use, how should I go through with it…"

He could manually pull the energy out but he felt like that would add more load if he had to do it every time he wanted to strengthen his body.

"A way I could circulate it automatically…"

Yuuto closed his eyes and began to tap his finger. Seeing only darkness, he was able to feel his body move and a distinct feeling began to slowly arise as he felt its movements.

–THUMP 

–THUMP

"Circulate automatically… "

Yuuto opened his eyes and suddenly placed his hand over the left side of his chest. 

Feeling the movement of a certain organ pulse through, his eyes showed a hint of expectancy. 

The heart.

"I wonder if I could create a memory of the 'function' of my heart and 'transplant' it into the Stelleron..." 

Yuuto closed his eyes once again and traced his fingers over the heart that continuously pumped blood in his body.

"[Archive]."

A dim white glow sunk into Yuuto's body as he guided the energy to the object that he wanted to make a memory of.

His heart trembled and he felt the parts of the heart ranging from their contracting ventricles to the valves opening themselves up imprint inside his head.

The sounds of blood pumping through his vessels grew louder as Yuuto tried his best to keep his concentration at its best.

A sharp pain entered his mind but quickly disappeared when he opened his eyes once again.

[Heart]

The memory of his own heart created by [Archive].

"That was more tiring than I thought."

Yuuto fell backwards as his bed caught his slightly sweaty body and he took a moment to catch his breath.

Feeling his rough breath turn calm he connected the three memories and allowed for them to click within his mind.

He raised his hand over the Stelleron and although it was faint, he was able to feel something.

A pulse.

"I'm a freaking genius." 

Yuuto laughed to himself as he felt the pulse of the Stelleron pumping in his body and decided to start the [Antimatter Engine] to finally see its effects.

"Let me just do a little bit so I could see the effects."

Letting a sliver of the Stelleron's energy flow through his body, Yuuto felt a sudden rise of vitality that was not present before.

"This feels amazing."

He clenched his fist and opened it back up as he slowly got accustomed to the amount of stamina he now had.

"I should keep it at this amount for now until I learn more. I don't want to recklessly pump lots of energy in my body that will make me explode."

Yuuto set the engine to a certain threshold that seemed viable for the current him.

"I should probably look more into biology to help with perfecting this thing…"

—RING RING

"Hmm? March?"

Contemplating more of his future actions, Yuuto heard his phone start ringing and got up to answer the call which had March's name on it.

"Hello."

[Help me Yuuto!!!]

"Stelle? What's happening?"

Yuuto made a strange face as he heard the cries of Stelle reaching through the phone and wondered just what happened.

[Some crazy lady is working me to the bone here!! Like sh— Hey I never did such a thing. Just finish one more run, you got some pretty good data last time so do one more!]