Patient Name: Ciro Adams
Date of First Visit: February 17th, 2025
Clinician: Dr. Cassandra Lyles, Psy.D.
Presenting Concerns: Long-Term Memory Loss, Sleepwalking, Alcohol Use
Summary:
Mr. Ciro Adams is a 24-year-old male who complained during his first psychological evaluation of persistent long-term memory loss and frequent incidents of sleepwalking. Mr. Adams reports waking in unknown and usually hazardous places in his community, including alleys, rooftops, and public parks, with no explanation of how he got there. These events happen multiple times per week and are involuntary in nature, leaving him confused and upset.
Mr. Adams also has severe gaps in long-term autobiographical memory. He has no recollection of major details of his identity, including his childhood days, family, previous relationships, or what has occurred in his life leading up to his current situation. He speaks of a “waking point” a year or more prior, from which his conscious memory begins. None of what occurred before is within his recollection. Now living alone, he has a clerical job that he had before the waking point.
During the session, Mr. Adams revealed that he had started heavily drinking. He reports that the alcohol use was originally an attempt at coping with confusion and emotional suffering, the details of which he can no longer recall. Alcohol has since been a part of his routine existence, especially in the evening, and he admits to occasionally drinking to blackout. Mr. Adams expressed remorse and a need for change, stating that alcohol use is possibly aggravating his sleep problems and memory loss.
He appears alert but emotionally guarded, showing evidence of anxiety, derealisation, and persistent exhaustion. His insight into his illness is fairly preserved, and he seems engaged in gaining insight into and coping with his symptoms.
Initial Impressions & Considerations:
Co-occurrence of alcohol dependence and long-term memory loss and disordered sleep behaviors implies an intricate interaction of psychological and perhaps even neurological mechanisms. Dissociative amnesia possibly with fugue, trauma disorders, and alcohol-induced neurocognitive dysfunction all need consideration. Alcohol use can complicate sleepwalk incidents, and memory impairment can both result from and lead to substance dependency.
Plan:
- Full neuropsychological assessment, including memory testing
- Referral to neurology for imaging (MRI/EEG)
- Overnight sleep study (polysomnography)
- Initiate weekly therapy sessions focused on trauma exploration, identity reconstruction, and addiction support
- Refer to substance abuse counseling with dual-diagnosis capabilities
- Recommend the patient begin a structured sleep and sobriety journal to monitor patterns and triggers
Signed:
Dr. Cassandra Lyles, Psy.D.
Licensed Clinical Psychologist
The Rest Of The Documents Regarding Ciro Nerone Is Classified.
Await Declassification.
***
Ciro’s eyes fluttered open; the sky had turned into a complete sea of green. He felt his back submerge in damp soil. His hands caressed a familiar sensation; he pulled at the long strands of wet threads, bringing it to his face. He peered at it.
Grass.
He scoffed, realizing he had been teleported once again. Everywhere Ciro looked, he was surrounded by trees, and every breath tasted like rain and dust. It seemed like some sort of jungle. The pale light permeated through the canopy, channeled through the tree’s bark, shifting from cobalt blue to bruised purple, as if nature itself were inhaling.
Once again, Ciro found himself lost.
One minute he was trying to attack Carina, and the next he felt himself being dragged away. He had been tricked. She merely feigned courtesy with that handshake to drag him into the bonus event. But why? Ciro didn’t understand it, but it didn’t matter. Not right now.
Bonus Event
Hunt The Krovalith That Are Native To This Jungle!
Krovalith Eyeballs Attained: 0/20
Rewards: [Input Reward]
Failure Will Result In Death
Just behind him, he could hear screams. He spun to see Carina and Alya together. Carina’s arms wrapped around Alya’s shoulders like a boa constrictor. Alya tried to squirm away, but Carina was stronger.
“What did you do Carina!?” Ciro screamed, charging towards them both, with his fists clenched.
You Activated Sprint (Lvl 1)
Ciro felt a rush of strength in his legs, his muscles coiled and sprung him forward with a speed that even shocked himself. At punching distance, Ciro shifted his waist, putting all his weight into a single punch.
Carina saw it all coming. She pushed Alya into Ciro, knocking them both over.
Ciro rolled onto the ground, soil seeping into his thick hair. He rolled onto his back before getting back up. “Why Carina? What did I ever do to you?”
Carina smiled, it’s not what you’ve done. It’s what you will do.”
In her hand lay a storage cube, its metallic sheen reflecting the light in Ciro’s face, he squinted unable to see Carina. He slowly backed away, unsure what she was planning. At a distance where he wasn’t blinded, he found Carina opening the box, with a single tap the box fell to the ground. It shifted and folded, once only a small box, it had transformed into a podium.
Ciro stood confused, unsure what to do. Where did she get that cube to begin with? He thought, racking his brain. He couldn’t think for long before a low hiss peeled from the transformed cube. A blue glow emanated from the base of the podium-like structure, slowly something hovered up from the surface, almost synthesizing out of thin air.
The object slowly stopped rising once it reached Carina’s face. Ciro’s guesses on what the object was had only been confirmed when Carina picked it up and placed it on her head. A helmet. It covered most of her face, her long golden locks flowed out from within. Her eyes and mouth could still be seen through the t-shaped visor slit.
“My thanks to the Arbiter,” said Carina, although Ciro couldn't understand why.
The back of the helmet extended, like a long metallic tendrils, it unfurled down her spine towards her tailbone. Carina let out a gasp, which caused Ciro to wince. Something shifted around her shoulder blades, something that erupted outwards.
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They weren’t wings, not from Ciro’s point of view. More like blades of translucent metal strung together in the shape of a bird, only constructed from memory. Segments overlapped like the carapace of some insect, shifting and flexing with her every breath. When she turned towards him, the wings responded, matching her gaze.
Alya slowly got up from the ground, stood between Ciro and Carina, she looked between them both, her eyes trembling and tears forming at the corners of her eyes.
Ciro could only feel sorry for her. She had been caught between the crossfire of a feud in which she had no part of. Yet it seemed Carina had an obsession with her, not letting her go.
“I’m sorry Alya, but this was the best thing we could do,” said Carina.
“You forced me into this damn bonus event!” Alya screamed, her braided hair was a frizzy mess. “I’ve had enough of you!” She put her palms out aimed towards Carina.
Carina raised an eyebrow, she put her hands up in a sign of surrender. “Come now Alya, don’t do anything you might regret.”
Before she could even complete her sentence, Alya let out a grunt. From her dirt ridden hands, a translucent blue light shifted around her fingertips. It stretched and bobbled, until it was the size of a small wall.
“Alya don’t!”
It was too late. Alya had pushed the barrier she formed, the force sent her toppling back to the ground. Ciro watched as the barrier hurtled towards Carina. Her newly attained wings folded in front of her, acting as a shield.
Boom!
The barrier met contact with the metallic wings, creating a shockwave that sent Ciro and Alya flying back. Carina was no different, having tanked the attack, she was flung through the trees until her back hit a branch and she fell onto the ground, laying in a crumpled heap.
Ciro ran over to Alya, helping her back up. “Holy shit. You just sent her flying.”
Alya pushed Ciro aside. “I leveled up barrier,” she wheezed. “I didn’t do it for you. Hell, you’re just as crazy as she is. Talking to yourself. Getting drunk when our lives are on the line.” With every word she spoke, her frown grew.
“I should’ve hit you too,” she whispered in realization.
Ciro edged back, “hey uh, well y’know it’s not like I’m talking to myself now am I? Let’s not do anything hasty.”
Suddenly Carina rocketed through the air, heading straight towards Alya. Her wings released an orange trail, while the trimmings around the tips of the metal feathers glowed a pale blue.
“Watch out!” Ciro bellowed.
It was too late, Carina had grabbed Alya, plucking her from the ground like a worm. Ciro watched as they ascended into the sky. Alya’s screams slowly faded away, leaving only the faint sound of trees swaying from the wind.
Ciro’s legs felt weak, dropping to the ground in defeat. Well, there goes both of them, knowing Carina she’ll get Alya to work with her again, Ciro sighed realizing that he was still in a party with the both of them. That could only mean they were expected to complete the bonus event together.
What’s a Krovalith anyway, Ciro thought. If they were anything like those eight-legged dogs, this wouldn’t be easy. Wait a minute–” Ciro made a realization, if he was still in a party with Alya and Carina, he could simply get through this bonus event, by getting carried. Alya had her barrier skill and Carina had her new helmet weapon. He could survive doing nothing.
He peered at his system just to make sure.
[STATUS] Ciro Adams Race: Earthling lvl 1
HP: 10/10
SE (Stigma Energy): 10/10
STR: 3
DEX: 2
END: 2
INT: 5
PER: 8
CHA: 1
LCK: 10
Your Party Member(s):
Carina Melania (Party Leader)
Alya Okafor
Ciro breathed a sigh of relief, a plan forming in his mind. All he had to do was wait and hide, he was all but guaranteed to survive. But then again there is a possibility of Alya and Carina failing. He pondered, imagining the scenario, if the competition was far too steep.
“Well, I guess I’d have to accept my fate then,” Ciro muttered.
He got back up from the ground, taking one more look at the sky, before moving forward through the foliage, looking for somewhere safe and hidden.
DISTANCE LIMIT BREACHED
You are over 1 kilometer away from your party.
Squad Link Severance Imminent
Return to your team within 60 seconds or you will be automatically removed from the party.
Ciro stared at the message he received. His eyes blinked furiously, making sure he wasn’t imagining what he was seeing.
“I hate you, you damn Arbiter!” Ciro screamed, pulling his hair out.
You Have Been Removed From [Carina Melania]’s Party
There went his plan, just like smoke. It was as if the world knew what he was planning and decided to ruin everything for him. Ciro racked his brain, trying to figure out what to do next. Letting out a groan, he resolved to try to complete the event.
But he had to keep a low profile.
He traversed through the jungle, watching every corner for anything that could threaten him. The area seemed to be a maze, for all Ciro knew, he was going in circles. Occasionally he would step on a bug, much larger than anything Ciro had ever seen, a reminder he was on another planet. Ciro had soon grown used to the hum of the insects with too many wings.
Some time went by before he finally found some sign that he wasn’t alone. The sounds of a fight. Ciro couldn’t see what was happening through the blockade of trees. With a grunt, he clambered onto a tree, climbing up to the top so he could see, from a higher vantage point. His own breath felt intrusive in the dense, humid air, but he crouched low, trying to conceal his presence as best he could.
What he saw horrified him.
Initially Ciro thought they were a part of the landscape, just a formation of stone and bark, covered in the jungle’s moss. But when the ridge of spines flexed, flaring out like a deadly flower, his stomach turned to liquid. The creature was crouched low, half-hidden in the roots of a twisted tree, its knuckles resting in the earth. Its arms were grotesquely long, the elbows bent unnaturally, a rational mind would think they were broken, yet it moved with ease.
The bioluminescent streaks across its brow flickered, first a dull amber, then pulsing into a soft blue. Ciro didn’t know what that meant, but his instincts screamed it had seen him.
It turned.
The six eyes caught the dim light, reflecting it back like polished black stones. There was no clear front to its gaze — those eyes seemed to watch everything at once. No blind spots. No safety.
His breath hitched as it stood, unfolding twelve feet of alien muscle and chitin, the fur rippling as it moved. It didn’t rear back to intimidate. It didn’t lunge. It simply watched, head tilting, fingers twitching, the opposable thumbs opening and closing like it was imagining wringing something.
Ciro’s neck.
The jungle went silent.
Ciro couldn’t move. Couldn’t blink.
The creature took a step forward, the weight of it sinking into the earth with a wet squelch. The spines along its back, folded flat, the bioluminescent markings sliding into a muted green, like some kind of wordless whisper. It seemed only curious for now.
To Ciro’s horror, it dropped to all fours, moving like a gorilla, its knuckles driving into the ground, elbows spinning with unnatural flexibility. A thousand words died in his throat. All he could do was breathe, and even that felt like a betrayal.
“Krovalith…” Ciro whispered.
It blinked, all six eyes cycling in eerie harmony.
The colors on its face shifted again, flickering into a deep crimson.
It knew.
A blood-curdling scream echoed through the jungle, but before it could even pounce onto Ciro, it was stopped in its tracks. Purple blood flowed from the gap between the chitinous ridges protecting the Krovalith’s face. A spear had been launched perfectly through its defenses.
From behind, a group of figures emerged from the trees. They each held a primitive style of spear, their mottled gray skin glistened under the heat of the jungle. Their sharp teeth exploded out of their mouth in a twisted smile, elated they had found their prey.
“Xyphers…” Ciro murmured, his entire body frozen, uncertain what to do.
The Krovalith screamed, its hands grabbing the spear, the sound was no noise; it was more like pressure. But for all its monstrous size and sound, it stumbled back, claws scraping furrows into the ground. The light in its facial markings stuttered, crimson, amber, flickering in a frantic cascade as if the creature itself couldn’t decide what was happening.
It swayed before falling at the feet of the gray aliens. Its six eyes stared ahead, their glassy surfaces still focused on Ciro, even in death.
Ciro swallowed. He needed to get out of here. Just as he turned to climb down. His heart almost gave out.
Staring at him were six eyes.
And they were angry.