One month after the Great Glitch Reformation, the streets of Glitchvale had settled into a comfortable chaos. The air smelled like fresh code and slightly burnt toast—a marked improvement over the sterile nothingness of the pristine world. Yamete sat on what had once been a park bench but was now something between a chair and a very confused cactus, watching the new normal unfold.
The small entity—now going by "Terry" after an unfortunate incident involving a telephone directory—was attempting to eat its first slice of pizza. This was going poorly.
"Why does it burn?" Terry whined, fanning their mouth. "Is this food or weaponized nostalgia?"
Gary, who had taken to his role as Glitchvale's unofficial ambassador with alarming enthusiasm, patted Terry's back with a newly grown arm. "That's the spice of life, my dude. Literally. I think there's actual lava in there."
GLich-chan floated nearby, her glow steadier than it had been in weeks. The constant flickering had stopped, replaced by a warm, even light. She was currently reading through her fully restored memory logs, occasionally making noises of surprise or disgust.
"Okay, I have questions," she announced. "First: why did Theta program me to enjoy bad puns? Second: why does Gary appear in 73% of my core memories? And third—" She squinted at a particular entry. "Why is there a folder labeled 'Do Not Open Unless Yamete Does Something Stupid'?"
Yamete, who was busy trying to prevent his Cheat Engine from sulking after he'd scolded it for turning all the clouds into cartoon faces, looked up. "That last one seems self-explanatory."
The Cheat Engine, which had recently developed a habit of changing its own interface colors based on its mood (currently: petulant teal), displayed a new message:
User "Dad" is mean. Running away to join circus.
Before Yamete could stop it, the device vanished with a small *pop*, reappearing on a nearby roof where it began projecting dramatic storm clouds over its own head.
Terry, now on their third attempt at pizza, pointed with a cheese-covered finger. "Your child is emotionally unstable."
"I don't want to talk about it," Yamete muttered.
The sound of breaking glass drew their attention to the newly opened storefront across the street. A sign above the door read "Gary's Extremely Safe Danger Zone" in letters that periodically caught fire and then put themselves out. Through the window, they could see an assortment of trampolines, foam pits, and what appeared to be a mechanical bull with trust issues.
Gary rolled toward his establishment with pride. "Grand opening today! First ten customers get free medical care—which you won't need because everything is perfectly safe!"
As if to demonstrate, a customer bounced off a trampoline directly into a wall... only to pixelate and reform unharmed thanks to Yamete's world rule changes. The customer gave a thumbs up and immediately went again.
GLich-chan shook her head. "We've created monsters."
Yamete leaned back against his bench-cactus hybrid, watching the chaos of the new Glitchvale—the gummy bears running a legitimate bakery, the formerly pristine entity now complaining about pizza heat levels, the Cheat Engine throwing a digital tantrum on the roof.
"It's not perfect," he admitted.
Terry, finally giving up on the pizza, stole a sip of Gary's questionable energy drink instead. "It's better."
The moment was interrupted by the Cheat Engine suddenly perking up from its sulk. Its screen flashed urgently before projecting a single, ominous line of text into the sky for all to see:
/op Theta
The street fell silent. Somewhere in the distance, a single trash can screamed.
GLich-chan slowly turned to Yamete. "Please tell me that's not what I think it is."
Yamete stared at the message, then at his rebellious Cheat Engine, then at the suddenly very concerned faces around him.
"...We might have a problem."