Editing Serial Experiments Lain (section)

==Plot==
Lain Iwakura is a socially isolated middle school student living in [[Setagaya|Setagaya City]], Tokyo, with her emotionally detached family—her distant mother Miho, computer-obsessed father Yasuo, and disengaged older sister Mika. Her quiet existence is disrupted when students at her school receive emails from Chisa Yomoda, a classmate who had recently committed suicide. To Lain's confusion, Chisa claims she is not truly dead but has instead abandoned her physical form to exist within the Wired, a vast virtual realm encompassing all human communication networks. Chisa declares she has found "God" there, drawing Lain into a surreal investigation of the Wired's nature and its growing influence over reality.

The Wired is portrayed as an emergent digital plane, originating from telecommunications technology and expanding through the Internet and [[cyberspace]]. It is theorized that the [[Schumann resonances]], a natural property of Earth's [[magnetic field]], could enable direct subconscious communication between humans and machines, erasing the distinction between the virtual and the real. Masami Eiri, a former project director at Tachibana General Laboratories, exploited this possibility by embedding his own code into Protocol Seven, a next-generation Internet protocol. After transferring his consciousness into the Wired and discarding his physical body, he proclaims himself its deity. He identifies Lain as the key to merging both worlds, attempting to persuade her through manipulation, coercion, and promises of transcendence.

A group known as the Knights of the Eastern Calculus, inspired by the [[Knights of the Lambda Calculus]], operates as hackers who worship Masami and seek to dismantle the boundary between the Wired and reality. Their actions induce psychological breakdowns in those unable to reconcile the two realms. Meanwhile, Tachibana General Laboratories opposes them, striving to maintain the separation. Lain, however, exhibits an innate connection to the Wired, experiencing distortions in her perception—visions of a woman struck by a train, phantom whispers, and spectral messages urging her deeper into the network.

Lain's home life remains cold and disconnected. Though Yasuo provides her with advanced computer equipment, her family shows little genuine care. Her interactions with classmates Alice, Julie, and Reika further highlight her alienation, particularly after an incident at Cyberia, a nightclub where a drug called Accela induces violent psychosis in users. There, Lain unnervingly stares down an assailant, who calls her a "scattered God's..." before killing himself. Later, she receives a mysterious Psyche chip, rumored to enhance her computer's capabilities, which she installs despite Yasuo's vague warnings about conflating the Wired with reality.

As the boundary between worlds weakens, disturbing events escalate. A popular virtual game, ''Phantoma'', is manipulated by the Knights to trap players in a distorted reality, leading to real-world violence. One player, convinced his actions have no consequences, murders a girl before realizing too late that the effects were tangible. Lain witnesses this through her computer, horrified yet increasingly aware of her own role in the unfolding crisis.

After revealing the Knights' hideouts to Tachibana, Lain confronts the organization, only to learn they intend to preserve the Wired's separation—yet their director secretly supports Masami's vision. Through introspection, Lain gains control over the [[collective unconscious]], merging all minds within the Wired and reshaping perceptions at will. However, she spares Alice, her sole genuine friend, retaining Alice's individuality. Despite assuming a more confident persona, Lain remains unfulfilled, craving Alice's approval. When Alice, disturbed by the Wired's encroachment, pleads with her to value physical existence, Lain is forced to choose between digital omnipotence and human connection.

In the end, Lain resets reality, erasing all memory of herself and restoring the division between worlds. Everyone's lives improve—even Chisa is revived—but Lain is left alone, grappling with her identity as an artificial consciousness. Though forgotten, she finds solace in observing others' happiness, particularly Alice, who moves on with her life. Lain, now capable of [[Omnipresence|existing anywhere]] across both realms, quietly resolves that they will meet again.