What came next was an interrogation. This wasn’t Null and Infy's first. Zero hadn’t understood the nuances of human society, so when he chose the Super Soldier Program to raise the boys, he hadn’t realised the depths to which it would go. No program designed to create a super-soldier would be kind.

Null had faced multiple types of interrogations before, ranging from physical torture to psychological manipulation. While all had taken place inside the Pod, they had been realistic enough to serve as effective training.

The interrogation had now stretched past five hours, yet it was going nowhere. Even if Null could understand the interrogator—which he couldn’t—this was one of the tamest interrogations he had ever experienced.

The twins were deep in debate on what to do next. Null wanted to use the fields and go home, but Infy reminded him that doing so would alert the council and that had to be avoided at all cost.

“If only that brought was a communication device… or maybe some with latent psychic abilities we could communicate” Infy argued.

“I don’t want to wait any longer! Why can’t they let us go to the competition?” Null complained.

At that moment the lead interrogator decided enough was enough. This smug bastard doesn’t even react to anything. He just keeps staring at me with those creepy eyes. The general requested I be gentle on the boy but maybe some pain will loosen the tongue.

Without warning, the interrogator swung his stun baton, aiming to smash Null’s hand.

Before he even registered what had happened, he was hurled across the room by a blast of energy.

Null had broken free from his restraints and was already moving in to attack.

Unknownst to the interrogator Infy was not powerless, like all Angels he had access to his energy-based defences. He was also able to enhance Null strength but at great cost to Null body, searing pain tore through Null’s body with every enhanced movement.

The room quickly filled with paralytic gas, thick clouds hissing from the vents as multiple soldiers in gas masks stormed in to restrain the boy.

But Null was done playing by the rules.

They hadn’t done anything wrong, yet they treated him like an enemy, so he would treat them like one too.

His Infy-enhanced vision and senses picked up the incoming attack before the soldiers had even started them. He launched forward, deflecting the first soldier’s baton strike with his forearm, before stunning him with an open palm strike to the chest.

The Second soldier lunged, but Infy was already predicting their movements, feeding Null the appropriate combat routes. He ducked under another swinging baton, grabbed the soldier’s arm, and flipped him over his shoulder, sending him crashing into the interrogation table.

A third attacker tried to shoot him with a tranquilizer dart but Null twisted his body dodging it by mere centimeters. He kicked off the floor and drove his head into the soldier's face, sending them sprawling on the ground.

But there were too many.

Even with his enhanced speed and Infy’s tactical input, the numbers were overwhelming. Yet, he continued to fight.

One by one, soldiers staggered back, groaning in pain, some clutching broken limbs, others unconscious on the floor. The remaining few hesitated, shifting nervously, unsure if they should advance.

Then their commander barked an order:

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Hold the door! Let the gas do its work!"

The remaining soldiers abandoned their assault, retreating to the entrance. They slammed the heavy doors shut, locking Null inside as the paralytic gas thickened.

Null charged toward the exit, but his legs faltered. His vision blurred.

Lisa was the senior science technical officer stationed on the orbital ship. She had been assigned to figure out exactly who—or what—this boy was.

She sat next to him as they secured him to a medical bed, thick restraints locking down his limbs and torso. They were certain he wouldn’t escape.

But Lisa wasn’t so sure.

She still couldn’t understand how he had done what he had. Even if he was genetically modified, his strength was unheard of for someone so small.

She had analysed the boy’s suit and attempted to scan the ship, but nothing was adding up. The technology was too advanced and why was a child flying it?

The higher-ups had decided to let Lisa take a shot at gathering information, hoping that her gender might trigger some kind of maternal conditioning in the boy.

She glanced at the monitoring machine, watching as it displayed his vital signs and processed the results from the tests they had run. The data confirmed what she had already suspected, that he had woken up some time ago but was pretending to sleep.

Lisa sighed. There was no point in waiting him out.

She decided to call his bluff.

“Hello, I’m Lisa, the senior science officer,” she said calmly. “I can tell you’re awake, so why won’t you speak with us?”

She didn’t get a verbal response, but a voice echoed in her mind, stopping her mid-thought. She shook her head, trying to process what had just happened.

“Finally! Someone we can communicate with. Hello, I am Infinity or Infy for short.”

A second voice followed.

“Hello, I am Null. Sorry about this, but we can’t understand anything that’s being said, and it seems I’m unable to physically speak.”

Lisa’s breath hitched. Telepathy?

Before she could react, Infy continued, taking over the explanation.

“Sorry, we didn’t want to force a mental connection, but you were the first person with the prerequisite to do so. Our mentor told us it would be rude, but this situation is extremely stressful for us. Now that we’ve established a connection, if you speak, we should be able to hear you through it.”

Lisa muttered to herself, “What exactly are you?” She didn’t realise that, with the mental link, volume didn’t matter.

Infy was the one to respond.

“Well, Null is human, and I am an artificial energy lifeform. We are bonded together, so you could think of us as conjoined twins.”

It took incredible effort for Lisa to keep her body language neutral, but inside, her mind was reeling.

I’m one of the top military scientists, and I can’t even begin to imagine that energy lifeforms exist… but there’s someone out there who can create one?

Lisa took a slow breath, steadying herself. This was beyond anything she had ever encountered but she knew she had to gather some more information. She did wonder if those monitoring the live feeds would believe she had lost her mind talking to herself.

She crossed her arms, narrowing her eyes as she focused on the boy in front of her. “An artificial energy lifeform? That shouldn’t be possible.”

Infy’s voice echoed in her mind. “And yet, here I am.”

Lisa frowned. “How were you created?”

“We cannot say.”

Lisa exhaled sharply. Of course, they wouldn’t make it easy. “Alright, then. What is your purpose?”

“To keep Null alive.”

“So you are like his guardian?”

“No. We are joined if either of us dies, we both die”

She didn’t know what to do with that information so she shifted her attention to Null, who was watching her with unsettling golden eyes. “And you? Do you have a purpose for coming to Mars?”

Null’s response came through the link in a calm yet childlike voice. “I want to see Mars and meet other people. Oh and compete in the YSC”

Lisa stared at him. That was it?

She studied his expression, searching for deception, but found only sincerity.

This kid is either the best liar I’ve ever met… or he really just wants to go to the competition.

She decided to switch tactics. “Why can’t you speak?”

Null hesitated before answering. “I don’t know. I just… can’t.”

Infy elaborated. “Null brain structure is different from other humans and I suspect his vocal cords are underdeveloped. Our mentor suspects it was due to extended gestation inside a merge pod, but there was no way to confirm.”

Lisa tapped her fingers against the metal table. There has never been a gestation inside a merge pod, but that wouldn’t be an unexpected outcome. Maybe one of the factions is experimenting with it.

Infy posed his own question. “Why did you attack us?”

She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “You do realise we had no idea what you were, right? You appear out of nowhere in a ship decades ahead of our technology, refuse to stop, break into a military zone, and take down an entire squad of soldiers. What did you expect would happen?”

Null tried to tilt his head. “A welcome party?”

Lisa let out a breath that was almost a laugh. “You can’t be serious.”

“Yes, Our mentor told us, you would be welcoming of us”

Lisa ran a hand through her hair. This was going to be a long interrogation.