| Reading God Formula Affinity |

| Reading… |

| Detected! |

Noah and Piper exchanged surprised glances.

| Pairing |

| Successful! |

Ding! System messages appeared before Noah’s eyes.

[ User: Noah Shepherd ]

[ Confirm Login to Trinity Beta Network ]

[ Y/N ]

"What is happening?" Piper asked. Noah's eyes darted around as if he was seeing things that his cyborg friend could not. "Why are you staring into space?"

"I see... umm… I see a screen before me. It's asking me to confirm my login. Don't you see it?"

"Whoa! No, I see nothing. It seems the device works, man! What's the experience like? A virtual reality (VR) game?"

"Not exactly. It seems more like Augmented Reality (AR). I can still see my surroundings."

"Cool. What else does it say? We need to hurry, Noah!"

The thuds and crashes from inside the tube indicated that things weren't going well for Eve.

"I know! It says the device is paired with me now. And is asking me to confirm my login." Noah sounded both anxious and thrilled.

"What are you waiting for, man? Since you aren't dead already, that means the armlet works just fine!"

"Yeah, it seems like it." His headache had miraculously disappeared.

[ Confirm ]

[ Initializing HUD… ]

[ Welcome to Project Trinity: Beta ]

[ Select Mode ]

[ Battle Mode ]

[ Research Mode ]

[ Sleep Mode ]

[ Shutdown ]

[ Manual ]

"Talk to me, Noah!"

"Err... It's asking me to choose a mode, like in a game."

"Great, considering the situation. Let's see. Is there a fighting mode?"

"There's a battle mode!"

"Go for it!"

Noah selected the option. Merely by thinking hard, he could choose the options on the HUD. It was very surreal.

[[ Battle Mode ]]

[ Initiating… ]

[ Error! ] [ Physical Stats Inadequate! ]

[ Select ]

[ Administer God Vaccine ]

[ Override Warning ]

[ Shutdown ]

"God vaccine? What the hell is that?" the boy exclaimed.

"Tell me more," Piper urged.

"It says my physical stats are not adequate for battle mode. There's a recommendation to take something- a God vaccine. It's so weird."

"Err... Well, it's your body, Noah. Make a choice."

"Umm… Hard pass! I'm terrified of needles."

[[ Override Warning ]]

[ Processing… ]

The boys heard a rumble inside the armlet as if a powerful processor booted up.

Noah felt a tingle on his arm. "Piper, I think you should step back!"

No sooner did the cyborg step away than the device hummed and trembled. Then, abruptly, it opened up like a flower.

Bratatata! Chug Chug! Ratatata!

The armlet unraveled into a mosaic that crept onto Noah's forearm and shoulder. It continued until the entire arm was covered in metal.

"Awesome!" Piper exclaimed. "That's a cool look, man!"

[ Initiating Battle Mode ]

[ Starter Pack ] [ Transferring Mana ]

[ User: Noah Shepherd ]

[ Level 1: Human ]

[ MP: 1000] [ HP: 2000 ]

[ Loading Data… ]

"Noah, we gotta make this quick!"

"Okay! I think I've got the hang of the interface. Open the door!"

Piper dragged the tube door open and shut it after Noah slipped in.

"Best of luck, man. Don't die!"

Inside, Eve lay on the floor, writhing and gasping. Her hair was caked in blood. Scraps of metal, most likely parts of her cyborg body, were littered across the rug.

Noah's eyes went to the towering hybrid leader, who was assessing him as well. He looked at the boy's armored arm, which resembled a mecha warrior's. It had primarily silver panels, with black and blue sparks leaping between circuits.

The villain let out a challenging howl, picked up a lance, and hurled it at Noah.

[ Factory Setting ]

Noah crossed his arms as a stimulus.

[ Automatic ]

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[[ Magnetic Shield ]]

[ Activated ]

Clack! Clatter!

The weapon bounced off and dropped to the floor before it could come within a foot distance of the boy.

"Cool," Noah said, looking at the device in awe. It seemed Trinity set up an invisible wall around him.

Eve struggled into a crouch and looked on in astonishment. Noah eyed her with affection.

"If you want to live, stay behind me."

Eve crawled behind him. She was too battered and dazed to have a conversation.

The underling hybrids flung their lances as well, but every single one of them caromed off Trinity's shield.

"You guys are going to pay with your lives for beating up a pretty girl," Noah announced. He was surprised by his own harsh declaration.

"Kill them!" their leader commanded in a mealy-mouthed voice. The entire pack bounded towards them, their leaps causing tremors throughout the train.

[ Detecting Multiple Hostiles ]

[ Factory Setting ]

[ Choose Weapon ]

[ Shockwave ] [ Level 1 ]

[ Piercer Attack ] [ Level 1 ]

[ Ram Sword ] [ Level 1 ]

[ Trigun ] [ Level 1 ]

[ Firebath ] [ Level 1 ]

Before Noah could make a choice, the system had already acted.

[ Automatic ]

[[ Firebath ]]

The hybrids darted and sprinted towards them from a distance, some on two limbs and others on all fours.

A large silver polygon appeared on Noah's HUD, aimed at the monsters. Its edges glowed white as if overflowing with energy.

"Umm.." Noah said.

All he heard next was a roar. It was as if a hose of fire had been opened into the HUD polygon. White-hot flames shot out like a solar flare.

The hybrids who were in the way took a straight hit. They were instantly burned to cinders. The others, who took lateral hits, simply lit on fire. The flaming creatures jumped out of the shattered windows or convulsed on the floor, whimpering in agony.

The pack leader sustained terrible burns but was unfazed in his head-on approach.

[ Automatic ]

[[ Piercer ]]

Noah tried to keep up with the speed of Trinity's prompts.

Crosshairs appeared on the battle-mode HUD. They converged and diverged by themselves without seeking the user's input. Finally, the crosshairs locked on the advancing hybrid.

Zip!

A wire-thin discharge lobbed out faster than eyes could see. It went through the pack leader's gut and planted itself on the tube's walls. The hybrid stopped in his tracks, realizing something was wrong. The single discharge, shaped like a lightning bolt, split into four.

Crack!

The villain's body exploded, instantly ripped into shreds.

Splat!

His entrails splattered on the tube walls and slid down to the floor.

"Woohoo!" Piper rejoiced from behind him.

Noah turned to look for Eve.

She was grievously wounded, barely conscious, but nodded at him as their eyes met.

The other survivors rushed back into the tube and applauded Noah's heroics. They kept their distance, though. With blood and viscera scattered throughout the tube, it needed a thorough cleaning before anybody else could walk the entire length without triggering trauma.

"Wow! Are you a cyborg?" a stranger asked.

"Is this a new technology?"

"You are awesome, kid!"

"Hero!"

The survivors showered praises and gratitude on the boy.

Noah waved back at them and basked in the glory.

He felt drained, but there was clarity in his mind for the first time in his life.

Delirious from the fight, the boy found himself smiling ear to ear.

"Noah, are you all right?" Eve's voice sounded distant.

Was she too weak to talk? He wanted to ask her to speak up but did not have the energy.

His eyesight had gotten blurry.

The boy wondered if Eve would like him better since he had saved her life. The heroic display should offset the stalker label of earlier.

"Man! You don't look so well!" Piper told him. The young cyborg had stepped over the hybrid innards to come face to face with Noah. But his voice sounded groggy as if he was underwater.

'Piper has proved himself a worthy friend,' Noah thought. 'Perhaps LoveLord15 could consider sending him a friend request. Maybe he could introduce him to GoulagSlayer13 as well.'

"I'll do it once I wake up,' Noah mumbled to himself. "Just need to lie down for a minute."

[ Mana Depleted ]

[ Warning! ] [ Vital Organs Failure! ]

[ Shutting Down ]

Britititit! Ritititit! The armlet's hinges and extensions reeled up into the main device.

Blip! It powered off.

Autofit was released, and the armlet slid down the boy's arm.

Noah's knees buckled, and he collapsed to the floor.

The world around him faded to black.