Chapter 4: Nano-Quantum Processor Booting
"Ahh!"
Jamond let out a sharp yelp as the injection pierced his skin and punctured deep into his body, probably into his heart. A sharp pang instantly manifested from the left part of his chest before jolting his entire body and causing it to spasm erratically.
Then, as the head warden began injecting the mysterious elixir, the pain levels shot up abruptly, causing him even more torment. It was as if his body was on fire, and he could feel every organ searing with agony and every muscle aching. He struggled against the straps while inhaling lungfuls of air. But alas, all his struggles were meaningless as the firm straps held him in place and denied him the ability to move. At that moment, he had a distinct sensation that he was a helpless pig waiting to be skinned in a slaughterhouse.
"There, there, my baby," the head warden said gently with a smile outlining his face. "Please, don't struggle. You'll feel more pain if you move about." Then, nodding to himself, he started injecting more of the green elixir into Jamond's body.
Motherfucker! Who's your baby, crazy bastard? Those were the words that Jamond would have liked to say to the insane head warden. But as the elixir slowly seeped into his bloodstream, he was overwhelmed by mind-numbing pain and couldn't muster the ability to vocalize any words. And soon, he started losing all feeling in his body, and the world around him slowly started to become darker and bleaker.
He was losing consciousness after experiencing the potent effects of the mysterious elixir. But surprisingly, he could still make out some of the voices around him. The only downside was that the voices seemed to be coming from a distance due to his disoriented senses.
"Aren't you worried that you'll kill him by piercing his heart? He's the only subject that has endured three injections so far." A familiar voice sounded. It seemed to be the voice of the cloaked guard that had escorted Jamond out of his prison cell.
"Are you forgetting that I'm a psionic specializing in life and death spells?" The familiar voice of the head warden responded. "With me here, he won't die from a simple wound on the heart. He can only die if the experiment fails. Let me start healing him."
And with that, Jamond felt a soothing sensation envelop the left part of his chest. It quickly chased away the pain, and he soon started regaining his faculties.
Letting out a breath to suppress his anxiety, he slowly opened his eyes, feeling frantic and ready to give the head warden a piece of his mind. But just then, a strange semi-transparent screen manifested in front of him. He was so scared that he shuddered and started straining against the straps binding him to the bed again.
"What's happening?" The panicked voice of the head warden sounded. "He'd already stabilized! Why is he spasming again now? I can't lose this subject. Hurry up and bring the healing elixirs from the pharmacy."
And with that, the head warden cast another spell to heal Jamond. The man let out a gentle green glow from his hand that quickly enveloped Jamond's entire body, making him feel like he was in a sauna.
However, Jamond had no time to immerse himself in the warm sensation as his attention was on something else at that instant. He'd forgotten everything around him and was solely focused on the words that had just materialized on the strange translucent screen before him. They were surprisingly words in English, one of the languages of his former world, Planet Earth.
"DING"
A chime reverberated in his head, and the words kept flashing in front of his eyes, causing his heart to thud fast and hard with surprise. He swallowed hard to calm his raging emotions and read the words.
-----
[Matching, genes, brainwaves, and soul fluctuations encountered!]
[Conditions to grant SS-Level Permissions and Authority achieved]
[Initiating the unlocking procedures of Next-Gen's core Nano-Quantum Processor with serial number AXX69]
"DING"
[Next-Gen's core Nano-Quantum processor unlocked]
[Scanning host and commencing booting procedures]
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[Nano-Quantum processor booted up]
[Initiating procedure to remodel the host's body, including the brain, neurons, synaptic receptors, blood vessels, other internal organs, skeletal system, and muscles to achieve perfect symbiosis with Next-Gen nanites]
"DING"
[Safety protocols initiated to protect host's mind and soul]
[The Nano-Processor will force the host into a 72-hour fake-death state as the remodeling takes place]
[Countdown to induce the 72- hour fake-death state commencing now...]
[12, 11, 10, 9....]
-----
As the countdown reached nine, Jamond awoke from his stupor. With a dizzying rush of clarity, he immediately realized that the injections his current body had received all contained nanites dissolved in some mysterious liquid. But since the other Jamond could not meet all the conditions to unlock the core nano-processor to tame the nanites, the injections had destroyed his body from within. He'd died soon after the third injection and thus allowed the current Jamond to take over his body.
"Damn, this countdown! Can't it allow me some time..."
Jamond couldn't complete the thought as the countdown had hit zero. Like an electric current, a sharp jolt traveled up his spine, causing spasms and tremors across his entire body. He arched his back, straining against the straps and feeling that he was quickly losing his ability to breathe. He became weak all over, and then his mind started feeling lethargic until he blacked out and became totally unaware of anything around him. He'd obviously not gone to meet the maker but entered a state of fake death for the next 72 hours.
----- ~ -----
"Damn! What's happening?" Dr. Jeebies, the head warden of the Forsaken Temple of Merciless Nightmares, yelled after noticing that Jamond had lost all signs of life. He was angry because of his failure and, at the same time, confused. He couldn't make heads or tails of what had just transpired.
A few minutes after receiving the elixir, the test subject seemed stable. But just as Dr. Jeebies was beginning to think that his trial was a success, the subject's condition had once again deteriorated quickly. And before Dr. Jeebies could even cast a healing spell to try and stabilize the situation, the boy had passed away without rhyme or reason.
Everything was confusing, and even he, a mighty two-star psionic, couldn't make heads or tails of what had caused the subject's death. But he suspected that it might not be the elixir.
"You killed him!" A whimper sounded from behind him to break his thought process. He turned around and immediately noticed that the Bladerock girl was crying while staring daggers at him. She seemed desperate to jump out of bed and pummel him to death — a notion he knew was impossible as he was a powerful two-star psionic.
"Now, now," he said, stepping towards the girl, "Don't cry. Failures sometimes do happen in experiments. But the boy should still be proud of himself as his name will go down in history as one of those who contributed to the discovery of an elixir that changed the world."
"You're a crazy bastard," the girl cried. "You're the shame of all humans in Egios. Even those dark races in the dark realm are better than you."
"Now, now," Dr. Jeebies said with a smile, "Let's not let our tempers get the better of us. Go to sleep, and everything will be okay."
Calling upon his psionic powers, he quickly cast a spell on the agitated girl and sent her into a deep slumber. Then, he whirled around to face the cloaked guard who had just reentered the room.
On seeing the bunch of healing elixirs in the guard's hand, he said, "There's no longer any need for those. The subject has already perished. Just transfer him to the mortuary. I'll dissect him to find out the exact cause of his death when I get time."
"Okay." The guard nodded after placing the elixirs on the long table in the room. "What about the girl? Should we return her to the holding cells below?"
"No," Dr. Jeebies said. "Leave her here. I want us to monitor her closely. I don't want to lose another subject who can endure more than one injection. We must be..."
Dr. Jeebies was about to give more instructions to the guard. But just then, a blaring alarm went off around the entire control tower of the entrance to the prison. And then, red warning lights immediately started blinking on and off within the room, indicating that the structure had been compromised or suffered an attack.
"Head warden!"
A guard came rushing into the lab even before Dr. Jeebies could react. Quickly looking around the room, the guard shuddered as his gaze landed on the motionless bodies strapped to the beds. But then he seemed to come back to himself with a shudder before cocking his head to focus on Dr. Jeebies again.
"Speak!" Dr. Jeebies commanded. "What's going on?"
"There are powerful psionics attacking the tower from outside," the guard hurriedly said. "Their attacks on the tower shield are sapping all its energy. If we don't do something, they will break in soon."
"What?" Dr. Jeebies eyes narrowed. "Who dares attack this tower? Don't they know that the unified government put it in place to guard the goddamned Forsaken Temple below? Are they nuts?"
The guard's mouth twitched slightly on hearing Dr. Jeebies asking whether another person was nuts. But he still managed to maintain a stoic expression and say, "I don't know who's attacking, but we need to take control of the situation immediately. Otherwise, they will break through the tower shield in minutes."
"Okay, let's head to the tower's control center." Dr. Jeebies concurred. "I want to see who has the guts to attack a tower under the banner of the unified government. Even if it's a four-star psionic, they'll still have to face the wrath of the entire government for their transgressions after I report them."
With that said, the head warden and the two guards hurried out of the room. They were in a rush as they had to take control of the situation immediately or risk having the security of the Forsaken Temple of Merciless Nightmares compromised.
As for Jamond and Myla Bladerock, the warden had already pushed their matters to the back of his mind as he had more important things to do. As a result, they remained strapped on their respective beds within the lab, their condition unclear.