Ryuji was the first to snap out of his shock. He stared at me with a mix of awe and suspicion.

“Xeno, what the hell was that back in the cell? What was that freaky black and silver glow around you when you got up? What did they do to you?” he demanded.

I glanced around and asked: “Are we alone? What about the other guards and nurses?”

Ryuji waved his hand dismissively.

“Don’t sweat it, I told them to go grab some grub and I bet Lana did the same.”

I see. Well, if they cleared the way for me, I guess I can spill the beans. I looked at Ryuji, who was clueless about everything, and repeated what I had told Lana earlier. But this time, I added more details about chi and the stages of awakening. I explained what Eve had taught me and how I was still in the first phase of the first stage. I also mentioned that it was possible to awaken others, but I didn’t know the method yet.

They both gasped as they heard about my powers. Lana and Ryuji begged me to show them what I could do, so I agreed. I got off the bed and channeled chi into my bones, muscles, and veins. Then I lifted the bed with three fingers as if it was a feather. I put it down gently and picked up the metal tray that was dented and twisted. I crushed it with one hand until it was the size of a marble. Then I injected chi into my legs and vanished from their sight. In a blink of an eye, I reappeared behind Ryuji with my hand shaped like a blade on his neck.

They were speechless. They had just witnessed something unbelievable, something that defied reality. They felt their worldviews shatter as they saw me display my powers.

I went back to my bed and sat down, waiting for them to process what they had seen. After a few minutes, they both rushed to me and bombarded me with questions like crazed fans. Lana was the first to speak.

“Xeno, that was insane! That was like something out of a fantasy or a manga. You were so strong and fast that I couldn’t even see you move. How did you do that? Are you for real?” she exclaimed.

Ryuji was even more hyped than Lana. He looked at me with a gleeful grin and said: “I knew it. I knew you were special. I knew you would do something amazing someday, but I never expected it to be this amazing. This is mind-blowing, astronomical, I can’t believe this is happening. And you said you can awaken other people too, which means that Lana and I could also get powers. Awesome, this is so awesome.”

I chuckled at their reactions. They reminded me of how I felt when I first learned that I could use these supernatural abilities. But there were more important things to talk about for now.

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I gave them a serious look and said: “Let’s put this aside for now, there are things I need from you, so pay attention.”

They both nodded and looked at me with focused eyes. When I saw that they were ready, I continued: “First of all, I want you to choose your allies carefully. I want them to be trustworthy, loyal, and uncorrupted because when I take over this facility, the rest of the staff and guards will either be killed or used as material for my experiments. Second, I want you to look for two scientists that are in the drug production lab. One is a short woman with bob-cut hair, freckles, and glasses, and the other is a tall, thin man with neatly styled gray hair and decent features. And finally, I want you all to be on alert, I will only tell you the details of the plan two days before execution.”

Even though I saw them nod their heads indicating their agreement, I could see a sour look on their faces.

So, I asked them:” Hey what is with those sour faces of yours?”

Ryuji was the one who replied:” I got bad news for you Xeno. One of those two scientists was killed by the chief.”

I was in disarray when Ryuji said his piece and asked hurriedly:” What happened? Who was the one that was killed and why?”

Ryuji’s words made my blood boil. He told me that the two scientists who were present in the last experiment on me wanted to quit after seeing the results. They didn’t want to be part of this madness anymore. But the chief was furious. He stormed into their lab and stabbed the man in front of the woman, over and over, until he was dead.

Then he looked at the woman and said: “You will Obey, or you will forever Rot”. The woman was devastated. She had lost her assistant, her partner, and the only person she considered family. She tried to kill herself several times, but they always stopped her. She was a genius who had created many drugs that could turn animals into obedient monsters. And they wanted her to do the same with humans. They locked her up in a cell and tied her down, so she couldn’t escape or harm herself. They wanted to use her as their tool, their slave, their weapon.

Blood dripped from my clenched fists as I seethed with anger. Lana saw the blood and rushed to my side, holding my hand gently.

They were good people. They couldn’t bear to see others suffer. They were the only ones who looked at me with pity and compassion, while the rest laughed with scorn and mockery. And that bastard. That vile and unforgivable excuse of a man killed one of them and broke the other. He deserved to die a thousand times.

If only I had been faster. If only I hadn’t said what I said back then, maybe they would still be alive and well. My chi boiled with rage, and the air around me trembled. The aura I emitted was suffocating, showing how furious and frustrated I was. If this went on, I might lose control and go berserk right here and now.

But then I felt Lana’s warmth enveloping me. Her touch calmed me down enough to hear Ryuji’s voice: “Xeno, don’t blame yourself. They made their own choice to stop this madness. If you want to honor their sacrifice, then take revenge on those who did this to them. Use this anger at the right time and destroy ‘The Cult of the Damned’ from its roots. Being reckless will only lead to more tragedies, didn’t you always say that?”

I saw Ryuji’s eyes burning with rage as he said this, so I composed myself and nodded. With that, our conversation ended and Ryuji and Lana went back to their work, leaving me alone to contemplate.