The hover bus has finally arrived at Seth's home.
And unlike one might had imagined, his home was nothing grand.
Which was surprising as one would expect more from the abode that housed an admiral.
It was a two-bedroom bungalow that lacked any extraordinary luxury—a simple abode that mirrored the life he and his mother led.
As soon as he stepped inside and closed the door behind him, and a wave of emotions overwhelmed him.
Tears spilled freely down his face, and he wailed loudly, releasing the storm of grief he'd held back.
His cries soon turned into rage.
As he stood up abruptly and began a maddened spree, smashing the television, the lamps, and anything else within reach. The sound of shattering glass and falling furniture filled the room.
The scene of his mother's final moments played on a relentless loop in his mind, fueling his anger.
He clenched his fists, cursing his weakness. He had been nothing but a helpless spectator.
"If only…" he whispered bitterly, his voice trembling.
If only he were like Elyon's rising star, Dione Mane—the child prodigy who self-awakened her seed at four, became an A-class irregular by twelve, and a vice admiral at sixteen.
But at sixteen himself, Seth was powerless, stuck watching his mother die to protect the planet while he stood frozen, useless.
He couldn't even think of himself getting strong enough to avenge his mother's death.
Thinking of the vile creature his mother had to battle with, shivers ran down his spine, and what was he supposed to use to confront such a monster?
His eyes fell on the digital camera hanging from his neck—a cruel reminder of his inadequacy.
What power could a camera possibly grant him? His seed was laughable, It was trash and he knew it, he couldn't be delusional now.
Awakening had barred him from becoming a Cybernox; the augmentations necessary for the role were lethal to anyone with an awakened seed, the reasons were unknown but any forceful attempt resulted in immediate death.
Powerless, directionless, and incapable of revenge, his situation felt hopeless.
Exhausted and consumed by the weight of it all, Seth collapsed onto the couch and drifted into a deep sleep, dreams carrying him to memories of his long-lost father.
His father—a man of mystery.
The public knew nothing of him, and his mother spoke of him even less.
Seth's only memories of the man were faint shadows of his father's figure from his early childhood.
The man had disappeared when Seth had turned four, and his mother never explained why.
For years, Seth assumed his father was dead. Yet, in her final moments, his mother sent him a transmission, and she revealed a shocking truth: his father was alive.
At this time, the revelation meant little to Seth, after all to him his father had abandoned him for years, alive or not it didn't matter to him now.
But now, in his dream, the old memories stirred anew.
Morning came but it brought no respite.
Seth woke up to a house in ruins, courtesy of Maddened Spree.
With a heavy sigh, he went into the bathroom he decided to shower—a habit ingrained in him by his late mother.
The warm water cascaded down his back as his thoughts circled the same question: what could he do to get stronger? The only path to power for humans present where only becoming—irregulars, Cybernox or mech pilots and mech pilots was impossible for him as one had to be a cybernox to become one, so basically all these paths were closed to him.
He finished his bath and went into the room to dress up. He dressed up in black to reflect his grief, he then went back into the sitting room and began cleaning up the mess made in the living room.
That was when his eyes landed on the camera resting on the table.
He froze, realization dawning. Why was he giving up so quickly? He hadn't even tested his seed's potential.
A flicker of hope lit within him as he ran into his mother's room.
Seeds could be awakened in two ways.
The first involved fulfilling specific, often unknown, requirements—a method filled with uncertainty. This led to thousands of people out there who had yet to still activate their seeds.
The second was more direct and simple: using soul essence to force activation. This was the most common and easy path, but this path was only for the wealthy as one needed to purchase essence injectors, which were very expensive and costly.
His mother had been so eager for his awakening that she had stocked up on essence injectors months in advance.
Seth rushed into her room.
He found the briefcase where she'd kept them, sitting untouched in her wardrobe.
The sight of the case and the room filled with his childhood photos brought a lump to his throat, but he forced himself to focus.
Now wasn't the time to get emotional again.
Returning to the living room, Seth placed the camera on the table and opened the briefcase.
Inside were six injectors, each containing a swirling, luminescent substance. With a deep breath, he connected the first injector to the camera's lens and pressed the plunger. The liquid disappeared sinking into the camera, but nothing happened, there was no reaction whatsoever.
Minutes passed...
Frustration mounting, he tried again...
And again.
Injector after injector, the outcome was the same—silence, emptiness, failure.
By the time the last injector was spent, Seth was fuming.
Seeds had never been known to reject soul essence, yet his camera remained as inert as ever.
His hands shook as he picked it up, staring at it with a mix of anger and despair.
Was this really possible a seed that granted no ability? He had never heard of such a case before.
"You're useless," he hissed, slamming the camera onto the table in anger.
The angle at which he slammed the camera was precisely the capture button, and the coincidentally the camera lens was facing his direction.
CLICK!!!
The capture button was forcefully pressed down as the lens flashed a brilliant light consuming his figure.
When the light faded, the room was empty. On the table sat the camera, eerily still.