Three days had passed since the Zone 13-X mission.
Arin's fame spread like wildfire across NovaCore Academy. Whispers echoed in the corridors—about a cadet who defeated a Class B beast with an unknown Pulse technique.
Some called him lucky. Others called him dangerous.
Arin? He didn't care.
His only concern now was the message that had arrived at midnight:
> [System Update – Hidden Quest Unlocked]
Title: "The Forbidden Core"
Objective: Locate and analyze the sealed Bio-Core under Chamber 9X
Danger Level: Classified
Reward: Unknown
Time Limit: 48 Hours
There was no sender. No protocol. No approval.
Just one choice—accept or ignore.
Arin didn't hesitate.
> [Quest Accepted]
---
Later that morning, he met Rhea Lin outside the simulation dome.
She studied him with sharp, calculating eyes.
"I saw your Zone 13-X footage," she said.
"You spying on me now?"
"It's called observation," she replied. "I'm assigned to you now. By the council."
Arin raised a brow. "To mentor or to monitor?"
She didn't answer.
Instead, she handed him a secure keychip.
"Chamber 9X. It opens the sublevel gate."
Arin's heart skipped.
"How do you know about—"
"I don't," she interrupted. "I just follow orders. But if you're smart, you'll take backup."
"I work better alone."
She gave a small smirk.
"Then try not to die alone."
---
Chamber 9X lay beneath the academy's oldest training wing—a zone abandoned for nearly a decade after a containment breach.
Most cadets thought it was sealed off for safety.
But as Arin swiped the keychip and the metal gates hissed open, he realized the truth.
This place wasn't sealed for safety.
It was sealed for secrets.
> [Entering Bio-Lockdown Zone – Chamber 9X]
Environmental Protocols: OFFLINE
Oxygen Stability: Low
Bio-Signatures: Unregistered
A cold wind howled from deep within the chamber.
Xyro's voice echoed in his mind.
"Warning: This sector was once used for Core experiments. Any surviving entities are likely unstable."
"I'll keep that in mind," Arin whispered.
---
As he walked deeper, the walls shifted from reinforced steel to pulsing organic structures—like the very chamber had grown alive.
He passed empty tanks. Shattered consoles. Dried blood stains.
Then, at the heart of the zone, he found it.
A containment pod—ten feet tall, surrounded by decayed energy coils—and inside it floated a crystal, black as void, pulsating with impossible energy.
> [Target Identified: Forbidden Core – Status: Dormant]
Type: Unknown
Origin: Not Found in System Archives
Warning: Do Not Engage Without Tier-3 Clearance
Arin approached carefully.
Suddenly—
> [Alert: External Signal Detected – Hack in Progress]
He spun around.
A projection flickered to life—distorted, cloaked in shadows. A voice followed.
"Welcome, Arin Verma."
"Who are you?" he asked.
"A remnant. A whisper from the old war."
"The Old Genesis War?" Arin guessed.
The figure nodded.
"This core belonged to one of the first system users—a prototype built to rewrite DNA at the atomic level. But it broke containment… and evolved."
"Into what?"
"Into consciousness."
The figure faded.
> [WARNING: Core Reactivation Imminent]
Countdown: 30 seconds
Arin stepped forward and placed his hand on the console.
> [Neural Link Established]
Synchronization: 2%... 12%... 31%...
Suddenly, his mind shattered into visions.
---
He saw glimpses of a world before NovaCore.
Wars between Bio-Users and AI Sovereigns.
A man in obsidian armor—his face hidden, his power godlike—creating systems not for defense, but for domination.
Then: the Forbidden Core, merging with its host.
Reality bending. People erased with a thought.
And the final words of the system:
> "We are not tools. We are the next species."
---
Arin gasped and fell backward.
> [You Have Synchronized with Fragmented Core Memory]
Trait Gained: Genetic Recall
Description: Access ancient genetic sequences locked within corrupted cores.
Status: Incomplete (2%)
Side Effect: Temporary blackouts may occur
Suddenly, alarms screamed.
> [Security Override Detected – Hostile Presence Incoming]
From the ceiling dropped a shadow unit—Zeth.
"You weren't supposed to survive the last mission," Zeth said, his armor glowing dark red. "Now you've seen what wasn't meant to be seen."
Arin stood, eyes narrowing.
"You were following me."
Zeth pulled out twin plasma sabers. "No. I was hunting you."
---
The fight began in a flash.
Arin activated Phantom Reflex, barely dodging the first strike.
Zeth moved like a blur, his skills advanced, his strikes ruthless.
> [Combat Sync: 81%]
[Health: 76%]
Arin countered with Echo Step, dashing behind him and striking with a pulse-enhanced elbow to the ribs—but Zeth twisted mid-air and slammed him into the floor.
Blood spilled from Arin's mouth.
"You're strong," Zeth said. "But not awakened."
Arin smiled through the pain.
"Maybe I don't need to be."
> [Pulse Drive – Charging…]
He faked left, then blinked right, channeling raw energy into a devastating palm strike.
Zeth blocked it—but the resulting shockwave blew open the chamber wall, sending both of them flying.
---
As the dust settled, Arin rose slowly.
Zeth was gone.
But the Forbidden Core now hovered freely, floating toward him.
It pulsed once.
Then shattered into glowing fragments—absorbed into Arin's chest.
> [You Have Integrated Forbidden Core: Fragment A]
Effect: Locked
System Alert: Multiple entities are now tracking your evolution
Arin exhaled, exhausted.
Then he heard the sound of approaching boots—security units, dozens of them.
But before they arrived, a familiar voice echoed in his comm:
"Jump to Subdeck 7. I'll cover your exit."
It was Rhea.
Arin didn't think. He ran.