Back to the infirmary

Lance woke up in the familiar pod. This wasn't the first time in this month, as he had fainted multiple times with injuries too severe for enidra to heal.

But instead of the familiar Darius or Entsy looking in from the outside, it was Attok.

Lance first felt fury, as this was the man who was the reason behind his one month of inhumane pain and suffering. But then, he remembered that if it weren't for this man, he would never be here with at least a chance to make his dreams come true.

Which was better: a life of apathy with no purpose, or a life of pain with the chance to find your purpose?

Lance had made his choice. Every time he had almost given up but somehow found the determination to dig deep and persevere, he had stood by that choice.

As he saw the face full of concern looking at him, Lance felt again that maybe he had made the correct choice after all.

He could feel the unspoken bond of blood between them in Attok's expression. For once, he truly connected to this old man.

Seeing Lance woke up, Attok cracked a smile. As Lance got out of the pod, he almost collapsed again as he felt a feeling of weakness wash over him.

"Careful boy. The solution gave you enough energy to wake up, but you still need some real food in your body and some rest to get back to normal."

Attok supported Lance on his shoulder as they walked together to the cafeteria. Lance didn't speak. The sudden change in feelings had zipped his mouth and there was also a slight tension in the air.

After walking a few steps, Attok couldn't take it any longer and said, "I'm truly sorry. I was sent out on a mission before I got to know that that twisted Xuan Long had been appointed as head instructor this time. I only got back this morning. You must blame me for everything you went through, and you are right to. Our factions have always been on the opposing side, but there is a major event approaching that has put everyone on edge. After centuries of losing to us, they are desperate and have started to target the younglings. We neither expected nor prepared for it. 3 great seeds have been ruined. You are the special case. Your performance has caused them to place an eye on you, but now that I'm on the station, they wouldn't dare move. Our line is not one that can be taken so lightly. And that Xuan Long? He will have his due." As he stopped speaking, Lance could hear a low sonic boom as Attok closed his fist in fury. Waves of anger radiated from him and for the first time, Lance was awed by the sheer power of emotion. He felt that if he didn't compose himself, he would also be swept away by the tumultuous waves and become angry before measure.

The feeling stopped abruptly just as Lance couldn't take it any longer. "Pardon my loss of control. We legends can influence the minds of people below our rank by just feeling something strongly. Its why we are so good at commanding troops. Anyway, what happened? How did you get into the top three score? Have you reached the Mind and Body as One realm? Or have you discovered your IN? Scans showed no indication of either possibilities. All the doctors are going crazy trying to figure out how the hell you managed to output that much power. Again, you are the talk of the station. So, tell me. How?", asked Attok expectantly, with eyes shining with hope.

Seeing these eyes, Lance could only sigh with the feeling of Deja vu. Again, same as with the test, he had no idea in hell how he had managed to do it.