Chapter 20 – The Experiment Begins

Unknown Location – Lord D'Karr's Fortress, Xyphora (Volaris System, Sector 7-42D)

The air was stale and metallic, carrying the faint scent of burned circuitry and sterilized steel.

Rei sat motionless on the cold, restraint table, his wrists and ankles still locked into place by thick, reinforced clamps. His body was sore, the lingering effects of the cosmic outburst weighing him down like an iron weight.

His mind was sharp, though.

And right now, it was fixated on one thought.

I need to get out of here.

But first, he had to survive whatever came next.

A mechanical whirring filled the room.

Rei's gaze snapped toward Lord D'Karr, who stood at the far end of the chamber, examining a series of hovering holographic displays.

His cybernetic eyes gleamed as he studied Rei's vitals, his metal-plated fingers flicking through the data like a scientist inspecting his latest specimen.

Then, without looking up, he spoke.

"You're awake."

His voice was smooth, calculated—but beneath it lay something far more unsettling.

Amusement.

Rei gritted his teeth. "Yeah, thanks to you."

D'Karr let out a soft chuckle, his mechanical jaw shifting slightly as his smirk widened.

"You give me too much credit," he mused. "I wasn't the one who caused that little… incident back in the ruins. That was all you, wasn't it?"

Rei said nothing.

D'Karr's gaze sharpened. "Hmm. Interesting response. You're still trying to figure out what happened, aren't you?"

Rei's fingers twitched against the restraints.

He wasn't about to give this bastard anything.

D'Karr sighed dramatically, pacing toward him with calculated slowness.

"Tell me, boy… how did it feel?"

Rei frowned. "How did what feel?"

D'Karr leaned in slightly.

"That moment. The moment before the blast. The moment before you became something… more."

Rei clenched his jaw.

Because the truth was—he barely remembered it.

He had been on the brink of death, cornered, helpless. Then, something inside him had reacted. Something deep. Something raw.

But it wasn't like flicking a switch.

It had been instinct.

And instinct wasn't something he could just summon at will.

D'Karr must have sensed his hesitation because he chuckled again, standing back to his full, imposing height.

"Fascinating," he murmured. "Your body reacted without your conscious control… meaning it isn't just some biological mutation."

He turned, clasping his hands behind his back.

"It's something much greater than that."

Rei swallowed, trying to keep his breathing steady.

He couldn't afford to let D'Karr get in his head.

But the warlord wasn't finished.

"Tell me, boy," D'Karr said, his tone shifting into something colder. "What do you think you are?"

Rei's heartbeat thudded in his chest.

That question—He had been asking himself the same damn thing.

And yet, something about the way D'Karr said it sent a chill through his bones.

He wasn't just curious.

He knew something.

Rei forced a mocking smirk onto his face, hoping to mask his unease.

"I think I'm the guy who's about to break out of here and shove that smug attitude up your—"

A sharp electrical jolt surged through the restraints.

Rei's body seized up, his muscles locking, white-hot pain burning through his nerves.

He bit down hard, refusing to scream.

D'Karr tilted his head, watching with mild amusement.

"Good," he mused. "You have some resistance. That makes this far more interesting."

The electricity stopped, leaving Rei panting as sweat dripped down his forehead.

D'Karr turned toward one of the holographic panels, tapping a few controls.

"Pain won't trigger it," he said, almost to himself. "It's not a simple defense mechanism… it's deeper than that."

His red cybernetic eye glowed brighter as he turned back to Rei.

"Let's see if we can bring it out, shall we?"

Rei's stomach tightened.

He didn't like the sound of that.

The fortress loomed ahead, its metallic walls standing like a monolithic beast, stretching into the storm-filled skies.

Seyra knelt behind the wreckage of a fallen transport skiff, scanning the heavily patrolled entrance.

Four guards at the gate. Two sentry drones overhead. No obvious weak spots.

Her grip on her spear tightened.

If she had to fight her way in, she would.

But right now, she needed stealth.

She reached down, activating a small energy disruptor on her wrist.

A faint pulse spread outward, interfering with the sentry drones' detection fields just long enough for her to move unseen.

Swift. Silent. Lethal.

She moved.

Hold on, Stray.

I'm coming.

-Back to Rei – 

The restraints shifted.

Rei barely had time to process what was happening before the metal clamps lifted, forcing him onto his feet.

His arms were still bound, but now he was standing in the center of the chamber, facing D'Karr directly.

The warlord stepped closer, his presence overwhelming.

"You may not understand it yet," D'Karr murmured, reaching toward Rei's chest, right where he had felt the pulse before. "But inside you is something that should not exist."

His metal fingers hovered inches from Rei's skin.

Rei's breathing quickened.

He didn't know what the hell D'Karr was trying to do, but every nerve in his body screamed at him to move.

To run.

To fight.

A sudden spike of energy pulsed from D'Karr's fingertips—

And Rei felt something ignite.

A sharp burst of heat spread from his core, his vision flickering.

Not now.

Not again.

No—

And then, for the second time, the world exploded into light