Chapter 3: Project Sentient and AP-01
Ten... twenty... thirty... forty... fifty. Rex, shirtless and glistening with sweat, relentlessly powered through push-ups, sit-ups, and pull-ups. Sweat dripped from his face, and his breath was ragged. It was evident he had reached his limit, but his sheer tenacity drove him to continue, unwilling to stop until he could do no more.
"Come on, just one more," he thought, pushing off the ground once more. But his arms gave out, and he collapsed onto the hard floor, his lungs desperately drawing in air.
"One week and still nothing," he muttered inwardly, reflecting on the uneventful week. In his boredom, he realized he had no friends—a consequence of the introverted body he now inhabited.
Sighing, he accepted that he didn't need friends at the moment. He headed to the bathroom for a cool shower, eager to wash off the sweat and prepare lunch.
After cleaning up, Rex moved to the kitchen. He glanced at the variety of ingredients laid out on the counter, his mind buzzing with possibilities. His extensive knowledge of global cuisines, a result of his years as an assassin traveling across countries and continents, offered him a plethora of options.
He finally decided on a continent renowned for its rich and diverse flavors: Africa. Sifting through memories of various African dishes, he settled on Nigeria, a country notorious for its corruption and where he had eliminated many politicians.
"Something unique," he mused, recalling the various tastes of the region's delicacies. He decided on jollof rice, remembering the explosion of flavors that had delighted his taste buds the first time he tried it.
"It felt like heaven," he reminisced. Among all the countries he had visited for his missions, Nigeria stood out for having some of the best food he had ever tasted.
Taking out his headphones, Rex quickly switched to some phonk music, the closest he could find to his preferred style, and began cooking. His hands skillfully mixed ingredients, combining vegetables and a variety of spices. He parboiled the rice for about ten minutes before adding it to the simmering mixture of peppers and vegetables. On the side, the fried chicken sizzled in the pan; he turned the pieces, ensuring they were evenly cooked.
"And that should be all," he said, finishing the last steps with a smile of achievement. He set aside a portion for his mom, determined not to repeat the mistake from last week.
Taking a bite, he soon found himself eating more, his eyes half-closed as he savored each morsel. In the midst of his euphoria, he heard his name echo through the house.
Stunned by the sudden call, he immediately went on guard, scanning the house to confirm he was alone. "What was that?" he questioned instinctively, grabbing a knife from the utensils.
"Is it an alien, villain, monster?" he thought, his face hardening with fear as cold sweat dripped down his forehead.
"Come~~," the voice sounded again, different this time. He could trace it to the basement.
With reluctant, careful steps, he made his way toward the basement. His instincts screamed against it, but he felt a strange pull, as if he wasn't in any danger. Dropping the knife, he continued, drawn by the echo.
Switching on the lights, he navigated through the cobweb-filled edges and crevices. As he cut through the obstructions, he reached the end of the basement, finding the surroundings lackluster and uninviting.
"Was it all a dud?" he wondered, disappointment etched on his face. He began examining the edges and every spot he could find.
"How anticlimactic," he sighed. Just as he was about to stand, using his hand to push off the wall, a blue light suddenly activated, triggering a biometric scan that read his hand.
With a cold yet surprised expression, Rex watched as a door split into two and retracted to the sides, revealing a strange room resembling a lab.
"What's all this?" he muttered.
Stepping inside, the doors closed behind him, leaving him in a state of confusion. As he ventured deeper into the lab, a hum could be heard as various machines came to life, their lights flickering on and granting him better visibility.
He stared around blankly, carefully avoiding each of the various machines that were now up and running, each one humming and shining with an otherworldly glow. As he walked deeper, he came across an altar with a pole-like object embedded in the center. Ascending the stairs, he immediately noticed a thumb biometric scanner.
Without hesitation, he placed his thumb on the print, and the next moment something was initiated.
"Scanning... Scanning... Biometric scan complete. Individual identified: Rex Jona Çulsen. Playing video message..."
"Video message? What's this all about?" he questioned with an underwhelmed gaze, feeling both indifferent and anticipative—a mixture of his past life's demeanor and the body he now inhabited.
A strange light suddenly emanated from the pillar, forming a holographic screen on the flat wall behind it.
"Hello, son," the figure in the image said, a strange look on his face as he glanced forward. Seeing his father, he immediately felt the strangeness of the situation. After all, receiving a message from his father years after his death was quite unsettling.
"If you're seeing this message, it means I am no longer alive and cannot inform you about this crucial information in person," he paused.
"By now, you should have recognized the dangers this world poses to ordinary humans. The world is no longer safe, and death is ever-present.
"Enough with the introductions; let me get to the main point. You might not remember, but when you were younger, I implanted a chip into your brain, set to activate when the time for your awakening was near.
"I must apologize for involving you in dangerous and potentially deadly experiments, which led to my dismissal from my job as a scientist. The experiment we were working on was called Project Sentient, a project that aimed at boosting human intelligence by unprecedented leaps. After years of trials and failure, the project was finally terminated, but in relentless effort, I continued my research in secret.
"Unbeknownst to them, I had reached a side breakthrough. I had developed a serum called AP-01, a serum that allows the human body to adapt to changes, either minor or major. At birth, I injected you with this serum. It assimilated perfectly with your DNA, and over time you became immune to extreme temperatures, most diseases, infections, and poisons.
"After you had assimilated perfectly with the serum, I continued with Project Sentient, injecting your brain with its particularly dangerous substance. Contrary to my expectations, you were almost left brain-dead. However, the serum 'AP-01' directed the substance to a safe location, finding no possible alternative at adapting your brain to the serum until your brain had grown enough to handle the evolutionary changes.
"The chip in your brain has sensed the preparedness of your brain and in about two minutes, this evolutionary change will begin."
"According to my calculations, this process will be followed by excruciating pain, but do not resent me for it, it is for your survival," as he finished, the holographic light resided, the video message ending.
"Excruciating pain?" he muttered, the word being the only thing he had held on to, but to his dismay, it seemed the timer was not as accurate as it was said to have been.
"Argh," a slight grunt of pain escaped his lips, suddenly he could feel his head thumping, beating vigorously like a drum, soon followed by pain he never imagined possible, holding his head tightly, attempting to rip his hair out in hopes of stopping the pain.
His vision blurred, and his mind spun as the pain coursed through his skull, a relentless torrent of agony. The throbbing in his head intensified with each passing second, as if a thousand needles were piercing his brain simultaneously.
He could feel his heartbeat reverberating in his ears, a deafening drumbeat that only heightened his suffering. His knees hit the cold, hard floor with a thud.
He clutched his head, fingers digging into his scalp as if trying to claw away the source of the torment. The room spun around him, and his breath came in ragged, shallow gasps. "God, what is this?" he thought, his mind a chaotic jumble of fear and desperation. "Make it stop, please make it stop!"
"Argghhhh! Make it stop..." His eyes shot back into his head, as he began rolling on the ground, even desperate enough to begin hitting his head on the ground. However, with the last remaining rationality he could hold on to, he managed to pull back, knowing he had no choice but to handle the pain.
And with a will of steel, he held on to his consciousness, fearing what might follow next. In an effort to do so, he began reciting various mantras from his past life: "Embrace discomfort, for within lies strength. Embrace agony, for with every breath, I conquer pain. Emerge whole and resilient, for I am unbroken."
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