Chapitre 57: First Blood

Martha had grown considerably bigger than before. She was at least a head taller and was proportionally longer. The main thing he had noticed was her leaves seemed to have some sort of coating that made her invisible. The onyx black eyes did not need light to see, therefore she could reflect all light away from her and turn completely invisible. The most remarkable thing was the dense mental energy coming from body.

Matt used telepathy with his new Psionics ability and the connection was formed instantly. Matt explained the situation, then Martha showed him the scenes of what happened. Various armed men broke into the lab and began to wreak havoc. They were clearly searching for something. However, contrary to his assumption, they took a notebook from a locked cabinet and immediately left. Matt walked over to that cabinet and saw that all of his notes on breeding and Sheila's progress were taken.

It seemed that Shephard still thought he was attached to his work. That meant his recent changes haven't made a large enough impression. Since they took both Alexis and his notes, they were certain to be laying a trap for him. He was preparing to leave when Martha came out of the holding area following Matt. It seemed that she wanted to go after learning about Alexis's abduction.

{It's too dangerous for you to come.}

Martha made a strange face and Matt thought it looked like a pout. In defiance, she resisted being brought back. Matt tried his best to convince her, but when she turned invisible again, he had to acquiesce. Matt felt a bit guilty keeping her stuck in this lab all the time and decided that since she could go invisible it would be fine. Anyone that tried to take her would get blasted to a vegetative state by Matt. He felt very protective of Martha as if she were his child.

Fortunately, although she was invisible, Matt could now sense the mental energy signature coming off of her body. Now that he recognized it, it was easy to notice. He walked casually to the lift and occasionally saw a person walk by. Matt took the time to examine them as they walked past. However, no one had any signs of mental energy. This made sense since it would only exist in stronger beings. Although Matt was only a grade one, the parasite didn't need its own body so it could focus on developing its strengths.

Matt entered the lift and started to go down several floors. He kept a close eye on Martha and tried to keep his weapon hidden beneath his jacket. The door suddenly opened a few floors later and Matt's heart dropped for a moment and he unintentionally gulped. Dr. Stein stepped in the lift. He was staring at a tablet reading something. He seemed too focused to notice that there was someone else on the lift. Matt stayed silent but something unexpected happened.

Since he evolved his Telepathy to Psionics, the cost to maintain the connection was nearly nonexistent for a single connection. There was no limit to how many minds he could connect anymore, but the cost increased exponentially. Therefore, he had maintained a link with Martha the whole time. When images of Dr. Stein's tablet flowed into his mind, Matt realized it was Martha spying on what he was reading. The tablet showed a report on an experimental human-alien hybrid by implanting the special 'space metal' into a human.

Apparently, there have already been forty-three subjects. Number forty-four seemed to have the best compatibility with the alien microbe responsible for 'space metal.' The experiment was a partial success, except for the subject going insane. The conclusion at the bottom was that a human body can successfully integrate and even stimulate the foreign cells to replicate on their own. Because of this, the subject's body has the perfect conditions for cybernetic implantations.

'Cyborg! They have already made it this far…'

"Ah, Dr. O'Connely. I didn't see you there." Once Dr. Stein read the last part of the report, he looked up to check if he reached his floor yet and discovered someone he recognized. Matt noticed some subtle mental fluctuations from his body. They were extremely weak but showed just how much of a genius Dr. Stein was.

"Dr. Stein… I have been meaning to meet up with you for a while. And here I accidently run into you. What a coincidence."

"Ah, is that so, well—oh this is my floor. Forgive me, I must be going."

As doctor Stein was about to leave, he realized he never selected a floor. Matt looked up at the floor number and realized it was where he intended to go. Time seemed to stop for a second and Dr. Stein looked at Matt with shock as he reached for his communicator. Before he could reach it or even utter a word, Matt formed a ball of mental energy and shot it using Mind Blast. Dr. Stein fell to the floor like a marionette that lost its strings.

Matt activated Life Sense and it showed that the doctor was still alive. However, he couldn't guarantee he would ever be the same again. Since Dr. Stein had some mental fluctuations, he may have some resistance to Mind Blast, but that was surely limited. Since Matt had already done this, he didn't bother holding back anymore. He took out his gun and his training kicked in. Matt waited a while but nothing happened.

Usually, when someone collapses, the AI would immediately call a team to assist. But there were no alarms. Matt's vision blurred and he opened the private chat. A message from Willard came in.

("I see you're in a bit of trouble. Don't worry about the camera's they are disabled.")

Seeing this, Matt wasn't surprised. He had guessed Willard would spy on him after that strange message from Alexis. He picked the doctor up and took him to a service closet near the elevator. Then, he removed the contacts and took out the metal ring. He placed it around the doctor's wrist and took eleven vials of blood. Matt downed the blood in quick succession and spent eighty points to evolve DNA absorption.

He had considered this carefully for a while and decided this was the best place to spend his points. Although upgrading Psionics was very powerful, he wouldn't be able to explain his capabilities while still being scrutinized. However, if his theory about DNA absorption was correct, he could remove all suspicion on him for a while. The feeling of becoming stronger flowed through him and finally stabilized. When Matt got the notification, he was thrilled.

[Genetic Assimilation Lv. 1: There is no being in the universe with more potential than the parasite. This is not because of their individual strength, but due to their ability to steal all other beings' strengths. Instead of replacing the host for a more suitable vessel, absorbing the genetics of all creatures will allow the parasite to enhance, improve, and perfect a unique body.

>Ability: Detect Life

>Absorption Grade Limit: 3

>Unique Ability Limit: 1

>Efficiency: 110%

>Level Cost: 100 EP]

[Detect Life: While activated, you are able to detect living organisms. You will detect their exact position and life rating. You may direct your focus on a single living creature and detect the distribution of vitality.

Activation: Thought

Distance: 100 meters

Duration: 5 minutes]

Matt was finally able to gain more passive abilities through absorption. This was usually reserved for grade two parasites. Once evolved, the primary absorption skill would receive a natural upgrade along with the increase in stats and grade. However, when Matt learned that it was possible to forcibly evolve his DNA absorption unlike in the game, he naturally planned for it. Now that his assumption proved to be correct, he sighed in relief.

Fortunately, he didn't need to devour a whole human to receive the ability. It seemed he was already very close to activating the unique ability from Humans. The ability he received would be based on who he had consumed to gain the ability. Since he was using an indirect route by slowly absorbing several people, it would be a mixed ability based on those people. He drew more blood from the doctor and eight vials later, his unique ability began to generate.

[Improved Reflexes Lv. 1: Some have to work hard to train their body and mind to be in perfect synch, you however, are born with the aptitude. It is difficult to catch you off guard, and if you are, you recover quickly.

>Reaction Speed: +5%

>Coordination: +15%

>Dynamic Vision: +20%]

Matt couldn't sense any changes since these statistics were only relevant in certain situations. He used his new upgraded Detect Life and saw two people patrolling a hallway ahead of him. He looked down and focused on Martha. What he saw was a dense multi-colored light centered where a heart would be. The light spread in all directions like the roots of a tree.

'Lower Yggdra… So that is what your origin is. The lower must be because you are a chimera.'