Chapitre 324: 320: A Plague of Phantoms: A League of Their Own IV
<Time to change your vocabulary! The word of the day is: Forget!> I snapped as I slapped my hand on the head body of the subject.
Everything froze in an instant. The air, my evos, the subject, and myself. Locked in a singular moment in time for what seemed like an eternity before everything faded into nothingness. I floated in that sea of immaterial, unsure of which way was up, how long I had been there or where I even was. All that existed was nothing, until something else came into being. My oldest and most persistent friend: Pain.
I opened my mouth to scream and wail but no sounds came out. Only more pain followed with each attempt but I couldn't stop myself from attempting. Something was urging me on to keep trying, no matter how in vain, to keep screaming.
With each passing second, I became more aware of myself and the limits of the world around me through pain. Pain told me how long my legs were, how wide my mouth was, how long my tail was, and how large my world was. Pain taught me why I had to scream, to allow the burning fluid into my mouth and my gills so I could breathe. To feel pain was to breathe, to breathe was to live, and to live was to be in pain.
'Wait…gills…fluid…tail…?' I thought despite the excruciating pain making the simplistic of thoughts nearly impossible. 'I don't have a tail…or gills…humans don't have those…I'm human! I'm a splicer! I'm Chase Gaelbor Kingston!'
In a flash I found myself standing in the bottom of a massive gestation tank with all the fluid drained out of it. The walls of the tank were made of glass but I couldn't see past them, above me the tank stretched on into infinity offering no escape from above.
"NO! STAY AWAY! MONSTER! AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" A voice screamed as the sound of tearing flesh and snapping bones filled the air.
I turned towards the source of the sound and saw a infant ancient Liger shark ripping a man in a lab coat to shreds. Even as an infant the evo was still larger than eight feet.
I didn't feel fear, or sadness, or even pity for the man that the subject was feeding on. I knew full well he wasn't real, at least not anymore. I then suddenly became aware of the fact that I wasn't alone in this tank with the subject, there were others men and woman. Some dressed in labcoats, other in civilian clothes, some in military uniforms but all of them watching the subject feed on its victim with speed and precision.
The faces of each person was blank, no facial features to be seen, but they didn't need any. They weren't people or even memories. At one point the subject had probably killed the real man this phantom and all these people had represented but now they were nothing more than scraps of a shattered mind that the subject was trying so desperately to hold onto.
This tank was the subject's last ditch effort to hold onto it's sanity and keep the precious few genuine thoughts it had safe. However by condoning it's sanity off from the rest of its mind it was also starving it, forcing it to feed on the very thoughts it was trying to protect.
<They won't sate your hunger you know…> I said softly. The subject stopped it's feeding and turned it's head to regard me. Even though it had no eyes I could feel it's calculating stare judging me.
<I know…> The subject replied in a deep and calm voice that was a startling change from the frenzied voice I had come to associate with the evo. It stood up straight and tilted it's head to the side. <…strange…I thought myself too far buried into my subconscious to be reached…to think a strange creature would find me.>
<Strange creature?> I quipped. The subject mused for a moment, licking the blood from its mouth before answering me.
<Yes, quite strange. You look like my creators but feel like so much more. Much more…alive…bursting with life at the seams.> The subject mused over his choice of words then shook his head. <No, not alive, but still bursting with life. You are like a ocean of could-be's and first breaths, coiled tightly into the flesh of man…no…not even that sounds quite right…>
<How about a sun orbiting a bursting nova.> I offered. The subject grumbled deep in his throat and sat down.
<Sun? Nova? What are these things?> The subject asked.
<Great balls of fire in the sky, high above where any man or evo can reach.> I replied. The subject thought about that for a moment then nodded it's head.
<Sounds hot.>
<It is but it's also bright.> I said.
<Bright…hmmm…yes that's the word…you are bright and full of life.> the subject said, a pleasant purr escaping it's lips. It then looked off into the distance and I could feel a shift in its mood.
<Something wrong?> I asked cautiously.
<No. I'm just dying.> The subject said deadpan. My eyes widened and I stomped a foot down.
<That definitely sounds like a problem!> I snapped. The subject shook its head slowly.
<I've been dying for a while now…since my birth…the pain driving me slowly insane. I've tried to stop it but I've run out of time.> The subject replied then turned to look at me. <My madness and hate are too strong, soon they will erode this place away and devour me. Then I will be nothing but a mindless beast that kills for pleasure.>
<I can try and heal y…> I started only to be cut off by the subject.
<No…it is too late and I am too tired. I have fought to hold onto this scrap of self for as long as I could hold on.> The subject interrupted. <Instead of wasting time to try and heal me…do what you know can…end my suffering.>
<You…you want me to kill you? To destroy your mind!> I exclaimed. The subject chuckled then motioned to the tank around us.
<Not much of a mind to destroy. I'm nothing but a remnant clinging to life. Rather than sit in solitude for the painful and chaotic end that awaits me once this place falls I want you to erase me and let me know peace.> The subject said.
<I don't like that…you just giving up…> I muttered through gritted teeth.
<You don't like it but you will accept it. I am the personification of everything, my every thought, memory, emotion and instinct. Without me the madness outside will wither into nothingness with time. Without me, you can alter and mold my body into a vessel for you to breathe new life into. A life without pain or madness.> The subject said.
<You knew?> I breathed. The subject only nodded then glanced off into the distance again. It was then that I noticed the number of people in the tank had severely dropped and the light from overhead had dimmed.
<There is not much time…choose please.> The subject said. I shook my head and let out a ragged sigh.
<I'll make it as painless as possible…> I muttered.
<That is all I can ask…> the subject said then laid down and rested it's head on its paws. I walked over and placed a hand on its nose, letting a little of my mana flow into it. I felt a flood of emotions and memories, a life time of pain and suffering flash before my eyes. It took all I had to not cry out in pain
<May I ask one thing before you end me?> The subject asked softly.
<Of course…> I replied, meaning to sound reassuring but failing as my voice cracked a little.
<What are you going to name the life you'll create?> The subject asked.
<The same thing I was going to name you: Bahamut.> I replied.
<Bahamut…sounds mighty…I would have loved it. Thank you…master.> Bahamut said.
<No need to thank me…> I replied then changed the attribute I was channeling from atrributeless to void.
In the blink of an eye I felt Bahamut's presence disappear completely. Every memory, sensation, and emotion I felt vanish as if it never existed. It wasn't just his presence, the tank I was standing in disappeared as well. I was floating in a void once again only this time I didn't feel anyone else's emotions except my own.
'He's gone…' I thought, oddly feeling small pangs of grief for the loss of a evo I had only known for a few moments at most. '…please be at peace…'
I opened my eyes and found myself floating in a dark and lifeless ocean. No longer holding onto a warped fetus but the militarized body Bahamut. It floated lifelessly in front of me, alive only in the sense that his heart was beating.
<Chase? What happened?>
I blinked a couple times and realizes Bo and Alberto were floating beside me, each holding onto Bahamut and channeling mana into him. My evos were floating protectively above us, watching intently.
<His mind was too fractured…I had to destroy it…Bahamut asked me too…> I replied in a deadpan tone. Bo and Alberto shared a look then both patted me on the shoulder.
<I'm sorry…> Bo whispered. I shook my head, mostly to shake off the tears that stung the corners of my eyes and threatened to fall.
<I'm fine…only knew him for a few seconds.> I croaked then cleared my throat. <Let's get this done. We're in a time crunch…>
<Okay…> Alberto replied then closed his eyes. Bo gave me another sympathetic look before he crossed his eyes as well.
I recalled the lysdale script I had made for Madilyn to look over then channeled flesh attribute mana into Bahamut's body. Thanks to Bo and Alberto also channeling mana into his body his genetic structures separated line by line without coming apart completely. This was thanks to them only channeling attributeless mana while mentally reciting the lysdale script from memory.
Subject XX01 was the combination of a Megalodon, lion, siberan tiger, and Kamodo dragon. It was the first techno-spliced tier four evo and the blueprint for the ancient Liger sharks that Justice Technologies was selling at Evo-cution. My lysdale script was a plan to turn Bahamut into something the world had never seen before, something that would be impossible with splicing or techno-splicing alone. A tier five evo befitting the name of the god of dragons and destruction.
'Let's get rid of all these lion, siberian tiger, and kamodo dragon genes. Too many redundancies and kamodo genes are fighting with the Megalodon genes.' I thought as I erased all the sequences with the aforementioned genes in them. 'Redundancies take up space and we'll need all we can get with this monster!'
Logan
"KINGSTOOOON!" Beaufort bellowed as soon as he saw me walk into the war room. I bit back a groan and saluted the president.
"You called for me sir?" I asked. Beaufort smiled devilishly at me.
"Grab your squad! I have a mission for all of you!"
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone