POV: Unknown Character
"Are all the preparations set?" I asked the cloaked man just in front of me, actively monitoring data computational screens.
"Yes," he replied.
"Good, the Emperor will be very much pleased then."
I could feel the sweat dripping down my tightened cloak.
Hours of masking your identity in a room with zero air circulation really gets to you after a while, especially with the added pressure to make sure everything goes smoothly. However, it all should work out now.
***
POV: Recruit 79
The nexus energy flowed through my body like the raging ocean waters, threatening to burst at any moment.
And when it does, I'll be unable to stop it from happening.
"I-I don't know how long I can hold this steady," I stuttered truthfully.
Despite how obvious it was, I wanted to try to be as honest as possible, because if I were to destroy the Emperor's facility, that could be a path of no return. For my head, of course.
"It's alright," Zhang spoke.
He had been oddly silent as of recently.
What was once a shocking turn of events when I originally met him just a few minutes ago—unusually laid back attitude, calm demeanor, and well spoken manners, turned into nothing. Just pure silence, almost worryingly silent, especially coming from him.
The familiar sensation of warmth turned into sweltering pain, almost like molten lava was dripping through my bloodstream.
Tsk.
'This hurts like hell!'
Finally, I couldn't just hold this in for any longer.
I've lasted surprisingly long, nearly twice my original time from the initial re-evaluation test. However, that was about my limit.
With a sudden glow enveloping my outer body, blinding the naked eye, my nexus energy absolutely incinerated the surrounding evaluation tube that I found myself in.
Shards of transparent glass littered the floor in seconds, but only a few.
Most of the pieces were nothing but ash now.
Slight slithers of golden energy whistled in the wind as they faded out from view.
My ears were ringing, the only thing right now that took up most of my attention, as I watch my feet slowly tremble under my body's exceeding weight. I felt as light as a feather and as heavy as an anvil at the same time, a crushing force attempting to swallow me whole from the inside out.
As my legs gave out, I slowly tumbled to the ground, fluttering in the floor of grass shards and strings of energy that somehow clung onto existence.
I watched as two cloaked figures came into my vision and just above me.
One of them observed as the other proceeded to do... something, to me. My body felt warm again, but a more inviting feeling.
Not the unknown sensation like before.
In seconds, I went from nearly falling unconscious for the 3rd time because of this, to feeling like it never happened. My vision cleared up, my ears came back to its senses, and my body was wrapped in a slight tingling sensation.
"What... the... hell?" I asked, slowly.
"Just a simple healing spell," one of the cloaked figures answered.
'That doesn't make any sense...' I thought to myself.
Healing spells are quite unique. Not only does it require a high knowledge and understanding of nexus energy, but only a select few have the power to properly guide it to a healing factor.
Not only that, but how does a healing factor stop me from going under?
Wouldn't it be the exact opposite?
Whatever is the reason, it makes sense that the future Emperor has such a capable emergency staff at his manor, especially with his vigorous training.
***
I leaned against a wall for a good hour, attempting to recollect my strength.
Despite the miracle of staying conscious, my energy was totally depleted, leaving me nearly gasping for air in moments.
My time of silence was casually interrupted by Zhang himself.
"I was able to get your results back," he said.
My eyes widened.
Every second was painful as I had waited here, waiting for the inevitable news that they couldn't record my data, or that I didn't last long, something of inconvenience to stop me from getting results.
But... I actually had data?
I guess it is true, one cannot and should not underestimate the future Emperor.
"For reference, the average recruit scores a 50 NB, nexus beats, which is recorded as energy is evenly dispersed trough the body," he began explaining. "The average soldier scores a 75-100 NB."
A long, choking silence overtook us.
"You scored a 980 NB."
'What the fuck?' I thought to myself, nearly bursting out.
"Wait," I spoke, just before he could continue. "I thought the average general was about 1,000, if not higher. Why am I not even capable of controlling an energy capacity less than that?"
Zhang didn't seem too surprised by my eagerness to ask questions. Jumping from the bottom of the barrel, a literal 0, to 980, doesn't come without a shockwave.
"Because you don't know how to control it," his voice hummed.
He's right about that.
There is no worse than me when it comes to nexus energy.
I had to rely so much on my physical strength, that some days my skin would peel off from my training, just to stay in shape.
Unlike others, who just had to learn a specific spell once, and they know it for life.
It was a painful way to go about life, but the only reasonable one.
"And how exactly do I go about that?" I asked, genuinely curious. What was I supposed to do when I knew literally nothing about controlling it? I thought my knowledge was good, but it's definitely a lot different than it is on paper...
My breath was still faltering, even hours later, which became noticeable to even Zhang himself, despite the distance that there was between us.
"Come with me," Zhang spoke lightly, offering me a hand up.
I accepted it, of course.
Once my body was dragged up, my legs began shaking just slightly. However, I was able to manage, albeit just barely.
'Let's see where he wants to take me,' I thought to myself.