I opened my eyes for the first time since I was knocked out.
Unfortunately, I was met by darkness due to the state-of-the-art blind fold over my head, sealing the away the light I had gotten so used to.
Even now, I still haven't gotten used to the sensation of losing my ability to perceive the things around me. It always left a hollow feeling in my chest, and I've never liked that.
They told us these were precautions taken to prevent us from attempting any escape after mapping out the facility.
Which is stupid because I don't think a child born and raised in a laboratory would have such ideas come to mind. I speak for myself, though, I don't know about the others because I am no mind reader.
I tried moving my body, but it was stuck, strapped to my seat by what felt like plastic binding. Most of my memory was still hazy, but the clear memory of having a needle shoved into my neck, like I was some kind of animal–was still in there.
We were two children in the activity room, playing some version of intergalactic chess before the guards rushed in and picked us up like goats.
I coughed and called out the second child's name. "Ivy….Are you there?" My throat felt dry. This was probably due to the medicine in my system. How long had I been out out even?
"Astrid…Astrid…"
I heard a young girl's voice respond. It was nearby.
I felt slightly relieved to hear it and quickly responded, "I'm here..."
The fact that she was here somehow calmed me. A lot of things could happen in an evil scientist's facility, including the death of children.
"Astrid, I'm scared." The little girl was already sniffing. Had she been crying for a while now?
Ivy is the youngest one here. She was only five when she was brought to the facility. A young, timid child whose parents and colony didn't survive a calamity.
At first, she had been a handful. Some of us didn't trust her because she wasn't a clone like the rest.
But as time moved on, we learned she was too cute to just avoid and neglect. In fact, Ivy had turned into our little sister.
Following her voice, I turned my head to the right. "Listen to me, Ivy. It's all going to be alright."
I lied and tried hard to sound as calm as I could at the moment. I hated lying, but Ivy was only ten. Telling her the truth would scar the poor girl's mind forever.
For her, it was the beginning of her journey as her mind came to an end. She was going to be injected with the genetically engineered ichor potion and begin her transformation.
And if she survives the transformation, she would be studied for the next five years before getting sent to the Nether realm to merge with a soul.
I was injected with ichor five years ago, and today is the day I get sent to the Nether Realm along with everyone else who consumed a potion and survived its effects five years ago.
It's funny how these inhuman fools are okay with sending kids to a realm. Sure, we're clones. But they gave us emotions and a freaking conscious. If they wanted us as test subjects, they could've at least made us dull, unintelligent beings.
But I am fifteen. I know I was born here, in this hell called Bloodhaul. I don't desire to explore the outside because each star year always felt like I was closer to death in this place.
If by the slightest, tiniest, whimsical chance I merged with a soul and became a Nexus being, I would earn myself the chance to leave this hell and become an official citizen of Beta 3-099. But that offer was bullshit, I will just be given some false freedom and get used as a weapon.
Anyway, I don't have to worry about that because I am the unluckiest bastard in this place. The chances of me merging with a soul were significantly low simply because I didn't get the expected power boost after consuming an S-grade type potion, despite surviving the painful transformation.
My physical tests came out slightly above average, labeling me a failed experiment. The chances of a successful clone experiment becoming a failed experiment are rare.
But look where I am. I'm surprised they haven't disposed of me after five years of no results.
Now that the time has come, I am confident that Nether World is going to be my resting place. And I had come to terms with dying a long time ago.
'At least Ivy and the others will survive.' I consoled myself.
Every year, over one thousand humans challenged Nexus Events in hopes of becoming Nexus Beings. Out of those one thousand, one to two hundred people came out of these Events as Nexus Beings.
The Risk was too high. So, out of desperation, humanity searched and managed to create a back door that involved becoming a Nexus being by merging with superior souls from the Nether Realm after drinking special potions that they referred to as ichor. The method was experimental, so no actual humans had been used yet.
Oh, and by the way. Up until now, no single subject had made it out of the Nether Realm. They often stopped sending signals a few days after entering the foreign world.
To think that this was considered easier because Nexus Scenarios were unpredictable to begin with.
"Are you sure?" The little girl's voice now sounded a bit hopeful. She had stopped crying.
I nodded out of habit. "Yes. They're just going to take some tests to see if you're in good health."
We then heard the sound of a door opening, followed by the gentle sounds of many footsteps that got louder with each step.
They were heading towards us.
The two of us fell silent immediately and waited for the footsteps to come to an end.
'Scientists?' I wondered.
When the footsteps ended, I heard a single cough. Then a familiar deep voice followed almost immediately.
"This is Subject 22. She was born and raised here in Bloodhaul. Her results are below average, but she's the only one who could consume the new version of the dragon ichor. She's fifteen years of age and will be sent to the Nether Realm today to begin the Fifth Trial."
The tone he used was a professional one as he addressed whoever had come in with him. From just his voice, I had already recognized who it was.
Doctor Edgar Wall, the lead scientist of this entire operation.
"What about the one next to her?" someone in the group asked.
"Oh. That's Subject 30. She was born in a colony that the Plague wiped out; she was the only survivor, and that alone made her extraordinary. Her antibodies have evolved, you see. Today, we will inject her with B-grade ichor and see if she can withstand the changes. The whole purpose of this is to see how the ichor affects people born outside Bloodhaul. Subject 30 is the perfect candidate for that."
'Aren't they bothered by any of this?' I asked myself. 'Why do they sound like any of this is normal?'
I had no idea that the calamity that struck Ivy's colony was the plague.
Everyone knew about the plague because it was a result of the first Nexus scenario to ever happen to humans. Because humanity lost, a mystical disease was born. Whoever contacted it would then turn into a Doom Creature. According to the referral images, they were twisted mad beings that only brought chaos and destruction.
And when things couldn't get any worse, more Nexus Events followed. Nexus Events were world-ending catastrophes that could only be stopped by either Nexus Beings or Challengers.
When an event was conquered, the challengers would then be recognized as Nexus beings. Or if it was conquered by a Nexus Being, that being would advance to another rank according to the Nexus System.
The details concerning the ranks were still unclear to me. The people here were careful not to reveal too much to us. We only knew what they wanted us to know. Enough to not think so highly of what we may become.
I suddenly felt a hand over my face as the cloth over my eyes was gently removed. The bright light forced me to squint my eyes as the world slowly came into focus to reveal a sterile white room covered in white square plates.
There was a small crowd of humans looking at us with amused expressions. But I didn't mind because my eyes were already traveling to my right.
I gulped at the sight. Ivy was also strapped to the metallic chair, and her blindfold had also been taken off. Her indigo eyes were fixed on the man standing before her, etched with newfound fear.
Without saying a word, I turned to the man who had removed our blindfolds. Dr. Wall.
He was pale and tall, with messy golden hair and a beard that circled his face like a lion's mane. His deep blue eyes were beaming with both intelligence and excitement as they stared at me and Ivy as if we were his newest set of toys.
"Hello, girls." He said with a pretend smile. "Today marks the beginning of both your journeys. Astrid…"
He looked at me while using the name I gave myself. "You will be sent to the Nether Realm to mark the beginning of your extraordinary path. When you cross over, you will be able to access the Nexus system. It will assist you while you're there. I already sent Devon and others so you won't be alone."
Doctor Wall was a calm man. He spoke to us nicely and treated us like children, while everyone else in Bloodhaul treated us like we were freaks of nature since we survived consuming the ichor. And also because…you know, cloning is not normal.
However, unlike the others, I didn't like Doctor Wall. I haven't been out in the world, but I knew what first-class manipulation looked like.
"Are you going somewhere, Astrid?" Ivy asked in a sad voice.
I snapped out of my thoughts and opened my mouth to reply with a lie, but Wall beat me to it.
"Yes, Astrid here is going to find herself a soul and become a Nexus being. She will be gone for a while, but I am sure she will make it back." He turned to me once again, smiled creepily, and continued. "She survived the S grade ichor. The Nether shouldn't be that difficult for her. Silver bloods are known to be a more resilient race compared to most humans."
I hissed quietly and forced myself to look away. I was afraid to talk back. We were taught not to talk to our elders, especially Doctor Wall. Or else…
"Doctor Wall. How did you recreate a silver blood? I thought the last ones were wiped out on Eden."
I shifted my gaze to the owner of that question. And to my surprise, it was a dark-haired young man. His appearance was similar to that of someone slightly older than me.
However, that's where the similarities between us stopped. He was smartly dressed in a crimson colored suit with a black shirt under the coat, with a red cape attached to both his shoulders.
I could feel his concealed presence as he tried to blend in with the crowd. If it wasn't for my keen senses, I was going to miss it.
Wall faced the group again, coughed twice to clear his throat, and answered clinically. "Good question, Prince Amarac. You see, I managed to awaken silver blood genes from a corpse retrieved from Earth…sorry, Eden. Through extensive alchemy, multiple trial-and-error experiments, subject 22 was given life. Isn't she perfect?"
Once he finished his brief explanation, Prince Amarac's eyes moved to me with newfound curiosity. They were blood red, like two bright ruby crystals cut from the rarest gems on this planet. His face was undoubtedly handsome, free of any cuts or scratches.
I immediately dropped my gaze to the floor, feeling a bit embarrassed.
Wait. Why was I even feeling ashamed?
"Subject 22, face me." Prince Amarac ordered. The authority in his voice forced me to look up.
I was expecting him to say something cruel. But, to my surprise, it was the opposite.
"Survive the Nether Realm and stand by my side after joining us," he smiled.
'What?'
I opened my mouth to speak and closed it again out of fear. My body was stopping me.
The Prince gave me one final nod and left with the visitors who had gone silent since the prince showed interest in me.
When the silence settled in, Dr. Wall shot me a complicated look before he began talking once again. "Get the preparations ready. Open the Nexus gate; we still have one more person to send. Take Ivy to my research laboratory and get the samples ready."
Following his instructions, Ivy was released from her chair and led out of the room by one of the guards. The small girl didn't hesitate or fight back when they forcefully grabbed her hand.
She glanced over her shoulder a few times but didn't say a thing to me.
It hurt me that this might be the last time I might see her.
As soon as the door closed, a scientist walked in from another door and handed Wall a small case. He first put on a pair of surgical gloves before opening and removing whatever was inside.
It was a round obsidian bracelet with symbols drawn on its surface. These symbols were runic symbols, created solely to channel star ether.
'A magic item.'
"This is what we will use to keep track of you when you're in the Nether Realm. If you die, it will automatically go off."
Wall explained as he crouched down and released me from my constraints. I couldn't move. My arms and feet were numb after being held down for a long time.
I stared at Wall as he gently placed the magic item around my wrist. It was cold to the touch.
"Is that all it does?" I asked quietly.
"No…it will also kill you if you try to remove it. Remember, Astrid, you belong to Bloodhaul. You're a product of supreme alchemy…don't mess this up. That's why I know you won't die in that place."
'Now you show your real face…pathetic. Don't worry, Doctor Wall. I have no intentions of coming back alive.'
I wanted to laugh at his words. Tell him that he could hang himself because this product of supreme alchemy didn't have plans of coming back. But my throat was still too dry.
After our small interaction, I was changed into a combat suit and led to the gate room.
It was the largest room in Bloodhaul, with hundreds of engineers and alchemists ensuring it kept running.
A dimensional gate needed a lot of power, so its main source of energy was a cold fusion reactor buried deep in the facility.
Wall and his scientists led me to a large steel wall. On the wall, a circle with the "Omega" symbol in the middle was engraved. The Omega symbol meant death, which was what the Nether realm stood for.
The wall wasn't a normal steel wall, but a special kind capable of conducting Star Ether. It's what they used to build spaceships.
Placing his tough hand on my shoulder, Wall spoke to me with pride.
"This is the peak of alchemy and magic, Astrid. If you and your friends succeed, humanity will be able to push forward without the fear of becoming extinct."
With that, he shoved his hands into his pockets and walked away with a smile.
"Turning on systems!"
I sensed a shift in the atmosphere as the air started to cackle with both blue electricity and star ether. The difference between the two energies was as clear as day. The blue color of the star ether was richer and filled with life. Each time it made contact with my skin, that part of my body disappeared as it dissolved into nothing.
In moments, I was covered in a myriad of electric blue and the deep blue hue of the star energy. The electricity avoided my skin, while the star energy ate away more and more of my being even faster.
When most of my body was gone, I heard it:
[You have accepted the call.]
Prepare for your challenge…]
[Nexus point: Nether]
During that moment, this message didn't mean a lot to me. I didn't know that this would be the beginning of my rebirth as a cosmic being.