White light washed over the evaluation chamber.
Cold and silent.
Rei sat in the center of the room, hands resting loosely on his knees. No restraints this time only a thin monitoring band around his wrist and faint sensors attached to his temples.
A transparent wall separated him from a control room filled with holographic screens.
Heart rate. Neural activity. Output levels. Cognitive stability. Manifestation fluctuations.
All active.
Behind the glass, several personnel observed quietly.
At the center stood Major General Satsuki Kurogane, long black hair falling straight down her back, red eyes sharp and unwavering.
Beside her, Captain Aoyuki Tsukishiro leaned against a console, arms crossed.
Two researchers whispered while adjusting readouts.
"Begin evaluation."
Satsuki said calmly.
A soft mechanical voice echoed through the chamber.
"Subject Rei Mizunagi. Psychological and Somniarch assessment in progress."
A small drone floated in front of Rei, projecting a faint blue interface.
A calm, neutral voice spoke.
"Rei Mizunagi. This evaluation will assess your cognitive stability, Somniarch output, and threat classification. Cooperation is advised."
Rei exhaled slowly.
"...Yeah. I get it."
A faint flicker rippled behind his eyes, watching.
A technician's voice spoke through the speakers.
"Subject, we will begin with consciousness resonance analysis."
The drone emitted a soft pulse, barely audible.
The soft hum filled the room.
Rei flinched slightly.
"...Tch."
A second pulse, then a third.
On the monitors, two overlapping waveforms began to appear.
One stable. One distorted.
The analysts stiffened.
"Major General,"
One muttered.
"We're picking up a secondary cognitive pattern."
Satsuki's gaze sharpened.
"Amplify it."
The waveform expanded.
The second pattern flickered erratically, and unstable.
A presence that didn't fully belong to Rei.
Inside his mind, a familiar voice murmured with faint amusement.
"Careful, Rei… they're listening."
Rei's jaw tightened.
"Stay quiet."
He thought back.
"Or I will."
A brief silence.
Then the second waveform dipped.
It flattened instantly, being masked.
On the monitors, it nearly vanished.
One analyst blinked.
"...It's hiding."
Aoyuki raised a brow.
"So he has a second consciousness. He's suppressing it."
Satsuki watched Rei closely.
"...Or he can't control it."
Inside the chamber, Rei looked up slightly.
"...You done staring at my brain yet?"
A faint smirk tugged at Aoyuki's lips.
"He's lucid under pressure."
She murmured.
"Next phase."
Satsuki ordered.
A different analyst spoke.
"Subject, we are assessing your ability to manifest. Describe your condition."
Rei hesitated.
"...I don't sleep much."
"How long has that been the case?"
"...Years."
"Since childhood?"
"...Yeah."
His voice dropped slightly.
"I hate sleeping."
"Why?"
Rei stared at the floor.
"Nightmares. And hallucinations."
A silence settled over the room.
Satsuki leaned forward slightly.
"What do you see in them?"
Rei swallowed.
"...The beach."
The words alone tightened his chest.
"Towering waves. Hanami almost drowned. My parents… ran in after her."
His fingers clenched faintly.
"...They didn't come back."
The room felt colder.
Aoyuki's expression softened, only slightly.
A researcher spoke quietly.
"You believe your first manifestation occurred after that incident."
Rei nodded slowly.
"...Yeah. Maybe… I don't know what actually happened in the hallway."
He exhaled.
"I think my powers… snapped awake because of it."
A faint tremor rippled through his aura.
On the monitors, output levels spiked briefly then stabilized.
"Trauma induced awakening."
An analyst muttered.
"Common… but this scale isn't."
Satsuki's voice cut through the room.
"Rei Mizunagi. When did the hallucinations begin?"
Rei frowned.
"...Hallucinations?"
"The dark presence you've reported."
Rei hesitated.
"...I don't know."
He looked up.
"But I remember shadows watching me ever since I was little."
"...Watching?"
Aoyuki said curiously.
"Yeah."
Rei's voice turned quieter.
"Dark shapes in corners. Behind doors. In reflections."
"...Did they speak?"
"...Not at first."
He swallowed.
But they always felt like they were waiting."
A faint distortion rippled across the glass.
The second waveform twitched then flattened again.
Satsuki narrowed her eyes slightly.
"...And when did they begin speaking?"
Rei hesitated longer this time.
"...A few days ago."
"...Name?"
Rei's lips pressed together.
"...Vaelion."
The word felt heavier than it should.
Inside his mind, the Prince smiled.
"Careful."
"They are not worthy of my name."
Rei ignored him.
"I don't know where he came from."
His voice tightened.
"I don't even know if he's real."
"...But he feels real."
Aoyuki said quietly.
Rei nodded.
"...A little too real."
An analyst glanced at Satsuki.
"Ma'am, requesting permission to analyze residual mental imprint."
Satsuki nodded once.
"Proceed. Light scan only."
Inside the chamber, the drone projected a soft lattice of light around Rei's head.
"Remain calm."
The system instructed.
Rei forced himself to breathe evenly. A pulse of data surged across the screens.
Fragments surfaced.
Childhood laughter.
Ocean waves.
Screams.
Cold water.
Grief.
Darkness.
A presence watching from behind his own eyes.
Then.
A shadow. Tall.
Wrapped in silence.
The room went dead silent.
An analyst whispered.
"...That's not a human cognitive imprint."
Aoyuki murmured.
"...Nullborne."
Satsuki stared at the projection.
The presence lacked a physical anchor.
No body.
But it was latched onto Rei's mind like a parasite waiting to bloom.
"...Crowned Nullborne."
Satsuki said quietly.
"...And it needs him."
The projection vanished.
Inside the chamber, Rei looked up, confused.
"...You saw something, didn't you?"
No one answered immediately.
Satsuki activated the speakers.
"Mizunagi Rei."
"Yes?"
"Did you ever knowingly allow an entity to merge with you?"
"...No."
"Did you ever seek power?"
"...No."
"Do you know the origin of Vaelion?"
"...No."
His voice cracked slightly.
"I think he's always been there."
"And you don't know what we saw in your mind."
Aoyuki said.
Rei shook his head.
"No."
He let out a tired sigh.
"I just want him gone."
Silence lingered.
In the observation room, the analysts spoke in low voices.
"Threat classification?"
"Unstable, but stabilizing."
"Unknown. Possibly catastrophic."
"Containment recommendation."
Aoyuki looked toward Satsuki.
"So what do we do with him?"
Satsuki's gaze never left Rei.
"...We do not imprison him."
Aoyuki tilted her head.
"...Then?"
"We won't release him either."
A pause.
Satsuki spoke calmly.
"He is to remain under Paragon-Class Custodial Oversight."
The analysts exchanged looks
Aoyuki smirked faintly.
"...Meaning?"
Satsuki lips curved into a faint, unreadable smile.
"He stays close."
One officer hesitated.
"Official reason, Major General?"
Satsuki answered.
"Rehabilitation and stability monitoring."
She turned slightly.
"...And the real reason?"
Her eyes gleamed faintly.
"To either raise… or stop a future God-tier Somniarch."
Aoyuki let out a breathy laugh.
"Ma'am… you're a twenty-three-year-old woman."
She smirked.
"Stop being so childish."
Satsuki didn't even blink.
"If I'm wrong,"
She replied calmly.
"People die."
Aoyuki's smile faded.
"...Far point."
Inside the chamber, the doors slid open.
Satsuki stepped in. Her presence alone made the air feel heavier.
Rei looked up at her nervously.
"...So?"
She stopped a few steps away.
"You'll be living on a different section of the base from now on."
Rei blinked.
"...What?"
"You're not being detained."
She said evenly.
"But you are being supervised."
She turned slightly.
"Come."
Rei hesitated, then stood.
"...Am I in trouble?"
Satsuki glanced at him.
"If you were, you'd already be restrained."
A faint pause.
"When you lose control… I'm the only one here who can realistically stop you."
Rei swallowed.
"...That's reassuring."
"Oh, come on."
She gave him a light clap on the back, firm and confident.
"I don't bite."
"...You look like you do."
Satsuki chuckled.
"That's intentional."
They walked through secured corridors until they reached a private structure inside the base.
A sleek building.
Five floors
Private. Reinforced. Monitored.
Satsuki gestured upward.
"You'll be living here."
Rei stared.
"...This is yours?"
"Yes."
"...Why here?"
She met his gaze calmly.
"Because if you become a problem…"
Her eyes sharpened.
"...You'll become my problem."
A strange mix of fear and relief twisted in Rei's chest.
"...Understood."
Elsewhere, in a secured office, Mira typed rapidly while Aoyuki reviewed Rei's digital file.
Threat level: Reclassified – level 14
Custodial Status: Active
Handler: Major General S. Kurogane
Risk Rating: Control – Unstable
Notes: Subject displays dual consciousness and suppression capabilities
Mira clicked his tongue.
"Kid's officially a walking anomaly."
Aoyuki smirked.
"Welcome to the special cases club."
She paused.
"Let's hope he survives it."
That night, Rei stood at the window of his new room.
The lights of the base glowed below.
Inside his mind, a familiar presence stirred.
"So… they cage you now."
Rei clenched his jaw.
"...At least this cage is safe."
A soft chuckle echoed.
"Enjoy it while it lasts."
Outside, distant lights flickered. And somewhere above it all, Satsuki Kurogane watched.