Dust exploded into the air as the ground trembled violently.
Zion stumbled and crashed to the ground, a sharp pain ripping through his ribs.
He gasped for air, only to realize none came in.
His chest refused to expand, each breath shorter and more desperate than the last.
Panic went through him as he clutched his side.
At the same time, the earth in front of him cracked open. The tear expanded rapidly, heading straight for him.
Before he could even form a thought, the ground under his feet cracked open.
Zion's hands searched for anything he could hold on to, finally managing to firmly grip a metal beam from the metal fence behind him.
But it was of little use.
The ground beneath the fence cracked, dangling him over a deep dark void.
'Is this it?' he wondered, holding on for dear life.
The ground shook once more.
His grip on the fence slipped, and he plunged into the darkness below.
He wanted to scream, but he couldn't even breathe, let alone make any sound.
The world around him blurred as he closed his eyes, pure rage flowing through him as he thought about the revenge he wanted to take but couldn't now.
Then, he hit something hard.
Pain exploded from his ribs and back as he rolled, finally coming to a stop on a smooth cold surface.
Zion lay there, unable to see anything around him as his breathing stalled.
Then—
A low hum resounded all around him.
His eyes widened as faint blue lines lit up on the ceiling, lighting up the entire room.
[Host contact confirmed. Neural sync initializing.]
Zion flinched, hearing the cold mechanical voice.
But he couldn't even move his head, let alone run away.
The ground under him shook slightly, before he felt himself get lifted into the air.
[Host in critical condition. Preparing injection.]
A bright light flashed above Zion's head, forcing his eyes shut. He felt cold metal restrain his arms, legs, and torso tightly against the metal floor.
Suddenly, he felt a sharp stabbing feeling in his arms.
[Injection phase one proceed.]
Zion screamed, or tried to.
He gasped sharply as something cold flooded into his veins.
It burned like he was set on fire, spreading from his arms across his chest, down to his spine and finally into his skull.
His body convulsed violently from the immense stress and pain.
[Vital signs unstable. Neural sync threshold 99.9%. Starting phase two injections.]
A mechanical whirring started beneath his back as the restraints around his body tightened.
'No...'
A drill tore into his spine.
His mouth opened in a silent scream as burning pain shot down his spine like a lightning bolt.
Zion's thoughts spiraled out of control. Rage. Pain. The past.
'Mom,' Zion thought, passing out.
He could almost feel the warmth of her arms around him again.
'You'll be strong one day, my little Zi,' his mother's voice sounded through his mind.
Then, darkness.
Total darkness.
An unknown amount of time passed.
He snapped awake with a loud gasp, immediately attempting to get up.
The cold restraints on his arms stopped him, slamming him back on the sleek metal surface.
"Ugh," Zion let out, opening his eyes.
Everything ached. His spine was by far the worst.
"Where… am I?" he mumbled, staring up at the blue lights embedded in the ceiling.
[Host is currently within the command system of the Seraphael vessel.]
The voice wasn't spoken aloud.
It echoed directly inside his mind, cold and without a trace of humanity.
"Who… who are you?" Zion asked, his voice barely a whisper.
[I am Uriel, the sentient system bonded with the Seraph-X nanosuit.]
Zion didn't understand what was going on.
"What?" he asked, his throat dry and his mind still hazy.
[You are currently within the Seraphael vessel's primary control chamber. I initiated emergency bonding to ensure survival after confirming your compatibility with the Seraph-X.]
Zion stared at the lights above him, trying to process it all.
The pressure on his arms and legs loosened as the constraints opened up.
"A nanosuit?" he repeated, raising his eyebrows. "Impossible."
"I had an NST score of 0% because of some rare disorder."
He'd suffered for years, powerless because no nanosuit ever worked with him.
[Correction: Host's condition is not a disorder. It is a rare neural structure—uniquely compatible with the Seraph-X nanosuit.]
"Seraph-X nanosuit?" Zion muttered in disbelief.
A transparent screen popped up inside Zion's eyes, showing the suit's data.
[Seraph-X nanosuit. Type: Unique Inheritance Model. Classification: SSS-rank.]
Zion's mouth went dry.
'SSS-rank?'
Those weren't just rare—they were the stuff of myths. Suits like that were said to turn humans into walking weapons of mass destruction. No one had seen one in centuries.
And now… he, a so-called failure with a 0% compatibility score, was bonded with one?
He tried to sit up, wincing as pain shot through his spine. Every movement felt stiff, like his nerves and muscles were only just waking up.
Zion's fingers trembled as he felt his ribs. "This doesn't make any sense," he muttered, no longer feeling the pain near them.
[Your body was healed from critical condition, Host,] Uriel's voice echoed in his mind.
Slowly giving a nod, Zion pushed himself up.
Finally getting a good look around him, his mouth fell wide open in disbelief.
The room was colossal, easily larger than any combat stadium he'd ever seen. Dim blue lines pulsed across the walls and floors like living veins.
The ceiling above them was shaped like some kind of cathedral, but made from sleek black metal instead of stone. Light blue holographic rings rotated in the air, projecting the surrounding star systems, nearby ships, and planets.
Finally, his gaze fell on a throne-like commanding chair that seemed to be way too large for any human to sit on. On its armrests sat several floating nodes of which Zion had no idea what they were.
But even without knowing what most of it was, he knew this wasn't something ordinary.
[Welcome to the Echelon-class battleship, Seraphael,] Uriel's voice echoed through his head.