Among Viltrumites mercy was a weakness and power the only truth that had ever mattered.
For Halvar, however, strength meant evolution. He had never been a battle fanatic like Kraevus or Conquest, so the path he chose was science, carving his way into the emperor's favor through experiments rather than war.
For more than six hundred years he had spent his life dismantling creatures that terrified other people.
Entire species had passed through the laboratories of the Imperial Research Division under his supervision beasts capable of surviving the vacuum of space, warriors strong enough to tear armored warships apart with their bare hands, organisms whose biology bordered on the impossible.
That was how he had crawled his way into the highest circles of Viltrumite society and eventually into the emperor's council, though the climb had never been easy.
Being the empire's favored scientist meant protection, but the nature of his work had earned him countless enemies among both Viltrumites and the alien species unfortunate enough to fall into his laboratories.
If anyone claimed Halvar feared judgment, he would laugh before calmly dissecting them on his table.
Fear was a useless concept.
Curiosity had always been stronger.
Standing on the observation platform overlooking the training valley carved into Viltrum's mountain ranges, Halvar kept his hands clasped behind his back while several researchers worked quietly around him.
The old arena experiments had ended long ago because the subject had grown far beyond the confines of reinforced walls and metal restraints.
Testing him now required open sky.
Far above the valley floor three Viltrumite soldiers circled their opponent like hunting hawks, their bodies tearing through the air with enough force to send shockwaves rolling across the clouds.
"Doctor Halvar, I feel obligated to point out that those three soldiers belong to active fleet detachments. Two of them have served the empire for more than two centuries. If this continues, we may be risking valuable assets."
Halvar did not look away from the sky.
"If the empire considers three soldiers irreplaceable, then our species has grown far weaker than I was led to believe."
To Halvar casualties were simply another form of progress since the purpose of research was evolution, and if a few soldiers died along the way then they had merely fulfilled their duty to the empire.
"Doctor… his reaction time has increased again. I'm not certain how to interpret this, but the pattern suggests he isn't responding to the attacks themselves."
"Then what is he responding to?"
The technician leaned closer to the screen, watching as the subject moved before the attack fully committed by reading the intention behind shoulder rotation and muscle contraction.
Halvar returned his attention to the battlefield just as one of the soldiers lunged forward, his fist driving toward the subject's head with enough force to collapse a fortress wall.
The subject barely moved, shifting his head slightly to the side so the punch passed through empty air.
A heartbeat later the subject's elbow drove into the soldier's ribs with a crack that echoed across the valley, sending the veteran spinning through the sky before smashing into the mountainside with a thunderous impact.
The observation chamber fell silent at the sight of a warrior with four hundred years of combat experience being handled so effortlessly.
"Yes. I know."
The second Viltrumite dove from above, accelerating until the air screamed around his body, but the subject reached out and caught the attack mid-flight.
His hand closed around the warrior's wrist before redirecting the momentum downward, causing the
Viltrumite to strike the ground like a meteor falling from the sky.
The third soldier hesitated.
"He's stopped attacking. His heart rate has stabilized. He understands he cannot win."
Halvar watched the final soldier retreat, noting that while the subject had been strapped to a table barely alive two years ago, now trained warriors could not last ten seconds against him.
Behind Halvar the researchers resumed their discussion regarding how every attempt at replication using blood samples or tissue cultures resulted in a collapse of the genetic structure.
Halvar frowned because they were all Viltrumites, yet this nameless soldier possessed abilities that had never appeared even among the emperor's own royal lineage or warriors like Thragg.
"His genetic structure is… unusual. After all these experiments we still cannot fully understand it."
"If replication is impossible, then continuing to confine him here may not be the most efficient use of resources."
" The empire may gain greater value from deploying him, and if the goal is to obtain his abilities, perhaps reproduction would be more efficient than experimentation."
"Hmph that punk is only fourteen years old."
The room fell silent as Halvar returned his attention to the battlefield, watching the subject descend toward the fallen soldier while a faint green glow began to spread across the valley floor.
Halvar leaned forward as the subject placed a hand against the warrior's chest, causing broken bones to shift and torn flesh to seal itself until the Viltrumite stood once again.
"He healed him. Why would he do that?"
Halvar remained silent because deep down he understood the empire had not created a weapon, but something that might one day decide the fate of Viltrum itself.
If that happened, there would be only one rational solution for the doctor.
He would extract the secret of the bloodline, merge it with the imperial lineage, and dispose of the original.
.
.
.
The heavens above and the earth below, I alone am the honored one. With a single thought mountains crumble, seasons bend, and seas part.
I'm invincible.
During those endless training sessions and the relentless torture that defined my daily existence, I dreamed of reaching exactly that position—a height so far above everything else that no rival in the world could stand before me.
I wasn't there yet, but one thing became certain during the two years I spent as a guinea pig inside Halvar's laboratory.
I evolved.
Piece by piece, the weak version of myself was carved away, leaving behind something stronger, sharper, and infinitely more dangerous.
The insufferable pain long since dulled into a distant sensation, and the weak human mind that once wanted to bend its knees no longer cared about death.
Fear died somewhere along the way, and with each passing day I was growing stronger and more complete, becoming something closer to what I was meant to be.
If I stood against Thragg or the older Viltrumites now, I might still lose, but the concept of dying was no longer part of the equation.
It sounded delusional, but it wasn't, because as long as a single cell of my body remained, I would return stronger than before.
Of course, I was still waiting for the right time, though my patience was wearing thin as the arrogance of Viltrumite blood made the urge to kill harder to ignore.
Still, I held back because I knew what was coming.
From the memories of my previous life, I knew there would be a great purge in the coming years, and when that time arrived, it would be the moment to repay everything.
Even so, I forced myself to stay rational, sometimes wondering if the remnants of my human self were still there, refusing to let me fall completely into a monster.
Or maybe I simply understood that timing mattered more than strength, which is why these years were never truly wasted.
I made a name for myself.
The Imperial division still called me Subject Glenn, but among the soldiers another name began to spread.
Glenn the Unyielding.
There was nothing particularly grand about that moniker; it simply meant I came close to dying more times than anyone could count.
Time passed, and six more months slipped by in what felt like a blink until a fodder-mite delivered a message that changed everything.
The man at the top of my must-kill list was dethroned by the Imperial Council, meaning Halvar was no longer the empire's precious science freak.
Because of that, I was released once again, regaining my status as a Viltrumite citizen and soldier.
But the worse news came after.
Halvar was ordered to a remote warfront in some distant galaxy, which meant I still couldn't kill him.
Am I a fucking loser?
The thought slipped through before I could stop it, because even now, after everything, something still felt incomplete.
Sometimes I really wondered if there was something I was still lacking, a realization that kept eating at me the same way it used to when I was nothing more than a pathetic construction worker.
I hated that feeling.
Still… not everything was meaningless.
Somewhere along the way, I gained something unexpected.
My first friend in this land of Viltrumites.
The only thing wrong with this stupid bastard was his laziness, and I hated it, because what you do today is what builds a glorious future.
No one knows this better than I do.
"I've told you before, don't go all out with me, I can't take what you can."
"And I've told you, if I start holding back now, you'll never close the gap between us."
"You talk like there isn't one, damn it… you're a monster even by Viltrumite standards. Sometimes I wonder why they thought locking you up was a good idea."
"Don't praise me, I'm still going to beat you down. I hate seeing you weak."
"…What's wrong with being weak?"
For a moment, I didn't answer.
How was I supposed to explain that weakness wasn't just looked down upon in this empire, it was erased?
That a purge would come, and ninety percent of Viltrum would die simply because they weren't strong enough?
"Everything."
"…No, man."
Three hours later, Kang walked out of the arena.
I still wanted to continue, but he was simply too weak, and the other soldiers had already stopped sparring with me, calling me a degenerate freak.
I didn't care.
I was already fifteen, and next month would be my debut as a Viltrumite agent.
By then, I probably wouldn't be meeting him again, so I decided I would at least train him properly.
Conquest of worlds was the only truth the Viltrum Empire ever acknowledged, a purpose carved so deep into its people most never questioned it.
But I wasn't a true Viltrumite.
The idea of marching from planet to planet, crushing civilizations beneath my feet, felt hollow, like wearing someone else's skin and pretending it fit.
Still… outer planet assignments had their use.
Far enough from the empire's gaze, far enough that a man could vanish without leaving a trace.
That was where I intended to go. I had no desire to remain here longer than necessary.
But.
Before disappearing, before cutting myself loose from everything that shaped me into this thing, there were debts to repay.
Kraevus.
Halvar.
Every imperial hand that held me down and called it progress, none of them would keep breathing once I was done.
.
.
.
(End of the chapter)