Revenge: A Path of Destruction
Chapter 126: System Integration 3 (Flashback)

Chapter 126: System Integration 3 (Flashback)

Alex floated in the gel-like liquid, submerged fully. The cold was immediate, but it was not sharp or biting. It simply was. A neutral chill that clung to his skin, wrapping around him like a second layer. Strangely enough, he didn’t feel the urge to breathe.

His lungs weren’t expanding, yet he wasn’t suffocating. It was as if the liquid itself had oxygen woven into its molecular structure, diffused directly into his bloodstream through the pores of his skin.

It was unnatural. And yet... efficient.

Minutes passed.

A small circular aperture opened near the top of the capsule with a smooth hiss. From it, a mechanical arm—sleek, jointed, and needle-tipped—extended toward his head with inhuman precision. The needle glistened with the same shimmering blue hue as the fluid around him. Then, without hesitation, it drove the needle into the side of his skull—into the temporal region—threading toward the center of his brain.

The injection was immediate.

No pain.

No sound.

But within seconds, Alex felt everything distort.

His sense of up and down collapsed. His thoughts were scattered and fragmented like glass dropped on stone. He knew he existed, but even where or what he was became slippery. His sense of body—of being—was suspended in a void.

Thoughts tried to form.

Failed.

The input-output mechanisms of his brain had been paralyzed. The cocktail that entered his brain was a complex neuro-suppressant: halting pain, suppressing panic, and isolating voluntary and involuntary feedback to prevent spasms. Yet deep within his core, he knew something was happening.

Then came the second stage.

Four more hatches hissed open in the capsule, one from each side, and four surgical arms emerged, each carrying a specialized tool. Unlike the injection arm, these were shaped for intricate manipulation:

The first bore a surgical scalpel, mono-edged and glowing faintly—likely enchanted for clean incisions.

The second carried a retractor, designed to delicately pull apart tissue.

The third had micro-forceps—thin pincers capable of holding nerves and veins with extreme care.

The fourth held a cauterizing wand, used for sealing neural connections and blood vessels on a microscopic level.

The tools hovered over his skull.

Laser-thin scanners emerged from the capsule’s wall, flashing soft pulses of light across Alex’s head, mapping out every contour neuron connection down to the sub-cellular level.

A holographic 3D model of his brain—visible only to the system—appeared on a separate display inside the capsule. Data flowed rapidly, ensuring not a single mistake would occur.

Then, the first incision was made.

The scalpel carved a perfect line through his scalp, just above the occipital bone. No blood leaked—the cauterizing wand had already sealed the vessels when they were opened. The retractor expanded the incision gently, pulling back muscle and bone to expose the cranium beneath.

Another tool drilled a precise circular bore into the skull, granting direct access to the occipital lobe and primary visual cortex—the region responsible for processing visual data.

Why there?

For Alex to access the system interface similar to those in fantasy stories, NOVA would need to transmit this interface to him through his eyes. Additionally, Alex’s brain would have to directly interpret the quantum-encoded visual data from the Heads-Up Display (HUD) that NOVA would eventually provide.

The tools worked relentlessly, splitting nerve fibers in real-time with the integrated lattice, forming a perfect symbiosis between man and machine.

To Alex, drifting within the void, there was no pain.

But there was something—apressure—a growing awareness of being rewired, of his essence being reshaped.

Outside the capsule, the blue liquid had turned slightly brighter, indicating the nano-surgeons in the fluid had activated. They had one goal: repair tissue, monitor vitals, and support the integration without triggering rejection.

Nyxara watched with tension vibrating through her muscles. She didn’t understand what was happening inside, only that the capsule glowed in eerie rhythm—like a heartbeat echoing within a storm.

Within the sealed tomb of the capsule, the machine arms continued their sacred dance around Alex’s brain.

After a few minutes, they reached the core of the operations

The surgical hands paused, poised above the exposed occipital lobe and visual cortex, as if waiting for something.

Then, with a soft mechanical click, a new arm emerged from a compartment nestled deeper within the capsule’s frame. This one was different from the others: its head was sealed, bulbous, and connected to a compact canister covered in glowing black runes. The tip gleamed faintly, encased in a semi-translucent material that pulsed like a heartbeat.

This was no surgical tool.

This was the core of the transformation.

As the lid of the canister hissed open, a slow-moving black liquid—dense and shimmering with streaks of electric blue—was revealed. It pulsed with unnatural life, as if the substance itself were awake.

One of the previously idle surgical arms moved with deliberate care, unlatching the cap, and the newly emerged tool shifted, rotating smoothly to position itself over the exposed neural core: the optic nerve intersection, the fragile gateway connecting the eyes to the brain’s deepest visual processors.

Then, it poured.

The black liquid flowed in slow, careful strands, like ink suspended in water, as it touched the delicate neural tissue.

The effect was immediate.

A surge of movement sparked within the visual cortex as the substance, revealed now to be nano-bits, microscopic machines the size of individual cells, sprang to life. They fanned out in a perfect wave, slipping into neural pathways, crawling through synaptic clefts, and weaving themselves into the very fabric of Alex’s perception.

They didn’t replace.

They merged.

Fusing with each receptor, they enhanced conductivity, magnified signal clarity. They reshaped the visual system not just to see... but to interpret data on a quantum level, enabling real-time analysis, threat recognition, and energy pattern tracking far beyond the human norm.

Yet something was wrong.

Alex’s body began to tremble—barely at first, then violently.

The capsule shook slightly as muscle spasms rippled through his submerged form. His fists clenched and unclenched. Veins bulged across his forearms and neck. Despite the neuro-suppressant still active in his system, his nervous system had begun to fight back. Integration at the cortical level was triggering involuntary resistance. The body recognized it as foreign and rebelled.

The other machine arms shot into motion.

With perfect coordination, they began closing the surgical site. The scalpel and retractor were retracted. The forceps tucked the dura mater, veins, and muscle back into place with flawless care. The cauterizer sealed blood vessels without leaving a trace. One stitched, another disinfected, while a third reattached the cranial bone and fused it with surgical-grade bio-sealant runes that shimmered softly against the blue liquid.

Within three minutes, the brain was fully closed.

Another minute, and the scalp had been completely sealed—no trace of the invasive operation remained. The machine arms withdrew into the walls, vanishing without a sound. The capsule’s light dimmed to a soft violet as the system began internal stabilization.

Then—

Alex’s body arched violently.

And he screamed.

A deep, guttural roar of pain echoed through the chamber—raw, primal, filled with suffering he couldn’t describe. His voice reverberated against the walls like a storm unleashed from flesh.

Outside, Nyxara jumped to her feet, claws digging into the ground. Her ears flattened. She could feel it. The pain. The anguish.

Inside the capsule, Alex thrashed within the gel, though his limbs remained bound by the fluid’s density. His eyes were shut tight, but glowing veins of energy had begun pulsing beneath his skin, tracking across his spine, temple chest.

On the screen above,

Mona’s voice—calm, cold, and distant—rang out:

"Alex... this is where the real integration begins, so try your best to survive."

And Alex’s transformation had only just begun within that sealed chamber of steel, glass, and arcane technology.