Nick's Zephyx Synchronizer was attuning to the Maw.
Sadly, creating a hole in the Specter Core could prove disastrous for Nick.
Cracking the Specter Core with pressure created a fracture that went along one of the manipulation lines, which made it easily repairable.
However, breaking through the Specter Core via forceful implementation of a blade created a deep cut that didn't go along any manipulation lines.
This meant that fixing the manipulation lines after repairing the Specter Core wouldn't be as easy.
The problem was that trying to break the Specter Core in the same way the Maw had broken it was far too risky.
To be frank, the fact that Nick's Zephyx Synchronizer didn't break under the Maw's forceful grip was sheer luck.
It could have easily broken in two, which would have represented Nick's death.
On top of that, compressing the Specter Core in one's own hands was not easy. Attempting to do that would have been far too risky for Nick.
So, he had been forced to use his weapon.
Yet, that was still far better than being killed by the Maw because he couldn't attune to its ability.
As Nick was attuning to the Maw, he felt his Specter Core repairing.
Crk!
Nick put his blade back in to keep it from closing up.
Simultaneously, Nick consumed more and more of the Maw's Zephyx.
Suddenly, a white light shone out of Nick's neck through the hole that his blade had created.
He couldn't see it, but at this moment, white lines were forming on Nick's Zephyx Synchronizer.
At the same time, Nick felt his muscles shake and his blood boil.
WHOOM!
Then, the Specter Core around Nick's Zephyx Synchronizer started to shine.
BANG!
Nick's blade was violently pushed out as the Specter Core rapidly closed.
For a moment, Nick became panicked, but he quickly realized that the attunement had already been completed.
His Zephyx Synchronizer was attuned to the Maw.
However, Nick wasn't entirely sure what was happening to his Specter Core.
Nick focused on the Specter Core and felt manipulation lines forming on it.
'Of course!' Nick thought. 'This is a Specter Core, not a blank slate! This means that it is technically an entire Specter!'
'Just like how I am becoming a Specialist, the Specter Core is becoming a Fanatic!'
'But what does that mean for the manipulation lines I've created?' Nick thought with anxiety.
Would the mutation of the Specter Core erase all the hard work of the past years?
Nick felt the formation of new manipulation lines and the deletion of old ones.
Sure enough, all the old manipulation lines were vanishing.
This was bad!
The new lines that formed were far less numerous than the ones that had vanished, and Nick felt his Zephyx being thrown into chaos.
Nick's entire body shook, and the back of his neck started to shine even brighter.
'This is not just manipulation lines!' Nick realized.
His entire Specter Core was shining, and Nick felt like he was being encased by molten iron.
Everything was hot!
It was like his heart was sinking into magma!
He even swore that he could hear the sound of sizzling flesh coming from his neck.
Pain.
Agony.
Suffering.
Nick curled up on the ground and held his neck.
Now, he was certain that he wasn't imagining things!
His neck was actually burning and sizzling!
At the same time, more and more Zephyx was entering Nick's fleshy cell, and his body was absorbing all of it.
The hole inside the Specter Core had already healed, but shockingly, it was still absorbing the Maw's Zephyx.
This was not how things were supposed to work!
Nick gritted his teeth and tried to get through the pain.
It was immense.
This was comparable to the time he had touched the Salt Rock in Aegis' headquarters.
He wanted this to end!
Yet, despite all of the pain, fear, and panic, Nick refused to even think about saying the Sentence.
About a minute later, Nick's neck cooled down.
The light was vanishing.
It was almost like a hot liquid was slowly becoming solid again.
Crk!
Burnt flesh fell from Nick's back and neck as new flesh regrew.
Nick remained lying on the ground.
'I'm still alive,' he thought in relief.
After calming down, Nick slowly stood up.
Next, he closed his eyes and focused on his Specter Core.
Even without looking at it, he could already feel that something fundamental had changed.
First of all, Nick felt very different on a base level.
Earlier, the foreign Zephyx from the Specter Core had felt like a constant pressure or threat to him.
But now, it was different.
The foreign Zephyx was still there, but it didn't feel foreign or alien anymore.
Nick felt like the Zephyx was supposed to be there.
He felt like this was his Zephyx.
As Nick looked closer, he also realized something else.
The shock he felt was one of the biggest ones he had ever experienced in his life.
'Where's my Zephyx?' Nick thought, not being able to come to terms with what he was witnessing.
There was no human Zephyx inside of him.
Nothing!
Nick quickly checked his Zephosis cycle.
Nothing!
Nick was not undergoing Zephosis at this moment!
Yet, he felt full of power.
But how was that possible without Zephosis?!
Without Zephosis, Veterans and stronger couldn't survive since their vital functions used up more energy than nutrition and oxygen could provide.
A shocking thought appeared in Nick's mind.
'I don't need nutrition or oxygen anymore,' he thought slowly.
'I am essentially a walking corpse.'
'Or…'
Nick almost didn't dare consider that possibility.
'A Specter.'
Silence.
'I can't jump to conclusions,' Nick thought with urgency as he narrowed his eyes. 'I have to test this!'
The next moment, Nick looked at his left hand.
Shing!
He unsheathed his blade and cut one of his fingers off.
Nick gritted his teeth and watched his severed finger fall to the ground.
And as he continued watching, more and more pressure built inside of his head.
His finger…
It was turning into black mist!
This was not how human bodies acted!
This was how Specter bodies acted!
Nick looked at the stump on his left hand.
Then, he saw a black pillar growing out of it before it changed colors and form to become Nick's finger again.
Silence.
This was undeniable proof.
This was no longer a human body.
Nick gritted his teeth.
CRK!
A moment later, he made a hole in his Specter Core again.
Nick went deeper and deeper until, eventually…
CRK!
The tip of the blade came out of the other side.
Nick's perception was reeling, and it was difficult for him to remain conscious due to the damage, but he forced himself to stay awake.
Finally, he pulled his blade out.
Nothing.
'There's no Zephyx Synchronizer!' Nick realized as his perception entered his Specter Core.
The Specter Core was empty or, from another point of view, solid.
The fact was that there was no Zephyx Synchronizer in the middle.
There was only a Specter Core.
At that moment, Nick took note of his surroundings, or more accurately, the things lying around him.
Flesh.
Pieces of a human body.
His human body.
Nick could even see his own head and his own eyes lying on the ground.
The human body was not in one piece.
It looked more like the molt of an insect.
It looked like something had crawled out of the body's back and cast the old body off like trash.
Nick felt a profound feeling of alienation.
This was not him.
He was not Nick.
Who was he?
What was he?
Nick's mind panicked, and his emotions were going wild.
'Emotions?' Nick thought at that moment. 'Specters don't have emotions, right?'
Nick focused on his own emotions.
Were these emotions?
The more he focused on his emotions, the more distant and artificial they felt.
Was he actually feeling what he was thinking he was feeling?
How could he tell whether or not his emotions were real?
As Nick asked himself these questions, he calmed down.
It was like the storm in Nick's mind had moved to the back.
So, these were not emotions…
And yet, the storm of emotions was still there.
It was just in the back of Nick's mind.
It had not completely vanished.
They were just very dulled.
The storm of emotions in the background calmed down a little as Nick realized something.
'This is not a complete transformation,' he thought.
'This is not a complete takeover of my old Specter Core. My old Specter Core did not completely consume and annex my Zephyx Synchronizer.'
'This is a fusion.'
'This is like a share exchange between two unequal companies. It's like Sky Dream fusing with Kugelblitz.'
'The owners of Kugelblitz get 90% of Sky Dream, while Sky Dream gets 10% of Kugelblitz.'
'Sky Dream is essentially Kugelblitz, but there is still a small part that is autonomous.'
Slowly, things started to make sense.
'I am a Specter.'
'But I am not a pure Specter.'
Sadly, before Nick could think more about his new state of being, one of the walls opened.
It seemed like it was time to begin.