Section I, Dream Rise House.
Kiba was standing at the center of the lab with his eyes on a virtual console panel. It was 3 AM and usually, at such a time, he would be sleeping with someone’s wife or daughter, but not today.
[[Examination has been completed.]]
"Show me the report," Kiba said.
The data on the body and gene structure of the revolutionaries flashed up on the virtual screen.
Some distance away, the cylindrical glass pod was placed inside a vacuum specimen container. The specimen container was surrounded by a thick red force field to handle any unforeseen outcome.
From time to time, rings of white light would pass up and down the glass pod. The blue nanites in the pod would seethe when they sensed the rings scanning them.
"Those nanites are more dangerous then I expected," Kiba thought with a serious expression, "I need more data before I work on a cure."
[[Preparations have been completed for checking the effects of the test material.]]
"Let’s start," Kiba walked towards the examination tables where the revolutionaries were cuffed.
[[Experiment specimen C-16 is ready. All scanners are active.]]
Kiba arrived next to the table where Mailo was lying. Two humanoid droids were standing on the opposite edges of the table with various operation equipment.
A transparent yellow covering surrounded Mailo from head to toe. The covering was created from small crystalline sensors on the edges of the table.
Kiba took a syringe from one of the droids. The syringe was filled with white liquid but one could make out the presence of a blue nanite inside.
Kiba’s hands passed through the transparent covering as he brought the syringe on the left wrist of Mailo.
"Please don’t," Mailo begged with tears falling down his eyes.
Kiba ignored the begging and injected the serum in Mailo’s bloodstream. Without any expression on his face, he observed Mailo.
"No----AHHHHHHHHH!"
In just a flick of a second, Mailo’s body lost its color and turned deathly pale. Every part of his body was trembling with sweat heavily pouring down.
His eyes opened wide with his sclera turning blue.
"STOP PLEASE...URGHH!"
Mailo couldn’t complete his words as his body convulsed further. It was like hot boil was flowing in his bloodstream instead of blood.
He screamed and cried with snot and tears covering his face.
The other revolutionaries heard the screams of their companion and they felt a chill down their spines.
"Stop it," Rufus shouted, "You don’t have to be so cruel."
"Revolutionaries would never forgive you if you continue," Yuzi joined in.
"There would be a price to pay," Another revolutionary shouted.
"Claudia, activate noise cancellation filter," Kiba commanded.
He has enough screams and begging from the revolutionaries.
[[Understood.]]
Invisible waves radiated out from the corners of the lab. They quickly changed the frequency of the sound waves.
Mailo’s screams didn’t stop neither did the protests of his companions, but there was no more sound in the lab.
Kiba waved a hand and a screen popped in front of him. The screen displayed the genetic and physical condition of Mailo.
The nucleotides ripped apart, and the energy from their destruction gathered together. This energy then passed to the body cells.
[[The cells are trans-mutating beyond the handling capacity of the specimen.]]
Blue lumps protruded out throughout Mailo’s body. At a rate visible to the naked eye, his body was expanding.
[[Activating Vaccum Suppression.]]
Sss
Glass walls rose around the examination table, effectively sealing it from every part.
Swoosh~!
The air inside was sucked by the glass walls, and just then Mailo reached his limit. The body cells detonated, unable to suppress the power any longer.
BOOM
Mailo exploded in a blue mushroom cloud carrying terrifying power. The explosive flames rushed at the glass walls trying to break free.
Kiba stood outside glass wall without any emotions on his face. Fire needed a medium to exist no matter how strong or strange it was; the same was true for the explosion created by the nanite.
Sss
The fire of the explosion slowly faded into oblivion living behind no traces of Mailo’s existence. The nanite particle too disappeared.
[[Specimen C-16 lasted 51 seconds under the influence of the test material.]]
"He was just useless trash," Kiba coldly said, "Couldn’t even survive for a minute."
[[The data has been compiled. Would you like to check it, sir?]]
"Yes," Kiba clicked on the screen to read the genetical mutation in Mailo before he died. His main focus was on the changes in genotypes and the coding region since it concerned the injuries in Felicity.
From his earlier observation and the preliminary scans of the nanites, he has a basic understanding of the working of the nanites.
The nanites were harmless on their own but if they were within the vicinity of a living being; they were anything but harmless.
The nanites relied on the genes of living beings to grow.
Genes.
A little more than a century ago, the Divine Particles from the meteorites started the large scale evolution on Earth.
The Divine Particles mutated the genes which were the carriers of hereditary data. The genes evolved to become more than just nucleotides. They became a source of an unimaginable power hidden in every being.
Alas, very few mutants could tap even 10% powers of their genes despite the help from modern science.
But the nanites were different. They feed on this untapped power source in the genes and use it to thrive.
If nanites were sparks of fire then genes were gasoline. The combination of two carried a might to destroy everything.
...
"I was lucky the nanite which invaded Felicity’s genes was weakened," Kiba thought while swiping away the virtual screen, "As for those suicide bombers, they must have been injected with nanites through an advanced method in order to suppress their might for some time."
Kiba glanced around the corner of the lab where a palm-size white mechanical orb was floating surrounded by streams of light.
"How much progress have you made in hacking that communication device?" Kiba asked.
He got that orb from Rufus when he teleported him and others here. He believed there should be some information on nanites which was why he needed it.
No matter how much genius he was or how advanced equipment he possessed, the revolutionaries were far ahead of him in nanites.
The reason was rather simple. They had time on their side, unlike Kiba.
Their research must on the nanites have been carried out for years if not for decades; it was not something that Kiba could match in the span of a few days. He needed the data the revolutionaries had no matter how insignificant.
[[36%. Two days before we could tap into the data.]]
"Haah," Kiba released a long sigh.
The communication device was encrypted with advanced technology so Claudia has to be extra careful while hacking it. After all, a single misstep could result in the destruction of the orb.
...
[[Specimen C-17 is ready.]]
"Not now," Kiba looked at Yuzi and others before shaking his head, "I first need to study data on Felicity more carefully."
He has only checked on Felicity when he carried out the operation on her. That time his focus was on saving her life instead of studying her injuries.
[[I understand.]]
A column of light projected out from the top of the ceiling. The light transformed into a large holographic projection of Felicity. She has her eyes closed while a strand of hairs lied on her face.
The projection was based on her current state in the hospital which was constantly recorded by Claudia. Five virtual screens popped up beside the projection displaying her body conditions.
"Felicity," Kiba muttered as he raised his hand to swipe a strand of hairs from her face. His hand passed through the projection.
"Ah!" He smiled at his own naive actions while the memories of their first meeting flashed in his mind.
He laughed as he recalled the instances when she bullied him to join her for a thrill ride.
His heart was filled with joy when he remembered how they promised to become siblings.
"Always a bully," Kiba closed his eyes while cherishing every memory of her.
Sometimes life gives you a special relationship when you never thought you need it, but yet oddly you favor it the most. For him, this relationship was with Felicity.
She was something that his dreams of hedonism could never give him. She was his friend...his sister.