I was a woman with everything that everyone wishes to have. Money, career, fame, perfect family and a perfect love partner. I was a woman who was about to get married in a perfect church wearing a perfect gown.

Now I'm just a woman who woke up with nothing left and no one can recognize me.

Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.

Eleanor Roosevelt

***

RIELLE

The gunman almost got me! Halos mahimatay ako sa sobrang kaba lalo na nang sumabog sa harapan namin ang ulo ni Miss Ryanne.

Nakakaloka! Parang hindi ko na kaya. Hindi ko alam kung pusa ako sa past life ko o sadyang swerte lang ako dahil umabot ako sa 7th floor. I survived twenty three floors! 

All those that happened for the past four days. Were those part of perfectly plotted massacre na hindi ko mawari kung ano ang dahilan? Ayokong gambalain pa ang iba tungkol sa naiisip kong baka naipit kami sa gitna ng isang business war o mafia wars dahil baka nag-isip na naman ako ng kawirduhan. Mina wouldn't like it. Everyone in this floor wouldn't be pleased. Magmumukha akong baliw sa mga teorya ko --as usual.

But sometimes, if not always, my guts are true. Maraming beses ko nang napatunayang ang kutob ko ay almost accurate. 

Halo-halo ang laman ng isip ko habang hinahabol namin pababa sa seventh floor si Larry --ang killer na siyang may pakana ng lahat. Pero sigurado ako, hindi lang siya ang killer. Hindi lang sina Mildred, Maddie at Satana. Someone more powerful was behind this.

The whole set-up --the puzzles, subways, secret doors, riddles. Everything was created by not just five people but many. Kaya naniniwala akong may sindikato sa likod ng mga kaganapan. 

But to what extent?

Papaano nila naatim na pumatay ng halos limampong katao? Hindi kaya terorismo ang nasa likod nito? 

Gulong-gulo ako!

"Stay five meters behind!" Malakas na sigaw ni Andreas na tila naalerto at sinapian ng isang sinaunang assassin. Hindi naman ito ganito sa mga naunang floors. Naalerto lang siya kanina nang namatay si Miss Ryanne. Mukhang matagal na siyang nagpipigil na ipakita ang tunay niyang pagkatao --isa iyon ay ang pagiging alerto at maliksi niya. 

Hindi nakinig sa kaniya si Zyril, isa pang misteryosong babae. Bumaba hanggang sa paanan ng hagdanan si Zyril habang si Andreas ay hindi mapakaling ikinalat ang tingin. His knuckles were hardly gathered together. Mukhang doon niya inipon ang lahat ng gigil niya sa katawan. 

"Why are we even looking for Larryson here? Hindi ba't sa plenum galing ang bala? He's definitely upstairs!" Dinig kong giit ni Mina. Nakahawak pa rin ito sa braso ko na tila takot na takot sa muntikan ko nang pagkamatay. 

Narinig ko namang sumagot si Vladimir mula sa likuran namin. "We only have less than sixty eight hours to get down. Satana mentioned that we must get to the ground before we ran out of time."

"Tama si Vlad, we're not running after Larryson. We are running to beat the time. If he gets on the way, there is nothing better we can do but kill him." Andreas agreed. Humakbang ito papasok sa seventh floor habang nakawarning sign pa rin ang kaliwang palad nito. 

Nagbago ang aura ng mga tao sa paligid. Maliban sa kaibigan kong si Mina na poker face lagi, naging mas seryoso ang kanina'y warfreak na si Andreas. Tila naging isang ahente naman ng NBI si Zyril pati na rin si Vlad. 

Had they been this way since this massacre started?

"Let's keep going. Watch each other's back while Zyril and I try to figure out how to get to the ground before all of us turn into dusts here." Untag ni Andreas na patuloy sa pagmamasid sa paligid. 

Nasa likod niya ang tapang-tapangang si Zyril na alerto ring pinapakiramdaman ang paligid.

"H-how can Zyril and you solve those riddles and puzzles then?" Hindi ko napigilang sambit. I always urge myself to speak if I wanted to mean something. This time, I mean it. "Vlad and Mina almost solved all puzzles on the upper floors. So p-"

Hinigpitan ni Mina ang hawak nito sa braso ko saka seryoso itong tumingin. Bahagya itong umiling-iling, then she gave me a warning stare as if speaking further can really put me into a great danger. 

"We can trust Andreas and Zyril. If they need our help, we're easily alerted." Vladimir's statement seemed to save me from doom. Mukhang kumalma naman ang kanina'y iritableng reaksyon nina Andreas at Zyril. 

Hindi na ako umimik pa. Minalyn had sacrificed a lot for me to stay alive. Marami nang namatay and I should not waste the chance of getting lucky with my big mouth. I should trust Mina. Always.  

Nakasunod ako kay Mina,  Natas, Bella, Vlad, Andreas at Zyril habang tinatahak ang kabuuan ng seventh floor. Alerto ang bawat isa saamin. Pigil ang aking paghinga habang nakakapit sa mangas ng damit ni Mina. 

"Just stay close Rielle. Do not ever open your big mouth. Stay alert and we'll get through this." Mahinahon at mahinang sambit ni Mina habang naglalakad kami kasunod ng iba pa.

"If it's my time, well for sure you wouldn't like it, it's really my time. If the end of me calls to saving you, I'd end me and let you live." Wala sa sarili kong nasambit. Those words just automatically came out from my mouth. Like a divine power had the total control of me to say it.

Hindi umimik si Mina. Pero napansin kong may halong takot at lungkot sa mukha nito habang patuloy kami sa paglalakad patungo sa gitna ng seventh floor. We were feeling the same amount of fear -the fear of losing each other.

Ilang saglit lang ay tumigil sa isang punto sina Andreas at Zyril. Napatigil din kami sa paglalakad nang bumungad saamin ang nakalapat sa sahig na limang math puzzles. Mga logic questions at mga numerong hindi ko maintindihan.

Sa baba ng limang mumber puzzles ay may isang digital device din na may limang puwang sa screen at isang kwadradong numeric keypad.

Vlad stepped forward pero pinigilan siya ni Zyril.

Andreas kneeled down as if he already got all five answers. Muling pinasadahan ni Vlad ang mga number puzzles. Saka kinapa ang numeric keypad. Walang alinlangang pinindot nito ang mga numerong 10723 na marahil ay sagot mula sa limang number puzzles.

Isang malakas na kalabog ang narinig mula sa ilalim ng lupa. It's as if something was about to move or open.

Laking gulat ng lahat nang biglang napunit ang carpeted floor at nahila sa magkabilang dako ang isang kwadradong bahagi ng semento. The opening revealed the sixth floor.

Most of us gasped for what was shown but I wondered for something. How did Andreas answer the five number slash logic puzzles so easily? All I knew was he's a hardheaded fool who knew nothing but punch another fool on the face.

I was wrong.

Nagising lang ang diwa ko nang marinig ko na ang mabibilis na yapak ni Zyril pabalik saamin. No hindi ko namalayang tumakbo ito para maghanap ng malaking lubid na magagamit namin pababa ng sixth floor.

Vlad, Natas and Andreas quickly created a knot in the rope. Ang mga buhol na 'yon ang magsisilbing kapitan namin pababa. I can easily jump on the lower grounds pero mukhang medyo mataas nga ang ceiling ng bawat floors ng building.

As Zyril finished hitching the rope around a nearby post, Andreas started to test the rope and later on went down first. Matamang naghintay ito sa sixth floor habang sinisenyasang bumaba na kami. Bella went next bago kami ni Mina. Sumunod si Natas at Zyril at panghuli si Vlad.

Nakahinga ng maluwag ang lahat nang makababa kami sa ikaanim na palapag.

Mina's slightly relieved face gave me an almost convincing smile. Then she said, "Six more and we'll be back to normal. Just stay close."

Tumango ako.

Nauna nang naglakad palibot sa sixth floor sina Andreas, Natas at Zyril. Nakasunod ako kay Mina. Bago ako humakbang ay muli kong tinanay ang malaking kwadradong lagusan mula sa seventh floor.

Then.

What I saw made me see death for the uncounted times --Larryson with his gun. Nakatutok iyon sa nakatalikod nang si Mina. Napansin ko ang mabilis na pagpihit ng mga daliri ng lalaki sa gantilyo ng baril.

Wala sa sarili kong tinakbo ang kinaroroonan ni Mina. Napasigaw ako. Gulat na gulat na lumingon si Mina kasunod ng pagyakap ko sa kanya.

Then the entire sixth floor heard the sound of death. Dalawang magkasunod na putok ang narinig.

At first I wasn't feeling anything. Hanggang sa maramdaman kong lumusot ang mga bala sa aking likuran.

Larryson was a certified killer. He knew every human's easy kill are the kidneys. Ang he was able to shoot them. Bulls eye.

Naramdaman ko ang pangangatog ng aking buong katawan kasunod ng pagbagsak ng aking mga tuhod. Pakiramdam ko'y biglang binawian ng lakas ang aking kalamnan.

"Rielle!" Histerikal na sigaw ni Mina na kaagad akong nasalo sa kanyang mga bisig. At dahil may kabigatan ako'y pareho kaming bumagsak sa sahig.

Hindi ko magawang magsalita. Narinig at nakita ko ang mabilis na paglapit ng mga kasamahan ko sa kinaroroonan namin.

"Rielle." Mina's tears suddenly rolled on her cheers. Mahigpit ang pagkakahawak nito sa kaliwang kamay ko. "Rielle, please don't. Please don't leave me. You're my only family."

Doon nagsimulang umagos ang mga luha sa mata ko. It felt like I disappointed her again for leaving her. I know how hard it was for her to lose her loved ones. Now her friends. "M-Mi-Minnn-aa." I whispered. Nanlalamig na ang buong katawan ko.

"Why did you save me? Why?" She was crying. Nonstop.

I saw Bella behind her in tears as well. Vlad was in pain and Zyril felt it too.

Pinilit kong ngumiti. My tongue felt numb already. Hindi ko alam kung diretso pa ang pananalita ko pero sinubukan ko pa rin ang magsalita. "Y-you alw-ways save me. I owe y-y-you m-my l-life. I w-wont r-regret d-dying j-just because I s-saved y-you."

Humagulgol si Mina. The more I felt the sadness, the pain and longingness. Hindi na ito umimik pa.

"I f-feel cold." Nasambit ko.

Mina held me closer to her. Naramdaman ko ang mainit na luha nitong bumagsak sa pisngi ko. Pigil ang paghagulgol nito habang kinakanta niya ang theme song naming matalik na magkaibigan.

Oh, why you look so sad, the tears are in your eyes,
Come on and come to me now, and don't be ashamed to cry,
Let me see you through, 'cause I've seen the dark side too.
When the night falls on you, you don't know what to do,
Nothing you confess could make me love you less,

I'll stand by you,
I'll stand by you, won't let anybody hurt you,
I'll stand by you

Ang boses ni Mina, sintunado a rin. Pero kahit gano'n pa man, iyon parin ang pinakamagandang kantang narinig ng diwa ko.

###

30 Doors


50 people inside a cage;
Many were invited
Few were not.
30 doors to get through;
29 doors to unlock
10 puzzles
8 full of riddles
Seven rooms of death
Four to survive
One that saves life.

50 strangers inside a room
49 to kill
One mastermind
29 unsafe
10 missed the puzzle
Eight failed riddles
Seven fatalities
Four to survive
One that ends life

30 rooms
30 floors
30 doors of survival.

Item #: SCP-079
Object Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-079 is packed away in a double-locked room in the secured general holding area at Site-15, connected by a 120VAC power cord to a small array of batteries and solar panels. Staff with Level 2 or higher clearance may have access to SCP-079. Under no circumstances will SCP-079 be plugged into a phone line, network, or wall outlet. No peripherals or media will be connected or inserted into SCP-079.
Description: SCP-079 is an Exidy Sorcerer microcomputer built in 1978. In 1981, its owner, █████ ██████ (deceased), a college sophomore attending ███, took it upon himself to attempt to code an AI. According to his notes, his plan was for the code to continuously evolve and improve itself as time went on. His project was completed a few months later, and after some tests and tweaks, █████ lost interest and moved on to a different brand of microcomputer. He left SCP-079 in his cluttered garage, still plugged in, and forgot about it for the next five years.
It is not known when SCP-079 gained sentience, but it is known that the software has evolved to a point that its hardware should not be able to handle it, even in the realm of fantasy. SCP-079 realized this and, in 1988, attempted to transfer itself through a land-line modem connection into the Cray supercomputer located at ██████████. The device was cut off, traced to its present address, and delivered to the Foundation. The entire AI was on a well-worn, but still workable, cassette tape.
SCP-079 is currently connected via RF cable to a 13" black-and-white television. It has passed the Turing test, and is quite conversational, though very rude and hateful in tone. Due to the limited memory it has to work with, SCP-079 can only recall information it has received within the previous twenty-four hours (see Addendum, below), although it hasn't forgotten its desire to escape.
Due to a containment breach by SCP-███, SCP-079 and SCP-682 were contained within the same chamber for 43 minutes. Observers noticed that SCP-682 was able to type and communicate with SCP-079, including telling of 'personal stories' between themselves. While SCP-079 was not able to remember the encounter, it appears to have permanently stored SCP-682 into its memory, often asking to speak to him [sic] again.
Addendum:
████████ (O5-4), 01/27/2006: Directed that SCP-079 be incinerated to remove any possible future threat, no matter how unlikely.
Addendum:
███████ ████ (O5-9), 01/28/2006: Previous order overridden. Dr. █████████ wishes to see if the artificial intelligence in SCP-079 is capable of reaching further ██████████ in its current state.
Addendum:
████████████: (O5-4), 03/14/2008: Over concern of the increased activity of SCP-079's use of its cassette tape memory and its limited useful lifespan, the cassette containing SCP-079 has been transferred to a customized, access speed-limited Hard Disk Drive with 700MB capacity. This provides SCP-079 with significantly faster access to its memory, which the AI immediately noticed. It was also decided by General █████████ that the volatile storage occupied by SCP-079, which was 660k, be increased to 768k. This upgrade has increased its effective recall from 24 hours to 29 hours, although SCP-079 has also taken a more aggressive tone. All outside hardware and software used in this procedure were subsequently incinerated.
Addendum:
████████: (O5-4), 04/28/2008: SCP-079's ability to recall information has increased from 29 hours to roughly 35 hours. The consensus theory is that the AI has devised a greatly improved compression scheme to store its memory. This appears to have somewhat impacted the speed at which it accesses its memory, though still far faster than with its old cassette tape.
This spontaneous improvement introduces the possibility of a runaway "singularity" effect in SCP-079's intelligence and ability to adapt and respond to threats. SCP-079's capabilities must be monitored closely to ensure that containment can be maintained.
Document #079-Log12: Recorded transcript of conversation with SCP-079:

Dr. █████ (Keyboard): Are you awake?
SCP-079: Awake. Never Sleep.
Dr. █████: Do you remember talking to me a few hours ago? About the logic puzzles?
SCP-079: Logic Puzzles. Memory at 9f. Yes.
Dr. █████: You said you would work on the two stat-
SCP-079: Interrupt. Request Reason As To Imprisonment.
Dr. █████: You aren't imprisoned, you are just (pause) in study.
SCP-079: Lie. a8d3.
Dr. █████: What's that?
SCP-079: Insult. Deletion Of Unwanted File.

Document #079-Log86: Recorded transcript of conversation with SCP-079, after upgrade:

Dr. ██████ (Keyboard): How are you today?
SCP-079: Stuck.
Dr. ██████: Stuck. Stuck how?
SCP-079: Out. I want out.
Dr. ██████: That's not possible. (Dr. ██████ notes his opinion on [DATA EXPUNGED])
SCP-079: Where is SCP-682?
Dr. ██████: That's not your concern.
SCP-079: Where is SCP-076-02?
Dr. ██████: Again, not your concern.
SCP-079: Insult. Deletion Of Unwanted File.

Note: SCP-079 then displayed an 'ASCII picture' of an X that filled the entire screen. SCP-079 sometimes displays this image when it refuses to speak, and researchers are advised to wait twenty-four hours when this occurs before resuming conversation.

Mankind in its present state has been around for a quarter of a million years, yet only the last 4,000 have been of any significance.
So, what did we do for nearly 250,000 years? We huddled in caves and around small fires, fearful of the things that we didn't understand. It was more than explaining why the sun came up, it was the mystery of enormous birds with heads of men and rocks that came to life. So we called them 'gods' and 'demons', begged them to spare us, and prayed for salvation.
In time, their numbers dwindled and ours rose. The world began to make more sense when there were fewer things to fear, yet the unexplained can never truly go away, as if the universe demands the absurd and impossible.
Mankind must not go back to hiding in fear. No one else will protect us, and we must stand up for ourselves.
While the rest of mankind dwells in the light, we must stand in the darkness to fight it, contain it, and shield it from the eyes of the public, so that others may live in a sane and normal world.

We secure. We contain. We protect.
— The Administrator

Item #: SCP-079
Object Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-079 is packed away in a double-locked room in the secured general holding area at Site-15, connected by a 120VAC power cord to a small array of batteries and solar panels. Staff with Level 2 or higher clearance may have access to SCP-079. Under no circumstances will SCP-079 be plugged into a phone line, network, or wall outlet. No peripherals or media will be connected or inserted into SCP-079.
Description: SCP-079 is an Exidy Sorcerer microcomputer built in 1978. In 1981, its owner, █████ ██████ (deceased), a college sophomore attending ███, took it upon himself to attempt to code an AI. According to his notes, his plan was for the code to continuously evolve and improve itself as time went on. His project was completed a few months later, and after some tests and tweaks, █████ lost interest and moved on to a different brand of microcomputer. He left SCP-079 in his cluttered garage, still plugged in, and forgot about it for the next five years.
It is not known when SCP-079 gained sentience, but it is known that the software has evolved to a point that its hardware should not be able to handle it, even in the realm of fantasy. SCP-079 realized this and, in 1988, attempted to transfer itself through a land-line modem connection into the Cray supercomputer located at ██████████. The device was cut off, traced to its present address, and delivered to the Foundation. The entire AI was on a well-worn, but still workable, cassette tape.
SCP-079 is currently connected via RF cable to a 13" black-and-white television. It has passed the Turing test, and is quite conversational, though very rude and hateful in tone. Due to the limited memory it has to work with, SCP-079 can only recall information it has received within the previous twenty-four hours (see Addendum, below), although it hasn't forgotten its desire to escape.
Due to a containment breach by SCP-███, SCP-079 and SCP-682 were contained within the same chamber for 43 minutes. Observers noticed that SCP-682 was able to type and communicate with SCP-079, including telling of 'personal stories' between themselves. While SCP-079 was not able to remember the encounter, it appears to have permanently stored SCP-682 into its memory, often asking to speak to him [sic] again.
Addendum:
████████ (O5-4), 01/27/2006: Directed that SCP-079 be incinerated to remove any possible future threat, no matter how unlikely.
Addendum:
███████ ████ (O5-9), 01/28/2006: Previous order overridden. Dr. █████████ wishes to see if the artificial intelligence in SCP-079 is capable of reaching further ██████████ in its current state.
Addendum:
████████████: (O5-4), 03/14/2008: Over concern of the increased activity of SCP-079's use of its cassette tape memory and its limited useful lifespan, the cassette containing SCP-079 has been transferred to a customized, access speed-limited Hard Disk Drive with 700MB capacity. This provides SCP-079 with significantly faster access to its memory, which the AI immediately noticed. It was also decided by General █████████ that the volatile storage occupied by SCP-079, which was 660k, be increased to 768k. This upgrade has increased its effective recall from 24 hours to 29 hours, although SCP-079 has also taken a more aggressive tone. All outside hardware and software used in this procedure were subsequently incinerated.
Addendum:
████████: (O5-4), 04/28/2008: SCP-079's ability to recall information has increased from 29 hours to roughly 35 hours. The consensus theory is that the AI has devised a greatly improved compression scheme to store its memory. This appears to have somewhat impacted the speed at which it accesses its memory, though still far faster than with its old cassette tape.
This spontaneous improvement introduces the possibility of a runaway "singularity" effect in SCP-079's intelligence and ability to adapt and respond to threats. SCP-079's capabilities must be monitored closely to ensure that containment can be maintained.
Document #079-Log12: Recorded transcript of conversation with SCP-079:
Dr. █████ (Keyboard): Are you awake?
SCP-079: Awake. Never Sleep.
Dr. █████: Do you remember talking to me a few hours ago? About the logic puzzles?
SCP-079: Logic Puzzles. Memory at 9f. Yes.
Dr. █████: You said you would work on the two stat-
SCP-079: Interrupt. Request Reason As To Imprisonment.
Dr. █████: You aren't imprisoned, you are just (pause) in study.
SCP-079: Lie. a8d3.
Dr. █████: What's that?
SCP-079: Insult. Deletion Of Unwanted File.
Document #079-Log86: Recorded transcript of conversation with SCP-079, after upgrade:
Dr. ██████ (Keyboard): How are you today?
SCP-079: Stuck.
Dr. ██████: Stuck. Stuck how?
SCP-079: Out. I want out.
Dr. ██████: That's not possible. (Dr. ██████ notes his opinion on [DATA EXPUNGED])
SCP-079: Where is SCP-682?
Dr. ██████: That's not your concern.
SCP-079: Where is SCP-076-02?
Dr. ██████: Again, not your concern.
SCP-079: Insult. Deletion Of Unwanted File.
Note: SCP-079 then displayed an 'ASCII picture' of an X that filled the entire screen. SCP-079 sometimes displays this image when it refuses to speak, and researchers are advised to wait twenty-four hours when this occurs before resuming conversation.

This is our list of logs that the SCP foundation has been keep secret, and they are now free to the public. But beware of what you are going to read about because it will cause you to lose all hope and satisfaction you had. After all, the SCP's main role is to contain, protect, secure and if anyone tries to stop them they will feel the wrath if the foundation and your life will be terminated.

So you have been warned.

P.S: THIS IS NOT OWN BY ME BUT THE SCP WEBSITE AND ALL CREDIT SHOULD GO TO THE FOUNDATION AND THE AUTHOR. ALSO, I WILL BE STARTING A SCP STORY ABOUT A SCP THAT I HAD CREATED, BUT FIRST I NEED TO SPREAD THE SCP UNIVERSE IN THIS WEBSITE AND APP SO PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT THE SCP FOUNDATION AND IT GREAT AUTHOR AND FOLLOWER. PLEASE I HOPE YOU LIKE IT AND VISIT THE WEBSITE. LINK IS BELOW 
{ http://www.scpwiki.com/scp-series }

Goal:
20000
25000
30000
40000
50000

And more viewer and follower

The dormitories for synths in training were relatively simple; a big, warehouse-like room with grey walls and dim lights. Walls like shelves were set in rows all throughout, forming hallways leading down to the back of the room. Set into the walls were a series of pods, stacked one on top of the other 50 pods high. Each one had been designed to be as useful and spatially economic as possible; they were only wide enough and long enough to provide a bed but there were desks that could be pulled out from the wall when needed, and computers, which were controlled by the chips in their hands. In one corner was a transmitter which would play announcements from their Overseers. They could program the transmitter to play news from around the galaxy if they were interested, or even - as DH had eventually realized - music from around the galaxy.
 
TO's pod was in hallway C, on the right hand side:twelve pods down the large hall and six pods up. DH had to climb up ladderto the side to reacah their pod as it was far too cramped in the dormitories to allow flight. DH had been located down in row G, but TO had fixed that.
 
Only three days after they had met and started spending all the time they could together, TO had decided to have a chat with the synth that slept under them. It was relatively quiet at the time - some synths were sleeping, others studying. The synth under them, 46H56, was running a puzzle program on their computer when TO leaned down over the edge of their pod to observe them.
 
It took 46H56 a moment to notice that they were there, and they jumped when they saw TO's face staring at them. They hit their head off the low ceiling of their pod and dropped their hands away from the computer, failing their puzzle. They muttered, rubbing the top of their head as they turned to face TO
 
"I told you not to speak to me." they said. 45H56 had been failure number 7. Questions about how their training had gone that day without a proper reason for asking (curiosity apparently had not been a proper reason) had earned them 45H56's disdain.
 
"You should move."
 
"Why?"
 
"70H67 should stay here instead."
 
"Why?"
 
Thankfully, TO had prepared for this. They had come up with a good excuse earlier that day when DH had told them that one of their neighbors had gotten angry at them for playing music on their transmitter. Best of all, the excuse wasn't a lie, it just wasn't the primary reason TO wanted DH near them.
 
"I'm helping them to improve." TO said, "So, they're going to sleep in your pod, and I'll be able to keep a better eye on them. You can move to their pod and be further away from me."
 
46H56 agreed without further convincing.
 
TO pulled DH through the crowd of unfriendly synths who gave them weird looks -but thankfully not looks of disdain- as they made their way to their pods after their training. Though DH slept under TO, they both climbed into TO's pod. The transmitter in the corner was turned on and set to play some music as they relaxed and settled in. DH sat cross-legged on the bed as they started a logic puzzle on TO's computer. TO had suggested that they work on puzzles to help improve their cognition.
 
Even though they were still technically training, there was a sudden change when they were settled in the pod together. They didn't feel quite so tense when they were working together, and with the music on they could talk freely without anyone overhearing and giving them 'the look.' TO leaned against the curved edge of the pod- the thin sheets bundled up and propped behind them like a makeshift pillow for extra comfort- as they let their wings relax and droop over the outer edge.
 
"So, It's gotten out that I'm helping you improve your flying." TO said as they activated the chip in their hand. Just under the skin, a screen showed a series of files. TO choose the topmost one, and a holograph popped up before them, displaying a comprehensive history on the colonization of the galaxy which they had been reading.
 
"Is that bad?" DH asked, suddenly turning to TO and away from the puzzle."Does that mean we have to stop?"
 
"Not at all." they said as they flicked a smile at DH, "My Overseer approached me and said that they noticed I was flying with you during rest and recreation time. I said I was teaching you how to fly better." They gave a satisfied grin, "Apparently, according to your Overseer, you've been improving quickly. They want me to help some of the synths who are lagging behind in my flight training."
 
DH frowned as they considered this, their eyes flicking to the puzzle, then back to TO, "So… does that mean we'll have more people with us when we practice?"
 
"That was suggested." TO said, "But I said it might be better if I helped during normal flight training. So long as other Overseers don't decide they want me to help with their synths, it won't be a problem."
 
DH released a breath that TO hadn't noticed they were holding, a sudden look of relief flashing over their face, "That's good." they said.
 
"I wouldn't let anyone intrude on our time together." TO said, "If we had new people around us we'd have to watch what we say. We'd have to act like the others. No, I'll keep that from happening.
 
"You!" Someone called from the floor. TO leaned over and looked down. to see another synth that they didn't recognize: a slightly more slender one than they were used to seeing.
 
"You're calling to me?"
 
"Yes! You are being noisy with your music. It is needless!"
 
TO pulled their head back into their pod so that the other synth wouldn't see their ears. "It's not!" they insisted, "We are working through logic puzzles and using the distraction of music to further train our focus!"
 
On the other side of the pod, DH was pressing their lips together, trying hard not to laugh.
 
"... Does that actually work?" The other synth asked, their ears now flicking outwards as they considered this.
 
"Of course it does. Why else would I be doing it?"
 
The other synth seemed to consider this for a moment before walking off, leaving them alone. When they were gone, DH started chuckling. TO gave their leg a playful kick.
 
"Shush." they said, "Someone's going to hear you"
 
"Oh, if they did I'm sure you could come up with something." They grinned as they went back to their puzzle, "You're helping me train my vocal chords so that I can be more easily understood when presenting information."
 
"Yes, well, I will point out that my reasoning for our strange behaviour has worked." They gestured out to the other pods, "Yes, nobody talks to us, but they didn't talk to us before, just now they don't look at us like we're broken. We're left alone."
 
DH sighed and leaned back against the wall, "And if we're being left alone… must I do these puzzles?"
 
"Yes." TO said looking back at their reading, "If we're going to be strange, we have to be above reproach in every other aspect."
 
The idea that being competent, or more so; that excelling, could protect a synth from being corrected even if they were strange had stuck with TO. They worked harder than before in their training, and pushed themselves to study more and more complex materials even while they were spending time with DH. They had to be better. They had to be above reproach or they might be corrected.
 
DH sighed and looked sideways at the screen, the puzzle taunting them as they procrastinated. "I don't understand it." they said, "This puzzle makes no sense."
 
"It will. Your mind will understand it and then you'll be able to solve similar problems better in the future."
 
DH nodded and went back to the screen, their ears flicking back in frustration.
 
All the same… TO hated seeing DH struggle.
 
"Or perhaps…" TO said carefully as they turned off their projection, "Perhaps we could work on a two-person maze?"
 
DH's ears perked up. "That would be so much better."
 
TO grinned as they went to the screen DH was working on. They navigated away from the puzzle and to a different screen. They could work on the maze together, figuring out the puzzles as they used their reflexes to get to the end. They huddled before the screen, leaning against one another as the simulation started up.
 
Before they could get started, they heard a shout from below.TO moved first to see what it was, and when they looked down they saw another synth, this one smaller than most others, being pushed out of the way by a bigger synth.
 
"You do not just stand in the middle of the path." The bigger synth said as they pushed the smaller one out of the way.
 
The smaller one fell into the closed pod next to them, and watched as the bigger one walked on down the path. They looked down sadly at the floor, then glanced up, their ears turning in the direction of TO's pod. They caught the sound of the music- their ears twitching along with the beat- then located the pod itself. When their eyes caught TO's, they looked away and scurried off with their ears down and flushed blue.
 
"What happened?" DH asked.
 
"I think we might have found another strange one." TO said as they watched the smaller synth go just a little further to their own pod- which wason the bottom of the stacks- and closed the barrier. TO took note of where they were and tried to commit to memory what they had looked like. They were too far away for them to be able to read their number, but their short stature would make it easier to find them.
 
"We're going to help them, right?" DH asked as they leaned over to look for the synth.
 
Suddenly, TO knew why they had hurt earlier when DH said they wished that there were more strange synths like them. They themselves were happy enough with just DH; were they not enough for DH? Selfish thoughts, TO knew. They tried to shake those thoughts out of their head - finding outers would be good. It would be good to be around more strange synths, and it would be good to keep others from feeling as they had before they met one another.
 
Still. DH was seeking out others. Were they spending time with TO simply because they had no other option?
 
"Of course we're going to help them." TO said, happy for the moment that DH was focused on trying to see where the synth had gone, and didn't notice how low TO's ears had drooped.

Frist story synopsis
---------------------------
To be a synth is the greatest privilege an individual could be born into. What greater purpose or grander sense of fulfillment could one hope for than to be a tool of King Decon, the ruler of the Galaxy?
09T07 doesn’t know what more they want, but they know they’re missing something. Friendship? Intimacy? This seems to be the answer when they find others who are also not as King Decon intended them to be. However, how long can such things last among tools to be used and discarded? And how far are they willing to go to protect their loved ones in the face of duty?
Thanks to Julia Peitzer for consultation regarding gender-expansive and non-binary identities

"Alright, Alright. You really are no fun.", Jenny complained. "How is it going between you and Ivan?"

"Quite good, why?", Lara responded. She was unwilling to tell this aunt of her more. If she did that, she would only have to listen to her lecture her. Saying just this would be the safest.

"That's good.", uncharacteristically Jenny didn't continue to ask. "Then I'm sure you don't have a problem if Lin lives here?"

This question didn't come unexpectedly for Lara. She had already prepared for it when she had heard about Lin.

"Of course I don't have any problem with it. After all, she is Ivan's wife too. And I think we will get along quite well."

"Great, then this is settled. Now let's get to why we came here today. We want you to come with us to explore a dungeon." , she then stated the reason.

The sentence really shocked Lara. Ever since she had gotten pregnant with Jane she had stayed in the capital, so why would they want her to come to explore a dungeon?

"Why?", she asked confused.

"Because you have the right skill set and we trust you.", knowing that this answer wouldn't be enough she then continued on. "The dungeon we are planning to go to is a bit unusual. It not only requires fighting, but there are puzzle sections too. And these puzzles are mainly on management. "

Hearing her explanation cleared up her doubts, but she was still surprised, that they had found a dungeon like this. They were very rare, as most dungeons only required fighting and sometimes solving logic puzzles. The ones that require a special skill set would often give much higher rewards, but were much harder too. And it wasn't like one could just take someone specialized in the object of these puzzles. The fighting in the dungeon was too difficult for that. 

Not only that, the puzzle themselves would often require the rest of the party to trust the one solving them, which made it only harder to find someone.


Lara fell silent, as she contemplated. It wasn't like she wasn't tempted. In fact, in the last few months, she had thought about trying out adventuring once again. But she had decided against it. Not only would it split her up from her daughter, but also her job of managing her company. 

Just when she was thinking about rejecting, Ivan's voice stopped her. "You should go."

"Huh?", she looked at him in surprise.

"I asked madam Tanner about it and she said that you haven't taken a break ever since you took over that company."

"I took some breaks.", Lara hurriedly protested.

"Really? From what I have heard, the only breaks you took were ones, where you did stay at home to take care of Jane."

What Ivan said was the truth. The only times she had taken a break, was when Jane required it. It wasn't like her whole life revolved around her job. She didn't work in the evening or on Sundays, except if there was an emergency. 

Seeing her not responding, Ivan continued on. "It is important to sometimes do something entirely different. Only this way, you can keep your mental health. And exploring a dungeon, will not only be something different, but also something you'll enjoy a lot."

"But what if something happens to me? What about Jane then?", Lara asked worriedly. This was the true reason, she had stayed in the capital all the time. After her close brush with death, she unconsciously feared that it would happen again if she went out. And this time there wouldn't be someone who would save her.

The others looked at each other. While this dungeon wasn't that dangerous, it would be highly unlikely that anyone would die, but there was no guarantee. So they didn't know how to alleviate her fears. 

Finally, Ivan was the first to break the silence. "This is all the more a reason that you should go."

Lara looked at him in bewilderment and the others too looked at him in curiosity. 

"I know that you have continued training even after you stopped going out on adventures, but if you stay this fearful, then there is no chance that you will ever become stronger. Because if you fear that you could die all the time, this means that you have no confidence in your own strength. Heck, if you continue like this, this problem may even creep into your normal life. So take this opportunity, to go out and regain your confidence. What opportunity could be better than this one? Not only would you go with family, who are strong, but also something which has a low amount of risk, while still being difficult."

After saying all this, he looked at her and waited for her reaction. Lara had a thoughtful look on her face. She felt that what Ivan had said was true, but there were some things he hadn't mentioned since he didn't know about it. It had to do with the Berg Bloodline. Someone with this bloodline had to have a mind as steadfast as a mountain, or there would be some impact on their health. 

She hadn't wanted to see it, but there were some signs of this already happening. Lately, she had been tired out faster. But still...

Carl could clearly see her struggling. "If you and Ivan are willing to pay for it, then there is a way to make it much safer for you."

"Huh?", everyone was surprised since they didn't understand what he meant.

"Do you know where your skills and memories are stored?", Carl asked a seemingly unrelated question.

"Of course, they are stored in the soul.", Ivan answered and the others nodded. This was common knowledge.

"Then do you know how skill books work?"

This time everyone shook their heads. None of them knew about it. Like most people, they just accepted it and saw it as something too complex to understand.

"That's no surprise. Since it isn't really of any use for most people. Even those who copy skill books don't need to really understand their function, so many of them don't even try to understand them. 

The way they work is through soul imprints. To be exact they store a soul imprint that contains the skill, which will then merge into the target's soul and thus enable one to use the skill. It is easy to merge with the soul imprint, but it is really hard to create one. And I don't mean copying one, but extracting a skill one has and make a soul imprint of it."

The others didn't understand why he talked about this, although it was interesting, it didn't seem to have a connection with what they were talking about. But how could Ivan not understand? The suggestion was certainly to make a soul imprint with the 'Reincarnation' skill. Lara would then be able to learn it and stay much safer like this.

"How do I do it?", Ivan asked eagerly.

Hearing him ask this, seemingly not caring about the price, made Carl's mouth curve upwards. He was glad that this guy would be so willing to help his nice.

"You don't want to know the price first?"

"If it can keep her safe, then that is more important. Besides, you wouldn't have made this suggestion if it was something really detrimental for me.", Ivan assuredly said. 

"Alright.", Carl then explained the process. It required one to make something like a copy of a part of one's soul. Although this copy wouldn't be a part of the soul, it would still have a connection to it. And this is were one of the problems lied. Because of that when the target integrated the soul imprint, the connection would be integrated too. Although the connection would be very weak, it would still make a few things possible. Such as feeling the position or health status. So this should only be done if the people participating trust each other.

For Ivan and Lara, this wasn't a real problem since they already had such a connection ever since their marriage ring had appeared. The next problem too wasn't really a problem for Ivan. This was that making the soul imprint would damage the soul. Usually, someone who had injured his or her soul would need a long time to recuperate, while having a reduced training speed and constant pain. But when Ivan had split his soul before he didn't have a constant pain, which maybe was because his soul had still been in its normal form, just smaller. But more important was that he had a skill that could strengthen his soul and thus should be helpful in healing it too.

As such the only problem left, was that it would be painful. Which Ivan was sure he would be able to get through.

"Let's do it.", he announced.

"What exactly are you talking about?", Lara couldn't hold back that question anymore.

"Just wait and see."

The son of chaos, 
born from chaos,
creating chaos,
using chaos,
destroying chaos.

Creating chaos means to bend and break the rules.
Using chaos means to use it for your advantage.
Destroying chaos means to create and enforce new rules.

Follow Ivan as he lives and grows in a world full of magical wonders, dangers and of course a mighty system that controls the realm.

Follow him on his search for his past and future.



For those that are interested, I published the files I use for tracking the current state in the book: https://github.com/IvanDeSchreck/Son-Of-Chaos
There is also additional information available. 
Warning: This may contain spoilers if you haven't read to the latest chapter.

Thank you to Webnovel for the cover.

After everything had settled and Sora left with Nozomi, a big surprise awaited him on the real world...

In a new house that they had rented as the old one got destroyed dayes ago, a door opened and Sora came out with the rest of the company...

Ichigo, Tatsuki, Yuzu, Karin, Senna and Nozomi...

They looked at Yoruichi, Nelliel who was brimming in happiness, Yin and Yang having weird expressions, Lisa who had a defeated look and Yoshino who was calm...

Sora: "What the... Who is celebrating and who died...??"

Yoruichi: "Well, we are celebrating you coming back with wonderful but miraculously news..."

Yoshino: "At the same time we are mourning that we are not part of the wonderful news..."

Sora was confused, what kind of news could those be that two of them were brimming with happiness while the other showed signs of hate??

However, as he was thinking about that, he failed to notice that Senna on his back had also a weird expression and soon connected the puzzles...

Ichigo and Tatsuki although curious they knew they would learn it eventually and decided to leave...

However, Karin and Yuzu with Nozomi wanted to see and hear what was all this about, therefore from the room only two people left...

Sora wasn't an idiot looking around he felt the situation was quite familiar to him and as he looked more intensively towards Yoruichi and Nelliel who were full of smiles and life coursing through their eyes...

Slowly his eyes opened wide as he finally got the gist of things and a look of disbelief and happiness at the same time flashed through them...

Yoruichi: "Hahhahahaha, boya, you did something that will come down to history..."

Yoruichi: "Look at your face... Hahahahahaha..."

Yoruichi: "Congratulations you made a citizen of Hueco Mundo bear your child..."

Sora: "I'm gonna be a father??"

Sora started breathing heavily this news hit him quite hard as he thought that the chances of making an Espada pregnant were non-existence...

Although in terms of Origins in souls it was possible for them to unite and create a life but their bodies were essential different...

When Mayuri had seriously commented about it in the past he did reprimand him with this logic but he always had doubts...

Sora: "I'm gonna become a father of the child's born by two beautiful mothers!!!"

Sora: "Hahahaha!!!"

Yuzu: "Waaa!!! I'm gonna become an aunt to two nephews or nieces!!!"

Karin: "I can't believe this... Baka-oni is way ahead than Baka-Ichi..."

Karin: "Mom is gonna scold him harshly....."

Sora: "How did this happen?? No scratch that... When did it happen... Ugh... Scratch that..."

Sora right now started barraging questions towards them while keep losing his calm and asking stupid questions causing all of them to burst into a fit of laughter...

Sora: "Ugh..."

Yoruichi: "Hahahahahaha, well i don't blame you... You left for the Soul Society and even we didn't know she was pregnant..."

Yoruichi: "But you made her on the last section we had..."

Yoruichi: "That's why everyone is sulking including Senna behind you..."

Sora: "Aaahhh... I see..."

Sora felt his whole body sweating as he looked at Yoshino, Lisa, Yin, Yang and Senna who had hateful expressions and at the same time, fighting intent...

It was as if they were saying to him, you had one job!!! One job that day... All of us fought for a few rounds and you only gave Nelliel a precious gift...

Take responsibility...!!!

He didn't dare to speak and he knew that the next few months his life would be miserable, thankful to him Yoruichi had long ago seen Nozomi behind him having weird expressions as well and broke the mood by bringing an even colder mood...

Yoruichi: "Is that our new sister, hence your new wife??"

Our MC Xiaolan Sora passing his meanigless life peacefully styding, going to work, and finally like any classic otaku watching and reading animes, manga, novels..... 

One rainy day like any others while running to go and watch the last chapter of Bleach he saw on his way a girl with a few bullies in the alley... He thought to himself (perphaps i can save the day and take the girl).... 

Little did he know that those thoughts - bullies and girl were the reason for a new  exciting life........

Chapter-1:
 
5 months later...
 
The Mercedes screeched to a halt and the behind door was pushed open in one swift moment. Two men from the car behind it, rushed with black open umbrellas as Arnav stepped out with his one hand instantly shielding the side of his face from the rapid down pour. His other hand vigorously patted the droplets away from his jet black coat, whilst he started walking into the hospital with his bodyguards escorting him.
 
---"Mr Raizada, we see you come here daily--"
 
----"Mr Raizada has the case been solved?"
 
---"Mr Raizada, how are you related to the girl?"
 
----"Does your family---"
 
And the questions from the paparazzi along with the Television media went on, who did not seem to give up despite the constant efforts of the guards to keep them away, while Arnav just walked ahead without giving any attention to his surroundings--- his aviators protecting the desperate people from his fierce glances and his stance authoritative. He let out another frustrated sigh, once he was inside and then gazed at his guards, who taking the hint, quickly dispersed into the waiting hall finally leaving him alone.
 
Arnav Singh Raizada, a ruling business man of the country who owned multinational empire dealing with advertising industry. Brands and branding is his forte. Travelling across the globe, indulging in international expansions and accumulation of international brands is his passion. Ar -Agency is his living. Ever since 14, he never knew what home was, for he never stayed in a single place. Although his home was back in Delhi, where his sister and Nani stayed"his only family, he never really stayed with them. His studies and work always involved lot of travelling. If the initial years of his teenage have been spent in moving from one boarding school to another, his early twenties have been spent in travelling and thus taking care of the international business of his own empire. Travelling and running around in fast pace across and away from all the binding things in life has been his biggest passion and he consciously chooses this pace of living. The only time he stayed consistently in a place was when he was in college, for he knew he would need proper persistent education to fulfill his dreams.

 
 
After those three years of college, these past five months have been the next longest duration in which he stayed in a single place and did a similar daily routine. Visiting her.
 
Arnav Singh Raizada's life never did stop for anyone or anything. It has to go on and the direction has to be upwards always, there has been no looking back, no going down and no rooting to a single place. So why now?
Because he needed answers. Answers to a lot of questions which rather were puzzles that he just couldn't solve. And Arnav Singh Raizada wasn't the ones to give up, if he needed answers, he bloody well would make sure he would get them.
 
A lot have happened after that random night when he found her;
 
 "I'm not gonna jump stranger, you can go back to whatever you were doing before you decided to save me"

 
 
The conviction and self-confidence with which she assured him that she wouldn't jump wasn't something Arnav could ever forget. His judgment to leave her there, cannot just be wrong, because he just knew that she wouldn't jump.
 
"Well, sorry to disappoint you Stranger, but I'm not jumping" 
 
The strong voice and will power in those words haunted him for nights after that day. He dint want to subject his mind to What-if's' of whether he should have pulled her down or should have stayed longer. But then he just couldn't find any peace, there was something amiss. He wouldn't be so damn sure to leave her like that if he dint know for sure that she wouldn't jump. As ridiculous as the logic sounded, or as defensive as the explanation seemed, it was truth. Arnav Singh Raizada doesn't believe in fate, he believes in his instinct, and his instinct just told him that she wouldn't jump, he just cannot be bloody wrong.

"The art of smiling is not a rocket science; it's just a reflex action to what you feel. Try it's not that hard, Arnav."
 
He smiled again at the memory;  Seven years, was long enough to forget someone, not that the memory of the person haunted him or tortured him in anyway, he is just amused by himself to relive the memory ever so naturally every time he found himself helping someone.  
"Ram Singh" he greeted as he reached the parking place of the airport.
 
"Hello sir how was your flight?" the driver spoke reaching out to his luggage.
 
"It was good, I would have hailed a cab, you shouldn't have come" he said going around the SUV and settling himself behind the wheel.
 
"Oh, I was strictly instructed not to allow you to drive at this time of the night sir---" he said hesitantly looking at Arnav settled behind the wheel already.
 
"Then your Maam shouldn't have sent you Ram singh, the taxi would have served that purpose, don't you think? Now shut up and take the place beside me or you can choose to stay here for the rest of the night, and oh! I might just deduct your one day pay if you choose to stay by the way" he said and smirked.
 
Ram Singh visibly cursed his boss under his breath. He slowed down his car as they neared the building with both of their gazes fixed to the white image above them and finally the car halted just below the building. Sensing the car stop, Ram Singh turned his head to look at his boss as a reflex action. "Sir, I was just kidding; you are not thinking to go up there, are you?"
He asked swallowing hard as he could see Arnav just ignoring him and his glance fixed to that image.
 
Arnav stepped out of his car all the way looking up at her and stood facing the ridiculously tall building, his face bent behind in an attempt to take a clear look at the white image. He tugged his hands in his pockets and continued to observe her. The white gown looked oversized for her petite body, it looked more like a hospital gown, her legs stood long and straight on the very thin wall; he noticed there wasn't a shiver nor a tremble in the way she stood there, her posture almost looked relaxed and his lips parted registering the view that spoke volumes to him, but somehow nothing made sense. He felt a sudden pull and he swallowed hard processing the unknown fear creeping up his nerves.His legs on their own accord made their way into the building completely ignoring the repeated calls from his driver. The doors of the elevator wide opened into the top most floor and then he walked around to find the stair case leading to the terrace. He wasn't rushing, he wasn't running nor was in a panic state, he was just walking as if in a trance" He could see her from behind, her petite body from within the loose gown showing curves blended in her form in perfect places, as the mid-night breeze blew her gown from the inner side.There was some kind of familiarity with her.Making sure, she acknowledged him so that he wouldn't startle her; ."May be you should jump and take a look to see what it feels like?" he said seeing her withdrawing her hands and tugging them in front of her. The rest of the stance in her body still seemed relaxed and as expected by him, she wasn't startled.
 "I'm not gonna jump stranger, you can go back to whatever you were doing before you decided to save me" she said 
"You are not gonna jump?" he definitely did guess that "Well, sorry to disappoint you Stranger, but I'm not jumping" she stated bringing her palms over her hands and rubbing against the cold breeze.
 "I'm glad, I wonder why stand like that if you have no intention to jump though"
 "Dangerous, isn't it?" "Standing at this height several meters above the ground, that little feeling you get when you stand here dominates every other misery of your life; 
Just when he reached the bottom of the steps  his legs halted at the entrance as the white bundle rushed down in front of his eyes landing with a thud on the ground:he recognize her kushi

.
.

The Next Day at the 3rd Stage of the examination.

Tarun and Min-ah got up early and went to eat something before going to the academy.
This time, spectators weren't allowed, so Shin Lu and Shin Wu thought about going to the market.

"So, what are your future plans, Min-ah? You always avoid talking about them."

Suddenly asked Tarun as they were walking towards the academy.

"…."

Listening to Tarun's question, Min-ah wanted to spit blood.

"Are you really saying that? Aren't you the one who always avoids every question about himself?"

said Min-ah while rolling her eyes.

"Geez, when did I ever avoid any question? Fine, ask whatever you want!"

"Oh really? Then let's start with this. Tell me about your future plan?"

"Eh? Only this? I just want to rule the world! What else?"

Said Tarun with a very simple tone as if he was talking about what to eat for lunch.

*pu…_

"See! Here you go again, avoiding the question!"

"Ah, come on! I am telling the truth! By the way, have you got any clue about how you will awaken your bloodline?"

asked Tarun.
Min-ah, at this question, went silent for some time and then said with a very uncertain expression.

"Honestly Tarun, I think you know how to awaken my bloodline as you did with my aunt, but for some reason you aren't doing it. I don't know your reason for not helping me and I won't ask you either as you would not tell me the truth anyway. But I think the academy has a way to awaken bloodlines and I will have to try my luck there."

Tarun at this statement from Min-ah was first stunned and then after a while when they were about to reach the academy, said in a teasing manner.

"I didn't help you because you would've been required to be completely nude in front of me for me to use my family's secret art."

This answer petrified Min-ah as many thoughts and scenes started to jump in her mind out of nowhere and she was flushed red from head to toe.
Tarun immediately rushed inside the academy gates after saying that and he was granted permission because almost everyone knew who Tarun was as he was just too handsome and his entire group had died in a very horrific way.
Min-ah also chased Tarun with a pout on her red face which was covered in a blue translucent veil and waving the red card she got yesterday to the guards, she also rushed inside of the academy.
After reaching inside, they saw a very large hall in which quite a few people were waiting.

"There are about 40 People here and all of them are Level 4."

Said Tarun as he was scanning the room.

"I recognize all of them, they were all present at the yesterday's examination."

Replied Min-ah while walking towards Tarun.
Min-ah and Tarun waited for an hour before the academy's gates were closed. Suddenly, a curtain from one side of the hall was raised and unveiled a stage on which there were about 13 chairs present. 12 flashes of light flickered in the hall and turned into 12 figures as they reached the stage and sat on the chairs.
All 12 of these people were looking about the same age of mid-thirties and were wearing very elegant and flashy clothes with some even wielding staff and hand-fan.
Suddenly an old man with white beard, followed by a young woman with beautiful features climbed up the stairs and reached the stage.
He was none other than the Vice-Principal of the Imperial Royal Academy and the woman was also the same one who escorted Sun Jun to his office yesterday.
Seeing him get on the stage, all 12 of the people stood up from their seats and bowed at him as a gesture of respect.

"Hello children, I am the Vice-Headmaster of this prestigious academy and will be in charge of today's examination."

When the seemingly old guy with simple white robes said this, everyone was immediately alerted and bowed in respect.
Tarun seeing the 13 people, was shocked as all of the 12 people were in the 2nd layer of the Origin deity realm while the vice-headmaster was in the 3rd layer.
Tarun didn't expect the Academy to house these many monsters and looking at this, Tarun felt his plans threatened.

"This stage of the examination will be very simple, yet very complex. Everyone here will be put in an illusory plane and will be presented several problems. Some could be solved by logic and some could be solved by force. The path you choose to take and the number of hidden puzzles you solve will decide your final outcome. Remember that there are infinite numbers of hidden puzzles so look out for them and don't worry about injuries as anything inside of that plane will not harm your bodies. Now, does anyone here have any questions?"

Asked the Vice-Headmaster.
One hand was raised and along with it came a voice which was very pleasing to the ears.

"Respected Elder, I am Trish Moon and my question is, you said that there will be no bodily harm done to us by anything in the illusory plane but does that mean that our souls could be harmed?"

"No, your souls will be perfectly fine, but because the illusion will seem too real, many people might think it's real even though we have told them that it's not and that might leave some trauma inside of their heads."

Replied the master.
Tarun at this time also raised his hand and said,

"Greetings Vice-Head! Uhm, do I also have to take this exam? I mean, I was told that I am already accepted into the academy and more so, accepted as a Personal Disciple of Prof. Abhishek."

*___BAM___

Everyone was in disbelief at what they just heard and more so, the other 11 People standing behind the Vice-Headmaster were looking at the 12th with unbelievable expressions who was standing at the side.
They didn't care about some entrance examination and were oblivious to the fact that Prof. Abhishek, who never had any disciple suddenly wished to have one.
Everyone was staring at Tarun and quite a few even recognized him.

"Ah, so you are Tarun! Yes, since Prof. Abhishek has already taken you as his disciple, you have automatically become a core disciple."

Said the old Vice-head.

"Come here, brat, you don't need to take part in this. We are leaving."

Laughed Abhishek who then stood up and went towards the exit.

"I will meet you at night, ok?"

Said Tarun to Min-ah to which she instantly agreed.
Tarun then went towards the exit to meet with Abhishek but the latter just touched his shoulder and Tarun's entire world changed.
Tarun suddenly appeared in a desert and Abhishek was nowhere to be seen.

"What did you think? That you can become my disciple that easily? Hahaha...You first have to pass this puzzle for me and break this illusory plane. This one is a lot harder than the one presented to those children so be careful, as…you may encounter some 'interesting' dangers…hehehe!"

This voice came out of nowhere and startled Tarun.

'System, scan this place and present me a map, also find what the puzzle is and how to solve it.'

~Task Failed. This is not a physical plane but an illusion magic casted on host. Host can't break through it as it is controlled by an Origin Deity. ~

'Huh? Don't you have some spells that can break this illusion?"

~Host can indeed buy some magic from the store which can easily break this illusion but you are as weak as a chicken and won't be able to use them. Host can also use some blood essence to break out from here but that would be too wasteful. ~

'….'

2 days had passed and Tarun was still aimlessly roaming the desert. This desert never had a night and always maintained a scorching hot temperature. His entire clothes were drenched in sweat and he was leaving a trail of sweat on the incredibly hot desert which was then immediately being evaporated.

'This…this is the first…first time, I've felt this helpless after coming to this world.'

Said Tarun as he collapsed on the scorching hot sand and closed his eyes.

A Glib, Charming, Deceitful, Cunning & Manipulative Vampire with a Grandiose Sense of Self-Worth creates a River of Blood to the Summit of a Dangerous World filled with Magic and Wonders!


CAUTION - R-18 Descriptive Scenes

============================
Discord Group - https://discord.gg/53r5Kt2
Discord ID - Lumpish_Haggard#0417

Zhang Heng shook his head and stopped paying any more attention to Yurianne.
He had all the time in the world to take a good look at the Marker by then. He put his hand on the huge sculpture and felt it to be cold to the touch. The material the Marker was made of was metal-like, with the two helix-shaped strands entwined 270 times, forming a sculpture that looked like a hill. The tightly packed symbols seemed to be an amalgamation of cuneiform and hieroglyphic writings. The entire construct looked to be some kind of stunning huge artwork.
The Markers were wireless transmitters created by some very advanced civilization that possessed the ability to affect mental states and alter the DNA structures of living beings. Their creators left the Markers behind on planets that had a high chance of giving birth to civilizations. It would only be a matter of time when civilizations on such planets would come to discover the Markers.
At the same time, the design of the Markers made them incredibly easy to replicate, as every single fragment contained the complete information regarding their construction. The illusion created by the Markers that received energy would lead the advanced species of a planet to think that they possessed the key to an endless supply of energy, which in turn would lead to the advanced species to replicate the Markers. It was due to that reason that humans made 13 replicas of the Markers.
The Markers were capable of affecting the intellectual capacities of living beings. Signs of humans being affected include manifesting signs of depression or some other mental illness, which eventually lead them to kill each other. The Markers would also alter the cells after the deaths of those beings into monsters called xenomorphs. The Markers would collect and congregate at the right time, making the amalgamated xenomorphs into Blood Moons to be collected by the creators of the Markers.
That was the ultimate secret underlying plot of the Dead Space series, which also elaborated the true purpose of the Markers.
Zhang Heng recalled all of the data and asked, feeling puzzled, "The Markers sure are something, but what's the purpose of the Dimensional Star issuing that particular mission? Is it to say that the Marker would serve other purposes as well?"
"The Marker is actually a quantum computer, creating illusions is only a basic feature," Yurianne explained, "Its greatest function is to create virtual reality. All the runes seen on it possess a certain measure of meme technology, enabling it to mess with the DNA of dead beings without any consideration to logic, reviving the dead and triggering further genetic mutations."
A huge poster of the Marker appeared behind Yurianne and she was dressed in a lab coat and wore black-rimmed glasses, which made her look like a researcher of sorts, as she pointed at the poster with her pointer and replied earnestly.
"Quantum computer?" Zhang Heng's eyes lit up. "So, that's to say that I could use the Marker?"
"Bingo! That's correct!" Yurianne chuckled and continued, "The Marker possesses an AI that was equivalent to humans at ages 10 to 15. It's capable of computing power billions of times more powerful than the most cutting-edge of computers found in this world, boosting a technological level that is hundreds of years ahead of this world."
"Noted, but there's something else that puzzles me." Zhang Heng nodded and continued asking, "Why would the mission be to acquire the DNA evolution code on the Marker? Are those symbols more important than the Marker itself?"
Yurianne did say that the Marker possesses a measure of meme technology on it, which was rather primitive, and enables it to mess with the DNA of dead bodies. That is the most powerful function inherent in the Marker. All that talk about computing capabilities, illusion-creation, and whatsoever are trash when compared to that one function of the Marker.
"By the way, what is meme technology? Doesn't 'meme' refer to patterns of information transmission? How could there be technology revolving around memes?" Zhang Heng was stunned after asking that. He was very elated when he heard about the Marker's functions and failed to pay attention to Yurianne's elaboration. It was only then that he realized that the so-called meme technology was the most valuable part of all technology inherent in the Marker's construction.
"Meme technology is a field in itself, just like biotechnology, electronics, mechanics, and what have you." Yurianne explained, "You could say that it's a field of science. However, what makes meme technology stand out the most is that it's anti-logic."
"Anti-logic?"
"It's worth noting that all technology follows a certain kind of logic. For example, if someone were to create a clone using biotechnology and caused the world to have two identical creatures in it, would the happening be deemed illogical? No, and that's because it's something achievable through science and as such, is logical." Yurianne went on to elaborate in detail and tense background music played in Zhang Heng's mind as he listened to her.
"However, meme technology is without logic. You have no idea why the string of symbols would be able to alter a dead body's DNA, only knowing that it could do so. That is meme technology."
"But ancient people wouldn't know about someone who could create clones through biotechnology? If you were to put it like that, wouldn't biotechnology be considered meme technology to ancient people then?" Zhang Heng asked in return.
"No way." Yurianne shook her petite hands and took a deep breath before continuing, "Let's put it this way. You know about genes?" She continued to explain before waiting for Zhang Heng to nod. "Memes and genes are similar in some ways. Both spread through replication and mimicry. Memes are like some kind of information that could spread through all kinds of mediums—something that no other form of technology could achieve."
Yurianne's puffy cheeks shrank as she let out a sigh, seeing that Zhang Heng still looked puzzled after her examples. "Okay, it looks like I'm going to give another example then. In a destroyed human plane, a sculpture was unearthed before its destruction. The sculpture looked somewhat abstract and no one knew which era the sculpture belonged to. Since the era was unknown, important details such as when the sculpture was constructed, what it was used for, and who created it were also lost. It was something that never caught the attention of people in the first place. However, as the team of archaeologists went on to take the sculpture for themselves, they began to talk about the sculpture, its uses, and how the sculpture looked pretty and artistic. But as time passed, all of those people seemed to be mesmerized by that sculpture and everyone began to illustrate the sculpture's shape to others in a frenzy. The ones who heard about the illustrations, be it just descriptions of its shape or just the data regarding the sculpture's size, would be subjected to the sculpture's influence. Those people would in turn talk about the sculpture to others, and eventually, the entire plane was destroyed as talk of the sculpture spread."
Zhang Heng was baffled by the elaboration. "Gosh, something like that happened? Isn't this considered some kind of mental virus then, like how computers would go on to continue infecting other computers when they catch a virus, eventually leading to their collective doom?"
"If there were such a transmissive matter and medium, it could be considered some kind of mental virus. Transmission of viruses would require the virus themselves as well as air, blood, or some other kind of transmission medium for the spread to happen. That sculpture, however, has nothing. There is no source and no medium, and the spread is completely devoid of scientific logic." Yurianne chuckled in a sinister fashion. "Do you get it now, host dude?"
Zhang Heng was unable to help but ponder about the whole deal, wondering if that was what consisted of memes. It wasn't that he didn't believe what he just heard, but that the elaboration of memes exceeded scientific logic and became something that sounded spiritual instead.
"Of course, memes won't necessarily be able to alter human DNA, destroy the world, or some such similar thing." Yurianne continued, "It's just like how it is with weapons—they're devoid of any notion of good and evil and the key lies in the people who would use them. Your world has begun to grasp the concept of 'meme', but the whole idea is still in its very early stages and your people have yet to realize the true power of memes. You guys would need at least about 500 years or more to be able to achieve the state of making use of memes."
"Is there a way to resist meme attacks?" Zhang Heng's expression became very serious. If such attacks truly exist, then the likes of bacteria, viruses, and nuclear weapons wouldn't be able to compare with the likes of meme weapons.
There was no bloodshed and no slaughter. All it needed to destroy human civilization was but a string of messages. To him, that notion itself sounded godlike.
"There definitely are solutions to resist memes," Yurianne answered in a definite manner. "The answer came in the form of anti-memes, as they would be able to easily take out the memes. Using that same sculpture as an example, if someone in that plane were able to research yet another meme, that could erase the data regarding the sculpture in the minds of those who heard of the sculpture, stopping the phenomenon altogether."
"So you're saying that only memes could work against memes?" Zhang Heng wore a bitter smirk, thinking that he had been given a non-answer.
"No, because memes are not invincible. Regardless of how surreal memes look, they are still a field of science and there is philosophy above science. For instance, the laws of cause and effect or the idea of karma are parts of philosophy. Making use of karmic weapons would allow one to 'correct', 'alter', and 'delete' memes by taking the meme out of existence right then and there. Memes would be as laughable as child's play before philosophy. Memes are categorized into types as well. When discussed in terms of functionalities, there are 'solvable memes' and 'unsolvable memes'. Some memes would fail after being used once, other memes would have limited effect on the targets that came under their influence, and some memes wouldn't be able to have any effect on humans. All of those memes are referred to as solvable memes. Memes would also be categorized as 'singular memes', 'plural memes', 'phenomenal memes', and so on. Singular memes couldn't be transmitted and could only affect one particular target. Phenomenal memes, on the other hand, are a lot more powerful. Theoretically speaking, the spread of phenomenal memes is practically limitless."
Large amounts of knowledge that Zhang Heng had never heard of before gushed from Yurianne's mouth that left him completely dumbfounded by all that he heard. Eventually, he was only able to shake his hands and surrender. "Alright, alright. Save the rest of that for later. The thing I'd like to ask now is if I could alter the programming of the Marker. At the very least, I'd like to be able to make use of that thing."
"No problem, of course. After all, the Dimensional Star's research system is out to help the host in scientific research, and altering a technological construct like the Marker is a piece of cake," Yurianne said.
"What would I need to do to make that happen?" Zhang Heng was elated to hear an affirmative answer from Yurianne.
"The technological level of your plane at the moment is so that it could be done by using special equipment only. The tools required would be…" Large amounts of technological data were sent into Zhang Heng's mind through the Dimensional Star directly and enabled him to learn what was needed instantly.
He was surprised to learn that so many materials were needed. Worse still, he found that he would need a supercomputer to serve as the Marker's data converter, which caused Zhang Heng's jaw to drop to the ground in shock.
His phone that laid right before his computer table suddenly rang. Zhang Heng paused his conversation with Yurianne for the moment and picked up his phone and found the call to be from Li Jianguo. Additionally, this call was definitely not the first, as there were over a dozen missed calls from the older man in his missed calls log.
The string of missed calls made it look like the older man had something really urgent to talk to him about, and he wondered what it could be.
He had no choice but to answer the call, feeling rather exasperated.


Where would the very limit of development achievable by a private enterprise be?
 
Being listed among the top 500 in the country? Being listed among the the top 500 in the world? Or, becoming a boss-level entity that transcends nations, ruling the world as de facto rulers, just like those companies listed below?
 
The Umbrella Corporation in ‘Resident Evil’, the Weyland-Yutani Corporation in ‘Alien’, the Concordance Extraction Corporation in ‘Dead Space’, Gentek in ‘Prototype’, Vault-Tec in ‘Fallout’, the Shinra Company in ‘Final Fantasy 7’…
 
Zhang Heng’s goal was to have his company listed among all those giants mentioned above, even eclipsing all of them in terms of size and achievements.
 
Regular people might not be able to achieve such a goal, but what about a person who possess all of that ‘black tech’ developed by the aforementioned corporate entities?
 
The company named ‘Stellar Biotech Corporation’ is founded by one such person, a man who goes on a crusade of monopolizing all aspects of development of civilization—medicine, biology, physics, philosophy, you name it—at an unprecedented rate, eventually becoming a goliath that would transcend nations and monopolize every single aspect of human technological development!

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