Time went by swiftly.
It had been four months since Dr Xavier began her Esper training, and since then, much has changed.
Ayna continued to keep a low profile, remaining quiet and docile. She didn't even attempt to assert herself in any way, and even changed her mind about informing Dr Xavier she wanted to decide her own name.
I want to give him the impression of control, and to allow Dr Xavier to name her as One, which should reinforce in his mind that she was an obedient test subject that followed his whims.
After all, she needed him to let down his guard if she wanted to have any realistic chance of escaping this place.
Ayna knew she likely had one real chance to escape, and she could not let it be jeopardised by something foolish like pride.
With that, she continued to engage in rigorous training. Ayna utilised all of her main class skills during this time. Stormflash, Major, and Dr Xavier continued an intense regime, including hand-to-hand combat, shooting practice, and pushing her newfound Esper ability, Pyrokinesis.
Ayna had no idea what they were training her for specifically, yet she settled into this routine and was allowed to use her leisure time outside training freely, as long as it was within the confines of The Enclave.
This allowed Ayna to relax a little, though she constantly attempted to probe and search for potential avenues of escape as subtly as possible. Lamia, the AI, was continually present; it had eyes on her everywhere. Automatrons prowled the place constantly, and she was never out of surveillance, even in her own residence.
It limited her options, yet she persevered and began to formulate the beginnings of a plan.
Stormflash surprisingly warmed up to her during this time. Her initial impression of an arrogant and stuck-up metahuman changed, and her suspicions of his origins grew.
She knew he had a secret. His open dislike of her at the beginning seemed to stem mainly from his antagonistic view of Dr Xavier, and Ayna learnt that she had surprised them both with her behaviour.
Stormflash was easiest to read and gauge; similar to his power, he was headstrong, emotional, and impulsive. It was apparent that Dr Xavier set him up to be antagonistic with her from the start, though for what reason she could not figure out.
Despite their rough introduction, Stormflash was more empathetic than she had assumed he would be, especially with the incident involving Ember; instead of blaming her for it, he sympathised rather than taking it out on her. This differed from the image of Stormflash she had witnessed upon awakening, as he did not come across as this rational.
Ayna did not fully understand the drastic change in his character, or the whole reason he grew far less cold to her, though he still maintained a high standard in unarmed training that he never relented on.
On the other hand, Dr Xavier was exceedingly difficult to judge; he would go from extremely manic and whimsical to cordial with a gentle smile in a matter of minutes. Ayna was unsure whether it was genuine, yet he felt calculated in his actions, and the way he constantly queried her made her realise he was specifically searching for something.
Even now, she did not understand Dr Xavier at all; she was no closer to understanding his character from the very moment she awoke in this world.
Instead, he confused her more, as he constantly changed, making it seem as though you partly understood his actions, only to contradict himself the next completely. He was an oddity.
She was unable to develop any other connections in the facility. Major was a professional, though he was distant, and despite initially appearing more approachable than Stormflash, Ayna learnt he was a complete loyalist to Dr Xavier and would follow his orders without fault.
The only reason he even spoke politely to her was due to his presence; she had learned the hard way when she discovered Major saw her as nothing but a tool in her attempt to open up to him slightly.
It made her plans more difficult, as apart from Stormflash, everyone in the facility treated Dr Xavier with absolute reverence.
With the quest hinting that she had to act swiftly, Ayna felt constantly under pressure as the months went by. Yet, with no real opportunities, she was forced to remain scheming, unable to take action.
The Odyssey Laboratory was large, and it housed four Metahuman commanders as strong as Stormflash. Ember was formerly one of them, yet Dr Xavier had already dealt with her and made her the subject of her ability, leaving three: Stormflash, Viper, and Earthbreaker.
She already knew Stormflash could manipulate and create powerful electrical currents.
Viper was able to produce a poisonous, corrosive, gaseous cloud that was toxic enough to dissolve steel in moments.
Earthbreaker had enhanced durability and strength and was a giant among humans.
Viper was a young, beautiful man with slicked back, bright green hair and dark yellow, slit eyes similar to a snake. He was of average height and was slim. She had only met him a few times and had a low opinion of him.
Earthbreaker was the largest human she had ever seen. She was a twelve-foot-tall woman with dark bronze skin that gleamed like metal, and was extremely well-proportioned, with a muscular, voluptuous physique. She had Earthy eyes with light brown hair, though she was as emotionless as a boulder and never interacted with her.
Because the Odyssey Facility was designed for secrecy, she discovered it was a space shuttle with advanced stealth technology that constantly moved and was cloaked. It would restock supplies from hidden caches in space.
There were hundreds of armoured guards that patrolled the facility, and even more Automatrons who were arguably more dangerous than the guards, as each was linked to the artificial intelligence.
Ayna felt fearful of the looming danger of Thaumovore, yet knew acting now would be suicidal.
‘Interface’, she thought mentally, deciding to review her progress.
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Name: Ayna Reagan
Race: Metahuman
Main Class: Esper Lvl 7
Sub-class: Soldier Lvl 5
Attributes: Strength 15, Dexterity 12, Constitution 16, Endurance 16, Intelligence 36, Willpower 22, Charm 24
Unassigned Stats: 0
Grade: F
Health points: 80/80
Energy: 210/210
Stamina: 80/80
Esper Ability: Ability Absorption SSS
Absorbed Abilities [1/2]: Pyrokinesis
Main Class Skills: Basic Energy Manipulation {Lvl 9}, Basic Energy Absorption {Lvl 9}, Fire Affinity {Lvl 8}
Sub-Class Skills: Weapons Proficiency {Lvl 8}, Armour Proficiency {Lvl 5}, Athletics {Lvl 7}
Traits: Robust Physique, Enhanced Learning
General Skills: Unarmed Combat {Lvl 9}, Basic Shooting {Lvl 9}
With no other way to gain experience for her classes except by improving her skills, she progressed rather slowly, though these months allowed her to build close to the perfect foundation for an F grade.
Before enhancing her grade, the cap of her main class skills is ten, and she was able to get remarkably close to that.
Her main class skills would likely already be at their cap if not for having no mobs for her to grind to gain experience from.
She distributed her Esper Main Class stat points into Intelligence, Willpower and Charm.
Her Sub-Class Soldier gained one attribute in Strength and Endurance per level, and one unassigned stat point, giving her four stat points in total for achieving level 5 in the class, which she split evenly between Dexterity and Constitution.
Overall, she was highly pleased considering her circumstances. Increasing your class skills to their maximum level before you advance in grade would offer a more advanced class as you class up.
An Esper had notoriously hard skills to improve, and now she was pretty much assured to achieve a perfect foundation before her first advancement.
The only class skill she was unable to use as much as she had liked was armour proficiency, as it was harder to utilise, as she would scarcely be provided with armour good enough for the skill to register.
These four months allowed Ayna to adapt to her new body and surroundings thoroughly.
By this time, she had accepted her new reality, though the wondrous nature of her current universe had given her pause to reflect on the mysterious circumstances that had brought her here.
Either way, she first prioritised her escape, and as another uneventful day went by, something finally changed.
An opportunity.
Stormflash, whilst he engaged in training with her, had a solemn look on his face as he said, “Dr Xavier ordered us to step up your training. He has a plan for you to fight real opponents. These fights will push you beyond normal; you will engage in a battle to the death against Automatrons instructed to try to kill you.”
Ayna was excited at first, yet when he informed her that her life would be at risk, she paled slightly.
That makes no sense. Why would he put so much effort into training me and then risk it all by throwing me in with some killer machines?
Stormflash could see her confusion as he continued, “He wants to prepare you. You are not the only Test Subject… there are others, though you are arguably the most promising, Dr Xavier wants to identify the most ‘perfect’ among you so he ensures he has the best candidate.”
Candidate? What is he on about? Candidate for what?
She grew more confused by the moment, yet Stormflash abruptly leaned in at that point, whispering into her ear.
“You have no idea what this is… it was not meant to be like this, you were not meant to be this way. I am truly sorry, I thought… it would be for the good of humanity… yet Thaumovore…” Stormflash words ended abruptly, and he froze as if his mouth was forcefully shut.
“Hello?” she asked back questionably.
Creeped out by the sudden blank look in his face, Ayna was startled as she heard a voice behind her.
“I see my loyal Commander has informed you of the next step! I have been rather patient with your training, but coddling you only goes too far. Though it pains me, there must be sacrifices made, and to see your true potential, you must be pushed.” Dr Xavier's eyes were cold and heartless as he approached slowly.
Despite the passage of only a matter of months, his appearance has changed drastically since she awoke in this body. His eyes had sunken, and he had aged decades, taking on the appearance of a decrepit older man. It was as if the vitality was being drastically drained from his body, and he was on the brink of death.
Ayna thought this was strange every time she saw him, yet it was as if a cloud appeared over her mind when she focused on its irregularity.
“I understand,” Ayna said, even surprising herself at how monotone she sounded.
Dr Xavier had a bright smile that appeared terrifying compared to the past; most of his teeth had fallen out, and those remaining were rotten and yellow.
“You never disappoint One, ah! We must hurry; everything is so close, almost perfect. And to think those fools thought they could sneak some Metahumans in here without my notice, my power is built for ensuring loyalty.” Dr Xavier said, laughing maniacally.
With that, Ayna followed. Stormflash's head was down as he remained silent, a flicker of pain in his gaze.
“Not again…” he mumbled quietly under his breath, yet Ayna and Dr Xavier had already sped ahead.
Ayna found herself in a well-equipped arena, which was large and circular, with gleaming silvery metal that was thick and protective.
She found there were actually spectators, with viewing sections on the sides, extensive protective energy shielding covering them.
Ayna observed that most were scientists similar to the ones she had seen when she woke; it appeared this was the next step in her role as a test subject.
The four months she spent training have culminated in what she is seeing now.
Ayna found barriers and cover throughout various sections of the arena.
There was more to it as well, some environmental stimulation technology that could rapidly change its settings.
Vibrant blue neon lights covered sections of the steel floor, and right in the centre was her opponent.
A large Automatron awaited her, though it was clearly weaker than the ones she saw regularly patrolling the facility; it was likely at a higher level and was a machine programmed to kill.
At that time, her interface blinked as she received another quest.
New Quest: [Survive!]
The opportunity you have been looking for is close, your chance of escape is near, yet you must overcome your biggest challenge and survive.
Objective: Defeat the waves of Automatrons.
Reward: Experience. Attribute points x1. Unlock Inventory. Noxcarp Light Combat Armour Grade III.
She accepted the quest swiftly.
Waves? Seriously? Is Dr Xavier trying to get me killed?
Though the other part of the quest was promising, it indicated she was close to having an opportunity, yet what will that be?
Either way, she had to survive, and training for four months has made her far from the amateur she was when she first woke in this body.
Dr Xavier grinned as he gestured for her to step inside the arena, “What are you waiting for? Enter.”
Ayna did not know why she was so quick to move and follow his orders, yet that did not matter, as she was already walking towards the Automatron with determination.
“I will survive!” She grumbled with determination as she faced the cold Automaton whose singular eye regarded her with the apathy of a machine.
Time to see what I could do.
