Xander and George returned to Astrum to report their findings. As Xander and George stepped back onto the familiar grounds of Astrum, a sense of both relief and unease washed over them. They had survived their horrifying encounter with the Luces, but the memory of their brutality kept reanimating in their minds.
They made their way to the debriefing room, which was as large as Joshua's office. They recounted their findings to Joshua and other Astrum officials. They spoke of the strange facility, the Luces' sinister plot and their desperate battle for survival. However, they omitted any mention of their encounter with the Aurelians or the system within Xander.
Meanwhile, as the officials listened intently, Xander couldn't help but wonder if he made the right choice. The system had granted him an ability to grow stronger, but it also raised troubling questions about its true nature and intentions. He couldn't shake of the feeling that there was more to it.
*******
Meanwhile, in a distant corner of the galaxy, the Luces had plans with anger and determination. Their ultimate weapon or should I rather say, ultimate tool to become powerful had been lost, and they were relentless in their pursuit of retrieving it.
"No matter where it goes, the connection is still on so I can still track it.", One of the Luces, who seemed to be in authority due to the crown he's wearing said as he entered codes into a computer like device in front of him.
"So you managed to find it, sir Ray", The Luce who had survived Xander's uproar by name Zach shouted happily.
"Yes, it seems to be on a distant planet from our planet Luce. Using a space ship would take you approximately one month to get there. For now, I'll send you there with another team of six which will make you all seven in total. Bring that creature here alive and any advance technologyyou find there." Ray said as he entered more codes.
"Yes sir.", Zach said as he approached his new teammates, who were already standing infront of the space ship.
"Let's go!", Zach said as he entered the spaceship. The others followed and with a full blast, the went on their way.
********
Xander and George after getting fed were laying down on their respective beds. Xander decided to check his system again.
[Basic information]
[Name : Xander Stormhold]
[Age : 18]
[Level : 1]
[Exp : 50/100]
[HP : 10/10]
[Energy : 100/100]
[Strength : 10]
[Intelligence : 10]
[Agility : 10]
[Endurance: 10]
[Stamina :10]
"Starting from tomorrow, I'll be joining the military training. I need to get stronger. I don't think the game is over between the Luces and I", Xander said as he used his mind to exit the system.
"I'll also train to support my friend." George replied.
"I still have doubts about the system. The Luces still created it so what if it corrupts my mind and I lose my humanity. I still don't remember what happened in the facility yet the system says I killed those Luces."
"I won't let that happen, I'll be by your side. And you won't lose your humanity. Just focus on getting stronger and leveling up your stats."
"When should we contact the Aurelians?"
"Very soon I suppose. They knew somethingabout what the Luces where creating, so we can ask them about it more and get to know more about what is residing in you as the system. "
"Okay."
*********
The next morning, Xander and George made their way to the military base, which was a stone's throw away from Astrum.
"Look what we have here.", A man said laughing after Xander and George explained their reason for coming for the military.
Xander was a boy with dark skin colour,slim and tall built, Hazel eyes and curly black hair. Whilst George was chubby, short and had blonde hair and a mostache. The man laughed at the boys due to this.
The man, named Paul accompanied both Xander and George to the training grounds.
"Once you get in, you're not going out, so think of the decision you're making carefully. The training will go on for one month and this wouldn't be a child's play. We have aliens already existing so we won't be playing here.", Paul warned the two boys.
"We made the decision before coming here. We made it back home whilst we were supposed to die. That is why, we want to become stronger so that encountering those aliens won't be a problem once again.", Xander said with a determined face.
"Alright then. Let's go"
Xander threw himself into intense training to the extent that he did more than what the military had given him. As he continued to train, his stats were also increasing. He started sparing with stronger people in order to grow more stronger.
"Hey Xander, let's go for a spar.", A tall blonde boy said after he had seen Xander defeat an opponent.
"Okay, let's go.", Xander said without hesitation as he positioned himself like a boxer.
'I have to get strong', He thought
[Skill activated : Scan]
[Basic stats]
[Strength : 15]
[Intelligence: 12]
[Stamina : 15]
[Endurance: 14]
[Agility: 15]
'That's my opponent's strength?' Xander thought as he realised that all his starts were at 12 except for Endurance which was at 15. 'Still, I'll have to get stronger', he thought as he charged in with a punch.
The blonde boy moved to the side and threw a kick, hitting Xander on his side.
[-2 hp]
[HP: 8/10]
Xander ignored what the system had given him and charged again, this time, his movements were more fluid and precise. He predicted his opponent's attack, and dodged accordingly. He also threw punches and kicks which also hit his opponent. Yet both were not willing to give up. Xander decided to charge in again and not let his opponent rest. As he did, his opponent predicted it and threw a kick towards Xander's face. Xander was now lying on the floor bleeding from both his nose and mouth.
[HP: 4/10]
[Warning: Your HP is low. Do you want to use energy to instantly heal?]
[Yes]
[No]
'If I do that now, everyone will see. So 'No''.
[Option no has been selected. Player will not undergo emergency healing]
[Warning : Reaching 1 HP will render you unconscious]
[Quest : Win the spar without letting your HP fall to 1]
[Quest reward : 5 exp]
Xander, after seeing this was determined to win. This was the first time during training that he had seen a quest. Whilst deep in thoughts of what the system had given him, the blonde boy lunged forward, his fist aimed at Xander's face. Xander quickly dodged the attack.
With determination to win, Xander unleashed a series of lightning-fast strikes. His punches connected with his opponent's body making the opponent stumble backward. Seizing the opportunity, Xander charged his body enveloped in a light purple aura, delivering a powerful blow to his opponent's chest, sending him crashing to the ground.
[Congratulations you won. You have received 5 exp and 3 points for your respective stats]
The training room erupted in applause and cheers. Yet, as he looked at his fallen opponent, Xander felt a pang of sympathy. He had not fought out of malice, but out of desperation to gain more exp and level up.
"You've really grown stronger.", Paul said giving Xander a pat on the back. "With this said, training has officially ended. Those who wish to enrol in the military can do so. As for those from Astrum, you may leave and head over there.", He concluded.
'I want to check how far I got during the training
[Basic information]
[Name : Xander Stormhold]
[Age : 18]
[Level : 1]
[Exp : 55/100]
[HP : 10/10]
[Energy : 100/100]
[Strength : 12 (+3)]
[Intelligence : 12 (+3)]
[Agility : 12 (+3)]
[Endurance: 15 (+3)]
[Stamina :12 (+3)]
'I didn't get strong enough. I have to keep on training.'
Xander and George headed back to Astrum. Whilst entering, they spotted smoke coming out from the side of Astrum. The soldiers from the military started entering the building.
"You two should stay out of this!", One soldier said as he pushed pass Xander and went inside. It didn't take long and that soldier's body was seen flying lifeless.
Just then a familiar creature with tall and thing body, long arms and legs, green scaly skin and black huge eyes came out of the facility and killed the soldiers infront of the facility leaving George and Xander alone.
"We meet again.", He said with a sinister grin across his face.