06-01-2025, 05:13 PM
Nikolai said nothing at first.
He studied Nox in silence, the man’s words echoing in the vacuum of his mind. They have been reprogrammed. The phrase coiled inside him like a serpent unspooling. A single concept, quiet in tone, deafening in consequence.
Reprogrammed.
That meant they were functional. That meant they were modular. That meant...
He glanced to the glowing scans again.
In another era, centuries ago, power was believed to be granted by divine right, sealed in blood and coronation. Then came knowledge: industry, bombs, currency. But this? This was something older and newer all at once. Something elemental. Biological. The god-born, extracted from Nox. The thread of divinity, clipped like a nail.
And if it could be removed, it could be prevented.
In anyone.
His breath came slowly, controlled, but his pulse ticked upward, sharp as glass behind the stillness of his eyes. His mind was running now, too fast to contain. The potential of such a thing was horrifying in theory.
He turned back to Nox only once more, but this time the weight behind his stare had shifted. No longer angry. No longer threatened. Cold. Measured. Proprietary. “You’ll have your data. I'll make sure Dr. Weston gives you what you need” Nikolai said softly. “And we will await yours in return.”
He was by the door then, and as the rush of thoughts slowed, he remembered something. He turned, back and studied the boy whose face had shifted from enemy to tool to ally. "I am sorry this happened to you. It must be-- well, I'm sorry." It was as close to comforting that Nikolai ever breeched.
He studied Nox in silence, the man’s words echoing in the vacuum of his mind. They have been reprogrammed. The phrase coiled inside him like a serpent unspooling. A single concept, quiet in tone, deafening in consequence.
Reprogrammed.
That meant they were functional. That meant they were modular. That meant...
He glanced to the glowing scans again.
In another era, centuries ago, power was believed to be granted by divine right, sealed in blood and coronation. Then came knowledge: industry, bombs, currency. But this? This was something older and newer all at once. Something elemental. Biological. The god-born, extracted from Nox. The thread of divinity, clipped like a nail.
And if it could be removed, it could be prevented.
In anyone.
His breath came slowly, controlled, but his pulse ticked upward, sharp as glass behind the stillness of his eyes. His mind was running now, too fast to contain. The potential of such a thing was horrifying in theory.
He turned back to Nox only once more, but this time the weight behind his stare had shifted. No longer angry. No longer threatened. Cold. Measured. Proprietary. “You’ll have your data. I'll make sure Dr. Weston gives you what you need” Nikolai said softly. “And we will await yours in return.”
He was by the door then, and as the rush of thoughts slowed, he remembered something. He turned, back and studied the boy whose face had shifted from enemy to tool to ally. "I am sorry this happened to you. It must be-- well, I'm sorry." It was as close to comforting that Nikolai ever breeched.