Endless Evolution: Last Star

Adam had found himself in deadly situations more than once, several times even before he became a Phantom. The slums were far from the safest place to be. In some ways, he was used to fighting death to stay alive and get stronger.

But... Silvana was in this position for the first time. Adam was ready to save her in whatever situation she was in, but now... there was nothing he could do.

No matter how fast Adam could be, Magnus or Nessa would surely attack and take Silvana's life.

Adam had only one way to save Silvana - listen to Magnus and don't make any sudden moves. Adam did not doubt that Magnus could slit Silvana's throat with his scalpel, but what about Nessa?

Well, Adam was experienced enough to realize from Nessa's look that she would actually shoot. If Magnus was ready to kill, so was she.

However... this time, Adam felt something strange. Nessa seemed to have somehow changed, not because she was acting like Magnus, but because she was in a combat situation.

"Fine. I don't really have any other choice, do I?" Adam frowned, raised his hands, and took a few steps back, showing his intentions.

However, Magnus and Nessa did not relax. Against them was an enraged K1-Phantom, at that moment, Adam might have been one of the five strongest Phantoms of his level. They couldn't afford to act carelessly when threatening the Operator of such a Phantom.

"Speak. What's going on here, but I'll warn you. The fact that there's a scalpel to Silvana's neck and a gun to her head is enough for me to kill the two of you." Adam said coldly, not canceling his Artifact Trait. Electricity ran steadily through his body and among his blade-sharp pupils.

The scarlet veil was already gone, Adam was slowly calming down, but he wasn't going to forgive Magnus and Nessa for nothing. He needed an argument, as powerful as he could make it.

Silvana, in the meantime, was trying to calm down. Her heart was racing, her breathing was rapid, and she broke out in a cold sweat.

Operators always stayed to the side, doing everything they could to help their Phantoms, but... right now, it was Silvana, who was one step away from death, and there was nothing she could do to change that. If Magnus wanted to, she would already be dead, Silvana realized that, and it was pressuring her hard.

"Sure, but it's going to be a long, very long story, so get ready." Magnus said calmly, continuing to hold the scalpel at Silvana's neck.

Magnus took a deep breath.

"To begin with... You're not fucking supposed to be here!" Magnus exclaimed furiously with a horrifying grimace like that of a demon from the netherworld.

Just like the first time they met, Magnus's emotions changed drastically, he wasn't acting, he was furious.

"You fucking should have gone through my method, regenerated your arm, and walked out of here with a smile on your face! This was supposed to be the end of our story! Why the fuck do you walk into someone else's house and stroll in here like it's your own?!" Magnus shouted, it seemed even his hair went up.

Adam didn't answer anything. He expected Magnus to start making excuses, but instead, he attacked him... It actually took Adam off guard.

Then, Magnus took a deep breath again, gradually calming down.

"Alright, now let's start from afar. I know your history with Aiden Henk." Magnus said seriously.

Adam's eyes went wide.

"You shouldn't be surprised. He and I are on the same level. Like me, he's a free scientist, and has his observatory and the right to conduct whatever experiments he wants." Magnus waved his hand.

Adam nodded slightly. Now, he didn't want to be in a hurry. Magnus could tell more about Aiden Henk than most people could.

"He dropped you in Dead Lands, you miraculously killed a monster and became Naturalborn Phantom, blah-blah-blah. None of that matters anymore." Magnus carelessly said.

Then, his gaze became sharper.

"Obviously, you were looking for information about Aiden Henk, but... do you know anything about him and the free scientists?"

"Agh...? What do you mean?" Adam was confused.

"Look, I don't care about your and Aiden's conflict. It's your business, but, you must realize that free scientists are quite few, and each of us has our area of research." Magnus said calmly. All this was necessary for Adam to understand what was going on here.

Magnus continued:

"Aiden Henk researches Phantoms, or rather all the ways to become Phantoms, how Spark emergence occurs, why some have Spark and others don't, the chances of Spark appearance, the difference between Artificialborn and Naturalborn Phantoms, how the genes of a slain monster affect Spark activation and much more."

"By the way, a lot of information that was previously assumed or inaccurate is now available in the databases of various departments and the military thanks to Aiden Henk. I'm not saying he's the first to know about Spark, no, but he's doing it all with a scientific and mathematical approach, allowing for accurate data and better planning for the future.

As you realize, it's important to the orderly development of the Citadel."

Magnus's voice was calm and deep, engulfing Adam's mind, for this was unique information he could only get from Magnus.

"Well, enough about Aiden, I am not defending him or myself, for every one of the free scientists does both terrible and good things. Like I said earlier, every free scientist has their own area, and in my case, it's monsters and humans." Aiden said seriously. At that moment, he and Nessa glanced over at each other.

Adam frowned.

"What...? According to you, Aiden Henk is doing the same thing! Monsters and humans, what else is there to explore here?!" Adam waved his hand, thinking Magnus was fooling him.

"Not really, or rather, you're completely wrong." Magnus said menacingly, "Let me explain in simple terms, Aiden researches humans and monsters on the Spark and Phantoms side, on the energy side, but... I have a completely different domain."

Magnus clenched his fist.

"If Aiden's is energy, mine is biology, cells, and genes. Yeah, we both research humans and monsters, but with completely different goals and methods. Our research has little to no overlap. That's why you came to me to heal your arm because I'm the only one who can do it in the Citadel." Magnus's eyes narrowed, then he pointed at the pods.

"Adam, all of them are indeed from the slums, they are all part of my experiment." Magnus said majestically.

Adam's pupils narrowed as the flames of anger began to ignite inside him again.

"However, some of them are here of their own free will, and the other part had no choice. I'll tell you about that later. Right now, I want to explain something else to you." Magnus's eyes grew deeper as he reached forward.

"There's a reason why they're all either, kids or teenagers, and most of them are girls. For one thing, you just happened to be in this room, there are others here where there's a different age group. However, I won't hide it, this is the most important room, and for good reason." Magnus touched his face, looking at the pods through his fingers.

Adam gritted his teeth with a great grimace.

"Perhaps I'm far from understanding what scientists like you or Aiden Henk do, but I don't believe there can be an important reason to keep specifically children and specifically girls here. You're just a sick bastard!"

Magnus nodded.

"Perhaps I am. Sometimes I may act like a madman, but I'm not a villain, however, I believe villains don't exist as well as heroes, it's all relative." Magnus nodded as he stared at Adam.

"You just healed your arm with monster energy. So... do you think, it's possible for humans to use monster genes to become stronger?" Magnus asked, reaching his hand forward with an open palm.

Adam was puzzled.

"A monster and a human? Some sort of hybrid? Fuck no. I barely made it, though I just needed to heal my arm. That's impossible." Adam said confidently.

Well, deep inside, he expected Magnus to disprove him because then it would go some way to explaining what was going on here.

"Yes, you're right, it's impossible." Magnus uttered, shattering the last of Adam's hopes, "The monsters' cells are too strong for humans to withstand. Even for Phantoms, it's difficult, only temporarily or to boost regeneration like you did earlier."

Adam wanted to say something, but Magnus stopped him with his gaze.

Then, he turned to Nessa.
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"Show him. He should see it."

Nessa nodded, tossed the gun aside, and took a few steps forward.

She was dressed in formal clothes as always, but there was always a piece of cloth sticking out from under her jacket, like a wide ribbon that could be pulled.

Whoosh.

With a sudden movement, Nessa did so, revealing that she had been wearing a very unusual outfit all this time. Sure, it looked like an office suit, but in fact, it was custom-made by one of the best tailors in the Citadel - Cazimir.

Nessa's clothes split into wide ribbons that were like dark bandages swirling around her. Dense, stretchy black fabric covered her chest, elbows, and wrist, as well as her knees and the Achilles tendons on her legs.

The fabric spread from her waist to her hips as well, like a battle skirt, fitting tightly around her body.

Adam's eyes went wide, but not from Nessa's appearance but from her muscles - they were perfect as if carved by a divine sculptor with the sole purpose - to create an unsurpassed masterpiece.

Nessa's muscles weren't huge, but they were superior in shape to even Adam's. It was a perfection that made Adam's genes envious and awakened in him a strange motivation and desire.

Then, Nessa turned her back, making a few turns so Adam would finally notice the many scars, most of which were on her back, but there were a few gruesome ones in her stomach area.

"Adam, right now, before you stands the only one perfect human out of tens of millions... Nessa is the sole hybrid."

Magnus's words, like thunder, pierced Adam's mind, causing him to lose his voice.