Fractured Core

Aiden gazed down at himself, his expression unreadable. "Who am I supposed to meet?" he muttered under his breath.

He had become an Exodite. Yet, nothing felt different. No rush of power, no shift in perception…just the same body, the same mind. Uncertainty gnawed at him. Where am I? What was happening?

Feeling restless, he stripped off the medicinal gear and pushed himself to his feet. Rolling his shoulders of stiffness.

He moced forward, the floor beneath his bare feet was smooth, composed of matte-finish black tiles that seemed to swallow sound, muffling his movements. Thin lines of glowing blue circuitry pulsed rhythmically, stretching out like veins, guiding him toward various stations scattered throughout the room.

He scanned the surroundings, his fingers twitching slightly at his sides. 'This place… it looks way more advanced than anywhere. On earth saw.'

Against one wall stood a series of diagnostic stations, each featuring an ergonomic chair and a curved holographic monitor displaying detailed biometrics, 3D anatomical scans, and AI-generated treatment plans. Medical supplies were stored in sealed compartments, designed to open with a simple motion completely touchless.

Aiden halted in front of a medical pod, peering inside. His reflection ghosted across the glass. At that moment he heard multiple voices. That he recognized, it even made him suspicious.

"How is he?"

"I checked his vitals. He should be fully healed and ready for his Channeling."

Aiden turned sharply. Walking toward him were Mira and Kurt. The moment he laid eyes on them, a rush of memories flowed into him. Mira… Kurt.

He turned around to see, Mira walking with Kurt. That when he instatntly remembered who Mira was to Kurt.

Kurt strode ahead of Mira, a smirk tugging at his lips. "Aiden, congratulations… Honestly, I'm surprised you pushed through, considering your personality."

He reached out to pat Aiden's shoulder. But Aiden dodged.

"Ah?"

Kurt blinked, hand hovering in midair, before withdrawing it with a questioning glance at Mira. Really asking. What happening here?

Aiden ignored the exchange. His mind was still racing. "What's happening here?"

Kurt exhaled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Oh, right. I guess this must be confusing for you," he admitted. "As you saw in the Phantom Dimension, there's another world hidden beneath this one. A secret world where people from the real world become Exodites, like me. But not all Exodites serve a cause…some work for themselves. That said, I'm retired."

Aiden narrowed his eyes. 'So that's the secret he's been hiding all this time… But how many people actually know about this?' He thought.

"Okay… then why did you retire? And more importantly, how was I chosen to be an Exodite?"

Kurt didn't answer right away. Instead, he walked past Aiden, pausing beside a tray of medical tools. He picked up one absentmindedly, spinning it between his fingers. "There are two main ways to enter the Phantom Dimension. The first is through the System…it pulls people in, often with the help of another Exodite. The second way… is through the Tide."

"The System?"

Kurt sighed, rolling the small tool across his knuckles before setting it back on the tray. "No Exodite or organization has ever fully uncovered the nature of the System," he explained. His tone was lighter, but his gaze was serious. "It exists outside normal human perception, functioning as the backbone of the Phantom Dimension. It controls the flow of energy, shapes the landscape, and influences the creatures that inhabit it. As for what it truly is… that's something you'll have to figure out on your own."

Aiden clenched his jaw. There was more to being an Exodite than he had ever realized. If the Phantom Dimension was this vast, this controlled…then what were the real dangers?

"So, how did you enter?"

Aiden hesitated before answering. "I don't know. I was about to enter my apartment when everything went black… Next thing I knew, I was falling through the sky into—" His brows furrowed. "Some weird-looking world."

Mira stepped closer to Aiden, her gaze piercing as if searching for answers within him. "That's what's strange…you were able to shift your surroundings like a Spacelock… without using energy. That shouldn't be possible. No one can enter the Phantom Dimension without either the System nor Tide pulling them in."

"So… nothing unusual happened before you entered your apartment?"

Aiden exhaled sharply, shaking his head, as he replayed the moment in his mind. The only thing he could recall was an overwhelming sense of unease…one he had dismissed. His hands curled into fists. Was it ever good to ignore instinct? Or worse to focus on it?

Kurt folded his arms, his brow furrowing in thought. His fingers tapped against his bicep. "And yet, you have the abilities of a Spacelocker without any Systemic Essence. Too many strange occurrences are surrounding you."

"I completed the Trial of Judgment to become an Exodite, but I don't feel any different. The uncertainty is still there." Aiden gaze flicked to Kurt, seeking something…guidance, reassurance, or maybe just confirmation that this wasn't all in his head. "Trust you to tell me… what do I do from here?"

"Well… first, you need to unlock your Essence. Every Exodite gains one…either from the trial or through another Exodite." Kurt said. "Once that's done, you have two choices: join Mira… or return to your normal life."

Aiden scoffed, his arms falling to his sides, hands open but tense. "Return to a normal life? After all this? That's impossible. This… this will always be in my mind now. I want to be an Exodite, but I don't want to throw myself into something meaningless. There has to be more."

The truth was, a part of him was excited. But fear lurked beneath it. This path was unknown, something he hadn't chosen for himself so what did he truly want?

He had dreams of moving beyond this city, of honing his skills in technology. But did that still matter now?

Mira's eyes darkened, and she stepped forward, close enough that Aiden could feel the heat of her presence. Her fingers curled at her sides, nails pressing into her palms. "I keep telling you about your potential, and here you are, ready to give up again. You have a chance to do something great. To change your usel—" she hesitated, her lips pressing together for a second before she continued, softer but no less intense. "Your life doesn't have to be useless."

Aiden frowned. There was something different about her. He had seen Mira cold, calculating...but this? This was personal. His fingers twitched, resisting the urge to drop his head. Why does she care so much?

Kurt, who had been watching quietly, leaned slightly to the side, his arms still crossed but his head tilted. 'She's motivating him… That's a first. Does she see something in him?'

Kurt gave a slow nod. "That's fine, but before anything else, you need to do the Channeling. If you go back to a normal routine without unlocking your Essence, it could become a problem."

He turned, motioning toward a medical pod in the center of the room. The metallic casing gleamed under the dim lighting, and a thick, inky liquid sloshed inside, reflecting an eerie glow. Above it, mechanical arms with three-inch-long needles hung like predatory claws.

He followed Kurt and Mira to the medical pod in the middle as he spoke. The Phantom Dimension, Systemic Essence normally called the tern Exo is more than just a power source; it reflects a Exodite connection to the System, Phantom Dimension and serves as a symbol of their growth and adaptability.

In fact, in the Phantom Dimension, everything is imbued with Exo, from rocks, to grass, to trees, but only sentient beings develop a Exo and can use there given abilities.

"The Exo is often described as an galaxy sphere of energy by the Humans, but the Exo as a whole is a deep and complicated topic that is not limited to an essence." Kurt said before stopping. "Step in."

Aiden hesitated. His eyes darted to the thick liquid again. The surface pulsed, shifting like a living entity, reaching for him. His breathing slowed. Then, with a sharp inhale, he clenched his fists and stepped in. I'm really here Channeling the unknown.

The liquid seized him instantly, clinging to his body like sentient tendrils, crawling up his arms, wrapping around his legs. His breath hitched. It was icy and sharp, like tiny needles pressing into every pore., on his sick, like it was enter his body.

Kurt's fingers hovered over the console. He gave a small smirk. "This is going to hurt. Push through it."

Aiden barely had time to process the warning before the pain struck.

His body jerked violently. A thousand needle-like pricks tore through his skin, burrowing deep into his muscles, his bones, his very essence. His spine arched, his fingers splaying against the metal frame.

His vision blurred.

His breathing hitched short, shallow, ragged gasps. His instincts roared at him to move to escape. He body subconsciously started to stand up to exciting, Kurt was about to stop him that when he saw Aiden sat back down on his own.

So he gripped Aiden hands, he knew. What he was going throught all new begginer went through, even himself had it just a more painful way.

He even smiled, he happy that Aiden manage to not give up when he couldn't easily did like he alway did before something. In Aiden didn't want to give up from looking for the worth.

He saw Aiden was calm so he decided to explain a little more about Channeling."A Exodite learning Exo trains to manually open and close their Essence so that they can control the flow of their Exo. There are two ways to achieve this; one is the slow and careful way, in which one gradually learns this process through meditation. The other method is the fast and known way, colloquially called Channeling like this."

It's Channeling because it causes the Systemic Essence to flow throught you in area that it shouldn't.

Actually, Channeling is more deeper than know to the world in its usual self. In fact, Some individuals awakened due to the integration of Essence in their bodies and acquired a set of powers unique to themselves.

To Specfi, Mira own is more special and different, that's why she herself didn't have to go through what other's did.

As Aiden body was still, the needle cranes came down, the needles quikcly plunged into his skin, slowly injecting a liquid similar to the he submerged in.

Steams slowly stared releasing from his body, it caused from the building up his muscles and absorbing all the sickness, inside him.

The sensation was strange his muscles tightened, strengthened, as if something deep within him was being reshaped. The liquid worked through his system, burning away any sickness, reinforcing his very cells. His body wasn't just adapting…it was evolving.

Then, faint circuitry like patterns lit up across his skin.

It also rebuilt his cells to become stronger, during that, circuitry lines appeared on his body he remembered earlier, that Mira still had some he had them now, just that Kurt didn't. Now he was sure something was special about Mira.

As time passed, Aiden body became relaxed, the needles it returned back, the liquid in the pod stopped bubbling.