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861 - Mental Evaluation III (Unexpected Results)
🕑 Added 2025-03-06 23:58:14 +0000 UTCAron took a deep breath, momentarily pausing to process what he had just read. The revelation that mere physical contact had led to the discovery of an entirely unknown form of intelligent life was nothing short of astonishing.
Rather than rushing ahead, he allowed himself a moment to think. What kind of lifeform could remain undetected until direct contact was made? Based on what he knew, the most plausible explanation was a lifeform without a conventional physical body, one that could embed itself into various materials, manipulating them as if they were extensions of itself, like an avatar.
If that were the case, it would explain why the material reacted only when the headgear was removed. These beings must have been attuned and able to perceive even the faintest psionic waves emitted by an unprotected mind—waves that would otherwise be blocked by the shielding integrated into the headgear worn by every member of the exploration fleet.
The more he thought about it, the more sense it made. His theory accounted for all the oddities surrounding the material's behavior, and for a brief moment, he felt satisfied with his reasoning.
But he needed confirmation. Without further hesitation, he turned to the next paragraph, eager to see if his assumption was correct or if the truth was even stranger than he had imagined.
…………………
Flashback – Mobile Lab
Zhao walked slowly toward the containment box, his hazmat suit rustling slightly with each step.
He had been chosen among the group of researchers who volunteered for direct contact, and whether his selection was due to chance or something else, he couldn’t say for sure.
In his mind, it made sense. He had no family, no loved ones waiting for him. If something went wrong, the consequences would be minimal, at least in terms of personal loss. He wasn’t resentful of this logic; in fact, he embraced it. But that didn’t mean his subconscious wasn’t screaming at him, reminding him that he was about to touch the unknown, something that could very well be the last thing he ever did.
However, he wasn’t entirely unprotected. His suit’s hood was equipped with an array of sensors, and though the psionic shielding was currently deactivated, it could be switched on in an instant, either by his own command or automatically if the fleet’s AI deemed it necessary. Every aspect of his brain activity was being monitored in real-time, with the AI allocating all available quantum clusters to ensure immediate intervention at the slightest sign of danger.
His breathing remained steady as he took another step forward, the containment box now within arm’s reach.
"Fwoooooooooo." Zhao took a deep breath, releasing it slowly as he stood before the containment box. Despite the cooling system within his hazmat suit, beads of sweat had begun forming on his brow, betraying his nerves.
His eyes remained locked onto the material inside already in its liquid form, reacting to the absence of psionic shielding. With deliberate movements, he extended his hand, beginning the careful process of unlocking the containment box.
Two minutes passed, each second stretching longer than it should. The final lock disengaged with a soft click. Slowly, Zhao opened the box, the sterile, contained air inside mixing with the atmosphere of the lab.
He had already steeled his nerves. Hesitation now would only feed his fear, giving him time to second-guess himself. Determined not to falter, he immediately reached into the box, his gloved hand moving toward the liquid pooled at the bottom.
With his breath held and his eyes squeezed shut, muscles tensed in anticipation of the unknown, his index finger finally made contact.
Everyone watching the live broadcast held their breath, their eyes glued to the screen. Wild theories ran rampant through their minds, would it explode? Ignite? Start disintegrating Zhao’s body? Attempt to escape? Enter his body and take control? No one dared to blink, fearing they might miss a moment that could redefine everything they knew.
One second passed. Then two. Three. Four. Five.
Nothing happened.
Cautiously, Zhao cracked open one eye, half-expecting to see his hand reduced to a dissolving mess, with his body still lagging in processing any potential pain, leaving him with only the eerie sensation of a phantom limb. But to his surprise, his hand was still intact.
The same went for the finger submerged in the liquid. The material remained in its liquid form, seemingly inert, at least to the human eye.
However, the fleet AI, monitoring the lab through every available sensor, saw something else entirely.
Through the mana sensors, it detected a faint yet distinct movement. The liquid was gathering mana from its surroundings. But with ambient mana levels being low, the amount it could absorb in five seconds was barely significant. Recognizing this, the AI immediately notified Zhao of her intentions. After receiving his acknowledgment, she began injecting mana into the room.
What happened next was akin to a dying man finding an oasis.
The material reacted instantly, absorbing mana like a black hole devouring light. From the live footage, for the first time, it displayed an observable reaction as it began vibrating at erratic frequencies. The unexpected shift startled Zhao, prompting him to yank his hand away.
But the material paid him no mind.
Even without direct contact, it continued to tremble, the vibrations intensifying as it consumed more mana. The more it absorbed, the faster it moved, as if it had just awakened from a long slumber, one that had lasted far beyond human comprehension.
For over ten minutes, the material continued to absorb mana relentlessly. Then, without warning, the vibrations ceased.
Slowly, the liquid began to rise.
The transformation was eerily reminiscent of a 3D printer working at high speed, like a timelapse video of something being constructed, except here, there were no visible support structures, no guiding framework. The material simply shaped itself, defying logic.
Twenty seconds in, the realization hit.
Everyone watching, whether in the lab or through the live broadcast, had the same reaction. Their eyes widened, breaths caught in their throats, and a chilling wave of disbelief settled over them.
“What the fuck?” Zhao muttered, his voice filled with stunned bewilderment.
He wasn’t alone.
The shape forming before their eyes was unmistakable. The bottom portion, now fully formed, looked exactly like an organ that every human recognized, a brain.
A human brain.
Due to the small volume of the recovered material, the completed brain wasn’t full-sized. It resembled that of a five-year-old child and looked anatomically correct in every visible way. The only difference was its color, which remained the same as the liquid’s original hue.
Silence engulfed the room.
Across the fleet, every viewer of the live feed sat frozen, their minds struggling to process what they had just witnessed. This was something beyond anything they had ever imagined and beyond any scenario they had considered.
It simply shouldn’t have been possible.
Yet, there it was.
Logic and reality were at war, and reality was winning.
Comments
Sol_Invictus
TYFTC!!
GripenSupremacy
TYFTC
Jade
Thank you for chapter Agent!
GripenSupremacy
Me neither
Jade
Lmao
GripenSupremacy
Second again
GripenSupremacy
Damn
Jade
Ain't going to miss it
