Chapter 2: Prologue (2)
The boy was drifting through space. It was empty. The whole world was empty. He floated for seemingly forever. He was unable to think, unable to talk, unable to see, unable to hear, unable to smell, unable to feel. He was just there, simply existing. He was in the void.
The lifepod was miraculous. The original body of the boy was being repaired at the speed of the eye. There were lasers shooting beige silk-like strings on the boy's body. On the side, there seemed to be a 3D printer. The printer started printing a crimson-colored organ. It was a heart. After the heart was completely printed, it started beating on its own. The heart was placed in the middle of the boy's empty chest by a robotic hand that was moving inside the lifepod. As more organs were being produced, a liquid was being poured into the heart. It was blood. More lasers shot against the tip of the heart. It started producing red silk-like strings, creating blood vessels.
The two robots from the retrieval squad was not ordered to hibernate, so they simply watched as the boy in front of them was repaired. The robots were not humans, so they could not exclaim how miraculous this technology was. They themselves would sometimes be repaired if they were damaged, so they simply thought humans could naturally be repaired as well. The two retrieval robots stood there without a sound. They had no concept of boredom, or emotions in general. They simply followed their logic circuits. First they followed orders. If the have no orders, they simply follow the most rational choice for their next actions. If no actions needed to be taken, they would simply not move.
There was a shining beacon in front of the boy, completely penetrating through the void, giving the boy warmth. He unconsciously drifted towards the source of the light. As he finally arrived in front of the bright light, he suddenly opened his eyes.
The boy saw that he was enclosed within a glass pane. He tried to move but was unable to. He tried his best to lift his head, but after taking a look at his lower body, he immediately fainted.
The two robots who were waiting for the boy's orders did not react. They simply waited for him to come out, since they would not be able to feel disappointment.
After another hour, the lifepod finally finished producing the boy's body. The computer program was designed to provide a person with the most superior body that one could handle based on the person's age. The boy, who was 16 years old, was at the height of his teenage years. Therefore, the most perfect body for the boy would be the one that the computer just produced.
The boy's body was lean. It looked like someone who regularly go exercise and spend hours honing his body. His upper chest slightly protruded outwards, giving him a manly charm, his 8-pack abs gave off a wild aura. His arms contained powerful biceps and triceps, which gave it a particular shape that ladies would love. The back of the body was beautifully crafted. One could see the lines of the shoulder blades and the muscles protruding out, protecting the inner body. The happy trail connecting his belly button to his crotch was lighty added with black hair. His pubic hair was mostly trimmed, showing off the gigantic elephant underneath. His legs was adorned with muscles that can outrun most people his age, and finally, the boy's face was left untouched, but such a handsome and fierce face combined with the body gave the boy a wild aura, like a God of war that have descended from heaven.
When the boy woke up again, he once again saw the glass pane in front of him. However, as the computer system was monitoring his vitals, it instantly knew the boy was awake. The computer opened the lifepod, allowing the boy to head out.
The boy, who was still unfamiliar with his body, tried to walk out but tripped and fell. One of the retrieval robots immediately reached out with its hands, stopping the boy's fall.
"Thank you." The boy said with a coarse voice. The body was completely new, so there was not a lot of water in his throat yet. "Water." The boy demanded.
The other robot headed towards a certain direction. After a minute, it headed back with a glass of water. The boy immediately chugged the water all down, as if he had just came out of the desert and entered an oasis. After drinking the water, he finally had time to look around.
The whole place seemed like an underground laboratory. Opposite him was another lifepod. Of course, he did not know what a lifepod was at the time. On his left was a curved corridor that extended outwards. On his right was another curved corridor.
"Um... Where am I?" The boy asked in a low tone. He narrowed his eyes, but was not able to find anything of use to figure out his current location.
"This is the Wu Laboratory." The robot replied.
"Wu..." The boy muttered.
"Thank you very much for saving my life. May I ask if I can go meet a person who's responsible for this place?" The boy asked in a polite tone.
"There are currently no other designated human beings or humanoids within this laboratory except for yourself and some lab specimens. This laboratory is currently managed by Anna, the supercomputer mainframe." The robot replied in a typical monotone voice.
"I see. Can you please take me to see Anna then?" The boy asked.
"Acknowledged." The robot said.
The robot headed in front, with the boy following behind. The boy was able to get used to his new legs after taking a few more steps. They took many different turns and curves before arriving at what looks like the main operation center of the laboratory. At the very front was a gigantic monitor. There were multiple desks below with installed computers, but they were all currently empty. Suddenly, a female face appeared on the gigantic screen.
"Good morning, Arnold Wu. I'm Anna. Welcome to the Wu Laboratory." Anna said in a voice that was slightly less monotone than the robot's.
Arnold nodded. "Why did you save me?" He directly asked the most pressing question in his mind.
As a supercomputer, Anna did not have the concept of human manners. Therefore, such a direct and blunt question was actually more advantageous than an implicit one when facing against a supercomputer.
"Your gene composition have been registered as important within our database. Thus, under established protocol, we were required to save you." Anna replied succinctly. "Do you have any more questions?"
"Also. This body. How did you make it?" Arnold asked. He raised his hand to take a look. He also took a look at his lower body and found it to be completely different than his old one. He was originally much skinnier, as he was almost always malnutritioned. His manhood was also not that gigantic.
"We were able to recreate a body that best fits your age using various techniques." Anna replied.
"Can I get some clothes?" Arnold asked.
Arnold walked all the way here from the lifepod completely naked. He did not remember to ask for clothes due to the shock of being in a completely alien environment.
"Certainly."
The retrieval robot headed somewhere to retrieve some clothes.
"I don't think I have any more questions."
"Very well. Now, under recorded instructions from Professor Wu, I was instructed to play you this video after you finished all your questioning."
The female face suddenly changed into a male one. The face was one that Arnold was familiar with.
"Father?!" Arnold exclaimed.
"Arnold. First, I would like to congratulate you in finding this place. I still remember giving you this treasure map for your 6th birthday." The man on the screen chuckled. Then, he turned serious.
"I regret to inform you that if you are seeing this message, then that means I'm most likely dead. I cannot tell you the details of what happened to me, since it will endanger the lives of you and our family. I can only help you now as much as I can." The man said solemnly.
"Arnold. Remember. Get stronger. Strong enough to protect Diana and Bobby. Then, and only then, should you start looking for me. Do you understand?"
Arnold subconsciously nodded.
"I have prepared for you a serum. This serum will help you unlock your inner esper powers. Also, you should go to the lifepod after taking the serum. The lifepod will automatically install an AI chip in your brain. The AI is not only a massive encyclopedia, it also has great analytical functions. I hope it will be of help to you." Arnold's father said, there seemed to be complicated emotions behind those eyes.
"And I can't stress this enough. Please. Stay safe. And protect our family in my place. You are the patriarch of our family now. I regret this, but now I have to place all of my responsibilities upon you. For that, I apologize. I hope you have a nice life in the future. Say hi to Diana and Bobby for me, will you?" The man made a smile. The smile seemed to be quite sad, instead of happy. "I have to go now, if there's anything you need, or if you need protection, you can stay in this lab. I've already given you all master controls. The lab is completely secure from most attacks. I hope my last gift would be of use to you." The message ended.
Tears started coming out of Arnold's eyes. He took time to process the whole situation in his mind.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone