Cloudhawk was practicing the demonhunter training exercises . He found his body had improved again by no small measure . Now he was able to perform twenty movements easily . Though it was a far cry from what the Bloodsoaked Queen could do, his improvement was still impressive .

He still remained in Blackwater Base, studying with h.e.l.lflower . There was much to learn, otherwise he would have already left to continue his journey .

Cloudhawk hated the struggle and intrigue of the wastelands . He despised fleeing from place to place, fighting for his life . Getting out of this h.e.l.l hole was his greatest wish . His friends.h.i.+p with h.e.l.lflower was more about mutual benefit than anything else and there was nothing she could offer that would keep him here .

Sooner or later, Cloudhawk would leave . Without a doubt!

A guard approached and made his report . “Master Cloudhawk . Our leader wishes to speak with you . ”

Cloudhawk made his way to h.e.l.lflower’s laboratory . She was crouched over a series of strange instruments, too absorbed to notice him enter . She was beautiful as ever; her firm b.r.e.a.s.t.s and pert backside outlined in her lab gear, and her silvery hair hung loose at her shoulders . The others in the room stole furtive glances as often as they could .

These days no one challenged her authority . She was more intelligent and a physically capable person in the base, without question .

She never raised her head, keeping her eyes fixed on the equipment before her . However, words slipped from her attractive mouth when she heard Cloudhawk’s footsteps . “I heard you’re getting ready to leave?”

Cloudhawk was direct in his response . “My time here was an accident, I’ve already stayed too long . I’m planning to leave in a couple days . ”

He already had the Caliph’s book as proof, and the Bloodsoaked Queen’s token for pa.s.sage . A life of ease and plenty awaited him in the elysian lands . There Cloudhawk would live as a hero, a life which he imagined to be far better than anything out here in the wastelands . The young wastelander was not an ambitious sort, all his life his only desire was to find somewhere peaceful where he could live out his days in comfort and quiet .

“It’s your decision where you’d like to go, I respect your choice . But you should see this first . ” At last h.e.l.lflower straightened and approached Cloudhawk . She handed him a piece of paper . “The a.n.a.lysis of your blood . ”

“This doesn’t make any sense to me, just tell me what you found . ”

Roste’s final bite had nagged at Cloudhawk ever since it happened . Only, everything had seemed normal, and over time his worries eased . In the off chance that something was wrong he’d entrusted h.e.l.lflower with checking his blood . Once he left, he figured it would be difficult to find someone who could help examine him even in the elysian lands .

h.e.l.lflower paused in thought . This b.u.mpkin could read but that was about all, she couldn’t expect him to understand the results . She pushed her gla.s.ses higher along the bridge of her nose with slender fingers . “Long story short there’s an unknown microorganism we discovered in your blood . We’ve come to call it Trespa.s.ser . ”

The news and ominous name gave him gooseflesh . “It’s in my blood? That can’t be right!”

“If you think I’m just trying to scare you come and have a look for yourself . ” She led him to the lab table and situated Cloudhawk before the strange instruments she had been staring through . “This device was created out of materials we found in the wasteland, crude but capable of magnifying the contents of blood . ”

“Why do you have three samples?” He asked .

“Stupid, for contrast of course!” She pointed to the various slides as she explained . “On the left is normal blood . In the center is a specimen from Roste . The one to the right is yours . We are able to find the differences by a.n.a.lyzing the three samples against each other . ”

Cloudhawk leaned over the left device and peered through its lens . Inside he saw a field of red, thickly dotted with round specs that were difficult to differentiate . Those had to be what made up human blood?

The sample in the center device was completely different . There were red dots, only these weren’t smooth plates like the last sample . Roste’s blood contained red spikey material of various shapes with tendrils of dark green reaching out from them . The s.p.a.ce between the mutated blood cells were thick with strange green organisms – so many in fact that the blood was tinged green .

Roste’s blood was absolutely monstrous!

The last sample he looked at was his own, and when he looked through the lens his face fell . In all it looked much more like the normal blood, but for the bright green dots around the edges . There weren’t many and they wandered freely through the serum . A small number had attached to the red blood cells .

The green microorganisms were few but lively . Even as he watched they were reproducing, slowly permeating through his blood serum .

“Yeah, I see it . The green things are Trespa.s.ser?” Cloudhawk lifted his head to look at h.e.l.lflower, worry on his face . “But what the f.u.c.k is it?”

“I don’t know . About all we can guess is that it’s some sort of peculiar form of life . ” She looked at Cloudhawk with an earnest expression . “When we examined Roste’s body we found that it was completely infested with Trespa.s.ser, present in every cell . We suspect this was what gave the Academician his high-grade adaptability . ”

Cloudhawk pressed her further . “The ones in Roste’s blood were different . They were darker . ”

“Trespa.s.ser reproduces quickly, and once it reaches a certain concentration we can be sure it will begin to infiltrate the rest of your body . What we learned from Academician Roste’s body was that this organism will fundamentally alter your biology eventually, but how it will manifest we have no idea . ”

A chill shuddered through Cloudhawk . “How long do I have?!”

“Around ten, twenty years . You might start seeing changes in a year and a half – we really can’t say for certain . ”

“Son of a b.i.t.c.h, what the h.e.l.l?” Cloudhawk angrily grabbed fistfuls of his ratty hair . He knew the Academician was up to no good . “Is there a cure?”

“Roste didn’t leave any notes about it, I can’t think of any way to reverse the infection . ” She spoke to the young man with a teasing smile . “But look at it this way, I think you really got a bargain . Ten to one you become a super shapes.h.i.+fter, inheriting a lifetime of the Academician’s work . How can this be a bad thing? You’ll have abilities wastelanders could only dream of!”

Even though his transformation hadn’t been complete, Roste already could fight about as well as the Bloodsoaked Queen . Given another twenty years to perfect his body Roste would have broken the expected lifespan of a human – he would have become a super-lifeform .  

None of that interested Cloudhawk . He wanted to train and become stronger like the demonhunters, not deliberately turn himself into a monster! What would power mean if he wasn’t even human anymore?

Cloudhawk was at a loss .

h.e.l.lflower was one of the best minds around, and even she didn’t know what to do . Did that mean there was no hope to reverse the process? Although there wasn’t any evidence, was there a chance this could affect his memory, will or personality?

Cloudhawk was somber and uncertain but h.e.l.lflower found his trepidation amusing . Cloudhawk had been willing to stand up to Roste, but this situation frightened him . To many including h.e.l.lflower, his situation was not pitiable . The Academician’s abilities had been clear to everyone .

Who wasn’t twisted by the wastelands? Capability was the way to power!

h.e.l.lflower considered the situation for a moment . “There’s nothing we can do here, but I know of someplace that might be able to help . If you go there maybe they have a way to help you . ”

“Tell me, where?”

“The Dark Atom, out in the elysian lands!” It was a name he’d heard several times already . h.e.l.lflower explained further . “The Dark Atom is the most complete and influential Seeker organization in the entire wasteland . They’re as full of talented people as the sky is full of clouds . If you can get to them, I think they’ll be able to help you . ”

“So where can I find the Dark Atom?”

“I have no idea . ” She chuckled at her own disappointing response . “Skycloud’s been trying to wipe them out for over a decade with no success [1] . They’re crafty . Wherever their base is, it’s almost impossible to find and no one knows for sure . I think your only bet is to search for them yourself when you get there . ”

“Thank you!” Cloudhawk’s mind was made up . “I’ll set out as soon as possible!”

“Come with me first . ” She pulled him into an adjacent room . “Since we aren’t sure of your body’s condition, I want to give you a thorough examination . ”

The room she’d brought him to was not large . Uniforms hung from pegs on the walls, revealing it as a locker room for lab workers . h.e.l.lflower slipped her lab coat off her shoulder and hung it on a hanger, revealing her form-fitting, short-cut clothing beneath . With a snap she pulled her gloves off and threw them aside then interlaced her fingers . A series of cracks and pops issued from her knuckles .

“Take off your clothes .

“I need to take off my clothes for the examination?”

“Stupid question . How can we do a full body check if you have your clothes on?”

h.e.l.lflower’s deft fingers quickly had him out of his clothes . His rough, dark skin was revealed to her, but different than before . His complexion had become a healthy bronze, and he’d gone from emaciated to pleasantly muscular . Often the fact was hidden beneath his clothes, which made him look thin and una.s.suming . Without them he looked like a cheetah, corded muscles taught and ready to pounce .

“These, too . ”

h.e.l.lflower pointed a dainty finger at his underwear .

1 . Skycloud is the city led by the Bloodsoaked Queen’s uncle, as explained in Chapter 93

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