(A/n Took longer than expected as I was busy creating images and the info for MC gear and family.)
Light...
Consciousness didn't return as a gradual awakening, it arrived like a system reboot.
One moment there was nothing but the screaming white noise of cellular restructuring while I was unconscious like in a dreaming-state, and the next, I was staring at the ceiling of my lab, my lungs drawing in air with an efficiency that felt terrifyingly clean.
"Lyra," I croaked, still not fully recovered from unconsciousness and the strange feeling of ny body. "Perform a Status and Full biometric scan."
"Yes Sir." My AI, Lyra's voice chimed in through the lab speakers. "Your vitals have stabilized, though your metabolic rate is currently 300% above baseline. I am running a comprehensive diagnostic now."
I sat up. The movement felt...effortless. Not just the 'I feel good' effortless, but 'I could jump through the ceiling' effortless. Every muscle felt coiled like a high tension spring.
Though that is to be expected given all the enhancements I have just gained. Though I feel incredibly hungry though.
"Diagnostic complete," Lyra reported. "The Chimera Foundation strain was successful. Cellular integration is at 98%. You have achieved significant upgrades across all targeted systems. However, I should warn you your motor control protocols will require recalibration."
I stood up, feeling the strange new weight of my own body, a body that felt denser, everything feels light across my body, its like you just washed yourself in months and feel utterlyfresh.
I walked toward the far wall of the lab, a reinforced concrete wall. I looked at my fist and examined it. Some of the scars I had gained from my experiments has disappeared completely now.
I didn't wind up. I didn't need to. I simply threw a straight punch at the concrete.
CRACK.
The sound was like a gunshot echoing in the confined space. Pain didn't even register before the shockwave traveled up my arm not as agony, but as a satisfying vibration. I froze. My fist wasn't touching the wall, it was in it.
The concrete had cracked like a spiderweb around my knuckles, chunks of grey stone embedded in the impact site. My fist and part of my forearm was buried into the solid wall.
"Oh Fuck!"
And that was me just throwing a semi-decent casual punch! What the fuck kind of damage could I do with a full blown serious strike!?
As I pulled my arm back, the concrete crumbled away with a grinding noise.
I braced myself for the pain, for the shattered bones and torn ligaments. But there was nothing.
Just a dull throb that faded almost instantly. I looked at my knuckles. They were scraped, bleeding slightly, but as I watched, the crimson droplets seemed to retreat.
The skin knit together, the blood vessels sealed, and within ten seconds, the wound was gone. Only a faint pink mark remained.
"Lyra, run a test on my cellular regeneration rate."
I spent the next three hours turning my lab into a controlled torture chamber. I needed all the data on my body. Sure Sif had the same Chimera Serums given, but i was not some alien species pet, i was a Human.
On a unrelated note, Sif actuallylooks more like a wolf now afrer the modifications i had given, specifically because i am capable of even giving body changing modifications even to appearance, much like how i have just given to myself just now, as i can see my reflectionin the mirror i have in the corner of my lab.
I was made into a handsome young looking teen, despite me being 18 years old. I guess that's because my lifespan has definitely increased and I have a degree of longevity now.
My hair had inverted in their colour, it had gone from black to pure snow white and the tips of my hair has turned from red to blue. My eyes were a grey, but still became blue like sapphires somehow? As dor my body, given my increased strength i now have a athletic well built body.
(Image of MC Raime Virex)
I began to test my regeneration next as Lyra needs more information to perform a in depth analysis and prediction.
Small cuts? Gone in seconds.
Deeper slices that drew significant blood? About sixty seconds.
I pushed further, creating deep gouges that would have required stitches in any other human. Those took four minutes.
I even tested bone density by applying controlled pressure and breaking my arm, the pain was mild, but the fracture was repaired in thirty minutes flat.
After Lyra had some time to analyse the results, she was able to assess my current regeneration limits.
If I have a severed limb its possible to still reattach it but it would require being held in place for nearly an hour to reattach it.
As for organ damage, that would take at least less than an hour if not more depending on the damage.
But anything beyond that would be reaching fatal levels.
Next I moved on to durability.
A standard pistol round hit my shoulder; it bruised, a dull ache that lingered, but the wound closed before I could even register the sting.
A rifle shot, however? That hurt. That actually drew blood and required a minute to heal.
"Lyra, calculate lifting capacity based on current muscle density and neural output." I said. I clearly didn't have the equipment to test my strength levels at the moment in my lab so this is all I could do.
"Estimated baseline lifting capacity: 1 to 2 metric tonnes," Lyra replied. "When factoring in the power assist servos and hydraulic reinforcement of your combat armor, your combat lifting capacity increases to approximately 10 to 15 tonnes."
I leaned against my workbench, staring at the data. I started running the comparisons in my head to the other Vault Hunters.
Based on my previous explanations to Lyra regarding my past life Meta Knowledge, Lyra determined that with my current armour and my enhancements. I have a resistance of 90/100 as a value.
Anything that is 85 value is able to damage my armour, and is the equivalent.
The ratings for my defences are as follows with examples:
0 = ordinary unprotected human body
10 = trained/conditioned human body
20 = exceptional human/protective clothing
30 = light body armor
40 = military-grade protection
50 = low superhuman
60 = solid superhuman
70 = heavy superhuman/anti-materiel force
80 = light anti-vehicle force
90 = heavy anti-vehicle/major explosive force
100 = the practical upper limit of durability level of my current armour with my enhancements
A Vault Monster, as previously explained to Lyra, has determined a Vault Monster can have a attack range of between 90-120+
Anything that is 200 should be Nuclear level
Brick, of the original four Vault Hunters of Borderlands 1.
If I wore my full gear, I could lift maybe fifteen tonnes. Brick's average was double that thirty. He was a force of nature. I wasn't at his level yet, not quite. But I wasn't a normal human anymore either which gives me a significant difference.
Krieg, that was a different story. Without armor, my raw physicality was roughly on par with a Sane Krieg the disciplined, terrifyingly fast Psycho. But with the armor? I was stepping into the territory of Psycho Krieg himself. That was a already impressive since physically Krieg is up there with the top Vault Hunters.
But if someone that could actually think and strategise and plan, and fight like a trained operative had those capabilities, then...well they get me. And I have just established myself in the top 5 strongest Vault Hunters out of every single one of the full roster.
Though they have better experience than me, Gaige herself already made Nanomachines at a younger age than me, and Harlow has 5 PHDs and made technology that defied the laws of physics, though I never played Borderlands 4 so I am unaware of the plot and feats of those Vault Hunters.
But im sure none would have surpassed Lilith, she is essentially the defecto protagonist of the Borderlands series at this point and the strongest character in every single game, and the story always finds a way to nerf her or keep her out of the plot at essential times.
Borderlands 1, she already is strong enough to fight against The Destroyer along with the other Vault Hunters.
Borderlands the Pre-sequel, she is lurking in the background mostly as a NPC.
Borderlands 2, she performs some crazy feats in the background and in the story until Jack ambushed everyone and places the Siren Slave Collar on her to control her towards the end.
Borderlands 3, she goes up against Nyriad's PhaseLeech inheritor Tyreen and Troy and gets drained of her powers for the whole story, and when she does get it back she used PhaseWalk to teleport the entirety of the Moon Elpis halfway across the Galaxy.
As for Borderlands 4, who knows, she maybe got side line again.
Next of i tested my speed next. I ran on the lab's high speed treadmill, pushing until the belt screamed. My bare running speed clocked in at nearly 100 km/h. With the armor's boosters? I hit 140. I vould run even faster, but this was my limit paired with my reaction time since any faster would be dangerous or detrimental to me.
My reaction time was in the milliseconds I could see the world moving in slow motion when I focused.
My senses sight, hearing, smell were all amplified three to five times over. The world was loud, bright, and overwhelming, but I could parse it.
After going to my personal hologram combat training room, at maximum energy output simulating non stop combat against Master level training holograms I can maintain peak performance for approximately 8 to 12 hours before needing nutrients. Since i had learned one negative about my body, my Metabolism is fast as fuck and burns through me.
As for my lungs capacity, I can hold my breath underwater for half an hour.
After all those tests, I was certain of one thing. I was ready to finally leave for Pandora.