After finishing the examination, Boru immediately frowned. Multiple internal organs had suffered varying degrees of damage. Both arms were gone, and fractures were scattered throughout the body.
Without wasting time, Boru injected Maine with a syringe, then leaned off to the side, waiting for him to recover enough before taking him away.
Unbidden thoughts surfaced in his mind. The man in front of him couldn't even defeat that New United States officer earlier—was it really worth going to such lengths to capture him?
Boru shook his head and forced the thought aside. He didn't need to understand it. This was the boss's order, and his job was simply to carry it out.
While he was lost in thought, Maine had already recovered somewhat. His breathing had steadied, and a faint awareness returned. He struggled to open his eyes and stare ahead.
"Looks like you're recovering well."
Boru nodded, then stepped forward and hoisted Maine onto his shoulder.
Though Maine had regained a bit of consciousness, his mind was still hazy. He only felt himself being moved, along with a warm current flowing through his body, repairing the damage from within.
Before long, drowsiness washed over him under the effects of the treatment drug, and he slipped back into sleep.
Boru carried Maine to an open area, looked up at the sky, and waited. Soon, an armed AV bearing the PROJECT emblem descended slowly.
Two medical robots emerged and lifted Maine aboard. Boru then turned and left. He still had other tasks to complete—bringing Maine back was only one of them.
...
"So this is Apocalypse's compatible host?"
Mudor examined the still-unconscious Maine from side to side. Maine was now submerged in a nutrient tank, and his unconscious state was no longer due to injury, but the deliberate administration of drugs.
"Yes. That's correct. All the supporting equipment for Apocalypse is ready. Now we're just waiting on your side, Mudor. I don't want to see a repeat of what happened back there."
"Don't worry. That incident only happened because someone stormed our base. Who here could pull that off?"
Mudor replied confidently, a smile forming on his face.
"Let's hope so."
Roland responded calmly, his gaze fixed on Maine inside the nutrient tank—now stripped of all cyberware.
"Wake him up. If possible, I'd like to keep him alive."
Roland gestured lightly.
Mudor glanced at Roland in mild surprise but said nothing, simply carrying out the instruction.
Soon, as another drug was injected into Maine's body, his eyelids began to tremble. Then his eyes snapped open, his entire body shuddering as if jolted by a sudden shock.
He stared around in confusion. Realizing he was submerged in some kind of liquid left him momentarily dazed, but he quickly noticed Mudor and Roland standing in front of him.
His eyes immediately filled with hostility. Clearly, he had mistaken them for members of the New United States, believing he had been captured for human experimentation.
"You don't need to look at me like that. I'm not from the New United States. In a sense, I'm actually their enemy."
Roland stood with his hands behind his back, silently observing the veteran leader before him. Toward this man—cold on the outside, but loyal and warm beneath—Roland still held a degree of goodwill.
Maine's gaze didn't change in the slightest. He clearly didn't believe a word of it.
Roland sighed helplessly.
"Forget it. This isn't the time to explain. Right now, you have two choices. First, you become a member of our corporation. We'll grant you power beyond anything you've known—power enough to take revenge on the New United States. The price is that you serve us."
Maine froze. He wanted to speak, only to realize he was still submerged in the nutrient fluid.
"Almost forgot… connect me to his comms channel."
Roland tapped his forehead with a helpless expression and connected to Maine's channel.
"What's the second choice?"
"The second choice…" Roland paused briefly. "We erase your consciousness and remake you into our corporation's biological weapon. We spent a great deal of resources saving you, after all. We need a return on that investment."
Hearing this, Maine actually relaxed.
He was more afraid of kindness without reason. This brutally straightforward, corporate-style explanation put him more at ease.
As for working for the corporation… it wasn't exactly what he'd imagined, but it wasn't unacceptable either. And just as Roland said, what had happened that day still gnawed at him.
Garfield's death wouldn't be forgotten.
"I choose the first option."
"A very wise choice, Maine. Now, please get some rest."
Roland nodded in satisfaction.
"Wait—"
Maine seemed to want to say something more, but Roland had already gestured for Mudor to inject another drug.
Once Maine fell asleep again, Mudor turned to Roland.
"Shall we begin preparations now?"
"Yes. Use this place as the base and proceed with the modifications directly. The Caesar alloy we acquired earlier will finally be useful."
Roland nodded and turned to leave.
He could have simply reclaimed the template, but that would have been a waste of money. His goal was to have Apocalypse debut as the top-tier biological weapon of the current PROJECT.
As resources were poured in, a small base quickly took shape around the site. This day marked Apocalypse's emergence. Roland recalled all external personnel, mainly because he wanted to see just how strong Apocalypse really was.
Without hesitation, Roland approached the still-sleeping Maine and inserted the Apocalypse template.
A blue stream of data-light slowly ignited.
A towering figure gradually appeared before Roland. The body was hunched, encased entirely in silver-white armor.
Above its head were ear-like structures formed from blue energy—sensory devices. Below, fangs and claws made of special alloy and energy gleamed faintly.
Everything remained dim, however. The beast had yet to be activated.
A tail dragged behind it, beastly genes evident throughout its form.
Roland stepped back a few paces.
"Lissandra, wake him."
"Yes."
Hum—
As the energy furnace began to run, blue light flooded every seam and device across Apocalypse's body.
Still groggy, Apocalypse instinctively sniffed the air like a wild beast, instantly absorbing all surrounding scents and information.
"ROAR!"
A thunderous howl erupted, sonic waves mixed with strange electromagnetic fluctuations surging outward. An indescribable fear immediately gripped everyone present.
Crack!
Several panes of glass shattered under the shockwave. Fortunately, Mudor wasn't there—otherwise, he likely would have been injured.
"Can you hear me, Maine?"
The roaring Apocalypse froze mid-step. After a brief moment of confusion, clarity returned.
He took a deep breath and exhaled a pale blue mist.
"Yes. I can hear you, Mr. Roland."
"Is that so? Congratulations," Roland said calmly.
"You've been reborn."
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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