Chapter 208: Pandora

DAY 528

On June 13, the starnet experienced large-scale fluctuations, causing many areas to go temporarily offline. The federation announced that it would carry out emergency repairs and upgrades on the Starnet.

[Diary of a senior researcher]

[U2625 should not know how to bring the starnet back into his control, yet used this as an excuse to negotiate with the senior management of the Research Institute. How is this possible? Although the starnet is indeed built with his spiritual power as the source, he should only be able to provide energy to the starnet in one direction, he shouldn’t be able to exert influence on the already formed starnet in turn… I am terrified, these experimental subjects are too scary. I used to think that U2625 was the docile one of the two, but I didn’t expect him to be the one with deep scheming and secretly accumulating power… At the same time, the attack power displayed by the other experimental body was even more impressive. I am terrified…

Such an existence shouldn’t have appeared in this world. Our Institute’s actions are blasphemous. Once it gets out of control, it will bring about even more terrifying disasters… I have never been more aware of this than now, my hair is falling out in clumps and I can’t sleep all night. When I close my eyes, I can see the whole world consumed by flames and terror.

We joked that this plan was Pandora’s box and now that I think about it, it’s probably the most accurate prediction.

I conveyed my concerns to the higher-ups, but they only saw the infinite commercial and military value behind these two experimental subjects and ignored the great danger hidden in them… My God, I hope everything won’t go in the direction I am afraid of…

…

My resignation was dismissed, many of my colleagues seem to have a similar experience, but they kept quiet about it, I also don’t dare to mention it.

It was said that higher-level forces are convinced of potential of this project, the Bureau of Secrecy has stretched its hands longer and longer.

Although this department was established after the creation of starnet, its rapid development of power is something none of us expected—— now all the people in the interstellar network had connected their spiritual power to the starnet, and the power transferred by U2625’s allowed this department to obtain terrifying powers that we can’t imagine. It could know everyone’s thoughts, see all traces on the starnet, all chats and conversations with others… Thank goodness the institute uses an independent network, but I still fear that my words may one day become a dagger capable of destroying me.

After all, there are some very bad rumors about the Bureau of Secrets, and some bizarre disappearances seem to point to them…

I hope my thoughts are wrong.

…

Today, the director asked me to come and have a talk. He seemed to have read my resignation letter carefully and his attitude was very kind.

He told me the specific content of the deal between U2625 and them, in which he gave up the power he had secretly accumulated for several years, just for the experimental subject who had only been with him for two years… This surprised me a lot. Unexpectedly, human emotions were actually hidden in his heart… But this also means that the Research Institute has enough ways to contain him… Unexpectedly, the fetters born between two creatures that only have each other actually became the most powerful tool of the institute.

The director told me this to reassure me that things are out of their control.

But for me, I just couldn’t help but think about the experiments I did on them, I felt sick, and as soon as I get back to the room, I held onto the toilet to retch, but I couldn’t spit out anything.

For so long I’ve believed — or perhaps just deluded myself — that they were just our ladder to progress, a necessary sacrifice to contribute to the advancement of science, the same as the guinea pigs and frogs I used to experiment on in the academy…But obviously, I was deathly wrong…

Although they were born in the laboratory, they are indeed human beings…Since this is the case, can those failed and processed experimental subjects be considered…

I dare not think about it.

God, what have we done?

…

I began to resist going to work. I could no longer feel that my job was to contribute to humanity. I could not look directly into the eyes of those two children that were wide with pain.

For me, every minute and every second was like living in hell.

I submitted my resignation to the institute again, hoping that this time I would be able to leave. ]

The diary ended here and never was updated again.

·

Two huge, bright transparent compartments stood opposite each other, separated by a special partition in the middle.

The compartment was empty.

All of this was constructed of materials that could isolate the impact of mental power.

It was still too dangerous for the two experimental subjects to continue to get along and there were too many factors beyond their control, so the Research Institute finally decided to manage the two separately. U2625 had no objection to this —— he also seemed to be clear of the price of exposing his cards.

So he just asked for the next best thing: six hours of time together every month-to confirm whether the transaction between the two parties was effectively executed and he would promise not to try any more plans. The Research Institute agreed. After all, for them, they could control the two experimental subjects to a greater extent only on the premise of ensuring a sufficiently strong bond between the two experimental subjects.

This process had been going on for a long time without any mistakes.

Soon, with a few beeps, the door of the compartment was opened.

The boy was thrown into the compartment.

He looked thinner and taller than anyone his age, appearing strong and agile.

His black hair was curled up disobediently in all directions and there was something wild and unruly in his eyes.

He grinned, revealing his snow-white sharp canine teeth and obediently raised his hands, letting the highly vigilant and heavily armed guards undo the electric shackles on his wrists.

The guard stared at him as if watching an extremely dangerous beast.

As if he didn’t want to stay here for one more second, he turned around and left in a hurry after taking off the shackles.

The door closed.

The experimental subject sat on the ground calmly, rubbed his wrists and then raised his eyes to look at the opposite compartment.

The other party was obviously already waiting there.

U2625 had a tall posture, although his face was slightly immature, but his shoulders and chest were showing the strength and posture of a young man, the sharp jaw line was gradually becoming clear, a pair of dark eyes was emotionless and deep, revealing the not bothered with anything or anyone indifference.

He stood closer to the compartment and looked over here, obviously having a panoramic view of everything just now.

”You’re late,”

he said.

The boy shrugged his shoulders: “I just had some fun on the road.”

He was like a creature that could never be trapped in a cage, that kind of unruly nature seemed to be indestructible no matter what he experienced——U2625’s sight moved down and landed on the young man’s wrist. The slender wrist bones were embedded with deep scorching marks, the skin hidden under the sleeves was covered with scars and there were new marks that hadn’t healed yet.

His brow wrinkled fiercely.

The boy narrowed his eyes and looked at him. His dark pupils shrank like a cat’s under the bright lights of the laboratory. He suddenly asked,

”Is there any this time?”

U2625 stared at him for a moment, not answering before he reached out to the pockets of his clothes.

He took out a candy.

The boy’s eyes lit up, and then his face sank again, he pursed mouth aggrieved: “Just one?”

“They knew I would bring it to you.” U2625 replied: “So recently my supply has also decreased.”

”Stingy.” The boy wrinkled his nose, raised his hand to take the candy stuffed in from the vent, peeled off the package skillfully and stuffed the candy into his mouth.

He narrowed his eyes, the corners of his brows and eyes relaxed, a childish sense of happiness filled his face, those sharp edges and aggressiveness seemed to be softened at the moment, if the researchers saw the change in him they would be shocked afterwards—— it was unbelievable that the little devil could have such an unguarded, almost childlike moment.

U2625 watched the changes in his expression and his indifferent eyes were stained with warmth.

He pursed his lips, the ice-like shell seemed to have quietly cracked a corner.

He hesitated for two seconds, then stretched his index finger through the vent hole.

The boy glanced sideways at him.

He stared at the other party expressionlessly for a few seconds, then quickly moved his cheek closer, rubbed against the other party’s finger and then quickly retreated as if escaping.

The boy sat down against a corner of the isolation room, curled up his legs habitually, hugged his knees and closed his eyes with a cold face.

Although his face was full of impatience, the tips of his ears turned red quietly.

The young man lowered his eyes, spread his hands, and his eyes fell on his fingertips. The corners of his straight lips raised a slight arc, and then quickly straightened again.

…so soft.

He fixedly raised his eyes to look at the young man who was sitting across from him with his eyes closed and meditating and then followed his example, turned around to a corner of the cubicle, sat down with his knees bent, closed his eyes and began to rest.

In the two connected compartments, only the buzzing of the ventilation system could be heard, so faint that it was almost imperceptible.

The hum sometimes stopped and sometimes started again.

In the dead corner of the monitor, the boy’s fingertips hidden under his clothes flicked slightly.

Under the restraint of the suppressor, he interfered with the exhaust pattern of the ventilation system with an almost imperceptible trace of mental power and transmitted information through the passwords created by the two of them in normal communication.

They were talking mentally.

No one could hear it, and no one could understand it, but them.

·

August 16, 539.

After eleven years, the starnet once again experienced the biggest fluctuation since the last time. Almost 40% of the areas went temporarily offline, 90% of the areas experienced terrible interference, which lasted for more than 15 hours , causing losses in the billions.

The upper echelons of the Federation were furious and demanded a thorough investigation into the cause.

That night, the Institute’s warning sirens blared for fifteen hours.

The Bureau of Secrecy sent additional manpower to the Research Institute, nearby garrisons were secretly mobilized, and a large number of corpses were secretly transported away from the back of the research institute.

——The security facilities of the research institute were completely destroyed from the inside, and the fluctuation of mental power rampage was so strong that it could still be detected three months later.

Only a few people know what happened that night.

It was a well-planned, daring and brutal escape.

However, with one omission after a hundred plans.

Two people, only one managed to escape.