CHAPTER 33: A SINGLE CHIP

"Ah?"

His eyes opened, finding himself staring up at a plain-white ceiling with the hum of fluorescent lights greeting his ears. On the bed, he sat up, looking around with a hint of confusion stirring his head.

A glance down at his body revealed the abundance of bandages that were neatly wrapped around him. From what he could tell, he felt fine, though judging by the fact he was sitting in a medical ward, he could still recall his wounds.

"How’re you feeling?"

The voice came from his right, catching him off-guard as he found a man in the suit sitting in a chair by the bed. By the open curtains of the window with a view of the sunny day outside, the dark-haired, tired man sat, resting his arm on the sill.

"Director?" Seven said, rubbing his head as he looked down briefly. "I guess...I’m alright, just–my head is a bit foggy."

There wasn’t a spot of dirt in the pristine room of white walls and silver tiles. Of course, a medical area needed to be sterile, but it surprised him just how spotless it was.

"There’s no surprise there," Director Ren said with a brief exhale, reaching into his pocket as he slid out a cigarette. "You likely suffered a concussion."

"Likely?"

The Director lit his cigarette, taking an inhale before blowing the smoke out of the opened window, "The doctors can only make guesses on what’s going on inside your body. Truth be told, your body works in mysterious ways."

"Yeah, I’m figuring that out as well," he mumbled.

"You did good out there. It’s not a stretch to say you’ve done more for mankind than a thousand operations could merit," the Director complimented, huffing his cigarette once more.

Despite the words of encouragement, there was a bitter taste left in the young man’s mouth. What remained glued to the forefront of his mind was the Fulminare he battled.

"I couldn’t finish the job. He got away—" Seven lamented, shaking his head.

The Director scooted the rolling chair forward, bringing himself closer to the bed, "Listen, the mission wasn’t about eliminating the Fulminare. Recovering Erebus was your objective—and you completed it."

"Yeah, I guess so," he said.

"Don’t beat yourself up," the man with bags under his eyes said, standing up.

As he sat in the bed, he watched the Director cross the room, heading towards the door before pausing. For a moment, the man just stood there as if considering something before glancing over to him.

"Seven," the Director said.

"Yeah?"

"I’m sure you carry a burden large enough to crush most people. Don’t forget—you’re not alone. If you need anything, I’m always available," Director Ren said kindly.

"Thank you."

With a shared nod, the gloomy man took his leave, reaching for the handle before the door swung open. On the other side, multiple figures barged in without any manners.

"Seven!"

"Huh?!"

—All at once, he was surrounded by his peers, finding himself completely overwhelmed. Before he had the chance to react, his body was hugged by both May and Alexander, one of which had the squeeze of a bear.

"Ow, ow, ow...." Seven winced.

"You made it, man! You made it!" Alexander sobbed as if the one on the bed was his very own brother.

"Err, yeah, I’m fine," Seven assured, patting the large figure on the shoulder.

While he appreciated their concern, he wasn’t all that used to that sort of physical affection. Sparing him from another hug, Shin’s hand gently tapped his shoulder.

"Sorry I couldn’t help you out much out there. Can’t have you doing all the work, as your senior and all," Shin playfully said.

While Shin showed some humility, it was instantly collided with a playful elbow from the girl beside him.

"Ah?—" Shin glanced over.

Lily laughed, "It was a team effort! A team effort—yeah!"

While he sat there, listening to the bickering and laughter of his peers, he couldn’t help but laugh himself. It was a fresh environment for him, a unique experience for the lonely life he’d led.

"Anyway," May said, looking right at him as she leaned her hand on the side of the bed. "How’re you holding up? You were in bad shape when we found you..."

"Seriously, think those wounds would’ve killed a normal person–well, no offense," Shin remarked.

"None taken. But, I’m fine," he assured.

After they caught up, the idea was to group together later that night for a bit of post-mission celebration. As each left the room, he got up, opting to remove his bandages and put his uniform back on.

As he buttoned his blazer, he was surprised at how fresh his body felt.

Stepping out of the medical ward, he found himself in an unfamiliar section of the academy. Straight across the hall, the glass panes peeked into the gardens in the campus courtyard.

"Feeling better?"

The question came from a familiar, monotone voice, though the person it came from was hardly one he knew. To his right, a man a half-head shorter than himself with curly, dark hair and glasses that framed his glacial irises looked at him.

"Err...?" Seven looked at the stranger.

"Oh, right—we haven’t met physically yet. I’m Haoyu, in the flesh," the student in glasses introduced himself.

"Oh! Haoyu—yeah!" Seven snapped his fingers. "It’s good to meet you."

"Likewise. Anyway...I’d like to discuss some things with you. Have some time?" Haoyu asked, tilting his head to direct him.

"Sure."

Down some ways through the branching corridors of the vast academy, he was led by the quiet man. Eventually, he found himself brought to a secured door, only opened by a passcode typed in by Haoyu.

"Right in here," the engineer quietly guided.

The room was outfitted with top-of-the-line computers and monitors that put theaters to shame. With tables littered with trinkets and loose scraps of metal, it seemed like the playground for a tinkerer.

"What’s this?" Seven asked, walking towards the right side of the room where a table housed a robotic arm.

"My workshop," Haoyu answered, typing on a keyboard. "So, what I’d like to discuss is what happened after you pursued the Fulminare threat."

"Yeah...When I got warped away," Seven recalled, looking across the room cluttered with tech.

"Warp...So, you mean that in the literal sense?" Haoyu asked inquisitively, pushing his glasses up.

"Like Star Trek," Seven answered.

"...Right. Got it. Where did you go exactly?" Haoyu questioned intently, sitting on the stool by his computer.

Seven sat himself across, recalling it as he folded his arms over his chest, "Celestius—I think that’s what it was called."

"Celestius? Is that the home base of the Fulminare?" Haoyu questioned, putting his hand to his chin.

"Oh—wait!" Seven recalled, reaching into his pants, pulling out a small, black square. "I was given this when I was there."

Haoyu slid the chair over, accepting the foreign item as he inspected it closely. There was a bit of inquisitive humming and grumbles from the engineer before an answer was found.

"A hard drive. It’s almost worth a laugh that otherworldly beings have such similar discoveries," Haoyu said before glancing over. "Who gave this to you?"

"A mechanic who lived on Celestius. He helped me get back—he’s not on the side of the Fulminare. Trust me," Seven assured.

"Well, just to be safe...I’ll connect it through an isolated operating system," the man in glasses said. "With the tech available to our enemies, a virus of theirs...Well, it could wipe us out."

"That’s scary," Seven said, sliding his chair beside his peer’s desk. "When he gave it to me, he said it would "set humanity two hundred years forward"--whatever that means."

"Let’s hope so," Haoyu said.

Both remained silent as the alien hard drive was carefully inserted into the port of the computer, somehow being a perfect fit. For a moment, nothing happened as both men simply stared at one another silently, then–

A box opened up on the monitor–"225,347 files loading..."

"Two-hundred thousand?" Haoyu said in quiet shock.

All at once, the documents from across the universe opened, revealing to the two men the secrets of the cosmos.

There wasn’t a word spoken between them as they took in the otherworldly knowledge. From the coordinates of planets, to cosmic phenomena, even to the blueprints of inventions out of the realm of possibility—

It was all there.

"Two hundred years? Try a thousand..." Haoyu uttered in utter disbelief at the influx of information.

"It fits—I mean, when I was over there, everything was way beyond what we have on Earth," Seven explained.

"I need to look this over...Though, I wonder...If some things should be kept away from the wrong hands," Haoyu considered, glancing over.

"What’re you saying? You mean the upper brass?" Seven asked.

"That’s exactly what I mean. We have to be logical about this," Haoyu urged, leaning closer, raising a finger to his lips as if demanding tact. "It’s not just the Fulminare we have to worry about."

It was news to his ears, though it left him with more questions as he tried to understand.

"You’re saying our own people could use this against us?" Seven asked quietly, furrowing his brow.

"It’s not a zero percent chance. Listen, if you knew how the people in the shadows operated—well, you’d be wise to be wary, too," Haoyu advised.

Hearing that, he didn’t know what to feel exactly, though chose to trust the peer that he had already fought alongside. There was a certain bond gained through their mission, even if having known one another for a limited time.

"I get what you mean, but...what’re you going to do with it? You’ll have to turn these files over to the U.N.E.D if we want to integrate these findings," Seven questioned.

"I’m going to move some of these to a different drive, and keep it away from any prying eyes. Some of these things–the extraction of emotion, the harboring of life force...In their hands, it can end up worse than hell," Haoyu determined, typing away on his keyboard.

Some time was spent in that room, completely engrossed in the otherworldly findings. From new ways of efficiently using energy, to weaponizing it, to the blueprints of technical creations–

Most of it, he didn’t quite understand, having to be explained by the keen mind of the engineer beside him.

"This will surely stir up a storm," Haoyu said, sliding his chair back as he exhaled.

"I mean, it’s a good thing though, no? We’ve always been way behind the Fulminare in advancement, so..." Seven reasoned.

"It’s a good thing, just a bit vexing is all."

"That’s one thing I’ve always wondered," Seven said, staring up at the ceiling. "The Fulminare...They have more than enough strength to crush us, if they wanted. Yet, they don’t."

Beside him, the man in glasses folded his arms over his chest, staring right at him, "You’re correct. By my own estimations, it would only take one hour for the Fulminare to collapse our capital if they intended to do so."

"Then?—"

"We don’t know," Haoyu answered plainly, sliding his chair close to the desk again, typing away. "There might be an answer here somewhere, though. We can look."