novelraw Chapter 43: Start
Chapter 43: Start
Jack opened his eyes, and soon saw himself chained in a bed with high technology straps. In the ceiling there was a white light that blinded him.
Doctor Riza and other unknown doctors then took samples of his blood while they conversed.
"Oh, he is awake."
Just then, Jack tried to move, but was unable to and he was only able to open his eyes.
[Your body has been immobilized.]
[Your stats has dropped down to normal levels due to Substance 44.]
[Substance 44 is a drug that makes one unable to ordinary activities, dropping one’s energy and stats down to 10%]
[Your mind has currently broke down due to Substance 23.]
[Your brain currently cannot process normally.]
[Due to severe drug overdose, you cannot function temporarily.]
[Your resistance is building up.]
[Resistance +1]
[Resistance +1]
[Resistance +1]
[Resistance +1]
[Resistance +1]
[Estimated Time of obtaining full immunity: 24 Hours.]
[During those 24 hours, you would not be able to move despite being conscious.]
[You are suffering from cuts and wounds from blood loss.]
[To protect your mental state, all system has shut down temporarily.]
Everyone in the laboratory was shocked seeing Jack. Even those watching the team behind the thick glass could not believe the test results.
"Is this guy serious? Is he not pained at all?" They said, seeing Jack not react at all when the whole purpose of that operation was to make him react to gauge his limits.
But now, it was like they were merely with a living corpse.
The complete physical report flashed onto the main monitor, columns of numbers stabilizing into red-highlighted anomalies.
Dr. Riza scanned the document quickly. Her brows pressed together.
"...All his vitals have stabilized?"
"One hundred percent," answered another doctor. "Substance 44 should have kept him comatose for at least three hours. Yet—his neural feedback is accelerating. Whatever this guy is made of... his body is adapting far too fast."
Dr. Riza’s lips thinned looking at the other doctor.
"Shan, you run full diagnostics on the nervous system. He was supposed to be unresponsive, not simply awake."
"We attempted. But his synaptic responses aren’t matching any baseline." Shan replied.
"Meaning..."
"We’ll need to open the skull," the doctor called Shan said calmly. "Direct examination of his cortex will—"
"Denied," Riza cut him off instantly.
Shan blinked. "But Doctor—"
"He is the only subject whose neural network didn’t collapse from the dual-drug protocol. Cracking his skull open when we barely understand what we’re looking at? Absolutely not."
On the other side of the glass, the observers whispered in disbelief.
"He’s not screaming... not even reacting..." a calm voice said.
"Is he even conscious? He looks like a corpse." A curious one commented.
Inside the immobilization bed, Jack could hear all of them. He could feel. But his body refused to move.
All he focused on was the timer countdown.
[23 Hours and 15 minutes left before full immunity.]
His vision blurred, then sharpened. The white light above him pulsed like a heartbeat.
Riza tapped her tablet.
"For now, we monitor. If any anomaly spikes, we sedate deeper."
Shan hesitated. "Doctor... should we proceed with the cognitive reprogramming?"
A quiet ripple went through the staff.
’Cognitive... what?’
Even through the fog of drugs, Jack felt a spike of cold dread.
Dr. Riza’s answer was immediate.
"Yes. Begin the mental conditioning module."
’What the fuck is that...No no no—’
Then suddenly a blinding white light appeared before his irises.
[Warning: Mental integrity compromised.]
[Substance 23 is interfering with memory.]
[Brain processing at 9% capacity.]
[Initiating subconscious defense protocol...]
[Emergency response.]
[Shutting down.]
[Going offline.]
But the system flickered and went dark again, retreating deeper.
Two technicians wheeled in a tall console, wires and black-metal restraints arranged like a crown.
Jack’s heartbeat spiked.
"He’s reacting," one doctor noted, surprised. "His adrenaline is rising—he’s hearing us."
Riza observed Jack’s dilated pupils.
"...Interesting. Bring him to Room 3. Let’s see how his brain handles sensory reset while he’s conscious." Then he placed her face directly on top of Jack’s irises and smiled warmly, "No matter what, we must make sure you Employee Jack would be on our side the moment you awakens."
Jack felt the straps tighten, then the bed tilted and began to move as he was carried.
He couldn’t fight. His muscles were dead weight, his lungs burning, consciousness tugged like a fraying rope.
[Your resistance is increasing rapidly.]
[Projected time to full immunity: 23 hours, 12 minutes.]
As they pushed him through the corridor, Jack caught glimpses—white tiles, metal doors, darkened windows where silhouettes watched him like an animal.
Soon, they entered Room 3 which looked like a hospital ward.
But also, it was a circular chamber with clearly one-way mirrors.
Then on the center, a metal chair fixed to the floor was waiting like an execution device.
Shan gestured. "Transfer him."
The bed sealed Jack upright into the chair. Cold clamps clicked around his wrists, neck, and temples.
Riza approached.
"Hm..." she murmured, studying him. "His vitals, resistance curve—none of this makes sense. So I really hope you survive this and recover to be on our side."
She raised a hand.
"Load the first sequence."
The lights dimmed.
The chair which looked like an electric chair instantly hummed to life.
Panels unfolded like steel petals.
A thin beam of light shined directly into Jack’s eyes—burning white.
The monitors around Jack chimed one after another.
Dozens of lines of data scrolled across the transparent screens hovering above his restrained body.
Doctor Riza adjusted her glasses, her expression tightening with every passing second.
Everyone’s focus remained locked on the numbers.
But then—
The faint echo of system prompts only Jack could hear vibrated inside his mind, like muffled chimes in a void.
[Substance 23 attempting to alter identity.]
[System analyzing manipulative stimuli...]
[Successful.]
A line appeared—weak, flickering.
[Mind Resistance (Passive): Skill Created.]
[+1% protection against cognitive interference.]
[Current protection: 1%.]
[2%]
[5%]
The machine whined.
Riza nodded.
"Continue with Phase 2."
A wash of sound—low, vibrating, invasive—filled the room.
Just then, Jack felt something slipping from him, like sand pouring through fingers he couldn’t move.
Yes, he couldn’t move. He couldn’t speak. He couldn’t see. But he could hear and think.
For a moment, his memories blurred. His mother’s voice. His school desk.
[Defending...]
Jack then started to feel something and he was able to see.
"Doctor... he’s staring at us."
Everyone froze.
Indeed—Jack’s eyelids, once drooping and lifeless—were now half-open, pupils focusing, trembling with stubborn clarity.
Riza leaned in, staring directly into Jack’s eyes.
One of the older researchers swallowed. "No one should be conscious in this state."
Riza smiled faintly—coldly.
"Begin Phase 3."
Then she stepped back.
Blue lights ignited around Jack’s head. The clamps vibrated. The entire room dimmed as power surged into the apparatus.
Jack’s breathing quickened.
The fog in his head thickened—Substance 23 pushing back hard, trying to smother what little consciousness he had clawed back.
But then—
A flicker.
A spark.
A new notification forced itself through the static in his skull and soon, Jack felt pain travel into his mind, as he began to shake.
His vision fractured and breath hitched out of him as he started screaming.
In the data in the screens though, everyone couldn’t help but watch the monitors in awe while ignoring his screams.
"Doctor! His brainwaves—this shouldn’t be possible! He’s resisting!"
Riza leaned in.
"...Increase intensity. Let’s see," she whispered, "just what you really are."
The sound deepened into a suffocating vibration that seemed to rattle his skull.
Jack should have felt himself break—until he couldn’t even feel anything as if he was indeed a corpse, only that his heart was beating.
Then, at the same time, something inside him kept pushing back automatically like a spark.
[Level 1 Mind Protection has leveled up.]
[Willpower +17]
[Resistance +12]
Hours and hours passed.
Jack’s body soon sagged in the restraints, drenched in cold sweat.
Riza and Shad remained in Room 3 like all others.
Her eyes glimmered—not with sympathy, but with scientific hunger.
[+ 2 Resistance has improved.]
[+ 3 Resistance has improved.]
[+ 5 Resistance has improved.]
[+ 6 Resistance has improved.]
[+ 9 Resistance has improved.]
Then a day later.
There was silence in Room 3.
But then the sound of a beep sound was heard, followed by another.
Then as if he was just waking up from a good night sleep, Jack soon opened his eyes.
Jack’s own vision dimmed but he was still in the same room. Just that now, he was laid in a bed.
"He’s alive!" Shad then exclaimed.
"Incredible..." Riza breathed out, eyes shining.
"Unbelievable."
[24 hours have passed.]
[You have obtained full immunity.]
[Your body will now recover.]
[Estimated time before full recovery: 54 Hours.]
Through the haze, Jack heard everything. Every voice, every whisper, every footstep, every laugh.
His vision remained black.
But something else opened.
Beneath the numbness... beneath the exhaustion... something hot and slow ignited in the pit of his stomach.
Something primal.
[Warning.]
[Any further aggression detected may trigger an involuntary response.]
’Just you all wait, I’m going to kill you all,’ he thought, the words silent but sharp.