War Act I: Factory of Heroes

Prologue

Ark Acedia - Tristitia: The Cocoon

1047AE M06D01 0800H

"Subject 42950," A female robotic voice called out. "Step forward." A young man in white clothes steps forward to the center of a circular platform, then mechanized arms sprouted out of the spherical room surrounding him.

"Subject 42950, put on the HUD interface presented upon you." A black metallic mask was handed over to him. As he wore them, it started covering his entire head. First, it was darkness, then the inside of the mask lighted up, flickering as it took him to an entirely different room. An old wooden house with nothing much inside.

He touches his face in curiosity, felt nothing but his bare skin. The door opened. "Subject 42950, any discrepancies with your HUD?" A woman in white robes steps forward, slowly inching towards him. He put down his hand and answered back. "None,"

Three more maidens appeared out of nowhere, boxing him in. "Subject 42950, we will now integrate you with the system's physical interface, bear with us for a moment." Each put a hand on him, then the scenery flickered, bringing him back to the white room, now filled with atrocious mechanical arms.

Every arm systematically started clasping at his extremities, pierced needles along his spine, adding wires, tubes, and machinery all over his body. He coughs a bit of blood. The maiden on his right wipes it off his face. "Subject 42950, please check your parameters before we proceed."

He flicks his wrist, a console appeared before him. "System... Character... Status." he labored through the commands. Browses through, then said. "All good,"

"Subject 42950... please present a proper name for the system." The maiden on his left asks while gesturing towards the one on the front. Looked at System then said. "Matrean"

The maiden in front opened up a console and started inputting commands. "Subject 42950, Name, Matrean; Sex, Male; Age, 18; Affiliation, Nemesis..."

The scenery started flickering again. Bringing him back and forth the white room. Then total darkness.

The maiden in front appeared from the shadows wearing a bloody tunic. "I will now integrate your consciousness with the system — standby". She grinned, showing bloody jagged teeth then...

Everything went black.