Endless Evolution: Last Star

Jena, along with the woman, walked into the room where inside a massive healing pod hovered Adam. Jena was a doctor, but not experienced or powerful enough to single-handedly cure all of Adam's wounds.

Thus, he was in a special department inside Fort Norton where most of the best doctors as well as equipment were.

Only in a few places inside the Upper Ring, one could find something of this level that was not under the full control of the government, but... now was not the time.

"Agh, you've had a rough ride, but it's time to wake up. After all, it's been two whole weeks." The woman said with a serious look before pressing a panel, forcing all the liquid from the capsule to drip away.

Then, the top lid detached from the capsule, allowing the glass to enter the floor and opening up a passage for Adam.

"Adam!" Jena exclaimed worriedly, about to rush over to him.

Whooooooooooooosh.

But, a wave of the woman's hand stopped her.

"Mrs. Lirla...? Jena said in a puzzled manner.

"Wait. He needs to get up on his own, better get his clothes ready. I think... He's going to need your help." Lirla said quietly, with a heavy sigh.

Jena bit her lip, nodded slightly, and went to get Adam's clothes.

After a few seconds, Adam opened his eyes. For the second time in the treatment, but now thoroughly and permanently.

It was worth realizing that although Adam hadn't suffered any critical wounds, the number of cuts, flesh tears, bruises, and fractures was horrific. One truly dangerous wound would be enough to kill him.

"Where am I...?" Adam muttered slowly, rising uncertainly from the ground and meeting Lirla's gaze.

Step. Step. Step.

Hurried footsteps were heard from outside, the source of which was Jena with Adam's clothes, it was the same one he was used to wearing after Fall Hill Prison.

"Oh, Jena..." Adam smiled, he was glad to see someone familiar. Though he didn't know how long he'd been dormant, he could sense from his hunger that it had been quite some time.

"Yeah... Here you go." Jena uttered, holding out his clothes to him.

Adam nodded.

Adam, like most people, was right-handed, so he instinctively wanted to take the clothes with his right hand, but...

'Agh? Why doesn't it work?' Adam was baffled as he glanced to his right only for his eyes to go wide.

His right arm was gone, still. The wound was long ago healed, the bleeding was gone, and the skin regrown, but that wasn't what Adam had expected.

"What the hell? I woke up a minute ago, but I realize the equipment here is pretty damn good. Why the fuck didn't you give me my arm back?!" Adam frowned heavily with a wave of his hand.

Though he'd never encountered it before, Adam knew that for a decent amount of money, it was possible to grow a new limb, be it an arm or a leg. Sure, it was a complicated and time-consuming process, but not something the Citadel's technology couldn't handle.

Adam expected an answer from Jena, but the look on her face indicated that she wasn't the one to ask.

Then, Adam turned to Lirla, clearly wanting to know what had gone wrong. He wasn't even going to think about the fact that he could lose his arm forever.

Lirla waved her hand as if expecting that reaction.

"Calm your temper and get your pants on first. I'll answer all your questions and explain the situation over coffee. What's more, you're probably hungry, aren't you?" Lirla uttered before heading to the staff cafeteria.

Adam looked at Jena, who was clearly a little embarrassed since Adam was completely naked.

'Well, let's see what's going on here.'

...

Tap.

Adam sat down at the round table with a cup of coffee in his hand. Jena walked beside him carrying a tray filled with various foods and oddly enough, mostly sweets. Adam's body desperately needed sugar and calories.

"Tell me about it." Adam said seriously, taking a sip of coffee and shoving a piece of cake into his mouth. If he had two hands he would have done it simultaneously instead of taking turns.

"To begin with, normally, in the case of limb loss, we try to restore it simply by reattaching an arm or leg to its rightful place. However... When the Harvesters opened Thunder Demon's jaw, your arm had already become nothing." Lirla said confidently with a slight wave of her hand.

Adam raised an eyebrow in confusion. Honestly, he hadn't even thought about the fact that there was any chance of saving his arm. He graced his right-hand goodbye the moment Thunder Demon opened his jaw.

Lirla explained:

"The monster's saliva corroded your arm. It took the Harvesters quite a while to open its jaw without damaging the body of the valuable monster."

Adam nodded.

"Fine, but that's not what I asked. Why didn't you make me a new arm? I'm sure you're capable of it, and I have enough money for it." Adam asked, moving on to the next dessert.

"Adam, first, you have to realize that creating a new limb is an extremely difficult process, but you're right, we can do it. The problem isn't money, in these cases, the government pays for everything, it's that you're a Phantom." Lirla said sternly, pulling her glasses out of her bag.

Adam stopped, shocked.

"Because I'm the Phantom...?"

It sounded completely illogical to him. Well, it wasn't surprising since Adam was pretty ignorant of how medicine worked with Phantoms.

Before, Jena always treated him, and everything was fine, this was the first time Adam had encountered such a serious problem.

"Yes. Look, if some rich guy from First Ring gets into an accident and loses an arm, we'll make a new one for him in a week, do the surgery, and after a few days of rehab, everything will be as it was before. No side effects."

Lirla continued:

"But... Do you really think that your body, the body of the K1-Phantom, especially one as strong and dangerous as you, can be even on 1% compared to the body of a mere human who can't even lift a hundred kilograms?" Lirla narrowed her eyes, staring intently at Adam.

Adam didn't answer anything. He knew it wasn't an easy question, but he wasn't a doctor, so he waited for Lirla to explain.

"Anyway. We're working on making your right arm right now. However, all things considered, it could take three to six months. Possibly even longer, the timeline is very approximate for now, we need tests." Lirla crossed her arms over her chest, with a stern voice, making it clear she wasn't joking.

Adam's eyes went wide as a shiver ran through his body.

"So three months minimum...? Fucking hell..."

Lirla nodded deeply.

"Yeah, and not only that. We'll have to run a lot of tests to figure out how best to clone your cells, but in order to create an arm for the Phantom we'll need your energy. You'll have to come here every day and donate your blood so the cells can absorb it."

Lirla glanced away.

"Well, I think, you understand the process and what awaits you."

Crackle.

Adam clenched his fist tightly, crushing a piece of cake.

"In other words, I won't be able to do anything for at least three months other than donate my blood and waste my time here?" Adam assumed with a menacing look filled with displeasure.

Lirla shrugged her shoulders.

"Don't look at me like that, you think creating an arm from scratch for a K1-Phantom is an easy task? If you were a K2-Phantom, though, you'd have to wait even longer. Don't forget that it's all related."

"What are you talking about?" Adam frowned.

Lirla shook her head.

"About your wounds. To heal a simple cut, your body expends as much energy as a normal person wouldn't even if all his bones were broken and all his organs damaged. The stronger you are, the more valuable every drop of blood is, not materially, but in terms of resources and healing, I think you understand."

Adam nodded slightly, biting his lip and clutching the fist tightly.

There was silence for a while, but something confused Adam. He saw that Lirla was a little unsure as if there was a problem she had to solve.

Then, Adam understood.

"Hey..." Adam asked coldly, "I have another option, don't I?"

Lirla and Jena looked at Adam at the same time, slightly surprised.

"Oh, and what was that? Your deduction and intelligence or instincts and luck?" Lirla smirked, realizing that Adam had guessed everything.

"Most likely both." Adam shrugged nonchalantly, then his eyes grew colder, "Talk."

"Damn, you asked for it yourself. Yeah, there's a second option, and I think it's obvious that it's faster and more dangerous. It's not something illegal though, it's just that the government asks us doctors to offer safer and less drastic solutions."

Lirla continued, "And... It's no small matter that the person who can help you is a real asshole."

Lirla clenched her fist tightly, that was something personal and painful to her.

"I don't want to pry into your personal life, but who is it? Who can help me and how?" Adam asked with clear interest. He wanted a break from Dead Lands, but not to stretch it out for three months at least.

"His name is Magnus Zephyr, and we were married a few years ago. I won't hide it, though he's a bastard, he's a genius and can definitely help you. He's one of the most influential scientists." Lirla said seriously.

While Jena noticed that Magnus and Lirla were married, Adam's mind caught on to something else.

'Scientist... It's not a doctor, nor a military man, nor a Blacksmith or a Harvester... Looks like it's time to learn the difference between them, maybe this way I'll get closer to Aiden Henk...' Adam inwardly muttered with darkness in his eyes.