Chapter 3: An Advanced System

"An attempt on the life of a honorable Admiral is a crime at which an equivalent punishment is death!"

The haunting memories from Tris’ trial echoed in the subconscious of Rayleigh Pierce. Laying on his back, he simply stared blankly at the ceiling of his cell.

"I was framed! I never made any attempt on the Admiral’s life! That would have been futile!"

Rayleigh rolled over his crumpled bed, trying to block the memory out, but his mind was a prison on its own. Now laying on his side, he stared at the cell’s wall. His eyes were lost.

"Beatrice Pierce, you have been found guilty of attempted murder and as amended in the constitution of the New World Order and the constitution of Tron, a death penalty is paramount. But since a non-rune member of your bloodline is alive and well, he shall share your sentence. Rather than a death sentence, I hereby sentence the Pierce siblings to 50 years in prison on a Red and Blue Planet. The perpetrator shall serve a total of 43 years, while her brother shall serve 7 years. This case is dismissed!"

"Sons of whores!" Rayleigh blurted out harshly, almost slamming his fist against the wall. "Seven years! Seven whole years in the hellscape of a planet for a crime my sister didn’t commit!"

"Hey! Keep it down!" A prison warden warned as he slammed his baton against Rayleigh’s steel cage.

The frustration in Rayleigh’s voice was as clear as the earth’s atmosphere... not that Rayleigh could remember what the atmosphere on earth looked or like. He couldn’t even remember what breathing the air on earth felt like anymore.

Living on planet BZ-033 (Blue Zone 033) stole his cognition of what his home world felt like.

But that was about to end. Rayleigh’s sentence was coming to an end soon as he had served his seven years sentence. Tomorrow, he will finally be returning back to earth.

◇◇◇

►[ Task successfully achieved ]

►[ The Advanced Romulus System has unlocked a defence system ]

This system message was the first thing that appeared in Rayleigh’s line of view the moment he stepped out the ramp of a space shuttle and his feet connected with the Earth.

The cool night breeze slapped him in the face almost immediately as a feeling of nostalgia engulfed him; that took his focus away from the screen as he enjoyed the scenery before him—clusters of thick dark clouds floated up in the atmosphere, the air itself smelled of petrichor. It had rained not long ago.

Rayleigh’s hands were cuffed as though he was just being detained for the very first time; but that wasn’t the case here.

Rayleigh stood outside the aircraft pad, his head arched upwards, his eyes shut as he enjoyed the fresh air of planet Earth in unmistakable pleasure. He was instantly reminded of what it felt like to live like a human once again.

A slight shuffle behind Rayleigh peered his eyes slightly. "Are you done having an orgasm with the weather?" An escorting officer asked. A smirk played on his face as if he had been waiting his whole life to drop that joke.

"Let’s get your release processed."

Rayleigh stared at him with a cold murderous gaze, a thousand thoughts circling his mind. ’If I ever get powers, I’ll come after you and every other idiot who thinks they can make fun of me.’

After a while of walking, Rayleigh stopped. "Do I need to be detained like a prisoner?" he asked, slightly elevating his cuffed hands.

"As far as the new law is concerned, your release hasn’t been processed and as such, you’re still a prisoner."

Ding!

That sound pulled Rayleigh’s focus away from the sting in his wrists and back to the screen.

► [Advanced Romulus System is now fully active. Are you ready to become the greatest war machine in the entire cosmos?]

◇◇◇

Rayleigh’s release had been processed successfully. After spending the last seven years of his life locked up in a cell on a Blue-Zoned planet, he finally earned his freedom.

But the same could not be said for Beatrice Pierce, his sister, whom one could presume to still be serving a forty-three years sentence on a Red-Zoned planet.

Seven years ago, that day at the Tronstead Court House, during the trial, Beatrice defended her innocence to the charges laid out before her.

Being accused of an attempt on the life of a high-ranking admiral was no small act and Rayleigh knew quite well the extent of his sister’s capabilities.

Killing a person, or even making an attempt on the life of not just anyone, but an admiral who also happened to possess the Rune Gene was far-fetched.

He firmly held on to her innocence, but the new law had other ideas regardless.

Before being separated, Beatrice told him exactly what had happened during her trip to the Tron City.

"I wasn’t trying to kill him, Ray. You have to believe me, I swear!" Beatrice sobbed uncontrollably.

"Of course, I believe you. That’s not even an option here. Tell me what happened, maybe we can find a way out of this."

Controlling herself, she explained. "I separated from my mates when the Admiral called me to his office. He told me I had potential and that he could turn me into a respectable scientist, but only if I agree to be his... pet." The words tasted sour in her mouth.

"I refused his offer but he got angry. He said he’d ruin my life. I wanted to leave but he attacked me. I had to defend myself..."

Rayleigh stumbled upon his apartment complex, worn out from his ordeal of the last seven years. He hadn’t slept in a soft bed, and finally, he was about to relish in that feeling once again.

Even from prison on a foreign planet, he was still able to pay his rent and maintain his living space.

Through hunting for crystals and minerals, prisoners made money for themselves; it was a risky job, but he survived.

Rayleigh’s body crashed onto his bed immediately after he stepped inside his apartment.

Finally, there was enough room to ask an underlying question that he had been impatiently waiting for: What is the Advanced Romulus System.

► [The Advanced Romulus System is a specialized offensive and defensive combat platform designed to bond with a single host. Once synchronized, it grants its wielder access to an ever-expanding arsenal of advanced weaponry, adaptive defensive technologies, and the ability to manipulate cosmic forces. As the host grows stronger, additional systems, combat protocols, and reality-altering capabilities are gradually unlocked. The Advanced Romulus System exists for one purpose: to create the ultimate battlefield dominator.]

"Whoa!" Rayleigh gasped when the screen appeared. He wondered if it did so at his command, or question rather. He decided to test his theory.

"How did I acquire this system?"

► [The Advanced Romulus System was acquired by the host upon the death of its assigned guardian.]

’It’s assigned guardian? So, the Reptilian beast I killed seven years ago was guarding this system. But that beast was a lesser beast. Who the hell assigned a lesser beast to guard something that sounds so important and powerful?’

Rayleigh’s question, this time around, didn’t get any response from the system, pertaining to the fact that it was more of a rhetorical one.

"So what kind of Advanced Weaponry do I possess currently?" Rayleigh asked, chuckling.

A part of him believed it to be nothing but an expensive joke, probably being pulled on him by the prison guards as a welcome gift for when he arrived seven years ago.

Or perhaps this was his mind creating some sort of holographic reality to cope with the trauma of nearly being mauled by beasts on a wasteland planet. All of Rayleigh’s conclusions made zero sense.

Whatever the case may be, he decided to play along with the illusion.

Once in a while, before his incarceration, Rayleigh often played video games during his free time, so he had a definitive knowledge of how the system worked.

"Open main menu."

► ADVANCED ROMULUS SYSTEM

► [ Profile ]

► [ Missions ]

► [ Attributes. (Opens in 18:50:39) ]

► [ Weaponry System. (Opens in 18:50:39) ]

► [ Defense System. (Opens in 18:50:39) ]

► [ Mystery Tab. Locked ]

► [ Mystery Tab. Locked ]

► [ Mystery Tab. Locked ]

► [ Mystery Tab. Locked ]

► [ Mystery Tab. Locked ]

► [ Mystery Tab. Locked ]

"So I only have three available tabs, huh... the more I level up, the more tabs I unlock." Rayleigh concluded on that not so conspicuous fact.

"Also, what could be in the mystery tab?" Rayleigh asked no one in particular. He made a few guesses, but that didn’t make the mystery tab any less mysterious than it already was. He’d have to level up to find out.

His pupils moved to the first tab displaying on the system. "Open profile."

►[ Name: Rayleigh Pierce ]

►[ Species: Non-Rune Human ]

►[ Age: 23]

► [ HP: 10 ]

►[ Rank: unranked ]

►[ Level: 1 ]

►[ Cosmic Affinity: None]

►[ Current Location: Earth ]

►[ Faction: Skylark ]

►[ Threat Level: F ]

"Threat Level F? Please." Rayleigh rolled his eyes with a scoff. "I took out a Reptilian, and I’m certain that the members of the lowest Rune ranking couldn’t handle it without a weapon."

Rayleigh couldn’t possibly imagine himself acquiring an alien system such as this one.

Based on past events, alien systems falling into the hands of humans never ended in glitters. It was etched in history; his history.

Every citizen of the New World knew the story of what transpired in the twenty-first and twenty-second century.

Rayleigh, being a bit of a history guru himself—and based on the description he had received earlier—he knew exactly what kind of system had bonded him.