"103rd…Imperial…Prison?" Hao Xuan repeated the words absentmindedly before looking up at the engraved face once again.
"You are a…God of War…? A real God?" he was truly overwhelmed looking at the alien god.
This was the first time Hao Xuan was seeing a bonafide God, or what one looked like at least. The Fiend God Ensis came from was but an illusion, if even that. And Ryfon's master although a half-god was still part human.
"Are god's really so…powerful?" he couldn't help but murmur.
Ever since coming to this world he had seen the 'gods' symbols every now and then. Their temples, worshippers and even clones, but were they really an omnipotent or omniscient species? The ones that created everything? Was there nothing stronger than them?
While Hao Xuan staring at God of War's face in a daze, Baracus's voice echoed in his head.
"Step away from the gate! QUICK!" he shouted urgently.
But Hao Xuan was so out of it that it took him a couple of seconds to really wake up and by then, it was too late. The mechanism had started.
Purple rays of lights erupted from both the left and right of the gate and shot towards Hao Xuan. Even if he wanted to get away now it wouldn't be possible since he was not faster than the speed of light.
His pupils contracted as every single hair on his body stood straight up. He tried to step out of the way of the lights but he had only raised one foot when both light rays connected with his body.
*Fwoop*
He blanked out for a second from the sudden impact. Even though it was just light, it somehow had mass, which should not be physically possible. Yet Hao Xuan felt like his very soul was almost thrown out of his own body from the force.
It felt like getting sandwiched between two colliding trucks.
Veins became visible on his neck and arms as he tried to struggle free, but to no avail. He couldn't move an inch.
And then from the corner of his left eye, he saw another beam of light coming towards him. This one was much brighter and concentrated. Before he could even think, it reached his head and went in.
Hao Xuan's eyes rolled back into their sockets as he started foaming from the mouth.
But a short three seconds later, they stopped.
Hao Xuan fell down to his knees, his eyes returning back to normal. Steam was coming off his body like he had just come out of a hot shower in the middle of winter.
*THUMP-THUMP*
In unison, the two hearts pounded loudly like canons in his chest and he was forced awake.
*Gaaaasp*
*Huff*
*Huff*
*Huff*
"What…the…FUCK!" he yelled while panting heavily. It felt like he had just run a marathon in his old body.
The sensation of aching pain and sore muscles was one he had not missed.
"Bara…cus, what…was that?"
*Bee-*
The usual beep that would sound every time Baracus was about to speak got cut off prematurely.
"Ca- hear m-" static and broken voice sounded in his head. It was like listening to an old radio.
"Hell- can yo- hear me?" Baracus spoke again, this time much better than before.
Hao Xuan's legs were still too weak so he used his hands and dragged himself away from the door while replying back to him, "Yeah, I can, more or less. What happened? What was that?"
"A security scan."
Hao Xuan paused as his brow twitched in anger, "You mean to tell me, a god damned security scan almost killed me just now?!"
"Affirmative. But in your defense, it was a very powerful scan. Hybrid of both high-end tech and some kind of powerful magic," Baracus clarified.
Hao Xuan chuckled while grinding his teeth in pure anger, "Oh well, as long as it was a "powerful" scan, then it's all okay."
A brief period of silence followed as Hao Xuan reached a far enough distance he deemed safe and laid down on the dusty stairs to rest.
"….sarcasm?" Baracus asked.
"No, I like getting my ass kicked by 'scans'," Hao Xuan replied in an even more sarcastic tone.
"Why are you angry at me? I tried to warn you."
"Shut it. Speak if you have anything of value to add to the conversation," Hao Xuan retorted angrily.
That so-called scan had completely rattled him. Both his physique and spirit centers were shaken to the core. The headache he hadn't felt in a few hours returned once again. His head was ringing like a bell.
"Well, I did get something," Baracus continued, "There seems to be some kind of an intelligence behind the scan. It found out about me in a second and thinks I am in control of your body. It sent over some form of a message or warning."
*Sigh*
Hao Xuan let out a deep breath, "Let's hear it then," he said dejectedly. Baracus started reading the message:
"The prisoner has escaped."
"Corruption has spread beyond what was expected. Containment protocol is in effect but disintegrating quickly."
"Unable to reach the God of War."
"The first directive has been activated. Warden must be replaced at once to help stop the spread of prisoner's corruption."
"Danger Level: Cosmic."
