"The na of our ability is Shadow Node".
Hearing that na, Leon instinctively held his breath in anticipation as he waited for Ren Nora to explain and he was not disappointed.
"Compared to Neural Tyrant, Shadow Node may sound underwhelming, and maybe it is underwhelming but it’s what makes a Glitch a ’Glitch’."
"Shadow Node has 2 effects, and the first effect is that it enables to exist as pure data".
Ren Nora looked Leon in the eyes. "This is not the psionic ghost form, this is exactly what it ans, pure data".
"By turning into streams of pure data, I beco impervious to all forms of physical or even ntal damage. The only thing that can damage is attack by trying to hack the streams of pure data that now comprises my being".
"But that’s the paradox," Ren Nora grinned. "Because no other Class Specialization at C Rank has as much WIL, cybersecurity and defense as a C Rank Shadow Node".
"In this form, all of my psionic-related abilities are massively enhanced. There’s no system in the world that I can’t hack if I decide to damn the consequences of infiltrating".
"Existing as streams of data is not just a transformation but a form of existence, a Glitch, a Shadow Node".
"All of my biological senses disappear, replaced by digital sensors".
"The entire internet becos my eyes, ears, and nose".
"I sense everything, I see everything when I want, I perceive everything when and if I want".
"And if sohow, an enemy manages to trap just like you did Sylvari or an enemy manages to corner and heavily damage , it’s incredibly hard to kill a Shadow Node". Ren Nora’s grin turned smug.
"In my Shadow Node form of existence, my body comprises millions of data streams and even if I’m cornered and attacked sohow, I will never die unless all millions of data streams comprising my body are eliminated".
"So long a single data stream survives, I survive".
"This is what it ans to be the ’Glitch’."
By now, Leon’s mouth was already open in awe as he listened with an incredulous expression on his face, yet Ren Nora was not done.
"That’s not all," he grinned. "If you rember, I told you that Shadow Node has 2 effects. All of that is just the first effect".
"The first effect is actually all just passive effects that cos with my new form of existence as a Shadow Node, the true ability is the second effect".
"As a Shadow Node, I have an ability called Primordial Hacker," Ren Nora’s eyes glead. "This ability is not just another form of generic hacking, Primordial Hacker when activated enables to hack the past, the present, and the future".
"..." Leon froze.
Ren Nora continued. "With Primordial Hack, I’ve hacked and learned almost all the available truth of existence and the world".
"I’ve penetrated deep into the past into the deepest hidden depths of history. I’ve seen all of history since Genesis".
"I’ve seen the Tectonic Convergence Era, I’ve witnessed the Hope Era, also called the Genesis Era, and I’ve seen the beginning of the Federation Era, I’ve witnessed all its twists and turns till now".
"The only veil I can’t seem to pierce yet is the veil covering history before Genesis".
He looked at Leon. "But I’ve seen texts, ancient texts that are archived and hidden by the Omnicore Federation".
"I know that the last era of this world before the Tectonic Convergence Era is called the 21st Century, but that’s all I know".
He leaned back on his luxurious chair and sighed. "Compared to looking into the past, looking into the future is far harder".
"Far more restrictions and veils cover the future".
"And compared to looking into the past, looking into the future leaves feeling like needles are stabbing all over my body, every single data stream comprising my being in the Shadow Node form feels the pain".
He smiled wryly and looked at Leon. "Old friend, that’s a level of pain that you’ve never experienced before".
"It’s indescribable".
He chuckled. "But I’ve always been a brave and reckless man. If pain is all I need to do to find you, I’m willing to take it". His eyes glead.
"After years of looking to you to no avail, searching for clues to no avail, that was when I decided to bear the pain and look into the future".
"For you, I was willing to bear the pain".
"It was an act of desperation, I did it simply because your lack of existence or history didn’t make any sense to . I wanted to prove that I was not mad and that everything that happened was not hallucinating".
"I was a desperate man catching straws at that point, moving forward simply for its sake, for loyalty, or maybe for my pride and sanity".
"But who would have thought? Hehe," he chuckled. "I actually managed to find a glimpse of you in the future".
"I didn’t get a clear glimpse, all I saw was your silhouette and the ’Year 714’ then everything else blurred".
"After that, I was bedridden for an entire year just to recover from the trauma of hacking into the future but to , it was worth it".
"I finally managed to find a clue to the best friend that I never knew I had". He smiled wryly. "Very few people can claim to have saved my life, but you’re one of the very few people who can".
"Very few people can boast that without their help, I would be a dead man, long forgotten and turned to dust under the earth, but you are exactly that man".
"I simply couldn’t forget you even if I wanted to".
"This was why even after finding clues about you finally, I didn’t stop. Though I didn’t dare try hacking into the future again, I decided to quietly infiltrate the cyber defenses of the Federation one step at a ti to piece together the deepest secrets and most confidential facts of the world".
"That was when your existence beca even more incongruous to ".
"I didn’t pay attention to it then because we were in the middle of a war. I was the leader, and I was under pressure".
"But thinking back, I realized that you’re not like any other Geneform that I’ve t in all my years of living".
"You were different, you were unique".
"After a long ti of thinking, I recognized where the suspicion and incongruity ca from. You looked far closer to the people that I t in my C Rank Trial than to an actual Geneform".
"That was when it struck ..."
Ren Nora looked Leon in the eye. "You’re a real human, right?"
...
[Nebulas_Juli, thank you for the Super Gift! Man, you’ve made my day. Heck, you’ve made my entire month, I truly appreciate it!]
[Special Appreciation to Nebulas_Juli, Shadesworn, and Adamantis for the Golden Tickets, thanks for the support!]
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