Chapter 52: Ares Combat Simulator
Orion exhaled slowly, closing the restricted archive files on his console. House Valken. The Genesis Strain. The erased history. Every piece of information he uncovered only raised more questions—questions that led to dead ends, redacted records, and a creeping sense that someone was watching.
He needed to sharpen his mind. To ease the pressure, he would train.
Not just for the sake of improvement, but to reclaim control—over his thoughts, over his focus.
Orion leaned back in the private observation booth, arms crossed, his eyes locked onto the live duel feed displayed across the panoramic screen. He had seen countless fighters in Ares Combat Simulator (ACS)— Aristocrats trained with polished forms, mercenaries with battlefield efficiency, even Dominion fighters wielding brutal, hyper-aggressive styles.
But this one was different.
The fighter, identified only as Kieran, his movements weren't beautiful, but they were deliberate. A quiet kind of control ran through everything he did.
Orion watched as Kieran faced an opponent wielding a saber, the blade cutting through the simulated air in vicious arcs. His opponent was fast—predictable to a trained eye, but still fast. Yet Kieran never reacted in haste.
Instead, he moved at a deliberately measured pace, controlling the space between them.
Orion's grip tightened on the armrest.
He's shaping the fight.
Not with overwhelming offense, not with flashy parries—but by making his opponent move where he wanted them to.