Chapter 10: [10] Welcome To The Crown
Xavier plummeted through the void. Colors streaked past him—electric blue, molten gold, crimson, violet—stretching into infinite ribbons that wrapped around his falling form. Information flooded his consciousness, downloading directly into his brain.
Mother: Elaine Valentine. 42. Nurse at Mercy General, Los Angeles mainland. Divorced when you were 2. Father unknown.
Home: Apartment 1103, Midtown Heights, Island Two.
Background: Awakened at 16 during a mugging. D-rank assessment. Scholarship to Catalyst contingent on maintaining minimum performance metrics.
Current funds: $4,820 dollars.
Xavier's mind struggled to process the data dump while his body continued falling. Memories that weren't his blended with his own. He remembered growing up in a small apartment. His mother working double shifts. The smell of disinfectant that clung to her scrubs. The way she'd stroke his hair when he had nightmares.
Not real. Not real. Not real.
But it felt real. The manufactured memories carried emotional weight—birthday cakes with precisely one candle for each year, homework spread across a kitchen table, arguments about curfew.
His descent accelerated. The void below opened into a brilliant white light. Xavier closed his eyes as he plunged through.
"—attention passengers, we are beginning our final approach to Nexus Point."
Xavier's eyes snapped open. He sat in a plush leather seat, safety harness secured across his chest. Around him, other passengers chatted or stared out panoramic windows. Beyond the glass, open ocean stretched for miles, broken only by three massive islands rising from the depths.