When the morning bell rang, half the students were already in the Cultech lab — not from enthusiasm, but from sheer paranoia about Professor Aldus Grin's "pop evaluations."
Kai Zore and his team slipped in among the crowd. Valerie carried her notepad like a painter's sketchbook, Selena clutched her stabilizer gloves, and Oliver had a small toolkit strapped to his side like a gunslinger.
Aldus appeared from behind a column of levitating holo-drills, his coat covered in faint scorch marks.
"Ah! You survived homework! Good. Half of you made thumbs that looked like noodles, but effort counts!"
A few embarrassed laughs echoed.
"Now," Aldus said, slapping a button on his console, "today's topic — Resonant Bio-Harmonic Veins."
The lights dimmed. A glowing network appeared above the students — bright red lines pulsing in rhythmic waves.
"This, my curious disasters, is the vascular system of every Apex Suit. It carries externalized Bio Energy through the structure. But — and this is where it gets poetic — energy is not simply transmitted. It must be tuned. Like music!"
He waved his hands, and the lines began to vibrate. A low hum filled the air. The hum grew, becoming almost melodic.
Aldus grinned. "Every pilot emits a personal resonance frequency, tied to their cultivation flow. Harmonizing that frequency with your suit's internal veins determines whether your power sings or screams."
Selena raised a hand. "Sir, are you saying we have to… sing to our suits?"
Aldus blinked. "Metaphorically! Though I once had a student who tried literal singing. She set off three fire alarms."
Laughter broke out.
Kai leaned forward, fascinated. "So… if someone's frequency is unstable, the suit will resist?"
"Exactly!" Aldus snapped his fingers. "Resistance creates dissonance, dissonance creates friction, friction causes…"
The entire class chorused, "Explosion?"
He grinned proudly. "You're learning!"
The Resonance Test
Aldus gestured to the rows of training pods. "Pair up. You'll each link your pulse reader to a harmonic node and attempt synchronization. Match pitch, and your node will glow blue. Mismatch it, and it will turn red. Very red."
Teams scrambled to connect.
Kai and Valerie went first. Valerie hummed quietly — not literally, but mentally focusing on calm creative energy. Kai's Divergent Flow crackled beside her, irregular but strong.
The node flickered — red, then orange, then… purple.
Aldus wandered by, intrigued. "Ah. The rare Dual-Phase Resonance. Opposite energies achieving temporary harmony. Keep practicing that, and you might just build something unpredictable."
Oliver and Selena were having less success.
Selena's pulse spiked with anxiety, while Oliver tried too hard to stay analytical. Their node oscillated violently before flashing crimson.
"Okay," Oliver muttered, "maybe my logic hates your panic."
Selena scowled. "Maybe your calm is patronizing."
Valerie giggled. "You two sound married."
Selena turned pink. "We are not—"
Aldus cut in, chuckling. "Ah, young tension! Perfect for field testing emotional circuits."
He pointed at the node. "Remember — it's not about dominance. You don't force harmony; you invite it. Think of it as a duet, not a debate."
Oliver sighed, adjusted his breath, and lowered his mental noise. Selena steadied her heartbeat. Slowly, the node flickered… blue.
Aldus raised his arms. "Eureka! Anxiety and arrogance can indeed form friendship!"
The class burst into laughter.
Quantum Bio-Echo Circuits
"Now!" Aldus declared, clapping. "We move from song to memory."
He projected another hologram — a spiraling web of crystal nodes surrounding a core.
"These are Quantum Bio-Echo Circuits, or QBECs — living memory processors that record not just data, but experience. They grow smarter with use, storing the pilot's instinctive reactions."
Valerie frowned. "Wait… they remember feelings?"
Aldus nodded. "Indeed! Traditional data stores remember numbers; QBECs remember fear, courage, excitement. Every dodge, every strike, every failure — recorded as emotional imprint."
Selena scribbled furiously. "That's borderline sentient!"
"Borderline is where the magic happens!" Aldus said.
He tossed a small QBEC sphere toward Kai. "Catch!"
Kai snatched it midair. It pulsed faintly — then shimmered, reflecting his chaotic Divergent Flow as a swirling pattern.
"Fascinating," Aldus muttered. "It's mimicking your rhythm already."
Kai studied the sphere. "So… this could predict movement?"
"Yes," Aldus replied. "A well-trained QBEC anticipates your intent — like a sixth sense. But it must be nurtured. Mistreat it, overload it, and it forgets."
Oliver raised an eyebrow. "You mean… give it trauma?"
Aldus groaned. "No, not trauma — fragmentation! Do I look like a therapist?"
Valerie whispered to Kai, "You might need one after this class."
Kai chuckled.
Demonstration: Echo Reflex
Aldus gestured to a floating practice sphere. "Observe. I imprint an emotional reaction — fear."
He infused it with a quick spike of anxious energy. The orb darted backward.
"Now courage."
The orb shot forward aggressively.
Aldus grinned. "You see? Emotion defines behavior. The Apex Suit learns you before you fully learn it."
He looked over the students. "Your assignment: imprint your QBECs with your dominant focus. Engineers, logic. Fighters, instinct. Artists, rhythm. Whatever defines your creation style."
Valerie cupped hers, whispering, "Let's try joy." The orb shimmered gold, bouncing gently in her palm.
Selena attempted focus — hers froze midair, twitching.
"Mine's… confused," she said weakly.
Oliver's was over-analyzing — rotating slowly, scanning everything.
Kai infused his with calm innovation. It began orbiting him, following his breath.
Aldus nodded approvingly. "Good. Remember — your Echo becomes your partner. Respect it, or it will mirror your worst habits."
He paused dramatically. "I once had a student whose Echo developed sarcasm."
Valerie raised her hand. "And?"
Aldus sighed. "It was funnier than him."
Thermal Flux Layers
"Last lesson today!" Aldus announced, tapping the console. "Thermal Flux Layers. Vital for survival — because even genius cooks if they forget cooling."
Panels rose, showing thin, translucent films threaded with glowing lines.
"These layers use micro-channels filled with phase-change gel. When heat builds, energy redirects through quantum pores, releasing it as harmless photons."
He passed one around. The students felt faint warmth, then watched it vanish as the material flashed briefly blue.
Selena's eyes lit up. "It converts excess energy into light?"
"Precisely! Efficient and dramatic. Nothing says survival like glowing at the brink of death!"
The class laughed again.
Kai studied it thoughtfully. "If linked with FMS, the thermal feedback could stabilize muscle strain — prevent overheating under rapid bursts."
Oliver nodded. "Combine with Phase-Shift Mesh, you'd get adaptive armor that vents heat through controlled luminescence."
Aldus's grin widened. "Now we're engineering! Innovation through chaos! That's the Grimstone spirit!"
Class Wrap-Up
As the bell rang, Aldus clapped once more.
"Homework! Construct a three-layer Cultech model — one FMS, one Resonant Vein, one Flux Layer. They don't have to work, but they must look like they might. Remember: illusion of genius is half the battle!"
Students groaned and laughed simultaneously.
As they packed up, Valerie turned to Kai. "You realize we're learning faster than anyone else, right?"
Kai smiled faintly. "Grin doesn't teach. He provokes."
Selena chuckled. "Yeah. Into panic."
Oliver added dryly, "Into brilliance, if you survive it."
The four walked out together, laughter echoing through the hall.
Above them, the academy lights glowed with the faint hue of gathered Bio Energy — as though the building itself was waking up with them.
They didn't know it yet, but this classroom — chaotic, loud, and full of bad jokes — was where legends were starting to take shape.