The relative safety of the crevice was a balm, but Xen knew it was temporary. He was a damaged machine running low on fuel in a potentially hostile environment. Hiding was good, but progress required information, and maybe even some self-repair. His gaze lingered on the [Fragmented Core Integration] skill listed in his status window.
Effects Unknown. That wasn't good enough. What was this core the giant had shoved into him? What were these "foreign components"? He needed answers.
Okay, System, let's try this again. Target: Self. He mentally triggered the [Basic Scan] skill, focusing the intent inward.
The blue shimmer didn't pulse outwards this time. Instead, it seemed to coalesce within his vision, overlaying a faint, translucent wireframe schematic directly onto his own body parts as he perceived them. His arms, legs, torso – all outlined in shimmering blue. It was like looking at an engineering diagram of himself.
Text labels and status indicators popped up, linked to specific parts of the schematic. Several areas glowed with a soft, cautionary yellow. [Torso Plating - Minor Stress Fractures Detected] [Left Knee Joint - Connection Points Strained] [Right Shoulder Actuator - Micro-Abrasion Detected] [Primary Energon Intake - Trace Contamination (Chemical Residue)]
So, the 19.8 missing HP weren't just an abstract number. They represented tangible, albeit minor, damage across his frame. The scan even picked up the corrosive residue he'd stepped on earlier, which had apparently gotten into his Energon intake when he absorbed the crystal – hopefully not a major issue.
He focused on the yellow indicators, trying to will more information. A small sub-window appeared. [Damage Analysis - Passive Repair Active] [Estimated Time to Full Repair (via VIT Stat & [Sheltered] Buff): Approx. 14.8 Hours] [Note: Repair time may vary based on activity levels and Energon availability. Severe damage may require manual repair or specialized equipment.]
Almost fifteen hours? Just to passively regenerate less than 20 hit points? His VIT stat of 6 clearly wasn't providing rapid healing, even with the [Sheltered] bonus. That solidified his vulnerability.
He couldn't afford to take much more damage if it took this long to recover naturally. Maybe the [Micro-Manipulation] skill could be used for self-repair if he found the right materials? Another thing to investigate.
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Now for the main event. He focused the scan deeper, towards his chest cavity, where he instinctively felt his core – the Spark – resided. He tried to analyze the [Fragmented Core Integration] skill, to understand the unknown energies.
The wireframe overlay flickered erratically over his torso. Warning symbols flashed briefly in his HUD.
Blocked. Just as he feared. The Level 1 [Basic Scan] wasn't powerful enough to pierce whatever energies were swirling around his core. It could detect the interference, the foreign components, even identify their energy as relating to "Spatial Harmonics"? That sounded like something out of science fiction, maybe related to the portals or whatever weird energies were floating around this place? Data Unintelligible – great.
Frustration warred with a spark of intense curiosity. He had something powerful, something weird, integrated directly into his Spark, and he couldn't even figure out what it was. Leveling up [Basic Scan] seemed essential, but at 0.1% per scan, that would take hundreds, maybe thousands of uses just to reach Level 2. Was that the only way? Surely there had to be other methods – skill manuals, absorbing data, targeted practice? The System felt intuitive in some ways, like the RPGs he knew, but deeply obscure in others.
He took a moment, forcing his internal processors to calm down. Panic wouldn't help. He reviewed his situation again.
- HP: 80.2/100 (Regenerating at 0.1/min).
- EN: 36.5/150 (Critically low consumption needed).
- XP: 60/100 (Need 40 more for Level 2).
- Status: Sheltered, but damaged and low on fuel. Core mystery remains unsolved.
He needed more Energon before anything else. Venturing out was risky, but staying here meant stagnation and eventual energy depletion. Could there be anything useful in the crevice? He hadn't scanned his immediate surroundings here yet.
Scan target: Crevice Interior.
The blue pulse shimmered, confined this time to the narrow space.
The scan mapped the metal and rock walls, the floor littered with dust and tiny pebbles. It highlighted the trace organic matter again ([Inert Biological Matter - Non-Threatening]). But this time, near the back of the three-meter-deep crevice, partially obscured by shadow and debris, a new label appeared: [Small Metallic Object - Composition Unknown - Faint Dormant Energy Signature Detected].
Something else was in here with him.
Before Xen could fully process that, a sound echoed from outside the crevice – a loud, grating SCREEEEECH of metal scraping against metal, much closer than any previous noise. It was followed by a heavy CLANG, as if something substantial had been dropped or knocked over.
Instinct took over. Xen snapped his attention to the crevice entrance, flattening himself against the back wall. He reactivated the [Audio Dampener] instantly (